Free Claimed by Sarah Fine Page B

Simply knocking fiercely against the wall of her chest, reminding her that it was still there, still beating. Her breaths whooshed from her lungs. Tiny zings of pleasure began to emanate outward from that sensitive spot, and her fingers grew slick, not with water, but with her own arousal. And once again, unbidden and startling, Dec’s face appeared behind her closed eyelids, his broad shoulders and muscular chest and narrow hips and—
    “Galena? I—”
    She screamed at the sound of the voice and clutched at the walls. Spots floated before her eyes, and her feet slipped over the tiles. “Cacy?” she called, her voice breaking over the name.
    “I’m so sorry for scaring you!” Cacy said from the other side of the door. “I just wanted to let you know Eli’s back, and I’ve put some clothes on your bed.”
    “Thanks,” she said with a strangled laugh. “Give me a minute.” Her hand rested on her belly, over the thick welts and crisscrossing scars. Her body was still throbbing, her heart racing. But her nerves were jangling, the feeling of being caught off guard too overwhelming. She turned off the water and leaned her head on the warm tile, focusing on controlling her breathing. “It’s a start,” she whispered to herself.
    A few minutes later, she exited the bathroom to find a small neatly folded pile of clothes on the end of the bed. There was a knock at the bedroom door. “Yeah?” she called.
    “It’s me, G,” came Eli’s muted response. “Can we talk? I’m worried about you.”
    “I’m worried about me, too, to be honest.” She grabbed some clothes and walked behind the beautifully painted dressing screen that was set up near the closet. “Come on in.”
    The door opened and closed again. “Our apartment hasn’t blown up yet, if it’s any consolation.”
    “I’ll take anything I can get right now.” She bit her lip as she fastened her bra. “What do you think I should do?”
    Eli sighed. “I want you to be safe.”
    Her stomach churned as she tugged on a pair of sweats. “You think I should do it. Marry some random guy from the Ferry family.” God, that sounded horrific—
    “I didn’t say that.”
    Galena pulled a T-shirt over her head and wrapped the towel around her dripping hair, then emerged from behind the screen. “So you don’t think I should do it?”
    Eli rubbed the back of his head and winced. “I didn’t say that either.”
    “You’re not being very helpful.” She climbed onto the bed and couldn’t help but smile as the soft pillows flopped around her.
    Eli sat on the edge of the bed. He was still wearing his paramedic uniform—he hadn’t even taken the time to change yet. It had been a long night for him, too. “I don’t know how to be helpful, G. You’ve been given some god-awful choices. You’re the only person who can make them, though.”
    “I have to keep working on my vaccine. And I have to do everything possible to complete that work.” She let out a shuddery sigh. “But I can’t imagine it, Eli. I can’t imagine letting some man I don’t even know—” She bit back the rest, having to focus on pushing away the razor-sharp memories that wanted to cut her down.
    He took her hand. “What if you trusted him?”
    She gave him a cautious look. “Easier said than done. To me, it feels like walking through a minefield. And now I’m expecting someone I barely know to be my partner in that? I mea n . . . ” She swallowed the lump in her throat. “You saw how Dec responded. He couldn’t even stay in the same room with me, let alon e . . . ”
    Eli squeezed her hand. “I doubt it was you he had a problem with. I know Dec. He’s a good man.”
    “I think so, too,” she whispered. “I think I would have been lucky if h e’d said yes.”
    Eli sat back, the tiniest of smiles playing on his lips. “Yeah? You hit it off with the Chief?”
    “Don’t look at me like that. I’m saying that he seems nice.” She bowed her head as her cheeks