Royal Opposites (18 page)

He asked with a lopsided smile that revealed one of his sexy dimples.

“See. That’s what I’m talking about. They’ll have to cut a hole in the train to get you out of this cabin once we arrive in Dallas.”

He uncovered a bowl of fruit while his grin blossomed to include his entire face. Why had she brought this up? What in the world was the matter with her?

“Wow! This looks yummy.” She offered up a quick prayer of thanksgiving then dug in.

Tom picked up a strawberry and bit into it while staring at her. Judging by the mischievous glint in his eye, she wasn’t going to like what he was thinking.

“You didn’t answer the question.”

“It’s a rhetorical question. You already know the answer.”

“Maybe I just want to hear it again. You know. So I don’t misunderstand.”

“You’re a smart guy. I’m sure you didn’t misunderstand.”

Tom pressed a hand to his chest feigning heart palpitations.

“You think I’m smart, too? My goodness. Is the world coming to an end?” She glared at him. “Your world might be coming to an end.

Very soon.”

“Is that a threat? You know, I could have you beheaded for such a treasonous statement against the crown.”

“Good thing you left your crown at home then, huh?”

He laughed. “Yeah. I suppose it is. It would be a shame to see that pretty little head of yours rolling around on the floor all detached from your body and everything.” He snagged a sausage link from the plate and chomped down on it.

She frowned. “There might be a compliment in there somewhere, but the whole idea is far too gruesome to root around in for very long.”

“You’re right. It is a pretty gruesome way to die. As a personal favor, I’d find a much nicer way to have you killed.”

“Gee, thanks. I feel so much better now.”

“I knew you would.” He picked a biscuit from the plate and studied her while he munched on it. Self-‐-conscious, she swiped at her mouth with a napkin.

“What?”

He shrugged. “Just wondering why you didn’t follow up on the real compliment.”

“You mean I should feel honored you’d take such a personal interest in my death?” Joan knew what he was getting at and chose to ignore it. She was already having too much trouble separating fantasy and reality without letting the fact that he’d called her pretty help the two bleed together even further.

“You know what I mean. And yet you ignore it. Again.

Interesting.”

“So you prefer I should annoy you to follow up on what I already know? No, thanks.” She made a sausage biscuit and took a bite.

“Do you? Know, I mean? ‘Cause it seems to me like you don’t have the first inkling how—”

“How about we change the subject before we ruin a perfectly lovely breakfast?”

He looked like he was going to argue the point. She released the breath she was holding when he shrugged and reached for some bacon.

“So, what do you wanna do today? Seems to me like we’ve got around fifteen hours to kill.”

“I’m sure there’s some kind of entertainment on board.” Joan frowned. “Except we’re kinda confined to the compartment. And there’s the little issue of clothing.” She fought off a blush when she brought up the subject.

“We were. The conductor’s shift ended at the first stop this morning.” Tom jerked his head to a couple plastic bags hanging on the rack. “And I found a souvenir shop onboard. I had to convince him to open early, but…” Tom shrugged while letting his sentence trail away.

Joan studied him with a narrowed gaze. “How much money do we have left?”

Tom waved off her concerns. “Don’t worry about it. You’ve already won the bet.”

She stopped breathing for a moment. “How much, Tom?”

He shrugged and stood to retrieve the plastic bag. “A little over ten dollars. But I saw what you did at the grocery store. We have more than enough to live on for a week the way you shop.”

Joan stared at his unconcerned face. The breakfast she’d eaten threatened to make a return appearance. “Tell me you’re kidding.”

Tom frowned and brought the bag over to her and sat down again. “What’s the matter? You’re the queen of coupons. I have faith in you. We’ll be fine.”

“I don’t have any coupons, Tom.” Joan fought to breathe. It was a fine time for him to decide to depend on her. “Remember? I couldn’t get my bag out of the car. Everything was in my binder.”

“So where do we get more coupons?”

“The Sunday paper for the most part. But that was yesterday. And there was only a Red Plum insert with lots of vitamin Qs.”

“That’s bad?”

Joan took a deep breath. “Maybe. How expensive is food on the train?”

“All meals are included with the compartment.”

The weight lifted off Joan’s shoulders. “In that case, I guess we just have to figure out what to do today. Worry about the airport when we get there.”

“I bet we can find some interesting people to watch,” Tom suggested.

And that’s what they did. More or less. Tom and Joan roamed around the train from car to car being nosy and just to see what they could see. The first time, she was startled when Tom linked his fingers with hers. He didn’t seem to take note of her questioning look. Despite her need to keep reality and fantasy separated, she decided to indulge herself. Besides, how many times would she have the opportunity to have a great looking guy display such affection for her in public? And he was a prince no less. So, yeah. Reality could wait a little while longer.

After a while, holding his hand became second nature. She knew it was petty, but every time some woman gave her “the look”

like how had she managed to snag such a hot guy. Joan felt her spine straighten with a touch of arrogance. Oh boy, was she going to have to give herself a nice attitude adjustment when the two of them went their separate ways and she was back to being plain ole Joan Smith.

While roaming, they made friends with another couple who was traveling to Chicago via that particular line and were invited to a rousing game of cards to help pass the time. Joan teamed up with Sheri to take on Shawn and Tom in Spades. Since Tom wasn’t familiar with the game, Joan and Sheri enjoyed their advantage. He caught on fast, though, and it wasn’t long before the guys were giving the women a run for their money.

Before they knew it, dinner was announced. Shawn and Sheri had packed food for the trip and offered to share. Tom declined for him and Joan on the pretense he’d been craving the lemon chicken on the menu since breakfast that morning. They made a plan to meet back in their spot to finish up the game in a few hours.

Joan was surprised when he didn’t even order the chicken letting her in on his very blatant lie. She couldn’t puzzle it out and he refused to explain. Instead, he led her to a secluded booth where they had a cozy dinner for two. It reeked of date, but she was sure that couldn’t be right. She set aside her suspicions as wishful thinking and enjoyed the meal and the company. He hinted he hadn’t wanted to miss dinner because it had been included in the ticket price, but Joan’s instincts told her something more was going on. She couldn’t trust herself that her inkling was anywhere near correct.

After dinner, they rejoined Sheri and Shawn. Tom proceeded to show the women just how fast of a learner he was when he and Shawn started winning hand after hand. When Joan called him on hustling them, Tom’s only response was to high-‐-five Shawn and grin.

At last, the ladies begged for mercy and they brought the game to a close. Joan and Tom bid the couple goodnight then returned to their cabin for the evening. Like they had last night, they talked about any and everything under the sun before drifting off into contented sleeps. The next morning, they joined the other couple for breakfast then bid them a fond farewell where they parted company at Dallas Union Station.

While the train chugged away, Joan could feel a heaviness settle on her shoulders.

“So now what?” She asked to keep her mind occupied.

“We find Jai then let him do his job.”

Chapter Seventeen

It all sounded too easy. Would this whole ordeal be over just like that or had their one safe haven just chugged off down the tracks? Joan studied their surroundings half expecting to see the guards closing in on them. Instead, all she saw were normal folk going about their business and not paying them the least bit of attention. That wasn’t entirely true. More than a few women interrupted their regularly scheduled lives for a second or even third glance at Tom. Joan couldn’t help the satisfaction that settled in her chest and walked a bit taller at the feeling of his fingers linked through hers. At least they were for the time being anyway.

Turns out, the ‘time being’ was even shorter than she’d imagined. After brief consultations with the signage at Union Station, Tom led her to the local platform where they caught another train followed by a bus. She frowned when he escorted her into Sonny Bryan’s Smokehouse.

“You can’t be serious. You want to stop for a meal now and spend our last three dollars?”

Tom grinned at her. “Why not?”

She watched in disbelief while he searched the interior of the bustling restaurant. It seemed that he found what he was looking for because he pulled her toward a table near the back. An imposing looking man sat there with a napkin tucked into his button down chambray shirt complete with fringe across the chest and down the sleeves. He was chowing down on a humongous plate of BBQ.

“I’m running for my life and you’re enjoying a plate of ribs?” Tom greeted the man with a barely concealed smile. Joan had no doubt the man was Jai. Whatever she’d been expecting, it hadn’t been this. He stood and gave Tom a bear hug. Not hard to do when you had to be near seven feet tall, she thought, and took note of the man’s meaty paw when it clapped Tom on the shoulder after he’d released him.

“I sure am glad to see ya’ll,” he told Tom in a surprising Texas drawl. “Your mama would have my hide if anythin’

happened to ya.”

Curiouser and curiouser. She’d thought he’d grown up with Tom in Rafferstonia. His accent screamed that he’d been born and raised in Texas, though.

Tom pulled Joan into their little soiree. “This is Joan. The woman who did your job and saved my life.”

Jai shook her hand and nodded at her. “Much obliged ma’am.”

“He’s exaggerating. I didn’t do anything he hasn’t done for me. Tom pulled me out of a wrecked car, so I figure we’re even.”

Jai frowned and gestured toward the other side of the booth.

“Tell me everything.” And just like that, the Texas accent was gone.

Once they were settled in the booth, they filled the man in on everything that had happened. They paused when their waitress stopped by the table to put in an order of BBQ to rival Jai’s. Joan handed over the busted camera and memory card. Without missing a beat, the man hooked the card up to an adapter attached to his phone. The remains of his easygoing manner all but disappeared once he watched the video of their botched “bank robbery”.

Hearing how Joan had been the victim they’d tried to turn Tom into completed the task.

“A mighty fine mess this is. A mighty fine mess,” Jai commented before tapping away on his phone’s screen. He disconnected the memory card and handed it back to Joan. “That oughta get the ball rolling. I sent it to a friend of mine in your FBI.

Copies also went to my staff back home.” Jai propped his elbows on the table and steepled his fingers. “Since we don’t know where these guys are or who they’re working for, I recommend we head to the airport and go wheels up within the hour. Get you home.”

Wow! This was all happening so fast. In an hour, Tom would be flying out of her life forever. She worked to keep her sadness from showing on her face, but it was difficult. She was glad neither of the men was addressing her at the moment because she wasn’t sure she could speak around the tearful lump in her throat.

Tom nodded his agreement. Jai turned his focused on Joan.

“Can I assume you don’t have your passport on you?”

The question was so contrary to what she’d thought was about to happen that she didn’t comprehend it at first. “My passport?”

“Your government would not look too kindly on my kidnapping one of its citizens even if I am royalty,” Tom informed her and squeezed her hand.

“You want me to go with you?”

“Of course. You will still be in danger until these men are apprehended. You will remain under my protection. Just like I promised.”

Ah, yes. That promise.

Jai chimed in. “I know it can be hard to leave your life behind, but I promise it will just be until we capture the men who are after you. Then you’ll be free to return home. Wherever you deem that to be.”

He said the last with a look at Tom that she couldn’t quite comprehend. Not with so many other fantastical things and monumental decisions to be made right this moment. If she were honest, she had nothing more to lose. Her job was gone. Her friends thought she was a bank robber. It could take some time for this mess to be straightened out. Why not take an extended vacation until the dust settled?

She shook her head. “I don’t have a passport.” Tom grinned at her while Jai nodded and jotted a note in his phone. What had she done? Did she just agree to leave the country with two men she barely knew?

She had no time to further dwell on the decision. Jai tossed some cash on the table then spirited them off to the airport. Unlike Tom, he had his diplomatic credentials with him. They made security more than a breeze to sail through. They were allowed to keep their shoes so Joan didn’t even get to try out the little booties provided for passengers to wear through the scanners.

Once inside the international terminal Tom asked, “Is there time for a little shopping spree? I can’t bear these clothes a moment longer.” He squeezed her hand. “You?” She could only shake her head, there were so many doubts and questions swirling through her head at what she was in the midst of doing. Jai pulled a credit card from his wallet and handed it over to Tom.

“Get yourself something nice.” The Texas accent was back.

He gestured with his phone. “I’ll finish making the necessary arrangements.”