Chapter 40

Cassie

The photo of me with Scarlette and the students was in my bag , safe and sound as I stepped into the royal hospital and came face to face with megan who was smiling at me like a demented person.

"Cassie you made it." She squealed happily like we were old girlfriends. We had barely been acquaintances before and had only spoken because we were the only wolf shifters on staff at her own hospital. "Come on, Doctor Poe is waiting to meet you." She looped her arm through mine and started to lead me through the corridors of the strange hospital.

Unlike the mostly human one I used to work at , almost everyone we passed here was a shifter or paranormal of some description and their eyes seemed to follow us as we walked passed them.

"Now just to warn you Dr Poe is a bit of a battle axe." She grinned. Pausing my a door she lifted her hand to knock. "Just keep your head down and don't argue back."

I bit back the urge to ask her if she could manage that and instead nodded my head.

"Come in."

Swinging open the door Megan stepped back and the hairs on the back of my neck stood up on end. I didn't trust her or her nice , let's be best friends act and I didn't want to turn my back on her but I didn't have a choice.

The woman who greeted me, was on the older age of middle age and as scary as an alpha male I had ever met. Steel grey eyes matched the steel grey hair.

"You must be Cassie?" She glanced down at a scrap of paper in her hand. "Cassandra." She lifted her eyes to me and I steadily met her gaze. "What do you prefer to be called?"

"Cassie." I said quickly, flashing her a smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you Doctor Poe. I read your paper on-"

She didn't let me finish. "I don't really care what you have read or haven't read. I care what kind of doctor you are. The Prince himself asked for you to be placed here and the king-" she trailed off. "Well if it wasn't for the King endorsing you I wouldn't have you here. It's about time the royal family stopped pulling strings to get their favourites on rotation "

I fell silent because what could I say to that. She had a point and I wasn't about to pull rank and tell her that technically I was royalty.

"I'll do my best not to disappoint you."

She scanned me and I didn't know what she saw but her face softened a little. "I know you will try. Megan?" She snapped my rival's name.

"Yes."

"Take Cassie to the locker room and give her the details she needs. I assume I can trust you with this?"

"Of course Dr Poe. Follow me Cassie." With a swish of her hair Megan lead me out of the room. I followed after her with a frown on my face.

Megan was an intern just like me. I could clearly see the lanyard around her neck but she seemed to be in a position of power.

Head intern.

Top girl?

The thought made me smile behind her back. I bet she was loving that.

"This is our locker room." She pushed into a room lined with lockers. They were all closed. "This one is yours." She tapped it. "I had someone move so you could have the one next to mine." She smirked

I couldn't even force myself to smile back. Was she actually for real? Where we back in high school?

"Um, thanks." Opening it I found everything I needed inside. Scrubs with the hospital insignia on them and other things I would need.

"I think I got your size right. I mean we are pretty close aren't we." Megan trailed off.

I was nothing like her and our body types weren't even similar so I was guessing she was talking about the one thing that did link us together.

My husband.

Who just so happened to be her lover.

Complicated didn't even cover it.

"I am really sorry about what happened last night Cassie."

I froze, and didn't move. Staring into the shadowy interior of my locker. I made a show of moving things around and studying them. "It's ok."

It wasn't ok but I had to work with her so I wasn't about to bring it back up. I had to be smart and choose my battles carefully.

"No it's not. When did you marry-" She swallowed so hard that the sound of it was loud . "When did you and Julian get married?"

I didn't answer her at first. A wave of heat flooded my face. That cold kind of heat that always came up before you either fainted or vomited. My vision swam and for a second I clutched the edge of my locker to keep myself from swaying.

"I'm sorry." I gulped hard, forcing down the lump that had formed in my throat. "But that's none of your business."

Megan sucked in a hissing breath. She was pissed that I wouldn't tell her but that was a her problem and not a me problem. My main concern right now was keeping my breakfast in my stomach.

"Of course." Megan caught herself quickly. "I'm sorry I know it must be hard for you. Julian explained that it was an old agreement and that neither of you wanted it. It must be hard-"

"Hard?" Finally I turned to her. Confusion and wave after wave of nausea pinching my eyebrows together in a frown.

"To be married who is not in love with you." Megan said sweetly but her eyes glittered with malice.

"It's an arrangement." I snapped back. A miserable arrangement where we are both miserable and cheating on each other I added silently.

"Cassie- are you ok? You've suddenly gone pale."

I clapped a hand over my hand and the vomit rushed up my throat. Swallowing convulsively I shook my head. "Bathroom?" I managed to croak out.

Megan pointed but I didn't have a chance to thank her because I was already running.

The bathroom was several doors down, crashing threw the door I found the first open stall and fell to my knees just in time.

I had never felt so rotten in my entire life. Not even when I'd had food poisoning from seafood when I was seventeen and I'd actually thought I was going to die back then. This was worse because it had come out of no where.

I hadn't eaten anything that could make me sick and up until a few minutes ago I had felt better than ever apart from a few aches and pains.

But now?

Now I didn't know if I was going to pass out or throw up again. My skin felt cold but feverish and I just couldn't stop.

I had nothing left in my stomach but I kept heaving anyway.

"Cassie I've got you a glass of water." Megan spoke from the other side of the closed stall door.

"Thank you." Flashing I opened the door and took the paper cup gratefully. "I might have the stomach flu."

"Oh no. You do look paler than usual. I have you bag as well." She thrust it forward and I took it gratefully.

"Thanks Megan. I have some gum in here so that should help with the sick breath."

"Of course. I'll leave you to straighten up. Meet me back at the locker room at six sharp ok? We both have the night shift tonight."

"Of course." Closing the door on her I began to rifle through my bag, finally my hand closed around a packet and I yanked it out.

Only it wasn't gum at all. It was a tampon. An unused tampon at the bottom of my bag.

And then I was heaving again. Only this time I prayed to black out because this couldn't be happening.