Modern Box Set 5-8 by Lucy King

Author:Lucy King
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Mills & Boon Modern
Published: 2020-02-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER THREE

TANZANIA WAS HOT, humid and stunningly beautiful. Even the humid bustle of Dar es Salaam held a unique vibe that escalated Violet’s excitement as they disembarked from Zak’s private jet and headed out of Tanzania’s largest city.

Air-conditioned SUVs allayed a little of the discomfort travelling into the heart of the country caused with potholed roads, but Violet absorbed every second of it, still pinching herself that she’d managed to get herself into the field so quickly.

Their final destination, Lake Ngoro, was still a good two hours away, according to the satnav, when they stopped for lunch.

Despite the stunning and picturesque vista, the restaurant was little more than a few thatched huts with tables and chairs grouped under shaded umbrellas. When the procession of four SUVs stopped, Violet hid a grimace as the suited bodyguards alighted stiffly and formed a loose semi-circle around their Prince.

‘Something annoying you already?’ Zak enquired, his laconic drawl suggesting he wasn’t surprised. ‘The heat perhaps? Or the sparse surroundings? Five-star establishments a little thin on the ground for you?’

Violet ground her teeth and breathed through her irritation as a waiter hurried towards them. ‘None of the above. If you must know, I was thinking that six bodyguards seem a little...excessive, don’t you think?’

‘Protocol dictates it needs to be this way. And I’d rather not incur my mother’s wrath by going against her wishes,’ he added with a wry twist of his lips.

Queen Isadora was a formidable woman. Even though she and her mother were friends, Violet had met the Queen only twice in her life. Both times she’d been awed by the woman’s utter poise and the shrewd intelligence that shone from grey eyes she’d passed to her sons, along with her strength and resilience.

‘Does their presence ever get overwhelming?’

He cracked open a bottle of iced water and poured her a glass before filling his own. ‘That’s like asking if breathing is tedious. It is what it is.’

Her fingers curled around the chilled glass. ‘Would you change it if you could?’

Despite the shades concealing his eyes, she felt his probing gaze. ‘Why would I want to change a status only a fraction of people ever get to experience? I’m deemed one of the luckiest men in the world to be surrounded by yes men and women all too eager to obey my every command,’ he stated with a thick layer of cynicism.

‘And yet your tone suggests otherwise,’ she replied.

For a fraction of a moment he seemed startled by the observation. As if he’d let something slip he hadn’t intended to. Then his face resumed its stoic mask. ‘I was taught not only to appreciate the advantages of my status but also to help preserve it. And to deal effectively with those parasites who would attempt to leech their way into riches on my family’s coattails.’

It didn’t take a genius to know she’d been lumped in with that deplorable crowd. ‘But you don’t mind using those yes men and women to accomplish your goals?’

His eyes narrowed.

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