Instead of sitting across from her, he sat next to her. “Is this okay?” he asked.
“It’s fine. Although, I’m a little surprised.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “Why? I’m doing what you asked.”
Lexi shrugged. “Yes, but I figured you’d keep your bodyguard persona until the last second.”
“I’m still alert, but there was truth in what you said. If we’re going to pull this off, I need to act the part. I did sign a contract, after all.”
She chuckled. “That’s true,” she said and twisted in the seat to face him. “I’m so sorry for the other day when I…uh…for uh…”
“Kissing me?”
Her cheeks felt blistered. “Yes. I’m so sorry.”
His laughter filled the car, and her heart sped up. It was so warm and rich and deep. “At least you kept it above the neck. I appreciate that.”
Her eyes widened. “What?”
“I’ve had the pleasure of protecting people who didn’t understand personal space.”
“So I haven’t been that bad?” She smiled, thinking he was challenging her perception of him. He wasn’t Mr. Stiff. He actually had a personality and a wit that she kind of liked.
Jake shook his head. “No, actually, you’ve been more than pleasant. You’re driven to succeed as a doctor, and I admire that.”
He admired her? “You do?”
“Absolutely. You’re not just stunning, but you’re obviously brilliant. That’s an intoxicating combination.”
Did he say what she thought he said? She didn’t even know he was paying that close attention to her. Her safety, yes, but her as a person? She was floored. “I don’t think anyone’s ever said that about me before.”
“Then perhaps your standards aren’t high enough. Any man worthy of you will instinctively know and appreciate your value.”
Her pulse rocketed higher, and she felt tongue-tied. Just as she was about to respond, the car stopped, and Jake exited, holding his hand out to help her.
“Thank you,” she said as she stepped out.
The door to her papa’s private plane opened, and a moment later, he appeared at the top of the stairs. “Zio mou!” her papa’s voice boomed.
As Jake tried to pull away, she tangled her fingers in his. “You’re with me tonight, remember?” She smiled.
“I haven’t forgotten. I thought you’d want to speak to your father first.”
Another figure appeared next to her papa. Faustus Zikas. Even from where she stood, he was too skinny, too prim, and…not Jake. Not that she was comparing. She wasn’t interested in anyone.
When her papa reached the bottom step, she flung herself into his arms. She should have been so angry she couldn’t look at him, but she knew there was more to this marriage thing than he’d let on. “Papa, I’ve missed you.”
Her papa wrapped her in a welcoming embrace and squeezed her. “Oh, my love, I have missed you.” He leaned back and took her face in his hands. “You are lovelier than I remembered, and in my memory, you put Aphrodite to shame.”
“Oh, Papa.” She waved him off as he kissed each of her cheeks. “You always say that.”
Her papa stepped aside, and Faustus stood next to him. “You remember Faustus Zikas.” He turned to Faustus. “See, I told you she’d listen to me.”
Faustus clasped his hands behind his back and looked down his nose at her. “You did.”
Seriously? What kind of statement was that? She shook her head and turned to her papa. “I don’t remember him being so…rude.”
Faustus’s little beady eyes caught her gaze and held it. “As my wife, you’ll learn some manners.”
“Clearly, I wouldn’t be learning them from you.” She stepped back and linked her fingers with Jake’s. “Papa, I’d like to introduce you to my husband, Jake Maverick.”
Her papa’s face turned beet red, and he looked at Faustus, who had leveled his gaze at Lexi. “Lexi, what have you done? I told you—” He stopped short and cast Faustus a glance once more. “I had no idea. I swear.”
“I’m sure. The women in your family have never had anyone bold enough to tame them. Unlike my family. My mother was loyal to my father. Maybe Alexandria doesn’t understand loyalty.”
Jake put his arm around Lexi’s waist. “I’m sure we can discuss this better at dinner.”
Faustus pulled his shoulders back as he looked Jake up and down. “Your input isn’t needed.”
“Neither is yours,” Jake said through clenched teeth.
Her papa pulled his gaze from Lexi to Jake, his eyebrows furrowed and his lips curled in disgust. “Mr. Maverick, you gave me your word that you’d maintain professionalism. I trusted you.”
“I gave you my word that I’d keep her safe, and that’s exactly what I’m doing,” Jake replied.
Her papa focused on her again. “Alexandria, how could you marry this…this…man. He’s beneath you.”
She hugged Jake’s arm. “You hired him. You must’ve thought he was okay if you entrusted my life to him.”
“Giving his life for yours is one thing. Marrying you…that is another.” Her papa shook his head. “Faustus is better suited for you and your status. Our families coming together will be good for both of us, and now…this will be taken care of immediately.”
“At least your father has sense,” Faustus said as his gaze landed on Lexi. “This…marriage…will not stand. Do you understand me, Basil? You will take care of this.”
“Yes.” Her papa scrubbed his face with his hands. “We’ll discuss it later. However, there was a change in plans. We’re going to the estate. I’d planned a dinner party in celebration of your engagement to Faustus.”
“A party?” Lexi asked. At the estate? Pomp and circumstance. Something she didn’t care for, and one of the reasons she’d opted to stay in a small apartment close to campus. Not only was it easier to get to class, it was more her style.
Her papa nodded and glanced at Faustus. It was so unlike her papa to look to anyone else. Her gut instinct was right. Something was very wrong with her papa.
“Yes, but now that there’s been this development, I’m not sure we should hold it,” her papa said.
Faustus dismissed the statement with a wave of his hand. “Nonsense. We’ve invited too many people not to hold it. It would be more embarrassing to cancel it with such short notice.”
“I don’t know,” her papa said. “How will I explain her marriage to this…man.”
Faustus sucked in a deep breath. “She’s young, and being in America has made her impulsive. You’ve decided to indulge her for the night to show her what a mistake she’s made.”
Never would her papa have turned over his command to someone else, especially a man like Faustus.
“You’re speaking about me like I’m not standing right here,” Lexi said. “And I am. I’m a grown woman. You don’t make my decisions for me. I won’t marry you. Now or ever.”
Her papa held up his hand and eyed her. “No more arguing. Once the party is over, you and I will talk, Alexandria. And you as well, Mr. Maverick.”
Faustus lifted an eyebrow, leaned into her papa, and whispered something that Lexi couldn’t hear, even with straining. He straightened and scowled as he looked from her to Jake. “Yes, we will be discussing this after the party.”
Even on a wide-open tarmac, the tension in the air was so thick it was hard to walk. Inside the limo, it was even worse. By the time they arrived at the estate, Lexi thought she’d lose her mind.
Dinner wasn’t much better. Guests filled her papa’s estate, and hushed whispers swirled around her. It seemed most of the guests were business associates of Faustus, and he ran in circles Lexi didn’t appreciate.
Despite the snobbish attitudes, Jake was charming. In her rush to put him in a box, she’d done him a disservice. He was soft-spoken when he needed to be, gentle and considerate. As for Faustus, Jake put him in his place more than once, which won him Lexi points.
The more sh
e learned about Faustus, the more she disliked him. There was something off about him, and she couldn’t put her finger on what. The way her papa looked to him anytime they were talking disturbed her too. She’d never known her papa to do that before. They’d whisper, and the moment Faustus turned away, her papa would look at her with sympathy.
Jake stretched his arm across the back of her chair and leaned in. “Are you okay?”
“Something’s wrong, and I can’t figure out what.”
“I’m getting that too. Something’s definitely off with your father. He never struck me as a man who deferred to anyone else.”
Lexi looked up at Jake, and those deep-blue eyes were focused solely on her. All her worry drifted away. Jake was with her. He’d keep her safe.
She set her cheek against his, and goosebumps broke out on her skin. He smelled amazing, and it was as though the tiny spark of attraction she felt for him was being fed pure oxygen, which was insane because she didn’t think of him that way. He was just her bodyguard…or he used to be. The word husband when used in correlation with him sent tingles down her spine and her pulse racing.
She swallowed hard and whispered. “He’s not, but I can’t imagine what Faustus could be doing. Why he’d want to marry me or why my papa would be so insistent on it.”
“If I’m reading this correctly, there’s going to be dancing and socializing after the meal. Maybe you could dance with Faustus and ask him.”
She shivered, and he pulled back. “Are you cold?”
He started to take off his jacket, and she touched his arm. “No, more repulsed that I’ll have to touch him.”
Jake chuckled. “I’ll watch. If I think you need rescuing, I’ll cut in.”
Dancing with Jake? Butterflies danced in her stomach. “Probably wouldn’t be right to withhold a dance from my husband.”
“And any husband with a wife as beautiful and intelligent as you would be crazy not to dance with her.” He winked.
Ka-thunk. Seriously, if she wasn’t sitting, she’d be falling on the floor. When did Jake become so…not Jake? He was making her heart pound and her pulse race. She knew he was just playing a part, but, holy wow, could he play. This Jake was unbelievably magnetic, and it was as though she was seeing him for the first time. She kind of liked this Jake, even if his hair was two feet too long.
Chapter 4
Jake leaned his shoulder against the far wall of the ballroom and studied each guest. None of them gave him the feeling that they were anything more than what they appeared. Snobby elitists with nothing better to do than dress up for a last-minute dinner party.
Although, he had to admit that having the pleasure of seeing Lexi in a ball gown was worth the snide comments. Man, she was stunning. The dress she wore captured her essence as if it’d been sewn just for her, only the information he had was that she’d picked it up the day before. It hit every curve perfectly. The off-the-shoulder soft-green dress made it look like she was floating. Which he shouldn’t even be thinking because he was her bodyguard, and he’d promised her father he’d guard her, not foam at the mouth.
He refocused his attention on Faustus and watched Lexi glide across the room toward the man. A tinge of jealousy bloomed in his gut, and he pushed it down. Jake had no reason to be jealous. It wasn’t like they were really married, and she was only going to dance with the lanky creep to find out whatever information she could. Still, as much as he tried to fight the green-eyed monster, it grew.
The one thing he didn’t like was the look on Mr. Maheras’s face when Lexi announced that they were married. He hated feeling like he’d broken his promise, and despite what he’d said, there was a shadow of guilt. He was protecting Lexi, but perhaps marrying her was going too far.
His phone rang, and he quickly ducked out of the room and onto the empty balcony. The summer air was still a little too warm for most of the people there. After a few years in Iraq, he’d come to enjoy the heat. He put the phone to his ear and said, “Hey, Noah.”
Noah Wolf was a fellow CO in the Rangers. Jake met him only a few times while he was in the army. A year after Jake’s discharge, Noah found himself in the same position. He’d taken it hard, and Jake felt oddly connected to the man. He understood what Noah was going through, and by way of their common ground, they’d become good friends.
Then Noah met up with a woman named Pamela Williams. Her husband was killed in a drive-by shooting, and she was left with a fortune. She’d approached Noah about using his talents to help people who needed it. Pamela offered Jake employment along with Noah, but Jake had politely refused. Yet, somehow, Noah always managed to find him work.
“Hey, Jake, you wanted me to look into this Faustus guy?”
“Yeah, since you’re the one who roped me into this.” Jake turned his back to the yard and watched the ballroom through the closed glass doors.
Noah snorted. “It’s not like I forced you to take the job. I just wanted to you to meet with the man. You were adamant that you wouldn’t take the job.”
“Yeah, well, we see how that worked out now, don’t we?”
“You never did tell me what convinced you to take the job.”
Jake leaned back against the railing and crossed his feet at the ankles. “I felt like she might be in danger, and I met the other bodyguards. Good guys, all skilled, but none of them were taking things seriously. She’s…different.”
“You mean a knockout?”
“Intelligent and kind. She’s a good person.”
“Do you have a crush on your assignment?” Noah chuckled.
Jake rolled his eyes. “No, I don’t. You asked what made me accept the assignment, and I told you. What do you have on Faustus?”
“Nice sidestep, bud.”
“Thanks, I learned it from you.”
Noah took a deep breath. “This guy gives the appearance of being a dandy with a vegetable IQ, but he’s not. I haven’t found anything on him, and if he was stupid, I would have. I did notice that your sealed records were pulled.”
Jake straightened. “My records?”
“Yeah, but it looks like it was someone within the army, so I can’t pin it on Faustus. Have you spoken to anyone recently?”
“No, that part of my life is over. I don’t have any contact with most of the people I knew. And the little contact I do have, they don’t speak about my discharge.”
“Okay, well, someone’s pulled your file. Just be aware.”
“Thanks. Anything else?”
“No, I wish I had news. Something, anything, to give you, but I don’t. This guy knows how to cover his tracks, and you need to be careful.”
The hair on the back of Jake’s neck stood on end. “Hold on.” He turned around and surveyed the grounds. When he didn’t see anyone, he dismissed the feeling as paranoia. “It felt like someone was watching me.”
“Are you clear?”
“Yeah, I’m clear. I packed the SUV in the garage with luggage, and I have a go vehicle stashed a few miles from here to switch into.”
“You’ve got your badge?”
“Yeah, both of them. Just in case.”
“If something happens, get to Houston. I’ll come for ya.”
“Thanks, Noah. I’ll catch you later, man.” Jake slipped the phone back in his pocket, and he stepped back into the ballroom.
Lexi was dancing with Faustus, but by the look on her face, she wanted to be doing anything but.
Jake strode across the room and stopped next to them, tapping Faustus on the shoulder. “May I cut in? I haven’t had the pleasure of dancing with my wife this evening.”
Lexi smiled. “Yes, you can.” She disentangled herself from Faustus and stepped closer to Jake. “Thank you for the lovely dance, Faustus.”
The man eyed her and then leveled his gaze at Jake. “Be sure she knows you’re leading; otherwise, your feet will be sorry.” Then he walked away like he’d thrown the best jab of the night.
Jake took Lexi by the waist and set her f
eet on top of his. “Huh, my feet feel fantastic. Perhaps his are little too sensitive.”
She laughed and took her feet off of his. “Thank you, and thank you for rescuing me. He’s a jerk.”
“I picked up on that.” Jake grinned. “Did you learn anything?”
With a shrug, she shook her head. “Not really. He just kept asking me about our marriage. When, where, who…that kind of thing. But I kept trying to redirect questions back to him. Had he been seeing anyone? Did he miss his father? That type of thing.”
“I see.”
“I tried speaking to my papa, but Faustus was there like a parrot on a pirate the entire time. It was like he was too afraid to let my papa and me have a moment. Like my papa would divulge something without Faustus’s permission.” She looked up at Jake, and his breath caught. Her eyes were filled with tears, and he wanted nothing more than to ease her worry.
He pulled her closer as they danced. “We’ll figure this out; I promise. I won’t let Faustus or anyone else hurt you. I made a promise I intend to keep.”
“Thank you.”
As the music played, they fell into a rhythm, and he found himself enjoying the feel of her in his arms. He’d liked her the moment he’d met her some six months ago, but being this close for an extended period of time was having an effect on him that he found confusing.
He’d never felt a pull toward anyone he’d protected, and he’d protected plenty of attractive women. But Lexi Maheras had thrown him. She was fascinating to him. As he’d escorted her to class, study groups, and trips to the library, he found that she had an incredible gift with people. She had a way of speaking to people that soothed them. A kindness that seemed to exude from so far within that she glowed.
“Jake?” Lexi’s voice pierced through his thoughts.
“I’m sorry.”
Her smile lit up her face, and his pulse raced. “I was asking if you were enjoying yourself. I know these people have been rude to you.”
The Bodyguard's Fake Marriage (Sweet Fake Marriage Romance Book 3) Page 3