Chapter 10


    200 IV!


    Chapter 10: A


    I woke up the next morning to Nurse Nicole bringing me my breakfast, which I ate quickly. I realized I


    hadn’t actually eaten in over two days. I found out that I had been unconscious for almost a whole day


    after the ident. The doctor came to speak with me and said it wasn’t surprising between the head


    injury and the sedation from the surgery on my leg. I hadn’t exactly had an appetite the day I left the


    Greytooth Packnds. So the day before that was thest time I had actually


    consumed a meal.


    I was finishing my food as the doctor left, and Kingston walked into my room. The doctor and nurse


    greeted him respectfully as he entered, carrying a box in his hands. He addressed them kindly but


    didn’t hold them up with any questions, allowing them to continue their duties.


    He set the box on the chair that was still sitting next to the bed and opened it.


    “Your car has been picked up. I’m afraid it is likely totaled, but I can help you get a recement when


    you’re ready,” he said as he rummaged through the contents. “But I removed any personal items before


    they took it away. I hope you don’t mind.”


    “Um, no. Thank you,” I said quietly.


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    “The doctor says you’ll be here a couple more days, so I thought I’d bring you some of your things.”


    He set two books on the tray table in front of me. I picked


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    them up and smiled, shaking my head a little.


    “Those two are pretty good. This one is actually a particr favorite of mine,” Kingston said, pointing to


    one of the


    hardcopy novels that thankfully didn’t seem any worse for


    wear.


    Iughed, immediately gripping.my side as the action hurt, but my smile remained. I looked up to see


    him looking at me curiously.


    “Thank you,” I said. “I’ve already read them. Many times actually. But I’m very d to have them back.


    They mean a lot to me.”


    “Were they a gift?”


    “You could say that,” I replied with a grin. “They were the first prints. I wrote them.”


    His eyes widened. “You’re Sabina Heartwood?” he asked, picking up the book and opening it to the


    back panel of the book jacket.


    “That’s my pen name, yeah. And that’s an actress my PR team hired. She’s actually one of the editors


    with the publishing house,” I said, referring to the woman whose picture was in the About the Author


    section.


    “Why not use your own name and picture?” Kingston asked, moving the box to the floor and taking a


    seat.


    “I wanted to keep mine and my family’s lives private,” I stated. “Plus, the book tours would mean I


    would have to travel a lot, and I just couldn’t make that work. This way, I still make money, but all the


    required appearances are made to ensure


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    III


    my books‘ sess. It works out well for me.”


    His brow furrowed. He still held the book in his hand, looking at it intently.


    “You had to have been… what… eighteen when this was published?”


    “Technically seventeen. The official release date was three weeks before my eighteenth birthday,” I


    confirmed.


    “That’s quite impressive, Ms. Garner.”


    I shrugged. “I got lucky. My old headmaster was friends with the publisher. And you can call me A.”


    A brilliant smile spread across his face. “I’d be honored to.”


    We talked for a while longer, mostly about books. He tried to direct the conversation in a more personal


    direction a few times. Still, he seemed to respect my avoidance and always let the topic shift back to


    whatever I wanted. It was approaching eleven o’clock in the morning when he said he had to go, but he


    said he would be back in the evening.


    “That really isn’t necessary,” I insisted. “I know you have a lot to do. I’m perfectly fine on my own.”


    He chuckled. “I’m sure that is perfectly true. But perhaps I’m noting to see you for your benefit.”


    twasn’t sure what to say to that, I wasn’t even sure what he meant by it. He winked at me and, with


    another of those


    gorgeous smiles, he left the room.


    What the heck was that about?


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    I had a hard time organizing my thoughts throughout the day. Things had definitely not gone ording


    to what little of a n I had. I had no car. I was stuck in a hospital bed. I had an injury that limited my


    mobility and would take weeks to heal. And in any other circumstances, I would be terrified of the


    danger the situation would pose for me.


    But for some reason, I wasn’t.


    Maybe Kingston was offering me a real option. I wasn’t sure what I would do if I stayed, but at least I


    would have time to safely figure that out. At least I’d have some time before the smell of a rogue


    became too strong for me to stay. But Kingston said he would help me find a new car, and I had money,


    so that would be something that could quickly be remedied.


    It was bing increasingly tempting to take him up on his offer of help. However, I was still having


    trouble trusting his motives. I didn’t understand his interest in me. And that made


    me nervous.


    I wished Dasha was there.


    I pushed the thought away when Kingston came back that evening. He had brought dinner for us. He


    told me it was from a local mom–and–pop–style café and was leaps and bounds better than the


    hospital food, which he wasn’t wrong about.


    I was so full that I started feeling tired shortly after we finished eating. But I didn’t want Kingston to


    leave yet, so I tried not to show it.


    “I have to step out for just a moment,” he said after I noticed the familiar look of the mind–link cross his


    face. “I’ll be right back.”


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    Chapter 10: A


    I nodded with a smile as he left, yawning once he was out of


    Property ? of N?velDrama.Org.


    the room.


    I guess I was more tired than I thought because I must have drifted off before he returned. It was an


    intense sharp pain shooting through my chest that jolted me awake with a cry, struggling to breathe as I


    clutched at my heart.


    Kingston jumped up from his position in the chair next to the bed.


    “A, what’s wrong?” he asked, panic clear on his face. “I’ll get the doctor.”


    “No,” I cried, grabbing his arm to stop him from calling anyone else.


    I knew what was going on. I wasn’t about to let anyone else witness my humiliation. I was frantically


    trying to mask my reaction, working to figure out a way to convince him that everything was fine.


    Then another pain seared through me, and I couldn’t stifle the


    cry.


    I felt Kingston’s hands on my cheeks, turning my face to look at him. There was a look of horror on his


    face when he asked me the question that I desperately didn’t want him to ask.


    “A, do you have a mate?”


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