John released her hand, and Alice's body chilled. He went to the door to speak to security as she glanced at the bulge on his spine that must be his gun. Her heart almost stilled as he returned to her, placed his hand on her spine, and addressed his brother. "Our family reunion needs to be better planned. Peter, ensure that Vicki is kept safe tonight at Castle Morgan. I'll plan our escape from here and see the rest of you tomorrow."
Alice opened her mouth and almost asked, "What about me?" but clamped her lips together. Her mind returned to the fact that she was at a funeral where two former US Presidents showed up and the current one had sent his apologies. The shot had to be related to that, and not some threat to John. No one was going to kill her. Or her family.
John took Alice's hand and dragged her out the door.
Her feet stumbled to keep up, but he held her close as he went to a Secret Service agent. He spoke to the man so fast that Alice turned toward the funeral and tuned out their conversation. Guests sat in the pews of the church, talking animatedly. "She's alive?" "It's better than a soap opera." "Do you think the old man is dead or will he wake up later today?"
Once again Mitch Morgan set off a firestorm in his family, at his own funeral. Her mother would say he was stirring trouble from the grave.
Alice's face heated. Victoria's funeral had been with a closed casket while Mitch Morgan's waxy face beamed from his silken coffin. He had been the richest man in the world who craved power over the rest of mankind.
John told the agents, "My father loaned the government money to pay the national debt. This threat is either against the Presidents, me, or my family. I'm heading to a safe house with this woman. Cover us until we make it out of the parking lot."
"Woman?" Alice said as he turned her on her heel and they headed back where someone had almost killed her.
He opened the door and didn't bat an eye. Her heart raced. "The Secret Service cleared the parking lot to get the Presidents out. I'll have your car brought somewhere safe, later, but we're heading to my car."
John kept her hand in a tight lock, and she shivered as she ran to stay beside him. "Don't call me woman. My name is Alice."
He stopped at a brand new black Mercedes Benz with tinted windows. Her white SUV on the other end of the lot was dusty from the road but right now it seemed like a shrine toward home. John opened the passenger door and waved for her to get in. "Alice, I didn't mean to offend you."
Her shoulders curved inward. Part of her wanted to run toward her SUV and take off for the family farm. The other part didn't think that was a good idea. Her body shook. "I don't feel safe outside right now."
He placed his hand on her shoulder and she jerked back at the touch. Then she took a breath and relaxed. John said, "I'll protect you, but we can't camp out at the church."
Noise behind them caused her to spin on her heel and stare at the Secret Service taking one of the Presidents to a limo. Alice rubbed her arms and turned back to John's strong profile. His five o'clock shadow somehow soothed her. "Where are we going?"
He tilted his jaw in the air. "I can't tell you."
She wasn't a child and that was not a good answer at all. She shook her head. "Why not?"
John leaned closer. "In case someone is listening."
"What?"
He opened the door. "We're outside, open targets. Alice, please get in."
She stared into his blue eyes. Then she slowly nodded and ducked into the passenger seat of his car. "John, okay, I'm going to trust you."
He locked her door and then swung around the car and joined her. He found his sunglasses and then sped out of the parking lot. Alice massaged her forehead. "Your brother canceled his contract with my family."
"What?"
This was a topic she'd have discussed with him over coffee. The original plan sounded like a dream. "Peter spoke to me before we all went in. He canceled the contract. It was why I was upset earlier when you came over to me. I have no idea how my parents can retire without that. I have to get to work."
The engine purred and she paused. He kept his gaze on the road and clutched the wheel. "We have more important things to discuss."
No. She wouldn't think about herself or the bullet that almost lodged itself in her brain. She played with her gold pendant. "My parents are my priority."
"I'll speak to Peter for you."
If Peter Morgan changed his mind then she could breathe easier, but it wasn't wise to hope. There had to be another production company that would buy their oranges up north. The cash crop was a commodity many people around the country craved. "If he doesn't change his mind, then I have to go shopping for a new shipper. That's going to be my priority."
His hand crossed the seat and squeezed her arm. "It's not as important as your life."
John Morgan was bringing up things out of her comfort zone. Her body tensed as she wrapped her head around what she could handle. "I don't have a life if I don't find a new contract."
"Alice, you have your priorities backwards."
She stared out the window. Today was something out of a movie. The funeral, her best friend returned from the dead, someone almost shooting her, her lost business contract, while her body buzzed with awareness of John and it was altogether too much to handle.
John wasn't being reasonable right now and her muscles were so tight that she couldn't breathe. "Let's not talk anymore for a while. I'm not in the mood. Today has been insane."
