Page 154 of Girl Between (Dana Gray FBI Mystery Thriller #5)

Dana’s eyelids fluttered. Blurred vision brought her surroundings slowly into focus. Sterile white walls. The faint beeping of machines …

Panic began to rise as her memories flooded back—Monroe, his hospital of horrors. Terror gripped her as she tried to move, but her body was heavy, weighed down by fatigue and the lingering effects of sedatives.

Breath quickening, Dana struggled to remember where she was and how she got there. Frightening events replayed in fragmented sequences in her mind. The ache in her abdomen and the bandages on her arms reminded her of the brutal encounter she’d barely survived.

Vision still blurry, Dana scanned the hospital room, searching for a familiar face, for reassurance. Her eyes settled on George. He sat nearby, his presence a balm to her anxious heart.

But it wasn’t enough. He wasn’t who she was looking for. Her anxiety rose again as she racked her memories. Jake … he’d been there, in the Tower … she was sure of it. Wasn’t she?

“He just stepped out,” George said, interpreting the worry etched on her face .

“I wasn’t?—”

“Yes, you were,” he interrupted, smiling at her with more warmth than she deserved. “And don’t apologize for it. I’m just glad you’re okay.”

“My glasses?” she asked.

George found them and helped her put them on. “Are you sure you don’t wanna just pretend to be sleeping? Shepard’s gonna kick my ass for convincing him to go get some coffee. It’s the first time he’s left your side in days.”

“Days?”

George offered a reassuring smile as he took her hand. “You scared the hell outta us, Gray.”

“What happened? How am I still here?” she whispered, her voice trembling with the weight of her ordeal.

His face softened, a mixture of relief and admiration in his eyes. "Dana, it's a miracle you survived Monroe’s attack. We all thought … well, it didn't look good."

“The other women?” Dana's eyes searched George's for answers.

He sighed, his shoulders relaxing slightly as he gave the good news about the women they’d saved and the developments she’d missed while in the hospital. He tapped a folder he’d set on her bedside table. “When you’re ready, it’s all here, including the DA’s recordings.”

“All I need to know is that Monroe is going to prison.”

“No doubt,” George replied, launching into the details of his arrest including how it’d been Jake who’d fired the shot to take down Monroe.

“He was there?” She knew it. She thought blood loss had made her imagine him, but she should’ve known better. Jake was always there when she needed him.

"Because of you both, we were able to apprehend Monroe and Landry. Landry’s helping law enforcement take down Monroe’s entire operation. We saved eleven of the women Monroe had stashed in the Plaza Tower. "

A wave of relief washed over Dana, but it was quickly replaced by dread. "And Amelia?"

George's expression darkened, and he hesitated. "Dana … Amelia didn’t make it. Her renal failure was too advanced."

Tears welled in Dana's eyes as she processed the bittersweet news. "How is that fair?”

“It’s not.” He squeezed her hand. “But you can’t dwell on the losses. Because of you, we saved a lot of lives.”

“At the end, when I thought I was going to die, I felt a light guiding me," she said softly, almost to herself. "I had the same feeling when your mom was performing the potomian ceremony. And again, when she put the protection spell on me at the wedding. Do you think … is her spell what saved me?"

George's eyes softened further as he squeezed Dana’s hand, considering her question. "Dana, I'm not sure what I believe. Whether it was a spell, faith, or just plain luck, I’m just glad you survived. We all are."

As if on cue, the door opened and Lena walked in, followed by Jake. "Look who I found staring down the coffee machine like a zombie," Lena said cheerfully. “Oh my god! Dana! You’re awake.”

The mood shifted, flooding Dana with intensity as she locked eyes with Jake.

Dana's heart raced as she scanned his features, trying to reconcile the intense emotions swirling within her. She wanted to say so many things; to express her gratitude, her relief, and her love, but words seemed inadequate.

Jake felt it too, that inevitable pull. She could tell from the deep breath he took, his gaze holding hers. For the briefest of moments, she watched his attention flick to George. A storm of irrational jealousy flared to life at the sight of Dana’s hand in another man’s.

Ever astute, George quickly released Dana. Standing, he walked to where Lena stood and quietly took her hand. “We’ll leave you to it.”

Once they were alone, Jake rounded the room slowly. He set his coffee down on the bedside table and took a seat in the chair next to Dana’s bed, gently taking her hand.

Dana felt her throat tighten with emotion.

She squeezed his hand, drawing strength from his presence.

Seeing him there, Dana knew that’s where he’d been the whole time she’d been in the hospital.

His presence was palpable—a soothing salve for her soul.

She’d felt it even when she’d been unconscious.

And now that she wasn’t … There was so much she wanted to say to him.

Leaning in, Jake brushed her hair back from her face. For the briefest moment she saw desire flicker across his stormy blue gaze. If he’d wanted to kiss her, he decided against it, taking her hands instead.

“Hey,” he said, his voice like gravel as he held back emotion.

“Hey,” she answered, her own voice still hoarse. A tear slipped down Dana's cheek. The gravity of the moment weighed heavily on her, yet it was also liberating. “You found me.”

It wasn’t a question, but Jake nodded.

“How?” she asked.

Jake lifted her hands to his mouth and kissed her knuckles, relief swimming in his eyes. “You told me how.”

“You saw my SOS.”

He nodded.

“I never told anyone that story. Only you would’ve known it was me.”

“Like it or not, Gray, I know you. And I’m not going to stop. You need me. You just don’t know it yet.”

“I know it,” she whispered. “I was coming to meet you.”

“I know,” he said. “But Monroe got to you first.”

Dana fought an involuntary shudder at the terrifying memory that rolled through her.

Jake squeezed his eyes shut. “I should’ve been there.”

Dana shook her head. “I should’ve stayed in D.C.”

Jake’s eyes gleamed with unshed emotion. “Maybe we should just leave the past where it belongs and focus on the future for a change.”

“Our future? ”

“Is that what you want?”

She laughed. “It took nearly having my organs removed, but yeah, Jake. A future with you in it is all I want.”

Jake gently pulled Dana into his arms and kissed her breathless. His eyes blazed with renewed hope when he pulled back to gaze at her. “Promise me,” he begged, his voice barely a whisper. “Promise me you’ll stay.”

She smirked. “Since when do you make promises?”

“Since you came into my world and shattered everything I thought I knew.”

Dana reached up to cup his cheek, relishing the roughness of his unshaven face. “It was you,” she said, grinning through her tears. “I kept hearing a voice, telling me to stay, to fight. It was you.”

Jake's gaze softened, the storm in his eyes subsiding as he brushed a thumb over her knuckles. He pulled her hand to his lips and kissed it, nodding. “I thought I’d lost you.”

She shook her head. “Never. You were my anchor. You gave me something safe to hold onto in the dark.”

Jake’s gaze bore into hers, his voice equal parts passion and promise. “Always.”

As the weight of their shared experiences settled between them, Dana knew that their bond was unbreakable.

The trauma and loss they had endured only made their connection stronger.

And for the first time in what felt like forever, Dana dared to hope for a brighter future. One she wouldn’t face alone.