Delta Force Rescue - Elle James Page 0,13

her breath caught and held in her lungs until she had to draw more in.

What was probably only five minutes felt like hours.

Briana knew staring through the peephole wouldn’t make the time pass any faster. She stepped away and paced across the room. At every sound, she hurried back to the door to look out through the tiny hole.

When at last a soft knock sounded at the door, she raced to answer, looking first through the peephole to verify it was Rafe.

She quickly unlocked the door and jerked it open.

He stepped in, dropped a duffle bag on the floor and turned to lock the door behind him.

When he faced her again, she threw herself into his arms.

“Hey.” He chuckled. “I was only gone five minutes, tops.”

“I know. But if felt like forever.” She clung to him for another moment before loosening her hold around his neck.

His hands gripped her around the waist. “Not that I mind a beautiful woman throwing herself at me. It’s kind of nice. You know…helps the old ego.”

“You’re not old,” she said, her cheeks heating. “I’m just…grateful.” And a whole lot more emotions she wouldn’t care to admit to a man she’d just met.

He lifted the duffle bag and carried it to the bed where he unzipped it and pulled out a T-shirt and a pair of gym shorts. “Sorry, but this is about the extent of my wardrobe. No robe. But I do have a comb, and I brought a spare toothbrush from the front desk.” He handed her a comb, toothbrush and a travel-size tube of toothpaste.

“It’s all perfect,” she said. Gathering the items, she entered the bathroom and stared at the shower. Her body started trembling.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, coming up behind her.

“N-nothing.”

“Remember? We’re old friends,” Rafe slipped his arms around her from behind and crossed them over her belly. “You can tell me anything,” he said, his warm breath stirring the hair beside her ear.

“I had just gotten out of the shower and dressed when the man broke into our apartment.”

His arms tightened briefly. Then he let go, moved around her, swept back the curtain, switched on the water and stood back. “Get in. When you’re ready, let me know. I’ll open the door a crack and talk to you the whole time, if you like.”

She thought about it for a moment, and then nodded. “It’s silly to be afraid.”

“No, it’s not.” He smoothed a strand of her hair back from her forehead, tucked it behind her ear, and then rested his palm against her cheek. “You had something terrible happen to a good friend of yours in your own home. You should be afraid. And if it helps to leave the door open, we’ll leave the door open. I’m here. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

She captured his hand and turned it over, pressing her lips against his lifeline. He was her lifeline. “Thank you.” Briana entered the bathroom, closed the door and leaned her ear against it.

“I’m still here,” he said through the door.

She smiled, quickly stripped out of her shoes, leggings, T-shirt, bra and panties. After adjusting the temperature of the water, she stepped behind the curtain. “Okay,” she called out.

A draft of cool air ruffled the shower curtain.

“I’m right outside the door if you want to talk,” he said. “You can pretend you’re still in your car, which is now parked outside beneath a bright light.”

“Thank you for moving it,” she said. “And thank you for being patient with me.” She squirted some of the hotel-supplied shampoo into her palm, wet her hair and rubbed the soap into it, trying to come up with a topic to talk about. It felt as if they’d talked about so much already. “What kind of music do you like to listen to?”

“I like country and jazz, but I’m a big fan of rock and roll. What about you?” His voice sounded close, as if he were standing in the bathroom beside the shower.

Briana peeked around the side of the curtain, suds slipping down her cheek.

Rafe leaned his back against the doorframe, facing into the bedroom, his arms crossed over his chest. He wasn’t looking her direction. Instead, he was giving her the privacy she needed, while providing the comfort of knowing he was nearby. A gentleman. Who knew they still existed?

She ducked behind the curtain and tipped back her head beneath the water. “Rock and roll, pop and country. I do like jazz and R&B, as well.”

“What about