She chuckled. “Yes, you’re right. But…this isn’t what I’m used to.”
“Me, neither. I’d be more at home eating MREs on a tree stump.”
Her eyes glittered with humor. “Me, too. What’s your favorite Meal-Ready-to-Eat?”
“The chili with beans.”
She nodded. “I like the beef barbeque.”
“A good one, too.”
There gazes met again and paused.
His smile faded. “You see action?”
“Yes, I was with a unit that did sweeps. I went in to calm the women in the houses while we searched for insurgents.”
“Dangerous shit,” he said, knowing full well what that assignment entailed.
“Had a twelve-year-old girl shoot a pistol through her hijab at me,” she said, shaking her head. “She was a terrible shot. Hit the guy beside me in the thigh. I took her down easy enough. I couldn’t shoot her.”
Trigger glanced away. He’d had choices like that he’d made on the daily in the sandbox. He hadn’t always had the luxury of proximity to make a choice that kept his conscience clear.
He cleared his throat. “So, what do you think Eliana would be talking about if she were having a meal with her bodyguard?”
“Not what you’re imagining, I’d bet,” Cass said, her tone dry.
“Oh?”
“She’s not as fluffy as she appears. The girl has a double major in biology and zoology. She wanted to be a large animal vet.”
Trigger sighed. “I can’t imagine being in her shoes. Sure, she has a shit-ton of money, but she’s not happy.”
“No, she’s not. And have you seen the way she looks at Gabe?”
“Yeah.” He looked across the table at Cass, whose hair glittered like gold. “I wonder if her father is aware she’s not happy.”
“I imagine she’s given him an earful; she’s not the least bit shy about telling someone how she feels, but in the end, she’ll be obedient.”
“I don’t know…” Trigger said. “I’m not so sure this protection job isn’t a bit of a boondoggle. I wonder if Daddy wanted her babysat so she doesn’t walk.”
Cass frowned. “Do you really think so?”
He shrugged. “Think about it. She attended school here. She had to have had considerable freedom to roam. She knows this city well. Why shop for her wedding in New Orleans, when she could go anywhere in the world? It would be the perfect place and time to disappear.”
“I think she sees this time as her last bit of freedom. As for the protection detail, I did read about one incident, an attempted kidnapping, but it happened in Greece a few years ago. So, I can understand his worry.” When he stared at her, she wrinkled her nose. “RIP sent me a dossier they worked up, which included anything they could find about Eliana.”
Their telephones hummed on the tabletop.
Trigger raised his eyebrows. “Guess it’s time to go.” He glanced around the room and signaled to their waiter.
Five minutes later they were back on the street. Their driver slid into a space beside the curb.
Trigger glanced around, realizing it was well past dark. Time had flown.
“Well, I hope she found something wonderful,” Cass said. “She’ll be a lovely bride.”
Trigger opened the passenger side door then took her hand to help her in. But she paused for a second, glancing up at him. “I had fun, today. Despite the gazillion dresses.”
“I liked watching you try on those gazillion dresses,” he murmured, drawing closer, because he couldn’t help himself.
Her mouth curved. “I especially liked the times between the dresses. Even when you looked as though you weren’t watching,” she whispered, glancing up at him from beneath her lashes, “I felt your eyes all over me.”
“Stop,” he said, closing his eyes for a brief second.
She waggled her eyebrows. “Gotcha thinking, didn’t I?”
“Fuck. Wish we could skip dinner with the group.”
From inside the vehicle, their driver called out, “Gotta go. That’s the second time they’ve buzzed.”
They both sighed.
“Back to work,” Cass said, and surreptitiously rubbed her hand against the one which was still holding her door.
Just then, a flash brightened the darkness.
They both turned toward a man who raised his camera again and took another photo.
“In the car,” Trigger said, waiting as she quickly slid across the seat.
When he took his beside the driver, he grimaced. He knew it looked bad. Then giving each other intimate glances, standing so close.
Well, hell. Shit’s about to hit the fan.
Chapter 6
The next morning, Cass was feeling all right with the world. Her body felt fluid, relaxed. Hours of great sex had left her feeling as though she’d had a rigorous workout, without the shin splints or stretched tendons. Chuckling to herself, she wondered if it shouldn’t count towards her cardio for the day.
Everyone other than Eliana was gathered around the table when she and Trigger entered the room. His hand rested lightly on the small of her back. She knew how they looked, that everyone would guess that they were lovers, but she didn’t care. So long as she was doing her job, she didn’t give a flying flip about their opinions.
Then she got a glimpse of Gabe’s expression and realized that last night’s little incident hadn’t escaped anyone’s attention as she’d hoped.
His brows were lowered; his dark gaze glared. “You two certainly screwed the pooch.”
“I’m feeling a bit insulted,” she muttered under her breath.
Trigger’s hand grasped her arm to quiet her. “I take it some photos were released.”
Gabe tossed a section of a local newspaper, The New Orleans Times, across the table.
A grainy photo of Trigger and Cass, his arm around her back and them gazing soulfully into each other’s eyes while standing in front of the bridal shop, filled the top of the page with “Heiress and the Bodyguard” above it and “More Photos Inside!” below.
“Shit,” Trigger said. “I’m guessing Justin saw it, too.”
“He’ll be here shortly,” Gabe bit out.
Cass grimaced and took a seat. “That photo…it’s not what you think. Someone almost bumped into me.”
“That excuse might have worked for one photo, but open to the next page,” Gabe said.
Trigger flipped it open. One photo showed Cass with her hand covering his, her expression saying the touch was anything but platonic. The next was the final photo the photographer had taken with them both turning toward him, Trigger’s stance, shielding her, showed his hand on her lower hip giving the correct impression that his hand had probably been there often.
She glanced sideways at him as he took his seat. “Looks bad,” she said softly.
He grimaced and shook his head. “Yeah, I’m guessing Justin’s on the way to fire me,” he whispered.
“He won’t be any happier with me, I’m sure.”
“Yeah, but where’s he going to get another dead ringer at this late date? I’m the expendable one.” His gaze held hers. “I’m not one bit sorry, you know.”
And he meant it; she could see it in his eyes. They faced forward together.
“How long until he gets here?” she asked Gabe.
“He’s here, now,” came a deep, even voice from the doorway.
They turned to watch Justin walk to the kitchen counter and pour himself a coffee, add two sugars, and some cream. Then he picked up a beignet from the tray beside the coffeemaker and headed to the table.
He was so casual in his movements, Cass began to shift in her seat. She hated waiting for the hammer to drop. “I’m know we fucked up,” she blurted.
Justin sat then slowly brought his gaze to hers. “Do you, now?”
She lifted her chin. “I have no excuses. We should have anticipated that even though we didn’t see anyone following us, that there might still be someone there.”
“Did you read the story in the paper?” he asked softly, his expression giving away nothing of what he was feeling.
By his deadly quiet delivery, he had to be just about apoplectic. His contract with Rosi was likely very lucrative, and she and Trigger had blown it. “I didn’t have a chance.”
“Well,” he said, pausing to sip his coffee, “it seems ‘the bodyguard’ was far too attentive to his charge while she was nearly nude inside the Elite Bridal Shop, and that the bride-to-be was giving her bodyguard coy glances while she wore hardly more than a smile.” His gaze narrowed while his lips stretched a fraction.
She shivered at that smile—no doubt, that was his intention.
He leaned forward in his seat. “I really don’t give a fuck if you two fuck—after hours—but I do care that this news will be sent to Mr. Rosi. While everyone knows reporters and photographers can skew images to make them appear a bigger deal than they really are, I expected you two to have a modicum—”
“Cass, you were brilliant!” Eliana cried out as she rushed into the room. She went directly to Cass and flung her arms around her from behind then gave her a squeeze. “Daddy loves the photos! They’re the perfect diversion!”
Cass turned sideways to stare into Eliana’s face.
Eliana gave her a wink then turned to address the rest of the table. “We will keep her in pink and with her bodyguard doing inappropriate things from here forward. My father and Vasili spoke after Stefan sent him the paper’s online links. They both laughed that anyone would mistake Cass for me, but you were perfect!” she said, turning again to Cass. “You will be shopping at the French Market today, picking up souvenirs, right?”
So, maybe, Eliana was exaggerating her father’s and her fiancé’s reactions. Cass was pretty sure Eliana had “flavored” their responses with her own enthusiastic support. Relieved and grateful, Cass gave her a wide smile. “Yes, just as we agreed. And thanks for the capris and pretty shell top. If I’d had to wear heels two days in a row, I’d have blisters by the end of the day. Won’t you join us?” She glanced around the table. The only empty seat was beside Gabe.
Gabe’s expression was now completely blank. Cass felt a twinge of pity. The ex-SEAL had it bad. She could well imagine his inner torment when Eliana took her seat beside him and gave him only the briefest, shy glance.
So close, but impossibly far.
She shot Trigger a sideways glance. He gave her a small, crimped half-smile.
Justin tapped the tabletop to draw their attention. “I’m not sure encouraging the papers, and the public, to believe that you’re having a romance with your bodyguard is a good idea, Miss Rosi.”
“Eliana,” she corrected gently then waved a hand. “It’s a perfect diversion. The paparazzi will be salivating for more of the story and trailing them everywhere. Let them be seen. That way, I’ll be free to do as I please. But, Cass,” she said, turning to look her way, “you were lucky with the photographs. They weren’t fine enough quality to note our differences. It was nice having someone inside Miriam’s shop blab about me being there. It sealed the story, I think. However, today, I’d suggest wearing your hair down and adding sunglasses to hide a little more of your features.”
“And your father approves this idea…” Justin said, still with a slight frown.
She grinned. “I told him it was your idea.”
Cass reached up a hand to remove the hairband and shook out her hair, hoping she hadn’t left any creases, while she pressed her lips together to keep from barking a laugh. Beside her, Trigger hung his head.
Interestingly, Gabe’s gaze narrowed on Eliana…
“Anyways,” Eliana said in her perfect American accent, “I will be buying boring bridesmaid gifts at Tiffany’s on Canal Street—they agreed to close the store for me—and you’ll be nearly a mile away at the market, drawing every reporter and photographer along with you.” Her gaze shot to Trigger. “Look sexy. They’ll be sure to get more of you in the photo than her because they know everyone will want to know who her mystery-man-lover is.”
Justin groaned.
Cass and Eliana giggled, and Cass noted that their giggles were similar. Was Eliana rubbing off on her?
The two women shared a glance, and Cass felt as though Eliana was telling her something, telling her to enjoy this day—for her.
* * *
Midafternoon, Trigger found himself following Cass around as she played Eliana. From her expressions, she was enjoying the hell out of the shopping spree.
The pale pink, sleeveless silk blouse she wore was deceptively demure. With the white capris that ended mid-calf and simple pale leather sandals, Cass should have looked like any of the pretty young women shopping among the stalls of the French Market. However, the blouse had a keyhole neckline that buttoned at the top the circle, the opening revealing her deep cleavage. Plus, the shape of the bra she wore was revealed whenever a breeze flattened her blouse against it. It was another demibra, which supported the underside of her breasts but allowed the tops freedom to jiggle. With wry humor, Trigger admitted to himself that he was jealous of the garment.
At this particular vendor’s stand, Cass was trying to bargain and bring down the price of the coffee cup she held. Eliana had told her that she loved bargaining—“I’m Greek! It’s in my blood!”—but that once the bargain was made, she bought ten of the items and “tipped” the vendor, because otherwise she’d feel guilty because she had so much.
So, Cass followed her advice; their spending allowance for this day’s boondoggle was enormous. Cass had said there was no way she’d spend that much, but Eliana had insisted that she have fun when she’d handed her the wad of cash. “It’s only money.”
Only money. Trigger shook his head. He wasn’t hurting. He’d saved well during his time in the Navy. He’d saved his bonuses when he’d been with the team, so he could handle being out of work for a long while or buying a house outright.
He could provide for a family. Not something he’d given much thought to in the past, but he was growing older. Looking at Cass, he could imagine it now, settling down with one woman. And sooner rather than later.
His cellphone rang, and he glanced down at the name on the screen. The call was coming from his friend, Rooster. He tapped his phone, accepting the FaceTime chat, knowing why his buddy was calling. “Hey, Rooster. What’s up?” he muttered.
Rooster’s eyebrows flew upward. “I’m supposed to ask you that,” he said, sounding a little tipsy.
From the noise in the background, he knew exactly where his old SEAL team buddy was calling from, and that he most likely wasn’t alone. “You at McP’s already? Starting kind of early, buddy.”
“No changin’ the subject, dude,” came Cowboy’s voice. His face entered the picture, and he gave Trigger a lopsided smile. “What’s this about you cozying up to some Greek billionaire’s daughter?”
“It’s not what it looks like, man,” he said, glancing around to make sure no one else was within listening distance. The coast was clear. “Look, I’m on a protection detail,” he said.
C-Note jostled to enter the frame. “That’s one fine piece of a—”
“Don’t you dare,” came a woman’s voice. Casey, Rooster’s girl, leaned over Rooster’s shoulder and waved a hand. “I’m happy for you.”
“You the designated driver?”
She laughed. “Yeah, well, training ended early, and they decided to blow off some steam. I’m trying to keep them out of trouble, but I don’t know…” She gave Trigger a bug-eyed look. “It is McP’s. Anything can happen.”
“Yeah, make sure Rooster doesn’t end up kidnapped by some cartel.”
She smiled. “There are no crazy bitches waiting to kidnap him like they did Hawk. He’s all mine.”
Rooster crowded closer to his phone. “So, the girl… Is it serious?”
He must have taken too long to answer because all three of his SEAL buddies crowed.
“Oh, man,” C-Note said. “Anot
her one bites the dust.”
Trigger shook his head. “Look, if all you’re doing is calling to ride me about a few pictures in a newspaper—”
“Man, it’s all over the internet! And TMZ just picked it up, too. Just remember, I’ll give you a deal. Wedding planner, here!” she said, pointing at herself.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said dryly. “Gotta go.”
A chorus of goodbyes and whistles were cut short when he ended the call. He missed those guys. Still, if there was something to tell them about what was going on here between him and Cass, they’d be the last to know. He’d never hear the end of their ribbing.
Cass concluded her purchase, surprising the vendor by asking for a selection of the cups she’d haggled over then handing him a crisp hundred, which caused his eyes to widen and a huge grin to spread across his face.
When she returned to him with her packages, their driver, who hovered nearby whenever she stopped, moved forward to take her bags, making another trip back to their car so she wouldn’t be burdened holding them, which also kept her bodyguard’s hands free.
She gave Trigger a big beaming smile then tugged on his arm to bring him down the row of stalls, like he was her boyfriend instead of her protection, per their new plan.
“It looks like you’re having fun,” he said, quietly.
“I am. Spending someone else’s money is fun!” She laughed. “If I was on my own, I wouldn’t have had the nerve to haggle, but I would only have bought one coffee cup and maybe one set of beads instead of ten. What is she going to do with all this stuff?” she ended, laughing.
“I imagine she’s planning to regift whatever you buy to you and the team,” he said, then shrugged. “So, maybe you should buy something you really want.”
She raised her eyebrows. “That seems…unethical.”
“Buy something you want, and I’ll pay for it.”
“No, you won’t. I’ll buy something, and then I’ll pay her back for it. And I know what I want.” Still clutching his arm, she walked beside him to a jewelry vendor and a display of silver charm bracelets. “I always wanted one of these,” she said under her breath, “so I could collect charms wherever I traveled.” She moved closer to the display.
Hot SEAL, Decoy Bride Page 5