Deception (Infidelity #3)(20)

She grinned. “If you asked either of them, they’d say they’re oil and water, but my assessment is different.”

“It is?” I asked as we entered the pool house.

I stood and turned. The small outbuilding was gorgeous: glass covered three walls with sunshine lighting the interior. The other wall had a beautiful limestone brick fireplace in the center between large windows, and the ceiling was covered in knotty pine. The furnishings were comfortable, done along the lines of a family room, complete with a large round table. For some reason, it reminded me of Christmas displays and what it would be like to have a family gathered near for the holidays. In December the outside would be cold and covered in snow, yet the inside would be as warm as it was today.

Nothing like the cold stuffiness of the manor.

“I love this home,” I said. “There’s something about it that makes me feel… I’m not sure of the right word. Homey?”

Silvia smiled. “That’s what Angelina wanted.”

“Angelina?”

“Lennox’s mother. All she ever wanted was this house filled with family.”

I feigned a smile. “That’s sad.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Silvia replied. “The house is Lennox’s. One day he could fulfill his mother’s wish.”

The skin of my neck prickled. “I don’t know, but I hope that someday Lennox fulfills his own dreams. I know what it’s like to have other people’s dreams thrust on you. I wouldn’t want that for him.”

Silvia nodded. “How old are you?”

Sitting on the edge of one of the long sofas facing the sound, I grinned. “Twenty-three. Why?”

“You seem older.”

“I hope that’s a good thing. Or do you recommend that once this is over, I visit my mother’s plastic surgeon for emergency intervention?”

“Oh, no!” she replied, aghast.

We both laughed as we settled on the soft cushions. Silvia curled her legs under herself in a position that told me she was comfortable in this home. I slipped my shoes from my feet and did the same, letting my toes warm beneath me.

Taking a deep breath, I prompted, “Oil and water?”

She shrugged. “I see the two of them more like Italian dressing.”

I smiled. “Italian would seem appropriate.”

“Yes. It needs both oil and water. If you let it settle, it separates, but if you shake it up, the two ingredients blend. They need one another, complement one another, and wouldn’t be the same without the other.”

“I like that. How do you think Lennox or Oren would feel about your assessment?”

“I know how they’d feel. Both of them would balk.”

“Loudly?” I said with a hint of a question.

“It doesn’t take being around that long to know that to be true.”

I sighed and placed the warm cup on the table. “Silvia, I don’t even know what happened this morning. It all happened so fast.”

Her head moved up and down. “You’re safe here. Inside of this place is a fortress.”

“I’m supposed to be in class. I mean, who’s to say I couldn’t? You don’t think that I was the target, do you?” Each word was softer than the one before as my mouth grew increasingly dry.

Silvia stared for a minute. “At this point, with what we know, it’s impossible to say for sure.”

I stood and paced around the large room. “Who were those men who drove us here? They weren’t our normal security.”

“Demetris have many layers of security. It is the way it is.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and hugged myself tighter. “How? How do they live like that?”

I didn’t realize she’d moved yet Silvia was now behind me. “For some people, the transition to this life is difficult. Those people have never experienced anything like a bodyguard or driver or house staff. They think a commercial company’s alarm system is security. And then, there are others…” She touched my shoulder. “…like you, who have lived with this their entire lives and are more comfortable.”

Tears teetered on my lids as the Long Island Sound blurred. Did everyone know my past? “But this felt different.”

“Because the risk was different,” she replied.

I turned toward her. “What do you mean?”

“Being a child under the protection of your parents feels suffocating. Lennox fought it for most of his teenage life. However, protecting someone you love, whether it’s your child or your soul mate is different. The risk is higher.”

I finally understood Nox’s obsession. I still didn’t like the loss of privacy, but more than that, I was worried about him. “Silvia, someone tried…” A delayed sob formed in my chest. “…to kill him.”

She wrapped her arms around my shoulders. “You’re both safe.”

“I-I love him.”

Her hand rubbed circles on my back as my head settled upon her shoulder. “I know. He loves you too. And you have no way of knowing how happy that makes all of us who also love him. He’ll keep you safe.”

“Charli,” Nox’s voice echoed against the glass walls.





I CLOSED THE door to our suite and took one last look at the outer room. How many times had I dreaded entering this room? There was a surprising comfort in knowing I’d never do it again.