She nervously eyed a cluster of people near the front entrance, most of whom wielded big cameras. Dont make a fuss, she hissed.
Too late, he retorted. Im making as big a fuss as I damn well feel like. And you are not going anywhere else in this hotel until I say so.
I have to go see Stella. Shes the head costume designer, she insisted. Shes expecting me.
Youre not seeing anybody until you and I get a few things straight, he replied grimly.
Her eyes snapped and sparks all but flew off her, singeing his fingertips.
She bit out, Lets get this straight. Im the boss. I say where I go and when, and you follow along like a good employee and do as youre told. You dont make public scenes in front of tabloid reportersof which there are a dozen behind me, right now, her voice rose slightly in volume, and you dont do anything to embarrass me. Got that? She actually had the temerity to poke him in his chest for good measure.
He was so aggravated he could strangle her right then and there. He scowled down at her and loomed even more assertively. I am not your employee. I work for your father. Youre under my protection, and youll damn well do what I tell you to do when I tell you to do it and how I tell you to do it. Have you got that?
She blanched. You and methis is never going to work.
His jaw clenched. Im entirely inclined to agree with you.
If hate at first sight was possible, this was it. The woman drove him crazy, and hed known her for two minutes.
He became aware of a surge of movement behind her. The paparazzi had apparently noticed their altercation and were closing in like a pack of hungry hyenas. He swore under his breath. Men in his line of work despised the press almost as much as the public figures they protected did. The last thing he needed was to have his face splashed all over the front pages of the tabloids.
Lets get out of here, he muttered at Silver.
Ya think? she snapped back.
Hey, Silver! one of the reporters shouted. Did you hear that the Tears of the Quetzal is in police custody?
Another piped up. Yeah. Luke Montgomerys fiancée found it in her purse. Do you believe that story?
Austin frowned. What were these guys talking about? He opened his mouth to ask Silver, but just then, someone moved forward out of the crowd of reporters, jumping abruptly toward her. Austin registered dark hair and a black, burning gaze, a uniform of some kind. Something about the set of the mans shoulders, the intensity of concentration in his eyes set off warning bells in Austins head. Time slowed as the guy lunged in Silvers direction, and Austin went into high threat mode. If hed told his men once, hed told them a thousand times, dont question your instincts. Act first. Ask questions later.
The guy lowered his shoulder and rammed it into Silver, spinning her around as their bodies collided. Hard. Dear God. The guy had an open shot at stabbing or shooting her at point-blank range in a vital organ! Austin went airborne, flinging himself full length through the air for Silver.
He wrapped his arms around her in a move worthy of the NFL. His momentum knocked her off her feet. While they were still airborne, he twisted to cover her with his much larger body. He released her at the last moment before they hit the floor, catching most of his body weight with his arms so he didnt crush her.
An explosion of flashbulbs went off nearby.
Austin twisted to look for the assailant, and the guy was rushing past, his right shoulder hunched to hide his face from Austin.
And then the strangest thing happened.
A wave of heat passed over Austin, a tangible thing tingling across his skin. He saw flashes of purple and green behind his eyelids, brilliant, jeweled prisms of color momentarily blinding him. His blood rushed, pounding in his ears until frantic thumping was all he heard. Suddenly he became intensely aware of the feminine softness below him, molding to every contour of his body as if shed been made for him. Oh, yeah. A promise of sex, hot and sweaty enough to boggle the mind, pored off her.
Silver looked up at him, her gorgeous eyes wide with surprise, fear and something else. Somethingaware. Of him. As a man.
Their gazes locked and nothing short of unbridled lust roared between them. All that friction of a few seconds ago had abruptly morphed into something so steamy it set him on fire. She looked ready to come apart in his hands. In fact, a moan slipped out of her throat that was all about raging pleasure. Unseen by the press, her hips undulated beneath his, and he realized his male flesh was so hard he was in danger of busting his trouser zipper.
He swore under his breath.
Her pupils dilated until her eyes were nearly black with raw need. He wasnt in any better shape, himself. Small problem: he was the bodyguard, and a whole bunch of cameras were very publicly recording every second of this.
You okay? he muttered.
She nodded, looking shell-shocked.
Ill get up first, then Ill help you to your feet and pull you behind me. Keep my body between you and the photographers, okay?
She nodded again.
He started a quick push-up when a voice shouted from nearby, Get the hell off my girlfriend!
Austin came smoothly to his feet and turned to face this new threat. A beefy guy a little shy of six feet tall was barreling toward them. Austin assessed the threat in an instant. More beer gut than muscle. Had barroom brawled just enough to think he was a hotshot, but lacked the balance of a trained fighter. This guy would use bluster and bullying to hide his actual lack of physical skill. A lot of noise, but not a lot of true threat.
Austin reached down and lifted Silver, as light as a feather, to her feet. He tucked her protectively against his side away from the cameras. The paparazzi had already turned their lenses on the loudmouth, and predictably, he was preening for them.
Who the hell are you? Austin growled.
Im Mark Sampson. Bluster Boy jabbed a finger toward Silver. Her boyfriend. And take your hands off her, jerk wad.
Jerk wad? He hadnt been called that since junior high. Austin allowed his amusement to show on his face. Interestingly enough, Silver huddled more closely against his side, making no move to distance herself from him in front of this boyfriend of hers. Most women would be leaping away from another man, especially with a hotheaded idiot like that for a boyfriend.
Sampson bristled. Get away from her before I make you do it.
A new round of flashes exploded. He could see the headline now. Brawl Over Pop Singer. He sighed. Seemed as if he was getting off on the wrong foot with everyone on this assignment. But Bubba could damned well come and try to make him unwrap his arm from Silver, who was now trembling beneath his protective hug.
Please, she whispered frantically from beside him. Dont make a scene.
As if they hadnt already made a big scene? But then he glanced down at her. Abject terror shone in her face. She was really scared. For him? Surely not. For Bubba? Maybe. But that didnt feel right, either. What then? Did this have to do with her sisters murder and the unspoken reasons hed been hired to protect her in the first place?
He murmured under his breath, For you, I wont kick this guys ass right now. Lets get out of here, though.
Thatd be great, she murmured back gratefully.
He guided her toward the lobby. Or at least he started to guide her. Sampson stepped forward aggressively and blocked their way before theyd gone two steps. Get your hands off my girl!
Austin gave the guy a withering stare but spoke calmly enough. Ive been hired to protect Miss Rothchild. Im not making a move on your lady, so relax already. Youre making a scene and youre making Miss Rothchild uncomfortable.
If anything, Sampson got even redder in the face and swelled up into an even bigger bullfrog. Im her bodyguard! Now, for the last time, get away from her!
Sampson reached up and grabbed Austins hand, physically throwing it off Silvers shoulder. Were it not for the paparazzi eating this whole thing up, Austin wouldve ripped the guys arm off then and there. But as it was, Silver threw him a panicked look, and he didnt have the heart to make her any more miserable than she already was.
He took a step away from her. But not before murmuring, Im going to go talk to the hotel security guys for a few minutes, and then Ill meet you at the costume ladys office. Dont leave the hotel without me, okay?
She nodded, trust shining in her eyes. He didnt question it, nor did he examine too closely the surge of protectiveness that bubbled up in his chest. He just knew that something big had happened between them, lying together on the floor a few moments ago.
Sampson elbowed him aside, and Austin stepped back readily, without giving the guy the satisfaction of a response. The paparazzi closed in on Silver and Sampson like a pack of sharks in a feeding frenzy. Austin frowned. Sampson ought to be doing something to keep them back. It was a blatant breach of personal security to let that many strangers surround a subject so closely. But the guy seemed more interested in getting his own arm around Silvers shoulders and posing for pictures than in keeping his girlfriend safe. The pair stepped out onto the front steps of the casino and paused again for another round of pictures. Sampson seemed acutely aware of the best lighting and camera angles for the paparazzi and more than happy to give the press exactly what it needed.
Austin shook his head. Surely guarding celebrities wasnt that different from guarding heads of state. No matter how famous and camera-worthy a subject was, no self-respecting bodyguard let would their principal stand still in an exposed position like those steps for this long.
And why wasnt the guys gaze scanning the area in search of possible threats at a minimum? Bubba was supposed to be her bodyguard! Silver actually looked eager to goand if he wasnt mistaken, it was Sampson holding her back. No bodyguard would physically stop their subject to pose for the press! It was insane! What kind of training had this guy
A fast-moving target hurtled out of the shadows off to one side of the lobby toward the front door.
Silver and Sampson had their backs to the attacker!
Austin lurched into motion, sprinting for all he was worth. But his heart sank even as his thighs churned frantically, propelling him forward. He was too far away to save her. Time slowed as the horror of an attack on his principal unfolded before him. He couldnt get between her and the attacker in time. Her beautiful eyes, her smile, her soft body beneath his flashed helplessly through his minds eye.
He opened his mouth to scream at Sampson to throw himself on top of her.
But it was too late.
The deafening report of a gunshot exploded in the lobby.
Chapter 4
Silver froze as the world went mad around her. She registered a flash of motion. A shout of warning from behind. And then an explosion of noise so loud it made her teeth hurt. A giant sheet of glass crashed down a few feet behind her, showering her with shards of exploding glass.
People screamed and were running and ducking and falling everywhere. She didnt know what to do. Everyone around her melted away, leaving her standing all by herself in a sea of glass, marble and glittering chrome. The torrent of crystal prisms fell like rain around her, each with its own rainbow of slivered light trapped within it. So pretty. The thought floated through her head, completely detached from reality.
Mark was a dozen feet away, cursing at the top of his lungs. He was turning in circles, as if he was looking for somewhere to run and hide but couldnt decide which way to go.
And then something hit her from behind. It felt like a freight train had just slammed into her at seventy miles per hour. It drove her to the ground, face first, crushing her in darkness and suffocating weight. Panic struck her then. She couldnt breathe! She had to run! To get out of here, away from this insanity. To protect her baby!
Let me up! she tried to scream. It came out no more than a breathy gasp devoid of sound.
Are you hit? a deep voice asked sharply in her ear.
Austin. A wave of relief washed over her, so powerful and warm it nearly made her faint. I dont think so.
He shouted from above her, Sampson! Clear the lobby! Set up suppression around the exterior perimeter so the subject can be evacuated!
Huh? Mark obviously didnt have the slightest idea what Austin had just told him to do.
Violent swearing erupted in her left ear, much of it dealing with Marks questionably human parentage and complete lack of training. Then Austin was giving her instructions, urgent and low. Were getting up and running like hell. Were gonna zigzag back and forth so the gunman has less of a shot at you.
Gunman? Gunman? Was that what that noise had been? A gunshot? Ohmigod.
Lets go! Austin bit out.
All of a sudden his bulk was gone, replaced by light and air and an awful sense of exposure that made her want to curl up in a little ball with her hands over her head and never move again. But then Austin was pulling at her, yanking her to her feet. She managed to stay vertical and keep up with his zigzagging run until they burst out from under the covered overhang into the blistering late afternoon sun. Austin paused, looking around quickly.
Hey! Let go of her!
Mark again.
Give it up, Bubba. You dont know a damn thing about being a bodyguard. Get out of my way before you get your girlfriend killed. Let me do my job. Austin sounded like hed about had it with Mark.
Austin was dragging her forward again, toward a long, black stretch limo parked on the far side of the sweeping circular drive.
Thats it, pretty boy! Mark shouted. You and me, right here, right now
Shut the hell up, Sampson. And with that, Austin yanked open the back door of the limo and surprisingly gently pushed her inside. Her heel caught on the thick carpet and she stumbled, landing on her knees on the carpeted floor as something big blocked the light behind her. The door slammed shut, and yet again, Austin banged into her.
Oomph, she grunted as she went down on her side.
The glass panel between them and the driver was sliding down. A pale, shocked face stared at them from under a chauffeurs cap.