“Voices of dissent aren’t easily silenced?”
He shook his head. “No. The prince, Farah’s father, feared retribution against his children. He contacted me with the proverbial offer I couldn’t refuse. My tour was ending so I left the service to take charge of the protection of his immediate family, especially his daughter. It wasn’t part of my career plan, but he was persuasive.”
“Money,” Jacquie guessed.
“Money,” Pierce agreed. “More than I’d ever have made in the service.” More than he could ever spend.
“But it came at a price,” she said softly, obviously not expecting an answer. “So, the princess is kind of a former employer, too.”
He nodded agreement. “I worked in Greater Alghenia for over twelve years. It was exciting, challenging, different. Farah grew up over those years, becoming even more beautiful and headstrong.”
“How old was she when you left?”
“Seventeen going on thirty.” He knew he sounded rueful.
Jacquie laughed. “I know that age well.”
“You have two daughters,” he remembered.
She looked a little lost for a moment, then forced a smile. “Yes.” She sipped her coffee and waited.
Pierce made a guess of his own. “You must miss them.”
“Of course,” she said, both her voice and her gaze hardening a little. “But I’m fine. Just fine.”
Pierce was surprised to realize that he’d been the one shut down. He made a mental note to never again imply that Jacquie was vulnerable or lonely.
“Is there more of your story? Or should I get back to work?”
“A little more. The thing is that after all those years of service, I still find it hard to disobey a royal command.”
“That makes perfect sense,” Jacquie conceded, her tone softening a little. She was visibly relieved that they were talking about him again, and he recognized that he wasn’t the only one who liked his privacy. “What happened to end that?”
“The prince died and all hell broke loose in the capital city. I escorted his widow to Paris with her kids, then was released from my employment contract. It was sudden but at the time, it was unclear what the family’s financial situation would be.”
“The coup,” Jacquie said with a nod. “I remember the pictures on television.”
“And ultimately, last year, I came home.”
“Home,” she echoed, studying him as if she guessed that he didn’t really have one. “Which was where?”
“The US, of course.”
“It’s a big country. It can’t all be home.”
Pierce shrugged, feeling that he’d admitted enough. “Now it’s here.”
She turned her empty mug on the table, watching it, and he knew she was dissatisfied with that reply. He watched her, wondering what she’d ask next. “What did you do in between? You said consulting.”
“That’s not part of the story, is it?” He tried to keep his tone light, but feared he sounded uncooperative instead. “You wanted to know how I knew Farah.”
Jacquie pursed her lips. “And now I know that you can’t say no to her royal highness. How does that shake out for your immediate future?”
Pierce knew she was asking more than that. “But I did say no to her,” he corrected. “I always intended to. But first I had to find out what she wanted, and that meant I had to go with her. There was no telling where she’d be in an hour otherwise. She has more credit cards and friends with private jets than should be allowed.”
Jacquie smiled a little, the sight sending relief through him. “By who?”
“Whoever is managing her security these days. It must be a constant battle to second-guess or anticipate Farah, which means it can’t be easy keeping her safe.”
“You don’t know who’s doing it?”
He shook his head. He didn’t know, not officially. “Not my responsibility.”
“What did she want?”
Pierce inhaled and frowned, casting a glance across the coffee shop. There was still no one near them or apparently paying attention to them.
“She wanted me to escort her to a wedding, a bodyguard disguised as her plus-one,” he confessed then shook his head. “I don’t need or want that kind of visibility.” He met Jacquie’s gaze and was relieved that she seemed amused. “And I certainly don’t need any more attractive women looking at me the way you did last night.”
She laughed. “I wasn’t sure you cared.”
“Of course, I cared.” Pierce was impatient with the suggestion and didn’t care if it showed. “I wasn’t very happy with Farah, but it’s just as hard as ever to convince her that anyone else’s view matters, especially if it’s different from her own.”
“Does that mean she won’t take your no as an answer?”
“She didn’t like it.” He took a sip of his coffee, which was cold, and put down the mug. “To be honest, I don’t know.” He met her gaze. “I actually don’t care. Is that enough of the truth to earn me a second chance?”
“That depends.” Jacquie braced her elbow on the table and put her chin in her hand. She looked unexpectedly playful. “What are you going to do if she calls you back?”
“Say no again.” He sighed. “And again and again and again.” He lifted a hand. “As long as it takes.”
“What if she won’t take no for an answer?”
He thought about that. It was a definite possibility. Then he met Jacquie’s sparkling gaze and knew. “Then I’ll have to ask for advice, maybe from someone who knows more about stubborn daughters.”
“I have two of those.”
“I knew I was talking to the right person.”
Jacquie laughed. “That advice will cost you dinner, not just a shared cab.”
“Deal,” Pierce said immediately, relieved.
She wagged a finger at him. “Not so fast. What do you do for a living now?”
Ah. The gun. The intrigue. It always came back to that. Pierce leaned across the table and dropped his voice to whisper. “I’m gainfully unemployed and trying to get used to it.”
“You said you were retired.”
“That’s probably the best word for it.”
“You don’t like it.”
He grimaced. “It sounds like I should be golfing in Florida.”
She laughed again, her eyes sparkling. “My
