Only Her- ON HOLD

Chapter 51.

Dani's POV

Several days went by with doctors watching me closely, monitoring the baby and making sure we were healing properly. Thankfully, my physical wounds were beginning to completely heal. It was the internal ones that would take longer, if they ever truly could.

I didn't want the others to see me until I'd begun to recover more, so I had asked that no one be admitted but my parents and Noah. I finally felt confident enough to see others and Lo was the first to come down to see me. Her warm eyes filled with tears as she saw me. She sat beside me on the bed, taking my hand gently in hers.

"I was so worried about you Dani. I'm just glad you're ok." She said shakily.

I nodded, letting my own tears fall freely. "I'm sorry Lo. I just couldn't stand for you all to see me so...broken. I needed time to myself just to heal."

She nodded quickly. "Everyone understands. We just missed you."

Her eyes held a shadow of a memory before she quickly wiped it away. But not before I'd seen it. "What is it Lo?"

She shook her head but I stared at her waiting. She sighed before replying reluctantly. "When they brought you back, no one knew what to expect. There was no news during the attack and then suddenly you were back and Logan came to get me. When I saw you lying here, it nearly broke me. I was so worried." A tear slipped down her cheek and she held my hand tightly. "I'm just glad you're ok."

I smiled back with eyes filled with tears before trying to shake off the sadness. "Me too." My voice was shaky and I sat up a little taller in my bed, forcing myself out of that moment. "But enough about that. Please. Let's talk about anything else. I need to distract myself."

She suddenly smiled sheepishly down at me and her eyes cut to my stomach and then back up to me. "We're all so excited for you both. Your father told the pack the news while you were gone. I think he wanted them to know what we were fighting for. What we were prepared to protect at all costs."

I smiled and rubbed my hand across my stomach slowly. "After everything they put me through, I was so afraid that I'd lost..." my voice broke as I spoke and I couldn't finish.

Lo stood from her chair and moved closer to lean beside me on the bed, wrapping her arm around me and pulling me into her. "I'm so sorry Dani." She whispered.

I nodded and cried into her shoulder, letting my friend see my broken pieces slipping apart again for just a moment. I finally pulled myself together and as I regained control of myself, noticed a slight change I hadn't detected before. There was a subtle change to her scent. It smelled warmer, like it had become something just a bit different.

"You found your mate." I said on a breath, quickly shifting back to look at her.

Her eyes filled with tears and she nodded with a sad smile. "I did." She said, letting the dam break as the tears flowed freely.

Now it was my turn to pull her closer, pushing her hair from her face as she wept. "Why are you sad then?" I asked, trying to soothe her.

"Because he's a prisoner Dani." She said between sobs. "They let him mark me, so I think they'll let him go. But what if they don't?"

I pulled back and looked at her in shock. "Why would they let you be marked by someone that they planned to keep imprisoned or kill? I know they wouldn't do that unless they planned to release him Lo. Who is it?"

She finally calmed herself and leaned back against the arm of the hospital bed. "It's...Theo. Noah's brother." She said slowly.

My jaw dropped and I froze. I couldn't believe he was her mate after all of this time. I couldn't believe he was actually here; sitting in a cell held by my father and mate.

"H-how did you find him?" I forced the words out of my mouth.

"After Noah relieved me before you woke up, he sent me to your dad. He took me to the cells and it was the weirdest thing. Like I could feel him a room away before I even got to him. Well, you already know. But..."

"How did my father know?" I interrupted.

She looked at me in surprise. "He said Theo already knew. He'd seen me from afar when Alpha Blake had sent him to...scout us." Her words were quiet, like she knew they were twisted with something tainted.

I shook off my own feelings wrapped around the memories of my own connected to Theo and pushed my lips into a slight smile. "Lo, I'm so happy you've found your mate. You deserve it."

I pulled her into a hug and tried to shake the darkness away that came with Theo's memory. "I hope you find every happiness." I whispered as I hugged her tighter.

She released me and leaned back, looking around at the machines beeping and whirring. "When do you think they'll let you out of here?"

I started to answer but stopped as I saw Noah walk up behind Lo with a smile. "They said she can come home whenever she's ready." He replied.

She squealed and looked at me with a gleaming smile. "That's so exciting." She said.

I laughed quietly and pulled myself up higher in the bed. "I can't say I'll miss these gray concrete walls."

Lo gave me a quick hug and squeezed Noah's shoulder before stepping out of his way as she spoke to me. "I'll come see you when you're settled." She looked at Noah with a smile. "Let me know how I can help."

He nodded and came to sit beside me on the bed. "Are you ready then?" He asked with a smile.

I sighed and sat up slowly, leaning forward to kiss him. "Let's go home." I said quietly.

———

I slid into bed and felt my body instantly relax at the familiarity. The comfort of our scent and the feeling of warmth surrounded me as I pulled the covers up over my body.

Noah was already lying in bed, his strong arm hooked up behind his head and his eyes were closed. I moved closer until I was up against him, letting my body merge into his and I placed my head on his chest. He exhaled slowly and his arm dropped down as if it were a reflex, wrapping around me and pulling me closer. He kissed the top of my head and breathed in deeply.

"This bed has felt empty without you in it beside me." He said lowly.

I nuzzled into the crook of his neck and placed my hand on his chest, humming in content. "It is definitely better than a hospital bed. And the company's pretty good too." He growled playfully and I giggled.

A moment of silence shrouded us and I felt my heart swell into my throat. The feeling of being home with him in our cabin was everything I'd missed. Everything I needed was right here in this house. "I've missed this. I missed you; our home. Everything." I whispered.

His hand stroked up into my hair, gently pulling my head back so I could look at him. "None of this matters without you in it. It feels whole again."He said quietly, his gaze so intense I felt like he was peering into my soul. "And I will never let you go again. I promise you that Dani."

I smiled against his lips as he kissed me deeply before letting my head drop back down to his shoulder. My hand slowly traced the lines of his strong chest, feeling his muscles respond to me as my fingers trailed across his skin as if to press it to memory. I slowed when I came to his scar. It was the first time I'd seen it, although I'd known it was there.

Just at the center of his chest was a large nearly white patch of healed mangled skin with jagged edges that showed the memory of the silver bullet wound. I placed my hand gently on the scar and held my breath as I said a silent thank you for his survival.

His own large hand wrapped over mine and he spoke softly. "I'm not going anywhere."

I nodded once against him and let out the breath I'd been holding. "I know." I replied.

He pulled my tightly against him and I felt my body melt into his as I slowly drifted to sleep. I was home. And no one could hurt me here. Not in this moment.