Bodyguard: Ambush (Book 3) (42 page)

Connor knew there was something very
important he had to tell the colonel. It was on the tip of his tongue but for the life
of him he couldn’t remember.

‘Well, he’s in the main
ballroom,’ said Amber. ‘And did you know Gunner’s turned up? That man
must be as strong as a lion to recover so fast.’ Noticing the dazed look on
Connor’s face, she asked, ‘Are you all right?’

Connor nodded.
‘Yes, fine. A little tired, that’s all.’

‘I’m not surprised,’ said
Amber kindly as she stepped closer to him, a joyful smile on her lips. ‘By the
way, I’ve some great news.’

‘What is it?’

‘My father’s just come out of a
meeting.’ Again something stirred in Connor’s memory like an itch he
couldn’t scratch. ‘He’s organized for a French aid fund to sponsor
Zuzu and Deo. They’re going to be given a proper home, an education, an income. A
chance to live a normal life.’

‘That’s wonderful,’ said
Connor, the good news clearing his sluggish mind. ‘We should go and congratulate
them.’

‘Hold on a minute,’ said Amber,
grabbing his hand and pulling him back. She gently closed the door to the room.
‘Before we return to the party we’ve some unfinished business.’

‘We have?’ said Connor, trying
to jog his memory again.

‘This time there are no snakes, ants,
crocodiles or leopards to disturb us …’ She pinned him to the wall, kissing him
full on the lips. A true French kiss.

Connor’s breath was taken away. He
wrapped his arms round her and kissed her back. The horrors of their recent ordeal
seemed to shrink to nothing in their passionate embrace. In the back of his mind,
though, a voice was telling him to stop. The Buddyguard organization had laid down
specific rules.

But, hey, if he hadn’t taken a few risks in his life, he probably
wouldn’t be around to enjoy this one …

Yet in his heart of hearts he knew what was
really
wrong
about kissing
Amber. The revelation caused Connor to pull away.

‘Don’t stop,’ she
murmured, her eyes half-closed and dreamy.

‘I’m sorry. But I must.
I’m supposed to be your bodyguard.’

‘And you’re making me feel safe.
Very safe.’ She leant in for another kiss.

Connor gently held her at bay. ‘I
can’t be your boyfriend. I made an oath not to get involved with clients. When I
commit to something, I don’t break that commitment.’

Amber studied him intently with a mixture of
longing and bitter-sweet admiration. ‘You’re the first boy I’ve met
who actually does what he says and stands by his word.’ She seemed about to cry.
‘I respect you for that.’

Stepping away, she straightened her hair and
regained her composure. Her green eyes glistened, but her expression remained strong and
self-assured.

‘When you’re ready for another
commitment, Connor, give me a call. But I won’t wait forever.’

Amber kissed him briefly on both cheeks,
then opened the door and headed out of the room. Connor’s last glimpse of her was
a flash of flame-red hair disappearing down the hallway.

‘How’s Operation Hawk-Eye
going?’ asked Connor, happy to be back in the comms seat in Alpha team’s
briefing room.

‘Well, there’ve been no more
eggs!’ Amir replied, the monitor revealing a more confident expression on his
friend’s face compared to the last time they’d spoken. ‘But there was
a bomb.’

‘A bomb!’ Connor exclaimed.
‘Are you all right? What happened?’

Amir nodded. ‘Thanks to your advice I
spotted it early.’ He waved a pair of sunglasses in front of the camera.
‘You reminded me that the mind is the best weapon. So, using my IT skills, I
upgraded the lenses to detect sudden movements. My early-warning system helped me to
save my Principal by leaping in front of him as the bomb was thrown.’

‘How on earth did you
survive?’

‘It was a
water
bomb,’
explained Amir, laughing at Connor’s wide-eyed look of shock. ‘I got
soaked!’

Connor laughed too. ‘Well, I’m
pleased you’re in such
high spirits.
I’m just sorry I wasn’t around the last couple of weeks, but I’ve been
a little tied up.’

‘Don’t worry about it,’
said Amir. ‘Charley’s been my support and I know you were gunning for me
too.’ He moved closer to the screen and squinted. ‘I see you lost your
watch. That thing was indestructible! Is there nothing you can’t lose or break on
an assignment?’

Connor felt his face flush at being found
out. He’d replaced the watch he’d given Henri with a brand-new Rangeman at
airport duty-free on the way home. ‘How do you know?’ he asked.

Amir rolled his eyes. ‘That’s
the series 3 edition. Only just come on the market. You can tell by the red accents on
the dial. Yours was a series 2.’

‘Well, whatever series, your gift was
a godsend,’ said Connor with a rueful smile. ‘I’d have literally been
lost without it.’

‘So how was Africa?’ asked
Amir.

Connor hesitated before replying.
‘It’s the most beautiful, awe-inspiring and … lethal place on Earth. Africa
just gets under your skin. Despite everything that’s happened, I’d go back
in a heartbeat. Although I might not take a safari any time soon!’

‘Sounds to me like you need a
proper
holiday,’ said Amir.

Connor nodded in agreement. ‘When
you’re back, let’s ask the colonel for some time off.’

‘Great idea! A buddyguard
break!’ There was a voice in the background and Amir glanced off-screen.
‘Sorry, Connor, I’ve got to go. Duty calls.’

‘I
understand. Stay safe, Amir. Alpha Control, signing off.’

As Connor closed down the video app, a
clawed hand suddenly grabbed his left shoulder and he half-jumped, half-winced.

‘Hey, pussycat!’ said Ling,
baring her teeth in a mock snarl. ‘When are you up for our final deciding
match?’

‘Not for a good few weeks,’ he
replied, loosening up his stiff shoulder. ‘The doctor says I need to rest,
otherwise I’ll rip my stitches again.’

Ling tutted in disappointment.
‘Excuses, excuses,’ she said. ‘I suppose we could play noughts and
crosses with your scars while we wait!’

‘You need to let him rest,
Ling,’ said Charley, glancing over as she typed up the team’s daily
occurrence log. ‘He’s still in recovery.’

‘Why does Connor get all your
sympathy?’ Marc questioned, raising his own shirt to reveal a small scar across
his belly. ‘I had my appendix taken out in an emergency operation!’

‘Shame they didn’t take your
voice box out at the same time,’ said Jason. ‘Then we wouldn’t have to
listen to all your whinging.’

‘It’s nothing to joke
about,’ protested Marc. ‘I almost
died
.’

Connor said nothing, but he thought
he’d prefer acute appendicitis to fighting rebel soldiers and wrestling crocodiles
any day of the week. His lack of communication home would also have been far easier to
explain to his
gran. Instead he’d
received a tongue-lashing over the phone from her that would’ve put even the
fearsome Black Mamba in his place. Yet, while he was in the doghouse with his gran,
Connor received the good news that his mum’s MS was in remission, for the time
being at least.

Richie shut down his laptop and headed for
the door. ‘Hey, it’s pizza night in the dining hall. Who’s
coming?’

Everyone started packing up, apart from
Charley.

‘I’ll be along shortly,’
she said, then sighed. ‘Just finishing off the log.’

‘We’ll save you a slice,’
yelled Ling, disappearing down the hallway with Jason.

As Marc hurried after them, Connor hung
back. ‘I’ll catch you up,’ he said in answer to his friend’s
enquiring glance.

Alone in the briefing room with Charley,
Connor wondered how to broach the subject that had been on his mind since his return
from Burundi. As he tried to pluck up the courage, Charley looked over and said,
‘You don’t have to wait for me.’

‘No, it’s OK,’ he replied,
feeling even more nervous than he did prior to an assignment. ‘I’ve been
wanting to ask you … do you fancy going out? Catch a movie or something
together?’

Charley stopped typing. ‘Are you …
actually asking me for a
date
?’

She suddenly sounded as nervous as he
was.

Connor nodded.

Charley’s
sky-blue eyes studied his face as if trying to judge whether he was joking. ‘Are
you sure about this?’

‘I’ve never been more
sure,’ he replied, remembering his kiss with Amber and what had really been wrong
about it. The simple fact was that it hadn’t been Charley.

She spun her wheelchair towards him.
‘Because if you’re serious you need to understand how I ended up in this
chair and how that’s changed me.’

‘I want to know,’ said Connor,
sitting down next to her. ‘I want to know everything about you.’

Taking a deep breath, Charley steeled
herself to revisit her past. ‘Well … This is the first time that I’ve ever
told anyone the full story …’

This is my eleventh full-length novel. My
twenty-first published book! When I wrote that first line in
Young Samurai: The
Way of the Warrior
back in 2006, I never dreamt that it would take me on
such a long and incredibly rewarding journey. And there is much more to come with
six books (including three in the Bodyguard series) under contract to be written.
With so much action and adventure ahead, I need to thank those who have helped get
me this far and hopefully will continue to carry me into the future …

First and foremost, my wife Sarah – yes,
this was perhaps the least stressful of all the books I have written. Who knows, one
day I might actually be ‘normal’ when I’m writing a book! My two
awesome sons – Zach and Leo – my reward is getting to play and have fun with you at
the end of each day. My mum and dad – my first readers, I value all you do for me.
Sue and Simon for your constant support. Steve and Sam for just being lovely and a
rocking uncle and aunt to our boys! And Karen, Rob, Thomas and Benjamin for being
there for us at all times.

It goes without
saying that none of this would have been possible without my dear friend and agent,
Charlie Viney. Pippa Le Quesne, thank you as ever for your guidance on the crafting
of each book. And Clemmie Gaisman and Nicky Kennedy at ILA for conquering the world,
territory by territory.

I have a new Puffin editor for this book
– Amy Alward. Change is always difficult but thank you, Amy, for making the
transition so smooth and for your insightful comments. A big bow must go to Sara for
overseeing the awesome design of the Bodyguard book covers – this is perhaps my
favourite of the series so far. Helen Gray for the final polish of the diamond! And,
of course, a huge hug and thanks to my constant star since being at Puffin, Wendy
Shakespeare.

Authors Abroad are a crucial linchpin of
the team organizing all my tours – so a big thank you to Trevor Wilson and Shelley
Lee (especially!) whose attention to detail and brilliant logistical skills make my
touring life very easy.

My constant friends (young and old)
Geoff, Lucy, Matt, Charlie, Russell, Hayley, Mark Dyson and my goddaughter Lulu,
plus the members of the HGC to whom this book is dedicated: Dan, Siggy, Larry, Kul,
Andy, Dax, David, Giles, Riz and any other poor unfortunate souls who might join our
clan …

But the most important people to thank
are you, my readers, for following both the Young Samurai and Bodyguard series,
telling your friends and family about the
books and posting reviews online. Without you, there
would be no point in writing. So thank you for reading!

Stay safe.

Chris

Any fans can keep in touch with me and
the progress of the BODYGUARD series on my Facebook page, or via the website at
www.bodyguard-books.com