He reached up to pull his sunglasses off. Staring down at her, he tucked the glasses into his front pocket, a frown marring his brow. “Were you snooping outside the conference room?”
“Why are you trying to distract me? I wasn't snooping, I was...listening.”
“Eavesdropping. Snooping. Same thing.”
“Yet you don't deny it.”
“I was busy for a moment realizing the woman I'm in love with has a problem with nosiness.”
Sessily gasped. Had he just said he loved her? “What?”
“I was busy for a moment--”
“I heard you! How can you be in love with me and married to someone else?” she demanded.
“That's because I'm not married to anyone else.”
“But I heard the Emir--”
“You heard the Emir try to brow beat me into doing what he wants me to do. I have other plans, none of which include marriage to a woman I don't love. Nor am I seeing anyone else. Does that clear things up?” He arched a brow, almost as if to challenge her.
A thrill shot through Sessily. He wasn't married. And didn't plan on being married, at least not to that woman in the palace. “You won't be forced to do what he says?”
“No. I'm the Emir, I hold the title. It's what I've spent the last two weeks dealing with, and why I couldn't be here before now. I'm not nearly done with all that needs doing in my home country, but this couldn't wait any longer.”
“And what of your status as the man no woman can catch? I heard all about you and your playboy ways. No woman can hold your heart—that's what I was told. How am I supposed to engage in anything with you when I know your attention will stray. Probably within weeks?” It was an issue for Sessily. He had a reputation, and she didn't expect him to stop doing what he'd been doing for years just for her.
“You're going to have to trust me. Besides, if I can convince you I'm worth having,” he said with an arrogant twist of his mouth, “we'll be very busy the next few months.”
“What do you mean?”
“Greece is only the first stop. We'll cruise the islands, then pay a visit to Cairo. Would you like to tour the pyramids? And then I thought we could spend some time in Monaco. I'll take you on dazzling dates at all the best restaurants and you can tell me more about living between the United States and Romania. Where in all that would I find time to see other women?”
She could hardly wrap her mind around it all. Ahsan was offering her a dream. Traveling, going on real dates in exotic locations, and getting to know one another on a much more intimate level. Learning each other's quirks and idiosyncrasies. “You could find time, I'm sure.”
“What if I told you I don't want to see other women? Would that convince you?”
Stunned by his offer of travel and romance, Sessily considered his question after a moment to bring her head out of the clouds. She held his gaze, reading the intensity and honesty there. “It might. Did you just say you loved me?”
He smiled, and the effect was devastating on his face. “I said I was in love with you, yes.”
Sessily struggled to absorb it all. She wanted to throw her arms around him and agree, yet a part of her still couldn't believe it was real.
“You hesitate,” he said after another minute of silence.
“I know. I'm thinking.” For the first time, she detected a flicker of concern in his eyes. As if she'd surprised him in return, though not the kind of surprise he'd been hoping for. “This is a big step. I'd be giving up my job here, and leaving my sister. If...if things didn't work out between us--”
“I'll see you're well cared for until you decide what you want to do. I have a feeling your job here will always be available if you want it,” he said, interrupting. “Relationships take patience and honesty and a willingness to forgive. I'm willing to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to give this a shot. Are you?”
Again, she hesitated. All he was asking her to do was spend some time with him, have fun. Learn more about him personally. What was she so afraid of?
“I'll tell you what,” Ahsan said, brushing a kiss to her cheek. “You think about it. My plane leaves in two hours from the private airstrip in town. If you show up, we'll go. If you don't, I'll know this isn't for you, that I'm not for you, and we'll leave it at that.”
Sessily clutched the front of his fine shirt, then smoothed it out with her palm. A sliver of panic worked its way in when he slowly unwound his arm from her waist. He was giving her what she needed—time to make a decision. It felt both right and wrong at the same time.
“All right. That's fair,” she finally said.
He cupped her cheeks in his calloused hands, and bent to touch a tender kiss on her lips. “Two hours, Sessily. Don't be late.”
Without another word, he released her and departed the shop with ground-eating strides. On his way, he gave Anna a roguish smile and a quick wink, sending the baker into a flurry of motion.
“Good day! Anna says come back soon!” Anna watched anxiously out the windows, then turned a curious, suspicious eye on her employee.
Rooted to the spot he'd left her, Sessily touched her lips, still warm from his kiss. She understood the things Ahsan hadn't said, too. That if she was late, if his plane left without her, he wouldn't be coming back. He wouldn't chase her, wouldn't beg. A man like Ahsan didn't have to beg.
“Heavens and Saints, Sessily. What in the world is going on?” Anna whispered.
Sessily watched the limousine pull away from the curb, freeing up the parking spots in front of the shop. Resisting the urge to run down the street after the car, she glanced at Anna.
“He loves me,” she confessed. “He loves me, and wants to take me on proper dates. He wants to travel with me, show me the world.”
Anna's mouth fell open. “When did all this happen? Tell Anna—do you love him? Is that why you hesitate?”
And that, Sessily realized, was her problem. Did she love Ahsan? Her emotions were muddled and hazy. She wasn't sure what she was feeling, and it threw her off.
“I don't know. I don't know—and I only have two hours to figure it out.”
Chapter Twenty
Ahsan raked a hand through his hair. This part of the Romanian countryside was a lovely mix of low mountains, rolling green meadows, and stands of thick trees. He saw none of it while he stared out the window on the way to the airstrip. He'd taken a big gamble, coming here. By sending Sessily little reminders and clues. Admitting he loved her hadn't been the most scary part of it all—what had been scary was the thought that she didn't return his feelings.
And it looked very much like she didn't reciprocate his love.
The last two weeks had made him realize how much he missed her, and wanted her in his life. Their banter, teasing, and serious conversations were different than what he usually shared with other women. He felt alive around Sessily in ways he hadn't before. She challenged him and didn't put up with his antics. Sometimes he thought she was as headstrong as he. But he couldn't force her to love in return, and the idea of having to move on from here—without her—wasn't a pleasant one. He would do it because that's the kind of man he was, but he wasn't looking forward to it.
For the rest of his life, he would remember the woman with auburn hair and blue eyes. The one that got away. The only one he'd ever wanted to keep.
. . .
Opening the door to the small, one bedroom apartment above a bookstore, Sessily tossed her keys on a small table just inside and scanned the tiny living room for Iris. The apartment was a study in used furniture, crocheted blankets and hand-me-down décor. Shabby chic, she thought some people called it.
“You're home early,” Iris said, glancing up from a textbook. She sat on the lone, worn out sofa, legs stretched across the cushions.
Closing the door, Sessily leaned against it, hands trapped behind her body. Iris was well on the mend these days, her bruises gone, the haunted look finally fading from her eyes. She had taken up studying again, not yet ready to
go back to work.
“Ahsan came to the shop. He came to see me,” Sessily said, cutting straight to the chase.
Iris glanced up, blonde hair made paler by the afternoon sunlight streaming in a window. “What for?”
“He's been sending me little...gifts. Over the last week.”
“What kind of gifts?” Iris frowned and closed the textbook.
“Flowers, a little miniature replica of a yacht, and an invitation to join him on that yacht that I ignored.”
“Why didn't you tell me before now? What did he want today?”
“Because I thought it might remind you and upset you. And because I was angry at him,” Sessily confessed. She rubbed her forehead with her fingers, aware of every second ticking off her internal clock. Counting down to zero. Counting down to goodbye.
“He followed through on his word and got us home safe and sound. I know he's not like...his brother. But thanks for thinking of my feelings,” Iris said. “Why were you angry?”
“I thought he got married. The last thing I heard was his father tell him he had to marry a woman of their culture, that it would go a long way to ease the public's mind about Ahsan's reign. So I was angry that he kept sending me things. I thought he wanted a secret tryst away from prying eyes, hiding it from his wife.”
“But he didn't?”
“No. He said he's in love with me and wants to take me on real dates. Travel to the places we once talked about when I stayed at the palace. I was so excited about the thought then, even though I'd been playing a part at the time. I really wanted to go with him.” Sessily stepped away from the door, dragging her finger around the frayed edge of a small lamp.
“He's in love with you?” Iris repeated with a wealth of shock in her voice. “Are you in love with him?”
Sessily sat across from Iris in the other chair, fidgety. Restless. “That's the thing. I don't know, and I don't want to give him false hope by going, then regretting it later.”
“Well, if you're not sure, you shouldn't do it.”
“That's what I told myself before he left the shop. He's waiting at the airstrip. In two hours—well, less than that now—his plane leaves, and once it does...” Sessily couldn't finish. She didn't want to think about never seeing him again now that she knew he wasn't married, and was in love with her. What did that mean? Was she just fond of him, grateful that he'd saved her?
“Once it leaves, that's it. You won't get another chance,” Iris said, finishing the thought. “Are you okay with that?”
“I just don't know, Iris. I'd have to quit my job and leave you here alone. I--”
“Hey, look. I love Anna, but let's face it. That's not a reason to stay. And I'm not an invalid. I'll be back to work soon, able to take care of myself. As much as I'd miss you, don't stay for me. If you can have a better life, get out of this town and travel and see the world—do it. I would.” Iris's stark expression suggested she wouldn't hesitate a moment if she was in the same boat.
Sessily glanced from Iris to the apartment. They'd lived here for several years, settling into the cramped space. They alternated sleeping between the twin bed and the couch, which was never comfortable either on the neck or the spine. It was home, however, and although it wasn't grandiose in scale or decor, she could be herself within its walls. Leaving it wouldn't exactly be a hardship, especially after the luxury she'd experienced in Dubai and Ahsan's palace.
“Would you?” she asked Iris. “Would you really light out of here without looking back?”
“Yes. This is a go-nowhere life and you know it. We'll both work our fingers to the bone for a pittance, never able to rise very far above where we are now. Degrees cost money, and we just don't have it to spare. So yes. If I felt anything for him at all, I'd go. Because even if you don't love him now, who's to say you won't eventually? That's the point. To give yourself a chance.”
“It's more complicated than that. He's the Emir now. A man bound to his country before anything else. I don't even know how I'd fit in there if he wanted to take me back for a visit. You saw how things are. It's different than we live here. He wants change, and I think he'll eventually get it. But will they accept a foreigner? They have very strict traditions about the Emir marrying a woman of their own culture—it was why I thought he was already wed. There are a lot of politics involved. I'm not sure how I'll handle all that.”
“The Sessily I grew up with wouldn't let that stop her. You'll handle it with class and sophistication and the good sense mom and dad gave us both. The real issue here to me is whether you like him enough to go in the first place.” Iris laced her fingers around a knee.
Sessily glanced at the wall clock. More time had passed than she realized. There was less than an hour to meet Ahsan. A buzz of panic swept through her and she pushed to a stand. “I don't know. I don't know what to do.”
“Honestly, Sessily, I think you're going to regret it if you don't go. Look at you. You're fidgeting and can't sit still. If you decided that you didn't like him enough to try, you'd be more at peace. What's holding you back?”
Sessily lifted a shoulder. “I just don't know. He's promised he won't womanize anymore, either, and--”
“Oh. So that's it.” Iris leaned back with a knowing look on her face. “You're afraid he'll break your heart. Really break it.”
Sessily snapped a look at her sister. “What?”
“You've been distracted since we got back. Not quite yourself. I've noticed, of course, I just wasn't sure what or who was the problem. You've missed him, haven't you? You've missed him, but thought he was married, and it hurt. So you're projecting forward—what if you fall hard, and he breaks your heart? You're thinking you might not want to risk it because the pain will be twenty times what it's been the last two weeks.”
And just like that, it all fell into place. It took someone on the outside looking in, someone who knew her well, to figure out the problem. Sessily knew Iris was right the second she heard the words. She was afraid of experiencing even more heartbreak than in recent weeks. Hard on the heels of that, she understood with startling clarity that she loved Ahsan with every fiber of her being. Loved him beyond reason. She'd stuffed down her emotions and feelings because she'd had to, thinking he was married to another.
“Help me pack.” Sessily ran into the small bedroom and yanked the only suitcase they owned between them out from under the rickety bed.
“I'll get your toiletries, you get your clothes!” Iris said, diverting to the hallway and the single bathroom next to the bedroom. She snatched up a small cosmetic case and dumped everything into the sink. Then she jammed Sessily's make up inside, just the essentials to save time. Mascara, lipstick, eye shadow and rouge.
Sessily tugged open the closet door, frantic to grab a few clothes and get on her way. A shirt got stuck on a hanger—she left it. A sundress fell to the floor. She was making a mess of the small closet and the clothes she tore from the confines. Stuffing several sundresses inside the suitcase, she added two pair of jeans, two pairs of shoes and an old nightgown with Tweety-bird on the front.
Not very sexy. The hell with it. Ahsan was rich. He could buy her something see through and feminine when she got there.
“Here, here.” Out of breath, Iris handed the case over. “I even put a couple tampons in there, just in case.”
“Iris!” Sessily might have laughed if she wasn't so busy pushing everything down so the zipper would close. “I'll press on the top, you get the zipper.”
Iris fought with the zipper, grunting. “It's stuck.”
“Don't say that.”
“It's stuck.”
Sessily groaned and took over, yanking at the stubborn piece of metal. She used a finger to stab a small bit of material further into the suitcase and was rewarded when the zipper skimmed along the teeth.
“Okay, I got it! Iris—I'm leaving the money Ahsan gave me. I'll take just enough for an emergency. It should see you through the next three months.” Sessily opened the top dr
awer of her dresser and pulled a few hundred dollars bills from the stash she'd won from Ahsan for the chicken dance.
“Don't worry about me. You need to go!” Iris grabbed Sessily into a tight hug. “Remember that I love you. You can do this. Call me when you can, okay?”
Sessily, with a fist full of money, hugged Iris and kissed her cheek. “I love you, too. We'll all go on a big vacation later, when everything gets worked out.”
Folding the bills, Sessily pushed them into her pants pocket and grabbed the suitcase. After a tearful goodbye at the door, she lugged the suitcase down the stairs and broke into a jog for Anna's shop. She half expected to see the sleek limousine parked in front of the bakery when she rounded the corner onto the main street.
Nothing. No limousine. Ahsan was where he said he'd be, and she had very little time to get to the airstrip. Entering the bakery, she found Anna behind the counter, filling display cases.
“Anna! I need to borrow your car. It's an emergency.”
Anna set down the tray of pastries with a frown of concentration. “Anna wants to know what's going on. Are you going, child? You have a suitcase.” Fishing car keys out of a drawer, she tossed them to Sessily.
“I don't have time to explain. I'll call. And thank you. I love you, Anna!” Sessily caught the keys and went out the back door. Anna always parked behind the shop to leave room in the front for customers.
Rushing up to the older-than-old blue Peugeot, Sessily tossed the suitcase into the passenger seat and slid behind the wheel. “Okay. No funny stuff,” she warned the car. Anna fought with it daily. Sometimes it ran, sometimes it didn't.
She inserted the key and turned the ignition. The car sputtered...and died. Sessily pumped the gas. “Come on!”
Again, the car churned and sputtered, but didn't catch. Sessily tried again, and again.
“I don't have time for this. I'm going to miss the plane.” There wasn't any other way to the airstrip. She didn't own a car, and it wasn't as if taxis cruised the streets, waiting for business.
The Royal Elite: Ahsan (Elite, Book 2) Page 19
