Chapter 49
hapter 49
Tessa felt like a voyeur, witnessing the raw emotionality between them. At the same time, the crack in her chest opened even wider. She rubbed at her sternum and looked away from them.
Jess reappeared with a heap of towels. She draped a few over Natasha. Arthur fussed with them, rearranging them with grave particularity. Jess knelt in front of Tessa and began wrapping her bare feet with towels. Tessa hissed as she realized they’d been warmed somehow. What was probably pleasantly warm to Jess felt
like molten lava to Tessa’s frozen feet.
Connor came from the back hall, his arms loaded with blankets. He
draped one around Tessa’s shoulders, threw another across her lap.
“She’s not shivering,” he said to Jess, concerned.
“They should change out of those wet clothes immediately p>
somebody said.
“Good luck prying Tasha out of Arthur’s grip,” somebody else said
dryly. Nobody laughed.
“Tessa, what did you see?” Jess asked.
Alex’s face flashed into her mind, stark and handsome and terrifyingly familiar. No, she told herself. Impossible. It was a trick of the light–a trick of her terrified mind. It couldn’t have been him.
It couldn’t have even been human, whatever it was.
“No questions,” Arthur growled. “Not until Margaret gets back p>
Tessa lookedC up then, scanning the crowd. Margaret, Declan, Harry, Elena, and Adam were gone. Were they outside? She had only seen
Chapter 49
Elena and Adam out there, and they hadn’t been wearing coats.
“Ow,” Tessa hissed as sensation began to return to her feet in the form of a sharp, needling feeling beneath her skin. A small tremor ran down her spine. It seemed to spread slowly outward until her whole body was trembling.
Jess took note of the change, nodding with satisfaction. She lifted one of Tessa’s feet and examined it closely. “Doesn’t look too bad,” she said. “I think you’re going to have a little frostbite, but you’ll keep your toes.” She stood up and helped Tessa to her feet. “You need to change into some dry clothes.” She eyed the thin camisole. “Warm, dry clothes. Come on p>
Jess led her to the stairs. Her feet tingled painfully beneath her weight.
“Arthur,” Tessa heard Connor say coaxingly. “You know she doesn’t run as hot as we do. You need to let go of her so she can get into dry
clothes p>
Arthur growled–literally growled–but when Tessa glanced back, he
was carrying Natasha down the back hall that led to their living
quarters.
Back in her own room, Tessa was shivering so hard, her teeth were
clacking together like castanets. Jess helped her sort her clumsy,
useless limbs into the appropriate places so that she could pull off
her wet jeans, and step into long underwear and thick fleece pajama
bottoms. She slid Tessa’s arms into the sleeves of a thermal shirt and
pulled on a heavy sweatshirt over that.
As Tessa struggled to pull on some thick wool socks, a sequence of images flashed through her mind. Four wolves racing towards
Natasha. Only three humans present–Adam, Elena, and Jess. Then,
out of nowhere, Arthur at Natasha’s side.
Where had the wolves even come from? Behind her had been The
Chapter 49
Spruce’s back wall, stretching nearly the entire length of the block. The only thing that made sense was that the wolves had come from The Spruce. And where had Arthur come from? There’d been four wolves to begin with. How many had been there after Arthur appeared?
She stared at the scene in her memory. An absurd suspicion took hold of her.
No. No way.
She’d been freezing half to death, jacked on adrenaline, and terrified out of her mind. Her memory of events was not exactly reliable.
“Tessa?” Jess crouched beside her, looking concerned. She’d frozen with one sock halfway on. “Are you okay p>
Tessa looked into Jess’s face, looking for any sign that she was hiding something from her–hiding something really, really bizarre.
Not possible.
Tessa shook her head. “I’m fine p>
She finished pulling her socks on, and Jess herded her to the bed. While Jess was heaping blankets on top of her, a knock sounded at
the door.
Linnea Teague came in, bearing a tray loaded with supplies–hot broth in a mug, a hot water bottle, a thermometer, and a bottle of painkillers. “Harlan’s with Natasha right now, but he said he’ll check in on Tessa in a little bit,” Linnea said, setting the tray on the bedside table. “We need to keep her warm and give her aspirin.” She lifted the hot water bottle and slid it beneath the blankets. “Don’t put your feet directly on the hot water bottle. Harlan said it could make the tissue damage worse p>
Tessa nodded complacently, still shivering.
Chapter 49
Linnea and Jess looked down on her, like two concerned farmers with a horse they didn’t want to shoot. “It’s good she’s shivering,” Linnea murmured.
“Mm–hmm,” Jess agreed.
“Get her to drink the broth while it’s still hot,” Linnea said. “I’m going to go see if Margaret’s back yet p>
Jess sat with Tessa, holding the mug of broth so that she wouldn’t dump it all over herself, and all but pouring it down the back of her
throat.
(5)
Cedella
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella’s storytelling style is immersive and addictive—perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.