* * *

I must’ve dozed off because the next thing I knew there was movement coming from the bedroom. I sat up and rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

It was ten o’clock local time. I’d had five solid that was good enough. My first thoughts were happy, she was here, and then I remembered that I couldn’t have her. “Fuck!”

I headed into the shower and got myself together letting the water beat down on me, clear my head. It was obvious she’d already been in there because of the used towel that was neatly folded over the rack and the condensation on the shower door.

I stared at that towel like a freak for a solid five seconds before shaking myself out of it. I took my time in there shaving and puttering around, afraid to go out there and face her.

Shit, I didn’t think to get my clothes from the bedroom. I looked at the clothes I slept in with distaste, no fucking way. Who are you getting pretty for Dev? Fuck you! Swear to fuck my subconscious laughed at me.

In the end I had no choice but to wrap the towel around me and head back out to the living room. I half expected to find her there but the room was empty.

When she didn’t come through the door but instead I heard the springs of the bed as if she sat down again, I went to the door.

I knocked softly, not wanting to scare her, not quite sure what she must be thinking about all this. I didn’t want to rush in and start interrogating her but time was of the essence.

“Are you decent?”

“Yes!” Was her voice always that innocent, that soft? Or was it fear? I opened the door slowly, bracing myself for the sight of her, but nothing could prepare me.

In the morning sunlight, she was even more gorgeous than I remembered. Her hair was tousled and sleep sexy. Her lips and face were bare of any enhancements and she looked so young and….sad.

It was the sadness that got to me as I walked into the room. I stopped a good ten feet away, not invading her space.

“I’ll just grab some clothes and be right back.” I rifled through the bag which I had yet to unpack for some cargo shorts and a tank.

Back in the bathroom I hurried into my clothes and went back to her. She was sitting exactly where I left her at the edge of the bed with a pillow on her lap.

“Are you okay sweetheart?” She nodded her head and hugged the pillow to her chest. “Yeah, I’m just a little...” She shrugged her shoulders and looked away.

“Would you like to call your dad? Let him know you’re okay?” She nodded her head and held out her hand for my phone.

There was an innocence to her that touched something in me. I didn’t get the sense that she had any impairments or disabilities, but she was almost childlike in her behavior.

I’d noticed it last night as well, but had been too spellbound by her beauty to think too hard about it. “Daddy it’s me. Yes I’m okay. No I just woke up. Okay!”

She held the phone out to me. “This is Devon.” I was sure I didn’t need to tell him any more than that. If he was anything like the old man he already knew all he needed to about the seven of us.

“I’ll call you later at this number, now’s not a good time. Her brother isn’t handling this well and I have to take care of him, make sure he doesn’t get himself into trouble.”

“I’m trusting you to take very good care of her you hear me son? Don’t you let those motherfuckers get anywhere near my girl.”

“You have my word sir.” She watched me intently as I spoke, her eyes almost hypnotizing. So much so that I had to look away as I finished my conversation with her dad.

I didn’t learn anything more but at least he knew his kid was safe. Now what to do with her? “Come on sweetie you need to eat something.”

She smiled and got off the bed, following me from the room. I was nervous as hell and had no idea why. She was silent as she walked beside me, her head turning this way and that as she took in the beauty of the island.

“Do you live here?”

“No baby, we’re just staying here for a few days. Brace yourself, you’re about to meet my brothers and sisters.”

It was obvious from the way the women were staring in our direction that the guys had filled them in.

Shit, I wonder what hell they were about to put me through. Dani was the first to leave her seat and meet us halfway.

“Hi, Ariel is it? That’s such a beautiful name. Oh my word you’re gorgeous.” She laughed nervously and shook Dani’s hand before we carried on to the patio where it looked like everyone was already seated.

Even the kids were sitting around having breakfast and the atmosphere was light and happy. Anyone looking would think we were on vacation.

I seated her next to me and ignored the stares from my nosy ass sisters as I introduced her around.

She didn’t seem very comfortable and I was a little bit surprised when she inched closer to me. The others seemed to catch on and eased up a little.

“What do you like to eat baby?” It would appear that I’d picked up the nasty habit of calling her by those cute little endearments without provocation.

“Fruit, is there fruit?”

“I’ll get you some.” I loaded up a plate with fruit and got her some juice, placing it in front of her before getting another for myself.

I ignored my brothers and their questioning looks until it became too much. One look at Lo told me he was waiting to hear if I’d learned anything so I just shook my head at him to hold it.

The conversation picked up again and they were talking about mundane shit. The women wanted to go shopping and the men were telling them no. Same old same old.

She was quiet and I had to glare at my family a time or two as they stared at her. “Ariel, why don’t us girls show you around?”

Cierra offered and the other women were only too happy to jump from their seats. Nosy fucks! She looked at me as if asking permission and once again I was struck by her innocence.

“It’s okay baby I’ll be right here.” She excused herself to the others at the table and I watched her walk away with the women. For some reason I was tempted to call her back and keep her with me.

“So?” Quinn didn’t even let them clear the damn door before he was getting into my shit.

“So what?”

“Come on Dev, is she?”

“Is she what Zak? When the fuck did you lot turn into women?”

“It’s obvious you like her, and last night you looked like you were damn near ready to shit bricks, what gives?”

“What gives is that we have a madman on the loose and some female out there whose life is in danger. I don’t have time for all that other shit right now.”

I didn’t even look at Lo who wasn’t saying anything but was still saying a fuck of a lot with his staring shit.

“Did you call her father?” Lo finally asked.

“Yes, but he couldn’t talk. Track’s giving him trouble he said he’ll call later.”

“Okay!”

“Wait, that’s it?”

“You’ll talk when you’re ready. The rest of you stand down.”

Ty mumbled some shit under his breath and then we got sidetracked by Mancini, who came running out the door.

“Where’s the girl?”

“What girl who are you talking about?” Quinn asked him.

“Devon’s woman.”

“She’s here safe, why?” I didn’t take him to task for his words.

“It’s her.”

“What’s her, what are you talking about?” I was already out of my seat. She couldn’t be hurt, she’d only just left my sight like five minutes ago.

“He’s after her. I just got off the phone with my contact. She’s the one Khalil is after, her father is the king of Saudi Arabia, she’s his only daughter.”

“Wait that can’t be right. She’s black not…”

“Her mother was Nubian.” I was shaking my head before he was through talking. “It can’t be; no.”

Fuck not her, not that innocent. I started to go after her.

“It has to be, I just got the same story from my guy that your commander told.”

“There was a marriage agreement between the two families. When her father figured out what was going on, how Khalil and his family planned to take over the Arab world and enforce a war, they sent her away for her safety. No one’s known where she was all this time.”

“So how can you be sure that it’s her?”

“It was easy to fit the pieces together. It’s why she doesn’t show up anywhere. And Terrence Samson never had a daughter, I looked. Believe me I used every resource I have and came to the only conclusion that makes sense.”

I looked towards the house again, wanting to go after her. “Is this place safe enough? Who else knows? Who’s this guy you talked to?” Why are we just standing here? Didn’t they understand the danger she was in?

Where before I thought the place was secure and impenetrable I now felt exposed, like we were out in the open. My mind raced as I looked for a solution, somewhere safe that I could take her.

“No one knows why I was asking it’s cool, I’ve done this before. As to this place being safe my wife is here. Need I say more?” Makes sense, but still…

“Lo?” I knew what I wanted to do, grab her and run. But that’s not how we do shit and where the fuck would I go? We can’t trust anyone. This is so fucked.

“Bring the kids inside. Mancini we’ll use your war room if you don’t mind.” Lo got to his feet and his ease made me feel less panicked.

If the panic was for myself it would’ve been easy to deal with, but I kept seeing her the way she looked this morning as she sat on the bed looking up at me. That innocence that I haven’t seen in anyone else shining in her eyes.

I felt that shit in my heart and the knowledge that I’m responsible for her now hit me hard. The thought of anything touching her damn near gutted me.

This shit had just gone from zero to sixty and I had a new sense of urgency. We rounded up the kids and after much grumping they were happy enough to hang out in the arcade room Mancini showed them.

Mancini used the intercom to call his woman who appeared out of nowhere. He whispered something in her ear and she went off to join the other women again. I felt twitchy.

She wasn’t like the others, she wasn’t bold and strong like my sisters; I already sensed that. I didn’t want her afraid, I didn’t want her without me.

I must’ve made some kinda sound as I looked in the direction the women were headed in as they moved to another side of the house, because Quinn was on my ass.

“I have to do something, are we sure this place is safe enough?” I’m sure I’d asked that question before but my head was going in and out.

I tried holding onto my training, to look at it as just another Op but that shit wasn’t working. If I needed any evidence that she was getting to me this was it.

There was a wild need in me to protect, to shield and to destroy anyone who posed a threat to her. This wasn’t just an Op, this shit was even more personal now than it was an hour ago.

I realized what the problem was, what was so different now. I was scared out of my fucking mind.