His voice spoke to her again in her dreams, she heard his stories and delighted herself with his chuckles at the funny moments he lived with his parents. He also told her over and over he needed her. She needed him, too. He was her anchor, her compass. The memory of their moments together would always be a part of her. The thought she’d had that day hiding under the bed hit her: had she been destined to die then and there, she was grateful for their short time together these past few weeks, and that Trevor had been hers, at least for a little while. She realized he would have felt the same way. He would have wanted her to move on. To be happy and not live a half-life like her father had.
A desire to fulfill his wish incited her to leave her dreams and face the real world. Cassandra broke through the fog shielding her from reality. She was uncomfortable. She tried to adjust herself, but each time she moved something tugged the top of her hand. Her eyes were sticky and she couldn’t seem to open them. She swallowed hard. Her throat was raspy, parched even, and when she ran her tongue along her lips, they were chapped and dry. Listening closely she could hear a voice in the distance. Trevor?
“Come on, Cassie girl, open your eyes for me!”
Squeezing her eyes tight, the need to open them to search out the origin of the voice was too strong. She blinked rapidly at the bright light shining above.
“Turn the light down and get that beeping away from my ear—then maybe I’ll think about it.” She barely recognized her own ragged voice.
She heard a soft chuckle. When she was able to focus, she found herself looking straight into Trevor’s eyes, which appeared to tear slightly.
“Hi,” she breathed, mesmerized. She wasn’t sure if she was really awake or if her need for him was making her hear things, see things.
Trevor rested his forehead against hers, releasing a deep sigh of relief. “Hi. Sweet Mary! Hi!”
Cassandra lifted her hand to his face and brushed the whiskers along his cheek with her thumb. She touched his warm skin to confirm he was real. It was then she noticed the IV stuck in her hand and the surge of memories invaded her mind—the fight, Trevor being shot at, searing pain, and then everything going dark.
She searched his face, noting the bruises and cuts healing along his cheek, mouth, and chin. Anxiety filled her voice. “Were you hit?”
She tried to lift herself on her elbows to look at him, but a wave of pain took her breath away.
“No, a ghrá. Easy,” he urged, pushing her gently back to the bed. “It’s you I’m worried about. What the hell possessed you to jump in front of me? You took years off my life!”
The memory of Niklas pointing the gun at him flashed before her eyes. She realized she had been hit with the bullet aimed at him. He was unharmed. She captured Trevor’s gaze with hers. “I’d do it again, Trev.”
“Excuse me, sir, are you family? You can’t be in the room if you are not family.” The nurse—one who apparently was new to the rotation and who had not been exposed to Trevor’s stubborn refusal to leave Cassandra’s side—asked in heavily accented English. The woman approached the bed, quickly scanned their hands for wedding bands, and looked at him expectantly.
Trevor smiled cheekily and shot a glance in Cassandra’s direction. “I am, if she’ll take me.”
Cassandra wasn’t sure she heard Trevor correctly and her heart almost skipped a beat. “What did just you say?”
Trevor’s grin widened and he tightened his hold on her hand. “I said, I am, if she’ll take me. Will you?”
All those weeks ago when Cassandra walked into the NSA complex intent on capturing Trevor, she never in a million years imagined that in the end her heart would be captured by him instead. She could have sworn in that moment she heard Jessica in her head yelling, Yes! About time!
Cassandra looked into Trevor’s eyes and could see his love for her reflected in them. Smiling broadly with misty eyes, she squeezed his hand tightly. “Yes. Yes, Trevor! I will take you.”
Trevor could barely contain his anxiety as he waited for her reply. He had dreaded she would just run behind her wall again. Instead, he saw a wide smile spread across her face, confirming that his biggest dream would come true. Cassandra would be his wife. He stood and pulled out the little box he had been carrying with him for two days from his pocket. The box contained his grandmother’s ring, which he’d had Stephan courier to him from Ireland. Trevor watched Cassandra’s eyes fill with tears as he carefully opened the box and removed the beautifully crafted Irish engagement ring from it.
His own eyes teared as he stared into hers, took her hand in his, and slipped the ring on her finger. “I love you, Cassandra. I am a part of you and you are a part of me. Now and for always.”
Trevor noticed the nurse slip quietly out of the room, closing the door behind her. Alone at last, he gave in to his need for Cassandra. He leaned down and took her mouth in a deep, long kiss.
Cassandra lifted her left hand to cup his cheek and he covered her hand with his, squeezing his eyes shut. Their lives would likely be filled with chaos when he set course to look for his parents, but they would be together, and that’s what mattered most.
Trevor broke the kiss and inhaled deeply in resignation. “I better call Robert to let him know you’re awake.”
Cassandra looked surprised. “Bob? Here?”
“Yes. He arrived a couple of days ago and has been prowling through the corridors ever since. I sent him back to the hotel to give myself a break from his grumpiness.”
“You sent him away? And he actually went?” Her tone of incredulity added a comical air to the question.
“Yep. We’ve had our little heart-to-heart.”
“What do you mean, ‘heart-to-heart’?”
“Nothing to worry about. Let’s just say, he knows how I feel about you. We’ve reached a peaceful agreement.”
She gaped at him.
“He wants to see you…talk to you,” Trevor added.
“Does he know everything? The case?”
“Yes. We had time to talk about all that. Are you ready to see him?” Trevor watched the clouds cover her eyes again.
“I’m not sure what to say….”
“Just be yourself, don’t try to be someone you aren’t just to please him. You should give him a chance, a ghrá. He really does care about you.”
Cassandra laid her head back on the pillow and squeezed her eyes shut. “I don’t think I can, Trev.”
“Yes, you can. Make amends. Strengthen the ties you have with him. Don’t let it become something you’ll regret not having done one day.” His soothing tone compelled her to give it a try. He caressed her face and changed to a lighter tone. “Besides, you’ll want to have him walk you down the aisle, right?”
She nodded as happy tears filled her eyes at the mention of their union. He was sure she would face her fears with a brave heart and conquer them all, just as she always did. They would do it together from that day forward. As he told Robert, he would be her wings or her crutch—whatever she needed him to be.
Chapter Thirty
A Part of Me
September 6
“I predicted you would fall hard, didn’t I?” Jessica bragged as she smoothed Cassandra’s veil and the tea-length skirt of her wedding dress.
“Yes, you did…never really expect you’d be right, though,” she smirked. Sitting on the padded stool, Cassandra looked at herself in the mirror and couldn’t believe the many changes she saw in herself—the spark in her eyes that hadn’t been there before, the glow in her skin, the smile that always lingered on her lips when she thought of Trevor. Little changes that, when combined, made a big difference in how she saw herself and the world around her.
The circumstances that had brought them together were bizarre, to say the least, and could only be defined as fate. She and Trevor were definitely two parts of a whole. I am a part of you and you are part of me. Those words had taken her breath away when Trevor had first spoken them to her. They still had the power to make her
feel alive while at the same time scare her to death. Her insecurities were for the most part gone, her fear of commitment and loss a dim shadow in the recesses of her mind, poking and prodding at her only from time to time. The “what-ifs,” too loud at times in the past, had been reduced to a mere whisper, and were totally silent when Trevor held her in his arms.
Standing, Cassandra smoothed the lines of her dress as Jessica fiddled with her veil, straightening it.
“Cassie!” Jessica breathed softly looking into her friend’s eyes in the mirror. “The dress is the bomb!”
The dress—with its strapless organza bodice, hand-sewn beading across the breast, and A-line skirt in flowing tulle—was soft and feminine. Cassandra had fallen in love with the tea-length wedding dress right away.
Tilting her head to see the full effect in the mirror, Cassandra’s thoughts continued to race around in her mind. The certainties of their future were few, yet she knew everything would fall into place as they shared their life’s journey together—a journey she knew Trevor not only wanted, but needed to finish. Their deep love for each other—more than she ever expected to love anyone in her life—would be the wind in their sails.
“It’s time, Cassandra,” Robert called from the doorway. She and Trevor had opted for a very small, intimate wedding. Their guest list, reduced to a few close friends and family, consisted of Robert, Jessica, George, and Stephan Connellan, who had flown in from Dublin for the wedding.
Jessica and George, their closest friends, would be standing for them as Maid of Honor and Best Man. Trevor had told her the night before that George was so nervous that he’d been carrying their wedding bands on a chain around his neck for fear of misplacing them.
Cassandra’s thoughts turned to family and how little of it they had. Her heart cried out for Trevor. She knew he sorely missed his parents on this important day, just as she missed her mother. She hoped that, wherever his parents might be, whether in hiding or the next life, they would be happy with his choice for life, just as she hoped her mother approved of hers. George was like a brother to Trevor, and she was glad he could be there for him. The same applied to Jessica—she couldn’t imagine taking that important step without her by her side. Robert was giving her away and Stephan had considered it an honor to represent his good friends Conor and Maeve at their son’s wedding.
Absent was Nathan. Upon their return from Paris, Nathan, without any prior arrangement, had been at the airport to greet her. The memory of their confrontation engulfed her.
Nathan had stared at Trevor with hard eyes. “Let’s go, Cass. I have a car waiting. We need to talk.”
Trevor had moved to intervene, but Cassandra grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Nathan, noticing the ring on her finger, had spat out, “What the fuck is that? You have got to be kidding me.”
“Watch how you talk to her, mate,” Trevor had all but growled, stepping forward again.
“Who are you to tell me to watch it?” Nathan had ignored Trevor and turned to Cassandra. “Cass, he’s the reason you were hurt—he couldn’t protect you!”
“Nathan, keep it down! You’re attracting attention,” Cassandra hissed and stepped up to him. “I don’t need anybody to protect me. I chose to take the hit for the man I love.”
Nathan had shaken his head and stared at her in disbelief. “No fucking way. You’re supposed to be with me,” he had ground out smartly, pivoting on his heel and walking out the revolving door.
Nathan had declined to attend the wedding. The little note he had scribbled in reply to the invitation had said, “It won’t last.”
Touching her hand, Jessica drew Cassandra back from her musings. “It’s time! Oh my god! Cassie, it’s actually happening!” Turning Cassandra around, Jessica pushed her to the door and out into the hall beyond where Robert was waiting.
Watching Cassandra approach him, Robert blinked several times and had to struggle to hold back his emotions. In his mind’s eye, he had pictured the lost little girl of years gone by, but it was a confident and strong woman who now stood before him. He could clearly see the slight changes in her demeanor—a little less formal and a little more playful toward him.
It had been painful to see that Trevor spoke true when Robert had faced her at the hospital in Nice. The realization had cut him deep and had made his heart bleed, but the words they had exchanged that day had been pivotal to beginning the healing process for their relationship, and had opened a new door to a path they were learning to pave together as father and daughter.
Since then, he had also gotten to know Trevor, and he could see the light in Cassandra’s eyes whenever she mentioned or saw him. Robert knew they were meant to be. More and more he appreciated Trevor’s presence in her life, even though he still had concerns about their future. They had not disclosed much, but Robert knew it involved Cassandra leaving James Security and moving to Ireland. He wasn’t too pleased about that, but he knew Cassandra was happy and he couldn’t ask for more.
Robert’s heart was wistful as they walked through to the eighteenth-century sanctuary with its antique walnut-paneled walls. He choked up at the thought of how his Cecilia would have loved to be a part of this day. Deep in his heart, though, somehow he knew she was there with him, watching and approving of her daughter’s chosen path.
Robert reached for Cassandra’s hand, settled it on his arm, and leaned down to whisper in his her ear, “You look beautiful, Cassandra,”
Tears glistened in her eyes as she kissed his cheek through the veil. “Thank you, Dad.”
Patting her hand softly to disguise the flood of emotions that filled him at the gesture and endearment so unlike his daughter, he gave Jessica a quick nod, indicating she should walk ahead of them. “Let’s get this show on the road!”
****
George teased Trevor unmercifully. “Who would have thunk you would be the first of us to get married?”
“Hey! I’m the marrying kind. Always have been. I was just waiting for Cassandra.”
George chuckled, then after a pause a mischievous look appeared in his eyes. “Does she know about the NSA offer?”
“Haven’t had a chance to talk to her about it. I’ve barely seen her the last few days, what with all the wedding and travel arrangements we’ve had to take care of.”
George’s eyes had a glimmer to them. “I can’t wait to get started.”
“You’ll have to wait until after the honeymoon, my friend. I’m not touching a computer for a whole week.”
“Holy shit! Your fingers will shrivel! I give you two hours before the shakes kick in,” George laughed out loud.
“Nah. I’ll be too busy.” Trevor grinned widely.
George slapped Trevor’s back. “I am sure you will be. Let’s get moving or your wife-to-be will be left waiting for us at the altar.”
Trevor inhaled deeply on hearing George’s words. Cassandra would soon be his wife, sharing the good and the bad, the smiles and the tears. He hoped he could make the good and the smiles outnumber the bad and the tears by a sheer majority. He also knew that together they would overcome anything dropped in their path.
At the church, Trevor took his position in front of the altar and waited for Cassandra to arrive. His heart was so accelerated he felt like it would jump out of his chest at any minute. He heard the muffled sound of conversation approaching at the entrance and was immediately alert.
When they turned in to the sanctuary, Cassandra caught her breath. It was elegantly adorned with lit candles, bringing its stained-glass windows to life.
Robert squeezed her hand on his arm gently and asked in a soft voice, “Ready, Cassandra?”
Looking at her father and Jessica, who was waiting for her signal to proceed, Cassandra whispered calmly back, “Yes, Dad. I am.”
Cassandra took a deep breath and followed Jessica toward the altar. She marveled at the sight of the empty pews in a space that could have easily held two hundred guests. Their privacy had been secured, they were surrounded by
their loved ones, the beautiful space was a marvel to see—and then there was the music. Her eyes misted when she recognized the song flowing through the speakers, one that had become special to them during their stay in Paris. He had thought of everything.
And then Trevor saw her. When Cassandra walked into the church and started down the aisle toward him, Trevor’s heart faltered. She was the loveliest sight he’d ever seen. She was beautifully dressed, and her hair was piled high with soft wisps floating around her cheeks where they had come loose from the pins—a besieging sight to his senses. But what caught his eyes was the glow radiating from her. It made her extraordinary.
Her smile was contagious, and one of his own spread across his face as their eyes touched and held contact while she walked down the aisle, escorted by her father.
“Please, let me make her this happy for all her life,” he murmured to himself.
Her hand tightened around the bouquet and she couldn’t help but smile on seeing Trevor and George standing at the altar. Trevor was dressed in a nicely fitted gray suit and white shirt, sporting a kerchief in his pocket. George, dressed in a similar fashion, had a panicked look as he quickly patted down his pockets. Cassandra laughed inside when she saw Trevor elbow him, and a look of relief crossed George’s face as his hand withdrew holding a small green pouch.
The walk down the aisle took forever. With each step, her heart pounded harder in her chest at the look in Trevor’s sparkling blue eyes as they followed her advance toward him. He’s mine, her heart sang as she moved ever closer.
Trevor was startled by George’s clap on his shoulder. “You are a lucky, lucky man, my friend.”
Countermeasure (Countermeasure Series) Page 33
