They pulled into the hospital parking lot. It was packed, so Logan had to park the rental a good ways away from the front entrance.

“I’m going to go in and talk with Lilly. I want all of you to stay here. She is already upset about Jacque being unconscious for so long and having me here is adding insult to injury, so I don’t want to freak her out more by having a pack of unknown wolves descend on her.” Dillon knew that talking with Lilly would probably be harder than talking to Jacque. He had history with Lilly. The kind of history that leaves a wound on your heart that will never heal. It scabs over, often repeatedly, but when the scab comes off it is just as raw and painful as the day the wound was inflicted. Dillon was lucky, he had his mate, whose presence often held the scab in place. Who did Lilly have, he wondered.

Dillon was brought out of his thoughts at the sound of Logan’s voice. “At what point to you plan to claim the rights of an Alpha regarding a minor?”

“I will decide that after I meet with Lilly,” he told him.

Without another word Dillon opened his door and stepped into the warm Texas heat, and though it was hot, that was not what had him sweating. He shut the car door and turned to walk to the entrance of the hospital. At that moment he truly couldn't say what would be worse, facing a lover that you had hurt, or chewing on a mouthful of thumb tacks. When Dillon reached the entrance and opened the door the first thing he saw was Lilly’s beautiful face. He knew then that he would much rather chew thumb tacks any day over facing the betrayal in her eyes.

Chapter 10

Sally was waiting in the hospital room as her two best friends were brought in. She stood anxiously, twisting her fingers together. The worry she had been feeling for the past month was etched on her tight lips and raised eyebrows which put wrinkles in her forehead.

“Oh, come on Sal. If you keep looking at me like I’m a sick puppy you found in a ditch I’m going to smother you with a pillow in your sleep." Jacque winked at her friend despite her tough words.

“Bloody hell, here I thought I was the reigning female dog in this posse.” Jen grinned at Sally.

"Bloody hell? Female dog?" Jacque raised her eyebrows at her usually snarky friend.

"I'm trying to clean up my potty mouth, you know how near death experiences change how you live and what not." Jen shrugged.

"Jen, bloody hell is profanity. You know this, right?"

Jen looked at Sally and rolled her eyes. "Only to the English so it doesn't count."

"I don't even know how to respond to that," Jacque said dryly.

“I thought you two would never wake up. Jen still looks like a mummy all wrapped up and you look like a freshly cooked lobster," Sally told them as she pulled up a chair in between their beds.

“I was just getting my beautysleep." Jacque looked over at Jen and grinned wickedly. "So what took you so long?" Her implication was clear.

"Oh, Jacque, your innocent little mind wouldn't be able to handle what was going on in my head that kept me from returning to reality." Jen yawned and patted her mouth demurely.

“You don't know, maybe my subconscious is more adventurous than the conscious version."

"Well in that case, as a favor to Fane, we will be sure to knock your ass out the night of your bonding ceremony," Sally said dryly.

Jen laughed, but it came out more like a strangled cough. “Don’t make me laugh, my lungs are char broiled. I feel like a Burger King hamburger, always cooked over an open flame.”

“Your way, right away, baby,” Jacque added.

“There are so many better ways to use that comment than on a stupid hamburger commercial,” Jen said in chagrin.

“And she’s back,” Sally teased as she watched life slowly seep back Jen’s eyes, body, and overall demeanor.

"I need to say thank you. You guys saved my life and I just want you to know I love you both and I will be forever grateful," Jacque told them as she wiped a tear from her cheek.

"You would have done the same for either of us, Jac," Sally told her.

"Well, now that you are forever in my debt I will have to think of ways to put your gratitude to good use," Jen teased dryly.

Sally and Jacque both laughed and rolled their eyes at their forever obstinate friend.

Jen looked around the room, noticing that it was just the three of them. “So where is the wolf entourage?” she asked Jacque.

“They all stepped into the hall just before they wheeled you two in. Vasile took a phone call and when he came back he beckoned for everyone, but told me to wait here for ya'll,” Sally explained. “I figure it must be important if it got Fane away from his woman. He has refused to leave the hospital for even a minute since she was brought out of the operating room,” she told Jen.

“For some reason I can’t say I’m surprised her hottie Mcwolf man is glued to her side. She was nearly freaking killed,” Jen exclaimed.

“You did not fare any better.” A gruff voice had them all turning towards the door. Jacque saw Fane push around Decebel to come to her side. It was Decebel who had addressed Jen’s words, and Decebel who stared at Jen like she had grown a extra appendage on her head.

Jen glanced at Jacque and then at Sally, looking for some sort of clue as to what to say, but neither could throw her any bones because they knew about as much as she did about Decebel, and it added up to zero, zilch, and nada.

“Ooookay, and you would be here why?” Jen asked him with obvious confusion