“They can’t land there!” The cops pointed at the helicopter.
Chad motioned toward the trio approaching them. “Hey, no problem. Maybe you should go tell them that.”
The cop looked out the window and dropped his arm.
Chad sneered at the guy. “Yeah, I didn’t think so.” Damn, it felt good to have the upper hand… finally… Where in the hell had his life jumped off the rails?
Jasmine pulled him by the elbow toward the door. Holy hell, talk about seeing in duplicate. The man leading the procession looked like a harder, larger version of Jasmine’s MIB brother. This one had just the faintest hint of gray at his temples. The man’s face was impossible to read. His eyes, though… those eyes were deadly, and so were the guns and the fucking knife strapped to his belt. A tall, broad blond man with an eye patch strode beside him. The pilot was cut from the same cloth. Strawberry blond hair and a demeanor that told Chad he’d kill someone as easily as he could fly that bird he’d just landed.
The bigger version of the MIB grabbed Jasmine and buried her in a hug. The blond with the eye patch extended his hand. “Doctor Adam Cassidy.” He motioned to the pilot. “This is Dixon, and that guy is Jasmine’s brother.” He took the guitar case and bags from Chad.
“Chad.” Chad shook the man’s hand, and the one Dixon offered him. The big guy wasn’t inclined to be friendly, and that was more than okay with Chad.
“Have you two been medically cleared?”
“We’ve been seen. I’m good. She’s pretty banged up.”
Jasmine pulled away from her brother. “I’m fine.”
The doctor glared at her and then nodded once. “We’ve got to get going. Come on.” The doctor motioned to the elaborately painted UH-60. Chad groaned inwardly. He hated helicopters. He’d thought he’d never have to ride on one of those damn things again. Jasmine grabbed his hand as soon as her brother released her. The second they were inside the helicopter, the overpowering rush of sound quieted. The interior of the machine had been soundproofed. There were heavily padded seats, and Jasmine sat next to him on the bench that stretched across the back of the cabin. This was a highly modified helicopter. He glanced out the windows and took in the external gas tanks. The bird lifted off and veered radically to the right. Damn, the familiar lurch of his stomach pulled at his gut. He hated helicopters.
“Tell me exactly what happened.” Jasmine’s brother leaned forward. He pinned Jasmine and Chad with a cold stare.
“We were en route to the ranch. I spotted them tailing us on the interstate. Did the usual moves to see if they were following. They had me convinced they were nothing more than another vehicle on the road. I realized my mistake when we ended up nothing but us as far as the eye could see. They tried to take us out with gunfire. The bulletproof glass held. I executed evasive maneuvers. The driver somehow managed to pull a modified pick on me and the right rear tire bit the drop off to the shoulder of the road. Just as I was correcting the bastard hit me again. We rolled down the embankment. The responding highway patrolman said he thought we rolled two and half times. Something hard met my head. I went black. I came to out of my seatbelt and behind Chad. He had an M4 and was in a defensive position. He took out both men. He also got one man to talk.”
Jasmine’s brother turned his glare to Chad. The big bastard stared at him for a solid minute. Chad held his gaze. Damned if he was going to tuck tail and run from a little intimidation. Okay, one hell of a lot of intimidation.
The corner of the man’s mouth rose ever so slightly. He extended a hand. “Joseph King.”
Chad took his hand and nodded. “Chad Nelson.”
The man laughed. “No shit.”
Chad chuckled at that. Okay, so her brother had a sense of humor. “The man said he was after Jasmine. He said she was to be a message. A warning. He said Slow was sending that message.”
“Zlo.” Her brother repeated the name using the same accent as the man who had warned them.
“Yeah.” Jasmine leaned back into Chad and pulled his arm around her.
The doctor smiled and looked out the window of the chopper. Her brother didn’t. He stared long and hard. Chad lifted an eyebrow in question, and the man grunted before he leaned back. Chad knew the words meant something to them, but he didn’t know what. He was sure Jasmine and her brother knew, too. Come hell or high water he was going to figure it out. He glanced out the window at the horizon. What a fucking day.
He closed his eyes and pulled Jasmine closer. She was the only connection to any semblance of normal he had left. His life had spun so far out of control it had crashed and burned. Murderers, stalkers, car chases, people trying to kill them to send messages. Yeah, it had been one hell of a week.
Chapter Seventeen
Jasmine moved, waking him from a light sleep. He glanced around the cabin and then out the window of the helicopter. The landscape had changed dramatically. The warm orange glow of the setting sun cast rays of light through the backdrop of massive pines, deep rolling hills and never-ending pastures. Chad leaned forward and looked at the magnificent shadows of a mountain range, the dark forms silhouetted in a picturesque diorama.
Jasmine tapped his arm. She pointed out the other side of the cabin at a massive log-cabin-style ranch house. Shit, it was a freaking mansion. Two gigantic barns, four huge grain silos and numerous outbuildings settled in front of a large rolling hill. The helicopter banked going around the hill. Chad blinked and leaned forward. Behind the ranch, cleverly camouflaged by nature, sat a huge complex of buildings. A road led off to the left and three… no four… houses had been tucked into the rolling hill landscape. The helicopter circled wide and approached from the other direction. He noticed a bank of windmills and rows upon rows of solar panels in an open field in a small valley to his right. As the bird moved, an airstrip and helipad came into view. The pilots sat the bird down expertly in the middle of the helipad.
Joseph opened the door and walked away. No ‘bye, see ya’ laters’ or, for that matter, any acknowledgment that the rest of the people on the bird existed.
The doctor chuckled. “I’m going to insist on you two getting a once-over.”
Chad held out his hand and helped Jasmine out of the helicopter. “I’m sore, but I’m good. So, thanks but no thanks on the exam, but she was unconscious for a couple of minutes.”
Jasmine frowned up at him. “I’m fine.”
“So you say.” He motioned toward the doctor. “You need to be checked by a real doctor. Well, the guy at the scene was good, but he only gave her a quick check.”
Chad did a double take as the two pilots walked up to him. They were identical twins, and holy shit, did he mean identical. The doctor made the introductions again. “This is Dixon and that one is Drake. Besides being able to fly anything you can launch into the sky, blow up things and drive you insane within three minutes of meeting you, these two run this training complex.”
The doctor motioned to the hospital. “Guys, Chad here protected this one after the vehicle accident knocked her out. He took out both assailants and managed to make one talk. Would you take him over to the main ranch house and get him hooked up with a room? I’ll send Jasmine over as soon as I’m sure she’s good to go.”
One of the two nodded, and both of them smiled at the same time. How the fuck did they do that?
“Good to meet you. Dixon has all your albums. Plays them all the time. He’s a huge fanboy.”
“Seriously, Drake? You’re telling him I’m the one with the fanboy crush?” Dixon jabbed his thumb toward his twin. “Truth be told, this guy not only owns all your songs but sings them in the shower.”
“I do not! But if I did, I’d be awesome. I’m that good.”
“Good? You sound like a she-cat in heat.”
“I think I’m insulted. No, I know I’m insulted. That karaoke bar last year—where were we? Doc, hey wait a minute, where were we?”
The doctor shook his head and walked away, grabbing Jasmine by the arm.
“Doesn’t matter, and I think it was Singapore?”
“Nah, we went to the disco in Singapore.”
“True. Maybe it was Seoul?”
“Could be… Hey, Chad, you coming? House, shower, food…” The guy pointed. “…this direction.” The men looked at him like he had two heads, but it wasn’t him that was off his rocker.
“Do you think he got hit on the head too?”
“Nah, he’s just afraid of your fanboy bullshit.”
Chad swung his head back and forth between the two men and the building into which Jasmine and the doctor had disappeared. Lord have mercy, he wasn’t in Nashville any longer, Toto. He turned on his heel and started after the twins. He was life’s crash test dummy this week.
~~
Jasmine labored up the ranch house porch stairs, one painful step at a time. Her stepfather, Frank, sat in the swing. He smiled at her and scooted over to make room. She wandered over and sank into the swing.
“Hear you been busy.” A tired smile crossed her face at the sound of Frank’s gruff comment.
“It’s been a day. That’s for sure.” She tucked her feet onto the swing and Frank pushed off. The steady creak of the chains as they moved was soothing. “Momma know? About the accident today?”
Frank grunted. The affirmation was loud and clear.
“She okay?”
“She don’t like it, but…” He shrugged.
Jasmine filled her lungs and sighed. The smell of something wonderful cooking filled her senses. She was home. This ranch was home, now. Frank had made it that way for each of the Guardian family.
“That singer. He something to you?” Frank pushed them in the swing with the toe of his boot.
“Why do you ask?” She glanced over at him. The question surprised her.
“Joseph thinks he is.”
“Frank? Are you and Joseph… gossiping?”
“Like a bunch of teenage girls.” Amanda walked out on the porch. Before she could take two steps, Jasmine launched out of the swing and hugged her mom.
“Honestly, the entire conversation had about ten words and four or five grunts, but I swear those two have your future decided.”
Jasmine laughed at the comment. She could see that conversation happening. “Have you met Chad?”
Her mom sat down next to Frank, and Jasmine sat on the edge of one of the Adirondack chairs nearby.
“I have. He seems like a wonderful young man. Dixon and Drake took him up and gave him a room. I’m assuming he’s cleaning up and getting some rest. Are you alright?”
Jasmine nodded. “He took care of me when I was out of it. He’s a good man, Mom. Different than his public image. I met his mom yesterday. I think you’d like her. She’s a straight shooter.”
“I’m sure I would, honey. Is there a reason I would meet his mom?” The teasing lilt in her mom’s voice made her blush.
“No, not really. As soon as Jared figures out what the heck is going on in Chad’s life and fixes it, well… no… not really.”
Frank grunted and Amanda smiled at him. “I agree.”
“Lord, momma, do you understand him?” Jasmine laughed at the look of indignation Frank gave her.
“Honey, he says more without words than most people say with them.” Amanda patted her husband’s thigh and leaned in to kiss him.
Her heart clenched. She was so happy her mom had found someone. Those two were so good for each other.
Frank pushed the swing again and smiled.
“Jazz, why don’t you go clean up and then bring your man down for dinner. I’ll have it on the table in about twenty minutes.
~~
Frank watched his stepdaughter go into the house. Amanda dropped her head on his shoulder. “She’s falling in love.”
“He’s not going to be an easy one to love.” A superstar with the world at his fingertips. If this turned out to be something… well, he needed to have a talk with that boy. He wasn’t above going toe-to-toe with any man that was getting close with his girls.
“Easy love? Is there such a thing?”
“Yep. Us.”
Amanda chuckled. “Took one hell of a rocky road to get us here, though.”
Frank hummed his agreement. They’d both lost their first loves and raised their families alone. But now… now was good. Now, he knew soul-deep contentment. He loved his new extended family and had found a peace he’d never known could exist.
“Worth it to end up with you.”
“I love you, too.”
Frank leaned down and kissed her. He’d found the type of love he wanted for all of his family. If Jasmine had a chance at this kind of love, she’d be lucky.
~~
Jasmine knocked softly on the door between her room and Chad’s and waited. The Wonder Twins had put Chad in the room next to hers, which was Jade’s room. The interconnecting door was locked from Jasmine’s side. She’d unlocked it before she knocked.
Chad opened the door wearing a pair of well-worn jeans and nothing else. His hair was wet, and emblazoned on his chest was a huge tapestry of connecting dots. Red pinpricks and small scratches covered his chest and sculpted abs.
“Oh, lord! Why didn’t you say something?” Jasmine reached out and stroked her hand lightly over his pecs. The springy hair tickled her hand.
He grabbed her hand and lifted it to his lips. “I’m fine.” He lowered his head and caught her lips in a whisper-soft kiss. “You need to shower. You still have blood in your hair.”
Jasmine reached for her hair and stepped back, immediately self-conscious. “Oh, right… I’ll go…” She turned, but was caught in his arms almost immediately.
“Let me take care of you.” He kissed her temple and took her hand, leading her into his room and the en-suite. He flicked the lever on the massive shower system and turned to her.
“Um… dinner….” She knew her mom would come looking.
“How long do we have?”
“Twenty minutes.”
“Perfect.” Chad tugged off her jacket and slipped her shoulder holster off. His lips distracted her as his hands removed her gear and clothes quickly. He dropped his jeans and backed her into the shower.
“Water temperature okay?” Chad’s question took a couple of seconds to register.
It could have been arctic cold, and she wouldn’t have cared, not with him holding her the way he was. “Perfect.”
“Lean your head back.” Jasmine did and winced as the jets of water hit the rather large bump on her head. Chad opened the shampoo and carefully worked it through her hair, being extra careful around the knot on her head and cut on her hairline. He washed her hair a second time and then soaped up a cloth and washed her body. The caresses were careful and gentle, but not sexual. He turned off the shower, escorted her out and dried her with a large bath sheet. Jasmine moaned when he dropped his head and kissed her.
“Five minutes left. We need to get dressed. But just so you know, after dinner I’m going to make love to you. All. Night. Long.” Chad turned her toward her door and swatted her on the ass. “Go. Clothes.”
Jasmine glanced over her shoulder at him and smirked. She dropped the bath sheet and slowly walked out of the room. Chad’s growled curse put a happy smile on her face.
She combed out her hair and put it up in a high ponytail, loosening it, so her hair didn’t pull on her sore scalp. She walked to the closet and sighed. Her own clothes. Finally. She pulled on a pair of Prada yoga pants, a soft sports bra, and an oversized Michael Kors t-shirt before she slipped her feet into a pair of soft, hand-stitched, Italian leather ballerina slippers.
Chad was on her bed when she walked out of her bathroom. His arms behind his head, legs crossed, relaxed and oozing sex. He glanced at her and smiled. “I like that look on you. No makeup and relaxed. You’re beautiful.”
Jasmine headed for the door. “And you’re a hot mess. Come on, Mr. Singer Dude. The parental units get fussy if they have to keep dinner waiting.” She p
aused at the door for him.
Chad rolled off the bed, stood and stretched. His shirt lifted, revealing his dark happy trail. Jasmine licked her lips. The man was so freaking sexy.
“Keep looking at me like that, and we won’t make it down for dinner.”
Jasmine popped her eyes back up to his. Busted. She lowered her eyelids and smiled demurely. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Mr. Nelson.” She stepped out the door when he started prowling toward her. “But maybe you could refresh my memory after dinner?”
Chad grabbed her chin in his and dropped a kiss on her lips. “I can guarantee it.”
Jasmine grabbed his hand and walked him down to the dining room. She watched as Chad’s gaze bounced over the ranch house and took in the high ceilings, exposed, polished pine logs, the great room fireplace that was so large you could park a truck in it—all of it was breathtaking. She could remember the first time she’d been here. Her stepfather didn’t flaunt the fact he had money, but this house? Yeah, it was spectacular.
“I feel like my ten-million-dollar home in Nashville was designed by Liberace compared to this.” Chad studied the massive antler chandelier that spanned the voluminous entryway. “That’s got to be a herd of elk right there.”
“It is amazing, isn’t it? I’ll give you a tour of the ranch tomorrow.” She pulled his hand and led him into the dining room, where she stopped and gaped at the people surrounding the table.
She’d expected her mom and Frank, but Dixon, Drake, Joseph, Ember, Jared, Christian, Jason, Faith, Reece, Adam, Keelee and their young daughter Elizabeth all sat at the table.
Jasmine’s face burned with embarrassment. She tried to drop Chad’s hand, but he held it tight. He smiled and waved with his free hand. “Hi, I’m Chad Nelson. She’s obviously embarrassed, so I’m guessing she had no idea y’all were going to be here for dinner. Where do you want me to sit for the inquisition? Here?” He motioned toward the two open chairs and pulled Jasmine with him.
Jasmine wanted to melt through the beautifully polished wood floor. The smirk Chad had on his face did little to ease her discomfort with the situation. She saw the performer take over. Chad was all gloss and polish. He masked his discomfort with the veneer that he’d perfected during his career. The thought of him having to hide, here, where he was supposed to be safe, angered her.
Jasmine (Kings of Guardian Book 6) Page 16