E


    Alexander stepped into the room and held up the bag. “I brought you some things to keep you upied.”


    1 straightened in the hospital bed, pulling the thin nket higher over my torso. I hadn’t expected to see him again, especially not so soon after he’d dropped off the flowers. “Things?”


    He approached the bed and handed me the bag. “Just some books, games, stuff like that. The nurses mentioned you might be here for a few days.”


    Curious despite myself, I peered inside. There were a few paperback novels-mysteries, one of my favorite genres-a book of crossword puzzles, a deck of ying cards, and folded on top of everything else, a gray sweatshirt that I immediately recognized as Alexander’s.


    I pulled it out and held it up, blushing furiously. “This is yours.”


    Alexander shrugged. “I checked your closet for something warm, but all your sweaters are too thin. It gets cold in hospitals at night.”


    I blinked, staring at the sweatshirt. It was one I’d seen him wear around the house on rare asions, usually when he was working in his officete at night. The fabric was worn in ces, soft from years of washing. It smelled faintly of him.


    “Besides,” he added, “it would look good for the press if you’re seen wearing my clothes. People still think our marriage is on the rocks.”


    And there it was. The real reason. Not concern for myfort, but concern for his image. His campaign. The act we’d been putting on for weeks now.


    “Right,” I muttered, shoving down the bitter disappointment that began to form in my chest. “Wouldn’t want anyone to think we’re not madly in love.”


    If Alexander noticed the frustration in my words, he didn’t show it. “You should put it on,” he said. “It’s already getting colder in here.’


    He wasn’t wrong about that. The hospital room was chilly, and my arms were covered in goosebumps beneath the thin hospital gown. Swallowing my pride, I pulled the sweatshirt over my head, letting the soft fabric engulf me. It was enormous on my frame, the sleeves hanging well past my fingertips, and the hem would probably hit mid-thigh if I stood.


    But it was warm. Andfortable. And it smelled like him.


    “Thank you for bringing this stuff,” I said. “You can go now, if you want. I’m sure you’re busy.”


    “I’m staying for a while.”


    I raised an eyebrow. “Why?”


    “People would talk if I didn’t,” he pointed out. “A devoted husband would stay with his sick wife, especially after she copsed in public. It would look strange if I just dropped off a bag and left.”


    More image maintenance. More pretending. The hospital was full of pack members who would notice and gossip about-how long the Alpha stayed with his Luna. Of course that was his concern, not my actual well-being.


    The bitterness I’d been trying to swallow rose up again. Did anything Alexander dide from a genuine ce? Or was it all calcted for maximum political benefit? Was what happened in the alley just for show, too, in case someone saw?


    “Well, then,” I said stiffly. “By all means, make yourselffortable.”


    Alexander nodded and sat in the chair Lilith had upied earlier. Then, to my surprise, he reached into the bag he’d brought and pulled out a small wooden chess set.


    “I thought we could y,” he said, setting up the board on the rolling table beside my bed. “It helps pass the time.”


    I stared at the chessboard. In five years of marriage, Alexander and I had never once yed a game together. Never spent an evening doing something as simple and normal as chess.


    “I don’t really know how to y,” I admitted. “I mean, I know the basics, but I’m not very good.”


    Alexander shrugged. “That’s fine. I can teach you”


    For a moment, I considered refusing just to spite him. But the thought of sitting in silence while he watched me seemed even more awkward than fumbling through a chess game.


    “Alright,” I sighed. “But go a little easy on me.