CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Nova hated hospitals. However, this was her first time in a military hospital. After the team found her and Snow floating in the Gulf, they had been brought to the military hospital in Mississippi.
She pulled the chair she was sitting in closer to Snow’s bed. She looked at her watch, noting it was just a little after two in the morning.
The room was dimly lit from the overhead light on the other side of the room. The entire floor in the hospital had settled into that eerie overnight silence where even the nurses’ footsteps sounded softer, and there was barely a sound from the staff at the nurses’ station down the hall.
Snow still hadn’t woken up. The doctors had assured everyone that all of his scans looked good, and confirmed that there was no swelling, bleeding, or signs of any lasting damage.
They said his body had been through hell and just needed time, and it was just a matter of time before he regained consciousness.
But even though she understood what they were saying, that hadn’t stopped the knot of anxiety sitting heavily in her chest. She wouldn’t be content until he opened his eyes, and she could hear his voice.
She shifted in the chair, pulling the oversized Navy sweatshirt tighter around herself as she stared at him.
She still looked ridiculous. After they had brought her into the hospital the night before, stitched up the gash in her arm, and finally convinced her to shower, one of the guys had shown up with a pile of clothes for her.
Apparently, the Navy only manufactured clothing with the word NAVY stamped across every square inch of fabric possible because she currently looked like a walking military recruitment advertisement.
Still, the clothes were warm and clean, instead of smelling like smoke, saltwater, and fear, so she really couldn’t complain.
Her gaze drifted back toward Snow again.
The bruising along the side of his face near his hairline had darkened, and there was a bandage near his temple where Brett had struck him with the pipe.
But somehow, he still looked peaceful, as if he was just sleeping after an exhausting day instead of nearly dying in the middle of an exploding oil rig.
The team had been in and out of the room throughout the night.
Most of the time they didn’t say much. They didn’t seem like overly emotional men, at least not outwardly, but every single one of them had checked on her too, asking if she needed food, coffee, water, or a blanket.
Once, when she had gotten up to walk a little to stretch her legs, one of the guys had left a candy bar on the table for her.
It was sweet and comforting. She felt that despite only knowing her for a little over a week, they had already folded her into their circle without even discussing it.
Her thoughts drifted back to the conversation she’d had with Derek earlier out in the hallway while a nurse checked Snow’s vitals. He had stood beside her with a cup of coffee in his hand, exhaustion carved deep into his features, but there had still been sincerity in his voice when he thanked her.
“You saved his life, Nova,” he had told her quietly. “Don’t think any of us are forgetting that.”
At the time, she hadn’t even known what to say because all she could think about was that she had to kill someone for that to happen. Even now her stomach twisted when she thought about it.
“I killed someone,” she had whispered.
Derek had been quiet for a moment before answering carefully. “Yeah. You did.”
She appreciated that he didn’t try to sugarcoat it.
“But if you hadn’t, he would have killed you. Sometimes there aren’t good choices in situations like that. Sometimes there’s just survival.”
She understood what he was trying to tell her, even if accepting it emotionally would probably take a lot longer. She knew that Brett had been a monster. And deep down she knew she had done what she needed to do. It still didn’t make it feel good or erase the image from her head.
Derek had thankfully changed the subject not long after that, telling her that because of the evidence she uncovered from the rig, the authorities had managed not only to connect Andre Matisse to multiple international criminal operations but also to implicate others.
Arrests were already happening around the world.
In the end, Brett was dead, and Clint had been arrested and was cooperating fully, swearing he hadn’t known the true extent of the operation hidden on the rig.
The part she was still coming to terms with was that she had played a major role in bringing it all down.
Derek had offered to call her family for her, but she had declined. She thought about calling Sophia, but opted not to, at least not yet. She wasn’t ready to handle all the questions, or even how to tell them what she had been up to. And honestly, they didn’t need to know.
Right now, she needed time. And selfishly, she needed to stay right here beside Snow.
Nova exhaled shakily before finally reaching over and taking his hand again. She traced her thumb lightly across his knuckles.
“You know, this whole brooding Navy SEAL thing you do is getting a little dramatic now,” she teased.
She gave a weak smile even though he couldn’t see her.
“I mean, seriously. You’ve slept through like three doctors, six nurses, and Bear and Joker arguing which donut shop had the best glazed donuts.” Her voice cracked slightly. “You’re missing all the excitement.”
She got no response, and her eyes started to tear up. She was so tired—emotionally, physically, and mentally. She was a little sore. But none of that mattered as much as the fear sitting heavily in her chest.
She lowered her gaze to their joined hands.
“I’m really trying not to freak out right now,” she admitted.
“The doctors keep telling me you’re okay, and I trust them.
But I would feel a whole lot better if you would wake up already.
” Her fingers tightened around his. “You know what’s really unfair?
” she continued. “A little over a week ago I didn’t even know you existed.
And now apparently my emotional stability depends entirely on whether or not some annoyingly attractive Navy SEAL opens his gorgeous blue eyes. ”
The room remained silent except for the monitors.
Nova swallowed hard before leaning back slightly in the chair.
“I don’t even understand how this happened,” she whispered.
“Like, this is insane, right? People would say I’m crazy.
They probably wouldn’t be wrong.” She shook her head.
“I’m not saying I love you because, honestly, that sounds ridiculous after only knowing you for a week. But I do have real feelings for you.”
Tears blurred her vision now.
“You make me feel important. Like what I say matters.” A watery laugh escaped her. “And you somehow manage to make me feel safe while simultaneously dragging me into life-threatening situations, which honestly feels confusing but impressive.”
“And the sex.” She let out a breathy laugh, wiping her eyes quickly with her free hand. “We should probably address that too because wow. That alone might justify keeping you around.”
Her voice trembled again.
“You need to wake up, because I want more of that. I want to get to know you better. I want… I don’t know… normal things. Like a date where nobody is trying to kill us.”
Exhaustion finally started pulling at her hard. She carefully shifted forward in the chair until she could rest her head gently beside his arm on the mattress while still holding his hand against her cheek.
The steady rhythm of the monitor slowly lulled her.
“You scared me,” she whispered sleepily. “Don’t do that again.”
Her eyes drifted shut despite her efforts to stay awake. And still holding tightly to Snow’s hand, she finally surrendered to exhaustion.
◆◆◆
Nova felt as if she had just closed her eyes when she was stirred awake by someone gently raking their fingers through her hair.
Slowly, her eyes fluttered open and adjusted to the dim lighting in the room. She lifted her head, and the moment her eyes met those sexy blue eyes that had captivated her the first time she saw them, relief crashed through her so hard and fast that tears instantly pooled in her eyes.
“You’re awake,” she whispered, her voice full of sleep and emotion.
Snow gave her a tired smile as his hand continued to stroke her hair lightly. “Yeah. I didn’t mean to wake you up.”
“No, it’s fine,” she told him as she sat up and let out a small groan as her sore muscles protested.
His eyebrows furrowed. “Is it your arm?” he asked, squeezing her hand.
“How do you know about my arm?” she asked, looking surprised.
“Derek and the guys stopped in a little while ago.”
“How long have you been awake?”
“A few hours. You looked so peaceful. I didn’t want to wake you.”
Nova glanced toward the window, noticing the little bit of sunlight that was now filtering in through the gap in the blinds.
“I didn’t mean to crash like that. Last I looked at the time, it was like three in the morning.”
Snow offered a small smile. “The guys said you needed the rest.”
That wasn’t a lie, Nova thought to herself. She had been exhausted.
“How are you feeling?” she asked.
Snow shifted his head slightly on the pillow and winced. “I’ve had better,” he said with a small laugh. “But I’ve had worse too. Right now, it’s just a really bad headache. The doctors said I got lucky. Just a bad concussion.”
Nova took a deep breath, trying to control her emotions. “You scared the hell out of me.”
“I’m so sorry,” he said, lifting her hand and kissing the back of it. “Derek told me that you saved my ass.”
She swallowed hard. “You would’ve done the same for me.”
“Come here,” he told her as he gently pulled her closer.
“Gabe,” she protested softly as he practically tugged her halfway onto the bed beside him. “Stop. You’re supposed to be resting. I don’t want to hurt you.”
A quiet laugh rumbled out of him. “I’ve survived explosions, getting hit with a pipe, and military doctors. I think I can survive you lying next to me.”
She let out a small laugh as he carefully adjusted his arm around her. The warmth from his body heat instantly wrapped around her like a blanket.
His expression softened as his blue eyes held hers. “You didn’t have to do what you did. You could have gotten yourself killed getting me off that rig.”
Nova’s brows furrowed as if his comment had offended her. “Leaving you wasn’t even an option.”
“Nova—”
“No.” She interrupted him. “One thing I learned from you and your team is that you never leave a teammate behind.” Her voice softened slightly. “And we went in there as a team. So, there was no way I was leaving you there.”
For a moment, he just stared at her like she’d said something that hit him deeper than he knew how to explain. Then his hand slid gently against her cheek before he leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to her lips.
It wasn’t heated. It was just a slow, sweet kiss.
When he pulled back, he rested his forehead lightly against hers, his fingers still brushing softly along her jaw.
“You’re something else, Nova Hart,” he murmured.
A small smile tugged at Nova’s lips as she looked into his eyes.
She wasn’t sure what the future held for them once all of this was over.
But as she lay there in his arms, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat, one thing became clear.
Somehow in the middle of all the danger and chaos, this man had filled a place in her heart that had been empty for a long time.
◆◆◆
She didn’t know it, but the moment Snow opened his eyes and saw her sleeping, still holding his hand like she was afraid to let go, something inside him shifted in a way he honestly wasn’t prepared for.
He had spent most of his adult life keeping people at a distance.
It was easier that way. But seeing Nova there beside him, wearing oversized Navy sweats, exhaustion written all over her face as she slept after everything they had just survived together, hit him harder than the pipe ever had.
Because somewhere between the chaos on that rig, her stubborn refusal to leave him behind, and the way she looked at him like he actually mattered beyond the uniform and the job, this woman had quietly worked her way past every wall he had spent years building.
“Hey, Nova,” he said quietly, giving her hand another squeeze.
She looked up again; her eyes were soft, though rimmed with concern.
“What you said earlier. Did you really mean it?”
Her eyebrows pinched together. “What did I say?”
“Earlier, when you thought I couldn’t hear you.”
Her cheeks pinkened as she realized what he was talking about. She cleared her throat. “Umm…You heard all that?”
He grinned. “I did.”
Nova looked away for a moment. He could see she was nervous, and she had no reason to be.
She looked back up at him and smiled. “Yeah. I did.”
“Good,” he replied.
“Good?” Nova asked.
Snow’s smile deepened, and he kissed her forehead.
“Yeah, because I felt it all too. This thing we have going on between us is real. And I want to see where it goes. I know we have to work out some things like the distance, but…” he paused for a moment, taking a deep breath.
“But I’m willing to make it work if you are. ”
Nova’s lips parted slightly, as if trying to process what she was hearing. He could see all the emotions passing through her in her eyes and expression.
“Gabe…”
He lifted her hand to his lips and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “You don’t have to say anything right now. Just know that I’m not going anywhere.”
Her eyes glistened. She lifted her head a little higher and kissed him softly. “Neither am I,” she whispered against his lips.
They shared a long look before Nova lay her head back onto his chest. And for the first time since everything had gone to hell on that rig, a sense of peace settled in Snow’s chest. She was safe, he was alive, and together they had a future to work on.