The rest of my team agreed, promising that Kassidy would be safe, and I was grateful to them.
That evening, I invited Kassidy to my apartment for dinner. After the conversation with my team earlier in the day, I knew I wanted to have a conversation with her about her safety, but I was dreading it. I didn’t want to get into another argument.
“This is delicious,” Kassidy said as we sat down to eat the chicken enchiladas I’d made. We ate in silence for a few minutes, but eventually, she seemed to pick up on my tension. “Is everything okay?” she asked.
“Mostly,” I answered. “We had a pretty long meeting at work today about the Paradise Cruises case.”
“Did it not go well?” she asked, worry creasing her brow.
“It went well. I went over everything we’ve found so far, and Nolan thinks we can make a solid case. We just need one more thing.”
“What’s that?” Kassidy asked.
“We need you to come into the office as soon as possible and give us your official statement, starting with the first time you met with Paradise Cruises to everything you saw on the cruise, and everything that happened in between. You’re going to be our star witness.”
“That’s pretty much what I expected,” Kassidy said, her tone neutral. “I can come in tomorrow morning, if that works?”
“That would be great. That way I can hopefully start writing up the warrants tomorrow afternoon.”
“That’s great news. But why do you still seem stressed?” she asked.
“We’re going to get these guys, and we’re going to rescue the trafficked crew members. But I need something from you.”
“What is it?” she asked. “I’ll do anything you ask me to, if it’s in my power.”
Her easy acquiescence meant more to me than she could possibly know.
“I’m going to keep your name out of this for as long as I can as we serve the warrants and build our case. But once charges are filed and defense attorneys get involved, we’ll have to share your statement and the evidence you collected. My team and I talked today, and we want to make sure you have protection once your name is out there. But for now, I need you to keep your head down, and stay as far away from Paradise Cruises as possible.”
“Protection? Do you mean like Witness Protection?”
“Hopefully it won’t come to that. You may not need any protection at all, or something minimal, like an FBI agent stationed outside your apartment at night, might be enough,” I explained. “If the FBI isn’t willing to provide any protection, then my team and I will handle it ourselves.”
“Handle it yourselves?” Kassidy asked.
“Basically, we’d rotate, and have someone with you at all times.”
“Well, that sounds okay, if you think it’s necessary,” Kassidy said. “I really don’t want to go into Witness Protection, though.”
I squeezed her hand in support. “I know. And I’m going to do everything in my power to keep you safe. But we don’t need to worry about that yet,” I said. “Right now, we need your statement, and I need you to promise that you’ll keep your head down and stop investigating them. Let my team take it from here.”
“I promise,” she answered right away, and the relief I felt from those two words was unimaginable. The most important thing to me was keeping her safe, and if I wasn’t protecting her from herself and the bad guys, my job would be much easier.
“Thank you, Kassidy,” I said, picking up our dishes and walking them into the kitchen.
“For what?” she asked, as she followed me into the kitchen with our glasses.
“For not arguing,” I teased, as I put the dishes and glasses in the dishwasher.
“You’re welcome,” Kassidy said with a smile. “And I won’t even protest about how much of a pain you’re making me sound like, because I know I really have been that bad.”
I chuckled, wiping my hands on a dishtowel before I turned and stalked towards her. “That’s very self-aware of you,” I said. I hugged her, then lifted her off the ground, making her yelp in surprise before she wrapped herself around me. “I think you deserve a reward for that.”
I carried her towards the living room as she laughed. Once there, I sat down on the couch, pulling her over me as I kissed every visible inch of her skin, but after a few moments, she pushed away from me.
“Wait, wait, wait,” Kassidy said, looking down at me. “Just so I’m clear, you’re rewarding me for my self-awareness? With kisses?”
“Yes,” I answered simply, reaching for her again, but she put her hand up to stop me. I sat back, waiting for permission to continue.
“So, you’re basically training me with positive reinforcement, like I’m a child. Or a pet,” Kassidy said with what I could tell was mock outrage.
“Is it working?” I asked, giving her what I knew was my most charming smile.
“I’m not answering that question. Honestly, I’m not sure if I should be offended or not,” she quipped.
“Definitely not. And you should know that if positive reinforcement is successful, I’ll be employing that technique a lot more often.”
“Hmm,” Kassidy said, cupping her chin as if she was thinking about it. She narrowed her eyes at me before she spoke again. “I guess I’ll go along with it, but only if I get to try positive reinforcement on you, too.”
I reached for her again, and that time, she didn’t stop me, smiling brightly as I tugged her towards me. She was back to being my Sunshine. “Oh, I can guarantee I’ll be on board with any experimenting you want to do,” I smirked.
Kassidy
“Should we start now?” I asked him, wrapping my arms around Evan’s neck as his arms went around my waist until we were plastered against one another, his lips brushing against my neck.
“No better time, in my opinion,” he answered, his quiet voice in my ear making me shiver.
He leaned back, studying me carefully, and I hated the space between us. I lifted up onto my toes, reaching for him, and he bent down, meeting my lips with his own. I felt his fingers tense against my sides, betraying his desire, and building mine even higher. His mouth burned me in the best possible way, scorching a path straight to my center. I wanted more, wanted everything.
“Take this off,” I said, tugging at his shirt, and he pulled away just long enough to yank it over his head, before his lips crashed back onto mine. I rested my hands on his naked chest, savoring his warmth, and the soft skin and hard muscles underneath. I didn’t have much experience, and I’d definitely never been with anyone who felt like they’d been carved from stone, but it was intoxicating. I was quickly distracted from the hard planes of his torso, though, as one of his large, calloused hands snaked under my shirt, gently gliding upwards.
“Is this okay?” he asked, his fingers teasing the skin below my bra, but waiting for my permission before moving closer.
“Yes,” I moaned, desperate for his touch, and he gave it to me. He gently squeezed one breast over the fabric, before pushing the cup of my bra away and touching my skin. He flicked his thumb over my nipple, squeezing lightly and making me cry out, and then he moved to the other breast, repeating the movements.