Mr Black

9. Guy Black

Guy's heart pounded louder and faster until it ruptured like a burst pipe. He couldn't stop staring into her big round eyes, which were like the colour of the brown earth after a rainfall, and buried deep within them was her soul, untarnished and innocent. 

The light reflected off her dark olive skin, and he could smell her cocoa butter moisturiser, obscuring his senses with past, intimate memories they'd once shared together. Right then and there, he could have swooped her up into his arms and kissed her into oblivion. His hands itched for her.

"You look good." He picked up a small smile.

"I would like to say the same about you, but I would be lying." Her eyes glistened like morning dew. "Oh, Guy, what happened to you?"  

Her voice broke, and the guilt consumed Guy. What had happened to him? She was staring at him like he was a stranger and not a past lover. He would never have left the agency if he'd known he would destroy his life with drugs.

"I'm fine," Guy denied. He wouldn't admit to her that his life was a wreck. 

"You're fine, are you?" Cassidy scowled, and her soft brown eyes hardened to rocks. Out of nowhere, she shoved him down onto his seat and pulled his head back and flashed her phone light into his eyes. "So your pupils aren't responding to the light, and your dead hair is all perfectly fine." She plucked a hair out. "If I take this to the lab at the hospital right now, you promise me it's not going to come back positive?" 

"Okay, I get it." He whacked her hand away from his face and pinched his eyes until his vision normalised. "I'm not fine. Withdrawal symptoms suck, and I'm on the verge of relapsing. I hate what I've become." 

Guy rubbed his face in his hands but held back the tears. He would not cry in front of her. Just one look at her and he wanted to return to the person she'd known him as five years ago. Guy should have known she would put him back in his place. No wonder Mikey wanted her to take him back down to London. He'd known she would put him straight. 

"I promise you, Cass, I haven't touched the stuff for a couple of weeks now." 

"I know." Cassidy sighed as she stroked her hand through his hair and lifted his chin. "Your pupils are working fine, and your hair looks a lot healthier than it did in that tabloid picture from a couple of months ago. I just wanted you to admit the truth. It's the first step to getting you back on the right track."

"You saw that picture?" Guy flinched. That picture in the tabloid was him at his worst. Drunk, disorderly, and drugged up. He couldn't even remember that part of his life. It was nothing but a distant blur of chaos.

"The whole world saw it." Cassidy sat down opposite him, tugging along a bouncing puppy next to her feet. Guy couldn't contain his smile as he picked the cute little dog and cuddled him on his lap.

He had always wanted a dog. Back when they were still together, they had planned on adopting a black Labrador. Why did he have to let his life as a spy ruin the best thing he had going on in his life? He gazed at her. The pair of them were silent, not knowing what to say. He'd never felt this awkward before when around her. He didn't know what to do or say without coming across as a jerk. If he apologised for the past, that would only make her ask questions about the shotgun wound, and he couldn't answer those questions. Not without risking her life. Danny still had a hard time with Miller after he'd found out. He didn't want to drag the woman he loved into his messy life. 

"Aren't you the cutest thing?" Guy rubbed the puppy's belly, and the little creature played back with him and nipped his hand. "Ow, that hurt, you cheeky little bugger." 

"What've I said about biting?" Cassidy scowled at her puppy, and he stopped playing on Guy's lap and whimpered.

"He didn't mean it." Guy cuddled him next to his face. "You were just playing, isn't that right?" Guy laughed when he licked his face. "And what's your name?" He grabbed his tag, and the biggest grin landed on his lips. This was too good not to tease her about. "Cubby. You named him after my childhood toy?"

Her face turned into the shade of beetroot. "It's a cute name, and I couldn't think of anything else."  

Guy didn't say anything. His smirk widened. She hadn't stopped thinking about him since their split. That alone warmed his heart and had it beating faster than Aidan playing the drums.

"Get over yourself." She flagged down the barista and ordered herself a skinny-latte and muttered under her breath, "you haven't changed." 

"And neither have you." 

A nervous smile landed on her lips. She glanced away from him and covered her face with a strand of her hair, hiding her flushed cheeks. Guy found everything about her gorgeous, right down to the way her cute little nose crinkled when she was annoyed with him, and he couldn't stop staring at her curvy body. She made him feel nervous, and no doubt she would be the death of him one day. She seemed bothered, more so than her usual self, and he could tell she was keeping her distance from him, which saddened him. He wondered what had happened in the past five years that had her keeping her guard up around him.

Guy placed Cubby onto the pavement. The puppy sat down, wagging his tail and patiently waiting for Cassidy to pat him on the head. Guy tapped his hand onto the table and inched it forward at a gradual pace. His thumb reached out and stroked against hers. Her skin felt smooth, like silk. He wanted to touch her all day and lose himself to her. Already he could imagine the feeling of her warm body against his, tangled within the white sheets. 

His stomached convulsed when she withdrew her hand to her chest and played with the small crucifix attached around her neck on a golden chain. Cassidy's mother was Irish, and her father was Spanish, both of which were Catholic families. The crucifix had been her mother's gift to her before she died. That piece of jewellery meant more to Cassidy than anything else in the world. The death of his parents and the death of her mother was one of the many things they had bonded over when they first met. It had been nice speaking with someone who knew what it felt like to lose a parent.

"Why won't you look at me?" 

Her shoulders slumped, and she sighed, facing him. She tried her best to hide her smile, but even a veil couldn't mask her true emotions, and her smile shone through like a blinding light. It was the same majestic smile that had captured his heart the day he first met her, all those years ago. It was a piece of beauty. Time passed, and no words were exchanged, but they didn't have to speak. The way they looked at each other spoke a thousand words; she missed him as much as he missed her. 

Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

Cassidy started like she'd been caught stealing and lost eye contact with him as she rummaged through her handbag. 

"Papá!" She answered her phone in Spanish, her voice higher than usual.

Guy's nose turned up. It was her father. It was common knowledge that José Amor did not like Guy or his relationship with José's daughter. No matter how hard Guy had tried to impress José, he could never win him over. It had never stopped Guy from loving Cassidy and wanting her all to himself. He reached forward and stroked a strand of her hair behind her ear, and she froze when he lingered his touch against her cheek. Her words stumbled out of her mouth, and she lost her train of thought when speaking with her father, her concentration focused all on Guy. 

"Don't." She turned away, brushing his hand away from her face, and continued her conversation with her father. 

Guy's heart sunk like a cannon dropped in the sea and swallowed up by the dark abyss of the ocean. He slumped against his chair and waited for her to finish. At least he tried, but that wasn't going to stop him. He had the next couple of hours in the car to convince her to get back with him. She couldn't resist his charm forever. He could tell that much from her skittish behaviour when around him. 

Guy frowned when overhearing her conversation with her father. Learning multiple languages was a requirement when working with the secret service, so he understood every word of Spanish. From what he could gather from Cassidy's side of the conversation, she had an acceptance letter regarding her foundation year at St Thomas' Hospital and had yet to open it. Why hadn't she opened it yet? Her hand clutched the opening of her handbag. Was she scared? Why? Cassidy was the smartest person Guy knew. 

The barista returned with their coffees and flicked her hair at Guy, attempting to gain his attention. He dismissed the waitress and reached his hand across the table and took Cassidy's hand in his, hoping it would reignite her true feelings for him. 

"I will speak to you later, Papá." She stuffed her phone away, and Guy spotted the white acceptance envelope stuffed within the contents of her bag. 

"Guy, I'm here because Mikey asked me to give you a lift to London." She slipped her hand out from his and fiddled with her crucifix. "So please don't get any ideas."

Guy's hand felt cold without her touch, and the overwhelming feeling of loneliness clouded over him, like rain about to fall and dampen his mood. Nonetheless, he wouldn't give up, not without a fight. He knew that somewhere deep within her caged heart, she still loved him.

"Then why are you here?" Guy protested. "Mikey could have easily paid train fare for me, but he asked you, and you agreed. Why did you say yes?" 

"I don't know why Mikey asked me to take you to London." Cassidy snatched her purse. "But I said yes because I've also been invited to the Darlington Ball. I thought I might as well help a friend in need of a lift. You know, like what normal people do. I see now this was a horrible mistake. You can find your own way back to London!"

Guy looked taken aback by her sudden change of attitude. Back when they were still together, he'd been used to her feisty side, but this time her harsh words stung. Her eyes were coated with hot, angry tears, ready to burst like a broken a dam. Still, what she said annoyed him. 

"I see you're still stuck-up." Guy rested his hands behind his head and rocked back in his chair. "Relax, have some fun. Make a road trip out of it. And I'll show you a good time, for old times' sake. If you know what I mean." Guy winked.

Guy regretted ever opening his mouth when Cassidy threw the hot latte in his face. He shrieked, muttering, "Hot, hot, hot," while falling back in his chair and hitting his head on the curb. Pedestrians walking past stopped, pointed. and laughed. He groaned as he picked himself up. 

"What the hell was that for?" he snapped. Guy wiped the coffee from his face, irritated by her actions.

"If all you ever thought about during our time together was having a "good time," you can rot in hell!" She stood up and picked up Cubby in her arms and stormed off, crying. 

"Cass, wait!" Guy dropped a £50 note on the table for the barista and chased after Cassidy. 

He was out of breath when he finally caught up with her. He couldn't remember the last time he'd had to run, but it made him realise that taking drugs had also taken a toll on his fitness. His chest felt more weighted than usual, and it wasn't because of the sudden burst of exercise. The guilt consumed him. What was he thinking, saying something like that to her?

"I didn't mean that. You know our relationship meant the world to me. It broke my heart that day in the hospital when you left me. Please, I really need this lift to London." 

Cassidy stopped in her tracks, her eyes swollen with tears, which she wiped away before Guy could dry them for her. He hated seeing her cry, and he hated it even more when he made her cry. It made him feel like the worst human in existence, and with his recent track record, he wouldn't blame her if she didn't want to take him down to London. No matter how selfish it made him sound, he needed her right now.

"I'm sorry, Cass. For everything I ever did to you in the past. I was the worst boyfriend."

Cassidy sucked in her bottom lip and cuddled Cubby against her chest when he whined. "Fine, you can come with me. But once we arrive in London, I don't want anything to do with you." 

Guy's face lit up like a Christmas tree, and he jumped into the air, punching the sky. No matter how many times he was told to grow up, he would never stop acting like a child at heart. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Guy was going to make it his mission to make her fall in love with him all over again, and this road trip was all he had to convince her of their love. He had to make every minute count.

"I'm not done yet." Cassidy interrupted his moment of victory. She looked him dead in the eye, and he dropped his arm next to his side and coughed awkwardly as he composed himself. "If you make my trip a living hell, I'll make it my personal vendetta to make your life a living hell. Do we understand each other?"

Guy nodded and held back from laughing. As much as he loved her, she couldn't threaten people without looking like an angry rabbit. Too darn cute. 

"Good." Cass walked off. "Be packed by one o'clock, and I'll meet you at the place you're staying at. Can I have your address?"

Guy pattered down his pockets until he found a business card from the hotel he'd been staying at while in Birmingham and handed it over to her. She arched a brow, and Guy shrugged. 

"What, I have standards, you know."

"I'm surprised they even let you walk inside in your current state." Cassidy placed the card in her purse. "Just make sure you've had a shower. No offence, but you stink." 

"Offence taken!" Guy faked impaling his own heart. 

Cassidy shook her head and walked off without even saying goodbye. Her hips swayed, and his line of sight couldn't stay away from her perfectly round arse. 

"See you later, Señorita Amor." Guy rolled her name off his tongue. 

Even if it killed him, he was going to have Cassidy. He had a feeling this road trip was going to be one hell of a ride.