“I’m not saying to drag it out. I’m saying that the last leg of the race is the shortest, and the end is flat. If you don’t overwork Maj, he’ll still be going strong while the horses who were pushed too hard in the beginning won’t be able to keep up.”
There was a thoughtful silence. Emily braced for another argument.
“I agree,” said Zaman.
“And if you keep him reined in, you—oh.” She laughed out loud, the sound blending with the wash of the water against the edges of the pool. “Good.”
He opened his eyes, and she was struck by the dark burn of them against her own. “You’re passionate about horses. Very passionate.”
“Yes, well, it’s been my life’s work,” Emily said, face heating.
“I think you’d be an incredible asset to the palace.”
“The good news is that I’m already an incredible asset. Remember?” She flashed him a smile. “I’m already working for you.”
Zaman returned the grin. “I’m not being clear enough. I want to offer you a job. A different job. I’d like you to be head trainer for all the horses in our stables, except Baqir’s mount for the race.”
Her mouth dropped open, but it took a minute for the words to come. “Head trainer? What about Daud?”
“Daud will always have a place with us,” Zaman said firmly. “But he’s semi-retired. He trains Baqir’s horse and a select few others every few years, and that’s all. We need someone more hands-on. I’ve already seen how good you are with the horses and with the staff.”
“I—” A vision of the farm back home in Kentucky flashed into her mind like a bolt of lightning. “I could step in temporarily,” she said slowly. “Until you find someone permanent. My sister needs me.” Her farm needed her. “When the foal can travel, I have to go back.”
“Agreed.” Zaman stuck out his hand. Emily shook it, an electric want sparking in the place where their palms met. He settled back against his hands but had somehow inched closer. “I must confess—you’re the first woman I’ve ever been able to share my love of horses with.”
“That can’t be true. There must be someone in the palace, or the city…”
“Not like you.” Zaman’s eyes caught hers and held them. “I enjoy spending time with you.”
His voice reeled her in, and Emily leaned forward, closing the distance between them. She couldn’t help herself. Zaman didn’t help himself. He kissed her while she circled her foot in a tiny loop under the water, letting it tug at her skin.
It was a sweet kiss, with Zaman’s mouth soft on hers, and Emily felt her body sigh with how lovely it was. There hadn’t been a lot of loveliness in Kentucky for the past few years, and she hadn’t known how much she craved it until this moment.
Her mind still sounded a warning. She couldn’t fall for him—it was too risky. She couldn’t fall for him, but then what was this swooning, soaring feeling that started at her core and shone outward like the sun peeking above the horizon?
Oh, no.
She shoved the thoughts away. Not here. Not now. Not when he was kissing her like this, not when he was slipping his arm around her waist and pulling her close, not when he dipped her back against the soft ground.
She couldn’t fall, because she couldn’t stay.
She had to remember that.
10
It was getting late when Emily leaned back against a hefty pile of pillows in her bed and started a video chat with her sister. Late in Qadir, anyway—she was hoping the timing was just right enough to catch her when she had her phone. She chewed at her bottom lip and watched her expression turn into a smile when her sister’s face popped up on the screen.
“Hey.” Charlotte looked down at the phone from a weird angle. “How are you?”
“Are you in the stable?” Emily laughed. “I can’t believe you have your phone.”
“I’ve been keeping it on me now that you’re out of the country, with royalty,” Charlotte teased.
Emily waited for the homesickness to hit—the deep pangs that struck her whenever she called home. But it was mild today, like something calling to her from a great distance. “How is everybody?”
“We’re doing just fine,” Charlotte said, and then she took Emily through a rundown of all the horses and the people at the farm. “Marie misses you.”
“Tell her I miss her, too.”
“Do you?” Charlotte waggled her eyebrows. “You must be really busy over there. How are you doing with all of it?”
“I’m good. I’m tired.” A yawn escaped her then, as if saying it had made it true. “I’m spending all my waking hours training horses and other staff.”
“Yeah? Any characters I should know about?”
Emily told her about Daud, who had been so closed-off he barely looked at her for the first couple of weeks.
Charlotte laughed. “He sounds like Old Man Davis from down the road.”
“Compared to Old Man Davis, Daud is a social butterfly.”
“No kidding. He ran off the UPS man the other day.” Charlotte’s face grew serious as she told the story. “I’m a little worried about him. Maybe one of us should go over and see how he is.” She huffed a breath. “But that would have to be me, since you’re out of the country.”
“Indeed I am,” said Emily. “And I wouldn’t go over there anyway. Not for all the money in the world.”
“Yeah, right. Kindhearted Emily not helping a member of our community? I don’t believe it.”
“It was your idea, not mine. Do you have any other news?”
Charlotte shot her a look through the screen. “Do you? You’re the one living in a palace. Have you gone out to see the sights in the city? Have you had any fun?”
“I was serious when I said I spent all my waking hours in the stables. Or with Zaman.”
Charlotte clicked her tongue. “All work and no play—wait.” She gave her sister a sidelong look that was so familiar that it tugged at Emily’s heart. “Zaman? Tall, dark, and gorgeous? That Zaman?”
“That’s the one. You know. The man who hired me to come here and train his horse. That Zaman.”
Her sister pursed her lips. “I don’t know if I’d call it hiring. He gave us a generous financial gift with a few strings attached. A temporary gig at most.” Charlotte’s smile softened. “There’s something else on your mind. I can see it on your face.” She wriggled a finger at the camera and made Emily laugh. “What is it?”
She took a deep breath. “Zaman actually offered me a job job. As head trainer in his stables. I’d be in charge of all the horses except his brother’s.”
Charlotte’s eyes went wide. “Emily, that’s incredible. Congratulations on snagging an official place job!” She giggled, a sound she’d made when she was excited ever since she was small. “My sister, working in a palace. Officially. Wow.”
“No, no—it’s not like that. I only agreed to a few months. Once Riah’s foal is weaned, I’m coming back. Just like we planned.”
Charlotte waved this off. “Well, the time isn’t up yet. Maybe he’ll find someone else to take your place before you’re set to leave. Or maybe he won’t…if you don’t plan to leave.”
“What do you mean? Of course I’m coming home.”
Charlotte turned away from the camera, and a second later Emily heard voices in the background. Charlotte said something that was blown away on a gust of wind. When she turned back, an apology was written on her face.
“Don’t worry about it,” said Emily. Charlotte had to be under intense pressure, managing the farm by herself.
“Before I go, I want to say one thing. It’s like Mom always said—think with your head but follow your heart. It sounds like your heart is in Qadir right now. Besides, we’re doing fine here.”
Emily blinked back tears. She hadn’t said the words out loud, but somehow Charlotte had known, and she was right. Her heart was in Qadir, racing across the foothills with Zaman, in the stables with Daud, and out in the training ring with
Maj.
“Wait.” Her mind snagged on something Charlotte had said. “Who’s we?”
Charlotte waggled her eyebrows, giving Emily a huge grin. “We can’t all have a stable full of hot men to choose from. Some of us only have one.”
“A stable full of—what?” Never mind the fact that Emily was only interested in Zaman. “You’re holding out on me.”
Charlotte completely ignored this for the voices in the background. “They need me. We’ll talk soon, okay? You’ve got this. Baker women get things done, and you’re doing great. Love you. Talk soon. Bye.” She blew a kiss into the screen and ended the call.
Emily nestled back into the pillows and tossed her phone onto the covers beside her. Her sister was totally keeping secrets. Then again, so was Emily. She hadn’t exactly been forthcoming about how she and Zaman spent their time together.
And why not?
She traced a pattern on the soft white coverlet. Emily had always been the one to overshare when she and her sister were growing up, and Charlotte had been the one to hold back. She had her suspicions about who Charlotte might be dating, but it was hard to say until Charlotte unzipped her lips.
But Emily still wasn’t sure why she’d kept the conversation centered on the horses and not the man who commanded most of her waking thoughts and all of her dreaming ones.
Emily closed her eyes and turned over her sister’s words in her mind. That Charlotte. She could still surprise Emily, despite having known her all of her life. Who would have thought she’d be okay with Emily staying in Qadir?
Whoever she was dating must really have a firm grasp on farm life.
She considered calling back and demanding answers, but she could already feel herself slipping into sleep. So tired. And tomorrow was another day.
The buzz of a text message stopped her halfway to dreamland.
Come see me.
Excitement crackled to life like a sparkler on a dark night. Emily wasted no time going to Zaman’s rooms.
* * *
The nights in Zaman’s bed piled up, one after the other, and the days raced on like the horses in the great endurance race. They surged forward, then pulled back, then surged forward again.
Emily thought she’d been tired before. Now she was exhausted.
Daud caught her in mid-yawn at the beginning of one week. “Should you be in your bed?”
“Should you be in yours, Daud?” She grinned at him to let him know she was joking. “I’m all right.”
But she found herself asking the grooms for more and more help. Her training sessions with Majalun got shorter, but she made them as effective as possible, not wasting a second. That night, when Zaman’s text came, she asked for a rain check and fell so deeply asleep that she slept past her alarm the next morning.
By Wednesday, the fatigue came everywhere with her, even after an early bedtime the night before. It clung to her eyes like a face mask she couldn’t take off. She went to Zaman’s room that night, but fell asleep before her head made contact with the pillow. On Thursday, sleep called to her so strongly that she missed his text completely.
Emily took the weekend off. It had clearly been too many late nights and early mornings, and they had all caught up with her at once. She’d heard of that happening to other horse trainers. A weekend lounging around her rooms would do her good.
At first, it did. Her brain needed a rest from the constant training, and her body relished the time on the couch.
Not a single text came in from Zaman.
On Sunday, it hit her in the middle of a sitcom rerun she remembered from childhood.
Zaman was done with her.
He wasn’t texting.
He wasn’t asking her to dinner.
He wasn’t asking her to his bed.
The pain was sudden and sharp—so sharp she lifted a hand to her heart and pressed, as if her palm could contain it.
So their fling was over.
It had just been a fling.
Why did it hurt so much?
11
Zaman stalked toward the stables, trying and failing to get his dark mood under control.
For the life of him, he could not figure out what had happened with Emily. They’d had a delightful push and pull out in the stables and when they rode together, and at night she always responded when he tugged on that line between them.
Until she hadn’t.
Once, then twice, and on the third day she’d fallen asleep just when things were getting heated.
She was done with him.
He took in a deep breath and blew it out again as the stables came into view. He’d been stewing in his feelings for days, the hurt spiraling into the center of him like a corkscrew, and it was stupid. What was the best course of action? To talk to her. Now.
Zaman found her in the training ring, putting Majalun through his paces. She rode him with such confidence, back straight, head up. Her focus seemed absolute, and his chest warmed with pride. What had he come out here for again?
In the middle of crossing the ring, she flung herself out of the saddle. His heart stuttered. That wasn’t part of the program, was it? Emily stumbled away from Majalun, her hands going to her stomach. Zaman felt his next heartbeat too hard against his ribs. Emily fell to her knees and threw up.
He leapt over the fence from standing and sprinted across the training ring to her. He threw himself down next to her. She had her arms locked across her stomach, her face pale. “Are you okay? Emily, look at me.”
Sweat beaded on her forehead, and Emily shook her head in quick movements.
He put an arm around her and spotted Korah hovering near the fence. “Korah! Get Majalun.” Daud came out of the stables at his shout.
Zaman scooped up Emily in his arms and rushed for the palace. She clung to him, one arm around his neck and the other on her belly. “Still bad?”
“Still bad,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Does it hurt?”
“No,” she bit out. “Sick.”
He took her to his rooms without a second thought and set her on the edge of the bed. She trembled there while he pulled her boots off. The moment her feet were free, she pulled her knees up and rolled onto her side.
Zaman picked up his cell and called the doctor. The doctor, he found out, was already on her way. Daud had called ahead.
He stood outside the door while the doctor—a level-headed woman named Tirsa Salib—examined Emily. Zaman’s skin pulled tight, goose bumps rising on his skin. Nothing mattered except that she was all right.
The door opened behind him, and Dr. Salib stepped into the hall. At the sight of him she raised a hand.
“Emily is all right.” A strange light danced in her eyes. “She’s pregnant.”
The news hit him in a wash of cold, then a heat so strong it threatened to eclipse everything else. “Pregnant,” he echoed.
“Emily gave me permission to tell you,” said Dr. Salib, searching his eyes. “She made me promise not to tell anyone else you’re—”
He put a hand on her shoulder, feeling like his legs might give out at any moment. “Please, yes. Just between us. I—” Emily. He had to see her. “Thank you.”
Zaman brushed past her and went straight back to the side of the bed. Emily was pale, dark circles under her eyes, and she stared resolutely ahead even when he sat down next to her and took her hand. Every breath he took felt heavy with meaning. “How are you?”
She glanced up at him, blue eyes filled with anxiety. “I’m…in good health,” she said slowly. “And judging by the look on your face, you know I’m pregnant.”
“I do.”
“And you know…that it’s yours.”
He raised her knuckles to his lips and kissed them, one by one. “I do.”
She bit her lip and looked down at the covers pulled over her lap. “Dr. Salib gave me something for the morning sickness.” Now her gaze turned to a glare. “I never realized morning sickness could be this intense.” It see
med like she wanted to say more, but she lapsed into a silence that rang in his ears.
“You don’t have to worry about a thing.” He rubbed the pad of his thumb over the back of her hand. “I’ll take care of you and the child.”
“Oh—oh no.” Emily shook her head, one big movement that she seemed to immediately regret because she let her head fall back against the pillow. “No, Zaman, I don’t want to be taken care of. And I’m not ready to have a baby right now.”
He had the distinct sensation of glass shattering in the pit of his stomach. “That’s…not a decision you have to make right now, if you…” He had to get this right, and he wasn’t getting it right. But there was no way to describe to her the bright well of hope that had already taken up space in his mind. “You’re not alone,” he said firmly. “I’ll help.”
Emily opened her mouth, but instead of saying anything, she clapped a hand over her mouth and struggled out from underneath the covers. She lunged for the bathroom and dropped to her knees in front of the toilet. Zaman followed, and at the last moment, he swept her hair back from her face and held it while she was sick.
“It’s all right,” he murmured to her, the way his own mother had done when he was ill. “It’s all right.”
When she was finished, she reached for his hand. “You can help me up,” she said, sounding as tired as he’d ever heard. Zaman stood close as she brushed her teeth and splashed water on her face. Their eyes met in the mirror, and an understanding passed between the two of them—in this moment, at least, she did need help.
Back in the bedroom, he tucked her into his bed and went to the door to meet the servant who had been sent up with peppermint tea at the direction of Dr. Salib. Zaman pulled a chair up next to the bed while Emily took cautious sips.
“I can see you have questions,” she said, a little grin at the corner of her mouth. “You’re kind of an open book, Zaman.”
He considered her. “Were you avoiding me because you knew about the baby and didn’t want to tell me?”
The Sheikh’s Stubborn Employee: Qadir Sheikhs Book Three Page 6
