Against the Sun

Instead, she leaned back in the seat. “I met Phillip right after I started working for the company. He was already a vice president, not as important a job as he has now, but someone my grandfather had high hopes for. A few years later, we started dating.”

“So you’ve known him quite a while.”

“That’s right. We got along well from the start. Same interests, same goals. Phillip and I… We’re extremely well-suited.”

“How’s that?”

“We both love classical music and ballet. We’re interested in art and the theater.”

“That’s enough for you? That Phillip likes ballet?”

“Which I’m sure you don’t.”

He grinned. “Watching a bunch of men prancing around in tights? Not a chance.” In the mirror, he saw her lips curve in a smile.

“We share the same interests, as I said, and my grandfather and I talked about it. He thought it was time for me to think about my future. Marrying the right person is important to my career.”

Jake clicked on his turn signal and passed a few cars, then pulled back into the right lane. “Your grandfather raised you after your mother died. I saw that in an article on the internet.”

“He raised me from the time I was twelve. He’s the best man I’ve ever known.”

Jake frowned. “What about your father?”

She gazed down at her hands, then looked back through the windshield at the road. “My father died when I was twelve. It’s a long story. It’s enough to say that when he died, I hadn’t seen him in eight years.”

It was obviously a subject she didn’t want to discuss, and Jake didn’t press her. But his curiosity was piqued. There was something about Sage that didn’t add up. She just didn’t seem to be the self-centered heiress he’d expected. And he thought he had just uncovered the first clue to solving the puzzle.

They reached the impressive wrought-iron gate that marked the entrance to the property. A sign overhead read Double D Ranch. “Double D” for Sage and Ian Dumont? Or for Ian and his dead son, Louis?

Sage gave Jake the security code. He punched in the numbers and the automatic gate swung open. They drove till the highway was well out of sight and the Spanish-style ranch house appeared, huge and white, with a red-tile roof, several turrets and patios. Even the matching guesthouse was big.

Sage was right. The place could easily handle the Saudis and the entourage that was sure to be traveling with them.

There was also a large, tile-roofed stable, and an indoor arena surrounded by lush green pastures. Horses grazed and galloped across the countryside.

“Pretty place.”

“It’s a great getaway,” Sage said. “There was a time when Ian raised the finest cutting horses in Texas. Riding is kind of a passion of mine. My only real hobby, I guess you could say. Lately, I just haven’t had time.” She turned to Jake as he pulled up in front of the house. “Do you ride?”

“Not if I can help it.”

She looked disappointed. He tried to imagine Phillip Stanton on horseback, but the image wouldn’t come.

They parked the Jeep and headed into the main house. It was fully staffed, and decorated, too, in a Spanish style, with lots of old wood, bright serapes and heavy old-world antiques.

By the time Jake had surveyed the two houses, walked the stables and the grounds, he only had one comment.

“Your security here sucks. You want the Saudis to stay in this place, you’re going to have to do something about it.”

Her shoulders slumped. “I was afraid you’d say that. Nothing’s been done in years. I guess we just felt safe out here.”

There were vast open stretches of grassland. Lots of native trees and abundant wildlife. Horses roamed the pastures, deer grazed in the fields and the birdlife was spectacular. A hawk soared overhead as if to make the point.

“So what do you want to do?” he asked.

She glanced back at the house. “How fast can something be done?”

Jake pulled out his iPhone and punched in Trace’s home number. “Hey, buddy, I’ve got a problem.”

A low grumble preceded his friend’s soft Texas drawl. “It’s Sunday, you know. This is supposed to be my day off. I’m spendin’ time with my wife.”

Jake could hear the pride in his friend’s voice. Trace was married and in love. Jake had never seen him so happy.

“I’m out at the Dumont ranch. The place is huge, with lots of land, main house, guesthouse and stables. Some of the security cameras aren’t working and the alarms are years out-of-date. The whole system needs to be replaced. How long will it take you to upgrade?”

Trace muttered a word Jake couldn’t quite hear. “I’ll get on it. I can have someone out there today. We can do a perimeter installation, mount new cameras, put some temporary equipment in the house, guesthouse and stables, till we have time to do a permanent replacement.”

“There’s a housekeeper, foreman, some ranch hands. We’ll let them know your men are coming.”

“We…?”

“Sage is with me. Can you be finished by next weekend?”

“Enough for you to feel safe.”

“Good enough.”

Jake clicked off and shoved the phone back into the pocket of his jeans. “Trace is going to take care of it. He’ll have enough of the system up and running to keep people safe. Let’s talk to your foreman, let him know what’s going on.”

Sage nodded. “I can’t believe how complicated this is getting.”

“Three hundred million is a lot of money.”

“If I make this deal and we get hold of a platform and some used offshore equipment, it’ll be a huge savings to the company.”

“And that means a lot to you.”

“Yes, it does.”

“Then let’s get to it.” Setting a hand at her waist, he guided her toward the foreman’s house. Without her high heels, she seemed almost tiny to him. Jake felt a surge of protectiveness, and told himself it was all right to feel that way, since it was his job. He thought about how much softer she seemed out here, miles away from work.

He told himself not to think of how sexy she looked in the snug jeans, with that little bit of skin showing at her waist. Told his mind not to stray where it had no right to go.

He told himself to remember Sage was off-limits. But he couldn’t quite convince himself.

* * *

Riding the elevator up to her apartment on the tenth floor, Sage felt Jake’s hand at her back.

“You don’t have to come in,” she said, as the elevator doors slid open and he guided her out into the hall.

“That’s what I get paid for. I’ll just take a quick look around, make sure everything’s okay.” He walked past her as she opened the door and turned off the alarm, then watched him disappear down the hall. It had been a long day and she was exhausted. The security situation at the ranch was worse than she had expected. The system needed upgrading anyway, so doing it now wasn’t really a problem, except that the matter had become urgent.

She thought of the surprisingly comfortable day she had spent with Jake. He was easy to talk to and actually listened to what she had to say. She tried not to compare him to Phillip, whose mind always seemed to be somewhere else.

Things had gone well at first, but as the day progressed, the easy conversation had slipped away, replaced by a slowly building sexual tension.

The ride home had been silent, marked by a shared look now and then that seemed to scorch the air between them. She had never felt anything like it.

Thank God they were home and he was leaving.

She watched him return to the entry, thinking how much space he took up, even in her large, airy apartment. “Did you really expect to find someone lurking in here?”

“No. But don’t be surprised if trouble starts again tomorrow. Seems like once these things get rolling, they take on a life of their own.”

“I hope you’re wrong.”

“So do I. It would make my job a whole lot easier.”

She looked up at him, standing there in front of her. God, he was handsome, and so damned male.

“Is that all I am to you, Jake? A job?”

His blue eyes ran over her. Something shifted between them, and the air seemed to simmer and heat.

“That’s the way it started,” he said, his gaze on her face.

“And now?”

His nostrils flared. He was standing closer than she’d realized. So close she could see his chest rising and falling, each breath coming faster than the last. He was wearing a dark green T-shirt and jeans, and when she glanced down she saw there was a heavy bulge beneath his zipper. He took a step toward her, and instead of moving back, she rested her hand on his chest. She could feel the thick muscle, the bands of sinew that tightened beneath the soft cotton fabric.

Her heartbeat quickened. She stared at his mouth and wanted him to kiss her. It was insane. She was engaged to be married. She wasn’t the type of woman who betrayed her fiancé by kissing another man.

She tipped her head to look up at Jake’s face, saw the hunger in those blue, blue eyes, and her whole body went hot. One of his hands slid beneath her hair, tilting her mouth toward his. She felt the roughness of his palm against her scalp, the raw power he commanded. He bent his head, lightly brushed her lips, and heat and need poured through her.

She exhaled a breath and her eyes closed. She wanted this kiss…wanted it so badly.

His mouth hovered over hers, just a breath away. “What about Phillip?” he whispered.

“Phillip?” Her eyes fluttered, slowly opened. Then the name hit her like a splash of cold water and her stomach knotted. Sage jerked away. “Phillip. Oh, my God.”

Those fierce blue eyes bored into her. “I don’t share my women, Sage.”

Humiliation burned through her, and fury boiled in her blood. “Get out.” She pointed toward the door with a hand that trembled. “Get out of here right now.”

The edge of his mouth harshly curved. “I’m leaving. But I’ll be back in the morning. Seven o’clock.”

“Six!” she demanded, just to save a little pride. “I have work to do.” She wanted to throw something at him, wanted to tell him never to come near her again. He had humiliated her, shown her how susceptible she was to him.

Her eyes stung.

“Lock the door behind me,” he said a little more gently, and then he was gone.

Sage’s throat closed up. He had made a fool of her, preyed on the attraction she felt for him. Clearly, he believed he could have her anytime he wanted.

It wasn’t true. She wouldn’t do that to Phillip.

She leaned back against the wall and released a shaky breath. It was nothing, she told herself. A moment of weakness, nothing more.

It wouldn’t happen again. Sage ignored the little tremor of regret that whispered through her.

Six

On Monday morning, Jake pulled up in front of Sage’s apartment in one of the big black SUVs that belonged to Freedom Limousines, the fleet owned by Abraham Lincoln Jones.

Linc was a longtime friend and a man Jake trusted. As a kid, Linc had boosted cars for a living, until he got busted and tossed into juvenile hall. Unlike other kids his age, he had realized the error of his ways, straightened up his life and become a successful Houston businessman.

He still knew cars, knew how to handle a vehicle better than any Hollywood stuntman. Linc had agreed to be Jake’s personal driver during the Saudis’ visit.

The Cadillac Escalade rolled to a stop beneath the overhanging portal of the high-rise apartment building where Sage lived.

Jake opened the door and climbed out. “I won’t be long.”

It was six in the morning. Damn the woman. Ian was right—Sage worked too hard. But the early departure was partly Jake’s fault. If he hadn’t goaded her last night—if he hadn’t given in to that single moment of weakness—she would have agreed to the later hour and gotten at least a little more sleep.

He should have left her alone. But he hadn’t expected the hunger to be so intense, hadn’t known for sure until last night that she wanted him, too.

It didn’t matter. The attraction between them wasn’t going anywhere, and he had a job to do.

With a nod to the security guard, he took the elevator up to Sage’s apartment and knocked on the door. An instant later, she pulled the door open.

“I see you’re on time,” she said sharply. “Let’s go.”

He’d meant to ignore what had happened last night, go on as if it didn’t matter. Maybe he would have, if it weren’t for the faint purple smudges beneath her eyes, the stiffness in her posture that told him he had hurt her.

She tried to brush past him, but he caught her arm, stopping her. She was wearing her high heels, putting her back in her confidence zone, and he was glad.

“About what happened last night…”

Her chin went up. “Nothing happened. Don’t pretend it did.” She tried to walk past him, but he wouldn’t let her go.

“Nothing happened. But don’t think I didn’t want it to. I wanted it too much, Sage.”

Her eyes found his. They were golden and full of fire. Disbelieving.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I was out of line. Nothing like that will happen again.”

For a moment she just stared, her eyes fixed on his. Then she relaxed. “We’re both under a lot of pressure. Things happen. It’s better if we just forget it.”

But he wouldn’t forget. Every time he looked at her he would curse himself for not tasting her, not seeing where that single kiss might lead. His gaze remained on hers. “Are you sure that’s the way you want it?”

She didn’t even blink. “That’s the way it has to be.”

Jake stepped back and let her pass. “There’s a car waiting downstairs. Let’s get you to the office.”

Sage just nodded.

Walking out of the lobby moments later, she stopped when she spotted the big black SUV with the dark tinted windows. “And here I was expecting a stretch. Should have known that wouldn’t be manly enough for a marine.”

He grinned. “Just a little too conspicuous.” He opened the rear passenger door, waited till Sage slid across the butter-soft, black leather seat, then followed her inside.

“Sage Dumont, meet Lincoln Jones. Linc owns the limo company. He’s a friend of mine and the best wheelman around.”

Linc, a tall, slim African-American man with short kinky hair and a very white smile, was a good-looking guy. Never married but hopeful, he always said.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Jones,” Sage said with a smile.

“It’s just Linc, and same here, Ms. Dumont.”

“Since you’re a friend of Jake’s, let’s just make it Sage.”

He grinned and turned back to the wheel, started moving the heavy vehicle forward. Jake glanced at Sage, a little surprised at how accessible she seemed to be. She might be a Dumont, but she treated people as her equal. Another point in her favor.

They reached the office in record time. As they had planned, Linc pulled the Escalade into the executive lot. Jake made a call to the security guard at the back door, and they entered the building that way.

It wasn’t until Sage’s friend, the little redhead he had seen in her office before, arrived at noon that the problems began.

* * *

Sage was sitting behind her desk, the phone pressed against her ear, when the door swung open and Rina walked in. They were planning to go to lunch. Since there hadn’t been any problems over the weekend, and no trouble when she’d come to work that morning, Sage figured she’d be able to get away for a couple hours—without her overbearing bodyguard.

He’d surprised her with an apology for his behavior last night—which had been her fault as much as his.

She wished she could have stayed mad at him, convinced herself he was just another arrogant male. But he had spoiled that by actually behaving like a human being.

She blocked him from her mind as Rina rushed toward her across the office, her face flushed, her blue eyes wide.

“Oh, my God, Sage, have you seen what’s going on outside?”

Sage stood up behind her desk. “No. What is?” Her door swung open just then, at the same instant her intercom buzzed.

“We’ve got a problem,” Jake said, striding in as if he owned the place.

Will raced in behind him. “Sage, the police are downstairs.”

Sage shot Jake a glance. “What’s going on, Jake?”

He tipped his head toward the big floor-to-ceiling windows on one wall of her spacious office. “Take a look.”

Will backed out of the room and closed the door.

“Jake, this is my friend Rina Eckhart,” she said. “Rina, meet Jake Cantrell.”

Rina gave Jake a head-to-toe once-over, which took a while, since she was so petite and he was so big. “Nice to meet you, Jake.”

He smiled. “You, too, Rina.”

Sage went over to the window and looked out past the wide steps at the front. A familiar sight greeted her—only now the protest was three times bigger.

“I guess the students are back.”

“They’re back, all right,” Jake said, walking up beside her. “Along with two other factions. Besides the students, there’s a pro-American bunch thanking God for keeping our troops safe in the Middle East, protesting sharia law, advocating for women’s rights and anything else that comes to mind. Another group is demonstrating against Israel and pushing for a Palestinian state.”

Sage turned to look at him, felt that same little kick she always experienced when he was near. “I can’t believe this. All we’re doing is trying to buy a used drilling platform and a shipment of pipe.”

“Believe it. There’s plenty of friction out there. The cops have arrived to try to keep things under control. It remains to be seen how much good it will do.”

“Don’t these people have to get permits for this kind of thing?”

“I talked to the police. The main group has done the necessary paperwork. Aside from that, there’s a thing called freedom of speech.”

Worry knotted her stomach. “The Saudis are due at the airport tomorrow afternoon. What are we going to do?”

“We’re going to handle it,” Jake said firmly. “Linc’s got a fleet lined up to meet the plane and take them to the hotel. They’ll have their own security while they’re there, and we’ll put a couple of people on it, too. The sheik and his family will be at the hotel the rest of that day and Wednesday. The ranch won’t be ready till the weekend. That leaves only Thursday and Friday to worry about.”

“On Friday they’d like to attend prayers at the local mosque. That’s the Da’wah Center. It’s right downtown.”

“Good. We’ll have them taken them there and picked up, return them to the hotel. That leaves only Thursday.”

Sage worried her bottom lip. She looked up at him. “I wonder if they’ve ever been to an IMAX.”

Jake flashed her one of his devastating grins. “Probably ten of them in Saudi Arabia, but it’s still a good idea. Anything that’ll keep them away from the office.”

“The daughter wants to go shopping,” she said, her mind beginning to work.

“I imagine you can handle that.”

“Are you kidding?” Sage smiled, Jake’s confidence easing her nerves. “The Galleria is my home away from home.”

“She’ll have to be accompanied by a male family member. There may be more than one, and they’re sure to have bodyguards. I’ll get one of the other guys at my office to go along. Alex Justice is an ex-navy pilot. He’s capable and he knows the drill.”

Sage turned to Rina. “Maybe you could come with us. With two other women in the group, A’lia won’t stand out so much.”

Jake’s gaze flicked to the redhead. “Good idea. Can you make it?”

Rina grinned. She was always up for an adventure. “I’d love to come along. I’m a shop-till-you-drop kinda’ gal, and I’ve never met a Saudi princess.”

“All right, then. We keep them busy and away from the office. With nothing going on here, there’s a good chance things will start cooling down. By Monday of the following week, you’ll have done enough small talk to satisfy their customs and earn their trust. If the protests are over, you can bring them into the office and start negotiations.”

Sage shoved back her hair, lifting it away from her face. “You make it sound easy.”

“It could be. With any luck, it’ll all work out the way we plan.” But his smile couldn’t hide the unease in those sexy blue eyes. She knew it was the same worry she was feeling.

She looked over at her friend, determined to carry on as normally as possible. “You ready, Rina?”

“Sounds like Jake has everything under control, so yeah, let’s go.”

Sage turned to him. “We’re going to Gravitas for lunch. Rina’s car is in the lot. We’ll go out the back way so no one will see us. You and I can talk some more when I get back.”

Jake just smiled. “I’ll tell Linc we’ll be needing the limo.”

She didn’t argue. She didn’t care who drove them; she just wanted out of there. “All right.” Sage started for the door, but Jake’s long strides got him there before she did. He pulled it open, stepped back for them to walk out, then followed on their heels.

Sage stopped and turned. “Please don’t tell me you’re going with us.”

“All right, I won’t.”

But deep down, she had known he would demand to accompany them. With the protests going on out front, it was his job.

He pushed the button on the elevator, and when it arrived, followed them inside.

She gave it one last try. “Jake, please…”

“I won’t sit at your table. In fact, you’ll hardly know I’m there. That’s the way it works, Sage. This won’t be for long. In the meantime, you might as well get used to it.”

“I could sure get used to it,” Rina teased with a grin.

Sage bit back a smile and shook her head. They headed for the back entrance out of the lobby, which led to the executive parking lot. When the guard pushed open the door, Sage jerked to a halt.

“Son of a bitch,” Jake muttered beneath his breath. The group out front had morphed into a mass of people at the back door, slightly smaller, but no less disturbing. He let the door swing closed, but not before Sage got a look at the media trucks parked at the curb, the cameras aimed at the crowd, as well as the back door of the building. It was turning into a circus.

Jake was on his iPhone, in contact with Lincoln Jones. He ended the call and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

“Linc’s pulling up as close as he can get. He’ll have the passenger door open. When I say go, walk as quickly as you can to the car and get in.”

Sage glanced at Rina, who didn’t look nearly as perky as she had before. “Are you ready for this?” she asked.

Her friend’s slim shoulders straightened. “I guess if I want to eat, I don’t have any choice.”

“Go!” Jake said, and they hurried toward the car. He was blocking the way like a pro football tackle, herding them into the car, then jumping inside himself. Linc gunned the engine and they shot out of the parking lot, the tires squealing, the crowd surging toward them, waving their signs.

If she closed her eyes, Sage could still see the one that read Keep American Money in America. And right beside it, Dumont Millions Earned at the Price of Betrayal.

* * *

“We got company,” Linc said, his black eyes fixed on the mirror above the windshield.

Jake turned in his seat, saw the white media van cutting in and out of traffic behind them. “Get rid of them.” He checked to make sure the women had their seat belts fastened as Linc gunned the powerful engine.

A couple of screeching turns, roaring through a few yellow lights, blazing down a straightaway, careening around another corner, and the van was no longer in sight.

“Everybody okay?” Jake asked.

Sage smiled. “When you said Linc could drive, you really meant it.”

Rina grinned and leaned back in her seat with a theatrical sigh. “Reminds me of my high school days.”

Jake’s eyebrows went up. “You drove like that in high school?”

“I had a boyfriend whose dad was into drag racing. Jimmy had a hot Camaro. We did a little drag racing at night.”

“That’s illegal, you know,” Linc said from the driver’s seat.