SEAL's Embrace - Makenna Jameison Page 0,23

a man she didn’t know. Judging from the way he was looking at her right now though? He seemed to be feeling the exact same thing.

She sobered, thinking about all the implications of that night. “Did you get my note?”

He nodded. “I did. I came to check on you the next day at the hospital, but you’d already been transferred out. I wish I’d gotten a chance to see you before you had to go,” he said softly. “I would’ve come first thing that morning, but we had to work.”

She smiled as he gazed down at her. “How did you even get here?” she asked, unable to take her eyes away from his face.

His lips quirked. “The same way as you. I flew.”

She shook her head. “No, really. And don’t tell me you went AWOL or something.”

“No, nothing like that,” he assured her. “We finished our mission and were on our way home. Sometimes we fly through Germany, like we did today. I convinced our commander I needed to see a special patient in the hospital though before we headed back to the States.”

“You did not!” she said, looking at him in bewilderment.

His lips pressed together, and she frowned. “Wait, what’s wrong? Why did you need to see me?”

She tried to pull her hand away, but he resisted, still gently holding it as he sat at her bedside.

“I needed to make sure you were okay, but I did want to discuss something that happened back in Bagram. You already guessed my buddies and I are Special Forces,” he said in a low voice. His thumb lightly rubbed back and forth over the back of her hand, sending electricity coursing straight through her. “I came because I wanted to see you, but there is something else. We were there in Bagram for a mission, and let’s just say it didn’t go as planned.”

“I’m not surprised, what with the suicide bomber and explosion at my building. Was that a suicide bomber, too?”

Grayson shook his head. “No. They found traces of explosives that had been planted there.”

She gasped. “What? How is that even possible? Was it someone on base? You can’t just sneak in….”

He met her gaze, not saying a word. Doctors and nurses continued moving in the hallway, machines beeped around them, and she had a feeling there was a lot he wasn’t telling her. He probably couldn’t, but that didn’t make her feel any better.

“This stays between us, all right?”

“Of course,” she assured him.

“We’re concerned there is a mole on base. A traitor. The enemy knew we were coming, what my team and I were there for. And with the two bombings—it’s too much to be a coincidence. The enemy isn’t that damn lucky.”

“So how does this involve me?” she asked in confusion. “You said you told your commander it was important for you to see me?”

He frowned. “We’re concerned that the traitor might be someone in the general’s office. The high level of information they seemed to know about our operations narrows down the field quite a bit. When you’re home and recovering, you’ll probably be questioned. Not that you’re suspected in anything,” he assured her. “But you see a lot of people coming through that office. You know the people who work there. They’ll be questioning everyone who worked for the general.”

“Holy crap,” she muttered.

Grayson released her hand, clasping his own together as he leaned closer. The intensity on his face scared her a little. He’d come to see her because he liked her—that much was obvious. But he’d come because of work, too. This entire afternoon was starting to feel surreal—like she was stuck in a movie or something.

She inhaled his woodsy scent, wishing that he could pull her close and keep her safe. She couldn’t ask him to hold her—Grayson wasn’t her boyfriend. Maybe they did both like one another, but this was the very beginning of their relationship, if she could even call it that.

“I just wanted to tell you to be careful. We don’t know who was behind this or even if there is in fact a traitor. It’s all being investigated as we speak.”

“But it could be someone I know,” she whispered.

Grayson nodded. “You’ll be off for the next month as I understand, which is a good thing. Whoever it is, most likely is still at Bagram. You’ll be across the ocean.”

“But what if they were hurt, too?” she asked. “Couldn’t they be here in the hospital?”

“Shit,” Grayson muttered. “Yo, K-Bar!” he called out.

Hailey