One of which meant she could fall back into a coma—one she'd never wake up from.
His dragon chimed in. She just has to make it through one day. If Ivy survives the first twenty-four hours after waking up, the doctors are fairly confident she'll make a full recovery.
Only twenty-three hours and forty-two minutes to go.
Zain finally replied to Sid, "I'll take whatever time with her I can get." He lowered his voice to a level only a dragon-shifter would be able to hear. "And before you ask, no, I'm not going to leave and find sleep somewhere else. Not until Ivy passes out of the danger zone will I do more than go into the attached toilet."
Sid bobbed her head. "I completely understand." She laid a hand on his bicep. "We're one step closer to this being over, Zain. Then you can finally enjoy having a mate."
With that, the doctor left, leaving him alone with Ivy.
He met his mate's eyes again and walked slowly toward her until he stood next to her bed. Never breaking his gaze, he took her hand in his and said, "I love you, Ivy."
She smiled faintly. Then her scratchy voice whispered, "I love you, too."
Even though he'd suspected as much, the words sent a rush of euphoria throughout his body, making his heart warm. "I'm sure some people would've waited unti
l you were fully recovered, but I couldn't, Ivy. I put it off too long before you were poisoned, and I wasn't going to let the chance pass by again."
"Well, a little passed."
He snorted and then lightly caressed her cheek with a finger as he replied, "I'm glad your humor is still intact." Leaning down, he kissed her cheek and murmured, "Soon enough I'll be able to kiss you properly, and teasing me should be the last thing on your mind."
"Don't tease me."
At the scratchiness of her voice, he remembered her throat. Kissing her cheek one more time, he reached for the cup of ice chips and sat on the side of her bed. He placed a small piece of ice at her lips—lips that were full and tempting despite how he shouldn't notice, showing his selfish side at wanting to kiss her right then—and slowly fed her one, and then another. After she finished with the second one, he finally spoke again. "I'll always tease you, love. So if you can't handle it, then maybe you should petition for a divorce right now."
She rolled her eyes. When she replied, her voice was less scratchy. "Just before I can finally kiss you, you want a divorce."
His dragon growled. Don't let her think that.
She's joking.
I don't care. Treasure her, remember.
I will, but I won't smother her with overprotectiveness so soon, either. She'd hate that.
Ivy's voice interrupted his conversation. "What does your dragon have to say?"
"He's being more overprotective than you've seen before."
His mate smiled faintly. "Just tell him that I'll give him loads of ear scratches as soon as I can manage it. Maybe that will help calm him down."
It's a start. But until we fully claim her, I won't be calm. At all.
Ignoring his dragon, Zain said to Ivy, "He'll like it, of course." He gave her another ice chip before adding, "But being able to kiss you will help even more."
Once she finished the ice, she asked, "Who will it help more—you or the dragon?"
"Both," he stated without missing a beat.
"Me too." She reached out to touch his thigh. Despite the thick material of his jeans, it burned his skin. She continued, "But it's still going to be a while, right? In case it kicks off a mate-claim frenzy?"
Zain decided to be honest with her. "Even if you were mine before—and I don't know for sure if that was true—it may not happen now, Ivy. The doctors didn't have time to explain it to you, but the treatment they gave you alters your DNA a fraction, enough to make you appear a different person to a dragon's instinct."
Maybe if she hadn’t met Zain or formed friendships during her time on Stonefire, she might’ve reeled from the news. However, being alive—especially given her chance at a future with happiness—was more important than subtly altered DNA.
She finally replied, "Either way, it doesn't matter to me." She hesitated before asking, "Will you be disappointed if I'm not?"