Page 45 of Protective Assignment
Her chest tightened when she thought of how much her father would have loved to see this day.She wished he could have, but she knew he would have been proud of her if he were still alive.She had taken out Ryker for good, and there was no way he would be able to come after her again.He was gone.Forever.
She hadn’t felt this way in so long, like the weight had been lifted from her shoulders and she could finally just…be.All the fear, all the doubt, all the worry that she was going to bring some kind of chaos to the lodge because of who she was and the life she’d lived before, it was over.She got to look forward to the rest of her life, whatever she wanted that to be.
And right now, all she wanted was to be with Cade.She wanted to lie there in his arms and focus on the joy of knowing she could be totally honest with him.She didn’t have to pretend to be anyone she wasn’t.She could never have imagined that this was where she would end up, when she’d accepted the ride from him all those weeks ago.She was so glad things had turned out the way they did.
He had come for her.When he had told her he would protect her, he’d meant it.He’d come out into that frigid forest to search for her, even though he knew how dangerous it was and had no idea what he was up against.If it hadn’t been for him, God only knew what would have happened with her and Ryker.His sudden appearance was the distraction she’d needed to muster the courage to swing that rock that had saved her life.If it hadn’t been for him, she probably still would have been in Ryker’s clutches right now.
He’d given her the strength to do what she needed to do to survive, and she was more grateful than she would ever be able to put into words.She supposed she would just have to show him.
She reached out to touch his cheek as he slept, and he stirred, his eyes opening as he looked at her.
“You okay?”he asked, pulling her in closer.Even though the snow was still falling outside, the warmth under these covers, pressed up close to him, was everything she needed.
She nodded.“Yeah, I’m fine,” she replied.And she meant it.When she was with him, the enormity of everything that had happened fell away, and she knew she didn’t have anything to worry about.She could survive anything this crazy world threw at her, because he was there.He would always be there.No matter how bad things got, she knew he wasn’t going anywhere, and she loved him for that.
She loved him.
“I’m just…really happy to be here with you,” she continued, running her fingers through his hair.He smiled that gorgeous smile that lit up his whole face, and she felt her stomach twist into a knot.He was so handsome.She had been so fearful before, it had been hard to let go and justfocus on how happy he made her.It felt good to be able to focus on him—onthem.
“Me too,” he murmured, and he moved to kiss her on the cheek—just the softest kiss, as though he was still being careful with her.But she didn’t want him to be careful with her, not now.She wanted him to treat her like she was his, because she was—she belonged to him, utterly and completely.She wanted to show him that.
She turned her head to kiss him properly, and he didn’t need to be told twice.He pulled her closer to him, their bodies pressed together, and he wrapped his arms around her tight.She smiled into the embrace, the covers still tucked around them as he held her.It was like they were in a little bubble, cut off from the rest of the world—as though this was the only thing that mattered right now.And it was.She knew there was a lot of stuff for them to work through—emotions, where they were headed moving forward, plans for the future—a whole lot more for them to talk about and deal with.But in that moment, all she could think about was him.
And how much she wanted this moment to last forever.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
“Morning,” Lawson greeted as Cade stepped through the door to his office.Cade had no idea how Lawson was even standing upright at that moment.He had been on his feet for days on end now, catching the last of the Shepards who were still on the run out in the woods.Finally, all of the members of that twisted gang had officially been accounted for.
“Morning,” Cade replied, handing Lawson a coffee.He figured he would need it.Lawson took a long, grateful sip, and then slumped into the chair on the other side of the desk.
“How’s it going?”Cade asked, carefully.There was so much he wanted to ask about, but he didn’t even know where to start.He had spent the last several days taking care of River and shutting out the world, at Lawson’s suggestion, though he doubted he would have been able to spend much more than an hour or so away from her side.The thought of how close he’d come to losing her made his stomach turn.He wished they could stay in their little bubble in their cabin forever.
“Well, the Shepards are officially done for,” Lawson replied.“With Ryker dead, the rest of them don’t have any reason to keep going, and they’ve turned themselves in.Most of the lower-level ones in the ranks are turning on each other to try and keep out of jail.I have no idea what the courts are going to decide for them, but that’s not our problem.”
“What about River?”Cade asked.She was always the first thing on his mind these days, and he would have done anything to make sure that she was safe and happy.
Lawson nodded.“I don’t think she’s going to have to deal with them any longer,” he replied.“The worst it will probably come to is testifying against some of the higher-ranking members in court.I’ve also requested she be kept out of it all, if possible, since there will be plenty of other ex-Shepards to call on.However, since she did witness her father’s murder and kill their leader, she might not have a choice.But again, with the others, she won’t be testifying alone.”
“Good.”Cade sighed.He didn’t want her to have to go up against those people again, not if he could keep her from it.She had only just gotten out of it all and he hoped it would be a long time before she was called to testify, if she was at all.
“But we’re going to have to figure out what we’re going to do with her now,” Lawson remarked.
Cade stiffened and furrowed his brow.“What do you mean?”
“I mean, she’s going to be sticking around here for a while, isn’t she?”he asked.
“I don’t know about that.”
“I’ve seen the way she looks at you, Cade.”Lawson chuckled.“I don’t think she has any intentions of being anywhere else if she can help it.”
Cade grinned.He loved being with her, and the thought of being able to spend time with her without having to worry about her past or what she was hiding from him sounded seriously good.
“Exactly,” Lawson replied, seeing the look on Cade’s face.“And if she’s going to continue to stay here, she’s going to need real work.She’ll need to provide identification and do paperwork like all the other employees.No more under-the-table stuff.”
Cade nodded.“Got it.What did you have in mind?”
“I’ve been talking to Sarah, and she seems to think that with some training, River could help with counseling some of the residents here.”he suggested.“But first, she’s going to have a whole lot to work through herself.”
