Alpha Carter's Mysterious Mate

Chapter 9: Just Give It A Chance

Alexia

I awoke to strong arms around me. I opened my eyes, and looked into two brilliant green ones. He was smiling at me. How long has he been watching me sleep? Oh no, did I drool? I hope I didn’t snore.

“Hey beautiful, did you have a good rest?” he asked in a husky tone. “Yes, I did, actually. The most peaceful sleep I have had in a long time.” I said, frowning. I didn’t have one nightmare or flashback. He kissed my forehead gently, and moved to get up.

“They brought us breakfast. You’ve been asleep for about 11 hours. You must be hungry.” He says, reaching for the trays, and handing me one. “I can’t believe I slept that long. You too? You must’ve been exhausted too.” I said, as I took a sip of juice. “I woke up hours ago. I didn’t have the heart to wake you if I moved, so I just waited for you to wake up on your own. You looked so peaceful and beautiful. Like my very own sleeping beauty.” he chuckled.

Wow, so he just watched me sleep. Now I feel s**t, the poor man had to stay put, while I had the best sleep I’ve had in a year. “I’m sorry, you should’ve woken me, if you needed to leave.” I said while eating the oatmeal. “I wasn’t planning on going anywhere, that’s why I didn’t wake you.” he simply says.

Just as we finished our breakfast, Dr Grant entered the room. “I swear, between the two of you, I don’t know who the worse patient is. You should be in your own room, Carter.” She says, trying to hide a smile. “She looked so lonely, I had to keep her company” he answers. “More like the other way around.” She laughs. “Carter, can I please have some time with my patient? You can wait in your room; I need to check your wound too.” She says with a stern expression.

“Yes mam, I mean Doc,” he says with a mock salute. He then kisses me on the forehead, and says he will be back soon. He got off the bed, and left the room. “Are you ready for your results?” she asked, when she knew he was out of earshot. “Yes, please Dr Grant.” I whispered.

“The only thing I did see that worries me, is damage to your uterus. There is a lot of scar tissue surrounding it, and along your vaginal wall. I can speculate about the cause, but I won’t. I have increased the dosage of the antibiotic, and you will be getting two injections now, and two this evening to help with that.

I really wish you would tell me what happened, but I won’t push you. By law, I am required to report this, but I have not listed any of these findings in your file. So, there is no record of it. Do you understand me?” she says softly. I felt a tear roll down my cheek.

“Thank you for everything, Dr Grant. I will speak to you as soon as I’m ready to relive those memories. I just need time.” I said with pleading eyes. “Okay my dear, I have to go check up on Carter, before he barges in here again. I will see you this evening to administer the other two shots.” She sighed and said. She gave me the injections and left.

I don’t know how much time has passed as I just lay there thinking about everything that happened over the last few days. I can’t deny that I am attracted to Carter. It’s not just his looks, there is something about him that just draws me to him. I feel the need to be near him, and what are those tingles I feel when our skin touches? It scares me a bit, because I have never felt this way before. It’s all so intense and consuming.

My heart says to give it a chance, and that he can keep me safe. My head is screaming for me to run and not hurt him. I’m so conflicted. If I stay, things will definitely progress between us, it’s hard to fight the pull. What if I have to leave again? I don’t want to hurt him. I was still debating what to do, when I heard someone enter the room.

It's Carter with a basket in his hand. “Hey beautiful, I am glad you are awake. I brought some snacks. I thought we could finish our conversation from earlier” he says with that gorgeous smile of his. “I think I slept too much already. What did Dr Grant say? Are you okay?” I asked.

“I’m great, actually. I was discharged and can recover further at home. That is also something I wanted to speak to you about. Dr Grant says that you still have to stay a few more days, before she is willing to discharge you. But she will discharge you earlier if she knows someone will be watching over you. You will still experience dizzy spells, so it’s not good for you to be alone.

I was thinking that maybe we could recover together, and help each other. You don’t really know anyone here that can help you, and I love your company. It’s a win for both of us.” Carter says with a soft smile on his face, while setting up the snacks on a tray.

“Are you asking me to live with you when I am discharged?” I asked in shock. “Yes, that’s exactly what I am suggesting. We can help each other out. I won’t be lonely, and you will have me to watch over you. You don’t need to sleep with me, though that would be a great-added benefit.” He says with a wink. I rolled my eyes, and he chuckled.

“I don’t know what to say. I have my own place, and I’m sure I will be okay alone.” I answered. “I know you have your own place, but mine is fully equipped, and I have someone who comes to cook and clean. So, we would have extra assistance. I live alone, and it’s close to your new office anyway. I have a place here as well, but I will be spending most of my time in Rapid Falls from now on anyway. You can stay with me as long as you need to recover, or longer if that’s what you want. So, what do you say?” he asked.

I mull it over, and can’t really deny that it is a good idea. But being around him all the time would also make it harder for me to resist him. Damn it, this man is so unpredictable, and a little pushy. “Okay, we will try it out for a bit. I just need a week or two, and I will be good to go. Then I can move to my own cottage.” I said “Great! So, it's settled then. You can stay as long as you like. Dr Grant will discharge you tomorrow, so that I can take you home and care for you.” He says with a big grin.

“Why are you being so nice to me? We just met, and you know nothing about me?” I said, wanting to truly know. “I told you; I really like you, and I would like to get to know you better. I’m also really grateful for what you did for me, when we first met. I will be completely honest with you; I don’t like lies and secrets. They ruin everything. The truth is that I feel this pull towards you.

I think you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, both inside and out. When I look into your eyes, I feel like I am entranced or entrapped by your beauty. We can take it as slow as you like, but I won’t deny that the pull I feel towards you is not just emotional, its physical too. I crave to know more of you, I crave to touch you, I crave to kiss those soft plump lips again. But we will take things at your pace.” He said the last part in that low husky voice, that gets my tummy all in knots.

I am sure I’m blushing because my face feels extremely hot. I was not expecting such honesty. I can’t deny that I really want to say yes to everything he says. But can I? Do I really want this? The closer we get, the harder it’s going to be. He just said he hates lies, and my whole new life is built on lies. If he finds out the truth, he will surely hate me.

“Look Carter, I appreciate your honesty, so I will return the favor. I won’t lie and say that I don’t feel the exact same way as you do. I just don’t know if I am ready for what you are asking of me. I just made it through a horrible breakup, and I was not looking for someone new.” I said as gently as I could.

“I hear what you are saying, but why deny the attraction because of some i***t, who was stupid enough to let you slip through his fingers. I am not him, and I will show you how you should be treated. I don’t know what went down between you and that asshole, but I promise, I will never hurt you. Just give us a try, what do you have to lose?” he says while looking into my eyes and cupping my cheek.

What do I have to lose? You, if I fall any deeper and I have to leave. That’s what I will lose. I don’t say that out loud though. I just continue to look into his eyes while I say, “Carter, there are bits of my life that I am not yet comfortable sharing with anyone. There are things in my past that could change how you feel about me. I just don’t know if it is worth it.” I all but whispered.

“Don’t you think I deserve the right to choose, whether I think it’s worth it or not? I want you, and I am willing to take you, any way I can get you. I won’t push you to share your past with me, but I hope that you will trust me enough one day to share everything with me.” He says with pleading eyes. Why the hell not Lexi? You don’t need to tell him everything for now. Just see how it goes. Maybe, just maybe, I can be happy. Who am I kidding? Knowing my luck, I will find a way to f**k it up.

“Okay Carter, if you are okay with me needing time to open up, I would gladly like to stay with you for now, and see how things go.” I said. His face breaks into that panty-dropping smile, and he leans in to kiss me. This time I didn’t stop myself or him, and I allowed him to kiss me.