Jace put a hand near her lips. “She’s breathing. I think—I think she passed out.”
Reid closed his eyes and blew out a breath. Thank God, she’s okay. He climbed to his feet and laid a hand against her clammy cheek. “Watch her. I’ll go grab a cool rag and some water.”
Reid returned from the bathroom with the supplies and a robe wrapped around him. He tossed another robe at Jace. “Here, let me get next to her. And get these bindings off her arms.”
Jace moved out of the way and went to work while Reid gently turned Brynn over and pressed the moist towel against her forehead. “Come on, sugar. Wake up for me.”
He’d sensed a shift in her when he’d touched her ass, but when she didn’t use her safe word, he’d thought she was just reacting to a new sensation. Maybe he’d hurt her… or scared her. Fuck. Why hadn’t he stopped and checked on her?
He cradled her head in his lap, and she mumbled something incoherent. An urge to curl her into his arms and kick Jace out rolled through him. He tamped down the ridiculous thought and put the cool cloth to her cheek. “That’s right. Come on.”
Her eyes flew open on a sharp intake of breath, and terror crossed her features. She jolted upward but he put a hand on her shoulder and eased her back down. “Shh, it’s okay, it’s just me. You’re okay.”
She blinked, her pupils readjusting to the light. “Reid?”
He brushed her damp hair from her face. Her skin had taken on the pallor of the white bedsheets. “Yeah, babe. I’ve got you. I think you passed out on us.”
She winced and pressed the heel of her hand to her brow bone.
Jace sank onto the other side of the bed and tossed a quilt over her. “What happened, doll? You all right?”
Reid helped her sit up a bit and offered her a glass of water. She took a small sip and then shook her head. “I think I may have hyperventilated or something.”
Jace squeezed Brynn’s hand, an odd expression passing over his face. “Did something trigger that?”
“No.” She shot Jace a look of… warning. “I guess you guys are just a lot to handle.”
Reid’s jaw tightened and the wan smile she offered the both of them did nothing to alleviate the bitter taste crossing his tongue. “What the fuck are you two not telling me?”
Jace’s eyes shifted away, and Brynn stiffened. “What do you mean?”
Reid rose from the bed and glared down at the two of them. “You’ve always been a terrible liar, Brynn. Tell me what’s going on. Obviously, your best bud Jace knows.”
Jace slid off the bed, his frown deep. “I think I’m going to head out and let you two chat.” He leaned over and kissed Brynn’s forehead. “Thanks for tonight, gorgeous.”
Reid stepped out of the way to let Jace exit, but his gaze never left Brynn, who’d gone even paler. She tucked her knees to her chest and wrapped the blanket around herself, vulnerability rolling off her. He walked over to the bed and perched on the corner, then took a deep breath to make sure his bubbling frustration didn’t come out in his voice. “What’s going on?”
Her shoulders rose and fell with a deep sigh of resignation. “I had a panic attack and hyperventilated.”
His brows knitted. He didn’t know what he’d expected her to say, but that wasn’t it. “A panic attack over what?”
She dropped her gaze, taking an interest in an unraveling thread of the quilt. “Certain things, sexual things, trigger them.”
A creeping discomfort tracked up his spine. “Like what?”
“Like blindfolds and like…” She continued to worry the string between her fingers.
“Anal sex,” he filled in.
She glanced up, her eyes haunted, and nodded. “Yeah.”
Back when they’d been together, he’d touched her there before, and they certainly had used blindfolds. So something had changed. A sick feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. “Why, Brynn?”
She shook her head, avoiding his eyes.
“Tell me why,” he commanded.
“Because I lied to you back then. I wasn’t seeing someone behind your back,” she said, her voice dead of emotion. “Someone raped me.”