As he flew through the skies in another of Sky Shepherd’s sleek black jets, surrounded by the happy chatter of the beautiful women accompanying him to LA, Ben’s sense of reality slipped, just a little.
The changes his life was undergoing in recent days seemed to be accelerating.
It had only been, what, less than two weeks since Captain Kendricks presented the condition for his continued interaction with the US Military’s Engineering Teams.
A live-in security operative.
Sergeant Killcade was a one-woman Seal team and a blue-eyed angel of death, according to one of her former teammates. Ben spoke to the soldier when he visited David in Washington, DC to finalize the arrangements.
The fact that he’d received unanimous agreement from all of his neighbors when he’d called a meeting to discuss bringing the Sergeant into their midst spoke of their trust in him, and that affected him deeply. He was still getting used to having the ladies in his life showing him their devotion. Having the Wilson, McKellan, Brown, King, and the extended Hernandez and Sellini families backing him as well was overwhelming.
Ben’s chair was swiveled to face down the aisle, so he looked to the far seat to see the Sergeant gazing out the window. She didn’t appear to be relaxing back in the jet’s decadently plush chair. As if feeling his attention, she immediately turned her head to look in his direction. Her startlingly blue eyes locked on his as she raised a brow in question. He just responded with a small shake of his head and a smile then looked away.
Ever attentive, ready to act on his every command, the Sergeant was doing her very best to prove her value in his household. He had to admit; she was an excellent administrative assistant. Much to her delight, he’d set up a workstation for her in his lab. She’d already organized his filing system and implemented a digital repository for all of his previous work, searchable by many intuitive attributes. He couldn’t fault her work.
If only she wasn’t so… intense, and fixated on him. He’d tried to dispel her notion of his genius, but she just smiled at him knowingly, like they were sharing a private joke.
His eyes moved to take in the happy faces of his other guests on this shopping trip; Trish sat next to Catherine with Lisa and Lori facing them in a quad of seats. The four were talking animatedly. Tina and Lucy sat facing him, their babies at home, being well cared for by Daphne and the assistants who’d been arranged and vetted by the Sergeant.
The trip was only for a few days, and he thought they’d appreciate the short break. They certainly seemed happy as they grinned at him.
“We’re going dancing?” Tina asked in delight as she overheard Lisa talking about an LA dance club for which she’d read reviews.
Ben smiled at her. “I don’t see why not.”
The twins cheered, and Ben saw smiles on the faces of Trish and Catherine.
He didn’t have any fixed plans for this visit which, after his visit to Europe, he appreciated.
Nope, this was a shop ’til you drop visit. Part one, at least. He promised a second trip for the ladies who couldn’t join him on this shopping spree. He recalled Gabriella suggested New York City for the next one. She’d be traveling back to the big city in a week or two. Her business was growing quickly, and he was so damn proud of her!
His eyes moved to Catherine whose fundraiser had once again pulled in a healthy contribution. He saw Tina was smiling at him and somehow he was sure she knew what he was thinking.
The petite Korean beauty filled his life with joy. Combined with Lucy, they were a formidable force to be reckoned with.
Now the two of them were giving him sexy knowing smiles.
This led his mind to the sleeping arrangements for the trip. Tina had booked the hotel, after getting his approval for the ridiculously expensive rates, but he couldn’t recall the details of how many rooms she’d arranged for them. He remembered what happened during their last trip to France, specifically when visiting Gabriella’s cousin’s B&B in Saint Pierre d’Albigny.
He’d been unaware that the ladies worked out a schedule to share his bed, or rather have him visit them in theirs. As he’d been traveling with eight women who all craved his attention, he’d been more than a little exhausted when it was time to leave the B&B.
Then Gabriella surprised him on the last evening with a request for him to spend the night with her cousin Stephanie. The woman was a brilliant artist, but as she was also blind and chose to live a somewhat reclusive life, she’d confessed to her cousin that she missed the touch of a man. She’d been flirting with him throughout their visit, Ben wasn’t immune to her beauty and charm, and he truly liked her, so he’d agreed. She’d more than made up for her unintended celibacy that evening, wearing him out so thoroughly, he’d had difficulty waking the following day.
Now he was looking at a couple of nights in a fancy hotel with six women who might have expectations. He wasn’t sure how this was going to work. He looked closer at Tina’s mysterious smile, but she was giving nothing away.
Ben pushed those thoughts aside. He’d have time to get an answer from her soon enough. He settled back and closed his eyes to recharge his batteries.
Just in case.
-=-
The Beverly Wilshire hotel was every bit as posh as Ben expected. One of the ultimate Hollywood experiences for their brief visit to the west coast. It had the bonus of being steps away from their main shopping destination. The ladies were all smiles and giggles as they checked in. The staff was friendly and efficient and the reception clerks greeted Ben with broad smiles. Their familiarity with celebrity and wealth prevented them from gawking too much at Ben. Some of the other guests weren’t quite as discreet with their attention, but Ben did his best to ignore this.
They had four rooms, two sets of adjoining rooms just across the hall from each other. Tina eventually explained that Trish would share a room with the Sergeant for their stay. She’d had Ben all to herself on the trip to Europe so she’d just enjoy being with him during their daytime outings.
Ben would have company in his room on the three nights they were staying in the hotel.
By the time they’d settled into their rooms, there wasn’t much daylight left, so dinner was their next order of business.
Once more Tina worked a miracle and snagged a table for them at Spago which had a last-minute cancellation on a large table. Ben’s name sealed the deal, and the table was theirs.
The ladies slipped on their sexy cocktail dresses, the Sergeant opting for her dress uniform, and Ben wore his usual dark suit which sent tingles through Tina and Lucy when he posed for them.
The restaurant was only a brief walk from the hotel. Ben was annoyed to find a small crowd on the narrow sidewalk outside. He managed to get his group through them and inside, but the flashes from the paparazzo’s cameras were dazzling and unwelcome.
Finally, they were inside standing by the hostess desk. Ahead of them, a bearded man was speaking to the hostess in exasperation. A second gentleman, slimly built and wearing a rumpled suit, had dark skin and salt and pepper hair. He waited at his friend’s elbow with a resigned look on his face. It was difficult to avoid overhearing that there was no record of their reservation. Tina was all smiles as she recognized the speaker. He’d been in so many movies and was one of the lead actors in a new crime drama series on TV she and Lucy binge watched. She looked hopefully at Ben. He nodded.
“Excuse me, Mr. DeMonte?” Tina said touching the man’s elbow.
The actor turned to look down at Tina’s smiling face. “Yes?” Then his eyes rose up to see Ben’s smile. Recognition flared in the actor’s eyes, and he froze.
Tina continued. “We’re a party of eight at a table for ten, so you are welcome to join us.”
He looked to his partner who was also watching Ben in delighted surprise. He smiled and nodded, so Phil turned back to Tina. “Thank you. That’s very nice of you. We’d love to.”
Ben held out his hand. “Ben Shepherd.”
“Yes- uh, Phil DeMonte. This is Eric Thompson,” the actor said as he shook the big hand. Ben shook the other man’s hand as well then turned to the ladies with him and made the introductions. The hostess spoke to some busboys who adjusted their table to have the additional two place settings added once more.
Once Ben completed the intros, a hostess guided them to their table and Tina moved Ben to the chair at the end and their guests to either side of him. The remaining seats were filled quickly with Trish, Lisa, and Lori next to Phil and Catherine, Tina, and Lucy next to Eric.
The Sergeant was pleased to take the chair at the other end of the table as this gave her the best vantage point to the rest of the restaurant, a clear view of Ben, and those behind him.
“I hope we aren’t interfering,” Ben suggested tentatively.
Phil and Eric shook their heads with smiles. “No, we were just in town for a meeting with a studio to discuss a new project proposal. The studio was to set up a reservation for us, but it seems they dropped the ball on that too,” Phil grumbled and got a frustrated nod from Eric.
“I’m sorry to hear that. It’s nice you could join us though!” Ben offered and got smiles from everyone.
“What brings you to Beverly Hills?” Eric asked.
“Just a little sightseeing and, of course, shopping,” Ben said. That made the ladies grin and giggle.
“Don’t forget the dancing!” Tina said happily. Ben nodded to her.