Page 22 of Tiger's Little Waif

“Can you reach that bag for me?” she whispered, pointing to the air sick bag in the clear plastic pocket on the wall beside him.

For this flight, Harrigan had left the lights on, and the windows uncovered, so Marshall could see that his mate was pale and looking ill. He retrieved the bag and flicked it open just in time for her to grab it from him and hold it to her mouth.

After she had finished throwing up her lunch, he took it from her and closed the top securely. Not having a place to put it, he opened the window between the pilot’s area and the main cabin and set the bag on the floor between the seats. He then slid the window closed again before turning his attention to Shaw.

“Feel better?”

She leaned heavily against him as she nodded. “I think so.”

“I certainly hope you’re not getting that stomach bug that’s been going around,” the woman commented without bothering to look up from her tablet.

“I do, too,” Shaw replied dryly.

Marshall shifted in his seat and wrapped his arms around his mate. She closed her eyes and relaxed into his hold as she dozed. By the time they landed, he was feeling a bit air sick himself, but was able to keep his stomach from turning inside out.

Since Shaw did not wake up on landing, he unbuckled them both before lifting her into his arms and carrying her out of the helicopter. The Council members had disembarked as soon as Harrigan opened the door and had already disappeared down the stairs leading from the roof into the building.

“She okay?” Harrigan asked as he carried the air sick bag to a trashcan across the roof.

“I think she will be. Too many sweets at the reception, I think. Thanks for letting us hitch a ride.”

“No problem. We’ll be at your hotel room about eight so we can discuss how you want to handle things.” Harrigan pulled his duffel bag and Shaw’s backpack from the cargo compartment and helped Marshall get his arms through the straps while still holding Shaw.

“I want to rip his head off and be done with him, but I suppose that’s the wrong approach to take,” Marshall said softly.

“I’d feel the same way, my friend. Maybe you should call him tonight and find out what it is he thinks Shaw has.”

Shaw shook her head and mumbled something he couldn’t understand.

“Shh, little one. It’s all good. Papa’s here.” Marshall murmured as he headed to the stairs leading down into the Council building. He shifted her so he could carry her with one arm. Her head rested on his shoulder and her legs straddled his hip. “Papa will make sure everything stays okay.”

“’Kay, Papa,” Shaw sighed as she relaxed fully back into sleep.

Chapter Twelve

“Okay, waif, I’m afraid you have to wake up now. Come on, mate, open those beautiful eyes.”

Shaw opened her eyes, then blinked several times at the bright light that was shining in her face. Turning her head into Marshall’s chest, she sighed and could feel sleep pulling her back down again.

“No, little one. No falling back to sleep. You need to wake up.”

“Why, Papa?” she asked, not thinking that they were anywhere other than the kitchen or their cabin. Why did she need to wake up now? It was afternoon and she’d gotten used to taking a nap at this time of day.

“I need you to be awake and able to walk because I don’t think people will like seeing me carry a sleeping woman down the street.”

His words, combined with the rumbling in her empty belly reminded Shaw that they had left home to come to the capital for a few days. And then Dan’s phone call slammed into her brain, and she was wide awake.

Lifting her head from Marshall’s chest, she tilted it back and looked up at him. “I’m up. I’m up. Put me down, Papa.”

She looked around as he gently set her down on her feet. When her knees tried to buckle instead of holding her weight, he wrapped an arm around her back and held her close. It took a few seconds before she was steady on her feet and able to step back.

Shaw looked around and frowned when she realized she had been here before. The hall was two stories tall with marble floors and white walls, looked familiar, but she couldn’t think how. “Where are we, Papa?”

“The lobby of the Council building. Harrigan landed on the roof. So many people approached and asked if you were sick or injured as we came through the building that I knew I would have to wake you up before we went outside. I’m sorry I had to ruin your nap,” he said brushing a kiss on her forehead.

“That’s okay. I wouldn’t want you to get in trouble just because you were being a good Papa.”

Marshall chuckled at her praise before holding his hand out. “Ready to go out and tackle the capital?”