a large black truck. “Or a blonde hottie in ripped jeans and a dark dream with his hair falling in his face.”
“That is awfully specific,” Autumn said as she leaned around me. “Holy shit is right. Good Lord above, what do they feed the men in Texas?”
“Hell if I know, but I’m going to make sure I’m on the menu.”
◆◆◆
MATTIE
“Damn.” I whistled as I watched the plane roll to a stop on the tarmac. “Willow’s pal rented a private jet?”
John just grunted beside me. He had a problem with people who flaunted their wealth, but he didn’t have a problem voicing his displeasure - that was for sure.
“I wonder if she’s hot.”
“Probably married.”
“Nah. I heard Shannon talking to Grunt and she said that the woman divorced her husband a while back and that was a good thing because he was a total douche.”
“Well, let’s get the princess unloaded so we can entertain her until the wedding.” John opened his truck door and slid out of the vehicle to the tarmac.
I opened my truck door and slid out, taking a deep breath as the heat pushed at me. It was hot as hell today and I’d rather be at a pool somewhere, but duty called. I ambled over to stand beside John at the front of the truck waiting for the door of the plane to open and ‘Her Highness’ to alight and mingle with the poor and unclean.
Shit. Now I was starting to sound like John.
We watched as the door opened and the airport employee rolled the steps closer to the plane. After a minute or two, three men walked down the steps. All three left suitcases at the bottom of the steps. Two of the men headed toward the small airport and I assumed they were the captain and co-captain. The other man was an unknown. I knew for sure that Willow’s best friend was a female just from the small amount I had heard about her, but there were no women in sight.
The man got closer and nodded toward both of us. As he neared us, he stuck his hand out.
“Richard Dorian,” He said as he shook John’s hand and then mine.
John introduced himself, and then I did.
“Autumn and Maria will be out in just a second. They fell asleep on the way here and only woke up a few minutes ago.”
“Autumn and Maria?” I asked the man.
“Yes, is that not who you were expecting?”
“We were expecting Maria. Didn’t realize that she would be with someone else,” John said as he watched the plane’s door. “Not a problem though, the truck has room.”
“I’ll be riding with you, also,” Richard informed us. He didn’t ask or request - no, he told us he would be riding along.
“What are you here for exactly? Are you the other woman’s old man?”
Richard chuckled and then answered, “Not at all. I’m Autumn’s security advisor.”
“Security advisor?” I asked, my eyebrows raised. “She needs a security guard?”
“So, the plane belongs to Autumn and not Maria,” John stated. “Good to know.”
“Yes, this is Autumn’s plane,” Richard confirmed. “And yes, she needs a security guard.”
“Damn, she really must be a princess,” I muttered to John, but Richard heard me and threw his head back with a laugh.
“Autumn, hell, and Maria, too, are both as far away from princess as you can get,” Richard told us as his laughter subsided. “I’ve known Autumn since she was a kid and Maria for the last few years. Both are good women. They won’t give you any fits about petty shit if that’s what you’re worried about.”
“Good to know. I don’t deal well with that bullshit,” John grumbled. I looked toward him and saw his face change and heard his sharp intake of breath before he whispered, “Holy shit.”
I snapped my head back to look at the plane and understood instantly what had taken John’s breath away.
The woman walking down the stairs was a fucking knockout. She had dark red hair and even from here, I could see that her eyes were a bright blue. She wasn’t wearing anything fancy, but the sight of her in the clothes she had on was seared in my brain forever. A black, sleeveless dress that came up above her knee, and a pair of fuck-me sandals that would look great propped up beside my ears.
“Holy shit,” I whispered. “Which one is that?”
Richard laughed, “That’s Maria.”
“Fuck me,” I said. “Holy shit.”
“She’ll rip your fucking face off if you mess with her, but the woman’s a