Echoes at Dawn (KGI #5)(25)

Rio thrust the tray at Diego. “Here, you take this. I’ll get Grace out of the bathroom.”

Diego took the tray and Rio hurried toward the bathroom door. He knocked softly. “Grace? Honey, you can come out now. I brought you some food. If you’ll let Diego check you over, then I’ll get rid of him so you can relax and eat and then we’ll talk about Shea.”

Rio turned to see Diego throw him a sour look. “Gee thanks,” Diego mouthed.

The door cracked open and Rio turned back around to see Grace peering out, her eyes wide and wary.

“Hey,” he said softly. “You ready to do this? We just need to make sure you’re okay and don’t need more medical attention than what we can provide you. He’ll be quick.”

“I want you here,” she said in barely above a whisper.

His chest kind of caved in at the vulnerability in her voice. Already, whether she realized it or acknowledged it, there was a thread of trust between them. She felt safe with him. It was a start.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he promised. “Come on out so we can get this over with before your food gets cold. I had gumbo in the freezer and I nuked it. It’ll cure what ails you for sure. The ultimate comfort food.”

He held out his hand, holding it just outside the crack in the door where she could see it. Slowly, she opened the door wider and then slid her hand into his.

It was soft against the roughness of his. Velvety. An electric sensation shivered up his arm, prickling the hair all the way to his nape. Then she wrapped her slender fingers more firmly around his.

She was enveloped in his robe. It dragged the floor at her feet and the sleeves fell to her knuckles. She had it wrapped almost double around her and he smiled at the image she presented, all damp and, e fd shiny and wearing his clothing. He liked it and felt rather stupid about that fact.

He shook himself out of his stupor and tugged her into the bedroom. Diego had put her tray on the nightstand and stood away as if not wanting to overwhelm Grace more than she already was.

He led her to the bed and then paused. He put one hand on her shoulder and turned her so she looked directly into his eyes.

“Now you tell me how you want to do this, okay? I can leave, I can stay, I can sit beside you and not look. I’ll hold your hand. You’ll know I’m here but I won’t do anything to make you uncomfortable.”

“Just stay next to me. I mean unless you aren’t comfortable with it,” she added hastily. Then she closed her eyes. “I’m being stupid. I’m sorry. I can do this.”

Rio tucked his fingers underneath her chin and nudged upward. “Grace, you’ve been brutalized by ruthless men over and over. I’d be a little worried if this didn’t freak you out on some level. You’re not stupid.”

She sucked in a deep breath and then glanced nervously in Diego’s direction. Then her shoulders sagged and she started to untie the robe. “Let’s just get it over with.”

Diego stepped forward and put his hand gently on Grace’s hand to stop her. “Go to the side of the bed. Undo your robe. Rio and I will turn our backs while you get on the bed. Once you’re there, cover yourself with the robe. I’ll only uncover what I need as I examine you, okay?”

She gave him a tremulous smile. “Okay.”

Rio dutifully turned his back while Grace walked around to the side. A moment later, he heard her move onto the bed.

“You can turn around now,” she said softly.

Rio and Diego turned, though Diego didn’t spend any time staring. He swiftly moved around to the side, brisk and all business. Rio stood for a moment, staring down at the woman with a robe pulled up to her chin. Only her bare feet and a portion of her legs poked out from underneath.

She looked…She looked scared and nervous and he wanted more than anything to make it all go away. He went around to the opposite side and then climbed onto the bed. He plumped the pillows behind his back so he could prop up beside her and then he reached for her hand and squeezed.

She smiled and it did funny things to his throat and his chest.

On her other side, Diego examined her injured arm, holding it up, asking her to flex and extend her fingers and then her wrist and then to bend at the elbow. She did all without complaint, though he saw a slight grimace when she made a fist.

Diego gently laid her arm back down and then pushed the robe up just enough that he bared a portion of her rib cage. He examined a small area, stopping to ask her if it hurt, then continued over the rest of her abdomen.

“Did most of this happen when you fell?” Diego asked. “Or were you injured before that as well?”

She sighed. “It’s difficult to explain.”

“Try me. Take your time.”

She glanced over at Rio and he squeezed her hand again just to let her know that it was okay. She turned her head so that she stared up at the ceiling and then she took a deep breath.

“Before the fall, I was sick, injured, ill, whatever you want to call it because I’d healed so many people in a very short period of time. I never got a break. It was one after another, a never-ending litany of pain and madness. I was weak and I was sure I was going to die.

“"1e He wentWhen I fell, those injuries were…real time. Not that the others weren’t. They were just different. They happened directly to me, not because I absorbed them from someone else. So to answer your question, the injuries from the fall were just more in a line of injuries, but the others had already started to heal, or as much as they could, given the circumstances.”