âDamn it to hell, Rory â¦â
She stepped up nice and close. She smelled of that perfume she always wore, of roses and oranges and a hint of some dark spice. Heâd always liked her scent. But now, tonight, it seduced him, made his head spin. She pulled her hand back.
Walker felt the loss of her touch as a blow, sharp and cruel.
But then she tipped up her sweet mouth to him.
It was the best offer heâd had in a very long time. And yet it felt all wrong. âIâm supposed to be looking out for you, not stealing kisses at bedtime.â
She took a soft, slow breath. âBecause youâre my bodyguard.â
âThatâs right.â
âDidnât I try to warn you that being my bodyguard was not a good idea?â
Oranges. Spice. What would she taste like on his tongue? She really was killing him. âUh, yeah. I believe that you did.â
âYou should have listened to me.â
âMaybe so. Too late now, though.â
* * *
The Bravo Royales: When it comes to love, Bravos rule!
Chapter One
Strings had been pulled.
Aurora Bravo-Calabretti, Princess of Montedoro, knew this because Walker McKellan was waiting for her right there on the tarmac when the private jet her mother had insisted Rory use taxied in for a landing at the Denver airport.
Irritation at the sight of himâand at her mother, tooâhad her chewing her lower lip. God forbid she should be allowed to get off a plane and walk all the way to customs without some big, strong man watching over her, making sure she got there safely.
Tall and lean, wearing old jeans, battered boots and a heavy shearling coat, Walker had his arms folded across his broad chest, and he was leaning against his camo-green SUV. In the thin winter sunlight, he looked so Americanâa rancher fresh off the range, or maybe a mountain man taking a short break from wrestling grizzlies and taming bobcats. As frustrated as she was with the situation, Rory couldnât resist whipping out her trusty Nikon D700 and snapping several shots of him through a passenger window.
Walker was a great guy. Rory adored him. Heâd been a very good friend to her over the seven-plus years sheâd been visiting Colorado on a regular basis. People should not take advantage of their very good friends. Rory would never have done such a thing by choice.
But her mother, who usually had the sense to mind her own business, had gone over to the dark side for no comprehensible reason and taken advantage of Walker for her. And Walker had let Roryâs mother do it.
The more Rory thought about that, the angrier she became with both of themâwith her mother, for roping Walker into being responsible for her. And with Walker, too, for not allowing Rory to back out of the unfair arrangement gracefully.
She pulled on her coat, stuck her camera in her tote and headed for the exit, pausing to thank the flight steward and the pilots as she left.
When she started down the airstairs, Walker straightened from the SUV and strode toward her. âMy favorite princess. Lookinâ good.â Those blue eyes with the manly crinkles at the corners swept over her red peacoat, long sweater and thick winter leggings tucked into a nice, warm pair of Sorel boots. He reached for a hug.
âHey.â She went into his arms for maybe half a second before ducking free.
His eyes narrowed briefly at her sullen greeting, but then he only asked, âGood trip?â
âIt was fine,â she said without even trying to sound as though she meant it. He gave her another swift, questioning glance. She ignored it. âThere will be customs,â she said. âBut it should be quick.â
A half an hour later, her luggage had been checked and loaded into the back of the SUV. They set out for the small town of Justice Creek, where her Bravo cousins lived.
As they sped down the interstate, he tried to get her talking. He teased her about the number of suitcases sheâd brought and then about how he planned to put her to work cooking and cleaning out at his ranch, the Bar-N. She returned brief responses and stared out her side window at the high, flat land rolling off toward the distant gray humps of the mountains.