Mateless and Luna Bound (Self Published)

Chapter 8: I Will Pay

Authors Note: Max can be very dramatic sometimes, but he has such a caring soul that I love. I hope you enjoy this story as much as I am. Thank you for reading! If you see any grammar mistakes, be sure to leave me a comment and I'll fix it!

-Saturn

Max heard everything through the door to the infirmary. He was trying to give him some privacy, but he was too curious about him. Everything about Charlie seemed pleasant, but guarded. He seemed to calm down by looking at him, though. Max loved the idea that he might have the same effect on Charlie that the man had on him.

He could hear his heart race when he left the room, but his tone was as calm as ever. Max was immediately on edge as he waited to be let inside again. He didn't want to be away from his mate. Not now, not ever. They had only just met, yet he was already so in love with this man. And so worried about his health. His voice was so calm, it soothed Max. Until Dr. Button started talking to him about food.

Max remembered back to when he first saw him. He was so scrawny even from his wolf perspective. He tried to offer them jerky. It was the only thing he had to eat, and he offered it to wolves he thought were starving.

He wished he could have found him sooner. He would have treated him like royalty. It hurt Max just thinking about how much his mate must be suffering, and how long it might have been.

"I'm sorry," he heard him say, "I can't stay here."

It was a good thing his dad had to leave on some Alpha duties, because he would have been pissed to see Max burst through the doctor's door in the middle of a private discussion. He would have been pissed that he was listening in at all.

He didn't give a shit.

"What do you mean you can't stay here?" he asked the bewildered blond. Dr. Button was giving him the evil eye, but he avoided it. The silly little rules that the doctor tried to push on them all was no match for Max's anger. It might be for safety, but this wasn't exactly keeping Charlie safe if he was going to leave anyway, and work even though he could barely sit up!

"I'm sorry if I came off as rude," he apologized. Every other word out of his mouth seemed to be an apology. It was frustrating beyond belief. Max never knew these people existed beyond movies. Why did they apologize so much? It made Max feel like he was in the wrong just because he wanted his mate to not work himself to death!

"Charlie," Dr. Button seemed just as shocked as Max to hear the news. "I can't force you to stay, but your health is important. It should be taken seriously."

It broke his heart hearing that his mate wanted to leave already. He just barely convinced his dad to bring him here. He hadn't even really gotten to talk to him. He hardly knew the man. All Max had been wanting to do is get to know this mysterious man who came out of no where and dived right into his heart when he first saw him.

"I'm forever grateful for your hospitality. And I promise to work on getting my weight back up. But I don't really have the insurance to cover something like this as it is. I can't afford to stay here." Charlie looked embarrassed to say something like this. He looked like he was going to get laughed at. Max hated that look more than any other expression he had seen on his mate's face.

This...was about money. Was that why he didn't eat that much? Were they not paying him enough to live off of?

"Charlie, I'm not going to charge you for anything," Dr. Button said. Max could tell that Button was feeling the exact same way he was feeling about what he said. If this was about money, then they had plenty of it. Spending some on taking care of one person wasn't going to break them. It wasn't even going to put a dent in their wealth. "All I've done my whole life is this profession. And I've devoted my life to keeping people alive and well. I'm not going to let money get in the way of someone's health. That goes against all that I've known as a doctor."