Chapter 22

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

February 4 th

3:15 A.M.

This was doable.

Totally doable.

Maybe.

Possibly.

No, it was.

It had to be.

There was no room for failure.

Cassie was determined to see this through, and with Luis at her side she knew she could do it. He was everything she needed, not just to find strength she wasn't sure she had to find this bomb and disarm it before it could blow, but also to find her way through the fog that was blanketing her.

Everything seemed so terrifying. It felt like there was zero chance she could ever find her way out of it, it felt too overwhelming, there were too many emotions, and they were too strong, and it all just felt like it was … too much.

One step at a time .

The words flitted through her mind as she and Luis boarded the cruise ship along with Rocco's team. She noted that they had formed a little circle around her as they walked. There was no immediate threat, or at least none they could protect her from, them surrounding her wasn't going to stop them all being taken out if the bomb went off, yet it was ingrained in them to protect.

Keep learning.

That's what was ingrained in her.

Take in everything she saw, heard, or read, and figure it out.

Could she take that same philosophy and make it work for her now?

When you learned something, you didn't have to take in the whole concept all in one go. Like math, you didn't have to know how to do division before you could add. You took it one step at a time, each one building on the other. Right now, she didn't need to know how to live with what she'd been through, she just needed to take baby steps.

The first one being taking back a little of the control that had been stripped away from her.

"Sniffer dogs are coming in to sweep the place, it's too big for us to search on our own," Rocco was saying to the guys.

The cruise ship might be big, but she was pretty sure she knew where the bomb would be. Or at least approximately. "It's going to be on the top deck, somewhere near the pools," Cassie announced, confident in this assessment. While she didn't know the whys, she did know that the mole had a connection to water that was important to them.

"We'll start up there then, have the dogs brought up as soon as they arrive," Rocco said without hesitation.

His confidence in her helped her to find a little of her own.

This was something she could do. Being traumatized and exhausted didn't negate what was instinct. Solving puzzles was an acceptable pastime according to her parents, so she'd done endless puzzles as a kid. Her mind was good at taking in information, processing it at lightning speed, and producing possible outcomes.

You got this .

Those words were repeated several times as they made their way to the top deck. Despite the darkness of the early morning, it was light up there. Being a cruise ship that traveled across the ocean, it had to be able to provide enough light for tourists to enjoy themselves no matter the time of day.

Aware that everyone seemed to be waiting to follow her lead, Cassie felt a rush of nerves. What if she was wrong? The bomb would be going off sometime today, but she had no indication of when. It could be in a few minutes, or it could be tonight. Her gut said they had time, that the bomb would detonate tonight, when the ship was out in the ocean and there would be no way for anyone on board to escape in time. There was no way the mole could have known that Raul would tell her about the bomb's location, or that she would be rescued in time to do something about it.

"Stop putting pressure on yourself, princess," Luis' voice whispered against her ear. "If we don't stop it in time, it won't be your fault. The only one to blame will be the mole who decided it's okay to hurt people just to try to steal something that doesn't belong to them."

Although it didn't feel like it, Cassie knew he was right. Taking a deep breath, she focused only on the feel of Luis' fingers tangled around hers and the steady presence of his body behind her. His warmth seeped inside her and erased a little of the chill that had settled in once they left the boat she'd been kept on.

When her gaze settled on the waterslides, Cassie perked up. She had no idea why, but they stood out to her as a possible location. It would be awkward to plant a bomb there, but then again, it would be hard to plant a bomb anywhere on a cruise ship so that wasn't really a reason to discount it.

"There," she said, pointing to the pink waterslide. The mole had chosen her fingerprints to use as a way to deactivate the bomb, and pink was her favorite color, it was as good a way to choose between the three slides as any other.

Again no one doubted her, they all jogged toward the water slide. There was no water running through it right now, and the closer they got, the bigger it looked and the more daunting this task seemed.

"Inside the waterslide or out?" Rocco asked. The brown eyes that looked at her were so confident and trusting that it would be easy to be swamped in doubts, yet at the same time it would be so difficult. While Luis might have prevented these guys from seeing her in that room on the boat, Cassie knew that they knew what had happened to her. They could easily discount everything she said as shock and trauma, but they weren't. They trusted her as a valuable member of their team.

Going with her gut, she replied, "Inside. She wants to make this difficult and that's the harder option." It would mean that they were going to have to work their way down the slide searching for it, then she'd have to balance in the slide and figure out how to use her fingerprints to shut the bomb down.

"All right, the guys are going to go up and locate it, and you and I are going to take our time climbing the stairs. We're also getting a harness brought up so you don't need to worry about trying to climb down and keep your balance, and then hang in one spot while you examine the bomb," Luis told her as the other guys took off up the stairs to the top of the waterslide.

It was on the tip of her tongue to argue that she didn't need a harness and could manage on her own, but something stopped her. Truth was, she could barely remain upright, she felt so exhausted in a way she'd never experienced before, and she kind of liked that Luis was being so attentive and taking care of her and her needs.

Okay, she more than kind of liked it. She loved it.

And maybe he needed to take care of her every bit as much as she needed to be taken care of right now. While she didn't blame him for her getting kidnapped, after all, she was the one who wandered off because she saw Violet and had to attend to her own childish insecurities, he did blame himself, and she knew being there for her, even if he didn't want her there, was helping him.

So, she leaned heavily against him as they started up the staircase. Made no protest when Luis gathered her into his arms about halfway up and carried her the rest of the way. She could barely even manage to smile when the guys called out that they'd found it.

Glad as she was that she'd been right, Cassie just wanted this to be over.

"Okay, princess, you're going to let us do all the work, okay? All you need to do is use that genius brain of yours." The smile Luis gave her was strained, but the emotions in his dark eyes were real and they spoke volumes. They told her everything she needed to know about him and their future.

"I'm okay with that, Luis," she assured him.

"Because you know your team has your back. You are not in this alone."

That team supported her as Luis climbed into the waterslide in front of her then took hold of her hands as Gumby and Phantom helped her climb in. Without the water it was a little easier to keep from going too fast, but without the help of the guys, she would not have had the strength to make it down to where the bomb had been located.

Her hands were shaking when she reached out to examine the bomb which had been stuck to the top of the slide. Luis was shining a light on it for her, but if you were just coming down inside the tube, there was every chance it would be too dark, and you'd be going too fast, to even notice it was there.

This was nothing like she'd seen before, and although her brain wanted to figure it all out and make sense of this device, so much pressure weighed on her shoulders.

Tears pricked the backs of her eyes, and she blinked them away. Now was not the time for a meltdown.

"Can you disarm it, Cass?" Luis asked quietly.

All too aware of the seven huge men sitting in the dark waterslide with her, of the people still left on board the ship, of the people on land that could be affected depending on how much punch the mole had packed into the bomb, there was only one answer she could give.

"I can do it."

And she could.

All she had to do was believe in herself.

Shutting out everything else, including her own trauma, Cassie pretended she was in the lab at Prey and someone had brought in this new piece of technology that she hadn't seen before. Approaching it like that gave her a little emotional distance, and even though she remained aware of the mental clock ticking down in the back of her mind, she was able to block out enough to focus.

After examining the small device, she discovered an even smaller device on the back that she thought could be the scanner.

"I think I've got it," she told the others. "I won't know for sure until I try."

"Go ahead, princess."

"There's a chance that if I'm wrong it could go off," she warned. There was no timer, and the device looked inactive, but they also knew the mole seemed to be watching sometimes and had remote access to the bombs.

When no one made any move to leave, she fought back a smile, encouraged by their continued belief in her, and pressed the pad of her right index finger to what she hoped was the scanner.

A high-pitched wail had her snatching it right back again.

"Cass?" Luis asked.

"I don't know," she shot back. This was new technology to her, and she'd had little time to study it. Pressing her finger back against the scanner, she felt the tension mounting off the men but she stayed where she was.

And twenty long seconds later, the beeping stopped.

"Did it work?" Rocco asked.

"Umm … yeah … I think it did," she answered, a grin curling her lips up. "I mean, the bomb squad will need to come in and confirm, but yeah, I think it deactivated." The tiny green light that she'd only noticed while holding her finger to the scanner had turned red, and red usually meant stop, or in this case deactivated.

"You did it, princess." Luis dragged her into his arms and crushed his mouth against hers.

Cassie kissed him back. Pouring everything she felt for him into it. This was all new, but she had never been surer in her life that she was right where she was supposed to be.

"Sorry, lovebirds," Rocco sing-songed, then the next thing she knew they were falling.

Her squeal of surprise quickly turned into a giggle as she and Luis flew down the slide in a tangle of limbs.

They hit the freezing water of the pool with a splash, but unlike the other day in the ocean there was no terror. Luis was there. He was still holding her hand. Nothing bad could ever happen with him by her side.

Coming up spluttering and dragging in a breath, she giggled when Luis yanked her into his arms as he swam them both toward the edge of the pool.

"Those guys ruin everything," he grumbled.

"Actually, they didn't ruin everything, I'm right where I want to be," Cassie contradicted as she kissed her way along Luis' jaw toward his lips. "Right where I want to stay."

February 5 th

3:53 P.M.

"No, don't move!" Cassie's horrified voice called out.

Despite her order, Luis scratched the itch at the corner of his mouth, smirking when Cassie's gaze followed his finger and then latched onto his lips. Her cheeks pinked and desire flamed in her eyes, and he gave a smug chuckle. "Seems like you're not all too worried about me moving, princess."

A small smile curved her lips but then she squashed it and speared him with a serious look. "I need you to stay still, in the same position, or you'll mess up my picture," she reminded him, nodding at the easel set up in front of her.

Yesterday had been a long day. After being checked out at the hospital, there had been hours of debriefing for Cassie, and by the time he finally brought her home he'd thought for sure after a hot shower, and some comfort food, she'd be ready to get the rest she so badly needed.

But she'd gotten nothing more than snatched pockets of sleep between tossing and turning, and had eventually given up and crept through to the living room and turned on the TV. Of course, if his girl wasn't sleeping, he wasn't sleeping, and he'd followed her. They spent the rest of the night watching some old sitcom Cassie had been binge watching before this mess all started.

All day she'd been just as restless as she had been overnight. Unable to settle for anything, picking at her food, and wandering aimlessly around her apartment. While he would have loved to have her at his place, he'd thought being surrounded by her own things would provide the comfort and security she needed to begin healing.

That wound up being true.

The moment he opened the door to her spare bedroom, her little art studio and writing cave, the first spark of joy he'd seen since finding her cuffed to that gurney lit her eyes. If stripping off his clothes and posing naked for her helped his woman get her mind off her ordeal, even for a little while, then he was more than happy to do it.

"You know, princess," he drawled, "I was thinking that maybe I might take up art."

Cassie's brow did the cute crinkling thing it always did when she was confused. "Umm … okay?"

"I bet you'd be a great teacher," he continued, amused by the fact that she was so sweet and innocent her mind didn't get immediately where he was going with this.

"Umm, yeah, I guess I could teach you the basics, but if you really want to learn, you'd probably be better off hiring a professional. I just paint for fun, I've never taken a class, so I'm not really in a position to teach you much."

Luis chuckled. "I think you can teach me everything I need to know, Cass. I bet a great teacher isn't all you'd be," he continued, giving her a hint.

A hint she still didn't recognize. "What do you mean? What else would I need to be if you want to take up drawing? Which I'm not entirely sure that you do."

"I bet you'd make the ideal model," he said, fighting back an outright laugh since despite being a genius she still couldn't figure out a simple innuendo.

Like he'd known they would, her cheeks flamed red, and her gaze darted all around the room before giving his naked frame a once over. When her tongue darted out to swipe across her plump bottom lip, it took all of his restraint not to go to her, drag her into his arms, and make love to her. Erase all the bad she'd suffered and replace it with good.

But the ball was firmly in Cassie's court when it came to this.

She'd been taken advantage of in a horrible way, and she got to set the pace. The last thing he wanted to do was push too hard too soon and make things worse for her.

Besides, he wasn't with her for sex.

Sure, sex with Cassie was soul blowing instead of mind blowing the way it was with other women, but he wanted more from her than some fun and a good time between the sheets. He wanted to take care of her, learn every little thing about her there was to know, enjoy her company, and make sure she never felt sad, scared, or lonely again. To make sure she knew she was a whole person and not just a genius, that she learned to enjoy life and have fun, while still respecting the gift of her intelligence.

He wanted all of her, wanted to own her body, mind, and soul, the same way he wanted to offer those gifts to her.

Waiting until she was ready for an intimate relationship was no hardship when he got to be there with her. Be there for her. They had the entire rest of their lives to do things, right now, he just wanted to soak up knowing that she wanted him there by her side. That was more than enough.

"You'd want to draw pictures of my naked body?" she asked, like there was any doubt about it.

"Princess, if I could get away with it, I'd keep you naked twenty-four-seven," he teased, only half joking.

Her blush was the prettiest thing ever, and he hoped that as she grew more confident in her sexuality she wouldn't lose it altogether.

"Umm … I guess, maybe you could draw me naked some time," she murmured as she set her pencil down and stood, crossing the room from her easel to where she'd told him to stand so the light of the window … whatever it was she'd said about why it was important.

When she reached him, she stood in front of him, her gaze roaming his body once again before settling on his face. Luis curled his fingers into fists so he didn't do something silly like reach out to her and startle her. She hadn't even begun to process her ordeal yet, and he was scared to do anything to set off a trigger. Triggers she hadn't even had a chance to assess yet and find out what they were, and he didn't want him rushing her to make her learn them.

"Can I touch you?" she asked, uncertainty in her big, doe eyes.

"Course you can, princess. I'm yours."

"I don't … I'm not sure … I've never done this before." She blew out a breath as though she were frustrated with herself. "I don't know what I'm doing, and I'm not sure I'll be able to do it right."

Glancing down at his erect length, he quirked a brow and met her gaze again. "Does it look like my body has any problem with anything you do? I'm hard just from hearing you want to touch me, princess. Whatever you do and however you do it will be perfect. But there's no rush, Cass. Whatever you want whenever you want. You set the pace. I'm perfectly fine with going and taking a cold shower."

"You don't need to take a cold shower, I want to do this, I want to touch you. I want to be the one in control," she whispered so softly he almost didn't catch it.

But he did.

And his heart cracked a little more.

He knew everything that had happened to her, from being given a paralyzing drug to spending hours orgasming with no relief, it was no wonder Cassie was so determined to feel in control and take her power back.

"You're in charge here, princess," he assured her. And to prove his point, Luis lifted his hands, placing them behind his head and linking his fingers together.

With trembling fingers, she reached out and trailed them down his length. At her featherlight touch, it jerked, and Cassie smiled as though pleased to see even a gentle touch made his body react.

Each stroke seemed to give her a little more confidence, and soon her hand was circling his length, moving up and down slowly at first, but she was able to read his body language perfectly, and as his breathing quickened she increased both the pace and the pressure. The feel of her small hand on him, knowing how unsure of herself she was, and also how brave to be so determined to reclaim her stolen power, was a powerful aphrodisiac.

Pleasure began to build, Cassie knew it, and her gaze left his length and locked onto his. It stayed there, watching almost in wonder as he grew harder in her hand. Luis fought against the growing pleasure, wanting to stay in the moment for as long as he could, knowing his woman was feeling powerful again and wanting her to be able to hold onto that feeling.

Finally, the inevitable struck and something stronger than he'd ever experienced before burst inside him. It flooded his body with indescribable ecstasy, and since Cassie was still holding him, still stroking him, it marked her with his seed. Something he found he liked maybe more than she should given the short time they'd been together.

But he wanted to mark her, claim her, possess her.

Wanted those same things from her as well.

Luis wanted the entire world to know that Cassidy Caddel was his and he was hers. His genius princess had given him the one thing that had always been missing in his life. She was his home.