Читать книгу Against the Sun - Kat Martin - Страница 13

Seven

The Saudis arrived right on schedule. Tuesday afternoon, Sheik Khalid’s Boeing 727 landed at Bush International Airport and taxied to the executive terminal.

Jake was there with Sage to greet them, along with her assistant, Will Bailey, and a man named Red Williams. Her assistant was a string bean of a kid in his mid-twenties, with dark hair and big horn-rimmed glasses. Will looked efficient, which Jake was sure he was, or he wouldn’t be working for Sage.

Red Williams was the man Sage had chosen to bring with her into the negotiations, the one she considered her best purchasing agent, and apparently someone she respected.

Red had reached the top of his profession by working his way up from the bottom. According to Sage, he was a hard-driving, hardworking man, and he had the calluses to prove it. It was Red’s job to fend off the minions willing to do just about anything, no matter how shady or underhanded, to sell goods to Marine Drilling. He had to ignore the tempting offers of all-expense-paid trips to the Caribbean, the bribes, booze and women, and actually buy the products that would serve the company best. Apparently, he did.

Yesterday, after they returned from lunch, Sage had brought him into the office. Jake had worked with him the rest of the afternoon and into the evening, teaching him the basic protocols he would need to know to negotiate with the Saudis.

Aside from asking questions and giving advice when it was needed, Red would remain in the background as much as possible. He seemed to have no problem with that.

Jake liked him right away.

The plane taxied up to the executive terminal and the jet engines shut down. A ladder rolled across the tarmac toward the door, and a few minutes later, the heavy portal swung open. The Saudi entourage descended the steps, crossed the asphalt and entered the building through a private entrance.

Jake stood just behind Sage, Alex Justice beside him.

Jake had brought his friend in mostly for appearances. Though everyone involved in the negotiations knew Sage Dumont was in charge, she was a woman and would therefore be seen as less important. Having two personal bodyguards left no doubt of her status.

The greeting was perfectly executed, all the protocols followed. Sage had done her homework, and so had everyone else.

“As-salam-alaikum,” she said, using the standard Saudi greeting. Peace be upon you. “Welcome to America.”

The sheik seemed pleased. “Wa alaikum as-salam,” he replied. And upon you be peace. “We appreciate your hospitality,” he added in perfect English.

His Highness Sheik Khalid Al Kahzaz was a tall, lean man with high cheekbones, olive skin and black eyes, dignified with his gray-speckled black beard and flowing white thobe. He wore the traditional Saudi headdress, as did his son, Roshan, the cousins, Quadim and Yasar, and their four male bodyguards. Dressed in black suits, the guards were all tall, silent and forbidding, giving the exact impression the sheik wanted.

His daughter, A’lia, walked behind him in a loose-fitting caftan that fell around her ankles. Instead of white cotton, the robe was made of delicate embroidered rose silk. A matching scarf covered her neck, head and shoulders and most of her face, but it couldn’t hide the girl’s stunning beauty—her fine, perfect features, delicate nose and small white teeth. Just before she was introduced, she pulled a thin black veil over the lower portion of her face. Her cousin Zahra, taller and blunt-featured, was even more fully covered, and though her garment was also embroidered, it was completely black. Zahra was a few years older, maybe twenty-four or twenty-five, brought along, Jake was certain, to make sure A’lia stayed in line.

As a former Saudi minister there to negotiate the sale, Sheik Khalid and his family had diplomatic immunity. They whisked through customs and outside into the bright Texas heat, pouring into the line of black SUVs Linc had waiting. The cars sped away while their vast array of Louis Vuitton luggage was loaded into more SUVs.

Riding in the lead car, Alex sat next to the driver, Jake behind them next to Sage, and Will and Red in the rear seat as Linc maneuvered the vehicle through traffic. The sheik rode in the second car with his son and daughter and two bodyguards. Zahra rode with the cousins and two more bodyguards in the third vehicle.

The cars reached the Four Seasons, the timing fairly close together and without incident. The Saudi group was welcomed by hotel staff and escorted up to the twentieth floor.

Sage accompanied them, walking into the entry of the elegant, richly appointed presidential suite, Jake taking a position behind her and to the right, Alex behind and to her left.

She smoothed a nonexistent wrinkle from the front of her pale yellow business suit. Jake’s gaze ran over her. Though the skirt reached well below her knees and the cream silk blouse was buttoned to the throat, she still made him think of sex. His pulse quickened and his loins began to fill. The fertility gods were definitely working overtime.

“I hope you find the hotel accommodations satisfactory, Your Highness,” Sage said.

He smiled. “The suite is quite lovely.”

“I’ve planned an itinerary I hope will meet with your approval and you will find interesting. While you’re here, if there is anything at all you need, please feel free to call my assistant or me and let us know.” She handed him their business cards, carefully prepared with the information on the front also printed in Arabic on the back.

The sheik looked down at the cards. “I am certain everything will be fine.”

Sage smiled. She was doing everything just right, Jake thought, oddly proud of her.

“Then rest and recover from your journey,” she said. “Take a look at the schedule, and if it is suitable, I’ll see you again on Thursday.”

The sheik gazed at the paper she handed him. “My daughter wishes very much to go shopping here in America, and my son would enjoy the IMAX. There is one at the science dome in Al-Khobar, but I have not been there. I understand the screen is several stories high.”

Sage’s smile widened. “That’s right. It’s amazing. There’s a movie showing at the IMAX here in Houston, a climb up Mount Everest. It’s quite an exciting film.”

“Yes, I would like to see that.”

Sage made her farewells and stepped out into the hall. As soon as the door closed behind her, she sagged against the wall. “Thank God that’s over.”

Jake smiled, relieved it had gone so well.

Alex grinned, flashing those damned dimples women seemed to love. “I hate to point this out,” he said, “but this is only the beginning.”

She gave him the first real smile Jake had seen on her face all day. “True, but I made it this far without doing anything stupid. That’s a start in the right direction.”

“You did great, Sage,” Alex said.

When her smile widened and Alex’s damn dimples showed up again, Jake sliced him a hard look, but Alex just laughed.

“Let’s get out of here,” Jake said grimly, suddenly wishing he’d brought in someone besides his good-looking friend.

The three of them headed back down to the lobby. Red and Will had already left for their respective jobs. Linc waited in the SUV, which was parked in front, and the three climbed inside.

They were quiet on the drive back to the office, silently preparing themselves for the scene they would be facing when they got there.

“What’s the time frame for the shopping trip on Thursday?” Alex asked.

“The mall opens at ten,” Jake said. “We’ll pick up A’lia and her escorts a little before then. That evening, we’ll take the sheik and his party to the IMAX. I’ve got a private showing arranged.”

Alex nodded. The Escalade reached Louisiana Street and pulled into the executive lot. Unfortunately, the group in back of the building had swelled to the size of the group out front.

“Fuck,” Jake whispered, too low for Sage to hear, and thought that pretty well summed things up.

* * *

Sage hurried along behind Jake as he forged a path through the media toward the back door. Alex followed close behind her, fending off the hordes that tried to get too close.

“Ms. Dumont!” a reporter shouted, shoving a microphone in her face. “What do you have to say about what’s going on here?”

“No comment,” she muttered, as Jake shouldered the man aside.

“The students are here to show their support for democracy in the Middle East,” shouted a female reporter wearing a KTRK TV badge. “Are you sympathetic to their cause?”

“No comment.” Sage kept moving, Jake clearing the way, Alex backing him up.

“Ms. Dumont!” The first reporter caught up with her again and shoved the mic back into her face. “Some of these people are protesting the business you’re doing with a country they feel is oppressive. How do you feel about Marine Drilling spending American money in the Middle East?”

Jake grabbed the device out of the newsman’s hands, nearly knocking him off his feet. “The lady told you she has no comment.” Then he shoved the mic at him, so hard the man jerked backward. Tentatively, the reporter reached out and took hold of it, and they continued toward the door.

Jake stepped inside and hauled Sage in after him. Alex followed, and the security guard closed the door.

“You okay?” Jake asked her.

She nodded, but she was trembling, her mouth dry as cotton. “I hate this.”

“Maybe you should call off the deal and let the Saudis go back home.”

She shook her head, wishing she could do just that. It wasn’t going to happen. “I couldn’t even if I wanted to. I invited the sheik and his family to Texas. I’m not going to abandon them.”

Approval shone in his face. “I didn’t really figure you would.” Catching hold of her arm, he urged her toward the bank of elevators in the lobby. Through the thick, mirrored-glass walls of the building, she could hear the demonstrators outside, arguing and shouting back and forth.

“Unless you need me,” Alex said, “I’ll see you Thursday.”

“Thanks, buddy,” Jake said, and Alex headed out to his car.

Sage stepped into the elevator and Jake followed. “It’s getting worse instead of better,” she said.

Jake pushed the button to the twelfth floor. “It still may cool down.”

“Or they may start killing each other.”

His mouth quirked. “There’s always that chance.”

Sage stood beside him in the elevator. Even in her high heels, he towered above her. She felt feminine and safe in a way she never had before.

She thought of the sheik’s daughter, A’lia, beautiful and sheltered. Living in a gilded prison. As lovely as she was, there was a sadness in her dark, exotic eyes, something that seemed to reach out to Sage in some way. In the cousin, Zahra, Sage had sensed no underlying disquiet. It made her wonder if she could be wrong, and A’lia was happy.

Whatever the truth, it was none of her business. She was determined to make a multimillion-dollar deal, save a boatload of money for Marine Drilling and prove to her grandfather she was capable of running the company when Michael Curtis retired next year.

She entered her office, accidentally brushing against Jake’s thick chest as he held open the door, and his eyes locked with hers. A jolt of electricity shot through her, making her legs feel weak. It was ridiculous. He probably had the same effect on every woman in the building.

Except she had never seen him look at another woman the way he was looking at her.

Another little curl of heat slipped through her. There was no question Jake wanted her. Every time he glanced at her, it was boldly there in his eyes. And yet she couldn’t accuse him of overstepping the boundary between them.

What she couldn’t understand was this burning desire she felt for him. It had never happened before, not even in her more carefree days in college. She’d had boyfriends. She had even slept with a couple of them. But there was none of the gnawing hunger she felt when she looked at Jake.

It wasn’t like her. She was serious and dedicated. She didn’t lust for a man.

Sage amended that. She had never lusted for a man before. It appalled her to realize how much she desired Jake.

“If you keep looking at me that way, I might break my rule.”

Her face went warm. She knew exactly what he meant. He wanted her, but he wouldn’t touch her unless she was free.

She turned away from him, forced her feet to carry her over to her desk.

“It went well today, I thought,” she said, forcing her mind toward business.

“You did great,” he said, and there was none of the heat she had heard in his voice before. “The sheik is well-educated. Speaks English like a native. The son, as well. Makes everything easier.”

“Khalid and Roshan were both schooled at Oxford.”

He nodded. “I’ll be coaching Red a little more this afternoon. I noticed he has a habit of crossing his ankle over his knee when he sits too long. I’ve warned him it’s a major insult to show a Saudi the bottom of his shoe.”

“Red may not have a university degree, but he’s smart. He’ll remember what you tell him.”

“He seems like a good man to have on your team.”

“He’s a very good man. I considered asking one of the VPs, either Charles Denton or Jonathan Hunter, but they’re both very busy with their own jobs, and extremely competitive. I wasn’t sure how much I could trust them. Red worked for Ian for years before he started working for me. He’s loyal to a fault.”

“That was my take on the guy.”

“So what about Thursday? Looks like the sheik is going to let his daughter go shopping with us. Probably her cousin Zahra will come with her.”

“She’s got to have a male relative along,” Jake said again. “I have a hunch we’ll have a small army going with us to the mall. I called yesterday and made arrangements with Saks and Neiman Marcus. They’re going to provide a private salon.”

Sage grinned up at him. “That’s a good start—considering you’re a man—but not nearly enough. I’ll have Will phone Cartier, Gucci and Tiffany’s. The sheik and his crew already own enough Vuitton to open their own shop, so we can probably leave them out.”

“Or that might be exactly the place they want to go.”

She sighed. “You’re right. They sell a lot more than just luggage. I’ll have Will let Vuitton know we’ll be in.”

“For that caliber of buyer, the boutiques may close the doors to the public while we’re in there.”

“I’m sure they will. Just think of all the money we’ll be bringing into the community.”

Jake grinned. “Maybe we ought to march around with a sign that says Marine Drilling—Spending Saudi Money in America.”

Sage laughed. “Maybe.” Her laughter slowly faded. “They’ll be safe, won’t they?”

His gaze shifted, darkened. “They’ll be fine. More importantly, you’ll be safe. I promise you that, Sage.”

And when she looked into those blue, blue eyes, she knew he would keep his word.

Knew that if he had to, Jake Cantrell would protect her with his life.