The Alpha’s Rejected And Broken Mate
Chapter 53

Rowan

POV

I strode through the hallways, ignoring the curious looks I got from the doctors and nurses, heading straight towards the hospital room that I knew so well, my father sitting up in his bed and looking quite jovial and cheerful as he read a book that he held in his hands. I did however, take note of the fact that he was still clad in his pyjamas, as though he hadn't had the strength or the motivation to change, and that his hair was quite dishevelled as well.

"Rowan" he exclaimed in delight, hugging me tight as I bent over the bed "I wasn't quite expecting you today. I thought you said you would visit on Saturday" he murmured, looking confused "it's not saturday yet, is it?" He peers out the window, as though that will give him the answer and I smile to myself.

I shook my head adamantly. "No father, it's not saturday. I came in need of some advice" I explained, plonking myself down onto a chair and making myself comfortable, or as comfortable as I could, considering it was a hospital chair and not comfortable in the slightest.

My father immediately straightened his back, looking quite solemn. I could count on one hand how many times I had approached my father for advice, so it was an unusual request from me. Before I could speak, a blonde nurse came hustling in, grabbing hold of my father's clipboard and perusing it.

Her name tag read Nurse Stevens. She gave me a friendly smile, that grew wider, the longer her big blue eyes stared at me. I could see her eyeing me like I was some sort of fascinating male specimen. I frowned, remembering that Amber was still back at the pack house and that right now, the last thing I want is attention from yet another female. Not when I had my mate safely sequestered at home and with no idea that we were mates yet. I still had to come clean to her.

"How is he doing?" I asked abruptly and the nurse blinked at my gruff tone, obviously getting the message, for she glanced down at the clipboard and scowled to herself.

"Teddy here is doing alright. He's started to respond to chemotherapy which is a good sign and his nausea is subsiding" explained the nurse, placing the clipboard down and taking my father's blood pressure to his great reluctance. He was a good sport about it though, as he had his vitals checked every hour at the hospital.

"Great" she muttered "your blood pressure is average, so not low and definitely not too high. That's a good thing" she told us both firmly.

"How are you feeling Teddy?" she asked in concern, her big blue eyes blinking at him as she waited.

My father, turned to mush under her gaze. I can't believe it. Once he had been a big bad alpha, and now, with a pretty girl's eyes on him, he turned into a complete marshmallow. Unbelieveable. But he'd always been partial to blondes, as they tended to remind him of my mother.

"I feel slightly sick" he confessed a bit sheepishly and the nurse nodded, scribbling it down in his chart.

"I'll organize some more of the anti nausea tablet you're taking" she informed him with a raised eyebrow. "Anything else? Coughing, shortness of breath, feeling dizzy?" She leaned forward, staring him directly in the eyes.

My father shook his head and she smiled, placing the clipboard back. "I'll be back with that tablet" she said quietly, turning around and leaving the room, her shoes making large clacking sounds on the hospital floor.

Whew. I let out a breath and sat back in the chair. My father relaxed slightly but looked towards me with a questioning look in his eyes. "It's about this girl" I began and he instantly laughed.

"Well what a surprise" he chuckled, "I should have known. Everything about you revolves around girls" he sounded slightly disappointed. I frowned.

"It's not like that this time" I protested, folding my arms across my chest and glaring at the stubborn old man. He could at least hear me out before coming to assumptions.

"Oh yeah" he scoffed, his eyes twinkling with amusement "then tell me what's wrong? What do you need my help with?" he asked.

I folded my hands together, thinking for a moment. How did I approach this? In the end, I settled for the truth, apologizing to Amber in my mind, feeling like I had betrayed her trust, when all I wanted was some advice from my father. "It's about this girl" I began "her name is Amber."

"What's she like?" interrupted my father "I need to get an image of her in my mind."

I thought back to when I first saw her, a wide smile spreading on my face. "She's amazing. She has the most beautiful red hair that flows all the way down her back and to her bottom. Her green eyes are so bright and like emeralds and she has the cutest freckles over her nose and face. Her skin is like a porcelain dolls and she's short and dainty like. But she's also brave, strong and courageous. One of the bravest women I know" I said softly, remembering that she had been forced into a marriage she hadn't wanted and had been determined to go through with it anyway. Even now, not knowing what was going on, she was determined to stay and it was something to admire.

My father's eyes light up. "She sounds like a hell of a girl" he whistles, "what kind of help do you need? Can't get a date with her or something?"

"No, its um not that" I tread lightly now "but she has some trauma that I don't know how to deal with. Whether I deal with her gently or if I treat her like any other girl I would treat."

My father frowns, his expression grave. "What kind of trauma are you talking about? Emotional, physical or" he sucks in a breath and looks sickened "s****?"

Nurse Steven's reenters the room, halting our discussion. I wiggle uncomfortably in my chair, ignoring the small seductive look she aims my way, as she hands my father a tablet and a small cup of water to drink it down with. "Here you go" she says cheerfully, and my father grins and downs the tablet, gulping the water down and handing her the cup back.

"Thanks love" he says appreciatively, "that ought to fix it." He gives her a wink.

She chuckles and shakes her head. "You really are a charmer" she laughs, turning around and swaying her hips as she walks slowly away and out the door. I roll my eyes.

Father leans back against the headboard of the bed, eyeing me carefully. "You were telling me about the trauma" he prompted.

I sigh. Even now, when I think back to those marks on her back, I feel myself becoming incredibly angry. My hands clench into fists, an action that doesn't go unnoticed by my father. "Emotional and physical" I growl. "Her bastard of a father beat her and whipped her with silver. She has scars all on her back because of it."

My father looks shocked. "But that's a punishment for a rogue or a prisoner" he exclaims "not for some poor young girl being punished for some minor transgression. I'd like to meet this a*****e" he snarled. He hates women being hit by men just as much as I do, but the thought of a father doing that to a child just incensed us both.

"Sadly he's not here. I punched him though" I said with a small degree of satisfaction. I still wish I had hit him harder though. Enough to have caused him some serious damage. But I had held myself back.

"You did, did you? Good job" my father praises me "wish I could have been there."

I wish he could have seen it to. Something tells me he would have been cheering me on for it. "The thing is" I said taking a deep breath "is that I'm afraid that she'll fear me because of her trauma. Do I handle her with kid gloves so to speak? Or what happens if I make it worse?"

My father stays silent for a moment, wriggling slightly in his bed. "I doubt you can make it worse but you should be careful when approaching her. I wouldn't get mad in her presense, especially with your wolf because that s**t's scary" he said thoughtfully "and maybe don't shout but speak firmly if you need to. Don't lift a hand up or make her think you're going to strike her and maybe you could encourage her to speak to a councellor or something like that" he suggested.

Damn. Why hadn't I thought of that. I can be a real i***t sometimes, but this was why I had gone to see my father after organising the surveillance on the rogues teaming up on the edge of my territory. "Damn, you're good" I admire my father.

He just grins and winks "you better believe it. Now tell me more about this Amber and why you are so interested in her. You care enough to ask me for advice, so she must be something special."

I fidget. His gaze intensifies. Realization dawns in his face. "You're mates arent' you" he hisses delightedly, leaning forward to stare at me.

"We're mates" I acknowledge "but she doesn't know it yet."

My father's eyes narrow "why haven't you told her? Actually scratch that" he mutters "why can't she tell? She should be able to sense the mate bond unless she has no wolf..." he trails off, his eyes widening as he stares at me. "She has no wolf" I say tiredly "which is why she can't tell."

"That doesn't matter. She should feel something for you. The mate bond works whether you have a wolf or not, you just don't feel it as intensely" my father reiterates. He sounds thoughtful, his expression serious as he digests his own words.

I think back to the kiss we shared, how delicious she had tasted and the way she had responded had my c**k twitching with excitement. I could hear her low moans, her panting and smell her arousal. Her body had trembled as I touched it and she had closed her eyes, in the throes of passion. It was safe to say that she felt something for me.

"Oh she feels something for me alright" I say drily.

"So what's the problem? Why not tell her? Are you ashamed of her" my father demanded heatedly "because I thought I raised you better than that."

"It's not that" I snap tiredly, running a hand through my hair "it's something else. I can't get Stacey out of my head alright? Everytime I think I'm over her, something happens to remind me of her again. I don't think it's fair to start something with Amber when I still have her in my mind and thoughts."

My father groans out loud in disappointment. "I thought you were over her" he rasped "she cheated on you son for heaven's sake. A mate is a sacred thing, given to us by the moon goddess herself. You would be a fool to let your mate slip through your fingers, for the sake of a memory" he added wisely.

I could see his point but it just wasn't that easy. My thoughts flash back to the wedding when I confused Amber with Stacy. It was like my mind had been trying to tell me something. Like I had unfinished business. OR that maybe I had been partly to blame for her cheating on me. After all, it's not like I had told her about Amber and I had been distracted a lot when it happened.

"Amber sounds like a brave girl and she sounds like a sweetheart. I would really love to meet her" my father told me eagerly.

I smile. At least he was looking forward to the next visit, even if he was asking me to bring a certain someone along. I was pretty sure that if I asked, Amber would honor his request. She was too nice and polite to refuse.

"I'll try and bring her next visit with me. I'm sure that the both of you will get along nicely."

My father lets out a yawn and I see his eyelids fluttering. He was exhausted and trying hard not to show it.

"Lie down father" I told him, moving to stand upright, hovering over him and tucking him beneath his blanket, like a parent with a small child would do.

"I'm not a child" he told me crossly and I chuckled and winked at him, enjoying the scowl he shoots my way.

"Get some rest old man and I'll come see you again soon. It sounds like you're getting better" I said, my voice dripping with gratefulness. I wanted my father to get better, to be able to come home again, instead of wasting away his life in a hospital bed. I wanted my father to reside back in the house that he had grown up in. If I could have arranged him to stay home, I would have, but he needed to be monitored carefully and round the clock and the chemotherapy was a different concoction to humans, in order to cope with our shifter dna.

"Don't forget I want grandkids" my father mutters from the hospital bed, his eyes twinkling as he looks at me "sooner, rather than later if you please. Even better if their made with your mate" he teases.

"I'll see what I can do" I told him sourly, shaking my head. I leant against the doorway. "I love you."

"I love you too son."

I turned and walked away with a heavy heart. Every time I left my father back in the room, I feared that it would be the last time I ever got to see him. Every moment I spent with him, therefore was precious and cherished. Even with the reassurances that he was getting better, it still stayed crystallized in my mind and I was careful to tell him I loved him before I left the room. Now I needed to find out how the surveillance was going and whether or not Laurence had managed to get any relevant information out of the elders. With luck, we might be able to thwart whatever the rogues had planned.