Filed To Story: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
“Stop that!”, Maya exclaimed. “What are you saying? Dayson saved you because he cares about you. No matter where you went, he would find you. If you went with rogues obediently, Dayson would not stop until he found you, and that would be in their territory, and it would end up much worse than this. Besides, you wouldn’t go to the forest if you knew rogues were there. And” Maya paused. “Why were you in the forest? I thought that you were supposed to prepare rooms for guests.”
Talia opened her mouth and then closed it. She didn’t want to say that Lisa got her upset, and she needed some air.
“I finished early and thought of enjoying the forest a bit before going to study.”
“So, you went for a walk?”, Maya asked and when Talia nodded, Maya said, “That was quite a walk.”
Talia guiltily avoided Maya’s gaze. “I didn’t realize how far I went.”
Maya knew that Talia was hiding something, but since Talia didn’t want to talk about it, Maya let it slide.
Jaeden and Travis returned, and Jaeden gave Maya a small nod before speaking in an official tone. “Alright. Our current plan is that Maya and I will return to the packhouse and deal with any work as usual. We don’t want to alert people this happened. The official version is that Alpha Dayson defeated four rogues. If anyone looks for him, we will say that he is in the pack hospital with Talia because she got hurt.”
Jaeden turned to Talia. “Talia, you will stay here and watch over Dayson. Doctor Travis will handpick nurses that will come here. They will bring you food and I will make sure that trustworthy guards are outside. Other than the four of us, no one will know the complete truth.”
Talia had no objections and no questions. She didn’t want to leave Dayson’s side, but there was one point, “What about the guests?”
Jaeden puffed his cheeks. “Let’s worry about it later. They are due to come in two days, and hopefully, Dayson will wake up soon and decide on these things. Our focus is to prevent information leak until Dayson regains consciousness.”
“Is there something related to guests that is still pending?”, Maya asked Talia.
“We were supposed to buy small gifts for them.”, Talia reminded Maya. “Rose and Kate are probably done with room cleanup by now. You need to verify that everything is ready.”
“Don’t worry about gifts.”, Maya said. “I will tell Stephanie to check the rooms.”
After exchanging a few more words, Maya and Jaeden left.
Doctor Travis looked at Talia with renewed interest.
Now that he knew Talia is Dayson’s mate, Travis also knew she is the future Luna, and he remembered how she suppressed him when he blocked her from seeing Dayson.
What piqued his interest was that Talia was not marked. It meant that the aura she projected was hers only, and that aura was not weaker than Alpha’s.
What is her background? He shook those thoughts away because being too nosy might get him in trouble.
Travis was rewinding all their previous interactions and mentally checking if he offended her. Hopefully not.
“Do you have any advice for me, Doctor Travis?”, Talia asked when she realized that Travis was standing there and staring at her.
She wanted to approach Dayson and hold his hand, but she feared that such intimacy won’t be appropriate in front of Travis, and she couldn’t wait for him to leave.
“Uhm no. I will ask someone to bring you a meal soon. In the meantime, the closer you can get to Alpha, the better.”
Talia’s brows came together. “What do you mean?”
Travis couldn’t tell her that he knows they are mates, and he didn’t want to say that he saw photos in the WW Magazine of Talia and Dayson kissing and dancing, so he decided to throw Betas under the bus.
“Jaeden told me about your relationship with Alpha Dayson.”, Travis gave Talia a meaningful look.
Seeing that Talia only stared at him while blushing, Travis cleared his throat awkwardly.
“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.” Who was he kidding? He was the uncomfortable one. “I only wanted to say that you don’t need to hold back. Alpha Dayson is an Alpha and it would be good for him to feel that someone is by his side. The closer the better. The best would be if you can lay by next to him, the bed is wide enough. Just be mindful of his injuries.” Talia was still not moving, and Travis took a step back. “Aright, I will leave you to it. Don’t leave his side. Food will be here soon and if you need anything else, just push the buzzer.”
And with that, Travis left the room while walking backward.
Talia had no idea how to react to Travis’s remarks, but then, it didn’t matter. By now, everyone saw the magazine that showed photos of them dancing and kissing, and considering Dayson’s reputation, it would be strange not to assume they are intimate. And they wouldn’t be wrong.
Talia’s gaze moved to Dayson and all the unnecessary thoughts vanished.
It was just Talia and Dayson, and Dayson was hurt and unconscious. And she really wanted him to wake up. Right now.
Even without Travis’s advice to get close to Dayson, she would do that. OK, she probably wouldn’t climb into Dayson’s hospital bed, but she would hold his hand. Definitely.
Talia pushed the wheelchair closer until it touched the edge of the bed and she slowly reached to hold Dayson’s hand.
The initial contact sent sparks through her fingers and Talia jerked her hand back.
What was that?
Talia reached to hold Dayson’s hand again, and the same zap prickled her fingers.
She was startled the first time, but now she didn’t jolt away, and the contact lasted for a second before she retracted her hand and observed it.
There were no visible changes on her skin.
Was it static electricity? Was it due to medications she got? Or maybe that blow to her head rewired her brain?
Whichever it was, Talia wanted to feel it again.
She held Dayson’s hand and closed her eyes as the delightful sparks traveled up her arm and seeped into her body, making her feel alive.
It was addictive.
Without knowing how or when, Talia climbed onto Dayson’s bed, on his right, and she scooted under the thin cover that concealed his body from the waist down.
Talia leaned against Dayson’s body gently, careful not to disturb his wounds, eager to experience this tingling sensation wherever they touched.
Dayson was wrapped in many bandages from the neck down, leaving only some gaps of his skin exposed, and Talia was wearing a short-sleeved hospital gown that was tied at her back.
Talia slowly moved her hand up and down Dayson’s torso, testing the sensation with and without thin layers between their skins and she marveled how good it felt.
Even through the gauze and the cotton fabric, the sparks prickled her skin, and wherever they had skin-to-skin contact, it was electrifying.
Talia had no idea how long she was lost in this daze when the door opened, and a nurse came in.
The nurse didn’t look toward the bed, but Talia could see a small smile on the nurse’s lips as she placed the tray with food on the side table and scurried out without a word.
When the door closed, Talia felt guilt swelling within her. She was lost in a daze of this newly found sensation, forgetting that Dayson was unconscious.
Yes, Doctor Travis said that Dayson’s life was not in danger, but when she looked at Dayson’s pale face, her heart tightened painfully.
She needed him awake. She needed to see his intense gaze directed at her. She needed to hear his voice, feel his touch, and this this was not acceptable.
“The food is here. Won’t you get up to feed me?”, Talia asked, wishing that he responds with one of his cocky remarks.
Part of her hoped that this was a dream, a hallucination caused by medications, or maybe it was one of Dayson’s pranks.
“You can stop pretending now.”, she said. “Open your eyes and tell me you are joking. I won’t be mad.”