Horrilble Headache

*Hezzlie*

I wake up back in my bed with Rowan’s face hovering over mine. I sit up quickly, get a head rush, and fall back on my pillow.
“Easy, babe,” Rowan says, his hands pressing down on my shoulders. “You’re okay. Slow down, and take some deep breaths.”
Ordinarily, I would hate anyone telling me that I need to take deep breaths, but in this case, I think that he’s right. My head is spinning, and I can still hear a whooshing sound in my ears, even though I can no longer feel the vibrations from the moonstones.
“Did they stop?” I ask, keeping my eyes closed tight. Even the sunlight that’s managing to stream between the blinds is too bright.
“Yes,” Rowan says. “As soon as you opened the door, the moonstones stopped humming.”
“It was so loud!” My mother’s voice has me wincing. For some reason, her octave and volume have my brain sliding around in my skull.
Rowan seems to sense it. Maybe it’s my reaction, or maybe it’s the bond, but he says quietly over his shoulder, “Ann, I think she’s okay now. Can we have a few moments alone?”
“Oh.” I hear the annoyance in my mother’s tone, and I wouldn’t be shocked if she doesn’t angrily remind my mate that she’s my mom, but instead she just murmurs, “Okay,” and heads to the door.
I hear another, heavier set of footsteps as well and assume that Dean was also in my room but that he’s escorting my mother out.
“How long have I been asleep?” I ask, not that asleep seems like the right word. Unconscious?
“Not long.” Rowan smooths his hand over my forehead, brushing my hair away from my face. It’s sticky again with sweat, but I also feel cold. “Less than twenty minutes.”
I manage to open my eyes to slits and see he has an amused expression on his face. “What’s so funny?”
“Absolutely nothing,” he assures me. “But you’re adorable.
I open my eyes wider, again, not used to being spoken to the way that he speaks to me, but he means it as a compliment, not to belittle me, so I don’t scold him. He leans down and brushes his lips against mine, gently, and I close my eyes again.
But the noise in my ears and the ache in my head won’t let me go where he probably wants to go, and he seems to know that, too, because he leans up again. “Do you want James to give you something?”
“I don’t want to be given anything that’ll cause me to go loopy again,” I say in a warning tone. I think back to Peripheral and the booty juice they used to give us there. I don’t want to be sedated again. Ever.
He nods. “No, I meant something for your head. It's hurting you, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” Again, I have to wonder how he knows that. It’s almost like he’s reading my mind. That’s a little scary, but it’s also thrilling in a way I can’t describe. I like the idea of being so close to this man whom a deity chose for me that we can practically finish one another’s sentences.
“He’s on his way,” Rowan whispers, smoothing my hair again. “Are you hungry? Thirsty?”
“I’m fine,” I assure him. “My head is just hurting, and I feel like I can still hear the echoes from the stones.”
“Me, too,” he admits. “My ears are ringing a bit.” He shakes his head slightly, like that might help, but it won’t.
I’m not sure what to say, so we don’t talk for a few moments. We just stare at one another. Sometimes it’s difficult for me to believe this is the same man who shouted at me when I first arrived here. He seems like a completely different person in these still small moments when we are alone.
A knock on the door has my head pounding again, even though it’s not that loud. Rowan calls for James to come in, and the healer walks into the room with his black bag and a glass of water. “Hi, Hezzlie.”
“Hi.” It’s the first time I’ve really had a chance to address him since I’ve been back, even though I know he tended to me after I fainted–the first time.” I try to sit up, but Rowan helps me before moving aside.
James does some of the normal stuff doctors do, like checking my temperature and my heart rate, and then he says, “Your head hurts?”
I nod. “And my ears are ringing.”
“I think it’s from the noise down there. It was so loud we could hear it all the way up here. I’ll give you something for the pain.” He digs through his black bag.
“I don’t want to be unable to wake up, though,” I tell him.
“I understand.” He gives me a couple of pills. “Just extra-strength Tylenol.”
I take them in my palm and accept the glass of water he brought for me. I swallow them down. “Thanks.”
“Sure. Let me know if you need anything else.” He turns to Rowan. “She should be fine in an hour or two.”
“Thank you, James.” Rowan claps him on the shoulder, and it is a far cry, again, from the anger I’ve seen him display in the past.
But James doesn’t head for the door right away. “Mara is awake.”
HIs words have Rowan taking a step backward, his mouth falling open. “How long?” I can see a flicker of his normal anger, and I assume he’s upset that it’s taken this long for him to find out.
“Just a moment ago,” James assures him. “Adian is in there with her.”
Rowan’s eyes widen, and he turns toward the door. For a moment, I think he’ll shoot out of the room, rushing to her side, and choose her over me again.
But that’s not what he does. “Okay.” It’s all he says.
James gives me another look and a nod of goodbye and then heads out.
“You can go to your sister if you want to,” I whisper, still sitting in the bed. I sort of want to go with him, to meet the woman my brother loves so much, but I’m not in any shape to be out running around.
“I’ll give your brother a few more minutes,” he tells me.
I wonder if Mara is okay enough for Aiden to be in there. “Is she still restrained?”
He looks at the door. “I’m sure he’ll be fine.”
I nod and take a deep breath. Despite the fact that the medicine wasn’t the PM version, I’m still tired from everything that’s happened. “I think I’ll try to go back to sleep.”
“Okay. We have a lot to talk about as soon as you’re better,” he says.
My forehead furrows. “Like what?” I’m sure he wants to talk about my father, but it seems like there’s more.
“Like those stones,” he reminds me. “You used their power. I’m not sure how, and I'm guessing you don’t know either, but that’s important. We have to make sure they don’t fall into the wrong hands.”
Which is probably why they were warded up the way they were. “Right.” I take a deep breath and slide back under the blankets.
Rowan crosses over and kisses me on the top of my head. “Go to sleep, Hezzlie. I’ll be back.”
“Okay.” I take a deep breath, and as my head lulls to the side, I whisper, “I love you,” and fall asleep.