Mission: Planet Biter (Veslor Mates #4)(60)
“Maith,” Roth growled. “Enough. Permit her to treat you.”
“I don’t trust her,” Maith grumbled. “I’ll be fine. It’s only a graze.”
“You heard me,” Roth snarled louder.
“I swore I wouldn’t run any scans without your permission, or sneak blood or skin samples,” the woman loudly huffed, her two different-colored eyes blazing. “Those other idiot doctors were about to dope you with a drug that would have made you puke your guts up, Veslor. They don’t know shit about your kind. You should be thanking me for rushing to get to you as soon as I heard you got nailed with a laser blast, and for having Drak bring you to my lab.”
Vera leaned into Roth’s side, curious. “Who is she exactly, and why are they arguing?”
The woman herself answered, overhearing Vera. “I’m the alien research specialist assigned to Defcon Red,” she called out. “Jessa Brick. I’m a doctor who specializes in non-humans. Maith here has refused to let me work on any of his grouping, but he needs me now. Just call me Jessa. I’m informal.”
“Hi.” Vera forced a smile.
“Now hold still, grumpy ass,” Jessa snapped, rushing forward to press the hyper syringe against Maith’s thigh while he was distracted by a glaring contest with Roth. “Done. See? That wasn’t so bad.”
“What did you give me?” Maith twisted his head her way. He growled low…but then his eyes closed and his body went lax. His head fell against the pillow under his cheek.
Jessa chuckled. “He’s out for a good hour.” She placed the hyper syringe down on a tray and picked up a small tool, approaching Maith. “I’m just going to cut off his shirt to get a look.” She lifted the material at his neck, running the tool down the center of the shirt, exposing the Veslor’s back.
Vera saw the wound, and she turned her face into Roth’s chest. She could’ve never gone into the medical field; gross stuff always made her squeamish. The burned skin on Maith’s back near his shoulder blade wasn’t pretty.
“It doesn’t appear bad.” Drak had moved closer to the bed, based on the sound of his voice.
“No. You bastards are tough. I’ll give you that.” Jessa paused. “Maith was right. He just got grazed. The laser split his skin open but it didn’t penetrate deeper. I wish humans had the same skin and bone density as you guys do.”
“It knocked him out.” That was Drak speaking again.
“I doubt it,” Jessa mumbled. “It probably just stunned him for a few seconds. He was probably amazed that someone actually managed to shoot his ass. Is the idiot who did this dead?”
“I permitted him to live.” Roth put his hand on Vera’s back and gently stroked his fingers along her spine.
“Shocking.” Jessa chuckled. “I would have guessed I’d be done treating Maith here long before a cleanup crew were finished wiping down the scene of what was left of the dumbass who went after one of you guys.”
Roth sighed. “The investigator in charge of Vera’s case wanted the male alive to question him.”
“Are you guys growing softer, living with humans?”
One of the Veslors snarled, but it wasn’t Roth. Vera turned her head toward the sound, discovering it had come from Gnaw.
“Kidding! Don’t get your boxers or whatever you wear under your pants in a bind.” Vera risked a glance to see Jessa hovering over Maith’s back, applying a thick white substance to his damaged skin. “Grumpy here will be fine.”
“What are you putting on him?” Roth kept stroking Vera’s back.
“It’s a burn treatment cream that I managed to synthetize from the minimum medical information your king has allowed me to have. According to what I read, it will help him heal faster and reduce the risk of scarring. It’s mostly used on facial injuries. I also learned that most adult males refuse to use it. Just your females and children.” Jessa raised her head to stare at Roth. “Don’t let him wash it off for at least six hours. Knowing Maith, he probably likes scars, but they make shifting more painful in certain areas of the body. It’s right over his right shoulder blade. I imagine that’s one of the ouchie areas.”
“Why did you make this cream?” Roth asked.
“Um, because I remembered the last time one of you guys got shot with a laser. I wanted to be prepared.” Jessa finished spreading the cream on Maith, dropping the tube on a tray before removing her gloves. “I figured it was just a matter of time before grumpy ass here got hurt, and you guys might actually need me. I know I’ve been tempted to shoot him myself.”
Roth snorted a laugh. “I will make Maith wait to remove the cream.”
“Great.” Jessa peered at Vera, glancing between her and Roth. “Is this the one I heard rumors about? The one from the bar, who you’ve been protecting?”
“Vera is my mate,” Roth admitted.
Jessa’s mouth dropped open and her eyes widened. She recovered fast, her eyes practically gleaming with…excitement? “Has it been at least twelve hours since you mated her?”
Roth hesitated. “Yes.”
Jessa rushed across the room to grab a strange handheld device off a charging station on one of the counters. She started to walk toward them with it, then paused. “May I?” She pointed at Vera, but her gaze was locked on Roth’s face.