Chapter 11

Rose

"He's such an ungrateful jerk," Ava says for at least the fourth time since coming back to my apartment.

"Ava, please, just let it go. I have a headache." I'm not lying; I really do have a headache. I'm sure it's the aftermath of the healing. My head is pounding, and I feel like I'm going to be sick to my stomach. I passed out when I got back to my room after healing Maverick and slept for several hours.

"You'll feel better after you eat," she tells me. "Come on."

I really don't want to, but if it helps me feel better, it might be worth it. "Okay, let's go. But I don't want to stay down there long."

"We won't," Ava says as she opens the door and heads out. The walk to the large dining area is quiet. We see a few shifters as we walk down the hallway, but mostly it's quiet. "Where does everybody go?" Ava asked, looking around as she walked.

I don't bother answering. When we get to the large serving area, I feel like I'm going to be sick. But I manage to get a cup of apple juice down. It does help, actually. Ava convinces me to grab a plate of food, and I cave. We find a small table to sit at and eat together, just the two of us.

A few minutes later, I start to feel somewhat better. "Feeling better?" Ava asks.

"Yes."

"You don't look as pasty white anymore," Ava says.

I wrinkle my nose. "Thank you, I think." I glance around the room again.

"He's not here, you know," Ava says without looking up at me.

"Who?" I ask.

She meets my eyes. "Maverick."

"I wasn't looking for him," I say quickly. Too quickly.

"Right." She's quiet for a minute. "How long do you think Garrett will give us before he sends someone to pick us up?"

"I'm not sure," I answer truthfully. I texted his phone right after I finished healing Maverick early this morning and asked him to give us more time. "He okayed us staying for now, but he said he was going to call later." I'm not looking forward to that call. I basically defied his orders; I have a feeling he's not going to be too happy with me.

A shadow looms over us, and I look up. Eli stands over us, and I fight the urge to back away from him. "Cade said you healed Mav." I don't know if he's questioning it or just making a statement. Either way, I stay quiet. "Thought you didn't care whether he lived or died." I look away. "Well, thank you."

His words surprise me, and I whip my gaze to his but he's already turned around and started walking away. "Well, that was...interesting," Ava says. I don't argue with her because she's right. I wasn't expecting that.

"Hi."

I look up startled and see a beautiful girl with long dark hair standing in front of us. "Hi, I'm Sara." She sits down across from us before I realize what's happening.

"Sure, have a seat," Ava mutters under her breath, earning an elbow from me.

"I'm Rose," I finally say, remembering my manners. When Ava doesn't say anything, I add, "And that's Ava."

"It's so nice to officially meet you. I've heard so much about you." She grins and looks over her shoulder and waves at somebody. I turn to Ava who gives me a deadpan look. "This is my younger sister, Sabrina."

"Noticing a theme here," Ava mutters again. I give her a look and face the newcomer.

"Hi, Sabrina, I'm Rose and this is Ava," I say to the girl who looks almost exactly like her sister, earning me a grin from this sister.

"We know who you are."

I nod, unsure what else to say. "So how do you like it here?" Sara, the older one, asks.

"It's uh, nice," I manage to say. The two sisters exchange a grin, and I feel like I'm on the outside of a joke.

"You must not be experiencing the life of the pack," Sara says. "You need to hang out with us. We can show you all the cool places and all the cool people, especially the guys in town," she says and wiggles her eyebrows.

I'm confused about their actions. "I thought all wolves had a mate, and you didn't like date around."

"Yep, that's right," Sara says, never losing her smile.

"But that doesn't mean you two can't have fun, and we can live vicariously through you," Sabrina says.

"So, when are we planning a trip into town?" Sara asks.

I look at Ava, but she doesn't say a word, leaving me to deal with it. "That's really nice, but I'm staying busy here. And um," I don't know how to say the next part about the fact that technically Maverick is my mate. Just thinking those words makes me sick.

"You two obviously don't know what's going on here," Ava says dryly. "She's Mavericks' mate. So I don't think there will be any going into town to check out the boys."

Both girls are silent for exactly one nanosecond. "You're Mav's mate?" Sabrina practically squeals.

"That's crazy!" Sara says her eyes dancing with delight. "Tell us everything. Did he bite you right away?"

"Does he do that bad boy routine where he just scowls at everybody?" Sabrina gives a look that I get the feeling is supposed to be imitating Maverick.

"You must have been so worried when he was sick," Sara says and then her eyes widen. "You healed your mate! That's why they brought you in. That must have been so romantic. Did you cry when he woke up? Did he cry?"

I blink at all the questions. "Um, you guys have met Maverick, right?" Ava asks.

They look at each other and laugh. "Of course we've met him; he's our beta."

"Then you know what a jerk he is."

"Ava!" I hiss. She's too far away for me to elbow; she must have learned her lesson.

"What?" she asks, totally unfazed.

I face the two girls. "Um, I don't think things with, uh, Maverick are exactly as you're thinking," I hedge.

"What do you mean?" Sabrina asks, curiosity in her gaze.

I take a calming breath. I am not equipped to handle these two. "Well, it's just that we aren't' exactly...we haven't uh..."

Ava rolls her eyes. "They've barely spoken to each other. And each time Maverick opens his mouth, we're all reminded that it's a good thing he doesn't speak much."

Sabrina and Sara exchange a glance. "Are you saying you're not mated?" Sara asks, eyes wide.

Feeling my face heat, I just nod. I'm suddenly feeling tired and ready to get back to my room. "Did you reject him?" Sabrina whispers, her eyes as wide as her sisters.

"No, I didn't. We haven't..." I look at Ava, but she's absolutely no help. I sigh. "There's been nothing between Maverick and me. I barely know the guy. We met, and we spoke a few times." Ava gives me a look. "Okay, we mostly argued. Then he left and came here, and I stayed in the Northwoods Pack. I haven't seen him in months. The only reason I'm here now is your alpha came to our pack and asked for a healer. I volunteered for the job, drug Ava with me, and now here we are. Actually, I'm pretty sure he hates me or at least hates that he got stuck with me, a weak, human healer. But I won't be here long. We don't have to run into each other or speak. I just need to do my job and then get back to the Northwoods Pack." I take a breath after my word vomit. I'm about ready to apologize when the girls burst out laughing. I frown and look at Ava who just shakes her head and looks away. I can't help it. I finally blurt out, "What's so funny?"

Sara shakes her head. "You obviously didn't grow up in a wolf pack."

Feeling a little defensive, I say, "Well, no, but I've lived with the Northwoods Pack for over a year now."

"And how do they treat their mates?" Sara asks pointedly.

I squirm in my seat, wondering where she's going with this. "Um, they're pretty attached." This causes Sara and Sabrina to crack up again.

"Sorry," Sara says wiping her eyes. "Our brother Sam just got mated, and he nearly took the head off another guy in our pack because he looked at his mate." She shakes his head. "Male wolves who have just mated or even worse have found their female but haven't mated yet are extremely aggressive and dangerous. And a guy like Mav?" She laughs but it's not full of humor. "You are in for it, Girl."

I shift uncomfortably in my chair. "I don't think you understand. Maverick isn't into me...like that." I lower my voice. "I'm pretty sure he hates me."

Sara and Sabrina both wear matching expressions of sympathy. Sara reaches out and pats my hand. "I'm sorry you feel that way. Maverick has always been a tough one. I don't even know him all that well, and he's been in our pack for like forever."

The way she says it catches my attention. "He didn't grow up in this pack?"

"No," Sabrina answers, glancing at Sarah. "He's pretty private; he transferred here from another pack."

I'm curious to know more, but I remember Cade saying that it was Maverick's story to tell. I wonder what it is, since obviously Maverick is never going to open up about his past to me. That much is obvious. "I'm sorry if Maverick has been a jerk to you," Sara says, patting my hand again. "Want us to talk to him? Set him straight?"

"Oh, no," I rush to say.

Sabrina laughs. "She's kidding."

"Well, sort of," Sara says. "I really am sorry that things are so rough with him, though." Her eyes hold compassion. "Give him time. He'll come around; I promise. His wolf won't let him do otherwise."

"Yeah, he might be having a hard time with things; but his wolf will be pushing him to mate you," Sabrina says.

I grimace and chance a glance at Ava, whose eyebrows are nearly to her forehead. "Uh, yeah. Okay. Thanks."

"We need to get going," Ava says, finally coming to my rescue.

"Yes," I say breathlessly. "It was nice to meet you both."

"It was nice to meet you both too," Sara says. "We'll hang out soon."

"Yes, soon," I repeat back and then follow Ava. We're almost to the exit when somebody calls my name. I turn around, trying and probably failing to keep a pleasant expression on my face.

"How are you feeling, Rose?" Alpha Cade asks as he approaches. "I'm sure that healing wiped you out."

"I had a long nap and am feeling much better. Thank you."

"Good. I wanted to tell you. Maverick is going to be away for a few days, so if you don't hear from him, that's why." Unsure why he's telling me this, I just nod. "He thought he would heal best being in his wolf form for a few days."

"Okay," I finally say because I feel like he wants me to say something.

He runs a hand over his head. "Garrett called and wants to know when to send a jet." His words are calm, but I pick up on the distress beneath them.

I take a deep breath to try and steady my nerves. "I told you I would come help heal your pack. I don't plan on leaving until I finish that obligation."

I can almost see the weight come off his shoulders. "Good." He takes a deep breath. "That's really good to hear. Thank you," he says earnestly, looking me in the eye.

"I'm not sure what to tell Garrett, though," I tell him honestly.

"I'll handle Garrett and run interference; don't worry about him."

"Thank you. Who do I heal next?"