Chapter 9 - Bloodlines and Bitter Truths
Two minutes later, the security team entered and dragged a screaming, sobbing Julian out of the library, leaving Penelope and Cassian standing alone in the heavy silence.
Penelope was trembling from head to foot. The adrenaline that had surged through her veins was draining away, leaving her hollow, exhausted, and desperately ashamed. She looked at the antique telephone on the desk, then at the man who had orchestrated every second of the trap.
"You knew," she whispered, her voice choking on tears. "You knew he was going to tell me that lie about the car bomb."
Cassian stood motionless, watching her. "I suspected it. His plan required a frantic outside civilian call to give Warren the legal loophole he needed."
"You used me as bait."
"No," Cassian said, his voice dropping into that deep, raw tone she had heard in the kitchen. He closed the distance between them, stepping past the desk until he was inches away from her. "I told you never to speak to him because I wanted to spare you this. I wanted to resolve this without dragging you into the mud."
"Then why didn't you stop me before I picked up that phone?!" she cried, hitting her small fists against his solid chest. "I thought you were going to die, Cassian! Do you understand that?! I thought you were going to get into that car and explode! I broke your rule because I couldn't bear the thought of living in a world where you didn't exist!"
Her voice broke into a ragged sob. She buried her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking with the sheer terror of what she had felt five minutes earlier.
Cassian caught her wrists. He pulled her hands away from her face, his touch remarkably tender, and drew her firmly against his chest. His arms wrapped around her waist, holding her with a ferocity that drove the cold from her bones.
"I know," he murmured into her hair, his own breath uneven. "I was behind that curtain, Penelope. I heard every word you said to Warren. You didn't ask for protection. You didn't ask for immunity. You begged him to save my life."
She looked up at him through blurred vision. "I was terrified."
"No one has ever fought for me like that," Cassian whispered, his thumb gently wiping away a tear from her cheek. His blue eyes, usually so calculating and guarded, were wide open, vulnerable, completely stripped of their armor. "My father used me as an enforcer. My family treated me like an ATM. My business associates feared me. But you... you stood in the dark and put your own neck on the line to keep me breathing."
"I broke the rule," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Our contract... the bakery deed..."
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"To hell with the contract," Cassian growled softly. He framed her face with both hands, his fingers tangling into her soft curls. "I fell in love with you the second you threatened to complain about your refinished floors on the night we met. Everything since then has been an excuse to keep you close."
Before she could speak, his lips crashed down on hers, sealing away the fear, the deceit, and the ghosts of the past in a kiss that promised forever.
