The Christmas Bride

by Susan Mallery

  “Their father was born here, in El Deharia. He, too, was an orphan and Tahir’s village raised him. They honor his memory by taking in his three daughters.”

  “To be servants.”

  As’ad hesitated. “It is their likely fate.”

  “Then he can’t have them.”

  “The decision is not yours to make.”

  “Then you make it,” she told him, wanting to give him a quick kick to the shins, as well. She loved El Deharia. The beautiful country took her breath away every time she went into the desert. She loved the people, the kindness, the impossible blue of the skies. But there was still an expectation that men knew better. “Do you have children, Prince As’ad?”

  “No.”

  “Sisters?”

  “Five brothers.”

  “If you had a sister, would you want her to be taken away and made a servant? Would you have wanted one of your brothers ripped from his family?”

  “These are not your siblings,” he told her.

  “I know. They’re more like my children. They’ve only been here a few months. Their mother died a year ago and their father brought them back here. When he was killed, they entered the orphanage. I’m the one who sat with them night after night as they sobbed out their pain. I’m the one who held them through the nightmares, who coaxed them to eat, who promised things would get better.”

  She drew herself up to her full five feet three inches and squared her shoulders. “You talk of Tahir’s honor. Well, I gave my word that they would have a good life. If you allow that man to take them away, my word means nothing. I mean nothing. Are you so heartless that you would shatter the hopes and dreams of three little girls who have already lost both their parents?”

  As’ad could feel a headache coming on.

  Kayleen James stated her case well. Under other circumstances, he would have allowed her to keep the children at the school and be done with it. But this was not a simple case.

  “Tahir is a powerful chieftain,” he said. “To offend him over such a small matter is foolish.”

  “Small matter? Because they’re girls? Is that it? If these were boys, the matter would be large?”

  “The gender of the children is immaterial. The point is Tahir has made a generous gesture from what he considers a position of honor. To have that thrown in his face could have political consequences.”

  “We’re talking about children’s lives. What are politics when compared with that?”

  The door to the classroom opened and Lina stepped inside. Kayleen gasped. “He has the girls?”

  “Of course not. They’ve gone back to their rooms while Tahir and his men take tea with the director.” Lina looked at As’ad. “What have you decided?”

  “That I should not allow you into my office when you do not have an appointment.”

  Lina smiled. “You could never refuse me, As’ad. Just as I could never send you away.”

  He held in a groan. So his aunt had taken sides. Why was he not surprised? She had always been soft-hearted and loving—something he had appreciated after the death of his own mother. But now, he found the trait inconvenient.

  “Tahir is powerful. To offend him over this makes no sense,” he said.

  Lina surprised him by saying, “I agree.”

  Kayleen shrieked. “Princess Lina, no! You know these girls. They deserve more.”

  Lina touched her arm. “They shall have more. As’ad is right. Tahir should not leave feeling as if his generous offer has been snubbed. Kayleen, you may not agree with what he’s trying to do, but believe me, his motives are pure.”

  Kayleen looked anything but convinced, yet she nodded slowly.

  Lina turned to As’ad. “The only way Tahir can save face in this is to have the children taken by someone more powerful who is willing to raise them and honor the memory of their father.”

  “Agreed,” As’ad said absently. “But who would—”

  “You.”

  He stared at his aunt. “You would have me take three orphan girls as my own?” It was unbelievable. It was impossible. It was just like Lina.

  “As’ad, the palace has hundreds of rooms. What would it matter if three girls occupied a suite? You wouldn’t have to deal with them. They would have your protection as they grew. If nothing else, the king might be momentarily distracted by the presence of three almost-grandchildren.”

  The idea had merit, As’ad thought. His father’s attempts to marry off his sons had become unbearable. There were constant parades of eligible young women. An excuse to avoid the events was worth much.

  As’ad knew it was his duty to marry and produce heirs, yet he had always resisted any emotional involvement. Perhaps because he knew emotion made a man weak. His father had told him as much the night the queen had died. When As’ad had asked why the king did not cry, his father explained that to give in to feelings was to be less of a man.

  As’ad had tried to learn the lesson as well as he could. As a marriage of convenience had never appealed to him, he was left with the annoyance of dealing with an angry monarch who wanted heirs.

  “But who would care for the girls?” he asked. “The children can’t raise themselves.”

  “Hire a nanny. Hire Kayleen.” Lina shrugged. “She already has a relationship with the girls. They care for her and she cares for them.”

  “Wait a minute,” Kayleen said. “I have a job. I’m a teacher here.”

  Lina looked at her. “Did you or did you not give the girls your word that their life would get better? What are you willing to do to keep your word? You would still be a teacher, but on a smaller scale. With three students. Perhaps there would even be time for you to teach a few classes here.”

  The last thing As’ad wanted was to adopt three children he knew nothing about. While he’d always planned on a family, the idea was vague, in the future, and it included sons. Still, it was a solution. Tahir would not stand in the way of a prince taking the children. And as Lina had pointed out, it would buy time with his father. He could not be expected to find a bride while adjusting to a new family.

  He looked at Kayleen. “You would have to be solely responsible for the girls. You would be given all the resources you require, but I have no interest in their day-to-day lives.”

  “I haven’t even agreed to this,” she told him.

  “Yet you were the one willing to do anything to keep the sisters together.”

  “It would be a wonderful arrangement,” Lina told Kayleen. “Just think. The girls would be raised in a palace. There would be so many opportunities for them. Dana could go to the best university. Nadine would have access to wonderful dance teachers. And little Pepper wouldn’t have to cry herself to sleep every night.”

  Kayleen bit her lower lip. “It sounds good.” She turned to As’ad. “You’d have to give your word that they would never be turned out or made into servants or married off for political gain.”

  “You insult me with your mistrust.” The audacity of her statements was right in keeping with what he’d seen of her personality, but it was important to establish control before things began.

  “I don’t know you,” she said.

  “I am Prince As’ad of El Deharia. That is all you need to know.”

  Lina smiled at her. “As’ad is a good man, Kayleen.”

  As’ad resented that his aunt felt the need to speak for his character. Women, he thought with mild annoyance. They were nothing but trouble.

  Kayleen looked him in the eye. “You have to give your word that you’ll be a good father, caring more for their welfare than your own. You’ll love them and listen to them and not marry them off to anyone they don’t love.”

  What was it with women and love? he wondered. They worried too much about a fleeting emotion that had no value.

  “I will be a good father,” he said. “I will care for them and see that they are raised with all the privileges that go with being the daughter of a prince.”

  Kayleen frowne
d. “That wasn’t what I asked.”

  “It is what I offer.”

  Kayleen hesitated. “You have to promise not to marry them off to someone they don’t care about.”

  Such foolish worries, he thought, then nodded. “They may pick their own husbands.”

  “And go to college and not be servants.”

  “I have said they will be as my daughters, Ms. James. You test my patience.”

  She stared at him. “I’m not afraid of you.” She considered for a second.

  “I can see that. You will be responsible for them. Do as you see fit with them.” He glanced at his aunt. “Are we finished here?”

  She smiled, her eyes twinkling in a way that made him wonder what else she had planned for him. “I’m not sure, As’ad,” she told him. “In a way I think we’re just beginning.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  Kayleen wouldn’t have thought it was possible for her life to change so quickly. That morning she’d awakened in her narrow bed in a small room at the orphanage. If she stood in the right place and leaned all the way over, she could see a bit of garden out of her tiny window, but mostly the view was a stone wall. Now she followed Princess Lina into an impossibly large suite in a palace that overlooked the Arabian Sea.

  “This can’t be right,” Kayleen murmured as she turned in a slow circle, taking in the three sofas, the carved dining table, the ornate decorations, the wide French doors leading out to a balcony and the view of the water beyond. “These rooms are too nice.”

  Lina smiled. “It’s a palace, my dear. Did you think we had ugly rooms?”

  “Obviously not.” Kayleen glanced at the three girls huddled together. “But this stuff is really nice. Kids can be hard on furniture.”

  “I assure you, these pieces have seen far more than you can imagine. All will be well. Come this way. I have a delightful surprise.”

  Kayleen doubted any surprise could beat a return address sticker that said El Deharian Royal Palace but she was willing to be wrong. She gently pushed the girls in front of her as they moved down the hallway.

  Lina paused in front of a massive door, then pushed it open. “I didn’t have much time to get things in order, so it’s not complete just yet. But it’s a start.”

  The “start” was a room the size of a small airport, with soaring ceilings and big windows that let in the light. Three double beds didn’t begin to fill the space. There were armoires and desks and comforters in pretty pastels. Big, fluffy stuffed animals sat on each bed, along with a robe, nightgowns and slippers. Each of the girls’ school backpacks sat at the foot of her bed.

  “Laptop computers are on order for the girls,” Lina said. “There’s a big TV back in the living room, behind the cabinet doors. There are a few DVDs for the girls, but we’ll get more. In time, we can move you to a different suite, one with a bedroom for each of the girls, but for now I thought they’d be more comfortable together.”

  Kayleen couldn’t believe it. The room was perfect. Bright and cheerful, filled with color. There was an air of welcome, as if the space had been hoping for three girls to fill it.

  Dana turned around and stared at her. “Really? This is for us?”

  Kayleen laughed. “You’d better take it, because if you don’t want it, I’ll move in.”

  It was the permission they needed. The three girls went running around the room, examining everything. Every few seconds one of them yelled, “Look at this,” because there was so much to see.

  A ballerina lamp for Nadine, a throw covered with teddy bears for Pepper. Dana’s bed had a bookcase next to it. Kayleen turned to Princess Lina.

  “You’re amazing.”

  “I have resources and I’m not afraid to use them,” her friend told her. “This was fun. I don’t get to act imperious very often and send servants scuttling to do my bidding. Besides, we all enjoyed pulling this together in a couple of hours. Come on. Let’s go see where you’ll sleep.”

  Kayleen followed Lina past a large bathroom with a tub big enough to swim in, to a short hallway that ended in a beautiful room done in shades of green and pale yellow.

  The furniture was delicately carved and feminine. The bedcovering was a botanical print that suited her much better than ruffles and frills. The attached bathroom was more luxurious than any she’d ever seen.

  “It’s silk,” she whispered, fingering the luxurious drapes. “What if I spill something?”

  “Then the cleaners will be called,” Lina told her. “Relax. You’ll adjust. This is your home now that you’re a part of As’ad’s life.”

  Something else that just plain wasn’t right, Kayleen thought. How could she be a part of a sheik’s life? Make that a sheik prince?

  “Not a happy part,” she murmured. “He didn’t want to help.”

  “But he did and isn’t that what matters?”

  Kayleen nodded, but her head was spinning. There was too much to think about. Too much had happened too quickly.

  “Our bags! Kayleen, hurry! Our bags are here.”

  Kayleen and Lina returned to the main room to watch as their suitcases were unloaded. The pile had looked so huge at the orphanage, but here it seemed small and shabby.

  Lina lightly touched her arm. “Get settled. I’ll have dinner sent up. Things will look better in the morning.”

  “They look fine now,” Kayleen told her, almost meaning it. “We live in a palace. What’s not to like?”

  Lina laughed. “Good attitude.” She held out her arms and the sisters rushed to her for a hug. “I will see all of you in the morning. Welcome to the palace.”

  With that, she was gone. As the door to their suite closed behind her, Kayleen felt a whisper of unease. A palace? How could that be home?

  She glanced at the girls and saw fear and apprehension in their eyes. It was one thing for her to worry, but they shouldn’t have to. They’d already been through so much.

  She glanced at her watch, then looked back at the girls. “I think we need to give the new TV a test drive. Here’s the deal. Whoever gets unpacked first, and that means putting things neatly in the armoire, not just throwing them, gets to pick the movie. Start in five, four, three, two, one. Go!”

  All three sisters shrieked and raced for their bedroom.

  “I can go fastest,” Pepper yelled as she crouched down in front of her suitcase and opened it.

  “No way,” Dana told her. “I’m going to win because you’ll pick a stupid cartoon. I’m too old for that.”

  Kayleen smiled at the familiar argument, then her smile faded. Dana was all of eleven and in such a hurry to grow up. Kayleen suspected the reason had a whole lot to do with being able to take care of her sisters.

  “That’s going to change,” she whispered, then returned to her room to unpack her own suitcases. Lina had promised that Prince As’ad could be trusted. He’d given his word that he would raise the girls as his own. That meant they were safe. But, after all they’d been through, how long would it take them to feel that way?

  The evening passed quickly. Dinner was sent up on an elegant rolling table and contained plenty of comfort foods for lost, lonely children. Kayleen piled everyone on the largest sofa and they watched The Princess Diaries, then compared the differences in the movie castle and the real-live palace they’d moved into. By nine all three of them were asleep and Kayleen found herself alone as she wandered the length of the beautiful suite.

  She paused by the French doors leading onto the balcony, then stepped out into the warm night.

  Lights from the shoreline allowed her to see the movement of the waves as they rolled onto the beach. The inky darkness of the water stretched to the horizon. The air was warm and salty, the night unexpectedly still.

  She leaned against the railing and stared into the sky. What was she doing here? This wasn’t her world. She could never in a million years have imagined—

  The sound of a door opening caused her to turn. She saw a shadow move and take the shape of a man. Fear gripped
her then, as quickly as it had come, faded. But she should be afraid, she told herself. He could be anyone.

  But he wasn’t, she realized as he stepped into the light. He was Prince As’ad.

  He was as tall and broad as she remembered. Handsome, in a distant sort of way. The kind of man who intimidated without trying. She wondered if she should slip back into her own rooms before he saw her. Perhaps she wasn’t supposed to be out here. Then his dark gaze found her.

  “Good evening,” he said. “You and the girls are settled?”

  She nodded. “Thank you. The rooms are great. Your aunt thought of everything to make us feel at home.” She looked up at the imposing structure of the palace. “Sort of.”

  He moved toward her. “It’s just a really big house, Kayleen. Do not let the size or history intimidate you.”

  “As long as none of the statuary comes alive in the night and tries to chase us out.”

  “I assure you, our statuary is most well-behaved.”

  She smiled. “Thanks for the reassurance. No offense, but I doubt I’ll sleep well for the next couple of nights.”

  “I hope that changes quickly.” He shrugged out of his suit jacket. “If you find my aunt forgot something, let someone on the staff know.”

  “Sure.” Because every palace had a staff. And a king. And princes. “What do we call you? The girls and I. Your Highness? Prince As’ad?”

  “You may all use my first name.”

  “Really? And they won’t chop off my head for that?”

  One corner of his mouth twitched. “Not for many years now.” He loosened his tie, then pulled it free.

  Kayleen watched for a second, then looked away. He wasn’t undressing, she told herself. The man had the right to get comfortable after a long day of…of…being a prince. This was his balcony. She was the one who didn’t belong.

  “You are uneasy,” he said.

  She blinked. “How did you figure that out?”

  “You are not difficult to read.”

  Great. She had the sudden thought she wanted to be mysterious and interesting. Mostly interesting. Like that was going to happen.