thought it was a nice vehicle for a sheriff to have when you wanted to stop being sheriff for a little while. But as he
looked at Dare out of the corner of his eyes, he knew that
the sheriff was always the sheriff. There was probably never a time he when he wasn’t on the job, and that included
times like now when he wasn’t wearing his uniform.
“So are you looking forward to that day out of school next Friday for teachers’ planning day?” Dare asked the
moment he’d made sure AJ had snapped his seatbelt in place. Once that was done, he started the engine.
“Yes, although Mom will probably find a lot of work for me to do that day.” He didn’t say anything else for a little while,
then he asked quickly, “Do you like kids?”
Dare glanced over at him and smiled. “Yes, I like kids.”
“Do you ever plan to have any?”
Dare lifted his brow. “Yeah, one day. Why do you ask?”
AJ shrugged. “No reason.”
Dare checked the rearview mirror as he began backing out
of Shelly’s driveway. He was headed for the airport like the rest of his family to welcome his sister home. He couldn’t help wondering if AJ had started quizzing him for some
reason and inwardly smiled, ready for any questions that his son felt he needed to ask.
Princess Delaney Westmoreland Yasir clutched her son to her breast and inhaled sharply. She leaned against her
husband’s side for support. Her mother had said Shelly’s son favored Dare, but what she was seeing was uncanny. There was no way anyone could take a look at the boy
standing next to Dare and not immediately know they were father and son. They had the same coffee coloring, the
same dark intense eyes and the same shape mouth and nose. AJ Brockman was a little Dare; a small replica of his father, there was no doubt of that.
“And who do we have here?” She asked after regaining her composure and giving her parents and brothers hugs.
“This is AJ,” Dare said meeting his sister’s astonished gaze. “Shelly Brockman’s son. I think Mom mentioned to you that she had returned to town.”
Delaney nodded. “Yes, that’s what I heard.” She smiled
down at AJ and immediately fell in love. He was a
Westmoreland, and she was happy to claim him. “And how
are you, AJ?” she asked her nephew, offering him her hand.
“I’m fine, thank you,” he said somewhat shyly.
“And how is your mother?”
“She’s doing fine. She said she couldn’t wait to see you later today.”
Delaney smiled. “And I can’t wait to see her. She was like a big sister to me.”
With love shining in her eyes, Delaney then glanced at the imposing figure at her side and smiled. “AJ, this is my
husband, Jamal Ari Yasir.”
AJ switched his gaze from Delaney to the tall man standing next to her. He wasn’t sure what he should do. Was he
supposed to bow or something? He let out a deep sigh of relief when the man stooped down to his level and met his gaze. “And how are you, AJ?” he asked in a deep voice,
smiling.
AJ couldn’t help but return the man’s smile, suddenly feeling at ease. “I’m fine, sir.”
When the man straightened back up, AJ switched his gaze to the baby Delaney held in her arms. “May I see him?”
Delaney beamed. “Sure. His name is Ari Terek Yasir.” She leaned down and uncovered her son for AJ to see. The
baby glanced at AJ and smiled. AJ smiled back, and so
did everyone else standing around them at the airport.
Delaney looked over at her mother, in whose eyes tears of happiness shone at seeing her two grandsons together
getting acquainted.
Suddenly Prince Jamal Ari Yasir cleared his throat.
Everyone had become misty-eyed and silent, and he
decided to put the spark and excitement back into the
welcome gathering. This was the family he had come to
love, thanks to his wife who he truly cherished. His dark
eyes shone with amusement as he addressed the one
brother who he hadn’t completely won over yet. “So, Thorn, are you still being a thorn in everyone’s side these days?” he asked smiling.
Twelve
S helly smiled as she looked at the young woman sitting in the chair across from her on the patio at Dare’s parents’ home. The last time she had seen Delaney Westmoreland she’d been a teenager, a few months shy of her sixteenth birthday, a rebellious, feisty opponent who’d been trying to stand up to her five overprotective and oftentimes
overbearing brothers.
Now she was a self-assured, confident young woman, a
medical doctor, mother to a beautiful baby boy and wife to a gorgeous sheikh from a country in the Middle East called Tahran. And from the looks the prince was constantly giving his wife, there was no doubt in her mind that Delaney was also a woman well loved and desired.
And, Shelly thought further, Delaney was breathtakingly
stunning. Even all those years back there had never been any doubt in Shelly’s mind that Delaney would grow up to
become a beauty. She was sure there hadn’t been any
doubt in the brothers’ minds of that as well, which was
probably the reason they had tried keeping such a tight rein on her. But clearly they had not been a match for Prince
Jamal Ari Yasir.
Delaney and Shelly were alone on the patio. Mrs.
Westmoreland was inside, singing Ari to sleep, and AJ had
gone with his father and grandfather to the store to buy
more charcoal. The brothers and Jamal had taken a quick run to Thorn’s shop for Jamal to take a look at Thorn’s
latest beauty of a bike.
“I’m glad you returned, Shelly, to bring AJ home to Dare
and to us. I don’t think you know how happy you’ve made
my parents. They thought Ari was their only grandchild and were fretting over the fact they wouldn’t be able to see him as often as they wanted to. I felt awful about that, but knew my place was with Jamal, which meant living in his country the majority of the time. One good thing is that as long as
his father is king, we have the luxury of traveling as much as we want. But things will change once Jamal becomes king.”
When Shelly nodded, she continued. “We hope that won’t happen for a while. His father is in excellent health and has no plans to turn things over to Jamal just yet.”
After a long moment of silence, Shelly said, “I want to
apologize for leaving the way I did ten years ago, Delaney, and for not staying in touch.”
Delaney’s eyes shone in understanding. “Trust me, we all understood your need to put distance between you and Dare. Everyone got on his case after you left, and for a
while there was friction between him and my brothers.”
Shelly nodded. Dare had told her as much.
“Mom explained the situation to me about AJ,” Delaney
added, breaking into Shelly’s thoughts. “She told me how you and Dare have decided to let him be the one to tell
Dare the truth. What’s the latest on that? Is he softening any toward Dare? As someone just arriving on the scene, I’d
say they seem to be getting along just fine.”
Shelly nodded, remembering AJ’s intense dislike of Dare in the beginning. “I think he’s discovered Dare isn’t the
mean cop that he thought he was, and yes, he is definitely softening. He even told me this morning that he plans to tell Dare that he’s his father.”
A huge smile touched Delaney’s features. “When?”
“Now, that I don’t know. From what I gather he’ll tell Dare
when they get a private moment and when he feels the time is right. He’s battling his fear that Dare may not want him
because of the way he behaved in the beginning.”
Delaney shook her head. “There’s no way Dare would not want his son.”
“Yes, I know, but AJ has to realize that for himself.”
Delaney nodded, knowing Shelly was right.
AJ stood next to Dare in the supermarket line. He watched
as the sheriff pulled money from his wallet to pay for his
purchases. When they walked outside to wait for Mr.
Westmoreland, who was still inside buying a few additional items he’d discovered he needed, AJ decided to use that time to ask Dare a couple more questions.
“Can I ask you something?”
Dare looked at him. “Sure. Ask me anything you want to know, AJ.”
“Earlier today you said you liked kids. If you ever marry, do you think you’d want more than one child?”
Dare wondered about the reason for that question. Was AJ contented being an only child? Would he feel threatened if Dare told him that he relished the thought of having other
children—if Shelly would be their mother? He sighed,
deciding to be completely honest with his son.
“Yes, I’d want more than one child. I’d like as many as my wife would agree to give me.”
AJ’s face remained expressionless, and Dare didn’t have a clue if the answer he’d given would help him or hang him.
“Any more questions?”
For a long moment, AJ didn’t say anything. Then he met Dare’s gaze and asked, “Is Dare your real name?”
Dare shook his head. “No, my real name is Alisdare Julian Westmoreland.” He continued to hold his son’s gaze. “Why do you ask?”
AJ placed his hands into his pockets. “Because my name is Alisdare Julian, too. That’s what the AJ stands for.”