Marius (17 page)

“What the fuck?” the woman cried out.

Rachel glared at her. “Are you with them, Paige?”

“I’m with the damn hospital, you jackass.” The nurse ripped her arm away and glared at Rachel. “I told them this would be more trouble than it was worth.”

“What about the other nurse that was here?” Rachel asked.

The woman shrugged. “Didn’t really know her. She’s kind of weird.”

Rachel nodded. “I’m sorry,” she said. “It’s been a bad day. The other nurse tried to kill one of the men, and now she’s dead. She killed herself.”

Silence fell between them as she let that sit in. Might as well be honest. Someone had to be.

Marius raced back into the hall.

“I’ve got it,” he said and stopped abruptly when he saw the other woman. “Who the fuck is this?”

“I’m Paige. Who the fuck are you?” The little brown-haired nurse stood as tall as she could.

Rachel placed a hand between them and stared at the nurse. “You ready to work?”

Paige rubbed her wrist where Rachel had grabbed her. “Haven’t decided yet.”

Rachel nodded. “Well, I’ve got a man dying that needs that epinephrine. Up to you.”

She turned and started back to the room. When she reached the door, she could hear Paige behind her.

“So just another normal day at the office then?”

She had to chuckle. At least the little woman could hold her own. That was more than she could say for herself at the moment. Rachel handed the bottle to Paige and stepped into the room.

“We’re going to need point eight for now,” she said and moved to the side of the bed opposite the IV.

Rufus shook much like before, and she knew that if they didn’t get to him quickly enough, it would be his last day. Apollo and Varius held down his body to keep him in the bed, and she ached for them both. None of this was going to be easy on any of them.

“But that’s enough to knock out a horse,” Paige said as she slipped on her gloves and stepped in next to the men.

Rachel nodded. “That’s about right. Put it in the lower. He needs the full dose right now.”

The room went silent as Paige injected the needle into the lower part of the IV. Within seconds, Rufus seemed to be coming back to normal.

“It’s taxing their adrenals,” Rachel said as she listened to Rufus breathe. “They exert any energy and it all goes out in one shot. Then they don’t have anything to help fight, so their organs try to shut down, and it sends them into shock.”

Paige nodded, and Rachel hoped it made sense. It was just starting to make sense to her.

“We need a low dose in their IV bags, so they can heal without having organ shutdown,” she said.

“And Hannah?”

Rachel shook her head. She knew it worked on the men, but it might not be the same for non-hybrids. She had to think. “There’s a chance. She’s a Vestal, so that would be a factor, but I can’t be sure how much.”

“Human?” Paige said as she finished checking Rufus.

Rachel nodded. “She’s part of them now too though.” She smiled when Paige frowned. “It’s hard to explain.”

Paige fell silent for a moment, and Rachel wondered if she was offended by her comment.

“What about an even lower dose in the IV?” Paige asked. “I mean epinephrine treatments have been used before we even knew about these hybrids. We know humans can handle it, so it won’t hurt her and it could work.”

“That’s a great idea!”

Rachel jumped up but fell back onto the bed.

“I hate to say it, Doc, but you don’t look so great,” Paige said. “That’s a nasty bump. I think you need to go home and rest.”

“I can’t,” she protested. “I’ve got to stay here and watch over everyone.”

Paige frowned. “Well, then what the hell am I here for?”

Rachel wanted to laugh. Not only was Paige good at her job, but she wanted to actually do the job.

“Okay,” Rachel said after Marius came and stood behind her. It wasn’t like she’d be able to get much done. Her brain was mush at this point.

“Go home and get some rest,” Paige said to Rachel. The nurse looked up at Marius and tried the best no-nonsense face Rachel had seen. “Don’t let her sleep right away. Give her some pain killers, and if she starts vomiting, she has to come in.” Paige looked back to Rachel. “Don’t be a pain in the ass.”

The bark of laughter from Marius couldn’t have been louder. Rachel jabbed Marius with her elbow.

“Shut it,” she mumbled to him. She turned her attention back to Paige. “You’re very quick. Have you thought about being a doctor?”

Paige blinked a few times. “No,” she said flatly. “I wouldn’t get to push around know-it-all doctors that way.”

Rachel grinned. “Smart move.” She leaned heavily on Marius as they made their way to the door.

“Just take good care of them,” Rachel said. Her face burned, but she had to make it clear. Despite all the recent trouble, she did care about these patients, and there was nothing she wouldn’t do. Knowing they were with someone who would give their all was important to her, especially after today.

Paige nodded. “I take good care of all my patients.”

Rachel smiled. Yes, she would do just fine.

* * *

Marius was glad Rachel had taken the bossy nurse's advice to take it easy. Although it was odd for him to be home in the afternoon, it was nice. They were almost like a normal couple.

He peeked around the corner from the kitchen into the living room. She had been on her computer and watching TV for part of the time. Although she seemed to be feeling much better, it was hard for him to tell. For the first hour, he wondered if maybe he should just take her back to the hospital and make her stay there, but the idea of her being there without him didn’t sit right, especially after what had happened earlier.

Rachel seemed so tough, but when it came to these things, Marius didn’t think she was nearly as tough as she let on. For the most part, she kept quiet about how she was feeling about things, and it made it hard for others to really get close. He had to assume it was part of the problem with the men.

He brought out some soup and set it on the coffee table. Normally, he wouldn’t be one to eat in the living room, but today was special. Rachel deserved to have a little comfort. She closed her computer and looked up at him. Her face was pale, and he worried that she still had a headache.

“Do you need more meds?” he asked and started to walk to the kitchen.

“No,” she said and took hold of his hand. She offered a small smile when he turned around. “I think I’m just hungry.”

Marius nodded but watched her. There were so many things he didn’t know about caring for another person, let alone a woman.

He took a bite of his sandwich and swallowed, so he wouldn’t have to talk. Last night seemed too easy in comparison. All he had to do was show her his feelings. This talking part was difficult.

“Oh my God!” she moaned.

Marius nearly jumped off the couch. “Are you okay?”

“I’m pretty sure I’m in heaven,” she said and closed her eyes as she ate a spoonful of the soup.

He could feel heat coming to his face. This wasn’t something men were supposed to be good at. He’d read some of the magazines, and they all said that women were supposed to cook. Marius made a face. He saw the kinds of crap she put in her face, and there was no way he was going for that.

They ate mostly in silence except for her moaning. Try as he might, she was turning him on. Listening to her eat his soup was like listening to her make love. He quickly finished his meal and started to put things away. Rachel placed a hand on his.

“Let me,” she said with a smile.

“You can’t,” he started but stopped when she stood and stepped over him.

“Just relax,” she said. “You made it. I can put it away.” Rachel leaned down and smiled. “Besides, your soup made me feel better.”

His mouth went dry as he thought about this and nodded.

She gave him a sweet kiss on the lips and then carried the dishes to the kitchen. The sound of water in the sink made him smile. He’d always wondered if she knew how to do dishes. Apparently, she did.

With the lull of the water and TV, Marius felt the weight of the day overtake him. His eyelids grew heavy, and he slipped off to sleep.

Chapter Fourteen

When Rachel stepped out of the kitchen, she found Marius peacefully sleeping. It seemed like such a shame to wake him. Or, at least, to wake him without a good reason.

She returned to her room, changed and then took one last look in the mirror. The see-through black baby doll nightie left nothing to the imagination. Even the little scrap of panties weren’t much.

She did a little turn and sighed. It looked good to her, and the woman at the shop had been right. Her legs were meant for this. She didn’t know about the heels, but they were worth a shot. Marius had been trying, and she wanted to try for him.

Slowly, she made her way down the stairs to the couch. Everything was still quiet, and she was thankful. She would have felt silly if he had been awake. There was no reason for it other than she wanted to try and catch him off guard.

Her heels clicked on the hard floor as she made her way across the room and stood in front of him. Now that she was here, it was a matter of what to do. She placed both hands on either side of the couch and leaned forward.

“Marius,” she said quietly.

His amber eyes shot open, and he smiled at her. Without a thought, she smiled back.

“Hi,” he said.

“Hi,” she said shyly.

His eyes seemed to pick up that she was displaying far more skin than before and widened in response.

“What are you doing?” he asked and sat up, moving slightly away from her.

Rachel frowned. This wasn’t really the response she was going for. “Well,” she said. “I thought I was saying thanks for a great soup.”

Marius looked away from her, and she could feel her temper rising. “There are other ways to say thanks,” he said.

Rachel sat up and crossed her arms. “I kinda thought my way might be the best,” she said. “What? You suddenly don’t want me now?” She sighed.

“No!” he nearly shouted. She felt a bit better hearing it. “It’s just that, you know, you hit your head today.”

She touched her forehead. The swelling was down, and it had felt fine for hours now. “So?”

He looked at her like she’d sprouted a third head. Rachel laughed. No matter what she said on this, he was going to think that she wasn’t going to be okay. Not waiting for permission, she placed a knee on each side of his lap.

His hands went to her waist to steady her. “What are you doing?”

Rachel settled over him, placing her heat over his hardening length. She felt his fingers flex.

“I’m doing what needs to be done,” she said and placed her hands on his shoulders. “I’m fine.”

She could see him waver. His hands opened and flexed at her side.

Not waiting, she went to his shirt and started opening each button. There was something about undoing his shirt that thrilled, and when she finished, she was sad he had another shirt on under. Her frustration kicked in as she yanked off the button-up and started to work on the tee.

“Rachel,” Marius said.

Her gaze went to his, and she frowned. “Don’t try to stop me,” she said.

He laughed and shook his head. “Got it.” He winked. “How about some help?”

She grinned when he yanked both of the shirts off. Now that they were gone, she could finally run her fingers along the hard muscles there. When she hit the line of his pants, she looked up at him. Marius raised a brow.

Not one to back down from a challenge, she popped the button. She gasped.

“You didn’t wear any underwear?” She stared at him.

Marius shrugged, but she could tell he was slightly embarrassed. “I didn’t know if we might…” He trailed off and stared at her for a moment. There was such an intensity she could feel herself getting wet.

Without care, she sat up on her knees and tugged on his pants. Marius helped her as she pulled them down to his thighs. When she wrapped her hand around his thick dick, he moaned and shifted his weight. There was no waiting this time. Just like every time before, she had to have him.

Rachel positioned herself over him and slammed down hard. In one swift move, he slipped deep inside. Not stopping, she bounced on top of him. Each time she came down, she rubbed her clit against his body. She moaned and leaned her body back.

Rough hands pulled at the light fabric covering her breasts and pushed the material under. Rachel looked down and was surprised by how large they looked like that. She watched in fascination as he ran his open mouth around her delicate breasts. The closer he got to her centers, the more she ached for it.

Over and over, he made his way around. When he finally reached the center of a breast, she groaned at the sensation and ground her hips hard against his. Gently, he nipped at her hardened peak and sucked, drawing in most of the nipple. She could feel the gentle tugs all the way to her clit and ached for release.