Chapter 45

Dawson

I wake up cold and realize I'm laying on the hard floor. I'm completely naked. The only warmth I feel is next to me. I turn my head and see my beautiful mate laying there, asleep, her head resting on her folded arm. I come to realize that we are in a hospital room, but there seems to be no bed in this room, just a shackle on the wall and some sort of exam table in the corner. I shift my weight and turn my body towards Ashlynn.

Reaching out a hand I stroke her hair. "Ashlynn, wake up," I whisper, though I don't know why I'm whispering. Her eyes fly open a look of surprise on her face. Without a word, she throws herself into my arms.

"You're back, you're you! Oh I'm so glad. Are you ok? Are you in pain? Can you feel your wolf in your head?" she is firing off questions in rapid fire. I just laugh and say nothing.

"Hi yourself. I feel like I am ok, although kind of tired to be honest." I place my hand on her cheek and give her a gentle kiss. "Drake is there. I guess he was pretty mad at that doctor, he didn't want to let me take over. I've actually never had that happen before, so I am not sure if it was his pent up anger or what, but he says you're the reason he let me take control."

"I'm so happy Dawson. I have been so worried. I wonder if we can take you home now?," Ashlynn jumps up and then looks down at me and realizes I'm still naked. "Oh we better get you some clothes. Stay here," and she runs out the door.

I sit up, pull my knees up and lean my head against the wall. I'd love to just go home and climb into bed with Ashlynn and sleep off this fog. Actually, I'd like to do a hell of a lot more than sleep. I am sitting there with a grin on my face just thinking about it, when Ashlynn walks in with my clothes.

"Not sure why you have that goofy grin on your face, but get dressed." She tosses me my clothes. "I will meet you in the hallway. Dr. Cortez said he'd like to take your vitals, give you a quick look over and then we can go home. Together." She smiles at me over her shoulder as she walks out the door. I don't think I have ever felt so grateful to the Moon Goddess in my entire life, than right at this moment.

***

Ashlynn

We drove back to the ranch, following all the rules of the road, because we were in no hurry. It was so nice to be with each other again, and not in a hospital setting. I looked over at Dawson, who was peering out the window as we drove. I'm certain that I am in love with this man. How could I not be? I wanted to get him home and just spend days ignoring the world, but I knew I couldn't. I was so far behind in my work. Tomorrow was Friday and the last of the mares were rolling in. After that, I was free till Monday. Then the real work started again. The work that makes you bone weary and exhausted. I did have this weekend to look forward to though, and I intended to spend every minute of it wrapped in my mates arms.

Dawson turned his head to look at me and smiled. "Hey beautiful, what's got you so lost in thought?"

I shrugged and smiled back. "Just thinking about how much I'm looking forward to spending the weekend with you. It's been so long. I feel like you have been in the hospital for eternity."

"I feel the same. It was kind of a long time though. I'm not sure of the date today, but if I had to guess, I was there nearly a month. Right?" He raised an eyebrow at me, waiting for my response.

"Yes, nearly. Your mother is still here too. She'd love to see you and spend some time with you. Your dad is due to arrive on Tuesday, then they will be going to their little cottage in town," I told him.

Dawson nodded his head, "yeah I can spend the day with her tomorrow. I'm not cleared to go back to work yet. So I guess while my sexy mate is handling the horses, I can take my Mom to lunch," he gave me a wink and I laughed at his silliness. Sexy indeed. Had he looked in the mirror? Even with the shave he needed and the tired look in his eyes, he was still the best looking man I'd ever seen. My core ached just thinking about him. I clenched my thighs together and willed myself to keep those thoughts at bay. He was in no condition for us to be jumping each other like two horny teenagers. Yet.

We pulled into the drive and entered the security code. The large gates swung open and I heard Dawson let out a sigh. "Home," he said and smiled. I looked at the clock on the dash, it was close to nine at night. Most everyone would be wrapping up for the day and heading to bed.

"So do you want me to walk you to your apartment? I'm sure you'd love to shower and sleep in your own bed," I asked Dawson, as we made our way up the long driveway.

"What the hell are you saying? I'm not sleeping in my bed. That is unless you're in it too," he was giving me a hard stare. I threw up a hand in surrender.

"Ok I was just checking. But you do need some clothes and stuff. You can certainly stay in my loft with me, I'd rather that anyway," I noticed his tense shoulders relaxed and he sighed.

"Thank the Goddess. Here I thought I was finally home and my mate was tossing me out already," he chuckled. "Our nap on the cold floor killed it for you."

"I would sleep next to you no matter where it was Dawson. I am happy you will be next to me tonight. I haven't slept in weeks. It's been awful," I admitted.

We pulled up in front of the main stables and climbed out of the truck. Cody had just come around the corner and saw us, giving a wave as he walked up to Dawson. "Good to see you man. Glad you're home. How are you feeling?", he asked Dawson.

"Aside from tired, not to bad actually. I'm glad to be back," Dawson shot a quick glance at me and then lowered his voice. "What is happening with the Godsend pack?"

Cody clapped him on the shoulder, "Don't worry about that right now. Go get some rest. You're mate could use a good nights sleep. For that matter, you look like you could as well. We can talk tomorrow." Cody tilted his hat to me and bid us good night.

Dawson threaded his fingers in mine as we walked to the stair well to my loft. He stopped me at the bottom and pulled me into him. "I've been waiting weeks for this," he said, his lips crashing to mine. His kiss was full of longing and hunger. I clung to him, as if I let go he would disappear. After a few minutes, he pulled back and smiled at me. "I'm just going to go grab a few things from my place. Meet you back here in a few minutes, ok?"

"Sure. I'm going to get in the shower. I still have these scrubs on and I definitely need to get cleaned up." I turned to go up the stairs. "I will leave the door unlocked for you." He nodded and headed to his apartment.