Sage hurried along behind Jake as he forged a path through the media toward the back door.  Alex hurried along 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 microphone out of the newsman’s hands, nearly knocking him off his feet.  “The lady told you she has no comment.”  He shoved the mic back so hard the man jerked backward out of his way.  Tentatively, the reporter reached out and took hold of the mic, 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 cotton dry.  “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 shown 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 floor-twelve button. “It still may cool down.”

     “Or they may start killing each other.”

     His mouth edged up.  “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 multi-million 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 brushed against Jake’s thick chest as he held open the door, and his eyes locked with hers.  A jolt of electricity shot through her, made her legs actually 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 looked 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 when she was 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.

     She amended that.  She had never lusted for a man before.  It appalled her to realize how much she lusted for 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.  “I have a hunch we’re going to 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 smaller stores will close the doors 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.