Marked Mate

2

SCARLETT

Roman kept his eyes on me the entire time I was being stitched up, my body flinching every now and then at the pressure of my skin being tugged.

"Keep the area clean to avoid an infection. Your immune system won't be great," spoke the nurse as she finished up, ripping off her rubber gloves and throwing them in the trash can in the corner of the room. I eyed them up. I needed some of them.

Nodding once, I ground my teeth together. Roman held his hand out to help me off the bed and I glanced at it briefly, wanting to reach out and touch him more than anything, but I couldn't. There was a chance my sleeve could fall down and I didn't feel prepared to touch him. I had heard that mates touching caused immense sparks, and the thought of that sounded overwhelming. I needed a clear head.

Pushing myself up off the cot, I followed the nurse to the door, thankful that the top I was wearing covered my butt.

"Please charge the bill to my card," spoke Roman.

"Will do, Alpha," said the nurse as she smiled at the both of us, Roman leading me out of the room.

Darrel and Wyatt were waiting outside, and they both raised their eyebrows at me questionably, causing me to sigh.

"Darrel, I understand that you were going to pay for Scarlett's medical procedure?" Roman asked him with a tight jaw.

Darrel nodded once, causing Roman to hum with curiosity, gesturing for me to follow him out of the hospital. I wanted to manipulate his emotions and make him feel pity or guilt so he would let me go, but I was far too weak, and I had already attempted it on Darrel earlier. There was a cool down time.

Once I had gained enough strength, I would give it a go.

"You'll have to excuse my curt behaviour with Darrel," Roman told me, gazing down at me briefly. "I didn't want another male paying for my mate."

I shivered, my body enjoying the feeling of Roman being so territorial. Why did I like it? It was stupid.

I smiled up at him, forcing it. In order to gain his trust, I needed to act the part. He needed to believe that I was going to fully accept him. Then he would happily leave me alone so that I could make a break for it. For now though, I knew he wasn't going to let me out of his sight - especially since I was injured and weak.

"I'll take you to my home," Roman said, continuing to glance down at me every few seconds, looking as if he wanted to offer to carry me. I could tell that he was hesitant though, appearing a little hurt from my rejection to his help earlier. "If that's okay?"

I wasn't sure where else I was supposed to sleep, and I had no doubt that even if I objected, Roman would insist that he stayed within the same vicinity. Mates were protective, especially Alphas. Just my luck to be paired with one.

I nodded once, causing Roman to beam. I studied his perfectly straight and white teeth. It made me want to do the same, his happiness almost contagious.

Almost.

We reached his house, my jaw almost dropping to the floor. It wasn't huge or flashy, but it looked incredible. It was painted a muted beige colour, the front door a shiny deep mahogany. There were red and yellow flowers dotted around it, which was surprising since it was cold and bitter out, but the plantation appeared to be resilient around here.

"I decorated the house with my mate in mind. I wanted to have it all ready for when I found you," Roman informed me, and I furrowed my brows, biting down on my bottom lip harshly to avoid grimacing.