The Sheikh's Forbidden Tryst

by Lara Hunter

  Kaye sat and considered that. She would be marrying a man for the sake of television authenticity, only to become a divorcee. What would her acting reputation be if she took on such a job? Then again, she would at least actually have an acting reputation. Couldn’t she run with that and make herself into anything she wanted to be?

  “I understand your hesitation, and I want you to know that we have set up the contract to protect you in the best possible way.”

  “What contract? All I was handed was a prenup.”

  Amir winced.

  “Yes, we really didn’t handle that very well, did we? I will send you a copy of the contract as soon as this lunch is over so you can have a good look at it. In there, you will see that nothing salacious will be expected of you—we do not have to be explicit in our on-screen affections, and there is no expectation of this being a true marriage.”

  His meaning was clear. There would be no expectation of her to perform any kind of…marital duty. That was a relief, at least. Amir continued.

  “There will be no real romance; to be clear—no sexual contact of any kind. It was a clause that I made sure they put in, to protect us both. Any affection displayed will be for the show and the show only, and we are not to engage in any activity outside of it other than friendly banter. I outlined it all quite clearly. If any breach of contract occurs, there will be no payment. It must be followed to the letter.”

  Kaye blinked at that, absorbing his words. He wanted to protect the actress that took on that role, laying out explicit instructions to keep her safe from any advantages that could be taken. It was endearing, even as a part of her internally groaned at the thought that nothing could ever happen between her and Amir, if she wanted to get her money.

  “But we’re getting married on the show. Surely we’ll have to show some affection.”

  Amir nodded.

  “Yes. We’ll want it to be believable, but Merle has ideas for my persona that will make it easier for us to show affection without being overt about it.”

  “You have a persona?”

  Amir nodded.

  “I do, and so will you, if you take on the role. We’ll want to make sure you’re a shining example of an American woman.”

  “What does that mean?”

  Amir shrugged.

  “I have no idea. I’m sure Merle will be able to give you the proper direction. He’s produced several incredibly successful reality shows. He may be a bit of a jerk, but he’s a jerk that knows how to bring in viewers. You could easily become a household name, Kaye.”

  Kaye thought about that. The world knowing who she was, walking into casting calls with a recognizable face. Maybe she wouldn’t even need to go to casting calls after this. Maybe her phone would finally ring with offer after offer, and she could be the one bringing guests to this restaurant.

  “You said the first season would end with a wedding, right?” Kaye asked, and Amir nodded.

  “Don’t weddings end with a kiss?”

  Amir shrugged.

  “They do. I can make it as chaste as possible, or I can kiss you on the cheek, if it will make you more comfortable.”

  “But that part would count as part of the act, so it wouldn’t breach anything, right?”

  “Correct. Still, you should know I won’t make any advances on you on camera without your full permission. This will be my first time in front of the cameras, as well. I want to make sure I do it right.”

  “You’re doing a reality show. I’m not sure there’s a place for class there.”

  “Of course there is. We’ll pave the way for classy reality TV,” he replied, grinning.

  Kaye took another moment to consider it. The Sheikh had made an exceptional case for joining the show. The contract would protect her from any foul play, and she would get the chance to at least do one job. There was one important factor she hadn’t covered, though.

  “What’s the pay?” she asked.

  “How much do you want?”

  She blinked.

  “What, like I can make my own salary?”

  He leaned in, his voice lowering.

  “I like you, Kaye. I like your resume. I can tell already that you’re a great actress—your expressions and mannerisms are perfect. So, tell me how much you want, and I will see what I can do about it.”

  Kaye leaned back in her chair and grinned.

  “A million.”

  Let’s watch him take that one in, she thought.

  Amir nodded.

  “Done. Once the first season has wrapped, you will get the payment in full, provided you comply with the contract.”

  “I think I can swing it, friend.”

  Amir’s eyes lit up, and he poured them each a flute of champagne, handing one to her before he lifted his glass.

  “To friends and partners, then,” he said, and she clinked her glass against his.

  “To friends and partners. I’d still like to give the prenup and the contract a thorough read before we move forward, though.”

  “Of course. Dessert?” he asked as the waitress returned to take their plates.

  “I’m afraid I’ve quite lost my appetite,” she said, her stomach whirling with butterflies.

  If she managed to finish the job, she could be a millionaire by the end of a few weeks of filming! Was this really happening?

  “Perhaps next time, then. This place has an exceptional tiramisu.”

  The Sheikh pulled out his wallet and handed a black credit card to the waitress without even getting the check. She returned quickly, and when Kaye saw the bill, followed by the generous tip Amir left, she nearly gasped. Was this really how the other half lived?

  They stood and made their way back outside, where Chris was quick to fetch Amir’s sports car. He pulled the car in front of them, jumped out and opened Kaye’s door for her once again. She slid in, listening to more witty banter between Chris and Amir before the latter slid another large bill into Chris’ hand.

  “Consider that my donation to struggling artists for the day,” Amir joked, and Chris waved goodbye as the Sheikh pulled away from the restaurant.

  Kaye considered the deal she had just made, and doubt seeped back into her mind.

  “Are you seriously going to give me a million dollars to do this?”

  “Why not? You have to spend money to make money.”

  “You do realize that is a lot of money, right?”

  “I think you’re worth it, Kaye. Will you prove me right?”

  It was a question and a challenge, and Kaye found herself determined to show him that she could be the best working partner he had ever had.

  “Let’s see what that contract says, and then we’ll talk,” she said, not wanting to give him too much power.

  He nodded.

  “Smart girl,” he said.

  A few minutes later, they pulled back into the warehouse lot, where Kaye’s busted-up little car was the only one left, sitting abandoned and alone. The Sheikh pulled up next to it.

  “I see we both have an affinity for yellow,” he noted.

  Kaye did her best not to feel embarrassed by the sad wreck of a car she was driving around. Compared to his, it looked like scrap metal left on the side of the road.

  “It’s my favorite color,” she answered, trying to hide her blush.

  “Mine, too. How’s that Beetle run? I used to have one, in my younger days.”

  “You still look pretty young to me,” she said.

  “At thirty-two? In Hollywood terms, I’m ancient!”

  “But you’re a man. In Hollywood terms, you can be as old as you like.”

  He was about to respond when Merle came charging out of the warehouse, his face beet red, sweat trickling down from his thinning hair.

  “It’s about time you got back! I hope that this little side trip was fruitful. I don’t like wasting time.”

  Kaye glared at the little man as she walked toward her car. Amir stepped out of his, reaching Merle’s side.

&
nbsp; “I think Kaye has a much better idea of the project, and she’s on board, pending further review of the contract and other documentation.”

  He turned to face Kaye, then.

  “Do you think you can get everything read over and signed by the end of the week?”

  “The end of the week?!”

  Merle looked as though he was about to implode. Kaye ignored him, her eyes solely on Amir.

  “Yes. Thank you for taking the time to behave in a professional manner.”

  The remark didn’t seem to register with the intended target. Merle continued to glare at Amir.

  “This better be worth it, Amir. We’re losing time.”

  “We have plenty of time. Just relax, Merle. We’ve got this covered.”

  He looked back at Kaye once more.

  “I’ll send you the updated contract once I’ve edited it to specify your salary. You should be hearing from me soon, provided that the email on your headshot is accurate?”

  “It is,” Kaye said, giving the Sheikh a small smile. “Thank you for the opportunity, and for your time.”

  “It was my pleasure,” Amir said.

  Kaye got into her car, then, not wanting to be privy to the tirade Merle was launching into. She peeked in her rearview mirror as the tiny man completely lost his cool while Amir just looked down at him with a bemused expression, waiting for him to get it all out of his system.

  As Kaye drove back to her apartment, she went over the events of the day in her head, working to convince herself that this was reality. What had started as the beginning to a horror film became one of the most lucrative offers of her professional life. All she had to do was act alongside Amir.

  That wouldn’t be difficult at all. The man was one of the most pleasant, funny people she had ever met. The fact that he was serious eye-candy helped, too.

  She pulled up to her building and turned off the engine. Patting the steering wheel, she spoke.

  “Great job starting at the end, there. If you had choked up in front of Amir, I might have died of embarrassment.”

  Predictably, the car had no response. Kaye stepped out and made her way up the stairs into her apartment once again. Her phone buzzed, and she pulled it out to see an email from Amir.

  Hey,

  Great meeting you today. You’ll see the updated contract attached. Let me know if you have any questions.

  A

  Kaye opened up the documents, combing through until she found the part where she got a million dollars at the end.

  There, in nice bold lettering, it was spelled out perfectly. If Kaye could successfully complete this project, she would have more money than she’d ever seen in her entire life.

  There was only one rule she needed to remember: No falling for the Sheikh!

  Chapter Six

  A week later, it was the day before Kaye was due to start shooting.

  She had signed her contract and sent it back to Amir, and he had sent her a quick reply thanking her for going along with it. She promptly began scanning the web for houses, cars—whatever she could splurge on with the money she would make from the show.

  It was a daydream for the ages!

  She was going through the background information on her “character” when her doorbell rang. Glancing up, she walked over to the buzzer and pressed the button to talk.

  “Who is it?”

  “Um, hi, Miss Kearney. I’m here with your delivery?”

  There was a question in his voice that gave away the fact that even he was unsure why he had stopped by. Kaye had not ordered anything in several months.

  “I didn’t place an order for anything?” she replied, using the same question in her tone.

  “Right, sorry. It’s actually a gift from Mr. Al-Asfour for before the shoot. There’s a note with it; I just need you to sign.”

  “Oh—okay, yeah. I’ll be right down!”

  Her belly fluttered at the thought of a gift from Amir. The man was kindness personified. Paired with his good looks, it would be quite the challenge keeping her thoughts purely friendly over the course of their work together. Then she thought about the money, and all thoughts of Amir and his stunning face disappeared.

  When she reached the bottom floor, she opened the door and nearly bumped into the delivery boy, who was a young, gangly fellow.

  “Hi,” he said, painfully shy. “Here’s where you sign, and here’s your note.”

  “Where’s the gift?” Kaye asked, staring around them in search of a box.

  The boy stepped aside, revealing a brand new version of her car, in gleaming canary yellow.

  “The Sheikh said something about a new ride for a new bride…he’s funny like that,” the kid mumbled.

  Kaye stood with her mouth hanging open, staring at the shiny new vehicle. When she realized what she was doing, she closed her mouth, taking the pen from the delivery guy and signing for the car.

  “The note, miss?” he said, holding it out to her.

  She took it, and the set of keys that came with it, before coming back to life and making eye contact with the deliverer.

  “Thank you very much,” she breathed.

  He shrugged.

  “Don’t thank me. The Sheikh is a generous man. I’m one of his assistants, Joshua. You can ask me for anything when you’re on set and I’ll make sure you get what you need. Sounds like the first thing you needed was a new car, eh?”

  “You have no idea,” Kaye said, still breathless.

  “Mr. Al-Asfour has a keen eye for what’s needed on all his projects. He’s a very smart man.”

  “Interesting that you call him that,” Kaye observed, her eyes bouncing from Joshua to her car and back again. She didn’t want to take her eyes off it for too long, lest it disappear and she wake up from this dream she was having.

  Joshua’s eyes lit up with a gentle humor.

  “Mr. Al-Asfour? I just use that term in professional situations. He hates it.”

  “You do it to tease him?”

  “Sometimes. Or, to make him feel old.”

  “He’s thirty-two.”

  “I’m nineteen.”

  “Ah, I suppose thirty-two is ancient to you then, isn’t it?”

  “In this town? It’s pretty ancient, period.”

  He chuckled, and waved a fond farewell to her as a cab pulled up. He slid into the back seat and was gone before Kaye had a chance to thank him one last time. Instead, she gazed at the shiny new car, stepping forward and unlocking it with the fancy key fob. Sliding into the driver’s seat, she pulled Amir’s note from its little envelope. His handwriting was neat, the sign of a perfectionist.

  Kaye,

  Wanted to make sure you’d be able to get to my house for filming tomorrow in one piece. Please enjoy this gift, as a token of my appreciation. I look forward to working with you.

  All good things,

  A

  Kaye squealed with excitement as she turned the engine, which purred to life without any sign of struggle. She beamed out at the world as she took it for a test spin, thinking about where she could sell off her old car and start a new life entirely.

  Finally, things were starting to look up!

  The next morning, Kaye was up bright and early, anxious to get to Amir’s house. She packed a small bag, unsure of what to really expect, then she looked up the address he had emailed her earlier in the week. Based on the street name, Kaye knew she’d be driving to a part of Santa Monica she had never been in before. Sliding on a pair of sunglasses, she plopped her little bag in the back seat of her beautiful new car and left her dinky little apartment behind, ready to start a new adventure. As she got nearer to the coast, the scent of salt wafted on the breeze, and she breathed it in, feeling totally alive.

  Her new car’s navigation system led her up a winding series of hills, until she finally approached a gated entryway. The black cast-iron bars were looped and laced together, creating a stunning pattern. There was a buzzer box to her left, and she pressed
the button to gain entry.

  “Password?” a voice said through the speaker.

  “Al Rayyan rocks,” she said, trying her best not to laugh.

  She’d had to look up the Sheikh’s home country online—there was not much she knew about the micronation of Al Rayyan, but the pictures showed it to be a tiny little country tucked deep in the heart of the Middle East.

  “Yeah, it does!” the man on the other end said.

  The box buzzed as the gates automatically folded open, granting Kaye access to the mansion.

  “Thank you!” she called, though there was no answer on the other end as she pulled forward.

  A winding driveway curved through palm trees until an open courtyard appeared before her, laid entirely with a beautiful gray cobblestone brick. The mansion itself was white with wide archways along the first floor, a red brick rooftop capping it all off. It was massive, towering above the series of vans and crew members bustling around with video and sound equipment.

  Kaye found a place to park in the corner of the courtyard, grabbing her bag and locking her door behind her, though she had no idea why she would need to. They were quite secure behind those iron gates, tucked away on a hilltop presumably overlooking the ocean. Kaye couldn’t wait to get a tour.

  “Kaye! It’s about time you showed up!”

  The nails-on-chalkboard voice of Merle echoed across the courtyard, and Kaye noticed that everyone in the vicinity shirked away, as though glad they weren’t on the receiving end of his attention. Kaye tried giving him a smile, but it ended up coming out as a wince.

  “I’m twenty minutes early,” she said.

  “Yeah, and we need you to be dressed and made up for filming twenty minutes ago. It’s a good thing you’ll be staying on set. We can’t waste time like this.”

  “Waste time…” Kaye began, ready to give Merle a piece of her mind.

  A million dollars, Kaye. A million dollars!

  She took a deep breath, calming her temper. Before she could say anything else, a woman bustled up behind Merle.