Forever Loved (Forever Lost Book 2) (22 page)

Chapter Twenty-One

“So,
José’s a Secret Service agent and not a cartel goon?” Cassie double-checked, trying to piece it all together in her mind again. Roger nodded.

“He was working undercover in Mexico while you were there with Victor. His branch of the Secret Service knew you’d been held there against your will and his team was assessing their potential extraction options when Leo lured you both back into the States with the help of the FBI. The case then went cold until recently.”

“When Leo returned to the UK?”

“Yeah, because two known members of the Sanchez cartel were identified as having followed him into the country. José came to speak with me not long after he came back into Siobhan’s life—and their backstory is true, by the way. She really did grow up with him and knew him years ago before he was recruited. Their relationship is real, and he’s recently told her the truth about his job, but she couldn’t tell you. I know it ate her up to have to hold something back, and I was the same.”

“She was mad as hell, but understood my reasons.” José carried on Roger’s story, joining them at Cassie’s bedside. “I’m sorry I lied to you and made you distrustful, but I had to have Eduardo and the others fooled. I needed to be the one ordered to meet him at that derelict house, so I made sure I was given the task of being Grayson’s liaison in London. I passed information back and forth between him and the Cartel, and was the person he called before you managed to get away,” he told her, and Cassie had to look away from his questioning gaze. Even thinking of how that’d panned out made her want to either cry or retch again, probably both.

“Grayson had no idea José was working both sides, so when I caught him tailing me back home, I warned José that your old foe was making his move at last. Grayson caught up with me, knocked me out, and put me in the trunk of his car, and I was just coming around when José popped the lock and sprung me loose. I was ready to go covert ops right by his side, but he shushed me and handed me a weapon. As soon as I saw what was going on between you and Eduardo in that stairwell, I knew what had to be done, and took his life before he could take anything else from you.” Roger seemed to choke on those last words, and Cassie knew it must’ve been awful finding her there under Eduardo’s command.

Not that she’d ever even doubted it, but she knew now just how much Roger truly cared for her. He’d taken the life of the man who’d threatened her future. He’d rid her of a demon she’d been forced to cower before, and Cassie knew she’d be eternally grateful for both his and José’s actions earlier that day.

“I love you too, Rog. Thank you,” she mumbled, taking his hand in hers. He smiled and kissed the back of her palm.

“The mission was to do the handover and then take Grayson and Eduardo into custody, but a monster like him had to be put down, so I let Roger be the one to do it rather than get in trouble for not completing the assignment. He was well within his rights as your bodyguard to act accordingly,” José carried on, and Cassie nodded in understanding. She guessed the official statement might say something along the lines of Roger having acted alone while José’s back was turned, and didn’t care that things had needed to go that way.

Another cartel boss was dead, and Cassie was glad, even if the memory of his brains splattering against the wall of that stairwell would haunt her for a while. It was just another one to add to her collection, and one she’d gladly live with if it meant she was free from another of her tormentors.

“Grayson wanted me to be free in the end. He handed me the weapon and forced me to take his life,” Cassie told them, and neither seemed surprised to hear it.

“Some people simply can’t come back from the edge, no matter how hard they try,” Roger muttered. “But at least he showed you one final kindness by letting you go. He’d struggled with his order to kidnap you for months, and we wondered if he’d even manage it at all.”

“GG and I had a special friendship while I was in Mexico, and I hate how different he became after I left him behind to rot in prison so I could be free. He was himself at the very end, though, so I can’t hate him. He did the right thing by me and the baby when it counted.” Cassie groaned as she repositioned herself in a bid to get more comfortable.

“He loved you, no matter what. I saw that myself during his darker days. I want you to know, I had no idea Eduardo was planning on using the knife, otherwise I’d have gotten it off him. I’m sorry you were injured,” José told her, seeming earnest, and Cassie nodded.

“I know. The main thing is the baby’s not hurt,” she replied, staring at the sonogram pictures again. “When did they take these?” she asked, watching as Roger pointed to the small blur, showing Cassie which parts were which.

“While you were out cold. That’s one strong little bugger you’ve got there, by the way. I refused to leave your side while they were working on you, so got to see when they gave you the scan. It was wriggling around like mad.”

“I’m glad it’s safe. Any baby Solomon was always going to be a stubborn little thing, like its father,” she replied with a grin. “Speaking of, where’s Leo?”

“He’s…um,” Roger began, and Cassie scowled, feeling instantly fretful. He noticed her panic and shook his head. “Nothing bad, it’s just he’s currently under lock and key. Talking with The Boss,” he added.

“About what?” she demanded.

“Goddam Secret Service tried offering me a job, but I told them to go fuck themselves,” Leo answered from the doorway with a huge grin, and he bounded over to join the others at Cassie’s side. He touched her with care, remaining delicate and careful, but she grabbed him and yanked him down to meet her embrace. She needed to feel him against her. When her tears returned, she didn’t fight them, nor did he make a fuss. The pair simply held one another while Roger and José chatted quietly between themselves for a minute.

“Leo, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have stormed off after Suzie without a chaperone. I should’ve been honest about her message,” she told him, but he shushed her.

“The bad guys had us surrounded regardless. No matter how, no matter when—they were on their way to get you. All that matters is that when it came to it, we had these guys on our side,” he replied. Leo climbed up and offered José his outstretched hand. “I’m forever in your debt.”

“Don’t mention it, I’m just glad she got away in one piece,” he answered with a smile, but then frowned. “You know that if I could’ve helped it, she wouldn’t have been injured at all.”

“She’s back here with me, José. And, that’s all any of us could’ve prayed for.” He patted José on the shoulder and grinned again. “So, Secret Service, hey? Didn’t feel like sharing that little truth with me at any point?”

“Sorry, man. It was classified,” José answered.

“Nah, I get it. I just can’t figure out why they’d try and get me to join. As if I’d ever say yes…”

“I did,” Roger interjected, and they all stared at him in shock.

Cassie reached out and took his hand again.

“When?” she asked.

“This afternoon while you were still asleep. Leo wasn’t the only one who was offered a new job.”

“You know you can’t leave me, right?” Cassie demanded, and she wanted him to know she was deadly serious. Roger laughed and lifted her hand so he could kiss the back of it.

“Oh, you sweet thing. You’re the widow of one of Mexico’s most high profile cartel bosses, and you just took down his successor. I don’t think you realize just how much you’ll be seeing of me during your time in witness protection,” he told her.

“Witness protection? Are you serious?” she groaned, and Roger simply shrugged. She looked up at Leo, hoping he might be able to offer a different option, but he gave her the same look as Roger.

“Looks like we need to disappear again, baby. For good this time,” Leo said, perching beside her on the gurney. “They’ll keep us safe, all three of us.”

“You, me, and the baby against the world?”

“Yep, but this time we’re going to be ghosts. No messing around. You and the baby are everything to me, and I’ll never let anyone harm you again as long as I live,” Leo answered, pulling her close for a kiss, and Cassie knew he meant every word.

Epilogue

Ten Years Later…

“Where is your father when I need him?” Cassie bellowed, grabbing the jackets and boots from the cupboard under the stairs. She was hot and bothered, flustered, and in a mad rush. It didn’t help that her husband had gone missing in the vast expanse of English country manor house that’d been their family home for the past eight years.

“He’s gone to work,” nine-year-old Leo Junior told her, scrunching his nose when she glared at him crossly. He knew she wasn’t angry with him, and shrugged with a cheeky grin that matched his father’s perfectly. “Dad told me when he came to wake me up.”

“What? He didn’t tell me he had to be in today!” she grumbled, forcing Junior’s feet into his wellington boots.

“Calm down, sis.” Will’s cheerful voice boomed from the entryway of the huge house. He had his namesake, six-year-old William, by his side and ready to go. How he’d managed to persuade the boisterous boy to get both his boots and coat on was beyond her, and the usually so mischievous scamp simply smirked at her from beside his favorite uncle. “What are you up to today anyway, seeing as I’m taking this lot out?” Will asked, and Cassie smiled coyly.

“Well, we
had
discussed spending the day together, but seeing as my darling husband has disappeared on me in favor of spending some time with his newest prototype, I might as well head to the studio.”

Cassie peered across the courtyard at her purpose-built annex. It’d been made into her private art studio, her place of solace, and she truly adored the refuge she found there. In the years since Eduardo’s attack, they’d not only moved to an isolated, secure mansion nestled in the heart of the countryside, but she’d also found her art again. The dark and dismal within her had come up for air, as had the beautiful and light work she’d drawn throughout the years.

After leaving the city behind, their collective assets had been liquidized, and Cassie had finally caved on the issue of marriage. Leo had popped the question the day their eldest son was born, and she had been so in love with the two Leos in her life she couldn’t say no. It’d been a small wedding—she couldn’t have faced another big, white ordeal even if he’d wanted it—but Leo hadn’t pressed her for anything more than a registrar and a ring on her finger.

Ever since the day they’d first met at that party in New York, she’d belonged to him, and Cassie knew she’d never fight his hold on her ever again. In fact, she still craved the satisfaction she felt in giving every part of herself to him. Leo was her everything, and he’d not only changed his life for her over and over again, he’d changed hers too.

“Mum, will this do?” A soft voice interrupted her reverie, and Cassie looked down the hall at the little girl who was her absolute double. At only four years old, Gee-Gee Solomon knew exactly what she wanted, and how to get it. The little angel was smiling sweetly, and had pulled on her boots like her mother had instructed, yet she’d teamed it with a tutu and a tiara. Her jacket was on, so she’d also followed Cassie’s other order, yet she’d topped the ensemble off with a set of fairy wings that matched the bright pink netting bunched at her waist.

“I don’t know…Uncle Will, what do you think?” She turned back to smirk at her baby brother.

“You’ll do perfectly, sweetie. Who cares if all we’re doing is going to the zoo and then a sleepover at my house? A fairy princess always needs to look her best,” Will replied, curtseying to his niece when she joined him.

Cassie bid her three children goodbye, kissing each and fussing over them far more than necessary, but she could never help herself. Despite having Roger and the other Secret Service agents still watching over them, she still worried. With a fake smile, she waved them off, not moving from the doorstep until the car turned out of the gated driveway and headed off toward Will’s new home just a few miles away. She breathed a sigh of relief when their private security team followed his car, but couldn’t fight a shudder as it swept down her spine. Cassie was suddenly aware of being watched. Yes, there were cameras and security guards around the property, but this was different. She felt eyes on her specifically, and not the house or the perimeter.

She knew she needed to let go of her fears rather than fight them, and without Leo around to help her, Cassie guessed she’d use her art to offload that dread instead. Her work was a hit, and somehow sold to collectors all around the world. While no one knew her real identity, it was a thrill knowing that her work spoke to people, calling out their fears and fancies, and she adored her new job as a stay-at-home-mom and artist.

Leo, on the other hand, had gone back into engineering after refusing the job with the Secret Service. He’d invented, engineered, and patented hundreds of different innovations since then, and while she had no idea what half of them even were, Cassie loved how he too had found his calling. Together they were whole, and their three children had brought them happiness beyond anything they could’ve hoped for. Life was good. In fact, it was amazing.

Cassie stepped back into the now deafeningly silent house and shut the door. She turned to walk inside, thinking that a cup of tea seemed like a great idea, when she saw a folded note taped to the bottom rung of the banister by the huge front door. It was too high up for any of the kids to reach, so she grabbed it and read the handwritten words with a smile.

I’m watching you. Don’t run, don’t scream, and don’t even think of calling for help. I want you, but I’ll have you only when I’m done watching. Then, I will take you hard and fast, and I won’t take no for an answer…

The game is on, Jellybean. I’m coming for you.

Cassie knew she was blushing. She was hot all of a sudden, and could feel her heart racing as she panted with desire and a desperate need only Leo could fulfill. So, the game was on, and her darling husband was in luck, because it sure was her favorite one in all the world. They’d perfected their ravishment roleplay over the years, and she knew exactly how to get what they both wanted from the hot and dangerous game of cat and mouse.

“Come and get me, baby,” she called out. It’d been Leo’s eyes she’d felt on her, she realized, and she smiled. Cassie was more than ready to give him a show, and grew hotter in anticipation of when he might strike. Last time, she’d stood painting in her studio wearing nothing but an apron to tease him. However, this time she decided she’d make him work harder for it.

Cassie reckoned it was time she washed and waxed her new sleek and sexy sports car, and figured she might as well wear as little as possible while doing so, just in case of splashes. She’d wanted to christen it for weeks, and hoped her predatory lover might take the opportunity to have her over the bonnet.

But first, it was time to enjoy a nice cup of tea while she read the morning paper in peace.

The End