Just a little one for you today. Enjoy!
Skye POV
As he slipped that engagement ring on my finger I felt a shiver go through me, and not in a repulsed way either. Some small part of me was thrilled and that annoyed me. How I could react to him that way after what he did just wasn't right, but, once again, it seemed like my heart and mind were going to be at war. I stay silent the entire way into the small country town.
Once we arrive I take a deep breath and switch on my alter ego. I smile lovingly at Ward – no James – and get out of the car.
"Oh, sweetie, this place looks beautiful." I say as I walk around the car to slip an arm around his waist. He does a double take at the shift in attitude from me and I inwardly smirk.
"Not as beautiful as you, babe." He kisses the top of my head and places his arm around my shoulders. I cringe inwardly at the contact but don't let it show.
"Let's go and see what the rest of the house looks like." I take his hand and lead him up the path to the front door. I open the door right into a large lounge area which takes up the entire right side of the bottom floor. On the left side is a kitchen diner. It's all open plan and full of light. To our immediate left are the stairs leading to the first floor. There are two bedrooms – one a decent size single and the other a small single – and a large bathroom. Up another flight of stairs and there is a large double bedroom with an en suite. It's plenty big enough for the two of us, but there is no way I will be sleeping in the same bed, let alone the same room as Ward. We head back downstairs, through the lounge to the back garden. It's a good size with a high wooden fence around it, so we're quite well protected.
After the tour we start bringing in all our equipment and clothes. I take mine up to the top floor and spend a little time putting it all away. Ward doesn't even ask about the sleeping arrangements, he just takes the larger of the two rooms downstairs. Once I've finished I pull out my tablet and start to read all about Mr and Mrs Cliff-Simons. We have just one day to learn all we can about them and come up with a plan to get us on their radar, all before this weekend.
"How are we going to do this?" I ask Ward, placing two bowls on the table and taking a seat.
"Everything I've read about Mr Cliff-Simons indicates that he's passionate about the Transformers franchise. All I have to do is get him talking about it." He says, clearly having thought about it over the last few hours.
"And how will you manage that when he doesn't even know you?" I inquire, wanting the details.
"When the film finishes, we make sure we leave first. You will excuse yourself to use the bathroom and I'll use that time to get close to him. He's bound to want to talk about what happened with his associates, I can join the conversation."
"What about me, what do you want me to do?" I ask, wondering about my duties.
"Make friends with the wife. If I can't successfully acquire an invite, it'll fall to you to do so."
I nod, already going over what I know about Clare Cliff-Simons. "That shouldn't be too difficult, we have some of the same interests, and anything we don't, I can fake." If he detects the sarcasm I threw into that statement, he doesn't react to it. "Anything else?"
"Not at the moment." He shakes his head. "We should turn in, get a good night's rest." We finish our meal in silence, then I head to my room without a word or a backwards glance.