“Are you sure?”
“I love you, Reid. I have for so long. I want nothing more than you to be my first and only.”
Reid had leapt up and quickly pulled on his shirt. “The first time we make love won’t be on the hard ground. Come on, let’s get home.”
They had frantically raced across the fields together. Mallory had never been as happy as she had been this summer. She and Elle spent the afternoons together, but her nights belonged to Reid. They had talked, gone on dates, and of course made out at every possible moment. When she told him she was a virgin, he’d never pushed the issue. He had told her she was the only one who could decide when and to whom to give that gift. And tonight, she had decided.
The second the front door to the plantation slammed shut, Reid pulled her tight against him. He slid his arm down behind her knees and swept her up. Mallory wrapped her arms around his neck as he carried her up the stairs. Using his foot, he shut the bedroom door and walked across the room, looking down at her with love in his eyes. She knew she had made the right decision. They were destined for each other.
Reid gently set her down in the middle of her antique four-poster bed. Slowly he stripped off his clothes, rolled on a condom, and crawled into bed. He lay next to her as his fingers teased her buttons free. He gently pulled the clothes from her body, and Mallory could only moan as his fingers did oh so much to her.
“I love you now and forever,” Reid pledged as he kissed her.
Her body heated, and when he thrust inside, the pain was so brief she hardly noticed. Instead she breathed him in. The sounds, the scents, and the love engulfed them. She lost herself in the new feel and soon the grips of an orgasm had her crying out.
She looked up at Reid as she breathed heavily. He had his forearms braced on each side of her head and slowly bent his head to kiss her. She felt his movements grow erratic before he ripped his lips from hers and tossed his head back.
“Mallory!” he rumbled as he came.
He blinked as if he were coming back down to earth and covered her face with kisses. “Come to Europe with me.”
“What?” Mallory asked with a giggle.
“I'm in a study-abroad program. I found out today I was accepted. I leave in one week for Switzerland. Come with me. With your connections, you could easily get into the same school. We could be together in Europe for a whole year.” Reid pushed her hair back from her face and kissed the tip of her nose.
“I’m sorry, young man, but my daughter isn’t going anywhere with you.”
Mallory’s head shot up, almost hitting Reid. She felt all the blood drain from her face. “Daddy!”
“Just what in the hell do you think you are doing?” her father hissed. “Do you have any idea how badly you’ve messed up? Now get up and put yourself together. I have Ambrose downstairs waiting to meet you, and you’re up here playing the common strumpet for this . . . this nobody!”
Mallory felt her mouth open to defend them, but she couldn’t find any words. Anger and humiliation rendered her mute. Reid stood and didn’t bother to hide himself. Instead, he made sure Mallory was protected. While her father was in good shape for a man his age, he was no match for Reid. Her father simply narrowed his eyes and put his hands in the pockets of his expensive three-piece suit.
“You think you can intimidate me, young man? I run this whole damn country. Some hooligan like you isn’t going to cause me to blink an eye. Get dressed and get the hell out of here. And use the back door. That’s the only door you’re good enough for. As for you, young lady . . .”
“As for her, she’s coming with me. We’re going to go to Switzerland, and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Her father laughed so coldly it gave Mallory chills. “Downstairs there is a young man from an impeccable family waiting to meet Mallory. He is wealthy, went to the best university, and has connections with more than the local jail, unlike you. They will date while she is at college, during which time he will work for me. Upon graduation, he will ask her to marry him. She will say yes and will become the First Lady of this great country by the time she’s thirty-five. Now, tell me, what can you offer her?”
“Love. That’s more than you’ve ever offered her.” Reid turned and looked at her. He held out his hand. “Take my hand, Mallory. We can be married in Europe. You’ll have a family who loves you and a husband who will work every day of his life to deserve you and to give you everything you’ve ever dreamed of.”
Mallory stared at Reid’s hand. The deep love he had for her shone brightly in his eyes. But then she looked at her father. His face was calm, only the lines around his mouth showing his displeasure.
“Mallory, you will get dressed right this instant. I’ll forget this ever happened. And so will you. All Mr. Simpson here will give you is pain. Do you really think he’ll be able to keep you in the lifestyle you are accustomed to? Do you think he’ll manage to make anything of his life? He’s just like his old man—a dreamer with no sense of reality.”
Reid spun on her father. “How dare you! My father is the best man I know. If I’m half the man he is, then I’ll be proud of my accomplishments. He’s certainly not a silver-spooned bastard who thinks we should all kneel before his greatness. But he has dragged himself out of a tough life with the love and support of his family—something you know nothing about. Mallory, come on, we’re leaving.”
Mallory swallowed and wrapped the sheet around her. She would have her trust fund when she was thirty-five. She didn’t need all the things she had grown accustomed to. All she needed was Reid. She stood up, and Reid shot her father a victorious smile. Her father stepped into the room and blocked her from reaching Reid. She had never confronted her father before. She had never needed to because he was never around. But she loved Reid. She’d die inside without him.
Her father bent his head and whispered into her ear, “If you leave, I will destroy him. He will be kicked out of college, and his father will be audited by the IRS and the SEC for starters. I’ll have their mortgages and loans called in and his sisters blacklisted from every college in this country. I’ll bring down the full power of every committee I’m on to send that family not only back across the railroad tracks to where they belong, but to jail as well. Do you understand me?”
Mallory swayed on her feet and felt a weight on her chest pressing until her heart broke. She gave a slight nod of her head before her eyes filled with tears.
“I’m sorry, Reid. I can’t go with you. My duty is to my family.”
Reid paused as he buttoned his jeans. “Mallory, you don’t mean that. We love each other. We don’t need anything else. I promise you, I will love you and take care of you. I’ll make you happy,” he pleaded to her.
Mallory died in that moment. It was as if her soul had left her body and was looking at this scene from above. She was numb, empty. “I’m sorry, Reid. I’m so sorry. I need you to leave.”
“And never come back,” her father whispered. “If he ever comes back into your life, I will annihilate him and his entire family. Do you understand me, Mallory? End this now.”
“What is he saying to you?” Reid asked. “It doesn’t matter. He’s just manipulating you. Mallory, what can he do if we leave together? He’ll cut you off. Fine. I can take care of you. Let me love you. Let me cherish you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Mallory, come with me now, please,” Reid begged.
“I’m sorry, Reid. My father is right. It would never work with an upstart like you. You’ll never amount to anything. This was just a fling to cross off my list. Every girl loves the bad boy, right? But, she doesn’t marry him.”
Mallory didn’t move as she watched Reid’s heart breaking. Her face was blank even though she wanted to rush to him, to tell him she was doing this to protect him. She wanted to beg him to wait for her—wait until she was thirty-five and came into possession of all the land and money her grandmother left her. Even if her father did what he threatened, she could protect his whole family with her inheritance. There was enough in her trust for all of them to live with her. However, thirty-five was a lifetime away.
“Do you mean that?” Reid asked, his voice suddenly so very small.
“Yes. I mean it. It was fun while it lasted, but you and I both know I was destined for things larger than being your wife. You’ve known the plans for me, and you know they can’t include you.”
Mallory implored him with her eyes to see the hidden meaning in her words, but Reid suddenly couldn’t look at her. He slid his T-shirt on over his head and walked out of the room. He didn’t look back.
“Reid,” Mallory gasped as she fell to the floor at her father’s feet. She couldn’t breathe. She tried to gulp in the air as her world spun out of control. The sharp crack of her father’s hand against her face made her blink the world back into focus—her father’s angry face front and center.
“Stop being so dramatic. Get dressed and do your job. I’ll meet you downstairs.”
“I hate you,” she stated with no feeling. Her emotions were gone. Her heart was frozen and her body numb.
“You’ll see this is for the best. That boy will never amount to a hill of beans.”
“And if he does, I’ll love every minute of it. But I’ll never love you. And I’ll never marry some preppy mama’s boy just because you want me to. No, I gave you this win to protect the Simpsons, but I’ll never do anything for you again.”
CHAPTER ONE
Keeneston, Kentucky, Current Day . . .
Mallory Westin, president of Westin Security, stepped from the private jet that had flown to Atlanta to pick her up. With every step she took, she fell deeper into the past she had tried to forget. The solitary figure in black who stood in the night waiting for her was the man who had made her who she was today. He had picked her up, dusted her off, and given her a way to forget Reid and her father.
He didn’t move as she walked toward him. His slightly tanned Middle Eastern skin and black hair with a sprinkling of gray blended into his black suit as he stood in the shadows waiting. He didn’t smile, but one of the world’s most dangerous men didn’t need to.
“Twice in one year,” Mallory quipped. She’d seen him the previous summer while on a job in Hung Island, Georgia, eight years after they had last seen each other.
He simply raised an eyebrow in response.
“You know how to sweep a girl off her feet with your pretty words. Now, why did you summon me to Kentucky?” Mallory asked.
“I have come across some information I thought you would want.”
“I gave up the cloak-and-dagger world a long time ago, Ahmed.”
Ahmed Mueez didn’t bat an eye. He knew she would give in. No one said no to the Prince of Rahmi’s head of security and lived to tell about it. It didn’t matter that he was retired, married, and father to a young girl now. From what she had heard, his wife was just as much a badass as he was. She felt sorry for the men who would come calling on his daughter as she grew up. Ahmed was beyond good-looking. He was “blessed by the devil,” as her grandmother used to say. He was dark, mysterious, and sexy as hell. The price you would pay for a night with someone like him was more than her good Southern delicacies could bear to think of.
Mallory let out an exaggerated sigh. “Fine. Tell me more.”
“Nabi, the man who replaced me as head of security, is an expert digger. He came across some information that affects you directly. There is a world summit in Europe tomorrow. The who’s who of the international political and charitable scene will be there. It’s the Prince of Stromia’s pet project and whatever he wants, he gets. It’s a summit on renewable energy followed by a huge charity gala for saving endangered species that night.”
“It’s been a decade since I’ve been in Stromia. The Playboy Prince was what, twenty-seven then? I’ve read he hasn’t changed at all. But he gets lots of action by playing the charity card.”
“So, you’ve been keeping up with the world news, have you? I thought you said you were out of the business.” She heard a hint of amusement in her former mentor’s voice.
“Just staying current in politics.”
“Good. You’ll need it. Mallory Westin, international party girl, needs to reappear. I need you to get information on Prince Liam and everyone he deals with.”
Mallory shook her head. “I left that life behind me.”
“I’m not the only one asking. President Nelson is requesting this as a personal favor.”
“The election is just a couple months away, and then she won’t be president anymore. Why does it matter to her?”
“Because she doesn’t want an assassination to ruin her legacy,” Ahmed stated.
“Whose assassination?”
“We don’t know. One of the presidential candidates.”
“My father is running for president with Ambrose Childs as his VP. Is he in danger?” Mallory asked. Her body was frozen in place. She didn't want to care. But no matter how much she hated him, he was still her father.
“We don’t know. It could be one of them, or it could be someone from Easton Graham’s campaign. The governor and Senator Malcolm Orson are neck and neck in the polls with your father and Ambrose.”
Mallory blinked. Her mind was running a mile a minute. “So, either my father and Ambrose are in danger of being killed, or someone was hired to kill Easton and maybe Orson as well?”
Ahmed nodded. “The information Nabi found points to this summit as the payoff to set the wheels in motion for the assassination.”
“How does this affect Rahmi and bring you into it?”
“I’m not officially in it. President Nelson is going off the books with this. She knows Rahmi is of the same mindset as she is in their dealings with Stromia. To say Liam and King Dirar are enemies is an understatement. As you know, Liam is corrupt, reckless, and only concerned about furthering his own personal agenda. King Dirar has refused to meet with him and called him out at the United Nations for his misuse of power. It would be in Rahmi’s national interest to see The Playboy Prince discredited and possibly prevented from taking the throne with proof of his illegal activities. His first cousin is a good man who is acknowledged as a better option for Stromia both nationally and internationally.”
“You want a revolution?”
“Revolution, no. Diplomatic change of leadership, yes. Both President Nelson and King Dirar will support it. Handing off payment is scheduled during this summit. You need to be there in your old role. Liam will be happy to see you again.”
Mallory took a deep breath. “Where is this summit?”
“At the Luxus in Stromia,” Ahmed said before crossing his arms and waiting.
Mallory hesitated. “Reid’s luxury hotel and casino?”
“Can you handle that?”
“Of course I can. The opening for his resort in Atlanta is next week. A charity event is planned to launch the official opening. I’m sure he’ll be in Georgia prepping for it.”
Mallory tried to calm herself as Ahmed reached into the nearby car and produced a thick folder. He handed it to her, and the familiar feeling of being on the job came rushing back. She flipped through the information and closed the file.
“Rekindle my fake romance with Liam and stop the assassination. It’s nice to feel wanted again. Will I have backup?”
“Limited. The CIA director is filled in. Of course, he didn’t want to reactivate you, but President Nelson didn’t give him much choice. Bowie will be your handler.”
Mallory rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Couldn’t the CIA director give me someone who wasn’t such a flirt?”
Ahmed shrugged. “It’ll work for your cover. Heiress gone wild has worked before; it’ll work again.”
“No one will buy that. I’m thirty-four, for crying out loud. How about husband-hunting heiress?”
“That could work. Liam is a catch, and so is Bowie for that matter. He’s known as a bad boy on the party scene so he would naturally be drawn to you. Now come up with the background on what you’ve been doing for the last eight years, and let me know.” Ahmed handed her a cell phone. “It’s encrypted. It has my number and Bowie’s.”
“Is that it?” Mallory asked.
“I’ve trained you well, Mallory. You’ll be fine. If you feel you are in danger, I want you out. I don’t give a damn about the CIA or the president. I want you out. Just walk away.” Ahmed held out a small briefcase. “Weapons, emergency cash, and identities are inside.”
“Let’s hope espionage is like riding a bike,” Mallory said sarcastically as she took the briefcase.