26. Grant
26
GRANT
With my back turned, I reached behind me, pushing the robe and towel through the small crack in the door. Then, still not looking, I retreated a half dozen feet down the hall. The poor girl had to be scared to death, and I hadn’t given her any reason to trust me.
Yet somehow, she had.
Or at least she’d trusted Night Owl—despite the fucked-up things that Bennett had said.
My blood boiled every time I thought of him. There was no doubt he did this. He’d wanted Hailey to feel scared. Humiliated. Unsafe.
No doubt she felt all three.
After at least five minutes, the door cracked open again. No steam came out, and I wondered how long she’d been in there, naked and shivering in the cold.
“I’m over here,” I said, just in case she thought I’d left and then got scared when she saw me. A guy my height could frighten women even under normal circumstances, and this was far from normal.
She exited the bathroom in stages. First her head poking out of the door. Then the towel she held up to her chest like a shield. Then the rest of her body draped in my long black robe.
It was comically large on her, with several inches dragging on the ground. When I got hold of Bennett, I was going to tear him limb from limb—but first, I’d make sure I got Hailey her robe back, the one that meant so much to her.
Like I had before.
“I’m sorry,” I said softly. Too late, I realized it sounded like an admission of guilt, but she didn’t take it that way.
“This was Bennett, right?”
“I’m afraid so.” A new thought occurred. “I swear to god, Hailey, I didn’t know he was going to do this.”
“I know.” Her voice was so soft that I strained to hear it.
“And do you also know I didn’t send those mid-day texts?” I hadn’t planned to hit her with that so early. It wasn’t her job to reassure me that she wasn’t mad, but maybe it would make her safer if she knew that up front.
“I know,” she said again. “You’re nocturnal.”
That made me smile.
“Can I walk you back to your room? I won’t touch you.”
She paused a beat and then nodded. “Okay.”
There it was again—her trust. I didn’t deserve it, but I was sure glad I had it. I vowed never to lose it again.
And then, just like that, I had to break my promise. The extra-long robe pooled at her feet, tripping her almost immediately. Action came faster than conscious thought, I leaped forward, grabbing her by her arms as she fell forward.
I set her on her feet, but the damn robe was still far too long and making her unsteady.
Oh to hell with it. I’d already broken my pledge not to touch her, so I scooped her up in my arms, cradling her like a baby. Her body was stiff and frozen for one long second, and then she slumped against me, burying her face against my chest.
I carried her through the stairwell with the utmost care. I even made sure the hallway was clear before I carried her to her room.
I set her down just in front of her door, and she turned the knob slowly. I waited until she was inside before I spoke again. “You stay in there and lock the door, sweetheart.” Then I winced at the same time she flinched—that was what Bennett had called her. “Sorry. But lock the door after me, okay, Hailey?”
“Where are you going?”
“To find Bennett.” I managed to keep my voice from becoming a low, guttural growl for her sake.
“Please don’t go.” Her dark eyes were wide against her pale face as she looked up at me. “Please?”
“Okay.” I didn’t know what she wanted, but I’d give it to her, gladly.
She stepped back, and it took my stunned brain a few moments to recognize that she wanted me to come in. I hadn’t been in her room this entire summer, and yet she wanted me in there now, after what had just happened?
“I’m so cold,” she said, her voice faint.
Looking around, I dismissed the fluffy comforter that covered her bed. It didn’t look warm enough. Instead, I pulled off the blanket, but it was strangely heavy when I draped it around her shoulders. I felt like I was handing an anvil to a drowning person, and there was no way I was going to let Hailey sink.
“Get in bed,” I said. “You’ll be warmer there.”
To my amazement, she did just that, shuffling her feet so as not to trip over the edges of the robe. She climbed onto the huge mattress and immediately curled up in a little ball, drawing her knees to her chest, her feet still buried under the oversized robe.
I spread the heavy blanket over her, tucking it tight against her. When the hell had I last tucked somebody in? I wasn’t sure I ever had.
Then I added the comforter, but it was light, like cotton candy and wasn’t likely to help her feel warm.
Hailey had her eyes open, but she stared straight ahead, seeming to be in a daze. I knelt down next to the bed, and she eventually looked at me. “Can I get you something?”
“No.”
“Water? Another blanket?”
“No.”
Then I thought of something. Something I really, truly didn’t want to say—but I did it. For her sake. “Do you want me to go get Theo or Ian?” I should have thought of that in the first place. I knew from how I’d seen them interact that they were far less intimidating to—and far better at dealing with emotions and shit.
But she shook her head.
“Okay.” I slid down to the floor, my back to her as I leaned against the side of the bed. I’d sit here, like a tall guard dog, for as long as she needed me.
Things were silent in the room as we stayed that way for five minutes. Ten. Fifteen even. I gave her space—well, not literal space since I was sitting so close. But perhaps mental space to process what had happened.
The bed shook slightly—I could feel it as I leaned against it. Shit. Id’ never known what to do when a woman cried. I turned around, ready to try to stop the flow of tears, but her cheeks were dry, her expression still numb, but she was shivering all over.
“Stay right there,” I said softly. “I’m going to get you so many blankets you’ll need five minutes to dig yourself out.”
Hailey reached out and clutched my hand. “Don’t leave me.”
“You’re going to shiver to death.” I frowned, looking around the room. Should I start piling the clothes from her closet on top of her? If only there were a hot water bottle.
Then I realized that there was a hot water bottle. A 6’5”one. My body always radiated heat from the sun. But would she let me? Would she want me?
I kicked my shoes off and assessed the scene. I didn’t want to make her move, so I walked to the foot of the bed. The other side was flush against the wall, so I climbed on and crawled rather awkwardly toward the headboard. It wasn’t graceful, the way I had to lift and manipulate the covers to get under them, but she never complained.
And then finally, I was in the right spot to be her own personal hot water bottle.
Or a big spoon.
I gathered her in my arms and pulled her to my chest, her back pressed against me. I draped my arms over hers, careful not to squish her, but leaving no way for any cold air to get through to her.
She sank against me, her trembling eventually stopping. Her hair tickled my neck, but I didn’t care. Besides, it smelled great.
I didn’t know how long we stayed like that, but at some point, I realized she’d fallen asleep. “Hailey?”
No answer.
Extracting myself from the bed without disturbing her was as hard as climbing in had been, but I managed. I rearranged the covers, tucking them around her shoulders. I took one long look at her, and then I couldn’t resist. I leaned over and planted a quick kiss on her head. It was completely sappy, but I did it anyway. Then I stepped out into the hall, pulling the door shut behind me.
I had Ian on the phone two seconds later. “Call that hotel on the far side of campus and book a room for Hailey. Then meet us out front in an hour with your car.”
“What? What’s going on?”
“And find Theo. Send him over here. He’s going to be on guard duty.”
“To your suite?” Ian said, clearly trying to keep up.
“to Hailey’s room.”
“All right. Where will you be?”
“I’m going to go have a word with my cousin.”