by Holly Rayner
Anne-Marie woke up slowly, her eyelids refusing to open and wake to another day. If she could have frozen time, she would have done so, reliving her beautiful night with Kaled forever. Since time didn’t work that way, she was forced, after quite a while, to finally open an eye. When she did, she frowned.
Her bed was empty, Kaled’s departure evident in the pulled-back sheets. She blinked a few times, trying to remember if it had all been a dream, though the relaxed, tingling sensation all over her body told her otherwise.
Had he left? Had he simply decided that staying at the ranch had been too much of a burden and gone back home to the city, conquest completed? Anne-Marie’s stomach sank as she imagined every possible worst-case scenario.
Finally, she forced herself to calm down. There could be any number of reasons he wasn’t there. The fact that she cared so much was disconcerting, but only in light of his absence. After a moment, she realized that there was an easy way to tell if he had indeed abandoned ship, and she sprang from the bed, tossing on a pair of comfortable pajamas before padding out of the room to his door.
His bag was still there, neatly placed in its corner, so he had to be around somewhere.
Anne-Marie checked the kitchen and living room, but all was quiet. Did Kaled really have the inclination to get to work before dawn? Surely not. There would be no way he could see his way around, even though the sun was now peeking over the horizon, sprinkling the sky with creamy, orange-and-pink clouds.
When she reached the front door, her question was answered.
Standing at the bannister, staring out at where his convoy had once driven through, on a mission to take the land, stood Kaled, his expression wistful.
The door creaked as Anne-Marie opened it, and Kaled turned, his eyes warm when they landed on her.
“I thought you’d left,” she said, her voice soft.
Kaled held out his arms, and she walked to him, allowing herself to be enveloped and warmed against the cool dew of early morning. He held her for quite some time, though it was never really long enough. After a while, he turned back to stare out at the rising sun, his arm still around her shoulders.
“I didn’t mean to scare you; I just wanted to catch the sunrise. It’s so much better out here.”
Anne-Marie’s lips twitched as she stared off in that direction as well.
“Yes. Most things are, I’m told.”
“Have you ever been to the city?” he asked, glancing down at her.
“Once or twice. I was never really that impressed, and always happy to get home. There’s too much going on there. I like my world quiet, peaceful and safe.”
Kaled turned her to face him again, kissing the tip of her nose. “I like it, too. I like it so much that I’ve realized there’s no way I can purchase this land just to destroy it. There’s too much history here, and too much history to be made. I think I knew that, deep down, the first night we had that drink together. I just didn’t want to admit it.”
Anne-Marie beamed up at him, her smile brighter than the rising sun. “I knew I’d get you to come to the dark side,” she teased, and Kaled laughed, his voice husky as he pulled her closer.
“You did,” he whispered against her lips before claiming them with his own.
They kissed passionately, Anne-Marie losing her breath for what felt like an entire minute before Kaled pulled back and placed his forehead against hers.
“Thank you. Thank you for helping me see the true value of this land.”
“You’re welcome,” she said, hardly able to speak.
Kaled took her hand and led her back to the bedroom, where they made love once more. It was just as passionate as the first time, and Anne-Marie found herself glad that time had not stopped the night before; each new moment with Kaled was better than the last.
After a quick shower, Kaled and Anne-Marie found themselves cooking breakfast together once again, though the atmosphere had very clearly changed. Kaled snuck kisses in every chance he got, and Anne-Marie happily gave them away. They sat side by side, holding hands even as they ate, and the dishwashing they did together led to a rousing water fight, which ended in yet more kissing.
It was certainly one of the best mornings Anne-Marie could remember. After they stepped onto the porch once again and took a deep breath of country air, they set off toward the stables, releasing the horses into the field for the day.
“What do we have on the docket for today, ma’am?” Kaled asked in his terrible southern accent.
Anne-Marie laughed. “You really need to work on that.”
Kaled scooped her up in his arms and twirled her around, and Anne-Marie laughed some more before settling into the circle of his arms.
“Good thing I have you to help me,” he said, kissing her deeply.
Anne-Marie melted into the kiss, indulging in it before she finally pushed him gently away.
“All right, cowboy, if we keep that up we won’t get anything done today.”
“We’d get something done,” he teased, a wicked glint in his eye.
“Yes, well, we do have actual work to accomplish. Now that the western perimeter is patched, we need to go ride the other side and see if there’s anything that way that may have been breached by wayward animals.”
“Sounds tedious. Let’s do it,” Kaled said, and they saddled up Sunshine and Daydream before riding off to the other side of the ranch.
It was nice for Kaled to get a look at a different side of the property. He asked a lot of questions about the land, its history, and how far back it went. For the first time, Anne-Marie didn’t question his motives in asking. She knew now that he was simply in love with the ranch, just like she was, and she was happy to answer him.
When they got to the outer fence, they were met with a string of broken wires. Anne-Marie sighed.
“They never fail to find a way to break these,” she said, dismounting.
Kaled followed suit, joining her at the wire and taking a look. “Sharing land with wildlife will likely do that to you,” he said. “But no matter. We can fix this in a matter of days.”
Anne-Marie looked over at him and smiled. “It’s so good having you here,” she said happily.
Kaled never missed an opportunity to kiss her, and he did not disappoint. Grasping her chin, he pulled her toward him, and before she knew it they were making out once again. She considered making love to him right there in the open, but then reconsidered. While they did have plenty of land around them, there were neighbors who could ride up. It wasn’t worth the risk.
Pulling away, she placed a tool in his hand. “All right, soldier, time to get to work.”
Kaled gave her a playful salute. “At your service.”
They worked side by side for the rest of the morning, patching wire after wire, chatting happily. After what seemed like the millionth wire, Anne-Marie’s hand slipped and she cut her finger.
“Ouch,” she hissed, whipping her hand back.
Kaled was there in an instant.
“What is it? What happened?” he asked, reaching out for her hand.
Anne-Marie winced. “It’s nothing. Just a little cut.”
“Let me see it,” he said, his hand still outstretched.
Anne-Marie chuckled, holding out her hand for him to evaluate.
“Was your father a medical doctor, too?” she asked.
Kaled grinned as he checked to make sure there was nothing that would infect the cut. He reached into a saddlebag and pulled out some rubbing alcohol and a bandage.
“He knew his fair share of first aid, yeah. When you’re running an estate, you have to be a jack-of-all-trades.”
“And when you’re a sheikh?”
Kaled poured the alcohol on the wound, and Anne-Marie hissed between her teeth, biting down against the sting. Kaled cleaned up the cut and bandaged it with expert hands.
“When you’re a sheikh, you never know what can happen,” he said, glancing up at her with a twinkle in his eye. “That should
hold for the rest of the morning, though perhaps you should take a break while I work this wire.”
Anne-Marie laughed out loud, the sound echoing across the fields. “You think I’m going to sit on the bench because of a tiny cut on my finger? Now you’re just being delusional.”
“Hey, you never get the chance to relax. The least I can do is offer it to you.”
“I appreciate the sentiment, but my father didn’t raise me to sit back and let other people do the work.”
“Neither did mine,” Kaled said.
“Really? I find that hard to believe. Didn’t you have servants growing up?”
Kaled nodded. “I did. And I asked them to do very little for me, though they were required as part of my status. They were really just friends that the palace also happened to employ.”
“You’re a very interesting person. You know that?”
“I’ve been told from time to time, though I admit that you are one of the few people who know what my life was really like. Appearances matter, so we know how to play the part when the right people are watching. Otherwise, we just get to be ourselves.”
“That sounds much nicer,” Anne-Marie said, and Kaled nodded.
“I agree. At least take a sip of water before we get going again. That sun’s getting mighty hot.”
“Your accent is improving, when you don’t try so hard,” Anne-Marie said, accepting a water bottle from him and taking a deep drink.
“When in Rome,” he said, taking the water bottle from her and drinking thirstily.
His eyes stayed on her while he drank, and she felt a strange tingling sensation knowing that her lips had been where his now were. Even though they weren’t kissing, it felt like they were.
As noon approached, they decided to head back to the ranch and make lunch together. Mounting the horses, they galloped freely through the fields, the wind whipping across their faces, cooling them from the heat of the sun.
When they reached the ranch, they left the horses grazing in the field and walked up the front steps together, Kaled reaching for Anne-Marie’s hand. She laced her fingers between his, and he brought up their joined hands, kissing the back of hers before opening the door for them to step inside.
Kaled headed to the garden out back to collect more herbs. Anne-Marie could hardly wait to see what he had chosen this time. He was so creative, and she had come to the conclusion that there was nothing Kaled couldn’t do. The man could cook, he could fix everything, and in the bedroom…well. Anne-Marie blushed at the thought of it, her body tingling all over.
There would never come a day when she had had her fill of Kaled Al-Qarali.
He came back in, his hands full of greenery, and joined her at the stove, where she had started cooking chicken.
“That looks great. Smells even better,” he said, placing the herbs down on the counter and wrapping his arms around her middle, cradling her back with his body.
He leaned down and kissed the base of her neck, sending shivers down her spine, and she leaned into him, enjoying the sensation fully. Then she realized she was ignoring the chicken.
“You better be careful, or we’re going to burn this place down.”
“I do believe we already have,” Kaled said, and she could feel him grinning against her skin.
After a moment, he stepped back, giving her space to finish cooking the chicken. Once it was set, Kaled stirred in his fresh spices and whipped up another creamy, spicy sauce, setting the food on the plates with all the aplomb of a professional chef.
Taking a seat next to her, he leaned over and kissed her cheek, and her fingertips darted to that spot as she cast him a sideways smile before digging in. While kisses from Kaled were delicious in their own right, her stomach was growling after a morning of labor, and she dug in with gusto.
With her first bite, she closed her eyes and moaned. “This is amazing,” she said, savoring the flavor of the sauce as it paired perfectly with the chicken. “I think you’re in the wrong business. You need to start up a restaurant immediately.”
Kaled laughed at her compliment, taking his own bite. “It’s not half bad, if I do say so myself. Besides, you helped me cook the chicken. You’d make an excellent sous-chef.”
“Sous-chef? I don’t think so, buddy. I’m a co-chef. The meat was the biggest part of the meal.”
Kaled reached for her hand again, unable to resist kissing the backs of her fingertips. “You’re right, of course. I am the sous-chef in this situation.”
“We can be equals. I don’t mind.”
“Oh really? You mean the woman who runs everything by herself and refuses to ask for help doesn’t mind sharing responsibilities?”
“For now,” she said, grinning.
They ate happily, and Anne-Marie thought about how hard she had fought against her impulses to touch him, to feel his warmth against her skin. She was beyond glad that she had given in to them, because kissing Kaled was one of the best experiences of her life.
As their meal came to a close, Anne-Marie tilted her head toward the door.
“Do you hear that?” she asked.
Kaled set his fork down, listening intently. When his gaze met hers, his expression was just as confused.
The sound they heard was very clearly that of a car approaching.
FIFTEEN
Leaving their unfinished meal on the table, Kaled and Anne-Marie headed straight for the door, staring out at the cloud of dust as it approached the ranch house. When it got closer, they were able to make out a sleek black car, not at all unlike the ones that had brought Kaled to the ranch in the first place. They stepped out onto the porch, their faces stern as they crossed their arms, waiting for the car to come to a stop in front of the house.
It pulled up slowly, as though the driver were doing everything in his power to keep the car from getting dirt on it, or, far more likely, hitting a pothole. Finally, the back door opened and a blond head poked out from inside.
Lee Palmer Jr. stepped from the vehicle, his suit crisp and sharp, his white-blond hair slicked back, glinting malevolently in the sunlight. His blue eyes were shining with triumph, and he grinned, snake-like, as he looked up at Kaled.
“My, my, haven’t you gone native,” he joked, making his way toward the stairs. He looked up at them, placing a hand to his forehead to counteract the blinding effect of the sun. “Well, are you going to invite me to join you, or do you prefer to have the higher ground?”
Kaled glared at him, and when he spoke his voice was stern. “What are you doing here, Lee? I already told the board that I’ll be discussing my plans for this place with them next week.”
Lee nodded. “Yes, you did. You’ve also ignored almost every email we’ve sent you this week. It was obvious I needed to take matters into my own hands.”
“What are you talking about?” Kaled demanded.
Lee smiled, clearly pleased with himself. “Oh, stop looking so grim. While you were up here placating the rancher, I managed to do some digging. It turns out that this little lady, shockingly, hasn’t been paying her bills on time.”
Kaled glanced down at Anne-Marie. There was panic in her eyes, which fueled his rage at Lee’s presence all the more.
“And?” Kaled said.
Lee rolled his sapphire eyes, and Anne-Marie thought idly how much of a shame it was for good looks to be wasted on evil men.
“Has all the clean air gone to your head, Kaled? Miss Benson defaulting on her ground rent payments means that instead of having to wait for her to give in, I was able to petition the state government to seize the land as eminent domain. After that it was a piece of cake scooping this place for a steal. This land belongs to us now!” he said, holding up a stack of papers which he began to wave in celebration.
Anne-Marie choked, bracing herself on the porch railing. Kaled placed a steadying hand on her shoulder.
“We’re not buying up this ranch, Lee,” he said.
Lee’s eyes darted to where Kaled’s hand was, an
d he threw up his hands in frustration.
“Are you kidding me? Do you have any idea the lengths I just went to in order to get this place? We can start drilling immediately, Kaled! We are going to make a fortune on this place, and we got it for next to nothing. You can get out of this hellhole! Now stop playing whatever game this is and get in the car. We have work to do.”
“You know very well we don’t own this land until that document contains my signature, and I will never sign it.”
Lee actually stomped his foot like a toddler having a tantrum. “What is the matter with you, Kaled? What happened to the man who said he would obtain this land no matter the cost?”