“I hate that happened to you, Grace, and that you felt like you wouldn’t be believed. I believe you.”
Another shudder rippled through her. “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me for that, baby. Of course I believe you. I will always believe you and I will always be on your side.”
She touched a kiss to his jaw, and he could feel the wetness of her tears. His sweet Grace was finally allowing herself to cry for everything she had been through. “I tried to pretend it never happened, but I wasn’t sleeping, was barely eating, and couldn’t concentrate on anything. I was withdrawing from my friends, constantly felt like I was in danger, and lived in constant fear of seeing him again. I knew I couldn’t go on like that. I called Jem, I thought since he was a psychiatrist, he was the best person to tell, but he was away working a case, and even though I left a message he never called me back. So, I reached out to one of those sexual assault helplines, spoke to someone there. It helped, a lot, and I knew I needed to tell my family and report it, even if he was never prosecuted, I needed to do it for me. Before I could, Emmanuel broke into my house and abducted me.”
Once again, Matthew found himself in awe of her strength and bravery. She was the very definition of a survivor, whatever was thrown at her, however bad it got, no matter what she had to do, she fought to survive. “I'm so proud of you, baby.”
Her tears were coming faster now, harder, and she shook her head vehemently. “At first, when I woke up in Emmanuel’s house of horrors, I wondered if it was a punishment. What if Dave raped someone else because I didn't turn him in? It would be my fault. I should have done the right thing, gone straight to the cops, reported what happened. If I could go back and do it over then I would. I swear I would. I don’t want to be punished anymore for keeping quiet. I just want it to be over, Matthew. I want it to be finished, whatever finished looks like.”
She broke down then, her tears became a flood, and he felt his heart breaking right along with hers. Scooping her up, he pulled her onto his lap, and folded his body around her as though he could protect her from the pain. He rocked her, stroked her back, held her, murmured a string of nonsense consolations in her ear, and felt more helpless than he ever had before in his life.
He wanted to do what nobody had ever done for him, he wanted to take away her bad memories, protect her, keep her safe, and save her. He wanted to be her soft place to fall. One thing he knew with absolute certainty, this woman owned him, body, heart, and soul. Forever.
* * * * *
6:19 A.M.
The sobs emanated from a place deep inside her. A place that had been shredded when Dave had raped her, those pieces chopped up further when Emmanuel had kidnapped her and used her to play out his own sick fantasies.
Ever since Matthew had walked into that house of horrors and rescued her, she had been fighting her feelings. Refusing to cry because she thought it would weaken her determination not to let Emmanuel take anything else from her.
She’d been wrong.
So very wrong.
The tears that flowed from her eyes now felt freeing.
They washed away the worst of the pain. They couldn’t take it all of course, but they took enough of it that she felt like she could breathe again.
Matthew didn't blame her for being stupid the night she’d been raped, and he hadn't reprimanded her for not running straight to the cops to report it. He hadn't even told her she was stupid for thinking that Emmanuel’s fable games were her punishment for not doing what she had to to make sure Dave couldn’t hurt another woman.
No, he did none of that. He just held her tight, cocooning her in a little bundle of warmth and safety, a security that had been lacking from her world for far too long. Her tears didn't scare him, in fact, he seemed to be trying to absorb them if the protective way he was curled around her was any indication.
It was in this moment that Grace knew for certain.
She was falling in love with Detective Matthew Greer.
It was the last thing she had expected to happen when she woke up in a hospital bed and realized her ordeal was over, but it was exactly what had happened.
Somehow, he’d managed to make her feel safe, make her feel understood, and made her feel special, all without seemingly putting any effort into it.
Her parents had shared the kind of love that fairytales, and songs, and romance books were about. They had clicked from the moment they met, nurtured that love over a lifetime, and even if her mom hadn't had a stroke, Grace knew she would never have moved on from dad. The connection they shared was too strong, it was eternal, unbreakable, and strong enough to survive anything.
Was that the kind of love that she and Matthew could share if they nurtured it, tended to it, and helped it to grow?
All of a sudden, she was filled with a burning need to be possessed by the man holding her with such tenderness and care. She wanted all of him, wanted to give him all of herself. While she trusted Matthew, her family, and the cops to do everything they could to protect her from Emmanuel, she was also realistic enough to know it might not be enough. He might get his hands on her, might kill her, or keep her locked up for the rest of her life, but there was one thing he couldn’t take from her.
Matthew.
Placing her hands on his shoulders, she moved so she was straddling him, and crushed her mouth to his.
He kissed her back for a moment, then pulled back, surprised. “Grace?”
“I want you, now, please.” There was a desperation she hadn't felt before in her life, it wasn’t just a want for him, it was an all-encompassing need. A need she still didn't quite understand.
“Grace …” There was a hesitation there, and she got it. Last time they’d made out she’d ruined it by freaking out right in the middle of things. No doubt he was worried about a repeat, but for the first time in almost six years she finally felt free of what Dave had done to her.