Page 38 of Harry

“She knows. I sent her a message when they said they’d found you.”

“Oh God.” Sobs racked her body. They were going to sedate her. The tears wouldn’t stop. It was too much to keep calm. She’d been rescued. Harry was with her. Death wasn’t her only option.

Fear filled her at her next thought. Would Harry want her after what happened? She hadn’t agreed to Sultan’s demands, but that didn’t mean he hadn’t taken his anger and lust out on her. She’d been subjected to his advances because she had no defenses.

Could Harry get past it? Could she?

What would happen once she made it back to California? She wanted to think her life would return to normal, but she knew nothing would ever be normal again.

Chapter 31

Harry stayed by Rory’s side for hours. Eventually, he had to go to briefings and attend meetings. Of the women who’d been rescued, about fifteen of them were very unhappy. The rest of the women were afraid but grateful. There were five women from the United Kingdom, four from France, three from Germany, two from the Netherlands, two Swiss, four Italians, six Cubans, and the rest were Americans. They were currently working on a plan to get everyone home.

Harry found the man who’d rescued Rory. He knew Mist but wasn’t close friends with him.

“Thanks, man,” Harry said as he shook Mist’s hand.

Mist pulled him close and hugged him. “Keep her safe. I almost lost Raven, and that would have killed me. Get her into counseling. It will help.”

“I’m grateful forever,” Harry choked out.

Mist nodded and slapped him on the back. “I know you’d do the same for me. Seriously, counseling will help.”

After finishing his assigned tasks, he returned to the medical bay and found Rory awake and eating. It looked like she’d been allowed to clean up. The T-shirt she wore appeared oversized. Their gazes met and she froze. They had a lot to work through. She hadn’t come out of this unscathed. Whatever she’d endured, it would scar her for years, maybe forever. He’d listened to a few of the interviews with the other women and knew whatever Rory had suffered, it had been bad.

“Hey,” Harry said as he moved to stand beside the bed.

She glanced down and stared at her food. He had to place his fingers under her chin and then lower so he could meet her gaze.

“I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know what I need.”

He dropped his hold on her chin, and she glanced away. “I’m glad you’re free.”

She nodded and picked up the food on the plate in front of her. He had a feeling his being with her was too much pressure. He didn’t want her to feel this way, but he knew she might not have control over her emotions and feelings. She’d been through hell, and now he would do anything, even leave her side, to help her heal.

“I know you need to get some rest, but I want you to know I’m here for you.”

She set her fork down and glanced up. “You know what happened to me. How can you?—”

“Because I care about you.” He cupped her face and held her gaze. “You’re too important to me to allow anyone to think they could keep me from you. If you don’t want me, that’s different. But I care about you. You mean too much to me, and I’m not walking away.”

Tears filled her eyes, and his heart broke. He pushed the table with her meal out of the way and pulled her into a hug. He held her as she cried. They would find a way through this. She’d been hurt, both physically and emotionally, but he would stand by her.

Chapter 32

Going home felt odd. While she was in the hospital, she learned she was getting medically discharged from the Marines. That information didn’t bother her as much as she’d thought something like that would.

The reality of the situation was she didn’t have the mental or emotional power to serve as a Marine in any capacity. The package she was offered was generous, and she was glad she had months of sessions with a psychologist paid for by the military.

Because she’d been discharged, she had to come up with a place to live. California was expensive, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to leave the area. She could live in South Carolina, Virginia, or go to Texas, but she didn’t want to leave Harry.

Maybe it was shortsighted of her to hang onto their relationship so tightly. They had been friends for a few weeks, and then they’d had sex. The night after sex, she’d been taken from her bed and ripped away from everything she’d ever known.

While she’d been taking care of being discharged and all the other stuff going on, they’d texted every day and talked on the phone a few times. They hadn’t discussed anything deep, mostly her travel plans and what he’d done that day. Each night, she lay in bed thinking of him. Was hanging too much of her future on Harry? Would they ever be more? One thing was for certain, talking to him felt good.

She decided to spend a month, maybe two, in San Diego. Then, she would make up her mind where she wanted to go. She’d flown in on Wednesday and checked her stuff in the storage facility where her items had been moved after she’d been rescued, and it had been clear she wouldn’t return to active duty.

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