“Yes. I’m here.” Harper’s eyes pleaded with him. “I was wrong,” she admitted. She stood there, trembling and hoping that she was right, that Amit loved her even half as much as she loved him. But what if she was wrong? What if Leslie had seen something that wasn’t there?
Amit’s eyes flickered over his aide, then the guards standing sentry on either side of his door. “Not here,” he snapped, then took her elbow and turned her around. Leading her down the long, ornate hallways, she recognized this hallway. She’d walked it several times, sometimes being carried.
The closer they got to his apartment, the more nervous she became. But she didn’t stop. Not until he’d pulled her into his apartment and closed the door.
Leaning back against the door, Harper watched as Amit paced back and forth, running his hands through his hair. This wasn’t the calm, cool man she’d left so many weeks ago, she realized. He’d lost weight. There were dark circles under his eyes, as if he hadn’t been sleeping well. Did he…could he love her?
Taking a chance, she stepped forward. “I love you,” she whispered.
That stopped him and he turned, startled by her words. But then he shook his head. “I know that you love me, Harper,” he told her, sounding tired. “And yet, you still left me.”
“I’m back. I messed up. Completely,” she admitted. Walking closer, Harper lifted her hands, pleading with him. “Please don’t push me away, Amit. I love you so much and the past few weeks have shown me just how much I need you.”
He turned to face her, hands fisted on his hips. “Why did you leave, Harper? How can I know that you won’t leave again?”
Her heart raced and that stab of fear was almost debilitating. But she had to do this. She had to break through that blank look that he showed to the world. “That’s a fair question,” she replied. Straightening her shoulders, she looked up at him. “I understand now.”
His eyes narrowed, but that was the only indication that she’d spoken. “Understand what? I was always very clear with you.”
She laughed, but it came out sounding more like a hiccup. “Yes, you were. I just didn’t translate your messages properly.”
“What the hell does that mean?” he demanded impatiently, running his hands through his hair again.
Harper cringed. She sorted through the contents of her bag until she found the picture. Taking it out, she carefully unfolded it and showed it to him. “This is what made me understand.”
He stared at the picture and she watched his mouth tighten. When he looked back at her, he shrugged. “It’s a picture of you.”
She shook her head. “No, it’s your language of love, Amit.” She stepped closer, certain that he could hear her heart pounding frantically against her ribs. “That and the way you touch me.” Harper stopped when she was only a few inches away. Just close enough to feel his warmth. “I love you.”
“I know that.”
“And you love me. That’s what I was missing.”
His eyes moved slowly over her face. “And that picture was your clue?”
She smiled. He hadn’t pushed her away. Not yet, anyway. Hope bloomed in her chest. “Yes. Drawing is your language of love,” she explained. “I finally understood the love you felt for me in the way you drew me.” She moved closer, reaching out to him. Her fingers touched his chest, tentatively at first, but when he didn’t push her away, she moved closer, pressing her palm against him. “I needed to hear the words from you, but that’s not your way, is it? Your language is different. It’s in the way you touch me, the way you make love to me. You can’t say the words because you have to appear strong and imposing. It’s the way you were raised.” She kissed his chest, closing her eyes as she inhaled the clean, spicy scent of him. “You tell me in different ways, Amit. And I understand. I’m able to translate your language now. I couldn’t before, because I was too scared. I didn’t want to get hurt. I wanted to protect myself. I loved you so much and,” she lifted her eyes, looking up at him, “you scared me so much, Amit. You’re tall, handsome, and you make me tremble when you touch me. It was too much. I loved you so much and you didn’t say the words. Or,” she paused, shaking her head, “you didn’t say them the way I wanted to hear them. But that’s not fair. I don’t want to change you. I want to love you.” She inhaled and took the last step. “Forever, if you’ll have me.”
She waited, holding her breath. He pulled her into his arms and buried his face in her hair. “I hope you mean that, Harper. Because there’s no way I’ll let you go again!” and with that, he lifted her up and kissed her, claiming her.
An hour later, they were both breathing hard. They were both naked and the perfectly made bed was no longer perfect. Harper’s hands kept moving over his shoulders, needing to touch him, to feel those strong, vital muscles under her fingertips. “I love you, Amit,” she whispered, needing to say it. And then she felt him kiss her stomach. It was his way of saying “I love you” back and she loved him for that.
“Were you going to tell me about the baby?” he asked.
Baby? Harper’s lethargy vanished. Her eyes popped open. She sat up and frowned at him. “Baby?”
He kissed her stomach again. “You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”
Harper shifted, cringing when she felt the slide of his chest against her inner thighs. The skin there was a bit sore after their lovemaking session. He hadn’t bothered to shave this morning, but she didn’t mind.
“I’m not pregnant, Amit,” she insisted, pulling away and closing her legs.
He moved, but didn’t sit up. Instead, he lay back, propping his head up on his arm. “Are you sure?” he asked, his gaze moving over her stomach. “Your breasts are more sensitive now. And,” he reached out, sliding a gentle hand over her stomach. “You have lost weight everywhere, but you look a bit rounder here.”
Harper’s mouth fell open and she had to stifle a moan when she felt his strong fingers caress her. They’d just had mind-blowing sex and he could still make her feel like this?
Shaking her head, she focused on his question. “I’m not…” she stopped, thinking back. “I can’t be pregnant! We always used protection. You always used protection.”
He shrugged and the gesture seemed like the epitome of an indolent sheik of old. “Condoms fail.”
“No, they don’t!”
He laughed and pushed up so that he was sitting, then tucked several pillows behind his back and pulled her onto his lap. “They haven’t in the past,” he replied, curling his arms around her so that she was pressed more perfectly against him. “But I’ve never had this level of uncontrollable desire for a woman in the past. It’s possible that I wasn’t as careful as I should have been.”
Harper gasped for breath, but instead of pulling away from him as she might have done in the past, she laid her head against his shoulder, breathing slowly and deeply. “I’m not pregnant.”
Amit kissed the top of her head, letting his hands drift over her soft skin. “Of course you’re not,” he said reassuringly. Silently, he wondered how he would get her to see a doctor. She’d practically climaxed when he’d teased her nipples earlier. And there was a very definite curve to her stomach. He knew because he was familiar with her body. Yes, she’d been gone for several weeks but…he couldn’t think beyond that moment.
Automatically, his arms tightened around her as he thought about the hell he’d gone through after she’d left. “Don’t leave me ever again,” he whispered.
He barely had the words out before he felt her kiss his chest. Then his shoulder. “I won’t ever leave you again, Amit. I’m so sorry that I put us through that. I won’t ever do it again.”
He stroked her soft hair. “Thank you,” he murmured.
She smiled and he knew that he’d never grow tired of that smile. She looked so beautiful when she smiled like that. His fingers itched to capture the image she made, but instead, he tilted her backwards and shifted their bodies so that he was hovering over her. Slowly, very slowly and ve
ry thoroughly, he made his way down her body, kissing every inch of her, showing her with his own language how much he loved her.
Epilogue
“Stop!” Harper laughed at the evil intent sparkling in his eyes. “You’re not touching me again. Not until this baby is born!” She closed the door and moved deeper into his office.
“Is that so?” he asked softly, one eyebrow lifting with amusement. “Think you can hold out that long?”
Harper sighed, then waddled forward. “I think so. Especially since I feel about as sexy as a whale right now!” Automatically, he pushed his chair back from the massive wooden desk, anticipating her coming around and sitting on his lap. When he had his arms around her, he leaned forward, taking in the soft, beautiful scent that would always be Harper. “How are you feeling?”
“Fine. Not fine.” She leaned her head against his shoulder. “Cranky and irritable. Hungry, but I can’t eat anything.”
He let his hand slide over her stomach and was rewarded by the not-so-gentle kick of their baby against his hand.
“She’s irritated about something too,” Harper groaned, placing her hand over his. “I want this to be over!”
He laughed, kissing her softly. “Soon.” His hand tightened on her stomach, feeling…something. “Possibly sooner than we anticipated.”
Harper tried to stand up. “What? What are you feeling? And how do you do that all the time?” she grumbled.
“Do what?” he asked, keeping her on his lap while he grabbed the receiver on his phone.
“How do you know what’s going on before anyone else knows?”
“Rashid, call the doctor. Tell them that my wife is in labor.”
Harper gasped. “I’m not!” and tried to stand up again, pulling away from him. But Amit held her in place, his hand moving back to her stomach.
“You are. You’re having contractions, Harper.”
She shook her head, her hair dancing around her shoulders. “I’m not!”
He smiled slightly, but his eyes lit up with humor. “How many times did you tell me that you weren’t pregnant before you believed me?”
Harper rolled her eyes. “About a dozen.”
He remained silent for a long moment, waiting for her to catch up with him. When she did, there was a long hiss. That’s when he felt her trembling. “I’m not ready.”
He laughed softly, his finger tracing a path down her cheek. “You just told me that you were eager for this to be over.”
She gripped his fingers, fear of the unknown catching up with her. “Yes, but that was before. This is now!”
“And now is different how?” he asked, then stood, carrying her in his arms a moment before the door burst open and Rashid rushed in, pushing a wheelchair.
“I’m not getting in that thing!” she declared. The poor man looked ready to faint. “But, Your Highness! It’s time! The doctor is on the way!”
“I’m fine!” she asserted, even as her grip tightened on Amit’s hand. “It’s nothing but…” she couldn’t finish that sentence because a contraction hit and she doubled over in pain.
“Are you convinced now?” Amit asked, then chuckled when she glared at him. “That’s my darling!” he teased and lifted her more securely into his arms. “I’ll carry her,” he told Rashid.
Sixteen hours later, Amit breathed a sigh of relief when his eight pound, ten ounce son made his appearance.
“Is he okay?” Harper asked, her hair matted with sweat against her forehead after her ordeal.
“He’s perfect!” Amit placed the newborn in Harper’s arms. “Just like you.”
Harper snorted her disbelief at that, then sighed happily as she gazed at the baby in her arms. “Think he’ll have hazel eyes?” she asked, but already knew the truth.
“Probably,” Amit replied, looking down at his family.
Harper smiled. “I hope he will.” She then turned and looked up at her handsome husband. “I love you, Amit.”
He brushed her hair back from her face. “I love you too.”
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Keep scrolling for a titillating excerpt from Book 2 in The Raminar Family Series – Gaelen’s story!
Entangled with the Prince
Release date: December 18, 2020
Click HERE to get Gaelen’s story!
“Two whiskeys, darlin’” a man called out. Savannah smothered a weary sigh and turned, pasting a cheerful smile onto her features.
“Right away, sir,” she told the man, even though he wasn’t sitting in her station. The roof top bar catered to the wealthy business people that worked in Manhattan’s business district, stopping by the exclusive restaurant for an overpriced drink and some networking before heading home.
This was Savannah’s second job. Sort of her third, if one counted attending college classes this afternoon. But thankfully, she was almost finished with design school. Graduation was only a few short weeks away. As she headed to the bar to put in the order for the whiskeys, Savannah reminded herself that she had only three more weeks and then she’d walk across that stage and get her degree. It had taken her a few extra years to finish because she’d had to work her way through college. But she’d done it! She was almost there! She even had a job offer from one of the most prestigious firms in the city and she couldn’t wait to finish studying her craft and start actually doing the work instead of just learning about it!
Oh, the thought of having only one job, of sleeping in on the weekends instead of rushing off to one of her part time jobs. Or finishing her day at five or six and relaxing during the evening hours. Oooh! Maybe taking an aerobics class! Yes, the sweet life she was going to have! All of that would happen in just a few short weeks!
“Thanks Mike,” she smiled to the bartender as he put the drinks on her tray.
“No problem, Savannah,” he grinned as she picked up the tray and carried the drinks back to the customers.
“Here you go,” she greeted the two men as she placed their drinks on the table with a smile.
“Thanks, honey,” the other man replied.
Savannah ignored their leers and moved to the next table, surveying each drink to ensure that they were full. It wasn’t too busy tonight, but she knew the bar would be packed later on. Friday nights were always busy. Thankfully, the tips were great and she preferred busy nights, because there were more customers. That meant more tips and more money to help pay her rent!
Just a few more weeks and she’d have a full time job, she reminded herself. Just thinking about that job offer made her mouth salivate at the salary the interior design firm had offered. With that much money, she could pay her rent, her utilities, buy food, and…gasp…have money left over to put into savings! Savannah had been working towards this moment for so long, it was hard to believe that she’d finally made it!
Well, almost made it. She still had her final exams to get through. Then graduation. Just three short weeks!
Prince Gaelen el Raminar, Crown Prince of Izara, stepped into the elegant restaurant and eyed the crowd. His team of body guards did the same, then nodded towards a table in the corner that they deemed safe enough. Gaelen headed for it, feeling the other patrons glance in his direction, but he ignored them. He’d lived with inquisitive glances like that all his life and had learned to pretend they weren’t happening. If he glanced even casually towards anyone, that person might feel brave enough to approach him. Then his guards would have to intervene, the others in the crowd would see the tussle and…well, the stares and curios
ity would only get worse after that. It was best to pretend he was just an average guy.
Okay, so pretending he was average was impossible, and not just because of the guards. He was at least a head taller than most of the men in this bar. Plus, he actually worked out. Hard! Some of the men in this place might work out, but as he surveyed the crowd, he doubted any of them put much effort into their routines.
Which was good, he thought. Sometimes, an idiot got a bit too drunk and wanted to challenge Gaelen. It never got that far though, his guards were much too protective to let a drunken idiot get close enough.
But it wasn’t just the guards, his height, or his brawn that set him apart from the other patrons. The people here were fighting the financial wars, battling in the trenches so to speak, trying to make their first million or perhaps even their first billion. Gaelen was well beyond that mark. In fact, he owned the building and the bar here on this roof. Hell, he owned several buildings in this city, although not many people knew that. He was in charge of the financial health of his family, as well as that of his country. As Minister of Finance for Izara, as well as crown prince of the same, he had a great deal of power and wealth, far beyond anything these people could imagine. Far beyond what all of the magazines estimated when they did their annual rating of the ten richest people in the world. He always chuckled when his assistant handed him that list. It was so far off, it was pointless.
But if the world needed to categorize someone’s wealth, then he didn’t mind those magazines doing their best. Whatever helped them sleep better at night, he thought as he settled into his chair, turning so that his back was to the wall and he could watch the room. He was meeting a potential business partner to discuss a project. Unbuttoning his jacket, he loosened his tie and “relaxed” against the back of the chair.
Thankfully, a waitress immediately made her way through the thick crowd. She smiled welcomingly at him and he felt as if one of his generals had just kicked him in the gut! Damn, she was beautiful! Her soft, whiskey-blond hair was pulled back into a thick braid, although small wisps had wafted around her heart-shaped face. Perfectly curved eyebrows lifted in inquiry, but he could only stare into those lovely brown eyes! They were mesmerizing! Angled slightly upwards at the ends, but big and wide, sparkling with curiosity.
Seduced by the Sheik (The Raminar Family Book 1) Page 15
