Echoes at Dawn (KGI #5)(24)

Her eyes watered suspiciously and she swiped at one with the back of her hand. A hand that was dirty and shaking.

“And don’t you dare cry on me either,” he warned. “A woman who’s survived all you’ve survived doesn’t cry. She holds her head up and dares the world around her to f**k with her.”

Her lips trembled upward into a smile, but his gentle reproach just made her want to cry all the more.

To her surprise, he gently gathered her in his arms and hugged her. His big arms surrounded her and his chest was a soliestbed. Td wall of support. He held her there, smoothing a hand up and down her back to comfort her.

“It’s going to be okay, Grace.”

Such simple words and yet so powerful. Full of promise and encouragement. She hadn’t realized just how badly she needed them. She closed her eyes and rested her head just below his chin. Then she carefully slid her arms around his waist and pressed herself more fully against him, enjoying the comfort of another’s touch.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

He ran his fingers through her hair and then gently pulled away, his hand still stroking her hair away from her face. “Go on now. Get cleaned up and feeling human again. I’ll put out something for you to wear.”

What she wanted to do most was to lean back into his arms and wallow in the warmth and comfort of his embrace. She was starved for touch. Affection. Human contact that wasn’t forced on her.

She missed her sister, and here, standing in front of this man who’d hugged her, she felt the loss of her sibling more keenly than ever before.

“You say you promised Shea,” she said huskily. “So you know her. You’ve seen her and talked to her. How is she? Is she safe?”

Rio’s eyes softened and he once again touched her as if he knew just how much she craved it. “How about I promise to tell you all about it once you’ve been tended to and had something to eat. Better yet, we’ll talk over dinner.”

Grace nodded and slowly turned toward the bathroom. She fumbled for the light switch and trudged inside. She barely took in the gorgeous bathroom. All she wanted was a shower and bed. She spared a glance at the huge tub but decided it would take too long.

She leaned into the large shower stall, turned on the water as hot as she could stand it and then stepped back to strip out of her tattered clothing.

She looked like something out of the zombie apocalypse.

As she stepped into the shower, she clipped the door with her side. Pain shot through her rib cage, and wincing, she pushed herself under the spray, standing there a long moment, her chest heaving as she sucked in deep breaths.

Finally the pain subsided and she began the arduous task of soaping her hair and body. By the time she was done, she was exhausted by the effort it had taken her to do something so simple.

She was careful as she rubbed the towel over her body. There wasn’t a part of her that didn’t hurt in some way or another. Her arm was still weak but she was relieved to note that the swelling had gone down and the bruising was already fading. It only bothered her when she flexed and extended her fingers.

After wrapping a towel around her hair, she then pulled another of the big, soft towels around her body and went back into the bedroom.

She saw clothing laid out on the bed and headed toward it. She was halfway there when she abruptly pulled up, realizing she wasn’t alone in the room.

Clutching the towel tighter around her, she cast a wary glance in Diego’s direction.

“I’m sorry if I frightened you,” he said softly, almost like he was trying to calm a wild animal. “I thought Rio had let you know that I was going to examine you.”

“H-He did, but…” She clamped her lips shut to prevent the warbling and then tried again. “I’m not dressed. I mean he said he’d leave clothing out for me.”

“I need to check you over before you dress,” he said.

She took an instinctive step back.

He put his h">Hand she and up. “Hey, it’s okay. I’ll get Rio. He should have been here by now with your food. It wasn’t my intention to frighten you. He was supposed to be here when I looked you over. Tell you what. I’ll go see what’s keeping him. There’s a robe in the closet you can put on until we get all this sorted out.”

He opened the closet door, and a moment later came back with a thick, white robe. He laid it beside her clothing on the bed, flashed her a reassuring smile, and then went for the door.

Grace’s shoulders sagged. Then she grabbed for the robe and hurried back to the bathroom before anyone else came into the bedroom while she was wearing nothing better than a towel.

RIO was heading down the hall when he met up with Diego. He stopped and frowned. “I thought you were going to take a look at Grace?”

“Yeah and I thought you’d have your ass back before she got out of the shower. I scared the piss out of her. She came out of the bathroom in just a towel because you left her clothes on the bed. She wasn’t expecting me to be there, and when I mentioned that I’d need her not to be dressed when I looked her over, she went into meltdown mode.”

Rio cursed under his breath. The last thing he’d wanted to do was frighten her.

He turned sideways and slipped past Diego and entered the bedroom, only to find it empty. The clothes were still on the bed.

“I gave her a robe,” Diego said from behind him. “She was just wearing that towel, and she looked cold and extremely nervous. I thought the robe would make her feel not quite so vulnerable and it’s possible that we can work it so that she stays mostly covered except for each part I check out in turn.”