When I wake up again, Mason is still asleep beside me. I roll over so I'm lying on my stomach looking down at him. He looks like he doesn't have a care in the world when he's asleep. So peaceful. I itch to trace my fingers over his features, but if he's still sleeping he must be exhausted. He doesn't get enough sleep. I kiss him softly on his head before carefully climbing out of the bed so I can take a shower and get ready for the day.
I crutch into the bathroom and stare at the shower. It's going to be hard to clean myself when I can't stand up without my crutches. I decide a bath is the best way to go about this even if I hate doing that. If I'm just trying to relax I'll take a bath, but I hate having to clean myself while sitting in the same water that's collecting everything I'm washing off me. It just always seemed counterproductive to me, but I guess it'll have to do for now.
Sighing, I turn the water on and sit on the side of the tub as I wait for it to warm up before plugging the drain. I make it slightly warmer than usual in hopes that it'll relax some of my muscles. I walk to the mirror as the tub slowly fills with water and just look at myself. The circles under my eyes are prominent, but it's obvious that I'm tired. Everything that has been going on really has started to take a toll on me. I don't want the pack to see me like this. I need to relax and trust that Mason has everything under control as he says. Turning, I head back to the tub and carefully climb into the water. It's harder than I thought it would be to get myself settled into the tub without the use of my leg, but I manage. I place my crutches against the floor along the tub and lean back into the water.
The water feels nice against my skin. I fight down my disgust as I wash off. It doesn't take long for me to get clean, thankfully, and once I'm done I lean forward to pull the plug and watch as the water drains. I sit back and watch as a small tornado-like funnel forms as the water quickly is sucked down the drain. Once it's gone, I grab the side of the tub and the railing against the wall and try to pull myself up. I can't wait until my leg is back to normal, not being able to use one leg is killing me! When I finally manage to get to my feet, I try to take a step out of the still wet tub, but my foot slides on the wet floor and I start losing my balance. Even with a firm hand on the wall and the other on the railing, I can't stop myself from teetering over, and quickly.
Probably should have just grabbed the crutches first.
I brace myself for the impact as I turn so I'll land on my side. I figure landing on my side will probably hurt my ribs, but it's more controlled and better than hitting my head on anything. Just before I hit the ground a pair of strong arms wrap firmly around my waist and pull me up to safety. I look up at Mason who is frowning down at me with a serious look on his face. I smile at him thankfully as he helps me balance on one leg. I glance down at my still-naked body as I press closer to him. The water droplets on my skin are making me cold, but his body heat feels nice. He reaches behind him and quickly wraps the towel around my back and starts wiping the water off me. He bends down and grabs my crutches and holds me while I get my towel and crutches situated so they won't go anywhere. I glance up at him sheepishly.
"You could have woken me up, I would have helped you take a shower," he says with a smirk on his face. I have a feeling that if I had woken him up I wouldn't have gotten a lot of showering done. But that being said, I can't hide my smile at his dirty thoughts. That would have made for an interesting morning. I guess my convincing him that he won't hurt me has pushed him past any roadblocks to our being together.
"Sweetie, as fun as that would be, you wouldn't have kept your hands in any appropriate places so that I could get clean," I laugh out as I lean against his chest. His smirk slowly spreads into a smile and he chuckles lowly. "Seriously though, are you okay?" I know this question isn't about my almost fall just now. It's about my nightmare. I nod my head and smile up at him. He'd managed to do exactly as he promised. When we drifted off, I slept so deeply that I didn't even dream at all, which I was thankful for. "Why don't you finish drying off and get dressed then I'll help you with your hair."
"Do you even know how to do my hair?" I tease playfully. He playfully scowls at me before shaking his head. The smile gracing his hard features brings me so much joy that I can't help but smile right back. God, I love this man more than life itself. There isn't anything I wouldn't do for him.
"I think I can manage. I've seen you do it plenty of times now."
I hadn't realized he'd been paying that close attention. "Then why don't you tell me what you do before I let you turn my hair into a giant mess that I'll have to fix," I say as I rest my chin against his chest.
"First I have to scrunch it with the towel to get any excess water out of your hair. Then I comb through it, starting at the bottom so the tangles come out easier and it doesn't break your hair. Then I blow dry it with the hair dryer. I've watched you do it, Alaina, it isn't rocket science," he explains as he walks over to the shower and turns the water on. I raise an eyebrow at him as he sticks his hand under the water to test the temperature. He pulls his hand back and reaches into the cabinet to grab a towel for himself.
I let my gaze travel down his bottom, stopping for a few extra beats on his glorious ass, before making my way back up. I should look away before he catches me staring, but honestly, why shouldn't I stare? He's mine to stare at. I have no reason to be embarrassed by looking at my mate. God, if we didn't have other people living here and people coming and going whenever they needed to speak with Mason or myself, I'd seriously have him walk around with no clothes on all the time. We'd probably never get anything done, but hell, I think I could live with that if it meant getting to see him like this constantly. He glances over his shoulder at me before turning and walking toward me. I tear my eyes off his chest and look up into those beautiful eyes.
"Haven't you heard that it's rude to stare at people?" he asks as he wraps his arms around my waist. I tighten my hands on my crutches to keep from jumping him right here.
"Well, when you look like that what am I supposed to do?" I shrug and smirk up at him. "Besides, it's not rude when the extremely sexy man I'm looking at is for my eyes only," I whisper as I lean in closer to him. He smiles down at me before leaning down and pressing his lips against mine in a brief kiss. I sigh against his lips and melt further into his touch. He pulls away and presses another kiss right beneath my ear. I let my head fall to the side to give him more access, but he doesn't travel down my neck. His lips trace the outer part of my ear.
"I'm all yours," he breathes against my ear. I shiver. He pulls away too soon for my liking and I can't help the pout that forms on my lips "Now, go dry off and get dressed so I can take a shower so we can head into town." My pout turns into a smile as I pucker my lips slightly, needing one more kiss. He chuckles as he leans down and kisses me softly before pulling back and planting kisses all over my face. I giggle and reach forward with one hand to press against his stomach. He pulls away and with another smile turns to step into the shower.
With a smile on my face, I turn and head out of the bathroom and into our closet to grab my clothes for the day. I dry myself off – not without difficulty – before plopping down on the bed to pull my clothes on. I decide to go simple today with a pair of athletic tights, a tank top, and one of Mason's button-up shirts again. I tie a knot in the bottom of Mason's shirt and sit back as I wait for him to finish his shower. I go ahead and scrunch my hair with my towel to get the water out. I lift his shirt up to my nose and inhale his scent, letting it take over my senses. My wolf yips in happiness before settling in my mind.
After about five minutes, the shower shuts off. As quickly as I can, I stand up and head into the bathroom. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't going faster than usual so I could see him getting out of the shower. When I walk through the doorway, he's already out with a towel wrapped around his waist. I pout slightly as I watch him rub another towel through his hair. He glances over at me and smiles. I watch his eyes drop to my lips and his smile grows.
"Upset you didn't get to see me getting out of the shower?" he asks teasingly. I nod my head and move further into the bathroom with him. "It's alright, Red. I'm all yours and you can look anytime you want. Just say the word." I smile at him slightly before moving right to him. I keep my eyes on his face as I quickly reach out and yank his towel off him. He looks down surprised but quickly recovers as he throws his head back as his laughter fills the room. I let my eyes take in every part of him, taking my time as I study certain parts of his body.
He takes his towel back after letting me gawk for several minutes before moving away so he can dry off and get dressed. I watch his movements, enjoying the little show before he turns back to me and pulls the chair from the side of the room over by the sink. "Come on, let me do your hair for you," he says as he slaps his hand against the back lightly.
"If I'm going to sit down, then why can't I do my own hair?" I ask as I move towards the chair. He rolls his eyes and helps me sit down. I set the crutches against the counter and look up at him.
"I want to do this for you. I just want you to relax, and I know you love it when I play with your hair. So just let me relax you, okay?" I nod my head and smile up at him before moving my head so that my eyes are on him through the mirror.
I watch in fascination as he copies what he's seen me do before. He runs the comb through my wet hair until there are no knots left in it. I lean my head back and sigh as he gently massages my head before plugging in the blow dryer next to the sink. The heat from the air feels nice on my head. Having naturally straight hair comes in handy because once he's done my hair hangs loosely down to the middle of my back. Mason then runs a brush through it as he smiles down at me. I close my eyes and just enjoy the feeling of having him do my hair. I may have to get him to do this more often since he seems to know what he's doing. Hurt or not, this is one of the most relaxing things ever.
"So, I noticed you stole another one of my shirts," he comments as he puts the brush down. I smirk up at him as I lift it to my nose.
"Will you help me put my shoes on?" I ask as I get up and make my way back to our closet. I put more weight on my leg than before, testing it out. It still hurts, but it's at least not as excruciating as before. I glance back at Mason to see him watching my legs with a slight frown. Guess he noticed my little test there. I point one of my crutches at my pair of black ankle boots before looking up at him and saying, "I want to wear those." He grabs them without a word and we head back into the bedroom. I plop down on the bed and hide my sharp intake of breath from my ribs and smile up at Mason. He grabs a pair of my socks and slides them onto my feet, followed by my shoes. I slowly lift my injured leg so he can do the same, but the pain is still pretty bad. I only get it up to his knee before I let out a hiss, but Mason grabs my calf and gently lifts it until I can rest it against his thigh. It takes some of the pain away, but not all of it.
He quickly repeats the process so I can set my foot back down on the ground. "Thank you," I mumble as I look up at him sheepishly. I hate seeing the pain in his eyes from knowing I'm in pain. I can't wait for whatever is in my system to fucking dissipate already. He smiles and leans down to kiss me once again. I sigh into the kiss and smile against his lips. I pull away and wrap my arms around his neck. "Come on, you promised me a shopping day."
He shakes his head but wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me up against his body. My feet dangle in the air and I can't help but chuckle softly as I lean forward and press a quick kiss against his jaw before he sets me down again. He helps me situate my crutches before following me out of the room. I'm moving a lot better on these damn things, but I can still tell he's slowing down so much to make sure I don't fall.
We pass by Brandon and Mary's room and I stop at the closed door. I wonder if he found her yet. He would have told me if he had, right? I know there is a lot going on, but he knew how worried I was, he would have let me know somehow. I don't even know if he's in there. I don't know if he came home last night, or if he's still out there looking. I glance back at Mason to see his intense eyes on me. I take a deep breath to push away the sudden nerves and wrap my knuckles against his door. I can hear shuffling on the other side, but I can't tell if he's getting up or still asleep. I open the door slightly to glance inside to see him sitting on the bed with his head in his hands. My heart breaks for him.
He glances up at me when he hears the door open, but he doesn't say anything. The dark circles under his eyes are hard to look at and his hair is all over the place, no doubt from the numerous times he's run his fingers through it and tugged. His eyes don't hold that normal gleam that they usually do. He looks miserable.
"Mason and I are going to go into town for a little while. Are you going to be okay on your own?" I ask. I can feel Mason step closer to my back as he watches Brandon closely.
"Why wouldn't I be fine? I can handle myself, I'm not the one who needs a babysitter, just go," he speaks harshly. I flinch back at his words and turn my head away. Mason's growl vibrates the room from behind me, but Brandon doesn't even seem phased by it. Mason uses a hand at my waist to direct me away from the room, but just before I move I look back at my best friend. He may think he's alone right now, but he's not and he needs to know that.
"I know you're hurting right now," I start off. His eyes stay on the floor. "I know there is nothing I can do to help you at this moment besides getting your mate back to you." He flinches. "I also know you're just saying things because you're hurting, and you aren't trying to hurt me. But you're not alone right now Brandon. If you need anything, please call me or Mason. We're here to help you through this, whether you want to admit it or not." I hear his sigh just as I'm closing the door. Mason glares at the door and I can see him fighting back his wolf from making him go in there and beating the shit out of Brandon for his blatant disrespect.
"He can't talk to you that way. He knows better."
"He didn't mean anything by it, sweetie. He's hurting, Mason, so much right now. He doesn't know what to do without Mary so he's… he's lashing out at those close to him because he doesn't know what to do," I defend him.
"I know he's hurting, but he still has no right to speak to his Alpha that way." I nod and head towards the stairs, dismissing the conversation. I grab onto Mason and hand him my crutches and let him help me down the stairs. He stops at the foot of the stairs instead of going into the kitchen. "Let's just eat breakfast in town, okay? I don't want you having to make anything today." Again, I just nod and follow him outside to the car.
Mason helps me into the passenger seat before setting my crutches in the back seat. I watch him move around the front of the car before glancing up at Brandon's window. I sigh as I see him standing there watching us with a sad expression on his face. I smile the best as I can and push back any hurt his words have inflicted this morning and wave as Mason climbs into the car. I see Brandon's hand raise in a small wave as we drive away from the house. I sigh and settle into my seat as Mason reaches over and grasps my hand in his as we head into town. I push away thoughts of my friend's pain for now and try to focus on the day I get to spend with my mate.