She hated it. It was breaking her heart not to stand there and comfort her father, to assure him that she was fine. To be a daughter. But to be a daughter right now would mean letting go of the independence she treasured. He was her father, and she understood his need to protect her. But right now, she didn’t need his protection. She needed to do her job.

Her stride was hesitant, aching, as she moved away from him, only to come to a stop once again as she all but plowed into Khalid’s chest.

She couldn’t fight him. Staring into his intense black eyes, his savagely hewn features, she knew she couldn’t fight him. She stared up at him instead, realizing he must have broken several speed limits to have gotten there so quickly.

As the warmth of him surrounded her, she suddenly had to do what she hadn’t had to with her father. She had to force herself to be strong rather than leaning into his strength, and it was all she could do not to sink into his arms. He had a determination to protect her. Fighting against that would be much harder with Khalid for some reason.

Instead, she stood still as he pulled a handkerchief from inside his pocket and gently dabbed at the cuts on her face.

Staring into his eyes, she felt more connected to him now than she had in his bed last night when she had lost her virginity in his arms.

“You’re bleeding, precious,” he stated calmly, though his black eyes were filled with fury and concern. Concern for her.

“Not badly,” she assured him.

He nodded before glancing at Shayne, who had just jumped from his car and was now headed toward them. “Do as you must. I’ll distract your fathers and give you a chance to do your job. I’ll have my personal physician ready when you’re finished, and then we’ll talk. Agreed?”

She swallowed. “Agreed.”

She was caught. There was no getting out of it, and the sense of relief she felt was almost as frightening as the knowledge that she truly didn’t want to run from him any longer.

“Talking won’t be easy,” she said softly.

“Most things that are worth fighting for are rarely easy, love,” he told her, before pressing a gentle kiss to her lips. “But we’ll muddle through, I’m certain.”

The calm, easy demeanor was at direct odds with the flames of rage burning in his eyes.

“Go.” He released her slowly. “Our time will come soon.”

Hell. She was definitely in trouble now.

Letting her go was perhaps the hardest thing Khalid had ever done in his life. He pocketed the white silk handkerchief that was now stained with her blood and watched with hooded eyes as she and Shayne moved off.

“Bad idea,” Joe snapped behind him. “She’s hurt.”

Khalid turned to him slowly.

“She would know if she was hurt badly,” he told the other man, and prayed he was right. “She is on her feet and making logical decisions. As long as she is doing this, we have no right to interfere.”

There was a long silence behind him then. He could feel the fury pouring off the other man as they watched Marty and Shayne move into the fray of witnesses and police officers that had gathered. Shayne was going to have a hell of a time dealing with Jennings once he arrived as well. Zach Jennings might make use of Shayne when he needed to, but on home turf, where his daughter was concerned, it would be a different story. The CIA wasn’t exactly bosom buddies of Zach’s. He was simply fonder of Shayne than he was of other agencies from that particular branch of covert operations.

“What the hell happened? I thought she left with you last night? Didn’t you stay with her?”

The fury pounded at his back as Joe stepped closer. “I warned you she wasn’t going to be as easy to control as you thought she was. That she would need more attention if you stepped into an affair with her.”

There was nothing inattentive about what Khalid felt for Marty. But there was also fear. More fear than he had ever known in his life. Fear for her life, for her safety.

Still, Khalid nodded slowly. “So you did. It is a situation that will not be repeated. But in all fairness, Senator, I have never stated a desire to control her, nor do I feel the least bit careless toward her. My only desire was to ensure she was never harmed.”

“If I find out your past is behind this attack on her, Khalid, then you won’t enjoy dealing with me,” Joe snarled, now at his side as he voiced Khalid’s own fears.

Khalid turned to the senator, watching him coldly before turning his gaze back to the woman.

“If I learn this happened because of my past, then I will deal with it however I must,” he said. “She’s a woman. My woman. And I promise you, I will protect what is mine this time.” He looked at Joe again. “No matter who she must be protected from.”

He would protect her, whether from his past or from a father who wanted nothing more than to throw a sheltering blanket over her. Her fathers had tried. She had been placed within his sphere, and there danger always existed. Though he had not expected danger to come so soon.

Moving away from the senator, the concerned father who wanted nothing more than his daughter’s protection, Khalid walked over to his sleek black Lexus.

Abdul was waiting, his craggy features creased into a frown as he watched Marty, his hand placed casually in the pocket of the jacket he wore-and on the he carried there.

“Contact Azir,” he ordered. “See if you can find out if Ayid and Aman are involved in this. My contacts had no information this morning, nor do they know of my bastard half brothers’ whereabouts.”

Abdul shook his head. “This is not something he would discuss with me. Your brothers do not discuss their schemes with him. They work around him, below him, but never where he can stop their plans.”

“Then contact the bastards,” he snapped. “Tell them I will come after them, Abdul. I will hunt them, and they will die if she gets so much as another scratch.”

Abdul stared back at him, his expression tormented and filled with fear. “This will only give them greater satisfaction and spur on their efforts,” Abdul warned him. Go to them and you go in weakness. Stand silent and still, and you meet them in strength.”

Khalid’s lips tightened furiously. “I’d rather go hunting.”

Abdul shook his head again before nodding toward Marty. “Seduce your woman. Love her. Use this time to tie her to you, so that once your deceptions are revealed she will not run from you. She is a delicate female, Khalid, and one deserving of your time and your care.” There was a hint of censure in his voice then. “She is also strong. She is a woman of truth and honor, my friend. The day will come that this may be all that holds her to you. Then, when your brothers move, you will meet them in strength, not in weakness. This is my advice to you.”

And it was advice he should heed. Khalid watched as Marty and Shayne worked together. He acknowledged that the other agent was carefully covering her back, on guard, and watching everyone closely.

Shayne was a man of strength; Khalid had chosen him as his third for this reason. He would be there when Marty was in danger. And Khalid would be by her side as the man who held her heart.

Sharing her was something he couldn’t pull back on. The danger that would always surround her would always weigh too heavily on his soul. Should she be harmed or, God forbid, should she be killed, then could he survive the loss?

He couldn’t. He knew this. Sharing her life with another man, one he chose, one who he may not control but was in agreement with, was the only alternative. And thankfully it was an alternative he would be pleased to live with.

“Contact Abram,” he told Abdul. “Let him know the situation as it stands. He should add to his own protection as well.”

Abdul nodded. “They will attempt to destroy Abram, but only after they have destroyed you. Azir protects Abram for now, for Abram is the chosen heir.”