Page 31 of No One But You
The world was shaking.The sofa rocked slightly.Was there an earthquake?What the hell was happening?
“Shh, shh, it’s all right.”
Gentle hands stroked the length of my back.
“Feel my hands on your back?”
I nodded.
“What do you smell?”
I breathed in, my chest seizing because no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get enough oxygen.
“Lemon and… and maybe grass.”
“How does the sofa feel under your knees?”
“Soft.”
The tension in my chest began to ease.
“What can you hear?”he asked, still stroking me, the movements slow and soothing.
“Your voice.”I took another breath and tried to filter out the fogginess.“Nate is saying something.”
“Anything else?”
The rushing of blood in my ears faded away, allowing me to make more sense of things.
“Mehrtens is running water.”
“She’s getting you a drink.”
I drew away and sat, my head spinning slightly, but the worst of the panic was gone.Only now that I was more aware of myself did I realize that sweat beaded on my upper lip and hairline and that my shirt was plastered to my torso because I’d sweated right through it.
Ew.
I pulled in a shaky breath and blinked so my vision cleared, and Max’s handsome face came into focus.“Sorry about that.”
He scowled.“You never have to apologize for something like that.Are you okay now?”
“I think so.”I glanced at the laptop and was relieved to see that the screen was blank.
Mehrtens crouched in front of me and offered me a glass of water.“Thirsty?”
I took it but knocked my teeth when I tried to sip because my hands were trembling.Max curved his hands around mine and steadied them so I was able to drink properly.
“Did you remember anything?”Mehrtens asked, tone gentle as she took the glass and placed it on the floor.
“Yeah.”The face flashed through my mind.“I remember what he looks like.”
“Good.”She smiled.“Do you think you’d be able to identify him if you saw him again?”
Reflexively, I started to close my eyes so I could recheck my mental image of the guy, but I jerked in place and stopped.What if picturing him made me panic again?
“I think so.He was about Toby’s height, with dark hair and dark eyes.Brown, I think.He was white.”
“How old?”Mehrtens asked.
