by Sienna Snow
“Okay, I have to go. Neya is glaring at me and has a spray bottle and a comb to make me look presentable.”
“Good luck.” I laughed and the tension of the second earlier disappeared. “Ashur?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll see you in a few. I’ll be the girl wearing enough jewelry to blind everyone in sight and expensive enough to fund a small country for ten years.”
“I’m sure you’ll look beautiful, Commander.”
We hung up and I closed my eyes.
I was doing the right thing by not getting his hopes up, by not telling him I wanted to make it real. Then why did I feel like shit?
Because it’s not him you’re protecting, it’s you.
At that moment, Jacinta walked in with a tray of shots and set them on a table near me. “Dear God. You’re beautiful.”
“Thank you.” I gave her a weary smile.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nerves.” It wasn’t a complete lie but a believable one.
“Here, take one, but don’t fuck up your lipstick or Walter will kick our asses.”
I took the shot of tequila she handed me and then downed it in one gulp.
“Give me another.”
Just as I reached for more liquid courage, Samina entered my dressing room. She had Mira cocked on her side, while the little angel cooed and played with the necklace on her mother’s neck.
“Woman, you’re pregnant,” Samina said, shifting Mira from one hip to the other. “Do you know the shit the press will say if they get a picture of a very pregnant Senator Camden-George with alcohol?”
“Probably something like my conservative morals have been swayed by marrying a liberal.” Jacinta gave Sam a nonchalant wave and took a seat in an empty chair next to me.
She tugged at the material along her very large belly and then rubbed her stomach. She was gorgeous on a normal day with her long, always well-groomed blond hair, Amazon height, and supermodel features, but pregnant she glowed.
“You make it look so easy.” I leaned over grabbed a bottle of water and sucked through the straw Walter had put in it so I wouldn’t ruin my lipstick. Hopefully he wouldn’t make a surprise inspection and find the shot glass on the counter. “In fact, both of you do. I don’t think either of you has complained about nausea or morning sickness.”
“Just you wait. I’ve never seen you do anything without rocking any endeavor. Pregnancy won’t be any different.” Jacinta reached out, plucked the bottle from my fingers, and then took a sip.
“From your lips to God’s ears.”
I had a feeling when my time came I wouldn’t be so lucky.
“Why are we talking about babies? You have to get married first.” Samina pulled her necklace out of Mira’s mouth and handed her a teething ring. “She might be knocked up now. Especially since she’s been secretly going at it with my brother the whole time.”
Well, hell. Let’s tell the world I was boning Ashur.
Bitch.
“Cat got your tongue?” Sam smirked.
Before I could respond, Casey walked in, signaling that it was time for the wedding.
Chapter Eleven
The next few hours were a blur.
I remembered walking down the aisle, the feel of goosebumps prickling my skin when Ashur took my hand and whispered, “You’re mine,” and the chaste but potent kiss at the end of the ceremony. After that, I felt like I was living in someone else’s body. I couldn’t remember how many people I met or the number of photos I’d taken.
I should have expected the chaos of hours upon hours of conversation, hugs, and well wishes. I dealt with people all day, many of them celebrities, but living the life of one was overwhelming. Thankfully, I’d changed out of my thirty-pound lengha and put on a lighter-weight, more modern dress that resembled a high-fashion American wedding gown with Indian embroidered accents. It had allowed me to move freely and gave me a slight bit of comfort.
Ashur, on the other hand, seemed calm and watchful. He’d smiled and interacted but his mind was occupied. I could tell he wanted to slip away to take care of business multiple times over the night. He’d kept me by his side, contently touching me or holding my hand. It was as if he needed me to ground him. Around the time the majority of the guests had left, he’d slipped away for some last-minute meetings. But not before he’d laid a mind-blowing kiss on me that had a caused a stir and a round of applause.
Now I was sitting inside Air Force One waiting for Ashur and surrounded by security. This was not how I ever expected to go on my honeymoon. It would have been lower key, with less press, and anonymity.
Then again, that dream of marriage had died the day I’d left Houston for Boston.
God, how had I ended up here, married to the man who’d made me swear off marriage and happily ever after?
I laughed to myself, gaining curious looks from some of the agents. Ignoring them, I stared out the window at the empty tarmac. Well, with the exception of all the military and security personnel monitoring the plane.
“Mrs. Kumar,” Jake, the agent Casey had assigned as my personal security, said from my side.
The fine hairs on the back of my neck prickled. Holy Shit, I was no longer Tara Zain. I was Tara Zain Kumar. The First Lady of the United States.
“President Kumar said he apologizes for the delay and will be a few more minutes.”
“Thank you.”
Twenty minutes later, when Ashur finally arrived on the plane, there was worry and uncertainty etched all over his face. I wanted to go to him, find some way to comfort him or at least ask him if I could do anything. But stopped when Veer and Tyler came on board. Veer handed Ashur a stack of papers and began to talk.
Tyler came toward me with a bleak look in his eyes told me something was wrong.
Oh God. Something had happened with Ameera.
“Have a good time on your vacation, T-Rex,” Tyler said in his pretentious happy Louisiana gentile twang. The one I’d told him sounded like a Southern used car salesman. Then he walked over to me and gave me a hug.
“Everything is in place. Once you get home, we’ll prep for the auction.”
“What about the leads on Ameera?”
“We think she is in Pakistan in the same area where the girls were held two years ago.”
“I supposed it was too much to hope that we’d have an exact location. There’s no telling where in the mountains they are holding Ame.”
“The second they pinpoint her, I will notify you.” A dangerous gleam entered his eyes.
“Don’t do anything until I get back. You can’t take the risk.”
“Yes, Commander.”
I glared at him. “I mean it, Tyler. I know you’ll want to go in guns blazing, but right now too many people are watching you.”
“You’re still the boss, Tara. At least for this operation anyway. You’re lead and I’ll take orders from you. Besides, I’m hoping you change your mind and keep me from taking over a job that could be viewed as treason.”
I rolled my eyes. “Unless you sell government secrets to another nation, I think you’re safe.”
“I’m serious. You don’t have to quit. There is a clause that gives you the option to change your mind.”
“Who told you?”
“No one. I signed the same contract. The board refuses to let any of their agents go without a fight.”
“It’s not their decision.”
“No, it’s yours. Make sure you’re making the right choice for you, not for who you think you should be.”
“Ty,” I whispered. “All I’ve ever known is Solon. But I know as well as you do that I can’t have a life with Ashur if I’m helping break the laws he’s sworn to uphold. I have to protect him and his presidency. And the best way to do this is by not being any more of a liability than I already am.”
“All I ask is that you don’t make any rash decisions you’ll wish you hadn’t later.”
The problem was that I’d regret not giving Ashur and
I a chance if I stayed in Solon.
“When have I ever made a decision without thinking it through?”
At my words, Tyler gave me his “are you serious?” look and gestured to the area around us. “Would you be here if you thought through your relationship with Ashur?”
“It was a lot more rational than you believe.”
“Keep lying to yourself. I know why you agreed to marry him. Do you?”
I swallowed, glancing at Ashur, who was still engrossed in his conversation with Veer.
“Drop it,” I ordered.
“Fine. We have enough shit to worry about besides your refusal to admit you’re still in love with Ashur.”
I clenched my jaw.
“I really want to punch you right now.”
A grin crossed Tyler’s face. “Too bad you have to be prim and proper now that you’re the first lady.”
“Whatever,” I muttered. “I’m heading to a cabin in the woods. There is nothing prim and proper about it.”
“It’s still a vacation. Your first in years, if I remember correctly.”
“Pot, meet kettle,” I stated. “If you recall, my last vacation was with you and Ameera on that beach in the Maldives after the South African assignment.”
“I remember.” Tyler’s voice grew serious.
“Ty, why haven’t you ever told her how you feel?”
“Because she wasn’t ready to hear it.”
“So, you let her think this thing between you two was just sex?”
“It was never just sex.” He clenched his jaw. “She just refused to see it for anything else.”
I shook my head. “Once she’s home, it’s time you two had a long talk.”
“Oh, believe me. We are going to talk.”
I heard Ashur clear his throat and glanced over Tyler’s shoulder, catching Ashur watching us. Under the exhaustion in his eyes was a desire that had my body responding.
“Time to go, boys,” Ashur said as he continued to stare at me. “I’d like to leave before we have another crisis that needs my attention.”
Veer came up to me. “Have fun, T-Rex. Keep him in line. And don’t let him boss you around.”
I shot Tyler a glare. “You got him saying it too?”
Tyler shrugged and said, “It fits. Would you rather I have everyone say Commander?”
The fact I’d gotten the name during a mission when I’d punched a guy three times my size was something he’d never share, so it made me wonder what story he’d weaved for the nickname. That would be something else I’d have to ask him about after I returned.
I growled at him, “One day I’m going to make you pay.”
“Give it your best shot, shorty.”
I almost told him that I’d knocked him on his ass before and would do it again, but stopped myself.
“You two are like siblings. Sometimes I think you’re more his sister than Jaci.” Veer draped his arm around my shoulder. “Too bad for him, you belong to Sam and me. We knew you first, so we get to claim you.”
“Wrong. I knew her before you.” Ashur came up to my other side. “That means she belongs to me.”
His words triggered the memory of how we’d met. I’d come into Kumar Industries to have lunch with my father. I’d run into Ashur as I rushed out of the elevators on Dad’s floor. He’d helped me up and then carried the bags of food I’d brought to the floor’s break room.
He’d charmed me and had asked me out within five minutes. As an eighteen-year-old, I was totally enchanted by the older twenty-three-year-old. It wasn’t until my father had caught us walking down the hall that I realized I’d agreed to a date with the heir apparent of Kumar industries. It hadn’t mattered to me so we began to see each other. Our relationship had gone from casual dating to falling love and planning a future within months.
If it hadn’t been for Minesh Kumar’s interference, we’d have more than likely still been together. Sometimes I missed the naive girl who hadn’t realized love doesn’t conquer all. The old Tara had been so carefree and full of dreams. The kind I couldn’t imagine today. The ones with a thriving law practice, a husband who was head over heels in love with her, a home in suburbia, and at least four children.
“Care to get your hands off my wife?”
Veer dropped his arm and held his hand up. “Married less than a few hours and you’ve become a Neanderthal. Welcome to the club.”
“That’s what we men do when we find our women. It’s ingrained in our DNA,” Tyler added and then fist bumped both Ashur and Veer.
“I’ve got the Three Stooges here…” I rolled my eyes. “Why are you part of this exchange? You’re not even married yet.”
“Yet is the operative word,” Tyler countered.
“So, no luck convincing the pretty UN ambassador you want more than just in her pants?” Veer asked with a grin.
A dark look passed through Tyler’s eyes. “The second she’s back from her assignment, I’m going to lock her in a room and make it very clear where we stand.”
Okay, we couldn’t go there. Not with Ameera being God knew where.
“How the three of you convinced the voters you were progressive on women’s issues is beyond me.”
“There’s a difference between believing in equal pay, reproductive rights, and opportunities and wanting to keep another man’s fingers off my wife.”
I glowered at Ashur, who only grinned and set a hand on the small of my back, pulling me to his side and kissing the top of my head.
My heart skipped a beat. This man was breathtaking when he smiled. The shadows seemed to be lifting, and the tension Ashur walked onto the plane with appeared to have eased.
That was when I realized how genuinely deep the friendship between Tyler, Veer, and Ashur really was and that the silly banter had been deliberate.
If it wouldn’t have pissed off my caveman husband, I’d throw my arms around Veer and Tyler and give them both big kisses.
Aaron the flight attendant spoke from behind us. “Sir, the captain said we are ready to leave as soon as you are.”
“That’s your cue to get lost.” Ashur gestured toward the door and the service stairs. “Don’t start a war before I come back.”
“That’s your job, so don’t worry.” Veer smirked and left with Tyler right behind him.
Chapter Twelve
I shook awake, searching for something to grab onto. Gripping the textured fabric of the sofa armrest, I focused on the area around me.
I was alone in this part of the cabin. The staff was nowhere in sight and all I could hear was the rumble of voices behind the partition separating my section of the plane from the front half.
How long had I slept?
I checked my watch and realized it was close to midnight. We’d been flying for two and a half hours.
I guessed the exhaustion of the last few days had finally caught up to me.
The last thing I’d remembered was Ashur sitting next to me for takeoff. He hadn’t released my hand from the moment Veer and Tyler deplaned. It was as if he feared I’d leave.
I wasn’t the one he should worry about leaving. He was the one who would have to decide if he could live with what I’d spent most of my adult life doing. I only hoped he would understand that my work, even if some of it was illegal, had saved the lives of countless men, women, and children.
My gut told me he’d find out my involvement in Solon sooner rather than later.
God, please Ameera’s rescue go as planned.
So far everything was set for a week after we returned from Texas, but things could change in the blink of an eye.
It took all my will to resist the urge to pull out the secured phone I’d hidden in my clutch, log into the Solon network, and double check everything was going according to the logistics I’d laid out.
For now, the team was in a holding pattern, keeping an eye out for any changes but waiting for the auction. In a few hours the funds would transfer to the Swiss account I’d given Amee
ra’s captors, and Tyler would receive the access codes to enter next week’s auction.
My heart sank thinking of how Ashur’s money would give me the ability to free Ameera. He’d offered me his fortune when I’d agreed to marry him, but I’d never thought I’d actually have to use it. Now, I was no better than any other woman who married a man for his riches.
I uncurled myself and sat up, pushing the blanket covering me down to my lap.
Releasing a deep sigh, I stood and went toward the lavatory to freshen up. I quietly stepped around the partition, trying not to disturb the heavy discussion Ashur was engaged in with some of the Secret Service agents.
His short hair was a bit messy, telling me he’d run his fingers through it over and over again. His telltale sign that he was thinking through a difficult topic.
He was still sexy as hell even with the hard set of his jaw and lips.
I could almost feel his mouth on me. The kiss he’d given me at our reception had me craving more of his intoxicating taste.
Would I always feel this way?
Who was I kidding—it hadn’t waned in fifteen years. I doubted the attraction would ever stop.
A bit of turbulence shook the plane, making me realize I was dawdling. I took the hallway and walked into the bathroom.
The walls were a toasted beige with a scent of fresh paint and every fixture, from the faucets to the lights, was a styled oil-rubbed bronze. The space was big, almost five times the size of the lavatories on commercial jetliners.
The bathroom was designed to feel and look like a proper bathroom, including a shower. A luxury for the first family to enjoy when traveling.
Setting my toiletry bag on the counter, I washed my face, dried it, and then reapplied my makeup.
Just as I was finishing up, Ashur walked in and leaned against the door frame.
“Want to christen Air Force One?”
I scrunched my face in an “ew.” “Nope. Besides, I’m pretty sure all kinds of lewd things have been done on here in the past. I don’t want to add to it.”
He walked toward me and set an arm on either side of me, while staring at my lips. “Are you sure? The way I see it, my wife needs something and I want to give it to her.”
