Page 26 of It's Always Been You

“She’s an interesting character,” Caitlin said slowly. “Fake girlfriend?”

Travis winced. “Ahhh . . . we attend functions together, but really, we’re just friends. The media puts a different spin on it, and we just let it play out. Bee’s not interested in a relationship. That’s according to her.”

“She’s gorgeous. I can’t believe she’s not taken.”

“She’s a handful,” Travis muttered.

“Actually, she had quite an intense fling with Travis’s SEAL buddy, Gabe,” Emily piped in.

“Emily.” Travis’s tone held censure.

“We can gossip later,” Emily told Caitlin, sotto-voce.

Travis scowled.

“Oh, give it a rest, boss. I’m not raking you over the coals.”

“Aren’t we supposed to go through these files?” Travis demanded sorely.

“I’ll leave you two to it. I’m feeling a nap coming on,” Caitlin announced.

“How long have you been awake?” Travis asked.

“Three hours.” Travis looked disappointed. Caitlin didn’t understand why because he had to work anyway. “Eat. Sleep. Remember?”

“Leave your door unlocked.”

“What? Why?”

“So I can check on you later.”

“Travis, I’m just taking a nap.”

“Please, sunshine.” He walked to her, looming tall. Caitlin failed to avoid his lips when they touched hers so briefly. “I just need this.”

“Okay,” she whispered back. She walked unsteadily to the stairs, trying to convince herself that her balance was impaired from her need for sleep. If she was honest with herself, it had everything to do with the merest brush of those damned sexy lips.

Your wife is dead,Blake. You failed to protect her.

Travis jerked awake. Beads of sweat trickled down the side of his face, and his body protested the awkward angle; he had fallen asleep sitting on his chair. That was a fucking nightmare.Porter was standing over the body of Caitlin looking at him accusingly.

Fuck.

It had been a long-ass day. The interviews were conductedfrom three to nine p.m. All the applicants had already gone through tactical evaluation, and this was just the situational interview, the test of their mental ability. Whoever wore the BSI badge needed to be quick in body and mind. Shephard was excellent in this—what he called his hell-of-a-mind-fuck test. They hired three guys instead of the planned two. The more experienced, older ones were going on the Kennedy detail to Ukraine. One was a former army ranger; the other had previously worked in a private security firm. Travis pulled out the file of the third man. Twenty-five-year old Sam Harper, a mixed-martial-arts fighter, had several stints as a bouncer in the trendiest clubs in DC. He needed work with firearms handling, but Travis had read his tactical evaluations. The young man had potential. Travis also needed a bodyguard for Caitlin.

Caitlin poked her head in the study after waking from a four-hour nap, asking him if he wanted a sandwich. Travis wasn’t hungry, but he nodded because this was what Sarah used to do for him—prepare his lunch or dinner while he was fixing stuff around the house. Now he was this sappy fool who craved any semblance of the life they had. He ignored the scowl Ed Shephard shot him when he told the guys to take five when Caitlin came back with his sandwich.

His wife apologized for interrupting, but Travis waved that off, stood up, and gave her a hug. She was stiff in his arms, but he refused to let her go until she relaxed. And she did. “I missed you today,” he whispered in her ear.

She chuckled in that familiar husky sound. “You just saw me not four hours ago.”

“I don’t care.” He planted a kiss on the side of her head. “I. Missed. You.” Those last three words had an altogether different meaning. They stood quietly together for a few more minutes, before Travis reluctantly pulled away. “I need to get these interviews done.”

“I understand. Don’t worry about me,” Caitlin replied. “Ijust checked out the TV room. You have a gazillion channels. I’m going to be well entertained.”

And that was how Travis found her. Asleep on the couch, with the SyFy channel on with some cheesy B-movie that crossed a shark with an octopus. A pint of Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey sat completely consumed on the coffee table. Grinning and shaking his head, Travis crouched down in front of Caitlin and took the opportunity to trace the outline of her face.God. He loved her so fucking much. Those feelings had not dimmed in the past three years and only flared into a conflagration waiting to explode in his chest.

He stood and bent over her, slipping his arms under her back and behind her knees to lift her. She mumbled incoherently in protest.

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