The MC President's Forsaken Wife (Zara and Knox) novel Chapter 322

Chapter 157-2

But as I stare at the heavy, protective arm locked around my waist, the thought instantly sours in my stomach.

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If I wait until morning – if I tell him about a doctor’s appointment like an afterthought over coffee – it will gut him. He rode through who-knows-what-hell to get back to this room.

Leaving him in the dark, even out of love, would feel like a betrayal. He’d be deeply hurt that I kept it from him for even a single night. For even an hour longer than I had to.

“Locke?” I say softly, my voice barely carrying over the quiet hum of the room.

“Yeah, baby?” he responds, his voice a low, gravelly rumble, his eyes remaining closed as his thumb absently traces a slow circle on my hip.

“I… I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow. At noon.”

The effect is instant and terrifying.

Locke’s eyes snap open, wide and dead-lethal in the dark. The relaxed, sleepy posture of his massive frame vanishes in a single heartbeat, every muscle locking up into stone.

He sits up abruptly, pulling me up with him, his broad hands gripping my shoulders with a tight, panicked intensity that borders on painful.

“What doctor?” he demands. “Why? Did something happen while I was dark? Are you sick?”

“No, no…”

“Zara, don’t lie to me,” he growls, his chest heaving. He scans my face frantically, his eyes moving to my cheeks, my neck, checking me as if searching for hidden wounds. “What appointment? Is it the cancer? Did the clinic call with bad test results while I was out of range?”

“No. The oncology panels aren’t until next week, remember,” I say quickly, reaching up to cover his hands with mine, forcing him to hold still. “It’s not about bad test results.”

“Then why the hell are you going to a doctor tomorrow?” he barks. “Tell me what happened, Zara.”

“I just… I had a dizzy spell this morning,” I say. “Mayhem came over for coffee, and when I stood up off the sofa to get him a refill, I got lightheaded and lost my balance for a second. That’s all it was.”

Locke stares at me. “You fainted?”

“It was just stress,” I say softly. “I haven’t been sleeping well with you gone. My mind wouldn’t stop running, I was worried sick about where you were, and I hadn’t eaten breakfast.”

“Okay. And?”

“And Mayhem panicked and tried to force me to go to the emergency room, but I convinced him to let me make an appointment with Doctor Mercer instead.”

He breathes out a long, rough breath through his nose. He closes his eyes, leaning down to press his

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ferchead hard against mine, his hands moving down to wrap tightly around my waist, pulling my bare body Nash against his chest.

“You’re going to destroy me, baby,” he rasps. “I swear to God, you’re going to fucking kill me. I can handle a room full of lethal, armed bastards, but seeing you sick… seeing you hurt… it tears me apart.”

“I’m okay, Locke. I feel completely fine now.”

“Okay, well… I’m taking you tomorrow, and that’s non-negotiable. I’m walking into that exam room with you, and I’m staying right beside you while they run every test they have.”

“Okay. You can come. You can be my guard dog.”

“Damn right I’m coming,” he says. “And don’t think calling me a guard dog earns you any leniency on the strict rest-and-recovery protocol starting immediately.”

”

I can’t help the small, amused snort that escapes me. “Oh, really? Is that an official directive, Mr. Dark Run?

“Strict, mandatory order from the top, baby. In fact, since you claim you’re feeling completely fine now…” His palm slides up my side, warm and heavy against my skin. “I think that you owe me for almost giving me a heart attack ten seconds ago…”

“I owe you? You’re the one who went dark for two weeks while I was stuck here losing my mind. If anyone is collecting damages, it’s me. Besides, two minutes ago you were dead on your feet.”

“I was. Until you started talking about fainting and getting me all freaked out and worked up, and now I’m wide awake. And I’m more than happy to pay up for being gone…. but you’re staying in this bed until it’s time to go tomorrow, and no arguments.”

“Deal,” I say. “No arguments from me, handsome.”

His hand tangles into my hair, holding me steady as he kisses me, shifting from teasing reassurance into something heavy, slow, and consuming. Any lingering chill from the dizziness this morning vanishes as he shifts, his massive frame hovering over me in the dark, effectively blocking out the rest of the world.

Skin meets skin, hot and electric, and he sets out to make good on every single promise.

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