Degrees of Innocence by Via Mari

Author:Via Mari [Mari, Via & Mari, Via]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-12-19T18:30:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWELVE

I wake to find Chase already at the table working on his Mac with a cup of coffee.

“Morning,” he says, stretching back in invitation. I crawl into his arms. He hugs me tight and kisses me deeply. “How you are feeling this morning?” he asks.

“Much better and completely satisfied,” I respond, running my hand across his broad shoulders and up the back of his muscular neck, gently pulling his face closer to my own and kissing him back, caressing his bottom lip with mine.

“We have a lot to discuss and I can’t think straight when you’re on my lap kissing me like that,” he says.

I pretend to pout and rub the back of his neck coaxing his face closer to mine again, kissing him once more.

“Good try, Katarina, but we are going to talk about security details,” he admonishes, seeing right through my delay tactics.

“I’ll order brunch and then we can discuss security and Martel,” he says, watching me, probably waiting for an argument.

“I know how anxious you are to do this and I’ll try to be as open-minded as I can,” I say.

“The security team is eager to have a plan in place before we leave for the States. I’ve started a very basic list but I’m sure it’s going to feel like an invasion of your privacy,” he warns, turning the Mac sideways so we can both read the screen together.

The list is not an invasion of my privacy, it eradicates any existence of privacy I’ve ever had. I am sure I must be in a state of shock as I reread the Word document and try to absorb the content. I can feel the intensity of his gaze, waiting for some reaction. I attempt to keep my mounting frustration in check. My heart is racing and I am trying to maintain some semblance of control.

“Chase, I wouldn’t have considered any of these items before the last few days. I can agree to some of these security measures, but not to them all.”

“They are necessary for your protection and simply aren’t negotiable, Katarina.”

The dam breaks. “You’re serious … my family and friends need to go through a screening process? You want me to live in an apartment with a safe room? Are you kidding me? What the hell would I need so much security for? What the hell do you do for a living that would require me to have this much security?” I ask, losing the battle to maintain my composure.

“Katarina, calm down. The work I do can be contentious and the people closest to me can easily become targets. Your family and friends will not even realize they’re being screened. Jay and his team are superb at what they do. They are working round the clock to find out who has targeted you and why, but until we get this resolved, I need to make sure you are safe.”

“This scares me to death,” I say, rereading the list, trying to comprehend and make sense of it all.

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