Ex-Mate Wants Me Back (Seraphina and Mortimer) novel Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Mortimer’s POV

Why was she stuck in the same hell every time she closed her eyes?

That nightmare didn’t just sound desperate it sounded like pure, bone-deep resentment. Every tinie she screamed my name, Barton, my wolf, recoiled.

He was cowering in the back of my skull, terrified of what he was hearing.

The panic I’d been dragging around all week hit me again, full force.

I clamped my jaw shut so hard it ached.

The office was warm, but my blood felt like it was turning to slush.

I couldn’t bring myself to just shake her awake. I held my breath, leaning in, arms out-I was going to lift her as gently as possible and move her to the cot.

But as I moved, my eyes caught the mess on her desk. Those pill bottles she hadn’t cleared away.

I reached for them, needing to see the labels, when her voice sliced through the quiet like a blade.

“Alpha Mortimer?”

Her eyes were foggy for a split second, but the moment they locked onto me, they went sharp. Crystal clear.

I saw her peripheral vision flick to my hand-the one reaching for her meds-and I felt her entire body go rigid.

She bolted upright, shoving herself between me and the desk like a shield. She was standing there like a cornered wolf protecting its kill, blocking my view with everything she had.

“Are you here for an update on Rolf?” she asked. Her voice was too steady. Controlled.

She was desperate to make this about work. Anything to get my eyes off those bottles.

I didn’t answer right away. I just stared at her.

The exhaustion carved into her face felt like a needle pricking my conscience.

I pulled my hand back and let my voice drop. “You were in surgery for five hours. I wanted to check on you.”

Seraphina blinked, then a flash of bitter realization crossed her face.

She gave a small, hollow nod. “I’m fine. Just need a minute to recharge.”

It was a textbook brush-off. Cold. Clinical. And then came the eviction notice: “The ICU doesn’t need ‘family’ hovering twenty- four-seven. You can head back to the pack. Come back tomorrow.”

Something about the way she spat out the word ‘family’ made my blood boil. I felt a spike of petty anger. “What the hell is that supposed to mean? Whose ‘family’ am I exactly?”

She looked stunned for a second, like she couldn’t believe I was actually picking a fight over a label.

“You did your ‘family’ duty for the Davises,” she said flatly. Then, before I could snap back: “It’s 1:00 AM. Go home, Mortimer.”

The way she was trying to shove me out the door made my pride flare up. I let a bit of my aura leak into the room. “You’re in a real hurry to get rid of me, aren’t you?”

Silence.

Chapter

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The way she looked at me… it was like looking at a total stranger. Not a mate. Not even a friend. Just some guy in her way.

“I’m on call,” she said, her voice dropping to a weary monotone. “Emergencies happen. I need to get some sleep while I can. I don’t have the energy to host you.

The subtext was loud and clear, “You’re an eyesore. Disappear.”

I heard her, but I didn’t move.

I kept my eyes locked on hers, but my mind was still pinned to those meds hidden behind her back.

What was she taking?

I stared her down until her patience finally hit a wall. I saw the irritation she’d been burying all day start to crack the surface.

Just as she opened her mouth to snap, I threw it out there, “You had a nightmare.”

I watched her face.

It twitched.

She tried to play it off, tried to act like it was nothing, but the mating bond didn’t lie. I felt that jolt of pure panic ripple through

her.. 1

Her scent spiked-that sharp, metallic tang of fear. She couldn’t hide that from me.

“Yeah, well,” she said, her tone forced and casual. “I haven’t been sleeping. Dreams get messy when you’re tired.”

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