Saved By Her Dragon (3 page)

The perceptive child in his arms hugged him tighter and said,
“It’s okay. She knows you’re here and she’s
really
happy ‘bout it.”

He
snapped his head to the side and looked right into Sydney’s big
blue eyes. “What did you say?”

Sydney
rolled her eyes in mock irritation, placed her hands on his cheeks,
and stared deeply into his eyes. When she spoke it was slower than
her normal cadence and with a great deal of deliberation, “I
said…she knows you’re here…and she’s really happy ‘bout
it.”

In any
other situation, he would have laughed at Sydney’s actions, but the
sheer gravity of the situation stole the air from his lungs. It
took a few seconds for him to find his voice and when he did, it
came out as barely more than a whisper, “You can hear her? Can she
hear you?”

“Of
course I can hear her.” Sydney shook her head like his questions
were ludicrous and he was reminded once again that the child had
wisdom well beyond her years. When she spoke again, it was on a
giggle, “And why wouldn’t she be able to hear me, silly
dragon?”

It was
then that Devon realized the room was as quiet as a tomb and all
eyes were on him and the little beauty. Slowly, her hands slid from
his cheeks and once again wrapped around his neck as she hugged him
tight. She spoke and his heart skipped a beat, “She’s trying her
best to wake up, but the black fog won’t let her.”

Thankfully, Siobhan chose that moment to speak, because there
was no way he could. “Sydney, why don’t you jump down and come over
here and tell me what you and Devon’s mate talked
about.”

The
child gave Devon one more hug and a kiss on the cheek before
sliding to the floor and skipping over to his mother. He watched as
she went, impatient to hear what she had to say, not sure what to
make of the fact that his mate could hear the girl, but not him. He
knew Sydney was extraordinary and that her parents and Siobhan were
doing everything possible to understand all her exceptional
abilities, but he was almost afraid to hope that the little girl
could actually help wake the woman that was meant to be
his.

“Sam’s heading this way,”
Lance spoke
directly into his mind.

“Is she alone?”
Devon
asked.

There was a pause and then his brother answered,
“Charlie is with her and the specialist will be
here within the hour. There’s also a nurse on the way to draw
blood.”

The
words had barely been spoken when Sam stepped into the room with
her friend and colleague in tow. Sam was quick to speak in an
effort to distract her friend from the young healers gathering up
the candles and incense they had just placed. “Hey, why wasn’t I
invited to the party?”

“Mommy!
Mommy!” Sydney yelled, all thoughts of anything but her mother
forgotten as she ran to Sam.

Devon
watched the scene unfold before him with a new perspective and a
happy heart, knowing that someday that would be his mate and child.
Lance joined his family as the healers finished hiding their
magical paraphernalia. Dr. Gallagher, aka Charlie, Sam’s oldest
friend and colleague, was more interested in getting to her patient
than paying attention to the people around her so everything out
the ordinary went unnoticed. He watched as she checked his mate’s
vitals, recording them on the chart.

Sam soon joined her friend at his mate’s bedside, and although
it was crowded, he stood his ground. As he listened, the two
doctors discussed what would happen when the specialist came in and
the treatment options still open to them, making sure they had all
their bases covered. Lance once again spoke through mind
speak,
“I told Sam what Syd said about the
black fog and she’s ordering another MRI and CAT scan, whatever the
hell they are. She also said something about checking medical
journals.”

“Thanks, bud. Hope she can figure it out.”

“Me too. Trust me, if there’s a way, Doc will bring her back
to you.”

Devon
smiled at the way Lance used his wife’s nickname, another testament
to the incredible bond between mates; one he could not wait to
share with his. The sound of Sam’s voice pulled his attention, “I
need you to sign this paperwork so I can have some additional tests
done.” She smiled and barely winked, letting him know that she was
aware of the conversation between him and her mate.

Devon
nodded as he signed and asked, “Will these take place before or
after the newest specialist examines her?”

Sam
smiled and touched his arm. He could feel the reassurance she was
pushing towards him and appreciated her efforts. When she spoke, he
was once again reminded what an amazing doctor Samantha Malone
truly was. “I’m going to wait and see if she orders any others so
we can do them all together. I just wanted to get this paperwork
out of the way before I forgot.” She moved to the side letting the
phlebotomist closer to take the blood that had been
ordered.

The young man carefully extracted the samples and Devon worked
hard to keep his jealousy and that of his dragon in check.
Logically, he knew the man’s interest in his mate was purely
professional, but his heart and beast saw the man as a threat, one
they wanted very badly to exterminate. The longer he watched, the
more the need to remove the young professional’s hand from the end
of his arm became a living force within him. His feet took a step
towards the younger man of their own volition. Only Sam’s hand on
his arm and the sound of Lance’s voice in his head kept him from
continuing his forward motion.
“Whoa there,
Brother. Chill out.”

Devon jerked from the jealous fog and shook his head before
answering his friend,
“Damn, what the hell
was that?”

His brother’s answering laughter further calmed Devon and his
dragon,
“That my friend…is the mating call.
Ain’t it grand?”

“No, not really, smart ass,”
he
chuckled and moved behind his mother until the lab tech left the
room, just to be safe.

“Yeah, well it gets easier, but trust me, it never goes
away.”

Before
he could respond, Siobhan spoke, “How long do we have before the
specialist gets here?”

Sam
answered, “About thirty, maybe forty-five minutes. Charlie and I
are going to my office to wait for her. Sorry y’all, but everyone
except Devon will need to move to the waiting room while Dr.
Lawrence does her examination.” She winked in their general
direction and then followed her friend out the door.

“Can we
go get some ice cream, Dad?” Sydney asked as soon as her mother was
out of ear shot.

“Sure we can,
leanbh
,” Lance answered as he lifted
Sydney from Siobhan’s lap. “Anybody else want some ice cream? I’m
buying,” he added as he turned to head out of the room.

“Yes!”
Everyone answered, almost in unison. Devon watched as they filed
into the hall.

His mother was the last to stand. Turning, she reached for his
hands. They stood looking at one another for a few seconds before
she spoke, “You know I love you with all my heart, but if you ever
pull a stunt like this again, I
will
beat you black and blue.”

Devon
felt his eyes grow large and had to work hard not to laugh at the
vision her words inspired. He knew his mother was being serious,
but just the thought of her beating anyone, especially him, was
truly funny. Eager to put an end to their feud, he apologized,
“Mom, I’m so sorry. I know I should’ve called right away, but I
truly thought it was nothing serious and I could handle it without
bothering you.”

He barely had the words out of his mouth before she dropped
one of his hands and swatted his arm. “There will never be a time
when you are
bothering
me. I am your mother and the healer of your clan. Don’t
you
EVER
forget
that.” She emphasized her point with another swat to his
arm.

Knowing
better than to belabor the point, he quickly answered, “I really am
sorry, Mom. Won’t happen again.”

Siobhan
smiled her ‘approving mother’ smile, then hugged him and kissed his
cheek before leaning down to grab her oversized leather bag. As she
turned to leave the room he heard her say, “See that it doesn’t.”
He barked out a laugh and saw her shoulders shake as she tried to
hold in her own glee. Calmness settled over him to know that he and
his mother were once again in good standing. She was an important
part of his life and he hated when they disagreed.

Devon settled into his recycler, laid his hand over his
mate’s, and spoke, “Well,
a chumann,
here we are again…just you and me. And now you’ve
met my mom.”

He
raised her hand to his cheek. At the skin to skin contact, an
electric current shot through his body, making a beeline to his
cock. His eyes slid shut and his breathing became labored. The
longer they touched, the more intense the feelings became, until
his erection pushed against the zipper of his jeans and he was
forced to let her hand fall from his face.

The
sound of voices in the hall alerted him to the arrival of Samantha
and the specialist. Devon took a deep breath and used his
considerable self-control to rein in his raging libido, just as the
doctors entered the room. He stood while Sam introduced her
companion. “Devon Walsh, this is Dr. Jane Lawrence. Dr. Lawrence is
the top neurosurgeon in the country with a specialty in
trauma.”

He
sensed her nervousness and knew she hurried with the introductions
to avoid the personal questions that would inevitably come. Without
answers, both Devon and Sam worried that Dr. Lawrence would become
suspicious of their relationship with the patient. It was something
they were getting good at avoiding as the days ticked past and more
unfamiliar doctors came to examine her. The hospital had been
incredibly lenient due to Sam’s sterling reputation, but he doubted
it would work with the woman before him.

With a
smile and nod, Dr. Lawrence reviewed the chart Samantha had handed
her quickly, making small notes in the margins. Without looking up,
she commented, “I see you ordered another MRI and CAT scan, was
there a change that prompted this new testing?”

He saw
Sam’s eyebrows rise at the other doctor’s question, but was
impressed with her quick thinking. “There was eye movement and
increased dilation during her last exam. You will see that in Dr.
Gallagher’s notes.”

“Oh, yes here it is,” Dr. Lawrence answered in a somewhat
underwhelmed tone and Devon recognized her question for exactly
what it was…a way to double check her colleague’s work. He would
have laughed out loud at the outrage he saw on Sam’s face had he
not feared one or both women might kick him in the balls. Besides,
there was something just a little
different
about Dr. Lawrence that he
couldn’t get a read on.

After a few more moments of strained silence, the specialist
returned the chart to the hook at the end of the bed and without a
word, moved closer to his mate. She stood staring, making him
wonder if she was trying to divine a diagnosis. Dr. Lawrence’s
intense stare and lack of movement was odd to say the least. The
longer it lasted, the more uncomfortable Devon grew. He looked to
Samantha for direction, only to find her looking like she was about
to pounce. Her brow was furrowed, her mouth turned down in a frown,
and her fists were clenched to the point of making her knuckles
white. He spoke through the link shared amongst all his brethren
and their mates,
“Sam…”

Her eyes snapped to his and she gave a quick shake of her
head.
“Hang on just a sec,”
was her only reply before she returned her stare
to the doctor.

Devon counted to thirty before Dr. Lawrence’s stance relaxed,
glancing first at Sam and then Devon. Looking back to the patient
before speaking, she began, “From what I can see this woman has
been through a substantial trauma, but that is not what keeps her
from waking. I cannot pinpoint
what
is keeping her in the coma and I am not sure
further testing will reveal anything new, but it can’t hurt
either.”

Sam was the first to speak, “Excuse me, Dr. Lawrence, I mean
no disrespect, but you didn’t even
touch
the patient. How can you make
any assumptions about her condition?”

Instead
of answering, the specialist spun on her heel and walked towards
the door. Devon was sure she was about to leave without further
discussion and was surprised when she shut the door and leaned
against it. Smiling slightly, she crossed her arms over her chest
and spoke, “Maximillian Prentise sent me.” With that declaration,
her eyes flashed from totally human to very feline and back again
in a split second.

“Well,
shit,” Devon said under his breath, forcing a chuckle from the
doctor.

“I’m
sorry I didn’t tell you right away, but Max’s message was very
brief and he neglected to let me know that her attending physician
was also dragon.” She smiled the first real smile since entering
the room.