The Prince's Forbidden Lover (The Samara Royal Family #3) (14 page)

He considered telling her about the phone calls he’d made last night, but he probably should reveal that little intervention once he had her in the store he owned.  She might be more forgiving at that point. 

“We leave in an hour,” he told her.

She spun around, her mouth hanging open as she processed that statement.  Fly to London in an hour?  She was stunned, shocked at the possibility of that kind of freedom. 

He misinterpreted her expression as he massaged shampoo into her hair.  “Leave the New York store to your assistant.  You need to look at the bigger picture.  It sounds as if you are too caught up in the minutiae to effectively grow your business.”  After rinsing out her shampoo, he took the conditioner and poured some in her hair.  “Trust me on this, Joline.  You need to delegate.  First of all, I’ve done a background check on your employees and you’ve hired excellent people.  Almost all of them want more responsibility.  If you don’t give it to them, they’ll go somewhere else.  And secondly, you have to decide if you want to be a manager or a director.”

His words rang true.  It was one of the reasons she’d hired several of the people for the New York store but that didn’t mean she wanted to release any of her control.  But he was right.  If she wanted Jeseks to grow, she needed the help of good staff members.  She needed to release control and delegate. 

His question was intriguing though.  She’d always thought that a manager and director were basically the same thing.  “There’s a difference?” she asked, leaning against him as he conditioned her hair, his strong fingers pressing against her skull and helping her relax.

“Definitely.  A manager runs the business.  A director grows the business.  Remember that,” he told her as he kissed her nose before pushing her backwards under the stream of water to rinse out her hair. 

As she pulled on clothes that had somehow been delivered from her apartment, she thought about what he’d said and she suspected that he was right.  She’d been so worried about getting all of the details right that she hadn’t had much time to think of the bigger picture, the higher level growth of the stores.  She’d done a good job of getting things going at the New York store, but now it was time to release the task of day to day running to someone else. 

She’d definitely have to discuss this latest mind-shift with Shantra and Keith, see if they were willing to take the cut in profits that would allow her to hire on a manager. 

“You ready?” he asked as he walked out of what she assumed was a dressing room since he was now dressed in yet another immaculately tailored suit.

“Ready?” she repeated, not sure what he meant.  Her mind was too focused on sifting through his words. 

“We’re flying to London, remember?” he said as he adjusted his tie.  He walked over to where she was standing.  “You look beautiful, by the way.”

Her hand flew self-consciously to her face.  “I’m not even wearing makeup,” she scoffed.

He took her hand.  “I like it.  Makes you look fresh.”

Joline laughed as she shook her head.  “No way.  Not in New York and definitely not in London.” 

Rais shrugged.  “You’re beautiful no matter what,” he said and pulled her against his side as he led her out of his penthouse.  The limousine was waiting for them down in the parking garage and Joline looked around, startled to see so many additional bodyguards. 

“What’s going on?” she asked when one of them opened the limousine door for them, mumbling something into a microphone that went from his ear to his mouth.  Very strange, she thought. 

“What do you mean?” he asked as they settled into the leather seats and the driver pulled away. 

She looked through the front window, then to the back of the limousine.  “I mean, why are there so many bodyguards?”  A thought hit her suddenly and she jerked around so that she was looking up at him.  “Did someone threaten your life?” she gasped out.  Grabbing onto his arm, she couldn’t stop the panic as her imagination took off.  “Is something wrong and you’re just not telling me about it?”

He shook his head, loving the way she was nervous about his safety.  It proved that her declaration earlier this morning wasn’t just about sexual release.  Although he wasn’t sure that Joline had fully acknowledged her feelings towards him.  He’d have to think about that a bit more.  If she didn’t consciously accept that she loved him….

Focusing on the current issue, he touched her cheek, enjoying the soft skin.  “Nothing is going on and yes, there are always death threats against me and my family.  That just comes with the reality of being the ruling family of a powerful, oil-rich nation.”  He took her hand, trying to reassure her.  “You’ll get used to it after a while.”

She shook her head.  “If nothing changed from yesterday to today, why are there so many additional guards?  There’s even an extra vehicle and I’m guessing it is filled with your bodyguards.”

“Those additional guards are for your protection, Joline.  As my fiancée, you will be protected around the clock.  Which is one of the reasons you can’t go on the subway any longer.  It isn’t safe.”

Her eyes moved down to the enormous diamond on her finger, the reality of its meaning starting to sink in.  “But…”

“Don’t even argue any longer that we’re not getting married, Joline.  That’s a foregone conclusion.  You’re mine and I protect what’s mine.  Your own security team will protect you.  And when we have children, each of them will have their own team as well.  Accept it and learn to live with it.  It is the way it will be for the rest of your life.”

Her eyes were wide as she took in all of the implications of his words.  “I don’t think I could learn to live with something like that.  I don’t want my every move watched over by strangers.”

He shrugged his shoulders.  “As I said, you’ll get used to it.”

Joline pressed her lips together, not sure how to get through to him.  He was simply riding over all of her concerns, not even listening. 

She’d just opened her mouth to tell him that she didn’t want to ‘get used to it’ but the limousine stopped at a strange building.  “Where are we?” she asked, looking out the window. 

“Heliport,” he explained.  “It is safer to travel over water by helicopter to the airport than through the streets,” he explained, stepping out and extending his hand to assist her. 

She stepped onto the platform and looked at the large helicopter that was ready and waiting for them to board.  Pulling back, she kept her eyes on the contraption, not sure if she could trust anything that looked that precarious.  Intellectually, she knew that helicopters were safe.  She saw them buzz along the Hudson River and over the buildings of Manhattan all the time.  But that didn’t mean she wanted to fly in one.  Irrationally, the thing didn’t look strong enough to carry all of them plus their luggage. 

Joline pulled back with that thought, blinking up at him.  “I didn’t pack anything!  I don’t have clothes or toiletries.  I don’t even have my passport!”

“All taken care of,” he assured her.

She looked up at him.  “What does that mean?  How was everything taken care of?”

He put a hand to the small of her back but she dug her heels in and looked up at him, then at the helicopter, deciding that she wasn’t going to budge.  Not at the moment.  “Rais, tell me what you’ve done!” she demanded, stalling for time but also wanting more information. 

Rais turned around, not sure why she was being so stubborn.  But when he looked into her eyes and noticed they were green and not the normal hazel, he realized that she was nervous.  Anxious?  He watched her, caught her glance behind him at the helicopter and finally understood. 

Taking both of her hands in his, he looked down at her, squeezing her fingers slightly.  “Are you nervous about getting onto the helicopter, Joline?” he asked gently. 

Joline wished he weren’t so observant, but now that she’d been caught, her shoulders sagged.  “Yes,” she told him quietly.  “But I’m also confused about what is going on, frustrated that you’re just ignoring all of my concerns and questions, irritated by all the changes you’re imposing on my life and yes, I’m terrified of getting onto that machine.”

That was a long list of concerns and Rais tried to smother his amusement.  She was right.  He was just pushing her along on his own path and not listening to her.  That was just the way he worked and lived.  He’d never cared one way or the other if the women in his life agreed or disagreed with the way he moved through the days or nights.  If they disagreed, they could move on to their next lover.

He understood that he’d have to take things differently with Joline.  She was going to be his wife.  Unfortunately, she wasn’t accepting that title as quickly or as enthusiastically as he would have preferred.  She was fighting him every step of the way. 

“How about if I deal with your most obvious concern first?”

“That I don’t want to marry you?” she asked, wishing he would just accept that.

He chuckled, indicating that he didn’t agree with her priorities.  “No,” he told her.  “I was going to try and reassure you that helicopters are very safe.”

“They crash all the time,” she argued.

“You’re probably hearing about the times when a helicopter was flying over dangerous areas or trying to land in places that don’t really have any landing site.  Helicopters are the kind of machine that can land just about anywhere and fly over just about any kind of terrain.  So when one crashes, it was probably because of wind shears off of a mountain or maybe it was landing in dangerous territory.”  He watched her, making sure that she was listening to his comments.  “This helicopter is going to fly over the Hudson River and the airport is only about ten minutes from here.”

She glared up at him.  “I know how far it is to JFK Airport, Rais.  I’ve flown in planes.  And just for the record, it takes about forty-five minutes to get from downtown Manhattan to the airport.  Why don’t we just ride in the vehicles like a normal person?”

He pulled her closer, wishing he could ease her anxiety more effectively.  “Because you aren’t a normal person any longer, Joline,” he told her, trying to explain the new facts of life to her.  “You will be my wife, which means you will be a royal princess.”

Joline pulled back, terrified by that title.  “What if I don’t want to be a princess?”

He chuckled and kissed her tenderly.  “You want to be my wife.  The title just comes along with the territory.”  He wrapped her in his arms, trying to give her a bit of his strength.  “There are many more positives, I promise.”

She grunted.  “Such as being bull-dozed by an arrogant, opinionated, irritating man with too many muscles?”

He laughed at her quip.  “Such as more of the same that you experienced this morning.”  He looked down at her.  “Are you saying you didn’t enjoy yourself this morning?” he challenged her.

“Irrelevant,” she sniffed, turning her head so that her cheek was resting against his hard chest.  “So far, the negatives are far-outweighing the positives.”

He took her hands once again.  “I’ll dedicate myself to providing more positives tonight.  But right now, we need to get onto that helicopter.  If I hold your hand and show you that it is safe, will you be okay?” he asked her. 

Joline looked behind him once more, eyeing the enormous contraption.  “I’ll get through it,” she told him.  But she was gripping his hand tightly, not wanting to lose her connection to him in any way, even for a moment. 

He led her across the tarmac to the back of the helicopter and helped her step into the machine.  Inside, it wasn’t like the interiors she’d seen on the television.  This was like a small living room that included beautiful leather chairs and even a small table.  There was enough room for several people and half of Rais’ body guards stepped in behind them, moving to the back of the machine. 

When the rotors started moving, Joline gripped Rais’ hands harder and looked around.  “Why isn’t there a bunch of noise?” she asked, thinking about the films she’d watched where the actors seemed to be screaming over the noise of the helicopter. 

“This one is sound-proofed.  We won’t hear the noise from the engines or the rotors.  And it’s significantly smoother than the ones you might know about from the movies.” 

As the helicopter lifted off, she was amazed at how smooth the ride actually was.  “Wow!” she whispered, looking out the window, amazed at the speed they were moving across the water.  The boats beneath them were small as they raced over the water and, before she was ready, the helicopter was landing at a private hangar of the airport.  “Oh my,” she told him, her smile beaming up at him.  “That was not nearly as bad as what I was expecting.” 

Rais squeezed her hand that was still gripping his.  “You’ll find that most of your concerns aren’t as bad as the reality.”

Joline wasn’t so sure about that, but she wasn’t going to argue with him either.  The man was used to this kind of lifestyle.  He knew what to expect.  To her novice mind, changes were coming at her left and right at speeds that were making her confusion intensify.  And he wasn’t helping a great deal.  But she couldn’t blame him completely.  He was so used to his life and all of the aspects of being a royal person that it wouldn’t occur to him to warn her that something was going to change.

When he led her onto a large, private plane, she was shocked at the size of it.  This wasn’t one of those six or seven passenger jets that celebrities used.  Nope, this was more like the plane that the U.S. President flew around the world on.  It was enormous!