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“I don’t remember the finer details of last night, so, in case I didn’t say it before, thank you for saving me.”
His expression softens. “I’m just glad I made it there in time. I keep wondering what would’ve happened had I been just a few minutes later. Or if I hadn’t been able to stop him…” He shakes his head. Worry lines his face, and it’s as if I can see his brain spinning a million miles a minute with all of the potential scenarios.
“Hey.” I place my hand on his arm, squeezing gently. “None of those things happened. You saved me, took care of me. There aren’t enough words to tell you how much I appreciate everything you’ve done.”
He wraps his arm around my shoulders and pulls me into his chest. I wrap my free hand around his waist, soaking in the comfort of his arms. I have no idea where we go from here, but what I do know is I’ve never felt safer in someone’s arms than I do right now.
“We should probably get going,” I say after several minutes of snuggling on the couch.I’m suddenly very aware of the fact that I’m only in a robe, cuddled up against a very sexy, naked chest.
“Yeah, I need to go home and get some clothes before work.”
“Let me go change. Then we can get going.”
Ben presses his lips to the top of my head, making me close my eyes at the gesture. I force myself to pull away from him to go get dressed.
I’m going to need some time to work through all the things that have happened in the last twenty-four hours. None of which I can focus on at the moment, so I’m just going to go through my normal routine and hope I don’t fall apart before I’m ready.
* * *
Ben pullsinto the parking lot of La Mensa. My car is one of only a few still in the lot at this time of day. Images of being dragged across the asphalt overwhelm me as Ben parks his car. My heart starts to thrum in my chest as I imagine getting out of the car. Being out in the open. Vulnerable.
My gaze frantically searches the parking lot for any potential threat. The morning sun is shining bright, illuminating all the places that were once in shadow. It doesn’t seem to matter to my brain. It’s still preparing to find someone waiting to attack.
“Sara.”
It sounds like Ben’s voice is moving down a tunnel, a mile away from me. I can’t focus on anything. It’s all too much.
“Sara, look at me. Turn toward my voice.”
My head whips to Ben, desperation running rampant through my body. I can’t breathe, the panic overwhelming me to the point of paralysis.
“Breathe. In through your nose, out through your mouth.” I watch Ben breathe, wishing I could do it, too.
“Right here, Sara.” He pushes his hand into my chest, the pressure forcing my lungs to expand. “Let it out.” He exhales loudly, and I mimic the sound. We keep breathing together, never taking our eyes off each other. Those blue eyes are filled with so much conviction, it makes me want to do whatever it takes to keep him looking at me like that.
“Great job, Sara. Keep breathing.”
As the panic begins to recede, logical reasoning begins to creep in along with embarrassment. My eyes drop to the console between us. I can’t believe I just freaked out in front of him again.
A finger lands under my chin, forcing my head back up to meet Ben’s eyes.
“You are a fighter. You came out on the other side of a traumatic experience stronger than you’ve ever been. You may notfeelstrong right now, but you are the strongest person I’ve ever met.”
“I used to feel strong,” I whisper. “Confident. Now…” I don’t even feel like the same person I was before last night. “I need to feel strong again. I need to do something.”
“What if I trained you to fight?”
“Like self-defense?”
“Sure. I think Dax, the owner of the gym I go to, could help, too. How about we get him to show you some moves?”
“That might work.”
“It’s worth a shot at least.”
I nod my head, glad to have something to focus on instead of the lingering panic. The classes could give me a sense of preparedness. A sense of strength that if it happened again, I’d be ready instead of completely helpless.
“How about I just drop you off at the clinic, and we can get your car another time?”
