Read Online Royal Target by Traci Hunter Abramson - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Traci Hunter Abramson
Ads: Link
dessert in front of each of them. She laughed despite herself. “Okay, maybe just one more bite, but I’m going to have to schedule time to run tomorrow.”
“I think that can be arranged.” Garrett took a bite as Janessa swirled her spoon in her dessert. “From what I understand, nothing is scheduled tomorrow until lunchtime.”
“Martino mentioned an outing tomorrow afternoon.”
Garrett nodded, his eyes meeting hers with a directness she wasn’t accustomed to. “You did well tonight. I hadn’t realized that you spoke French.”
“I told you I’m a linguistics specialist,” Janessa reminded him. “Romance languages are my specialty.”
“I should have realized that when you mentioned being a jealous girlfriend.” Humor danced in his eyes. “How many languages do you speak?”
“Six, if you don’t include Japanese.” Janessa pushed her half-eaten dessert away from her and leaned closer as though sharing a secret. “And trust me, my Japanese tends to get me into trouble.”
“I guess it’s a good thing we don’t have any pressing engagements with Japan in the near future.” Garrett laughed. “And thank you for your help tonight with Isabel.”
“I gather she’s admired you for some time.”
“She has admired my title for some time,” Garrett corrected. “It often makes for an awkward situation.”
“Like the one in Caracas.” Janessa smiled. “Maybe being engaged will help keep you out of awkward situations for a while.”
“I hope so,” Garrett agreed, leaning back in his chair.
They continued chatting while Garrett finished his dinner until finally a servant interrupted. “Excuse me, Your Highness. Your father is on the phone and wishes to speak with you.”
Garrett pushed back from the table and smiled at Janessa. “Thank you for joining me.”
Janessa nodded and stood as well. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She watched him follow the servant out of the room and then stacked the dessert dishes on Garrett’s plate. Moving into the kitchen, she set the dishes on the counter and turned to Patrice. “Thank you again for a wonderful meal.”
With that, she left the kitchen and ascended the stairs to the rooms she would call home for the next five weeks.
Chapter 8
Garrett paced across his sitting room, flipping through the file in his hand. After his conversation with Janessa the evening before, he had asked his father to send him a complete background on her. He had expected to see a simple dossier outlining her various assignments and perhaps an evaluation or two. The thick file in his hand not only surprised him—it intrigued him.
She had been honest with him when she’d summarized her work experience—sort of. She had indeed worked for several months for the State Department, but she had been overly modest about how she had come to the attention of the Central Intelligence Agency.
The important conversation she had mentioned overhearing had actually been that of three men preparing to plant a bomb at the US Embassy in Madrid. Janessa had had the presence of mind to use her cell phone to take pictures of the three men, write down their conversation, and follow them to where they were preparing the explosives. The men had been in the process of moving the bomb when the police had arrived to take them into custody.
The rest of the file was filled with similar incidents. Some were simple undertakings, like recruiting various household staff of high level officials to share information with her or recognizing valuable information in seemingly meaningless conversations. Others were more complicated, like helping the Venezuelan government identify the route Columbian drug dealers were using to ship cocaine into their country.
Janessa’s training with the CIA had been extensive, which explained why she had been assigned to his security detail. Basically, she was a jack-of-all-trades. She had spent nearly a year working in different areas of the CIA, learning about
“I think that can be arranged.” Garrett took a bite as Janessa swirled her spoon in her dessert. “From what I understand, nothing is scheduled tomorrow until lunchtime.”
“Martino mentioned an outing tomorrow afternoon.”
Garrett nodded, his eyes meeting hers with a directness she wasn’t accustomed to. “You did well tonight. I hadn’t realized that you spoke French.”
“I told you I’m a linguistics specialist,” Janessa reminded him. “Romance languages are my specialty.”
“I should have realized that when you mentioned being a jealous girlfriend.” Humor danced in his eyes. “How many languages do you speak?”
“Six, if you don’t include Japanese.” Janessa pushed her half-eaten dessert away from her and leaned closer as though sharing a secret. “And trust me, my Japanese tends to get me into trouble.”
“I guess it’s a good thing we don’t have any pressing engagements with Japan in the near future.” Garrett laughed. “And thank you for your help tonight with Isabel.”
“I gather she’s admired you for some time.”
“She has admired my title for some time,” Garrett corrected. “It often makes for an awkward situation.”
“Like the one in Caracas.” Janessa smiled. “Maybe being engaged will help keep you out of awkward situations for a while.”
“I hope so,” Garrett agreed, leaning back in his chair.
They continued chatting while Garrett finished his dinner until finally a servant interrupted. “Excuse me, Your Highness. Your father is on the phone and wishes to speak with you.”
Garrett pushed back from the table and smiled at Janessa. “Thank you for joining me.”
Janessa nodded and stood as well. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She watched him follow the servant out of the room and then stacked the dessert dishes on Garrett’s plate. Moving into the kitchen, she set the dishes on the counter and turned to Patrice. “Thank you again for a wonderful meal.”
With that, she left the kitchen and ascended the stairs to the rooms she would call home for the next five weeks.
Chapter 8
Garrett paced across his sitting room, flipping through the file in his hand. After his conversation with Janessa the evening before, he had asked his father to send him a complete background on her. He had expected to see a simple dossier outlining her various assignments and perhaps an evaluation or two. The thick file in his hand not only surprised him—it intrigued him.
She had been honest with him when she’d summarized her work experience—sort of. She had indeed worked for several months for the State Department, but she had been overly modest about how she had come to the attention of the Central Intelligence Agency.
The important conversation she had mentioned overhearing had actually been that of three men preparing to plant a bomb at the US Embassy in Madrid. Janessa had had the presence of mind to use her cell phone to take pictures of the three men, write down their conversation, and follow them to where they were preparing the explosives. The men had been in the process of moving the bomb when the police had arrived to take them into custody.
The rest of the file was filled with similar incidents. Some were simple undertakings, like recruiting various household staff of high level officials to share information with her or recognizing valuable information in seemingly meaningless conversations. Others were more complicated, like helping the Venezuelan government identify the route Columbian drug dealers were using to ship cocaine into their country.
Janessa’s training with the CIA had been extensive, which explained why she had been assigned to his security detail. Basically, she was a jack-of-all-trades. She had spent nearly a year working in different areas of the CIA, learning about
Similar Books
