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He sighed. “I don’t doubt you. I just don’t want to push you past your comfort zone. I can manage.”
“Hmm. We’ll see about that.”
The redhead flashed ahead of them, so quick it made Jade’s eyes cross. She threw open a set of double doors and they entered a bedroom that was larger than Jade’s entire cottage. Darien set her gently on the humungous bed, keeping the cloak around her.
Sheena disappeared into a sunken area with a marble floor that likely led to the bathroom. Moving away from her for only a few moments, Jade’s savior stoked the fire until it blazed bright and warmed her.
Returning to her side and sitting carefully on the edge of the mattress, he asked, “What can I do to help?”
Through clenched teeth as she tried to keep the pain from her voice because of his tormented look, she managed to say, “Set the bones.”
He blew out a harsh breath and his eyes burned with his own agony. “That’ll hurt like hell.”
“Yes,” she said, her tone strained. “But I can’t do it on my own. I can’t get past the pain I’m feeling right now to inflict more. I need you to do it.”
He jumped to his feet and paced alongside the bed. Sheena returned, placing a bowl of water and towels on the nightstand. Then she pulled back the cloak.
“Oh dear.” She visually inspected the mangled hand.
Jade didn’t have to see the appendage to know how disastrous the sight was. In addition to feeling it, she could see the evidence of the damage in the vampire’s eyes. And in Darien’s.
“Please,” she pleaded with him. “Compound fractures won’t heal properly unless they’re in place. Just do it.”
“Shall I clean the wound first?” Sheena asked.
“No,”
Darien was quick to ward her off, though he didn’t explain Jade’s need to absorb the blood to help the process along.
“If I can make this work,” she said, “I’ll heal before I bleed to death.”
Looking befuddled, Sheena slipped away. Darien took the spot she’d vacated. He stared into her eyes, though she felt as though hers rolled in their sockets. She had difficulty focusing on him.
He said, “You told me you have to be able to rise above the pain in order to quickly repair yourself.”
The vampire pulled in a sharp breath. “A human who can heal as we do?”
Darien nodded. “She’s gifted. But,” he added as his gaze returned to Jade, “when I do this, you might not be able to stay conscious. You’ll slow the process.”
“She needs a pain reliever,” Sheena said.
“And we have none,” he ground out.
“Wrong.” She moved away, only to reappear in a matter of seconds. She offered Jade a glass of tawny-colored liquid. “It’s from his private stock. Guaranteed to soothe. He’s been self-medicating a lot lately, I’ve seen the positive effects.”
“Thanks, Sheena,” he all but growled.
Somehow, Jade found the ability to smile. “Serves you right for invading my dream.”
“You liked that dream,” he reminded her.
He helped her sit up as Sheena carefully held the glass to her lips and Jade sipped. They took their time, letting her muscle through the burning sensation in her stomach, which, after her gulps became deeper and she’d drained the glass, dulled. Everything dulled, including the throbbing radiating from her hand and wrist.
“That’s so much better,” she said on a long breath. “Nice trick.” Sheena swept from the room and Darien tenderly reached for her hand. “Just try to push everything into position. The bones should retract and meld together.”
“Should?” he asked with a lifted brow.
“I don’t break bones as a rule. This is still new to me.”
