Her Guardians: Her Guardians Trilogy Book 1 (42 page)

“
Well, we
are
trained to be observant.” He beamed and nudged me a little. “I know this isn’t the time or the place, but I want you to know that you can come to me with anything. You know how I feel, but I can be your friend…if that’s what you want.”

“Of course.
” I smiled at him.

Paul must have seen the glint in my eye as he smil
ed. He placed his hand on my arm and squeezed it a little just before he turned to leave.

Once out of sight,
I walked up the remaining steps towards my office. I walked in to find that Ruth wasn’t there and the phone was now ringing. I ran as fast as I could to answer.

“Cassie?”
Simon’s voice was dubious.

“Yes, sir.
I’m here.”

“And Ruth isn’t, I take it?”

“No, not that I can see.”

Simon
sighed heavily. “Okay, I’m sorry you’re put in this position again. As you can see, I’m not in today. I’m going over to my parent’s house and we’re going to try and see Molly. I don’t think she’ll want to see me still, but if she will speak to our mum and dad, that might be a start.”

“Baby steps.”
I wanted to offer as much reassurance as I could.

“Yes, of course.
I, for one, am feeling rather lighter than air this morning.”

“Really?”
I found myself grinning for him.

“Yes.
After some gentle persuasion, my wife took the test. She’s pregnant, but you already knew that, didn’t you?”

“Yes, of course.
I’m really happy for you both.”

“This is one piece of great news that has come out of a bad situation.
We’re both ecstatic, of course, but I think my wife is worried that this is going to complicate things for me now—what, with my sister and everything. She constantly worries, but I couldn’t be happier. It’s what we’ve both wanted for quite some time now.”

“I know.
Things are tough, but it’ll get better. Your sister can’t be mad at you forever.”

“We shall
see what today brings.” He paused briefly, sighing into the phone. “Sharice still can’t believe I knew about her craving.”

I had to giggle thinking about it.
I could see her eating tons of it during her pregnancy. I could also feel Simon’s complete adoration for her. I could feel him thinking he would buy her a crater full if it made her happy. “I bet she loved you when you brought her the rock candy.”

“Yes
. Let’s just say we celebrated our news.”

“Okay.”
I couldn’t help the small giggle that escaped me.

“I was told abou
t Mark Richards late last night.”

“Oh
, yes?” I was eager to hear more.

“They went in and found
that not only was he growing Marijuana in is his basement, he had two hundred kilos of Cocaine. It was a great result for us. I’m sure they’ve probably found more since, but we certainly have enough to go on. Hopefully, now we can convince that boy’s parent’s to do the decent thing and give us evidence. Can you imagine knowing someone ran over your son deliberately, but you do nothing about it?”

“I know.
It’s a shame when an addiction takes over your life so much that you’re willing put your loved ones in danger like that.”

“Well
, it’s the Mark Richards’ of this world that make that happen. They thrive on people with addictions. It’s how they make their money. He was probably very nice to them at the start. Speaking of which, I heard you had a run-in with him yesterday.”

I shuddered at the thought of it again.
“Yes. He was very insistent that I go for a drink with him.”

“Well
, then, it was lucky Michael came by when he did. I did hear about it. Michael was right in what he did. I would never condone putting anyone in harm’s way just for the sake of an investigation. He’s obviously not a very nice man. Besides, we got the end result we were all hoping for, and it’s all because of you.”

“I didn’t do anything
, really.”

Simon sighed heavily.
“Don’t be modest, Cassie. We didn’t even know about this address until you brought it up. We thought he just lived in Shepherds Bush. Strange, really, as he spends most of his time here. We should have looked into that more closely.”

“Maybe he doesn’t like working on his own doorstep.”

“Probably. I do feel a little guilty, though.”

“Why?”
I frowned, settling back in my chair a little.

“Because we’re getting all the credit when it was you who gave me the information.”

Little did he know that was exactly how I wanted it. “I really don’t want to take credit, sir. I would much rather be a silent partner in any police matters, if that’s okay? I don’t mind helping, but I can’t let it be known. Can you imagine the fall-back on that?”

“Yes, I completely understand.
It doesn’t help me feel any better because of it. I’m getting my information from a source and reaping all the benefits, so to speak.”

“Yes, but you deserve it, Simon.
You’re a good man. I know that.”

His laughter suddenly radiated
through the phone. “So now I’m Simon?”

I gritted my teeth together
, cringing at my slip up. “Yes, sorry.”

“Don’t be.
I much prefer it to sir, any day.” He paused a moment. “Well, I better be off. Hopefully, I will get to see you at some point.”

“No worries.
You take your time.”

“Thank you, Cassie.
For everything. I know I keep saying it, but I really mean it. I want to set up an interview with you as soon as possible. It’s only a formality. I know I said give it a week, but I’d be a fool to say I didn’t already know what I wanted. Are you happy with that?”

I was
really
happy with that. I liked Simon and I knew that as long as I did my job, he would be a fantastic boss for whom to work. How could I say no?

“More than happy.”

“Great! I shall set that up as soon as the dust settles here a little.”

I could hear the genuine happiness in his voice and it made me smile.
“I look forward to it.”

I hung up the phone and settled in for the day. I took my coat off and set my bag by my side, before firing up my computer.

I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be doing, but I thought I had better get through the emails just in case there was anything urgent.
Luckily, I was given Ruth’s password yesterday so I was able to navigate my way around quite swiftly.

I was in the middle of replying to a couple when Stephen walked in
with what looked like a present.

“Hey, Twinkles.”
His cheeky grin surfaced as he winked at me.

It seemed like every sense I had was on
alert the minute he walked in. I was so aware of Stephen that everything inside me came to life the minute he appeared. “Hi, Stephen. How are you feeling?”

Looking a little sad, Stephen sat at the edge of my desk.
“Not good, really.”

The panic started.
“What’s the matter?” I could feel my heart thumping.

“I’m thinking of leaving.”

“No!” I shout, surprising myself.

“I think it’s best all round, Cassie.
I’ve been thinking long and hard about it, and I know that if I was out of the way, it would be less confusing for you. I won’t be so much of a distraction.”

“But you can’t.”
The tears were brimming in my eyes.

“I won’t be far.
I’m going to try for a transfer. If not, I’ll leave. I think it will be for the best. You have Michael here. You don’t need anybody else.”

“But I need you,” I said, trying to control my breathing.

“No, you don’t. You have Michael now and he’s all you need. I only confuse you and that’s hurting my brother. I never want to be the one to do that to him. I always felt guilty for my actions, and I never want to put him in that position again.

“
I’m sorry I kissed you yesterday. That was wrong of me. It just made my decision to leave that much easier.”

I wanted to sob and run to him.
I wanted to claw at him and beg him to stay. I felt like a knife was wedged in my heart. Stephen’s leaving, and I may never see him again. I couldn’t live without him. If I didn’t know that before, I knew it now that he’s telling me he’s going.

“I got you this.”

He handed me the wrapped gift, but
I was still stunned. The shock must have been more than evident on my face. I just couldn’t seem to move.

“Please, open this for me.
I want to see your face when you open it. I want to take that image away with me and I want it to be a happy one.” He moved his hand and stroked my cheek.

L
ooking up to his beautiful face, I caught his magnificent smile. I grabbed his hand and kissed it. I couldn’t help myself. I loved him too much.

He sucked
in his breath as our agony seemed to bounce off one another. He gripped my hand in his and willed me to open his present.

Glancing down at the wrapped gift
, I wondered what on earth he could possibly give me that he hasn’t already.

I close
d my eyes and took a deep breath. Once I opened them again, I began unwrapping the gift. I knew I would love it no matter what it was. I would treasure anything he ever gave me.

As I pull
ed the paper apart, a blue box appeared with stars on it. I quickly realised that it was a music box.

The minute
I opened it, a tune filled the room and set my heart alight. It was
Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.

I watch
ed in awe as the little ballerina danced around in circles. There was a mirror and the face that looked back at me had me in shock again. I looked heartbroken

“Do you like it?”

I could feel the lump forming in my throat. “I love it.”

“You’re my little star, Twinkles
, and you always will be. I want you to promise me that every time you get a little sad, you will open this up and play that tune. I want to know that when you do, it will bring a smile to your face. I want you to think of happy memories and to know that you are never alone. You have people that love you very much. I, for one, can vouch for that.”

“Stephen
, I—.”

“You don’t have to
say anything. I just wanted you to know how much I love you before I say goodbye.”

I was desperate for him.
I didn’t know what I wanted, but I knew that I couldn’t let him go. “But I can’t—.”

“Don’t
, Twinkles. I’m doing this for me, as well as you. It’s tearing me up inside that I can’t be with you.”

I was about to argue.
I was about to demand that he stay, but how could I? I was being selfish and knowing that he was suffering only told me that much. I couldn’t do this to him anymore. I had to let him go, no matter how much it hurt. No matter how much it tore me apart.

Finally coming to that conclusion
, I looked down and nodded. I couldn’t even look at him. I was too devastated.

With a gentle tug, Stephen
grabbed my arm and pulled me in for a hug. I savoured everything about him—the way he felt, his smell, his touch, everything. I didn’t want to let him go, but I knew he would break the embrace soon and it would all be over. The thought just shook me to my core. I didn’t know where I was supposed to go from here.

“Twinkles.”
Pulling away from our embrace, he looked at me. “I want you to know that I’ll never be that far away. You have my number if you need me, okay? I just think us being apart is what both of us need right now.”

I nod
ded again as he wiped away a single tear that crept down my face.

“I know you love me, Twinkles.
I can see it and feel it, but you have to go to Michael now. You have to tell him that you are his. It’s the one selfless thing I can do. I have to let you go.”

I couldn’t hold on any longer.
The tears just seemed to ooze out of me. I tried in vain to keep them in, but it was just no use. I was losing the love of my life.

“I didn’t want to upset you
, but I think it’s best if I leave. Michael has his day pretty clogged up with this arrest from last night. I assume you know about it?”

“Yes.
” I was desperately trying to choke back the tears.

“He’ll be busy with a lot of paperwork, but once he’s done
, I know he will try and find you. When he does, please tell him. And tell him I wish him all the best in the world. I want you both to be happy.”

I watch
ed as he rose from the desk and headed for the door. He hesitated slightly, but he never looked back.