Forever Bold

by Kathleen Brooks

  6

  Ariana kept her eyes on the back of Jameson Duke’s head as they drove from the private airport toward the UN residence. She’d been so shocked to see him when she stepped off the plane she barely knew what to say.

  Jameson kept his head turning slowly side to side as he kept a watch out all the windows and mirrors while Grant drove. Valeria and Grant were friends with Abby and Dylan. That was unexpected. She knew that they did something top secret for the president, but she never expected for there to be other team members.

  “Why couldn’t Abby and Dylan come to New York if the president wanted me safe?” Ariana asked Valeria.

  “They’re on assignment that requires their particular talents.”

  She saw Jameson stiffen briefly before he continued his scan of their surroundings. Apparently Jameson wasn’t in the know on this either.

  “Would you like a list of nightclubs or celebrity restaurants, Princess?” Jameson asked into the silence.

  Ariana felt the question as if it were a slap. So that’s what Jameson thought of her, that she was the party princess. “No, thank you,” she said with a slight snap to her tone. She was her father’s daughter after all and if she needed to go full royalty on his ass, she would.

  “Interesting,” Valeria muttered to herself. Ariana turned to her and looked questioningly at her only for Val to smile innocently at her.

  Ariana decided to remain silent for the rest of the trip. She didn’t need this. She was planning the speech of her life and they were too concerned with her old reputation to care about the stress she was under. Not that she needed them to care, but right now she was feeling awfully alone.

  She wasn’t stupid. She knew if she named names and leveled specific charges against some of the countries on the committee, Crusina especially, that she was literally putting a target on her head. President Nikan didn’t like anyone to challenge him and wouldn’t think twice about killing a princess and innocently saying, “Who, me?” when the world would know he’d done it. The trouble was the world wouldn’t do anything about it. They owed too much money to Crusina or wanted to make a trade deal or just didn’t want to get on his bad side because they knew he wouldn’t think twice about taking down a plane or invading a country.

  And that was who she was going up against. She was going to stand toe to toe with Crusina. Maybe she’d blink first or maybe she wouldn’t. It was the most dangerous game of chicken she’d ever played.

  * * *

  They pulled up to the apartment building as Ariana was contemplating what she was possibly giving up her life for. “Valeria, you take one of the Rahmi guards and sweep the apartment,” Jameson ordered.

  Ariana handed over the key to the apartment and rattled off the security code. “Yes, sir!” Valeria snapped out before getting out of the SUV. Porters were rushing forward to help carry the luggage from the second vehicle as they waited for the all-clear.

  “Let’s go,” Jameson said briskly as he got out first. Ari saw the second Rahmi guard standing by her door and was there to open it as soon as Jameson was beside him. He looked around one more time and then opened the door. “Stay right behind me, Princess.”

  Ariana would normally bristle under the demands, but she knew well enough to know this was beyond normal pomp and security. She wouldn’t be taken out before she’d even had the chance to out them for their atrocities.

  Jameson and her Rahmi bodyguard worked together effortlessly to get her up to the apartment where Valeria stood holding the door open. Ariana walked inside and breathed a little easier. The United States and some of the other larger countries had large penthouse-styled apartments. Rahmi’s was more modest. There were three bedrooms and then two staff quarters. There was a large open kitchen with a massive marble island looking into the living room. Then off to the right was a formal dining room. The entire length of the far wall was floor-to-ceiling windows. The master bedroom was to the left and then the guest rooms were beyond the dining room to the right. The staff rooms were behind the kitchen.

  Ari had only been here a handful of times. Otherwise, it was mostly Zain and Mila who visited here. She made her way to the bedroom and found her luggage waiting for her.

  “What are your plans this evening, Princess?”

  Ariana paused in her unpacking at the sound of Jameson’s deep voice. Dylan and Abby had liked him and that had made her excited to see him at the bottom of the plane steps waiting for her. It was as if it were fate bringing them together again. Only, it was pissing her off that all she wanted was his support when he was making it clear she didn’t have it.

  “I thought I’d call in some pizza from this place my brother recommended and work on my speech for tomorrow.” Ariana kept her back to him as she moved to hang her clothes in the closet.

  “Pizza?”

  Ariana finally turned to him with her hands on her hips. “What? Can I not have pizza? Sorry, does that not fit the stereotype you’re trying to cram me into?”

  Jameson’s nose flared slightly, but that was the only outward reaction. “I’m sorry, Pr—”

  “Ariana. Damn it, call me by my name.” Ariana was about to go full rant when she caught herself. He wanted a prim and proper princess, fine. She could be that. From now on, she wouldn’t let Jameson or anyone else see how much it hurt when they just assumed they knew her.

  “I’m sorry, Ariana.” Jameson sounded almost pained when he said her name. “I was just surprised since most women I am assigned to are on some diet or want to be seen at the best restaurants.”

  “I’m not most women. Can you go ask the others what they want on their pizzas and let me know?” Ariana turned back to her suitcase and dismissed him.

  “No, apparently you are not.”

  * * *

  Jameson watched Ariana for a second before turning and leaving her bedroom. Her long hair shone in the lights and the curve of her behind when she bent over to unpack was something he shouldn’t have noticed. Jameson slipped from the room before it became too obvious how he felt about her behind.

  He got the pizza orders, and when he came out of the staff rooms he found Ariana sitting on the couch in pajama bottoms and an oversized sweatshirt. Her hair was tied up in a sloppy bun and she’d never looked so beautiful to him.

  “I have the orders. If you tell me where you want them from, I’ll call in the order,” Jameson said softly as he didn’t want to surprise her.

  She looked up at him standing in front of her and simply held out her hand. He placed the paper in it and then her fingers flew over the keyboard. “Done. It’ll be here within the hour.”

  Ariana didn’t look up from her computer and he knew he’d been dismissed. He should have felt annoyed, but instead he felt ashamed. He’d been a jerk to her and it was no wonder she didn’t want to have anything to do with him. The thing was, he was starting to realize Ariana was nothing like he’d thought. In fact, the real Ariana was someone he wished he could get to know better.

  Jameson left her in the living room and headed back to the room Grant and Valeria were sharing. “Pizza will be here in the hour,” he told them from the open door. Grant looked up and the usual humor in his face wasn’t there. “Is everything okay?”

  “Come here,” Grant said, turning the computer around for him to see. “What do you think?”

  Jameson scanned the message board on the dark web. His whole body turned to stone, yet he managed to not show his reaction. His job was to not become emotionally invested, but the vile threats he was reading about Ariana made him want to kill every single person who posted.

  “Does she know?” he asked as his eyes traveled down the comments of what these nameless, faceless men hiding behind a keyboard would do to her if they ever got to her.

  “No. She has enough on her mind. This is why we’re here. Just stick to her like glue, Duke,” Val ordered, although she didn’t need to. That was already the plan.

  * * *

  The hours came and went and Ar
i never left the couch. She talked to herself and made notes on the paper she was reading from, but never enough for him to hear any of it. Valeria and one of the Rahmi guards were sleeping so they could take the late shift. The other Rahmi guard sat by the front door, reading. Grant was behind the marble island whipping up some snack so Jameson took a seat at the island.

  He watched as Ariana stood up and faced the window. He could see her reflection in it as she looked through herself and began to recite her speech. Jameson felt chills as she talked about what she’d seen: the fear, the violence, the criminality of human trafficking. She gave the victims a voice, and she didn’t just call out the countries by name but specifically told how each leader failed his people, his country, and his own morality.

  “If Crusina or any of the other countries allow her to speak, it’ll be devastating to them,” Grant whispered as he piled a plate full of food and shoved it toward him.

  “What do you mean, allow? They can’t stop her from speaking at the UN.”

  “I mean, if they fail to kill her,” Grant said bluntly.

  Jameson looked away from Ariana and at the granite face of the man across the island from him. “You think they’ll try to kill her?”

  “Just looking at Crusina and not the other countries who are just as bad. When haven’t they killed opposition? When have they allowed anything negative to be said about them? They’ve literally killed the free press in their country. They’ve literally killed anyone who spoke out against them. Just because she’s a beautiful young princess with the heart of a lioness doesn’t mean they won’t kill her, too.”

  Grant took the other plate of food and headed for the dining room, leaving Jameson alone to watch as Ariana practiced her speech.

  He listened as she repeated it again, this time pulling more from her personal experiences, and he knew then and there that Grant was right. Crusina would never let her live.

  “Ariana,” he said when she finished. She turned around and he saw the stress on her face. She’d hidden it before but she wasn’t as naïve as he’d assumed. In fact, everything he’d assumed about her had been wrong.

  “Is something wrong with my speech?” she asked nervously.

  Jameson shook his head. “No. You’re speech is excellent. So excellent I fear for your safety. I’m not trying to scare you,” he said as he walked over to her in the living room. He stopped beside her and she turned to look up at him. He’d been an ass. Whoever the party princess had been, she was long gone now. Before him stood a strong and fearless woman, and it took his breath away.

  “I know you’re not. It’s your job to protect me. I hate that you even have to do that,” she said with such honesty he felt like an even bigger ass for thinking poorly of her before.

  “It’s my honor to protect you. You’re the bravest woman I know and that speech is going to change the world. However, to help protect you, I think it might be good for your camp to respond to the rumors that you’re naming names. I think they should put out something light and fluffy about your passion project. Let people make the same mistake I initially made about you,” Jameson admitted.

  “What mistake was that?”

  He’d opened the door and he was man enough to admit when he was wrong. “That you’re nothing but a partying princess who only cares about herself. I had thought that about you based on personal bias and I admit I was completely wrong about you. But that image can be used to your advantage. Let them think you’re that woman, then they’ll never see the knockout punch you’re about to deliver.”

  Ari took a deep breath and sat down on the couch. She motioned for him to sit as well and he did. It was hard not to reach for her, but he kept it professional as he turned to look at her. “I was that girl,” she said finally.

  “What girl?”

  “The girl you thought I was. I’m not anymore, though. Every day I feel guilty for those college years when I thought of no one but myself.”

  “You don’t have to feel guilty about it. Everyone is like that at that age.”

  “My brother Zain wasn’t. He was perfect.”

  “But your brother Gabe wasn’t perfect,” Jameson said with a grin. He’d read all about the playboy prince. Ariana smiled fondly at the mention of her brothers and Jameson was envious. He was the only child left to bear the weight of his parents’ expectations. “I’m sure your whole family is proud of you and supportive of you. And your boyfriend, too.”

  “What boyfriend?” Ari asked with surprise.

  “The man you kissed on the plane,” Jameson said slowly. He knew he hadn’t imagined it. “Is it secret? I can understand not wanting the press to know.”

  Ariana looked horrified and shook her head. “Eeew. That was my brother Zain. He flew with me here before going on to London.”

  “Oh,” Jameson said as the realization hit him that even if she was single, she was still way out of his reach.

  “What about you?” Ariana asked, grabbing a throw pillow and hugging it to her as she pulled her legs under her. “Do you have a wife or girlfriend?”

  “No. I was in the military overseas before taking a position with DSS. All my posts with them were overseas as well until now. I moved around a lot so it was never a good time for a relationship.”

  “If your parents are anything like mine, I’m sorry,” Ariana laughed and it made him smile.

  “You don’t have a good relationship with your parents either?” Jameson asked.

  Ariana stopped laughing and shook her head. “I have a great relationship with my family. It’s only that they all believe I should be married by now. Except for my brothers. They’ll be happy if I never marry. To them I’m still a little girl in pigtails playing practical jokes on them. It sounds as if you don’t have the same relationship with yours.”

  Jameson’s jaw tightened automatically. He didn’t like talking about them. “No. I don’t. You’re very lucky.”

  “I know I am. So, how did you end up in the DSS?” Ariana asked, and he was happy for the change of topic.

  “I was with Special Forces. I was on a mission and we were ambushed. I was shot and we suffered the loss of a lot of really great men.” Jameson didn’t like talking about that night. The mission had gotten fouled up from the beginning. “Sorry, I don’t like talking about it. Afterward I wanted to go back with my team, but the powers that be said no. So I joined the DSS.”

  Ariana cocked her head and looked at him so intently he thought she might discover the truth—the truth that it didn’t fulfill him. That he missed the teamwork and comradery of the military. That he felt guilty for leaving them behind to work at DSS when he should be on the battlefield with his team.

  Ariana reached out and then her small hand was covering his. Her skin was warm and soft as her fingers curled around his. His own fingers tightened around hers, and when he looked up from their entwined fingers to her face, Jameson knew he was about to make a mistake. Yet he didn’t feel badly about it at all as he leaned forward to kiss her.

  He gave her time to back away, but Ariana only leaned forward to meet him. A moment before their lips touched, everything went dark, and it wasn’t from him closing his eyes.

  7

  Jameson leapt back as Grant rushed into the room. He was already up and moving when the guards and Valeria joined them in the living room. His training had kicked in the second the power was cut to the apartment.

  “What’s going on?” Ariana asked.

  “Get your shoes on. I don’t like this,” Jameson ordered her as Valeria, Grant, and he shared a look that told him they felt the same, too.

  “You think they’re coming for me, don’t you?” Ariana didn’t freak out. Instead she stood stoically as Jameson nodded. “Boy, did they choose the wrong woman!” Jameson heard her mutter as she ran by him.

  Jameson didn’t have time to think about her words. He was in full military mission mode and issuing orders. “Go down the stairwell and see if you can hear anything,” he ordered a Rahmi g
uard.

  Ariana came back with tennis shoes on and a gun in her hand.

  “What are you doing with that?” Jameson asked in horror.

  “Defending myself. Trust me, my godfather made sure I was expert with guns.”

  Jameson had his gun pulled and within a minute, gunfire rang out. He didn’t have time to argue with the princess. At least she was holding it correctly. “Let’s go.” He turned to Ariana who was pale-faced but not panicking, thank goodness. Instead, her face was set with determination. Ariana might be scared but she wasn’t letting the fear rule her. It would most likely save her life. At the very least, it made Jameson’s job easier. Now wasn’t the time for comfort and kindness. Now was the time for command and doing whatever it took to protect Ariana, even if it meant giving his life.

  “Let’s take her to the roof if the stairwell is occupied,” Jameson ordered as they raced through the kitchen and into the staff rooms. There a second door led to the hallway close to the stairs.

  Jameson cracked the door before turning around. “Stay here,” he told them as he crept into the hallway. He needed to know what lay ahead of them before they moved. He didn’t want to go running blind around the building.

  His heart was pounding but he kept it calm as he moved toward the stairs. He saw the head of the Rahmi guard racing up the flights toward him and positioned himself to lay cover fire if necessary.

  “Sir, the whole building is under attack. Twenty men stormed the lobby. They were going for the stairs and the elevators, but one of the lobby guards was able to cut the power to slow them down before he died. That’s what the Bermalian guard told me. Some countries have their guards fighting in the lobby and are planning to evacuate. But some of the men got through the lobby and are on their way up the stairs.”

  “How many?” Jameson asked.