Trusting Drew: Burlap and Barbed Wire Page 19

  Drew was relieved that the girls were going to be better protected as they traveled around the city. There would be an obvious police escort and also several undercover officers travelling with the group and keeping a close watch on the Rocky Mountain states’ contestants. The New York City police also like the idea of the cameras and were going to have four officers working the photo shoot areas like Adam and Beau had done yesterday with their ladies.

  They also talked about security for the reception being held with the sponsors and pageant officials. They planned for a debrief after the reception, and another strategy meeting in the morning, before the pageant events started.

  The brothers walked back to Drew’s room in relative silence, not wanting to talk about anything until they were safely in his room where they could speak freely without any chance of being overheard.

  When they got to his room, he was glad to see Lily ready, and looking so gorgeous he wanted to worship at her feet. Today she had on a red dress that swirled around her knees and pretty red shoes that were flats, he assumed Summer had the sexy shoes Lily would change into for the actual photo shoots.

  Lily’s parents had joined the group and Drew was exceptionally glad he’d hid the evidence of their sexual encounters. He had to admit that they were probably more concerned about her safety, than they would be about her amorous activities, but still.

  Howard immediately asked how the security meeting went, which confirmed the thought Drew had just had. Lily’s parents visibly relaxed as he told them all about what was being done to keep all the contestants safe, with a special eye towards the girls from the Rocky Mountain states.

  Drew said, “The only one that doesn’t seem to be a target so far is Ms. Idaho, so there was talk of having a security officer join the maids when they cleaned the room, just to see what they could see.”

  Lily shook her head. “Oh, she’s such a nice girl. I can’t even imagine her doing something like this.”

  Chase shrugged. “Maybe it’s someone associated with her, and not actually her, doing it.”

  Howard shot Chase a quick glance. “There is something about the sponsor list that I keep looking at. I still haven’t put my finger on it, but something about it seems odd.”

  “There will be a reception tonight with the sponsors, contestants, and pageant officials, maybe you’ll get an inkling about it then, daddy.”

  “Well I’m going to keep that list in my hands until then. Maybe it will hit me.”

  Rachel looked at her phone and then at Adam. “We’ve got the first photo op, let’s go get in place.”

  Adam nodded, and they said their goodbyes. Beau and Alyssa decided the same thing and left on their heels. Drew gave Chase a look and the two of them convened to a corner, so Drew could give his brother some more information and talk about what Chase might want to do while he was at the hotel that day. Howard joined the discussion, since he and Elaine were also unknowns at this time.

  Drew decided the older couple could visit some of the sightseeing locations, just to be another pair of eyes. But they didn’t need to go to all of them, so they were free to pick and choose and then return back to the hotel whenever they wanted to. He didn’t want them to be too obviously interested in the pageant group so that they weren’t targeted by the extra security.

  Once Lily’s parents had their ‘assignment’ they left to go get ready to be out of the hotel for a few hours at least. Chase would hang out in the room for a while until he was certain all the contestants were out of the hotel then he would commence his surveillance. The five in Lily’s entourage would leave together and join up with the other contestants to be assigned tour groups.

  There had been a lively discussion, during the security meeting, on whether to keep all the Rocky Mountain girls in one group or spread them out. It was finally decided that it would look too odd to have them all in one group surrounded by security, so they were splitting them up. They wanted to catch the people threatening the girls, not just scare them off.

  Drew wanted to catch them too, but not at the risk of Lily’s safety. So, he planned to stick to her like glue, and so did Cade.

  Lily had wanted to see Manhattan before all the trouble began but now she would much rather stay in the hotel room with Drew where there was little threat of danger. She knew the whole time they were out running around the city; she would be on alert.

  She wished this darn pageant was over, so she could settle back down to being her own self, and not have to be constantly watchful. Of course, that would also mean she wouldn’t be with Drew, which was beginning to feel less and less attractive to her. She really enjoyed his company. He was efficient and careful to keep her safe without being a dick about it.

  During down time he was funny, and they enjoyed the same things. The sex was off the charts, she’d never been so free with a man, or so playful. He could play her body like a finely-tuned instrument. His family was exceptional, coming out like this to protect her when they’d only known her a few days. They’d all put their lives on hold without batting an eye.

  Her family was wonderful too, and she loved them, but she doubted they would have been so giving.

  Lily sighed as they got to the room where they were all meeting to go off sightseeing and doing photo shoots.

  Drew whispered in her ear, “What was the sigh for?”

  “Just another day of being treated like cattle, go here, get a picture taken, go there, look at the sight, then on to the next place and more pictures. I’m ready to move on past this stage.”

  Drew chuckled and then mooed in her ear. She elbowed him as they shuffled forward to take their place. The first part of the excursion was on a double decker bus, where they would tour the outskirts, and then come back for a walking tour and the photo shoots would begin in earnest. Each small group had a slightly different pattern, so they weren’t all in one place at one time, but they would hit every location.

  When they got on the tour bus she tried to be friendly to everyone. Usually it wasn’t a problem, but today she was just not feeling like her sweet self. They had decided, while they were waiting, to sit in the lower section of the bus, so they were not quite so exposed. All the other girls had made a beeline for the roof to see better, so it left them relatively alone on the bottom level.

  When they got to the Brooklyn Bridge, they were all glued to the windows.

  Lily whispered to Drew, “All right, this sight makes it worth it.”

  Drew agreed with her, but still let out a tiny moo.

  Central Park was also amazing, it was such a huge park. They did have a photo shoot in the park at an iconic location. She saw Alyssa and Beau off in the distance taking pictures. She wanted to wave, but had to stop herself, they weren’t supposed to know each other.

  When they trooped back on the bus, Ms. Oregon asked them if they wanted to trade and ride on top. Lily thanked her for her offer but told her they were just fine on the lower level.

  The Empire State Building was a fun stop and they got their pictures taken there also. Her mom and dad were there, playing tourist. Looking out over the city with the machines made for that, and taking lots of pictures with their phones. It was fun to see them enjoying themselves or at least pretending to.

  After they got back to their seats, Lily hoped there weren’t too many more photo ops, she was getting tired of getting on and off the bus, she was not a glutton for punishment like some people.

  When they got to Times Square, Lily was perfectly happy to leave the bus behind and start the walking tour, although she hadn’t realized how many people would be crammed into the area.

  When they’d gotten off the bus, she’d noticed a couple of guys give Drew a look and then one went next to Cade in the front and one went by Drew behind her. She was now surrounded by six people. She was glad to be encircled by her entourage, because that meant someone would have to go to great lengths to get to her.

  They moved through the crowd as a block and people had to fl
ow around them. Some people glared at them for not breaking apart, but they just continued as they were. People would just have to glare.

  She heard the man next to Drew murmur something, but she couldn’t hear what was said, about the same time the man next to Cade nodded to the left and they steered in that direction. She wasn’t sure where they were headed, but if Drew and Cade were okay with it, then so was she. Lily had to assume they were part of the security detail that had been put in force.

  They went into the lobby of a different hotel and over to a quiet corner. The guy that was with Drew said, “We wanted to let you know that Ms. Utah was nearly hit with a pressure syringe earlier. Her bodyguard stopped the attack and we have the perp in custody, but he’s not talking. The contents of the syringe would not have killed her, but it would have made her very sick. She would not have been able to compete.”

  The other guy that was walking with Cade said, “We’ll need to stay alert, in case there are more people out there with syringes, he only had three on him, so we don’t know if that means there’s a second guy out there, or if there are only three contestants being targeted at this time. We’re going to keep you surrounded while you finish the tour and photo shoots.”

  The first guy rubbed the back of his neck. “The police officials have decided to call in the Feds, so we don’t know what will happen when they come in. They might go right over our heads and take control, or they might come in as more feet on the ground and let us handle it as we planned. We won’t know more until later tonight.”

  Drew said, “Even if they go over our heads and change things up, it will still put more eyes and ears on the situation, and that can’t be a bad thing. At least in my opinion.”

  Lily nodded and then said, “I’m glad Ms. Utah wasn’t hurt. She must have a great bodyguard. Of course, so do I. I have a whole six-pack of them.”

  The first guy chuckled. “Yeah, her bodyguard is some kind of martial arts master. He had the dickhead with the syringe disarmed and in a strangle hold before the perp got within a foot of Ms. Utah. She’s a little shook up, but continued right on with the tour. Her bodyguard was glued to her side, and she’s got a couple of plain clothed officers with her, also.”

  Cade said, “We should probably get back out there. We don’t want to hold anything up and cause a commotion.”

  They got back in formation and walked in lock step out onto the busy streets of Manhattan. Fortunately, there were no more incidents of trouble.

  Chapter 24

  Drew was getting all dressed up for the reception that evening. He’d decided to go all cowboy cop, for the night’s entertainment. His boots were polished, his hat was brushed, he’d put on his best string tie, and he wore his badge and gun.

  Chase had reported that there was some discussion among the staff setting up the reception about the seating arrangements, but he hadn’t been able to find out what it was about. Drew didn’t want to take any chances, so he was dressing to the hilt. He just hoped his full-on cowboy cop gear didn’t embarrass Lily. He looked good, but he was still shouting at the top of his lungs, ‘hick’.

  When Lily was ready she joined him in her room. His heart virtually stopped when she walked in, she was so gorgeous. She wore a long sheath dress in deep blue that hugged her curves and dipped low both in front and in back. His mouth went dry as he took in her magnificence. She had what looked like diamonds in her ears, and in a necklace that dipped tantalizingly low toward the shadowy area between her breasts. He stood stone still, not moving a muscle, barely breathing, because he wanted to take her in his arms, kiss her senseless and then strip that delicious dress off of her, so he could worship her body for hours.

  She looked up shyly. “Do I look okay?”

  “Okay? No, you don’t look okay. You look amazing. Magnificent. You put the stars to shame. Lily, my God if we didn’t have to be downstairs in fifteen minutes… well let’s just say it would take hours to do what I want to do.”

  Her smile lit up the room. “You look pretty spectacular yourself.”

  “Not too much hick?”

  A confused look crossed her face and she said, “Not in the least ,you look hot, cowboy, and I kind of feel the same way you do, that if we don’t get out of this room right now ,we won’t be making it to the reception at all.”

  Drew grinned and held out his arm. “Then let us depart, lovely lady.”

  “Without the entourage?”

  “We’ll grab them on the way to the elevator.”

  “Is Chase coming tonight?”

  “Yes, I’m having them dress similar though, to confuse the issue. Give us a little advantage by having them take a some of the focus.”

  Lily laughed. “It will be fun to watch the reactions.”

  Before they got to the elevator the other two couples had joined them. Drew inwardly winced when the twins were dressed in their country finery, too. She was going to go screaming into the wind, being surrounded by all of them in their hats and boots. He had no idea what Beau and Adam would be dressed like, but he wouldn’t be a bit surprised if all five of them were full country. Poor girl, he just hoped she wasn’t embarrassed, they were going to draw attention, and with any luck it wouldn’t be too much.

  Lily smiled at the others when they met up in the hall on the way to the elevator. Chase and Cade were dressed identically but Lily could still tell them apart, by the way they moved and their expressions. They’d gone full out cowboy too, just like Drew. She was surrounded by the most handsome ranchers ever, and their ladies were no slouches. The six of them were sure to turn heads. And if the rest of them all showed up in full western gear, whoever the bad guys were would know they weren’t going to have a chance to get to Lily.

  When they got to the reception area and checked in, she noticed her parents were already confirmed, so they must be in the room. She whispered to Drew that they should find them first, before they did anything else.

  Lily didn’t have to worry about that because she spotted her father immediately at the bar. Lily said, “Daddy is in line at the bar,” so they all headed that direction.

  Drew said, “I don’t see him.”

  Lily scoffed, “He’s next in line.”

  By the time they reached the bar her dad turned out of line and he smiled.

  Drew thought he was dreaming. Lily’s father was dressed almost identically to himself, minus the badge and gun. The man was country from the top of his Stetson to the tips of his Tecova’s. What in the hell was that all about? Drew was so confused he couldn’t speak. No one bought those kinds of clothes for a one-time event. Why was Lily’s father in western gear? Sure, he was from Montana, but that didn’t mean everyone dressed like a rancher.

  Lily hugged her father, “Looking good, daddy. I was wondering when you would break out your ranching duds.”

  “Lily-bug, I didn’t have a reason to wear my boots until tonight, all that running around town, boots aren’t meant for walking, they’re made for riding.”

  Lily laughed and turned to kiss her mom. “You had to force him not to wear them, didn’t you?”

  “I might have applied some subtle pressure.” Elaine’s eyes twinkled.

  Just then Adam walked up. “Mr. Smith, I see you’re representing the ranch tonight. Hoping to sell some of that delightful horseflesh you raise?”

  Drew turned to look at his oldest brother. Horseflesh? Lily’s dad? And then it struck him like a thunderbolt. The Singing S ranch, known for it’s top of the line quarter horses. Lily was a rancher’s daughter, just like he was a rancher’s son. She wasn’t a city girl at all. Then all the puzzle pieces clicked together, no wonder she wasn’t afraid to face the weather, rather than a dangerous man. She knew what the weather was like, she’d been born and raised in the Montana Rockies, she could read the sky the same as he could.

  That put an entirely different spin on things. His heart raced with the possibilities. But he couldn’t go off half-cocked, he was going to have to think long and hard
about what he really wanted. Now was not the time for deep introspection, he was there to keep Lily safe, so he needed to keep his mind on the job.

  Lily noticed Drew had gotten really quiet and still. She looked around to see what had caused his behavior and didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Her dad and mom left to take the drinks back to their table. She touched Drew’s arm and he jolted. “What’s wrong?”

  He shook his head and smiled. “Nothing, I was just thinking. Let’s get some drinks and go meet your sponsors. That’s the point of this shindig isn’t it?”

  Drew was holding something back, but he obviously wasn’t going to tell her what he was thinking about, so she decided not to push it. Maybe after the reception he would tell her what it was. She got a club soda and he got a beer, the rest of his family got drinks and stationed themselves around the room to keep an eye on everything. Cade and Summer stayed with them as they went to go mingle with the sponsors and pageant officials, some of which she had met, but others were new to her.

  Lily decided this had to be the most tedious of all the events. Meeting all these people, gushing about their contribution. She moved almost like an automaton from person to person, smiling, saying the same words over and over, it was not a barrel of laughs. There were a lot of photographers in the room, so when Rachel stayed near them, photographing everyone, including her meets-and-greets with her sponsors, no one even noticed.

  When she’d done the full circle, the waiters brought out the food and Lily was happy to get a plate and sit at the table they were assigned to. It wasn’t food she was used to, but she was hungry, so she ate it. She noticed one of her sponsors and some other men gather in one corner, each of the men had a shot of whiskey and at some command they lifted their drinks, looked fiercely at each other, and then slammed them down in one gulp.