“Wow, that’s kind of cool.”
She gave a short laugh. “Ha! I was barely sixteen when I started college.”
Sebastian grimaced. “Yeah, I can see where that would be a bit awkward.”
“Awkward is too mild of a word for what I was in college. Not only was I at least two years younger than everyone else, but I was a kid that had spent her entire life in a European boarding school. I had zero social skills.”
This time Sebastian’s grimace was sympathetic. “That had to be rough. Being sixteen is bad enough. But to be away from home and in a strange culture all at the same time. I’m sorry.”
Cindy smiled at his warm tone. “Don’t be. It wasn’t as bad as all that. I went to Columbia for undergrad, so I lived with Faye. But, I did have plenty of free Saturday nights free to study and get through school quickly. I didn’t start getting a social life until grad school. I was still younger than everyone else, but I had at lease acquired a few social skills.”
“Why did you leave the FBI?” He held up his hand when she shot him a dirty look. “I don’t mean to be intrusive. You said you knew you wanted to go into the FBI when you were sixteen, yet you only stayed in a few years.”
Cindy sighed. “My supervisor and I had a tiny conflict.”
“What kind of conflict?”
“The kind where my fist and his nose conflicted after he grabbed my ass.”
Sebastian sat forward, fury radiating from him. “What the hell? I hope you had the asshole fired.”
Cindy shrugged. “It was my word against his, and he was the one with a broken nose. It was either resign or be reassigned to post in the middle of nowhere Alaska or something. As it turns out, it wasn’t a bad thing. I do a lot more of what I wanted to do working with Godmother Security than I ever did in the FBI.”
Sebastian’s lip quirked. “So it was your lifelong dream to be personal bodyguard to a billionaire with a price on his head?”
“This assignment isn’t so bad. I get to lounge by a lake after dinner,” she said, waving at the scenery in front of her. “I mean it’s not as glamorous as staking out a drug cartel in the Mexican desert, but there are some definite perks.” She laughed, but it came out half laugh, half yawn.
“Tired?”
“A little. I’d better hit the sack. Early to rise and all,” she rose. “Goodnight.”
Cindy ascended the steps to her bedroom, Sebastian’s “Goodnight” still ringing in her ears. It had been a nice day. A really nice day. Talking to Sebastian was so easy and comfortable. When she wasn’t purposefully being prickly and standoffish they got along so well. If she’d met him some other way, not as a mysterious masked woman or his personal bodyguard, she wondered if they would have clicked and perhaps dated. The idea seemed preposterous considering their very different lives. Her parent’s had left her well enough off that she didn’t have to worry about money, but she was nowhere near his level. He was CEO of a multinational company and richer than many small countries. She guarded rich people for a living. He wore suits to work, she wore a gun. Yet, despite all of those differences, there was something about him that made her feel comfortable and relaxed. She was going to miss him when the assignment was over.
She pushed that thought out of her head, showered and climbed in bed.
It was dark and cold. Cindy lay perfectly still, trying to get her bearings. Where was she?
“Thought you could leave, did you?” A sneering voice came out of the dark.
“No one would ever want you, you pathetic little bitch.”
Cindy recognized the voices of Kimber and Audra as teenagers. She tried to sit up but she was tied to the bed.
“You’re not going anywhere. Nobody wants you,” Audra hissed in her ear while Kimber cackled in laughter.
The room brightened and came into focus. She was in the dormitory of the Bauer School. The door was open and Faye stood just outside it, talking to Ingrid Bauer.
“Faye! In here. Help me!” Cindy screamed, but Faye didn’t hear her. Cindy kicked and pulled at her bindings, screaming until her throat hurt but there was no reaction.
“Thank you for taking her off my hands,” Faye said to Mother Bauer. “I never wanted her. She was such a burden.”
“No, Faye, please don’t leave me,” she cried, but Faye ignored her.
“Yes, thank you,” said Sebastian, who had suddenly appeared in the doorway with his arms around a masked woman wearing a ball gown. “She was so tiresome. I much prefer my beautiful and mysterious Ella.”
“But it’s me. I’m Ella! I’m Ella!” But he was already gone, and so were the Bauers. Faye turned and looked into the room, finally seeing Cindy, but all she did was shake her head in disgust before she turned and walked away.
“No, Faye, don’t leave me. Don’t leave me. Please come back.”
“Cindy. Cindy wake up sweetheart.”
A gentle shake broke Cindy out of the dream and she peered up at Sebastian’s distraught features. “What…” she asked groggily.
“You were having a bad dream. I was on my way to bed when I heard you crying in your sleep.”
Cindy’s hand went to her cheeks and she found tears there. “I’m fine, just a dream. I’m sorry I disturbed you.”
Sebastian rolled his eyes. “You did not disturb me. And I don’t think you are fine, your hand is shaking.”
She looked down and saw he was right. As a matter of fact her whole body was shaking. For a moment her mind had been blank, but as the fog of sleep cleared the memory of the loneliness and terror from the dream came rushing back as real as it had been in her sleep.
“I’ll be okay,” she said, but was disgusted at the watery tremor in her voice as tears started flowing.
Sebastian put one arm behind her back and the other under her knees and scooped her up. Before she knew what was happening he was sitting on the bed, his back against the headboard. He settled Cindy onto his lap, her head against his chest, and pulled the comforter up over them both. “You know, it might help if you talk about it,” he said gently.
“It’s stupid.”
“I won’t judge. Besides, if it bothers you, it’s not stupid.”
Weak and tired and feeling more comfortable than she knew she should with his arms around her, Cindy sighed and relaxed against him. She told him about the dream, leaving out the part about him.
He dropped a soft kiss onto the top of her head and held her a bit tighter. “Oh, honey, why would you dream something like that?”
“To explain that I’d have to tell you my whole life story,” Cindy said with a small, water laugh.
“I’ve got nowhere to be but here,” he said, his voice husky.
“Okay, you asked for it. I suppose I should first explain my relation to Faye.”
Confused, he said, “I thought she was your aunt.”
“She is, but not by blood. She and my mother met shortly after they both joined the CIA, they were both very young. They were partnered together and became like sisters. Faye was an orphan and had never had a family, so my mother shared hers with her. Faye went home to Ohio with my mother one weekend and met Mom’s brother and fell spectacularly in love. They were married a year later. He never knew either of them were spies. They were married barely a year when he was diagnosed with cancer. He died fourteen months later. So, technically she is my aunt because she was married to my uncle, even though it was years before I was born. But my parents also made her my Godmother when I was born.”
“Your mom was a spy. That must have been interesting growing up.”
Cindy shook her head. “I wouldn’t know. She and my father died when I was three. The official cause of death was a car accident, but in truth, they were killed. My father was, or had been before he met my mother, a part of a European drug syndicate. He and my mother met when she was undercover in the syndicate. He turned his back on his criminal past to be with my mother. And she, quit the CIA. But, someone from his past hunted them down and murdered them
. I was just a baby and, boy scout that the murderer was, he couldn’t bring himself to kill me. Instead he sold me to another syndicate that funded a school where orphaned children were trained to be spies and assassins.”
He pushed her back from him just enough that he could look down into her face. “The European boarding school you went to was an assassin training camp?”
Cindy gave a weak smile. “The Bauer School for the Gifted. I was so far advanced when I went to school here in the states because we were taught everything. We were in class or studying ten hours a day, and doing physical training four hours a day. Half an hour each for meals, half an hour for grooming, and a strict eight hours of lights out each night.”
He pulled her close again, his arms wrapping protectively around her. “I notice you said lights out, not sleep.”
“Night time was when the older girls like to prey on the rest of us. You learned to sleep with one eye open,” she said, surprised at how matter of fact she sounded.
“That is—there are no words. Wait,” he said, as if he just realized something. “You said Bauer. Is that the same Bauers that…”
Cindy nodded, her cheek brushing against his chest. “Yes. Ingrid Bauer was the headmistress and Kimber and Audra, her adoptive daughters, were students.”
“But why were you there so long? Why didn’t Faye get you out?”
“She did, as soon as she found me. When my parents were killed, Faye was deep undercover. She didn’t even find out for around eight months. By then all traces of me were gone. She hunted down the man that killed my parents, then took down the syndicate bit by bit until she found out about the school. It took her more than a decade.”
“That is real dedication. She must really love you.”
Cindy knew what he was doing. Showing her how wrong her dreams were. But she already knew that. That was the problem with irrational fears, they were irrational. “She does. And I love her. We had a bit of trouble at the very beginning. She didn’t know how to be a parent and I didn’t know how to be a child. But we managed.”
He pulled her back again and smiled down at her. “Feeling better?”
She couldn’t help but return his smile. “I do, thank you.” She shifted, trying to move off of him. “I’m really okay now. You can go to bed. It was just a silly dream.”
He shifted her off of him, but didn’t take his arms from around her. “There is no shame in being frightened or lonely. I don’t think it was silly at all. I think it is unwarranted that you fear being alone, because Faye obviously adores you. Yet, considering your childhood, I can see why that would be your worst fear.” He slid down next to her, pulling her so that her head rested in the crook of his shoulder. “I’m not going anywhere.”
She knew she should protest, but being in his arms felt so nice, so right. Of course she wanted more than just a snuggle. She wanted to scream at him that she was Ella then kiss him like he had kissed her on the terrace of his suite, but she didn’t dare do either. Instead she snuggled down into him, letting his warmth seep into her, relaxing her, until her eyes drifted down and she fell into a deep sleep where she dreamed of dancing in a grand ballroom with Sebastian.
.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The Hidden Cave
Cindy paced around her room for two hours. She needed to get some rest, but she couldn’t make her mind stop working overtime. After falling asleep in Sebastian’s arms and waking up there this morning, she knew it was time to tell him the truth. She’d tried all day to work up the courage, but kept talking herself out of it with the excuse that it would make things too awkward. The assignment would be over soon. As soon as the FBI announced Duke’s arrest the next morning Faye would pull her team off this detail. Then Cindy could tell him she was the mysterious Ella from the charity ball just before she left. If she told him sooner it might jeopardize his safety if he was too angry at her to listen to her, assuming a dangerous situation arose. He might even be angry enough to send her away immediately.
In theory, there may not be any danger at all. The FBI could be right, and the Bauers could be headed for the hills, twenty-five mil in hand. But what if Faye were right, and Cindy would become their target once they knew Andrew Duke was in jail? It wouldn’t matter. She could take care of herself. She would just need to get away from Sebastian to keep from putting him in further danger.
Her brain had been whirling all day, and she’d avoided being alone with Sebastian to keep herself from babbling all over him. Or worse, doing what she’d wanted to do last night and kiss him until he recognized her.
She’d been able to avoid him most of the day without seeming like she was avoiding him. She done her duty shift that morning, opting to carry the tablet with her and do rounds around the cabin as well as the tree line and down to the gate. Sebastian had spent most of the evening on video chat with his mother. In preparation for the FBI’s announcement on Monday, Prince Senior had told his wife about her nephew putting a contract out on Sebastian. She had been, understandably, distraught. He’d spent a couple of hours reassuring her he was safe.
Cindy had excused herself early for bed, claiming exhaustion, which was not untrue. But sleep eluded her. Unable to sit still and tired of pacing miles around the bedroom, she put her shoes back on, tucked her phone and gun into her sweatpants pocket and went downstairs.
Sebastian, Jack, and Gus all sat around the dining table playing a game of cards. She noticed the video surveillance feed was on the TV monitor mounted on the wall across from the leather sofa and the tablet was on the table next to Gus. He was obviously still doing his job, so she didn’t give him any grief about playing cards while on duty.
She held up her hand as she walked by and they all turned to look at her. “Just going for a walk, carry on.”
She walked slowly down the hill leading to the lake and to the end of the pier where she sat down, dangling her legs off the end. She let the cool night air and sounds soak into her, calm her.
After a few minutes she heard steps on the pier behind her and turned to see Sebastian walking towards her illuminated by the exterior lights of the boathouse. “You shouldn’t be out here alone.”
“I’m not alone, you’re here.”
“But I didn’t know you were out here until just now. You know you are supposed to have someone with you when you leave the house,” she chided, yet with no real heat behind the words. She was glad to see him.
“Do you think there is still danger?” he asked.
“I do, at least until the FBI releases the information on your cousin’s arrest tomorrow. You should be safe after that.”
His mouth curved into a sheepish smile. “In that case, I’m sorry I didn’t obey the rules. But since I’m out here with you now, can I stay?”
She scooted over a little. “Sure.”
He slid down next to her, the bottoms of his sneakers skimming the water as his legs dangled off the pier next to hers.
“So, what are you doing out here?” he said, his tone sounding like a parent that just caught his teenager sneaking in after curfew. “You should be in bed. Your shift starts in six hours and I know you won’t let either of the guys cover for you. You need some rest.”
The genuine concern in his voice washed over her in warm waves. “I know. I just can’t sleep.”
“Another bad dream?” The boathouse lights washed his face with a warm glow that clearly showed the soft understanding etched into his features.
“No. I can’t even get to sleep. I’m a little on edge. I thought coming out here might help me relax.”
“Is there something in particular bothering you?” he asked.
“No.” She stared out over the water so he wouldn’t see the lie on her face. “Probably I had too much coffee today.”
“Now, why don’t I believe you?”
Because I’m a big fat liar. “You have trust issues?” she tried to inject a little laugh into the words, but it fell flat.
His fingers curled aro
und her chin and gently turned her face to his. “If it’s about last night…”
She cut him off. “No, well, yes, kind of. I was very unprofessional.” His touch was searing her skin and the scent of him filled her senses until she couldn’t think. “I really shouldn’t have—but that’s not the issue…”
This time he cut off her words, but instead of talking over her he put an end to all conversation by pressing his lips to hers.
Everything she’d worked so hard to keep reigned in since last night broke free inside her and she leaned into the kiss, wrapping her arms around him automatically. His hands slid into her hair, pulling her closer.
She sighed her pleasure into his mouth and he deepened the kiss. Coherent thought had fled the moment their lips had touched, and now all she could do was feel, want, need.
Finally, when they were both breathless, he gave up possession of her mouth and pulled back, his hands still in her hair, his eyes dark and blazing, his voice rough and ragged. “Cindy, do you believe in love at first sight?”
“What?” She mumbled, dazed and trembling.
“I said, do you believe in love at first sight?” He said, trailing his lips down the sensitive skin of her throat.
The delicious heat of his body pressing into hers and the sensation of his soft lips against her skin had her distracted. She ran her tongue over her kiss swollen lips and tried to think. Did she believe in love at first sight? No, she didn’t. Except with him. Had that been love at first sight or just lust? Had it grown into love in just a few days? Was that what she felt for him?
“No. Not at first sight,” she answered, breathless. “Do you?”
He ran his tongue around the outside of her ear and nipped the lobe lightly. “Yes.”
For one moment her heart leapt into her throat. Then plummeted again. She tried to focus on what his words meant but the way his hand was slowly, almost lazily, rubbing across her breast made it hard to do anything but feel. “Is that what happened with your girl at the ball? Love at first sight?”
Unmasked (Godmother Security Book 1) Page 10