“You know, he’s a good guy,” Ryan told Sloane as he poured her a drink.

“He lied to me,” Sloane said softly as she stared out the windows.

“He did it so you’d like him for himself. Do you know how many women try to be with him only so they can end up on the news or in magazines? They don’t like Gabe. They just like the idea of being a princess,” Ryan said, setting the bottle of amber liquid back down.

“But who is he really? A prince or a boy running around a farm playing pranks?”

“He’s a hard-working country man who just happens to be a prince. He’s smart, he cares about people, he loves both of his countries, he’s loyal, he’s funny, but his job is just a little different from most. And that’s what it is to him—a job. It’s not who he is; it’s what he is. And in the almost thirty-one years I’ve known him, he’s never cared about what a woman thinks of him . . . until you.”

“You sound more like a therapist than an FBI agent,” Sloane said, trying to lighten the mood even though her thoughts were already on what Ryan had said.

“My wife. She’s a sports psychologist for the Lexington Thoroughbreds NFL team. I guess she’s rubbed off on me.” Ryan winked and let them lap into silence.

Sloane took a small sip of her drink. She wasn’t a big drinker, but right now she needed its warmth. She had so much to think about, starting with did she run away from Gabe or run into his arms? Most importantly, he hadn’t been the only one hiding something. She had hinted at a troubled family life, but what would he do when she told him all of it? And could she endure the look of disappointment and disgust once she did?

“Miss Holiday?”

Sloane turned from the window and found Nash standing where Ryan had been. Ryan was now in the living room talking to Gabe, and she was face to face with Scary Man, Jr.

“Sloane is fine.” She hadn’t realized Nash had finished talking to Gabe.

“Sloane then. Can you tell me everything from the past two incidences starting with Billy’s the other night?”

Sloane shook her head quickly. “But that was just some drunk college guys.”

Nash looked grim. “No, it wasn’t. We believe it was the same men who tried to kidnap Gabe today.”

Sloane took a deep breath. She wanted to comfort Gabe, hang onto him, keep him safe, yet at the same time could she deal with this happening all the time? “How often does this kind of thing happen?”

“Very rarely. But we prepare just the same. Gabe has been training for it as long as I have, if not longer. He’s perfectly capable of keeping you safe. Have no worries about that.”

“I wasn’t worried about me. I was worried about him.”

Nash looked thoughtfully at her for a second before prompting her to start at the beginning. Sloane told him the whole story. From the first time she noticed Gabe in the bar, to thinking he was a student, to how he rescued her from the drunken college man, to the shooting, and then to the attempted kidnapping.

It helped her to talk about it, even if it was to a man who looked as if he could overthrow a country single-handedly. Now if only her brain and heart could agree on Gabe. The doorbell rang; Nash looked at the panel on the wall and pressed a button.

“I got it,” he called out to where Gabe and Ryan sat talking in the living room. Nash turned back to Sloane. “I’m not an easy man to love, but my wife says it’s worth it. We fought for each other against terrifying odds and I’ve only regretted it took me so long to go after her. I get the sense you’re strong enough and brave enough to fight for the life you want. That much is easy to tell from your past.”

Sloane felt herself get dizzy as the blood drained from her face. He knew. How was it possible? She’d covered her tracks.

“It’s decision time. Are you going to walk out, or are you going to fight for him? Gabe deserves nothing less than someone who will face down dragons for him. I can already tell you, he’s done the same for you and will until his dying breath. Now, let’s see what you’re made of because here comes your first dragon.”

The elevator door opened and footsteps pounded down the hallway. A strikingly beautiful woman rushed into the living room as Gabe stood, surprised. The woman had tears running down her sharp cheekbones and when she wrapped Gabe in a hug, she wasn’t that much shorter than he was. Her black hair was streaked with silver, just as the man’s was who came rushing in after her.

Sloane looked back and forth between them and it was easy to know who they were—Gabe’s parents. His father and he wore the same expression on their face, but Gabe was a little taller and more muscular than the lean man hugging his wife and son. When the woman turned slightly, Sloane saw that Gabe had inherited her eyes.

“You were shot at and now they tried to kidnap you. I should have let Veronica rip his little dick off. I’ll kill him!” Gabe’s mom said vehemently as she hugged Gabe to her once again.

“Dear, you can’t be dismembering royalty. However, a duel is a possibility,” his father said, prying his mother off Gabe. “We were so worried. We got the text from DeAndre and then five seconds later from John. However, we didn’t hear anything else until Nash told us you were home. What happened?”

“We—” Gabe started, but his mother stopped him.

“We?” she asked, the tears suddenly dried.

Gabe let out a long-suffering sigh. Apparently he hadn’t lied to Sloane when he had told her his mother really wanted him to have a girlfriend. Gabe’s eyes met hers then. They were filled with longing, desire, and uh-oh. Both of Gabe’s parents turned to see what he was looking at. It would have been comical if Nash’s warning of dragons didn’t run through her head.

Their eyes went wide and then a smile broke out on his mother’s face. “You didn’t tell me you had a date. Was it a date?” she asked Gabe suddenly.

“Yes,” Gabe said, and his mother practically shoved him out of the way to get to Sloane before he could say another word.

Sloane knew in that moment what a trapped animal felt like as this elegant woman in jeans, flip-flops, and diamonds zeroed in on her.

“Mom,” Gabe’s warning came as he hurried in her wake.

His mother stopped in front of her, and Sloane knew she was taking in her consignment clothes, her worn shoes, and the fact she’d never be able to afford even a chip of the diamond earring his mom was wearing. “Are you a hooker?”

“Mom!”

Sloane’s eyes shot to Gabe’s in panic, but his father moved to block him from getting to her. “Um, no.”

“Escort?”

“Isn’t that the same thing? No, I’m not.”

“Actress?”

“No.”

His mother rolled her eyes. “Singer then.”

“No.”

“You’re not a model are you?”

“No.”

“Please tell me you’re not a porn star.”

Sloane gasped as Gabe roared, “Mother!”

“I’m a waitress, and I am graduating with my master’s degree next week,” Sloane finally stuttered. His mother and father took a deep breath. Sloane forced herself to keep eye contact. She would not be ashamed of who she was.

“Do you keep your clothes on when you waitress?”

“Yes.”

“Oh thank goodness!” his mother cried as she launched herself at Sloane. Before she knew it, Sloane was wrapped in a tight hug.

“I believe you have effectively welcomed her to the family, my dear,” Gabe’s father said softly with amusement laced in his smooth voice. “However, I believe introductions are in order.”

His mother finally released Sloane and smiled warmly at her. How long would that last though? Sloane looked to Nash whose face was unreadable. Would he tell them about her? Of course he would. It was his job.

“I’m Dani, Gabe’s mother. And this is his father, Mo,” Dani introduced as Mo shook her hand.

“Sloane Holiday. It’s nice to meet you both. Um, what do I call you? I’m sorry, I’m sure there’s some royal protocol, but I didn’t learn about your family until a few minutes ago.”

Dani looked thoughtfully at her for a moment. “I bet that was quite a shock.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Sloane answered, settling on just calling her that. Ma’am and sir never went out of style.

“Dani, please. And Mo. I was a paralegal when I met Mo, so I understand the strangeness of the situation.”

Sloane was about to say something with the doorbell rang again and Nash simply pressed a button.

“We’d be honored if you would join us for dinner tonight,” Mo told her. “Unless you have family in town for your graduation. Of course, they are invited, too.”

“Thank you,” Sloane said not really knowing what to say. The elevator opened and a shockingly beautiful woman ran down the hall in scrubs. She had long black hair pulled into a ponytail and hazel eyes that looked like a green field with wheat in it. It was such a surprising eye and hair combination that Sloane realized she was staring.

“Gabe! I got the text. Are you okay?” The woman wrapped her arms around him in such a familiar and intimate way that jealousy surged through Sloane and surprised her.

“I’m fine. We both are.”

“We?”

Not again. Sloane looked to Nash who held up two fingers. Dragon number two.

The hazel eyes scanned the room and locked in on her. “Who are you?”

“I’m Sloane Holiday. Who are you?”

“Oh, honey. I like her!” Dani whispered excitedly to Mo.

“At least this one can form a complete sentence,” the woman with hazel eyes said, clearly taunting her.

“What kind of women do you date?” Sloane asked Gabe instead of responding to the young woman.

Gabe cleared his throat and looked a little uncomfortable.

“Bimbos,” the woman responded for him.

The doorbell chimed again and Gabe looked annoyed. “Who got this text?” he asked as he tossed up his hands in frustration.

“Everyone in town. Duh,” the young woman said, crossing her arms over her chest and staring Sloane down.

“How did they all know I was here?” Gabe asked looking at his parents who just shrugged before he looked at Nash. “You’re fired.”

Nash smiled at that, and Sloane openly stared. The man was as handsome as he was dangerous.

“Don’t even think about it. He’s married to my cousin.”

Sloane rounded on the woman with black hair but instead of just her, there was now another woman running toward Gabe. This one was a curvy redhead. “Oh my gosh, Gabe! Are you hurt? Did they catch who did this?”

Behind her stood two men—one who looked to be around Dani and Mo’s age, and one who looked to be in his forties—came walking in. The older one had brown hair with gray at the temples and a square jaw that looked intimidating on someone so tall. The other man was thicker, as if he worked out a lot. Sloane looked closer, they were both wearing shirts with a horsehead on it. They must work together.

“We’re fine,” Gabe said as the redhead released him from his hug. What was going on? Were these his harem, or women who just didn’t like the new girl? Well, one thing was clear. Sloane wasn’t about to share Gabe with them or anyone else. If Gabe didn’t like that, she’d walk out right now.

Sloane looked back to Nash who held up three, four, and then five fingers. Sloane rolled her eyes.

“We?” the three newcomers said at the same time.

“Yeah, there’s a new bimbo,” the woman with black hair said, dismissing Sloane.

“Layne,” the redhead chided. “Be nice. You don’t even know her, and she’s just gone through something traumatic.” The woman shook her head and headed for Ryan. Ryan leaned down and kissed her quickly before wrapping his arm around her. Ah, the wife.

“I’m Sienna Parker and this rude woman is Layne Davies.” Layne just stared unremorsefully, and Sloane didn’t bother giving her the smile she’d given Sienna. “And this is my father, Will Ashton, and our friend Trey Everett.”

Sloane blinked. “Oh my gosh, the football players from Lexington? The guys at the bar where I waitress at talk about you two all the time.”

“We’re all from Keeneston, actually. And we’re retired football players. Though I think I enjoyed playing more than I do owning the team,” Will joked as he shook her hand.

“And I’m just Coach now,” Trey told her, shaking her hand next. “Where do you work?”

“Billy’s Bar,” Sloane said, dropping Trey’s hand and looking around the living room. This was a parallel universe. It’s the only explanation to find herself standing in a room with two kinds of royalty—the foreign ruling type and the American sports variety.

“We’ll stop by sometime after practice. That is, if they talk nicely about us,” Will joked.

“I’m sure they’d lose their minds.” Sloane returned his smile.

“At least she’s not another actress.” Layne rolled her eyes at Sienna.

“Layne,” Sienna hissed. “Sorry. Gabe’s past girlfriends haven’t been as nice as you are.”

The doorbell rang again and Gabe groaned. “Please tell me the entire town hasn’t shown up.”

“So sorry we came to check on our friend,” Layne said with displeasure, though it was clear to Sloane she had great affection for Gabe. Maybe too much affection?

“Yeah, and it doesn’t hurt that all of us work minutes from here and can lord it over the Rose sisters,” Trey winked. “I’m glad you’re both unhurt. What happened?”

The door opened and Detective Braxton walked in. She paused momentarily in surprise at the full room, but then waded into the fray.

“Detective!” Sienna called out happily as she came over to the detective. “It’s good to see you again, but not under these circumstances.”

“You too, Dr. Parker.” Detective Braxton turned to Nash and handed him some papers. “The men are booked, and you’re welcome to interview them. However, I think you’ll be disappointed. There are no ties to this King Draven or to the country of Bermalia.”

“Then who are they?” Gabe asked as he moved to slip his arm around Sloane’s waist. She was already leaning into him before she caught herself. She still hadn’t decided if she had forgiven him or not. Seeing everyone interact, one thing was clear—his family was more normal than hers, even if they were royalty. They loved each other, they had friends who cared about them, and they weren’t pretentious. In fact, they were great. They were loyal and not once had anyone mentioned an official title. The only thing that worried her was Gabe’s obviously bad track record of dating. Who in the hell had he dated that they had to ask her if she was a hooker or an actress?

“They’re street-level thugs from Chicago,” Detective Braxton told them.

Sloane felt her world shift. Gabe’s arm tightened around her as her knees went weak. They’d found her.