“Take good care of her,” Val called out as they climbed back into the SUV.
Ariana looked up at Jameson standing next to her. “You ready for Keeneston?”
“You mean to go to Keeneston?”
“Yeah, that too.” Ariana smiled innocently at him and turned to walk up the steps into the airplane.
She liked Jameson. She knew that. But Keeneston separated the boys from the men. As the plane taxied, Ariana sat back with a new calmness around her because, in the end, whether they were meant to be was out of her hands to an extent. If Jameson really did want to be with her, it meant he needed to love Keeneston as much as she did and to fight for her. That may mean fighting for her life, but it also meant fighting gambling centenarians, the town bimbo, the PTA mom who hits bad people with her Hummer, and then the real hard stuff. The interrogation her family and friends would lay down if it became evident Jameson wanted more from Ariana than just to protect her. But she was worth the fight. So Ariana sat back with anticipation to see if Jameson also thought she was worth the fight.
Jameson had used his top-secret clearance to research King Draven of Bermalia and Keeneston while on the plane. He saw the naked selfies of the king. He saw the scantily clad women. He saw the headlines that Bermalia was failing. Then a couple of years ago, the photos stopped. There were no more naked selfies. There were no more women on his yacht. There was a steady increase in trade, employment, and per capita wealth. The headlines changed from King of Selfies’ Country in Depression to King Draven of Bermalia Signs Massive Eight Country Trade Deal.
What had happened to make the change? From what Jameson could see, it was the Ali Rahman family. He pulled up the travel logs for Draven and saw that he had been flying into Lexington between eight and twelve times a year for the past several years.
Then Jameson had looked up people in the top-secret database who listed Keeneston as their residence. A long line of names came up. The trouble was they were all blacked out. Jameson didn’t have high enough clearance to see them. How was that even possible?
So he searched the Internet. Articles from the Keeneston Journal filled the page. He read about McKenna Mason, Danielle De Luca, and Paige Davies taking down the political prostitution/murder ring that rocked New York City and Washington, D.C. Then Jameson read about a drug ring targeting teenagers, dog fighting and arms dealing, business coups, the Cropbot invention, a story about a spy and a gossip reporter, and then a crazy story about an old enemy and the fate of a kingdom.
Then things in Keeneston went quiet until Sienna Ashton overheard a murder on the phone and Ryan Parker was assigned to the case. Sex trafficking, political coups, a playboy prince, a weapons developer, a DEVGRU man being hunted, a plane being taken down, nanotechnology being stolen, a dangerous cult, illegal horse racing, an anarchist hell-bent on taking down the government, and a crazed stalker. Then there were these strange stories about a woman who kept hitting people with her minivan until she upgraded to a Hummer.
Where the hell was he going? The names in most of the stories had been whispered about in Special Forces for years. Davies. No wonder Dylan Davies had Delta Force written all over him. His uncles were legends. They’d even opened a training facility that had an eighteen month long waitlist to attend. He had no idea the famous Davies brothers were from this small Kentucky town.
Jameson had tried to pull up Abby and Dylan’s files, but they weren’t even in the database. It was as if no one had ever heard of them. He pulled up Greer’s next. She was steadily climbing the ranks faster than he’d ever seen anyone do it before. He read her file, then her brothers’, and then her father’s. No wonder she was moving up fast. She had the family history and was the best shot and the most educated of them all. There was even a note that her name was on a shortlist to replace a deputy director upon his retirement.
Jameson was curious and pulled up Valeria, Grant, and Sebastian’s names as well. Valeria and Grant didn’t exist. Sebastian has a small note about being friends with the president and a list of properties and companies he owned. Nothing else.
By the time they landed, Jameson had easily memorized the layout of the town and how to get to various places in Lexington. It was easy considering Keeneston had only a handful of roads in it. He’d learned the location of Ariana’s family farm, where all the various Davies families lived, the sheriff’s station, the doctor’s office, and the one and only restaurant in town by looking at satellite images. By the time the plane landed, Jameson was completely prepared for Keeneston.
16
Jameson had wanted to drive back to Keeneston to get a feel for the land, but a group of cars ranging from a Hummer to a sports car and every SUV and pickup truck in between greeted them at the airport.
Dani and Mo had walked over to a woman Jameson recognized from the newspaper. McKenna Mason stood waiting for them. She kissed Dani and hugged Mo before turning to look over the group coming down the plane steps.
“Who are you?” she asked the second his foot hit the pavement.
“Jameson Duke. I’m Princess Ariana’s personal protection agent.” Jameson held out his hand and she shook it.
“Interesting. Kenna Ashton.” Her gaze went behind him to see Greer cursing at her brother. “Greer! Oh, bless your heart!”
A boat of a car opened and a curvy woman with her black hair in natural curls wearing tight jeans and five-inch heels leapt out. She opened the back door and three old ladies who seemed to come from the Jurassic era teetered out.
“Oh, sugar! Bless your badass heart.” She ran forward, all her body parts swaying hypnotically. She didn’t slow as she ran past Jameson but she might have purred at him. “Do you need me to shoot the bastard who did this to you? You know I will. Look at my new baby,” she said to Greer who was now on crutches and smiling. The woman reached into her bag and pulled out a pink leopard-print gun.
“Gun!” Jameson yelled. Shit. He hadn’t seen the threat coming. He had his weapon pulled and Ariana shoved behind one of the vehicles before she could blink.
He also heard the sound of multiple safeties being turned off. He glanced around and saw no fewer than eight guns pointed at him.
“Where?” the curvy woman asked, waving her gun around as she looked about. “I’ll shoot the bastard. I just need to find my glasses so I don’t shoot off another toe. That was embarrassing.” The woman began looking through her bag as Jameson looked around.
The three old ladies now formed a triangle with one of them out front holding the biggest gun he’d ever seen and the other two bracing her. Suddenly Cole, Paige, Jackson, Ryan, Nash, Nabi, Ahmed, and Bridget all had guns in hand as they looked around with confusion.
“Where are those damn glasses? I swear my purse eats them. I am getting better so maybe I can hit his pecker instead of a toe,” the curvy woman muttered with her head still in her purse. “Ah! Here they are.” She pulled out ruby-encrusted cat’s-eye glasses and slipped them on. “I don’t see anyone.”
“You!” Jameson called out. “I was talking about you.”
“Me?” she asked, offended. “Sugar, everyone here has a gun. Don’t be singling me out because I shot off a toe or two. I’m getting better.” She looked him over and then looked behind him.
He glanced to find Ariana standing with a huge smile on her face. “Ari, is this fine man yours?” the curvy woman asked.
“Define yours?” Ari asked with a grin. Jameson realized she was having fun and he felt it might be at his expense as everyone put their guns away.
“The things I have in mind I wouldn’t say with your parents right here, but you just let me know if you want to borrow my oils. I got a new one in that supposed to—”
“No!” Jackson and Evie yelled in unison, real fear on their faces.
Ariana struggled not to laugh as she walked past him and hugged the woman. “Thanks, Aniyah. Come meet my date to the wedding.”
“Jameson, this is my dear friend Aniyah Drews. Aniyah, Jameson Duke, my date
to the wedding.”
“Jameson, huh?” Aniyah asked, shaking his hand. “I’d love to take a sip of you.”
Jameson blinked. Then she winked. Ariana shrugged as if she agreed. They were messing with him. Okay. He got it now. He lifted Aniyah’s hand and kissed it. “Like the whiskey, I’ve gotten better with age, too.”
“Too bad I’m a happily married woman to my Sugarbear or I’d take the whole bottle. Now I understand the bet.”
“What bet?” Jameson asked, but Ariana was pulling him away.
“Come on. I want you to meet my friend Kale.”
Jameson looked up to the younger man leaning against a black matte sports car. His arms were over his chest and his eyes were narrowed as he stared at him. “He’s a friend? Are you sure?”
“Kale, meet Jameson Duke. Jameson, this is Abby’s little brother, Kale.”
Jameson relaxed then. It must just be a family trait to look like they want to torture someone. “I had the pleasure of meeting your sister in Crusina and your parents in New York City.”
Kale shook his hand and squeezed in a manner meant to intimidate. While Kale was strong, he wasn’t Special Forces strong. Jameson kept his smile on his face as he crushed Kale’s bones with his grip. His narrowed gaze didn’t falter, but he yanked his hand back. “I’ll drive you home.”
“We can’t all fit,” Ariana said as she looked at the tiny car.
“Looks like everyone else is all loaded up. Your guy here can ride with Aniyah if you want.”
Jameson kept the small half smile on his face. “It’s no problem. Where Ariana goes, I go.”
Kale shrugged, opened his door, and pushed his seat forward. Jameson clenched his jaw but tried to climb in.
“Jameson, this is silly. You can’t fit back there.” Ariana said even as Jameson crammed himself into the backseat. His butt wasn’t sitting on anything. His feet were behind each chair as he squatted.
Ariana opened her door and pulled the seat forward. “You sit up front. I’ll sit in the back.”
Jameson crawled out and half fell from the car. “I have a better idea.”
Jameson pushed the passenger seat all the way back. He sat down and patted his lap. “Sit here.”
His smile widened as he heard Kale mumble with irritation. Maybe the best friend didn’t like being in the friend zone? Ariana stared at him and a blush rose on her cheeks. “Come on. Let’s get to Keeneston. I’ve heard the Blossom Café is the place to eat.”
Ariana took a deep breath and nodded slowly. She turned away from him, giving him a nice view before she bent way down to maneuver into the low riding car. She sat on his lap and then had to swing around to get her feet into the car. Maybe this wasn’t the best idea Jameson ever had because now it was hard to hide his interest in her.
Instead of the groan he wanted to give, Jameson handed her the seat belt and then wrapped his arms tightly around her stomach. The underside of her breasts brushed his arms, which didn’t help the situation of hiding his interest in her.
Kale started the car and Jameson tightened his grip on Ari when the tires spun and they shot forward. Kale didn’t talk as he took the small country roads behind the airport. Jameson glanced at the speed and took a deep breath. Ariana didn’t seem worried so he had to trust that Kale knew what he was doing.
“So, the UN is rescheduled for three weeks. Is your lapdog going to be with you the whole time? And why not use a Rahmi guard?” Kale asked Ariana, completely ignoring Jameson.
“Mom set it all up. She wanted someone experienced after the bombing and whatever happened at the apartment. She’s worried I was the target. If it weren’t for your mom’s dog and then Jameson, we’d all be a lot worse off. Jameson shielded me with his body and took the brunt of the impact. He also gave a warning that allowed my parents and yours to run for cover. It’s because of that they suffered nothing more than some scrapes.”
“I guess I need to thank you for that,” Kale grumbled. “My father is such a badass that it seems almost impossible for anything to hurt him.”
“You’re welcome. I like your parents, and I’m glad they weren’t hurt.” Jameson said as he moved with the curves of the road to prevent himself from being flung against the door. “So, have you two been friends since birth or did you meet later on?”
“Since birth,” Ariana answered.
“Yeah, we both have older siblings who liked to prank us. Ari and I became tight when we banded together against them.”
“That’s fun. I’m an only child and my parents were very strict so I never got to do those kinds of things until the military,” Jameson said as he looked out the window. He’d gotten a little taste of Lexington before Kale sped them out of town. Now they were driving along narrow roads lined with black four-board fences with horses or cows behind them. There were rolling hills dotted with trees that seemed to go off into the horizon.
“I should have guessed you were military. Army?” Kale asked as he continued peppering Jameson with questions.
“Special Forces,” Jameson said with a nod.
“Jameson kept me safe and evacuated me during the shooting at the apartment, too. I’m starting to worry these attacks were aimed at me, but the US government hasn’t been able to determine who the target was. Officially, at least.”
“You were really in that much danger, Ari?” Kale asked, and she nodded in response.
“It has to do with her human rights speech. At least that’s what I think. So, I assume you are in the Royal Guard like your father?” Jameson asked Kale.
Kale sped the car up. “No. I went in a different direction.”
“Kale is a computer genius.”
Jameson could tease him for being a nerd, but while Kale wasn’t a soldier, he wasn’t a lanky geek either. He was built and there was something to be said about brains and fighting. Jameson himself graduated magnum cum laude.
“We need more of those. I’ve had my ass saved by guys behind a computer halfway across the globe before,” Jameson told Kale.
They were quiet as the farmland turned into a small downtown. Ariana began to play tour guide as she pointed out the bed and breakfast up the hill from Main Street, the courthouse, sheriff’s station, the Blossom Café, the doctor’s office, and then Paige’s shop near the end of Main Street. Before he knew it, the small downtown was gone and they were once again looking out at rolling hills.
The tour wasn’t over yet, though. Ariana pointed out people’s farms before they turned into a drive with a large gate and Desert Sun Farm engraved in the stone pillars holding the gate closed. Kale pressed a button and the gate slid open. He waved to the guard on duty and then they were cruising down a long driveway. Horses ran in pastures on both sides of the drive before a large white estate came into view. An American and Rahmi flags waved from above the house.
“So, this is it.” Ariana said, sounding a little nervous.
“It’s beautiful. Does your whole family live here?”
Ariana shook her head as the car stopped out front. “My parents and I live in the main house. Zain and Mila and Gabe and Sloane have places of their own on the farm and even in Lexington. Bridget and Ahmed also live on the farm. Kale, Abby, my brothers and I all grew up together,” Ariana explained as Kale ran around the car to help Ariana maneuver out of the car.
Jameson felt the loss of her from his body when she stood outside the car. Instead of reaching for her, he thanked Kale for the ride.
“I’ll meet you all at the café,” Kale said before taking off. He revved his motor and was off like a shot.
“Come on inside. I’ll show you to a guest room and hopefully your luggage will be there.” Ariana raced up the stairs and shoved open the front door. “My friend is coming up and he’ll be staying with us.” Jameson heard Ariana say to someone.
He glanced around and saw numerous Rahmi guards and a barn that was obviously not a barn, but probably the security center. Instead of being made from wood, it was solid concrete. When
Jameson made it to the door, he saw an armed guard in the role of butler. Jameson knew this was a government office as well as a house, but it didn’t have the usual hustle and bustle of most embassies.
“That is the waiting room for anyone here on state business,” Ariana told him as she pointed to the first room on the right. “Then comes Veronica’s office.”
“Is that who I hear?” Jameson asked.
“Yes.” Ari smiled at the steady, no-nonsense voice coming from the open door. She knocked quietly and then walked inside. Jameson followed and found a lithe blonde woman on the phone, wearing a red suit and lipstick that matched.
“Our position is clear, President Nikan,” Veronica bit into the phone. “There will be no trade policy between our countries until you can guarantee certain human rights changes.”
Veronica winked at Ari and then narrowed her eyes. “I have the power not to put you through to anyone in the royal family because my boss believes in freedom of choice and I chose not to bother them when I know their answers already. The royal family has been very clear on their position. Your people deserve freedom and safety. Until they have it, Rahmi’s official position is no business with Crusina. Goodbye.”
Veronica hung up and rolled her eyes. “I love my job.” She got up and was around the table hugging Ari in seconds. “I’m so glad you’re not hurt. I can’t believe Greer’s leg is broken,” she said before turning to Jameson. “You must be the hero of the day.”
“Just doing my job, ma’am.”
“Veronica, please.”
Jameson shook her hand and smiled. “Jameson Duke.”
“So nice to meet you in person. It’s interesting, considering you’re here in the official capacity as Ariana’s boyfriend instead of protection agent. Well, Dani has you in the Garden Room.” She looked at her computer and then back up at them. “Everyone else will arrive in five minutes.”
“I’ll show you around real quick,” Ari said as he and Veronica said their goodbyes. “This is my dad’s office, then my brothers each have an office in their homes and they share one here.”
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