The Year of the Tiger (Book 3 of The Almair Series) (Completed)

Chapter 40

I ran all the way up to my room, excited to see my mate. I knew that I couldn't see my mate for long, but it would be long enough to comfort him and tell him that I was alright. I knew that he was worried about me just as I was worried about him.

Matt looked up when I slammed the door open and opened his mouth to say something. Concern filled his eyes, and I could tell that he was wondering what was wrong.

I stopped him from talking with a kiss, the need to feel his lips on mine, and I kissed him. I had dropped the bag near the door and was almost straddling him, being careful because I was fully aware that he was still in pain.

Matt pulled me closer to him, putting his hands in my hair and pulling it back. He moaned in my mouth when I moaned, the urge to do the deed strong; however, I knew that we couldn't do that just yet.

I pulled away first and laid my forehead on his, panting. My heart pounded in my chest, and I felt exhilarated just by being here with him and having him as my mate. "Gods, I love you," I whispered, pecking his lips.

Matt chuckled and kissed me back. "I love you, too," he said, smiling at me. "Though, I am curious as to what was that for."

I rolled my eyes and pulled away from him, biting back a smirk as I caught his lost look. "Oh, so you don't want to kiss me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "Ok, I wa-" I couldn't get anything else out as Matt pulled me closer to him and kissed my lips.

"Not what I meant, Martha," Matt said, pulling away a second time. He was smiling, but I could tell that he was in pain. He was trying to hide it, but I knew him well enough to know when he was in pain.

I shrugged my shoulder and got off of him. "You should have stayed at the hospital," I scolded, and he shrugged. "Why didn't you?"

"You left, and I was worried," he said softly. "I had never seen you look so afraid, so angry. I would have followed you, but..." He grimaced and gestured to the burns that still pained him.

I nodded my head. "I know," I said. "Bethany had been kidnapped." I got off the bed and went to where I had dropped the bag. I had no idea what was in here, but I had a feeling that Hermes had put something in here to help heal my mate.

Matt nodded his head and watched as I opened it. "I know. What did you do with Marcus?"

"Kept him alive," I replied, rummaging through the bag. I placed the items one by one in a neat pile in front of me, inspecting everything.

Jars of different shapes and sizes were in the bag, and I had no idea how they fit in there and not be so heavy. There were messages on the bottles, mainly in riddles, to tell what they were supposed to do.

"I needed him to do something," I replied, opening one of the jars and sniffed the contents. I recoiled at this pungent smell filled my nose and quickly closed it before putting it in a pile.

"What are those?" he asked, watching as I pulled out a white jar. "Where did you get them?"

"From someone," I replied, still inspecting the riddle. "And, they are jars of stuff. I can't figure out what is in them nor what they do."

"Who did you get them from?"

"An ally," I replied. "He doesn't want me to talk about him. Said it was dangerous."

"Why?"

"Don't know. Didn't ask."

"You not asking something freaks me out some. I'm not going to lie."

I paused and looked up at him. "It freaks me out, too, but he was so flustered and so scared that I didn't ask."

"He was scared? Why?"

"I think I had been there before by accident," I replied. "But, it's blurry like my memory has been erased." I turned my attention back to the bottle and noticed that a piece of it had come undone. Slowly, I started to try to take it off, not wanting to break the sticker thing.

"Is that possible?"

"I guess, but I don't know how," I replied. I peeled the sticker all the way off to see that it was healing cream. "I found some healing cream in everything. Can I try it on you?" I asked, looking at my mate to see that he looked rather nervous.

"You want to try something on me from a man that you don't know, and you don't know if it is poisonous or not. Really?"

"I don't think it is poisonous. I don't think he would do that to me, especially since he knows how much I care about saving lives. And like I said, I do know him or used to know him."

Matt shook his head and sighed. "You aren't going to let this up, are you?"

"Not if it means that you will stop crying about how much you hurt," I replied. "Please? Can we test it?"

Matt grumbled but nodded his head. "Fine," he said. "But, if it is poisonous and kills me, know that I am going to haunt you for the rest of your life."

I offered my mate a small smile, relieved that he was going to try it out. I knew the risk I was taking, but I had a feeling that Hermes wouldn't do me wrong because he needed me for some reason.

I just hoped that whatever the reason was wouldn't kill my mate or me. If it did, then I had no idea what I would do.