âLiv!â
~Oh, no.~
She flashed her friendliest smile, waving back, trying to keep her lips from trembling.
She hadnât even made it five steps before being noticed. How was she supposed to access the computer undetected? âHey.â
âAre you okay? Katie said you left in a hurry last night and then you didnât pick up your phone. We were worried.â
She nodded. âIâI thinkâ¦I have the flu? Honestly, I shouldnât be here. IâI left so quickly I forgot my wallet.â
Andie raised an eyebrow. âThe flu?â
âChills, feverâ¦â Was this the best she could come up with? It was pathetic. But then again, it wasnât entirely false. She felt like she was in a whirlwind.
Even if she showed up to work, there was no way she could concentrate. Not until she found out more, until she was sure she was safe.
Besides, it wasnât ~the biggest lie~, she did experience most of the flu symptoms during her heat. Although it had ~never~ been as severe as last night.
âYou do look a bit paleâ¦â
âIâm sorry,â she said, turning away, trying to avoid Andieâs gaze. Sheâd make it up to her, take on extra shiftsâ¦none of that mattered now.
She needed to get to the computer, find out what she could about the mystery man, and leave before she had to lie to anyone else.
Even though she had to lie about a part of her life, sheâd never been comfortable with it.
She was a terrible liar before becoming a werewolf, and that hadnât changed. After her first transformation, she spent a lot of time alone.
Will was her only connection for a long time.
There was no need to lie to him; she could be completely herself around him. It took her a while to learn how to be a ~fake~ human, acting every day, playing a role so she could stay in the human world.
She shook her head; that wasnât important. She navigated through the crowd of bustling people and managed to reach one of the equipment storage rooms.
There was a computer thereâold, but functionalâand she could use it to access the information. It would be slow and limited, but it would do.
Plus, no one would think to check this one and she might attract less attention this way.
The fact that an alpha had been thereâ¦it was reckless to start withâ¦
Who knew what else he might have done and how it might be connected to her? No, she couldnât afford to take any additional risks.
She used the keys from her ID card to unlock the door, and quietly closed it behind her. If anyone saw her here, out of her scrubs, she could get in trouble. Was it worth risking her job?
They might think she was a drug addict trying to steal medication. She bounced on her toes, staring at the computer.
~Whatâs worse? Drug addict or werewolf?~ Maybe it was just her paranoia, maybe it was all in her head, right?
She pressed her lips together, turning them white from the pressure, and sighed before sitting down on the chair.
She had already made the mistake of coming all the way here. What was one more thing at this point?
Olivia swiped through, and then her fingers hovered over the keyboard. What room had it been? She tried to close her eyes, remember the details, but all she could think about was him.
His smell, his touch...the way his eyes had looked into her very soul.
Why couldnât she get him out of her mind? She had slept with Will, and sheâd never felt like this the next day, and she certainly didnât feel that way now.
She wasnât jealous that he had a girlfriend; she was his friend.
So why was this stranger consuming her every thought?
~103.~
That was the room.
She typed it in, scrolling through the long list until she found the time and date she was looking for.
She groaned. Of course. ~No name provided~. There was nothing.
He hadnât given insurance information, he hadnât given an address...nothing. ~Patient left~. A typical John Doe.
He hadnât paid for the care, he hadnât stayed long enough to see a doctor.
That could only mean one thing; he left the moment she ran away. But then again, could she blame him? The last thing sheâd want as a werewolf is someone poking around, or finding out too much about her.
Not only that, but he probably had a pack to protectâor destroyâbut that was another story.
He wasnât as reckless as sheâd assumed.
Now, with no leads to follow, she was unsure whether to be relieved or frustrated.
Olivia sank back into her chair, her fingers threading through her hair. Sheâd risked everything to come here, and for what?
Her lips pressed together in a thin line as she massaged the back of her neck. ~Damn it~. She was such a fool. She shouldâve heeded Willâs advice and stayed away.
~What were you thinking, Olivia? That heâd just hand over his entire personal life?~
The idea of a pack, an alphaâit was terrifying and overwhelming.
Her heart pounded in her chest as she quickly closed the page and rose to her feet. She needed to leave before her luck ran out.
Pressing her ear against the door, Olivia listened for any signs of movement.
When she was convinced it was safe, she slipped out, locking the door behind her and briskly walking away from the hospital.
She brushed past a few people, but she didnât look back.
She couldnât afford to meet anyoneâs gazeâshe ~couldnât~. Guilt churned within her, but she knew it was the right thing to do.
She wasnât prepared to face anyone or answer any questions. She needed to go home, get her life in order, and clear her head.
This was a one-off.
She would never see him again.
She would move on and forget this ever happened.