Precious Angel (Alpha Province #4)(3)

Inhaling a deep breath as he prepared to tap on the window almost had  his knees buckling. The amazing aroma of oranges and peaches, two of his  favorite fruits, had his mouth watering. His feline yowled with  excitement and leapt at his stomach, trying to get out so he could get  to its mate.

Jayson shoved his panther back and this time when he inhaled, he did so  through his mouth. His cock was a hard spike in his jeans, threatening  to bust his zipper out, but he ignored the fiery lust coursing through  his blood. He needed to find out if his mate was all right. He suspected  her car may have broken down and although he felt like a bastard for  thinking it, he hoped it wasn't an easy fix.

He tapped on the glass of the window, but the woman inside didn't stir,  the back of her head was still resting on the glass. Jayson didn't want  to open the car door and scare the shit out of her, so he decided to  walk around to the passenger side of the car.

A roar of fury bubbled up from his chest and escaped out of his mouth  before he could stop it. His mate's face was bruised and swollen out of  proportion. Her eyelids looked as if they were swelled shut.                       
       
           



       

He didn't even remember opening the door or climbing into the car beside  her. His hands trembled as he reached for her, but before he touched  her, he hesitated. He wasn't sure if he should move her or not. He could  be doing more damage without even knowing it. He dug into his pocket  and pulled his cell phone out and called Broden. Broden Higgins was a  Kodiak bear shifter, and he also happened to be the one and only doctor  in their small town.

"Jayson, what's up?" Broden answered.

"I need you here, now!"

"Where are you?"

"On 127th Ave NW, a few hundred yards from town."

"Do I need my medical bag?"

"Yes. Bring Jenson and Jordan with you. Hurry, Broden." Jayson  disconnected the call and gently placed his hand on his mate's forehead.  Her skin was hot and feverish. With a carefulness he hadn't known he'd  had, he brushed her blonde hair away from her face and gazed intently at  her. The bruising was dark and new. She looked as if someone had used  her as a fucking punching bag. He ground his teeth so hard his jaw  cracked and wondered if he'd end up breaking a tooth.

Her arms, legs, and feet were bare and covered in bruises, too. He  wanted to lift her into his arms and tell her that she was safe, that  whoever had hurt her was a dead man, but he clenched his fists instead.  Jayson reluctantly shifted his gaze away from his mate and down the road  toward Ambrose. A sigh of relief left his parted lips when he saw Doc's  vehicle speeding toward him. He got out of the car, leaned on the metal  body, and crossed his arms over his chest.

Broden screeched to a halt and then guided his truck onto the verge of  the road. Jenson and Jordan were out of the vehicle before the doc had  turned the ignition off.

"What's going-" Jenson groaned and stumbled before he righted himself.

"What's that delicious-" Jordan gasped.

"Mate," Jayson, Jenson, and Jordan said at the same time.

"Who's hurt?" Broden asked as he got out of his truck, medical bag in hand. "Did I hear y'all say mate?"

Jayson's panther hissed at the Kodiak bear shifter when he was close enough to the car to bend down and look in at his mate.

"What the fuck?" Broden growled.

Jordan and Jenson set the hackles on the back of his neck on end when  they peered into the car and saw the state of their woman's face. The  growly yowling sounds they made mirrored his own anger, but they needed  to keep their shit together in case she woke up. The last thing Jayson  wanted was their mate fearing them because they were angry.

Jayson scrubbed a hand over his face and sighed when his fingers  encountered his eye patch. He didn't know why he was getting his hopes  up. She would probably take one look at him and his brothers and head in  the opposite direction.

He, Jenson, and Jordan had been caught in an IED explosion while they  were serving in the Marines. If it hadn't been for the faster healing  they'd all no doubt be dead. It had been touch and go for a while, and  their bodies had used all their reserves just to keep them alive. There  was nothing left to heal them totally, hence the loss of his right eye,  the burn damaged skin on Jenson's forearms, the shrapnel scar on  Jordan's face and neck.

None of them had a woman in over six years because of their visible  injuries and he'd been okay with that, but now, he wished he'd never  joined up. He mentally shook his head because he wouldn't have changed  anything if he could have a do-over. He'd been proud to serve with his  brothers and the other shifters to keep their country safe from fanatics  and warmongers. If he hadn't, he wouldn't have met the other shifters  or formed such solid bonds with them.

He pushed his thoughts aside and met each of his brothers' gazes. "Control your anger. We don't want to scare her."

Broden was already in the front passenger seat of the car examining  their mate. Jayson's panther paced with agitation and jealousy, but he  shoved his cat down deep.

"One of you need to get me the neck collar from my truck," Broden said.  "I don't know if she has whiplash or any other neck injuries, but I  don't want to take any chances."

Jordan hurried across the road toward Broden's truck.

"Fuck!" Broden snarled.

"What?" Jayson crouched down so he could peer in through the open door, but Broden's big body blocked his view.

"She has busted ribs."

"Motherfuckingsonofabitch!" Jayson snarled.

"Fuckingsonofawhore!" Jenson snapped.

"Here's the collar," Jordan said through clenched teeth and passed it to Broden after Jayson moved aside.                       
       
           



       

"Thanks." Broden worked quickly and efficiently as he carefully placed  the collar. "Jayson, go around to the driver's door. I'll make sure she  doesn't move too much when you open it. We need to get her out of here."

He hurried around the car and when Broden had gently moved his mate away  from the door, he tugged it open. He met the doc's gaze. "You can lift  her out, but make sure you support her neck and head and don't put any  pressure on her ribs."

Jayson drew in a ragged breath and then wrapped an arm around her  shoulders and pushed another under her knees. He nodded at Broden and  then carefully lifted his mate into his arms. The doc made sure her head  didn't move as he climbed out the driver's door.

"I don't want to jostle her too much. Can you hold her in the back seat of my truck?" Broden asked.

"Yeah," Jayson replied and then met his brothers' eyes. "You'll need to  drive my truck and her car into town. Are we taking her to the clinic or  should we take her to our place?"

Broden frowned as he pondered the question. "The clinic. I need to X-ray  those ribs, her face, and the rest of her body. I want to make sure she  has no other breaks or fractures."

Jayson nodded and walked toward Broden's truck. The Kodiak shifter held  the back door open for him and he carefully climbed in, making sure his  mate's body didn't touch the frame or the seat. He sighed when he sat  and cradled her in his arms. She was so damn small her weight barely  registered, yet she felt so right. She was where she was supposed to be.  He just hoped that he'd get the chance to know her.

Broden started the ignition after getting in the truck, did a U-turn,  and followed Jenson and Jordan, who were driving the other vehicles,  toward town.

Minutes later Broden pulled up in front of the clinic, turned the  ignition off, and opened the back door. Jayson wondered if Airen and  Archer had already been at the clinic waiting, or if the doc had  contacted his brothers telepathically. If so, Jayson had missed it. He'd  been so intent on his mate, he'd been deaf and blind to everything but  her.

Jenson and Jordan were standing on the sidewalk with their arms crossed over their chests and fierce scowls on their faces.

He maneuvered out of the vehicle and carried her into the clinic. Jayson  was glad to see Pixie and her lion shifter mate, Tatum, in the waiting  room. He was relieved to have another woman present just in case his  woman woke up.

"Put her on the exam bed." Broden pointed to the bed after Jayson  carried his mate into the room, aware of his brothers following him.

"Who would do such a thing?" Pixie asked in a wobbly voice.

Jayson didn't need to look over his shoulder at the other woman to know  she was crying. He could hear the tears in her voice and scent the aroma  of salt water in the air.

As soon as he'd gently lowered his mate to the table, he stepped back so  Broden could work. The doc set up the X-ray machine and then pointed  toward the door. "You're all going to need to leave. I'll call as soon  as I've taken the images."