I stared at Mr. Royal with a raised eyebrow, both shocked and amused at his request. Not only was it unorthodox, and as much as I wanted the money that came with a gig like that, deception wasn’t something I was entirely comfortable with. Lying to get your job done made doing your job more difficult. His gray hair only highlighted his bright blue eyes, and as I glanced around his office, checking out all the awards and records on the wall, he continued to justify his request.

“I can see your apprehension, son,” he interrupted my thoughts. “What you need to understand is that I’d do absolutely anything to protect my daughters, but they are stubborn. I’m far less concerned with Carmen, to be honest; she is a bit of a scrapper and doesn’t trust anyone, but Miranda…” He sighed before continuing, “Miranda isn’t taking these threats seriously, and I’ve tried doing this the right way.” The concern on his face was apparent, but I was still on the fence and had questions.

“So, they’ve blatantly refused to have a security detail on this tour? And Miranda is receiving specific threats from a stalker or fan? You’ve already been down this road?” My trepidation was centered around being undercover on a cross-country music tour with these chicks. Unless I had full access, it would be almost impossible to protect either of them.

Rolling his eyes, and stifling a chuckle, he replied, “Oh, yes. Yes, I have. When you meet them, you’ll see.”

“And you believe this is the only way?” I questioned.

“I do,” .He paused and leaned forward over his desk. “Look, I realize that being undercover security and on tour at the same time is an unusual request, and it’s probably not the easiest gig, but I’m willing to compensate you generously. You come highly recommended from other people in the industry. It has to be just you. If I try to set up some kind of detail, they’ll be onto us; as it stands, Carmen will probably doubt you, right out of the gate. Discretion is critical, and obviously, the girls cannot find out about this or they’ll kill us both,” .He let out a half-hearted chuckle, causing me to grin. “Her mother and I have tried everything from begging to demanding, and at the end of the day, I’m still their manager and have the ability to make some of these decisions in their best interest. And I’ll be paying you from my own personal funds so that you work for me, not them.” That seemed to be important to him, from the stern and stoic expression on his face.

“Okay, so let’s say I’m in - which I’m not saying yet. What’s the cover you had in mind, and what’s the expectation here?” I didn’t have any reason not to go. My private security firm was doing extremely well since I’d been in the business, and my team was one hundred percent trustworthy. With a high profile set of clients like we had with in the Little Queens, I understood why their dad wanted me, but before I agreed to anything, I wanted him to lay out his plan for how this would work, and decide whether or not it was legit.

“I want you to pose as a journalist,” he stated, causing me to laugh out loud.

“A journalist?” He had to be crazy.

“Yes, a journalist,” he replied.

“How do you propose that work?” Mr. Royal certainly had me entertained.

“You’re going to go on tour with them, as if you were chronicling the tour for a magazine. You’ll stick with Miranda, but you’ll also spend some time with Carmen, obviously. So, you’ll ask a lot of questions, get to know them all, and you’ll find yourself part of the crew essentially. I’ll instruct the girls that it’s my decision as their manager to have a journalist out on tour with them, because it’s fantastic PR for them.”

“So, you think they’ll buy it?” I was intrigued by this whole proposition.

“I do. Miranda is a smart businesswoman, and she’ll agree with me on this. Carmen… well, she is probably going to give you a hard time. That’s just her way. She’s my little girl, but she’ll likely put you through the ringer at some point,” he explained.

“Okay, but Miranda is the one you want me to watch. She’s the one with a stalker of some kind?” I asked.

“Yes. Miranda has been receiving threatening letters, and they’ve gotten worse. I’m concerned for her safety, and that’s why I’m willing to deceive them to do it. Mr. King --” I interrupted him.

“You can call me Ryan.”

“Ryan,” he paused, “If you ever have the opportunity to have children, you’ll understand what it’s like to be a parent. I would do anything to protect them.” He let out a sigh. “Anyway, are you in? What do you think?”

I contemplated the pros and cons of taking on the job, and even though I somehow knew it would be trouble, I heard myself say, “Sir, I’m in.”