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When she woke up again, she wasn't sure where she was.
It wasn't her own bed. Her bed sheets were cool to the touch as she kept the air conditioner at nearly refrigerator temperatures, but the sheets against her cheek and palm were warm as if she was leaning against a heater.
Yawning, she lifted her hand from the heated sheets and wiped at her mouth.
She winced and wiped the back of her hand off on her nightgown.
Molly looked down, confused. Her night gown felt odd. The cotton was a little rougher than she recalled. The lights were dim, but she could see the large print on the gown. It wasn't one of her nightgowns.
"Molly? You okay?"
She froze and touched the warmth under her head.
It wasn't her mattress. It wasn't even a mattress.
"Jacob?"
She struggled to sit up, but then she had help and, as exhausted as she still was, Molly sat up on what she quickly identified was her hospital bed.
She sat crossed legged on the bed and dropped her head into her hands. "That's twice that I've woken up and forgotten where I was."
"Hey." She felt Jacob's hand gently rubbing her back. "Unless I missed another time that you got up, it's only one time that you've forgotten. That first time you woke up-"
"I didn't know where I was." She smiled at him.
"I'm glad you didn't try to kick me in my shins for my bad sense of humor."
"We both share a rather odd sense of humor." She lifted her head from her hands to look at him. "At least I remember that, right?"
"The important thing is that you're alive, okay?"
She was prepared for him to try and coax her into a better mood, but she didn't expect him to just say the words that she'd been trying to understand deep down inside.
"Now I feel about an inch tall. Whining about my memory when things so easily could have been worse."
She started to turn away from Jacob, but he reached out and curled his fingers under her chin to hold her still.
Molly knew that if she wanted to, she could easily pull away, but she didn't want to. She loved having him touch her.
She'd dreamed about it, but she didn't want to look like a weak wuss of a person in front of him. It took a moment for her to realize that he was talking to her, which made it all worse.
Molly made herself meet his gaze and instead of disappointment or irritation, she saw him smile.
"There you are."
"I'm sorry, I'm not good company."
"I'm not here to be entertained, Molly. I'm here because I wanted to make sure that you're okay." He reached out a hand and she took it, letting him lift her up and onto his lap.
When he wrapped his arms around her, she was surrounded with his warmth and as he gently rocked her, he touched his chin to her shoulder.
"I feel like you're worried about too much, Molly. So I'm going to tell you a few things and hope that you'll understand."
She closed her eyes lightly, soaking in the soft tone of his voice and the warmth of his body.
"I need you to know that I'm not just here because I was the first one to get to you after the attack. I'm here because I had to know that you were going to live. It's not that big of a secret that I'm attracted to you, Molly Ferguson. My partner already teases me mercilessly about you.
