Her mother’s mouth dropped open, while her father seemed equally surprised. She took advantage of the silence and smiled at one of the servants.
“Okay,” she said. “Lead the way.” She linked arms with her parents. “You two are going to love this place. The rooms are amazing. And the views, even better than when we went to Galveston my senior year of high school.”
Her mother sighed. “I don’t like any of this, Emma. It’s not you.”
“I know. But from what I can tell, I don’t have a choice. The king has to give his permission for a prince to get a divorce. So I’m stuck here until that happens.”
Two months with Reyhan. What would that time bring? Would she learn to understand the man she’d married so impulsively? Would she be eager to leave when the time was up? Or would she find herself falling in love? And if it was the latter, would he love her back or would he still want to get rid of her so he could marry someone else?
Reyhan didn’t return to his offices. Instead he walked to the garages where he took the keys for a Jeep and drove out of the city. An hour later, surrounded by desert, he stepped out into the warm afternoon and raised his face to the sky.
He wanted to yell his frustration, to rip and tear something. Anything. He wanted to travel north, deep into the inhospitable land and become someone else.
Two months. It was an eternity. How could he survive spending his days and nights with her? How could he be close to her and not reach for her?
Last night had been paradise. A miracle. When he’d left her bed this morning all he’d been able to think about was how much he wanted her. Having her had only increased his need. When she’d walked into his office, he’d held on to his control with every ounce of will he possessed. Just a few minutes longer and he would have snapped.
“I am Prince Reyhan of Bahania,” he yelled to the heavens. “I am a man of power, of substance.”
Yet in the presence of a mere woman he was weak. He would travel any distance, complete any task, risk life, limb anything, just for Emma.
He clutched the side of the Jeep. There had to be a solution somewhere. An answer, a trick, a way to survive two months around her without going mad. He couldn’t give in and take her into his bed. If he did, he would never let her go. And if she stayed…
He sucked in a breath as he considered the possibility. To have her stay was to love her. To give her his very soul. Then he would be nothing but a shell of a man. A spineless creature—a parasite.
No! That could never happen. Somehow he would conquer this. He would find the strength to turn away from her. To resist her. When the time was up, he would let her go. It was the only way. The alternative was unthinkable.
Emma went with her parents to the guest suite. It was similar to the one she’d had and even the ever sensible and conservative George and Janice Kennedy were impressed.
“You can see the ocean,” her mother said as she stared out the large French doors.
“It’s the Arabian Sea,” Emma told her. “Bahania has some beautiful beaches. Tourism is an important industry.”
Her father opened the suitcase one of the servants had left on the bed. “I can’t believe they wanted to unpack for us. Like we’re invalids or something.”
“It’s not that they thought you were incapable,” Emma said. “It’s part of the service.”
“I’ve always done my own cooking and cleaning,” her mother reminded her. “I never did understand those women who pay someone else to come in and clean their dirt. It’s not right.” Her mouth pressed together as tears filled her eyes. “None of this is right.”
Emma took her hand and led her back into the large living room. Her father followed. When the two of them were seated on the sofa, she curled up in the wing chair across the glass-topped coffee table.
“We have to talk about it,” she said.
Her mother pulled a lace-edged hankie out of her sleeve. “There’s nothing to say. That man was trouble before and he’s trouble now.”
“Don’t distress yourself, Janice,” her father said gently. “We’re here now and we’ll make sure our girl is safe.”
“I know. It’s just…This place. It’s so big and fancy.”
“The palace is amazing,” Emma said, trying not to get sucked into a familiar pattern of panic when she upset her parents. Knowing she made her mother cry was enough to give her a stomach ache for three days. But she couldn’t keep giving in. King Hassan had been right when he’d said it was time for her to make some decisions about her life.
“All this is happening now because we didn’t straighten things out six years ago,” she said.
Her father sighed. “We went over this, kitten.”
The familiar name made her stiffen. For years she’s loved that he called her that, but now she wasn’t so sure. A kitten was hardly a force to be reckoned with.
“You should have told me what was going on,” she said quietly. “I had the right to know that Reyhan had tried to see me.”
Her mother started to speak, but Emma held up her hand to stop her. “If I was old enough to get married, I was old enough to know the truth.”
“But you would have gone away with him,” her mother wailed. “We would never have seen you.”
“Is that what this was all about? Keeping me close?”
Her parents looked at each other, then at her. “We only wanted what was best for you,” her father said. “We love you.”
Why had she been afraid of defying them for so long? she wondered. They were just people. Misguided, maybe. She might not agree with their decision, but she believed they’d done what they thought was right. Their motivation had been selfish, but only because they cared about her.
“Emma, we should have said something about the money,” her mother admitted. “It was such a large amount. It’s not that Reyhan was bad, it’s just that he wasn’t like us. You were so sad. When you were happy again, we wanted to keep you that way.”
Emma didn’t know what to feel. Loss for what could have been. Although would she and Reyhan have had a chance all those years ago? At eighteen she’d barely been able to take care of herself. How would she have handled a husband, and maybe a child?
“It’s done,” she said, wanting to move on. “We can’t change it and now we have a different situation to deal with.”
Her mother sighed. “I can’t believe the king is going to insist you stay here two months. That’s barbaric.”
Emma smiled. “You can call living in the palace a lot of things, but not that. Besides, I want a chance to get to know Reyhan again.”
Her parents exchanged a look of worry and panic. “Is that such a good idea, kitten?” her father asked.
“I don’t know. I loved him once.”
“You were just a little girl.”
“Legally, I was an adult,” she said, silently admitting that on the inside she’d been a child. “But that’s not the point. As King Hassan said, there’s a reason the two of us ran off.”
Her mother pressed her lips together. “We all know what his reason was. He was little more than an animal.”
Emma thought of what had happened the previous night. A little more animal-like behavior would be fine with her.
“You two have loved each other for nearly fifty years. Don’t you want that for me?”
“Not with him,” her father said. “Can’t you find a nice boy back home? Emma, you’re only twenty-four. You have years before you have to settle down and get married.”
“I’m already married. I’m staying the two months, and I’m going to take the time to get to know Reyhan again.”
Her mother’s eyes welled with tears. “But what if you fall in love with him?”
Would she? “It’s a chance I’m willing to take.”
“Oh, Emma. He broke your heart before. What’s to stop him from doing it again?”
Good question. “I have to risk it. I’m sorry. I know you want to protect me but this time you can’t. I h
ave to do it on my own. So I’m going to ask you to trust me.”
Her elderly parents stared at her. She sensed their misgivings and fear. Then they looked at each other and nodded.
“All right, kitten,” her father said. “If this is what you really want, we’ll stand by your decision.”
“When he destroys you, we’ll be here to pick up the pieces,” her mother added. “We’ll take you home and you can move back into your own room.”
Talk about motivation to make things work with Reyhan, Emma thought. Still, she wouldn’t let her parents sway her one way or the other. The king had granted her the gift of time and she intended to take advantage of it.
Emma spent the afternoon with her parents. She took them on a tour of the palace, the gardens and the chapel. They seemed to enjoy the dozens of cats more than anything. An hour before dinner, she returned to the room she now shared with Reyhan and called her supervisor back in Dallas. Fifteen minutes later she found herself on indefinite leave and accepting good wishes that it all work out for the best.
If only, she thought as she hung up the phone.
She leaned back on the sofa and tried to figure out what to do next. She was having dinner with her parents. There would be a more formal event with the king and several ministers the following evening, and a party later in the weekend.
“A whirlwind of social events,” she murmured to herself, trying not to feel nervous as she watched the clock and waited for Reyhan to return. However much he might want to avoid it, they had to talk, and the sooner the better.
Thirty minutes later, she’d given up trying to read her book. Sixty minutes later she was pacing the room with the intensity of an athlete training for an Olympic event. When the main door of the suite finally opened, Emma nearly stumbled in shock.
Elation, excitement and trepidation coiled together in her stomach as she searched Reyhan’s face, hoping for a clue as to what he was thinking. There wasn’t one.
“Good evening,” he said when he saw her. “Are your parents settled?”
Not the words of a man overwhelmed by passion and desire, she thought sadly as she fought her own visceral reactions to being in the same room as the man who had taught her what all the fuss was about.
“Yes. They love their rooms.” A slight exaggeration, but he was unlikely to press her. “How are you?”
“Fine.”
He walked past her into the bedroom. She trailed after him, wishing he’d said a little more. “I’m having dinner with my parents tonight,” she said. “You’re welcome to come, but you don’t have to. I know they probably make you uncomfortable.”
Reyhan shrugged out of his suit jacket. “I would think the situation would be the reverse.”
That he made them nervous? Probably. “Would you care to join us?” she asked. “Do you have to because of what the king said?” Days and nights together. She still wasn’t sure what that meant.
He loosened his tie. “My father’s statement was meant to keep me from taking an extended business trip. We are not required to spend every waking second in each other’s company.”
Too bad. She twisted her hands together. “I didn’t know what to do about staying here. Should I? Do you want me to move to one of the guest rooms?”
Reyhan pulled his tie free of his shirt collar. “No. Stay here. I’ll sleep in the second bedroom.”
Supreme happiness crashed in and burned in a tenth of a second. “There’s another bedroom?” she asked, because the alternative was to ask why he didn’t want them to sleep together.
“I have a small office at the other end of the suite. I’ll have a bed brought in. We’ll have to share the living quarters and the bathroom, but I’ll make every effort not to get in your way.”
“But I…But we…” She swallowed and took a step toward him. “Reyhan, what’s going on? Why are you acting like this?”
He pulled his shirttail out of his trousers. Her gaze dropped to his belt and she had the sudden fantasy that he was going to get naked in front of her. Wouldn’t that be a treat?
His expression turned weary. “It is only two months,” he said. “Surely you can endure my company that long.”
“Enduring your company isn’t the problem. Last night…” She cleared her throat. “Reyhan, we made love.”
He turned away and crossed to the French doors. “It will not happen again.”
Stark words that clawed at her heart. “Because you don’t want me?”
Because it wasn’t good? Hadn’t she pleased him? Last night she’d been so sure, but now…
Her throat tightened, as did her chest. Her legs felt heavy and thick, as if they belonged to someone else.
He bowed his head briefly. “Two months, Emma. That is all. At the end of that time, you can return to Texas where you belong.”
And he would stay here, marry another woman and have children with her.
“But I thought…”
He turned to her. She’d never seen such coldness in a man’s eyes before. Such rejection. “You thought wrong.”
“I swear, there should be a law allowing wives of princes to lock their husbands in chains once a month. Just to keep them in line,” Princess Sabrina said, grinning.
“Would you want to beat him, too?” Cleo asked as she reached for a slice of cantaloupe.
“Only when he really makes me crazy. Probably every third month.”
“Works for me,” Princess Zara said cheerfully. “Not that I’d ever want to hurt Rafe, but threatening him from time to time would make me really happy.”
The three women laughed with delight. Emma smiled, knowing however big they talked, none of them was anything but completely in love with their husbands. She’d sensed it from the first moment they’d met.
Cleo had arrived that morning to invite her to lunch. “Without your folks,” she’d insisted. “Not that they’re not great, but you need a break.”
Sabrina and Zara, both daughters of the king, although by different mothers, had been charming as they’d welcomed Emma.
“So you’re the mystery woman Reyhan married,” Sabrina said as she passed around a plate of tea sandwiches. She was seven or eight months pregnant and a beauty with dark eyes and dark brown hair highlighted with red.
Zara, equally pretty but in a more quiet way, looked like her sister. She was pregnant, as well, but not so far along.
“I don’t consider myself a mystery,” Emma said, which was true. Compared with being a princess, her life was pretty boring.
“Reyhan never said a word,” Sabrina told her. “Not that any of my brothers are the chatty type. But a wife. That’s a big secret to keep.” She tilted her head and smile. “Then you appear out of the blue. Are you completely freaked?”
“Pretty much.”
“I would be, too,” Zara told her. “Sabrina grew up with all this, so she’s used to it, but for the rest of us it’s been a challenge.”
Cleo laughed. “It’s true. Zara resisted being a princess for the longest time.”
“So did you,” Zara reminded her.
“For different reasons. You were one by birth. Sadik wanted me to be one by marriage.”
Emma was confused. “Didn’t you want to marry him? You’re so in love.”
“It’s complicated,” Cleo told her. “A story for another time.” She leaned over the back of the sofa in her suite and checked on Calah. “This is the best baby in the universe. She never cries, she sleeps like a dream and I swear she has an IQ of about two hundred.”
Sabrina and Zara rolled their eyes. Emma laughed.
“She’s very smart,” Cleo said, sounding huffy. “You guys wait until your babies are born. You’ll see what I mean.”
“Sure, Cleo,” Sabrina said. “I’m guessing we’ll all be as goofy as you about our children.”
“You mock me now, but just you wait.”
“Watch yourself,” Sabrina said to Emma. “There’s something about this palace. It’s pregnancy central. Be
careful or you’ll catch a baby of your own.”
The three women laughed and Emma tried to join in, not that she was very successful. It was hard to joke when she’d just realized that she and Reyhan hadn’t used protection when they’d made love.
She sucked in a breath and tried to stay calm. It had only been one time, she reminded herself. A quick calculation told her the day had been safe, relatively speaking. So she was unlikely to be pregnant. Based on how he was avoiding her, she wasn’t going to be in a position to have a second chance at getting pregnant, either. Which was good. Right?
She was happy not to have to deal with an unexpected baby. Except she could easily picture herself with Reyhan’s child. Holding him or her and overwhelmed by love. That would be wonderful.
She knew Reyhan wanted children, just not with her. Which made her wonder why. He’d been willing to marry her before. Why was he so determined not to be married to her now? She didn’t think there was anyone else in his life. He’d said he would accept an arranged union. So she—
“Earth to Emma,” Zara said. “Are you still with us?”
Emma blinked and saw all three women looking at her. “Sorry. I was lost in thought.”
“I bet I know who was starring in that fantasy,” Sabrina said teasingly. “It would be romantic if it wasn’t my brother.”
Emma felt herself coloring. “No, really. It was nothing.”
As she’d never been a very good liar, she wasn’t surprised when they didn’t buy her story.
“Maybe there’s more going on than we know about,” Cleo said. “Which could be interesting.”
“We’d love to have you as part of our princess sisterhood,” Zara told her. “Think about it.”
“Thanks.”
She appreciated the invitation more than she could say. She’d always wanted a sister. But staying or not staying wasn’t just up to her. Reyhan had a part in it, and based on what she’d seen so far, he couldn’t wait to have her gone.
Chapter Ten
Two days later Emma accompanied her parents down to the stable. The king had suggested Reyhan take them out into the desert to show them some of Bahania’s natural beauty. She was relatively sure her husband had agreed to the outing because he didn’t have a choice. Ever since they’d shared that one night, he’d made it more than clear that spending time in her company was about as pleasant as root canal sugery.
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