Slowing, she lifted her head to take in their surroundings. It was a lush paradise with deep green grass and trees on one side of a thin ribbon of a road and beautiful white sand beaches andazure water on the other. A car waited for them and Kate was on her way to it.
Following, Meredith tried to quell the tremors rocking through her. Then the backdoor of the car opened and he stepped out. She felt stripped to her soul. Ice cooled her skin even as heat burned in her blood. The oxygen seemed to get knocked out of her lungs as the most handsome man she’d ever known stood, waiting for her.
The wind tousled his black hair and a lock of it fell down on his forehead. She knew his eyes would be the shade of onyx, so dark she wouldn’t know where the pupil ended and the iris began. He wore a white shirt, with no tie or jacket and white slacks. They highlighted the deep bronze of his skin, and he looked like a god come to life. Even the shadow of scruff darkening his jaw added to the raw sensuality of the man.
She couldn’t breathe.
Bastian…
That son of a bitch.
Chapter 4
Sebastian
Sebastian tried to keep his lust under control, but the tight leash he’d forced over his reactions since Meredith’s fateful phone call slipped and need bucked all convention. A ray of sunlight framed her perfectly. Meredith never hid behind layers of couture, coifing and cosmetics like a plastic doll come to life. She’d always been more. Softness, heat, and utterly feminine—she’d kindled a wild possessiveness and desperate need to claim her from the first moment they’d met.
The familiar fire exploded to life and surged in his blood. Question filled her features and her mouth fell open for the length of a heartbeat before she snapped it shut. Fury replaced shock, but before he could respond to any of it, Kate stepped into his line of sight.
“You really should have waited at the house,” the former bodyguard murmured. “I don’t think she’s ready to see you, and we need to talk?—”
“No,” Meredith’s voice rang out from the tarmac, and she turned to get back in the helicopter.
Cutting around Kate, Sebastian strode toward her. He was not letting her leave, not before they talked. “Meredith?—”
He didn’t make it a half-dozen steps before O’Connor stepped into his path and body blocked him. “You need to back off.”
A moment later, Vidal drove O’Connor back, inserting himself between the prince and the guard. Violence thrummed in the air and Sebastian’s gaze hardened as he pinned a glare at the bodyguard tasked with Meredith’s safety. The same man who’d been having dinner with her, whose touch lingered on Meredith’s hand and arm longer than necessary.
“Stand down,” Vidal ordered in a cold, cutting tone, but the command had little effect on O’Connor.
“You tell him to keep his distance. She doesn’t want to see him and he doesn’t get to use his position to force the issue.” He shook off Vidal and shifted his weight. The two were squared off and Vidal didn’t retreat a step. The rest of Sebastian’s detail surged up around him. O’Connor’s hand shifted and, for a fraction of an instant, Sebastian thought he might actually go for his gun.
Switching his attention to Meredith, Sebastian’s heart stopped when she rushed forward and put a hand on O’Connor’s arm. “Terry.”
She was too damned close to him and the man adjusted his angle to put her behind him.Too damn close.“Meredith, come here.” Sebastian issued the directive and—although he was fairly certain O’Connor wouldn’t harm her—he refused to take any chances with her safety.
“You stay where you are.” O’Connor countered with his own order. Tension crackled in the air.
Bracketed by two more of Sebastian’s detail, Vidal invaded O’Connor’s space. “I told you, stand down.“
“Meredith, get away from him.Right now.” Sebastian wanted her out of the rapidly escalating showdown. She hesitated, glancing from O’Connor to him and then pulled herhand from the man. When O’Connor intercepted her step away, the violence exploded.
Vidal struck O’Connor’s arm while a second bodyguard hit him full in the chest. The third man scooped Meredith up and jerked her away from the fray. Sebastian retreated with her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her toward the car. It was over in seconds, with O’Connor pinned.
Gasping with horror, Meredith strained at Sebastian’s hold. “Terry, stop. It’s all right. Please, Bastian, make them stop.”
He’d rather dump the ass back on the helicopter and ship him off the island, but he couldn’t dismiss the worried look pinching Meredith’s features. “It’s all right,” he soothed, rubbing her arm. “Vidal.”
The head of his security detail rose and they brought O’Connor up with them. Vidal removed his weapon and unloaded it before retreating a step to look at Sebastian. “Your Highness, you and your guest should go to the house. We’ll settle this issue here.”
“Settle it?” A tremor fractured Meredith’s tone. “No, Terry goes with us. This is a misunderstanding. There is nothing to be settled.”
Her immediate defense chafed and Sebastian clenched his teeth.
“You know what would help, Meredith?” Kate was suddenly on Meredith’s other side, drawing her attention away from the scene. “You and Sebastian go chat. Let these men settle it as professionals. Everyone is a little one edge and they aren’t going to calm down until all protectees are in a secure location.”
Richard Prentiss’ fiancée wasn’t finished, she swept a cool glance over them. “In fact, I’ll take over, along with Michel here.” She indicated the bodyguard who’d stayed with Sebastian. “You four figure it out and, O’Connor, I’d like to remind you that I and the helicopter are still here. You can go back with me.”
