SEAL's Embrace - Makenna Jameison Page 0,24
nearly gasped in surprise as a huge man strode into her room a beat later. She recognized him from the cafeteria on base. He seemed to be big and brooding and was pretty much just scary looking. Attractive, she supposed, but too intimidating for most women to immediately gravitate to.
“What’s wrong, Ghost?” he asked, eyeing Grayson.
“Get with Raptor. Hailey just suggested the bomber could’ve been injured and brought here.”
The other man’s eyes narrowed, looking between Grayson and Hailey. He pressed his lips together and nodded, looking somewhat impressed with her assessment.
“Oh, and Hailey, this is Jackson, one of my teammates.”
“Hi,” she said weakly, still a little intimidated by the large man standing in her hospital room.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” he said in a deep voice. “Gray’s a good guy.” His gaze landed back on Grayson. “I’ll find a phone and call Raptor.”
Grayson nodded, signaling him about something, and then Jackson left the room.
“What was that about?” Hailey asked.
“We don’t know who could be listening to our conversation,” he said in a low voice.
“I don’t like this,” she said, shivering.
Grayson reached down and pulled a blanket up over her. It felt intimate and sweet. For such a macho guy, he definitely had a softer side. “The other thing I wanted to talk about is your friend.”
“I still haven’t heard anything about her,” Hailey said, sitting and wincing slightly as she held her ribs.
“Shit, just lean back,” Grayson said, helping her to get settled again. It was weird how safe she felt with him tending to her. He seemed completely attuned to her emotions. He adjusted her blanket again and waited for her to continue.
“Was she killed in the explosion? She couldn’t just disappear. The hospitals were checking for me, and the nurse promised she’d let me know if they had any updates, but it’s been completely pointless. No one knows anything.”
“I don’t know, sweetheart. I wasn’t able to find anything either, which is concerning. All patients should have been accounted for by now. She’s listed among the missing, but most victims were already recovered from the rubble. There are very few that are gone without a trace.”
Tears filled Hailey’s eyes, and Grayson reached out, his large hand stroking her hair. He was careful to avoid the area of her stitches when his hand moved near her forehead, and Hailey looked up at him helplessly.
“Don’t cry, sweetheart. We don’t know anything for certain yet. I know it’s scary not knowing what happened to her, or if she’s trapped in the building injured somewhere, but it’s too early to give up.”
“I know, I just—I can’t believe any of this is happening. None of it feels real.” A few tears slipped down her cheeks, and Grayson leaned closer, gently wiping them away. She felt silly, crying here in her hospital bed. He’d come to see her, and she was losing it.
“I wish I could stay here with you, Hailey. I convinced my commander to let me visit you while we were in Germany, but we’ll be flying out soon. We have to go home and debrief. I hate that you don’t know where your friend is. And I hate that you were hurt and are here all alone in the hospital.”
She nodded her head shakily. “I’m okay. I’ll be okay,” she amended. “Thank you for coming,” she whispered. “I couldn’t believe it when you suddenly appeared in my doorway. And thank you for the flowers.”
“You’re welcome. And don’t forget I still owe you dinner,” he said, his smile tender as he looked down at her. “Tell me your cell number. I did look up your work email, but I want you to call or text when you’re back home. I’ll write down my number for you, too, so you have it.”
“But you don’t have your phone with you.”
“No, but we’re leaving. I’ll be back in the States before you.”
“Oh,” she said softly. “I need to get a replacement phone, but I’ll write down my number. Hopefully I can keep the same one since my phone was ruined.” She sniffed again, her hand moving to her forehead.
“I’m sorry you had to go through any of that. How are you feeling?” he asked, looking at her with concern. “I should’ve asked you that first thing.”
“Sore. Tired. I’m ready to get out of here and go home at this point. I haven’t slept very well since everything happened, and honestly? The hospital food sucks.”
He chuckled. “Where will you stay when you fly back? You said your things