by Marian Tee
“Are you planning to run me over, sheikh?”
He would not do that, of course.
His head jerked up at the familiar sound of that lovely voice, and his eyes confirmed what his heart was beating too damn hard and fast to comprehend.
Kyria.
She was standing right in front of him, dressed in a plain black abaya, both hands curled around the handle of an umbrella. Her hair was loose, her eyes red-rimmed, but her lips---
That smile…
That smile told him no words were needed.
Because she already knew.
What he had to say, what he was likely to forget to say---
That smile told him she knew all of those things – and probably more – simply because she loved him.
Still.
“How---” He swallowed hard. “How did you know I was coming?”
“Intuition.” But her puffy eyes were twinkling. “As well as a little tip from the Queen of Ramil.”
“Ah.” He nodded. “Big-mouthed as ever.”
She choked back a giggle. “Oh, Malik.” Her voice trembled, but the way she said his name was no longer like it had been the last time.
This time, she said it like his name was hers.
And so it was, and always had been.
For one moment he could only stare at her, and as expected the old usual doubts and fears swarmed around him, but they no longer ruled his thoughts the way they used to. He didn’t think they would ever go away, but they didn’t have to. Because this time he knew---
“I love you,” he said simply.
Kyria’s lips trembled.
“I love you so damn much it turned me into an idiot.”
She giggled again even as tears started to run faster down her face. “Oh, M-Malik.” It was the loveliest sound, and if he could hear it every day, he knew he would die a happy man.
“I’m sorry, Kyria.”
“I forgive you.”
“I never wanted to hurt you.”
“I know.”
“I panicked.” His chest heaved. “Like an idiot, I panicked at the thought of what loving me would have you face. I didn’t know if it was right to make you go through it. You don’t deserve something like that, and I know I can never be worthy---”
“S-stop.” She shook her head. “You’re always so s-silly that way,” Kyria chided tremulously. “I’m the one who should be thinking that, you know? Everyone knows I don’t deserve someone like you---”
“Whoever those people are---” His lip curled, but his voice was still raw when he finished, “They’re idiots.”
A fragile laugh slipped past her lips---
She threw herself at him, just like she used to.
And he caught her, just like he used to.
His arms tightened around her for a moment, and then because he could no longer help it, he pulled back to cup her face, demanding rawly, “Will you take a chance on me again?”
She smiled up at him, and the sight was enchanting. But when she spoke, it was her words that pierced his soul. “You never lost it, Malik. I was just waiting for you to come back for me.”
His mouth touched hers, and her eyes closed.
Epilogue
Theirs was not a perfect love. It was not like a fairytale like the king and his queen, not even a pure and innocent love story such as the one that Malik Al-Atassi’s parents shared. Scandal would never cease to haunt them, doors that would remain closed because they had chosen to listen to their hearts. It would never be a peaceful, blameless world for them – and that was fine. Neither of them needed the world to understand them.
What mattered was what they knew---
Malik crumpled the draft into a ball and threw it into the waste bin. “What the fuck, Harper?”
“Careful of how you speak of my queen,” the king said mildly.
“Apologies,” Malik said right away. He then turned back to face his queen and said politely, “What kind of fucking maid of honor’s speech is this, Your Majesty?”
The whole table burst into laughter, with the queen cackling more than laughing. Malik turned to his fiancée, saying grimly, “There’s still time to change your mind. Can’t you choose someone else to be your maid of honor?”
“I heard that,” Harper called out.
“I wanted you to,” Malik retorted. “I’m hoping there’s a slim possibility you’d just back out.”
The queen grinned. “Not a chance.”
And it was thus breakfast concluded in the royal household, with all family members given a list of their assignments for Malik and Kyria’s upcoming wedding. On their way back to the family’s private wing, they bumped into the queen’s court tutor, Anisah, and her half-sister Hyacinth.
Older than Kyria by several years, Anisah looked her usual strict self, with her tall, elegant frame made even more severe by her usual combination of black-rimmed glasses and dark-colored abaya. Hyacinth, on the other hand, was her sister’s complete opposite, with her rather sunny nature.
“I almost forgot,” Hyacinth gasped. “Sheikh Rayyan told me that I was to deliver a message to you about Yuki Himura and Katerina---”
Kyria started, not expecting to hear the names.
Anisah winced. “Oh, Cin.”
“---but he also told me not to say it in Lady Kyria’s hearing,” she said in a small voice.
Silence.
Hyacinth let out another gasp. “Oh no. I wasn’t supposed to say that either, was I?”
Seeing the distress on the other girl’s face, Kyria said hastily, “It’s okay. I’m not mad at them or anything.” She bit her lip then turned to Malik, asking hesitantly, “Is there something I should know?” Why didn’t Rayyan want Hyacinth to speak about the couple in front of her?
Malik nodded. “I’m afraid so.”
Kyria felt faint. “Is t-that so?” Oh, she knew it. Katerina did mean something to him---
“I invited them to the wedding.”
“What?”
“That was my surprise.”
“But surprises are meant to make people smile,” she blurted out. “Do you think seeing her is going to make me smile?”
“No, but it will make me happy when I see you jealous of her.”
…
…
…
And then Kyria was yelling. “Are you freaking kidding me?”
Malik smirked. “Yes, I was.”
Kyria let out a wail of despair. “Are you really?”
“It’s all business, shaqifa. I promise. Surely you trust me?”
“I do, but…” She shifted restlessly on her feet.
“You still can’t help feeling jealous?”
“No.” Yes. “Of course not.” Of course she was.
Lueta. She was so fucking cute when she squirmed like that. Unable to resist it despite knowing the consequences, he bent his head down and gave her slim shoulder one little bite---
SLAP!
Hyacinth jumped back in shock while Kyria let out a gasp of misery. “I am so sorry!” Oh, these stupid reflexes of hers! Although the sheikh had succeeded in training her in Contini, the air appeared to be different in Ramil, and her knee-jerk responses to his touch had thus returned with a vengeance.
The sheikh, however, was laughing, while Anisah had a resigned expression on her face. If in the past seeing Malik and Kyria yelling at each other was a common occurrence, these days Kyria’s violent reactions to the sheikh’s affections were the new norm.
Seeing Hyacinth still looking troubled and no doubt wondering if Kyria was about to be sentenced for raising a hand against a member of the royal family, Malik assured the younger woman with a grin, saying, “There’s nothing to worry, anisdi. It’s just her way of showing how intensely she loves me.” His smile turned sly. “If you know what I mean.” And then he coughed, “My woman is a sadist.”
Hyacinth’s jaw dropped and even Anisah looked stunned.
Kyria turned red. “Malik!”
&nbs
p; The sheikh’s shoulders were still rocking with silent laughter by the time they made it back to his chamber while Kyria was still seriously considering wearing a paper bag over her face for the rest of her life. She was already treading on thin ice with the court’s most conservative members as it was, having fallen in love with a man whom she should have only seen as a brother.
And now this!
“There were maids who overheard you,” she cried out at Malik. “In no time at all people will start thinking I’m this whip-wielding sexpot---”
Malik’s dark gaze gleamed. “So you’re into whips then?”
“What? No!” But…why was he asking that? She looked at him doubtfully. “Do you mean you would if---”
The sheikh threw his dark head back with a rich laugh. “You really are a sadist, shaqifa.”
“I’m n-not, and will you stop calling me that?”
“Are you certain about that?” The sheikh’s voice turned into a purr. “Because if you are serious about that request, then I will of course refrain from ever calling you my little sister again.” And in the next breath, the sheikh suddenly lifted her up in his arms, causing Kyria to gasp.
“Malik!”
The sheikh pressed her back against the wall, and her breath caught as she felt his hands reaching under her robes---
Oh.
His fingers had found the hem of her panties, and just like that, they were torn apart, scraps of lace falling down to the marbled floor.
Glittering dark eyes found hers. “Now then…” The sheikh’s voice was the most dangerously irresistible embodiment of sin. “Tell me. May I call you my little sister while I fuck you?”
Her face flamed. “M-Malik---”
His hands moved, and her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist while she held on to him.
In the next moment, she felt his enormous cock rubbing against her folds, already slick with her need.
“Decide, shaqifa. What do I call you?”
Love beckoned, desire lured her in, and she was lost.
“I want my big brother to fuck me now,” she heard herself whimper.
And so he did.
THE END
Dear Reader,
As always, thank you for patiently waiting for my next release. As you may have noticed, I’m a wee bit addicted to my desert kingdom, and so I hope you won’t terribly mind that I continue on with the other sheikhs. The court tutor mentioned at the end, Anisah, is actually someone you’ve already met in My Arabian Billionaire (only I never mentioned her name). She and her younger sister Hyacinth are my next heroines. Care to make a guess as to which sheikhs they’d end up with? <3
Until our next journey,
Marian Tee
P.S. If you enjoy my work but have never reviewed a book of mine, pretty please consider making an exception and write a review for MALIK? I would truly appreciate hearing your thoughts, and while I do not as a rule reply to reviews, please do know that I read each and every one of them. Of course, you are also more than welcome to share your personal review with me, and you may do so by emailing me or using any of the social media links below to drop me a message.
CONTACT ME.
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About the Author
Marian Tee is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of steamy romantic comedies. She is Filipino-Chinese, has lived all her life in the Philippines, and is a frustrated mangaka. She is addicted to horror flicks, misses hip-hop dancing, and loves all things Japanese.
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