Dr. Griffin said, “Let’s get you clean first, and I can examine you after that, okay? I’ll be out at the nurse’s desk and Gage can come and get me.”
“Yes,” she said, “I’d like that.” Anything to feel clean and to rid herself of that sick doctor’s hands on her body, the General groping her. Shivering, Alexa wanted to wash herself with soap until her skin was scrubbed free of her experience.
“Can you take a shower by yourself? Or do you want a nurse to come in and help you?”
Shaking her head, she said, “No, I’ll be okay.” Just the idea of cooling water on her back, so swollen, aching, and burned, sounded heavenly to her.
“I’ll be here if she needs anything,” Gage added, giving Alexa a tender look that said so much.
Alexa met his eyes, feeling wrapped in that invisible warmth he kept placing around her. She absorbed it like the starving, needy person she was right now.
“Well,” Griffin said, “I’ll have the nurse bring in the medication and you can take it after you get out of the shower. Fair enough?”
“Yes . . .”
Gage remained crouched, watching her after Griffin left. “How are you doing?”
With Gage, she didn’t have to be anything but herself. Opening her hands in her lap, she said, “Exhausted. I’m so tired, Gage . . .”
“You were in a long, forty-eight-hour nightmare,” he said, stroking her hands. “Do you need any help getting undressed?”
She smiled. “You’ve never seen me naked.”
“In my dreams I have.”
A sound of laughter caught in her throat. She loved his engaging smile, that boyish glint in his eyes that clearly showed he cared deeply for her. How could she have missed this? Did love happen this quickly? Alexa had been drawn so powerfully to Gage. Her mind was too muddled to clearly think about what was happening between them right now.
She sobered and reached out, touching his heavily bearded cheek. “I haven’t thanked you yet for saving our lives, Gage. You’re such a hero in my eyes . . . my heart. If you hadn’t been there when you were, the General would have probably killed all of us.”
“No,” he murmured, “you got the AK-47 away from that soldier.” Pride glinted in his eyes and he said, “You’re a warrior, Alexa. I saw what you did in that tunnel. It was so damned brave of you. I was so proud of you in that moment.” He leaned up, placing a soft, searching kiss on her lips.
Alexa leaned into his tender kiss, which was meant to heal her, steady her. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, desperately needing the warmth and strength he was feeding her.
Separating from her, Gage saw the exhaustion in her eyes, his mouth with the taste of her on it. “Come on, let’s get you cleaned up.”
“You can hardly wait, Gage.”
He chuckled and eased to his full height, holding out his hand to her. “Guilty on all counts. Come on.”
It felt dreamlike to Alexa, sliding her fingers into his strong, caring ones, being gently pulled upward. She was slightly dizzy and stood for a moment until it passed. “I’m so tired,” she muttered, shaking her head.
“You probably didn’t sleep for forty-eight hours,” he said, guiding her to the bathroom. As she pushed off the ruined red slippers, shoving them aside, Gage went and turned on the large shower stall faucets.
“Make the water tepid?” she asked.
“Sure,” he said.
Alexa started to raise her arms to pull the burka off and grimaced when she tried to move them above her head. Pain in the sockets of her shoulders protested loudly. Further, the tight, burning skin of her back screamed at her.
Gage frowned and walked over to her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. Can you help me get this thing off?” She nervously avoided his sharp, concerned gaze. Right now, Alexa was more worried about what Gage would think about her back than his seeing her naked.
“Sure,” he murmured, leaning down, gathering the hem of the wool burka, slowly pulling it upward. He saw fear in Alexa’s eyes as he pulled it higher and higher, revealing her long, beautiful legs. As he did so, he saw a lot of cuts and bruising, along with dried blood below her knees where she’d obviously fallen a number of times.
“Your knees have to be hurting you.” He held her gaze and gave her a moment to prepare for his seeing her fully naked when he removed the burka.
“They’re achy, yes.”
“Ready?”
She quirked her mouth. “This isn’t how I envisioned you seeing me naked for the first time, Gage.”
He leaned over, brushing a kiss over her lips. “It’s all right. We need to get you cleaned up.”
Just his gentle teasing, the care in his eyes, made her nod. “Go ahead, I’m ready . . .” But was she? Alexa tried to gird herself for his reaction to her back. She had no idea what it looked like, only how it felt.
Gage pulled the burka up across her belly, revealing her small, perfectly formed breasts, brought it over her head, and then eased the sleeves off her arms as she shakily held them out toward him. “There,” he murmured. “All done.” He dropped the burka on the floor, pushing it aside. “You’ll never have to wear another one. How about that?”
Gage saw how embarrassed she was and tried to ease her discomfort. Alexa rallied and gave a brief nod. “Come on, the shower’s waiting on you.” He walked over, pulling the glass door open for her.
Alexa moved into the white tiled shower, the tepid water just right. She turned toward Gage, not wanting him to see her back. “Do you have a washcloth? A bar of soap?”
Nodding, he moved to the counter and picked them up. The glass was frosted on the shower stall and showed the outline of her body. “Here you go.” He placed them in her hands. “I’ll be nearby, in the other room, if you need me. Just call?”
“Okay,” she whispered. “Thanks . . .”
Gage picked up the ruined red slippers and muddy, dusty burka, stuffing them into a nearby plastic bag, knotting it. He left the bathroom, leaving the door slightly ajar. He keyed his hearing to the water in the shower, listening as he shoved the bag containing the burka down into a large wastebasket. He didn’t want Alexa to get dizzy and fall and hurt herself. She was fragile. And he wanted to help her so much, but he felt useless because he didn’t know fully what had happened to her.
Twenty minutes later, he heard the shower shut off. He walked in, handing a huge, thick white towel through the slight opening in the door. He understood her modesty, slipping it into her proffered hand so she wasn’t standing naked in front of him once again. Gage then retrieved a smaller one for her soaking-wet hair. Alexa opened the door after wrapping the towel around her body, hand gripping the ends between her covered breasts. Her long red hair plastered around her head, a dark burgundy mantle against her flesh. He took her elbow, helping her step down to the rug on the tile floor.
“Here,” he murmured. “Turn around and I’ll get your hair into this towel?”
Without thinking, Alexa turned her back toward him.
Gage anchored for a split second, his breath stolen out of him as he stared at Alexa’s back. The entire area was heavily bruised with vivid violet and bright purple colors. Worse, it was heavily swollen. Instantly, Gage knew if he overreacted, it could further harm her. Gently, he gathered the heavy, wet strands by lifting them off her shoulders. He could feel her tense, as if waiting for his reaction, as if trying to protect herself from it.
Biting back rage and anguish over what she’d suffered, Gage shoved it all down. Right now, Alexa needed him. She didn’t need his emotional drama. God knew she’d had enough of both in the last two days being a hostage.
“Want me to gently pat your back dry for you?” Gage hoped his voice sounded normal. He heard a little intake of Alexa’s breath, saw her shoulders slump, the tension leaving her. He’d been right: she had been waiting for him to make a big deal of her injuries.
“Yes . . . please?”
After wrapping her hair, he took another
, smaller towel and curved his hand around her upper arm, behind her. “Let me know if this hurts.” He carefully laid the soft towel against her shoulder.
“N-no . . . that’s fine . . .”
She was trying so hard to be brave, to act as if nothing was wrong. He wanted nothing more than to wrap his arms around this woman, tuck her against him, and hold her safe. But he could do none of those things. He continued to slowly place the towel across her upper back. He pressed his splayed hand against the towel around her against the rest of her back to absorb any moisture.
“How bad does it look, Gage?”
Her voice was anxious. He kept his hand around her arm and straightened. “Pretty black-and-blue. It has to hurt like hell.” Gage felt her release a little more tension, responding to his quiet, even tone.
“It will heal.”
“Yeah, over time, it will.” Gage struggled to sound calm and unaffected.
“Is—is the skin opened? Any infection that you can see?”
“No, it’s closed.” Thank God. But he didn’t say it. “It looks swollen, and it’s hot to my touch.”
“It burns like fire,” she whispered, shaking her head.
Gage moved around Alexa, facing her, placing his hands on her upper arms, holding her wavering gaze. “I’m so sorry, Alexa. So damn sorry we couldn’t get there sooner . . .” He slid his hands around her face, pressing his brow to hers. “I’d give anything to have gotten there faster than we did . . . we all would . . .”
Alexa sagged against him. His tenderness took away all her fears that he’d be angry, disgusted, or God knew what else about seeing her injured back. All she saw in his stormy eyes was burning care for her. Gage held her lightly in his arms.
“Just rest,” he whispered against damp strands of her hair. Gage felt her surrender completely to him, and he was so damned grateful that the trust between them was still strong and unbroken. He felt her fingers move up across his T-shirt, and his flesh leaped beneath her grazing touch.
Gage had no idea how long they stood there in one another’s arms. He worried that Alexa would get chilled with the door open, and he coaxed her out of the bathroom, helping her slide into a soft, green cotton gown that fell to her knees. He tied it up in the back and then helped her into the bed. Bringing out a comb and brush, he sat down on the bed facing her, his hip against hers.
“I don’t know how good I am at combing out snarls in a woman’s hair, but I’m willing to give it a try,” he said, smiling hesitantly, searching Alexa’s eyes. Gage knew she couldn’t lift her arms high enough to comb her own hair.
“You’re a brave man, Hunter.”
It was a weak joke, but he rallied beneath her courage. “Hey, I’m a man with a plan. If I don’t do a good job, you’ll let me know, right?” He smiled at her, watching her perk up a little.
“Go for it.”
She sat very still as he took the towel off her head and patted the strands nearly dry before he started to pull the comb through them. Gage winced whenever he hit a snarl, slightly pulling her scalp. Alexa would cringe, purse her lips, but say nothing.
“Listen,” he said as he finished, her hair shining around her shoulders, “I’m going out to talk with Dr. Griffin about examining you later. You need to sleep. What if I can get her to leave you alone until you wake up later? Or do you want something to eat or drink?”
“I just want to sleep,” Alexa said, rubbing her eyes, exhaustion stealing through her.
Gage slid off the bed, placing the comb and brush on the bedside table. “Okay, you got it. Lie down.”
“Could I ask a favor of you?”
“Sure, of course. What do you need?”
“Can you call my parents? Just to make sure they were notified that I’m safe?” She took the pad and pencil on the nearby tray and wrote down a phone number, handing it to him.
Gage nodded. “I will.”
“Tell them as soon as I get some sleep under me, I’ll call them myself, okay?”
“I know they’ll look forward to that. I’m sure someone has already let them know we rescued you and that you’re okay.”
“That’s what I thought. But”—her voice grew husky with tears—“I know they’d love to hear from you. You were there. You don’t have to tell them everything, but just let them know I’m okay and I’m going to get well.”
Gage wasn’t sure he could tell them that, but he nodded and said, “I’ll take care of it for you. Now, come on, lie down.”
Alexa did, on her side. As she snuggled down into the pillow, Gage pulled a light cover up to her waist. He leaned over, kissing her cheek.
“Sleep the sleep of angels, because you are one,” he rasped, grazing her damp hair with his fingers.
Those were the last words Alexa remembered before her heavy eyelids closed and she slid into a deep, healing sleep. Gage was here. He would stay with her. He would keep her safe in this new, unsafe world.
CHAPTER 15
“Tal?”
Tal raised her head from her desk at Artemis Security. Her newly hired assistant, Tamara Kirtner, buzzed her on the intercom.
“Yes?”
“There’s a Sergeant Gage Hunter on your sat phone line.”
Her black brows drew down. “Okay, thanks. I’ll take it.” Tal switched the phone on. “Gage?”
“Yes. Alexa gave me a sat phone number, and I thought it was to her parents.”
She sat up. “What do you know about Alexa?” she demanded, her heart suddenly taking off. Artemis Security was not allowed live video feed of the actual assault on the cave where the women hostages had been taken. Wyatt had raised hell. And Robert Culver, a general with a lot of influence, couldn’t budge the military on that decision, either. The higher-ups said that because Robert’s daughter was involved, the company could not take part in the video feed. Everyone was pissed as hell, and so they sat, waiting, with no word—until now. Tal knew her father was going to take this to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Artemis, regardless of who was in jeopardy, needed full access to all mission plans, no matter who was involved. She was sure her father, who was one of the most adroit political generals, would eventually get his way. But it didn’t help her family right now, who waited without word.
“Hasn’t anyone contacted you yet about her?”
“No,” she said, tensing. “How do you know about Alexa? Is she all right?”
“Sorry,” he said apologetically. “I thought you’d been told by now that Alexa and the other women were rescued roughly an hour and a half ago. We just arrived at the ER here at Bagram with all the women hostages. They’re being tended to medically right now.”
Gasping, Tal leaned over. “Hold on one sec, Gage, I need this taped for my parents and the rest of my family.” She pressed a record button to save the conversation. “Go ahead. Is Alexa all right?” Automatically, Tal closed her fist, trying to steel herself against anything he might say. He must have been part of the team who had rescued them. She had a hundred questions, but she had to let him speak. She listened intently to his words. When he finished, she asked, “So you were part of the rescue team?”
“Yes, I was.”
Tal closed her eyes, feeling grateful to the depths of her soul. “This is such great news, Gage. I don’t understand why we weren’t contacted earlier. Why did you have to make this call to us instead?” Tal heard his hesitation.
“Well, it could be that whoever is in charge of such things wanted an assessment of Alexa’s injuries before telling you how she was. Dr. Griffin, her doctor, agreed to let Alexa sleep first, and then she’d examine her after she woke up, because her injuries weren’t life-threatening.”
Hearing heaviness in his tone, she pursed her lips. “Thank God you called us. I’m so glad Alexa gave you my sat phone number. This is the best news.”
“I’m sure your folks will get the official call shortly after Alexa is examined. I ended up with you on the line. She’s pretty much in a state of shock and hasn’t slept in
the last forty-eight hours since her kidnapping, so it looks like she gave me your number by mistake.”
“That’s completely understandable.” Her hand tightened around the phone. “How is it that you’re making the call? I thought an officer in charge would be doing this.” Again, she felt hesitation on his part.
“It’s a little complicated,” he admitted. “Alexa and I were seeing one another for about two days before this happened. We . . . uh . . . well, were getting along pretty well.”
“Even though she’s an officer and you’re enlisted?”
Gage sighed. “Yes, guilty as charged.”
“It doesn’t matter to me. You need to know that. Have you been with Alexa since you rescued her?”
“Ever since the assault on the cave system, a few hours ago, yes. Why?”
Tal rapidly put it together. Obviously, there was a much stronger connection between her sister and Gage than he was admitting.
“Alexa was concerned that you’d worry about her, and she said to tell you she’s all right. Once she wakes up? She said she’d call you herself.”
“Is she all right, Gage? Really?” Tal demanded tightly. “And damn it, I can feel there’s a lot you aren’t telling me. I need to know everything. Did they rape Alexa? Harm her in any way?” She felt a lot of emotions coming from Gage. It blew her away that Alexa and he had begun a relationship. Where had they met? How serious was it? From the sounds of his deep voice, the way he wrestled with the emotions she could hear behind his words, it was very serious.
“Look,” he rasped. “This I something I’d want Alexa to discuss with you over the phone, Tal. Right now, she’s asked me to stay with her. And I just pissed off a doctor down in the ER because he scared the shit out of her and I stopped him from touching or examining her.” His voice lowered with frustration. “She got whipped with a belt on her back. That’s all I know. I saw her back just now when she came out of the shower and it’s pretty bruised and swollen, and she’s hurting from it.”
“Oh, God,” Tal whispered, her voice rough with emotion. “H-has she been raped? Do you know?”
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