by Holly Rayner
Beth smirked. “Let’s not make a habit of it,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. It didn’t work. Osman’s frown stayed right where it was.
Beth sighed. “Look, Osman, I know you weren’t expecting this, but I’m trained in this kind of thing. If it happens again, I won’t rest until we figure out who’s behind this. Chances are it was a random attack from some moron who wanted to get rich quick. It’s over now,” she said, squeezing his hand.
His tense shoulders lowered slightly, but that was about it. Beth resisted the urge to rub the stress out of them. The tension. The fear. She squeezed his hand a little tighter, and he looked down at it, as though realizing for the first time that they were touching. Then he turned her palm up and pressed his hand into hers, lacing their fingers together. It was a strangely intimate gesture, but Beth didn’t dare pull back as Osman looked deeply into her eyes.
“I owe you one,” he said. “Come to dinner with me tomorrow night, my treat. You deserve the very best, Beth. You’re a hero!”
Beth hesitated. Was he asking her out on a date? This was getting way too complicated way too fast.
She squeezed his hand and then pulled hers away. She didn’t really want to, though, and that was the problem.
“You’ve already said thank you, that’s enough for me. This is my job, Your Highness. My payment is the check you gave me earlier today.”
Osman frowned. “I’d really like to do more, Beth. This is my life we’re talking about. I do hope you’ll join me tomorrow, and won’t force me to implore you to do so, as your employer. That said, I’ll be buying and we’ll be sitting at the table as equals,” he said, looking out the window as the estate rolled into view. His tone was quite final.
“Very well, Your Highness,” Beth replied.
Never had she felt so conflicted. He was subtly using his power to force her to go out with him while at the same time insisting she be treated like an equal. But he was her employer—a fact she seemed to keep forgetting every time he got too close. She would just have to keep her distance. It was the only way to stay sane. She needed to get out of the car and away from his warmth.
Not waiting for Adil to open the side door, she unlocked her door and scooted out, shivering in the cold air. She had made it all the way down the hall and to her door when she heard him call out behind her.
“Beth, wait.”
She turned. Was this going to be a thing, him tucking her in at night? She didn’t see him doing that for his other staff members. She crossed her arms, waiting.
He kept his distance this time, standing a few feet away from her. His expression was sheepish, which made her drop her defenses ever so slightly.
“I just wanted to bid you goodnight. Also, you don’t have to come tomorrow night if you don’t want to. I didn’t mean to imply as much—that’s not who I want to be.”
Beth’s eyebrows shot up in surprise, and she forced them to lower. She rewarded his humility with a small grin. “Thank you, Your Highness.”
“You called me Osman, back on the beach, you know,” he said, his gaze a challenge.
Her grin morphed into a sweet smile. “An accident that I don’t intend to replicate, Your Highness,” she said, opening the door to signal the end of the conversation.
“We’ll see about that,” he said, and this time his eyes had a fire in them that Beth didn’t want to face. It was desire. She could see it. She didn’t want to think about what capacity he imagined her calling out his name.
Closing the door, she made quick work of cleaning up for bed and jumped beneath her covers, cocooning herself in. Instead of thinking about Osman’s touch, she busied her mind with the man who attacked him on the beach. She’d been lying to Osman when she told him it was probably a random incident. The men in the club had to have had something to do with it. She was certain of that.
She would have to keep a sharper eye on the Sheikh from now on.
EIGHT
Osman
Osman barely slept.
Between the hate-filled gaze of his attacker and the beautiful eyes of his protector, his mind refused to stop replaying images of them both over and over straight until dawn.
Frustrated, Osman finally threw off his covers and stormed over to his window, gazing out at his well-kept estate.
She had saved his life. To her it was just another day, but to him…
He wanted to shower her with gifts. He wanted to show her just how beautiful the world could be, lavishing her in a pampered existence that he knew very, very well. He wanted to wipe that frown off her face, and he wanted to do it with a kiss.
How badly he had wanted to kiss her. To hold her in his arms and relish in feeling safe and cared for. He wanted so many things, but he didn’t want to scare her away. He thought about her constantly. He wanted to march straight to her room and demand that she relax and chat with him all day long. He wanted so much more from her than he knew she was willing to give, and his heart ached for that wall she held up against him. If only he could bring it down…and then what? Marry her? He’d known her for two days!
Osman pressed the button to call for Adil, who arrived within seconds.
“Sir?” he asked, standing just inside the door.
“Adil, I’d like to be left to my own devices today. However, can you see to it that Beth is provided with a full spa treatment before we go out tonight? Stone massages, the works?”
Adil didn’t succeed at hiding the hint of amusement in his voice. “Of course, sir. Will there be anything else?”
“No, Adil, thank you.” And Adil was off.
Osman worked on distracting himself. He snuck off to his personal gym and worked out for hours, exhausting himself. He sat in the steam room until his eyes fluttered shut and he had to force himself to leave before he fell asleep in there. He napped for the rest of the afternoon, waking periodically after fitful dreams of attackers coming at him from behind.
A little after dusk he was woken by Adil, who wanted to know when he should prepare the car for Osman’s dinner with Beth.
“Give me an hour, Adil, then I’ll be ready.”
“Very good, sir.”
Osman took great care preparing for the evening. He shaved the stubble from his angular chin. He stood at his closet for far longer than normal, trying to determine what to wear, finally picking out a bespoke suit. He buttoned up a crisp white shirt before shrugging into a dinner jacket, taking one last long look at himself before exiting the room. As he walked down the hallway he smiled to himself. When was the last time he had cared about his appearance this much?
He busied himself with his cufflinks while he waited for Beth to meet him in the front hall. He heard footsteps and glancing up, his heart stopped.
She had chosen the short black cocktail dress she had had sneaked into her clothes order. It was the first time he’d seen her long, toned legs, and it took everything in him not to stare at them as she strolled over, a broad smile on her face. She knew the power she had, he thought—whether she wanted to admit it or not.
Osman cleared his throat. “You look stunning,” he said, unable to lie. To his pleasure, he actually made her blush. Now that was an accomplishment.
“I figured we’d be going somewhere that would require something a little classier than jeans,” she replied, glancing down.
Part of Osman hoped that the real reason she’d dressed up was because she’d accepted his invitation not as his guard, but as his date. He couldn’t have been more delighted. Beth Coolidge was not the kind of girl he met, well, ever, and he wanted to see if there might actually be something there. Judging by the way the blood was pulsing through his body, there was definitely something.
He pulled out his phone to check his reservations, then glanced up to see Beth frowning.
“Oh no, I think I dropped my scarf in the hallway on my way over here,” she said, glancing back.
Osman didn’t miss a beat. “Allow me to grab it for you,” he said.
&nb
sp; “You mean you’ll give your servants a pass, Your Highness?”
She was teasing him. He loved that.
“Sometimes a man is capable of doing tasks himself,” he called over his shoulder.
He set his phone on a side table before navigating the hallway towards her rooms. An intricately-patterned, green silk scarf was lying along one of the walls, and he scooped it up and took it back to the front hall, handing it to her.
Beth smiled as she wrapped the scarf around her shoulders. “Thanks. The cold is always a bit startling after these boiling hot days,” she said.
The doorman opened the front door for them, and Osman held out his arm to her, again. She stared at it for a beat before sliding her hand around his forearm and resting her hand on his wrist. Osman’s heart soared.
“Don’t get too cocky,” Beth said, though he noticed she leaned into him as they stepped out into the cool night air.
“Oh, Beth,” he said with a smirk, “I’m nothing if not cocky.”
He thought he heard her mumble, “That’s the problem,” and chuckled inwardly. Beth was one of the most real people he’d ever met. She didn’t care about his wealth. She was here to help her mother, and that was that.
***
He snuck sideways glances at her as they drove through the city, his hopes buoyed by the fact that she’d put makeup on for the occasion, too.
She glanced over and caught him looking, and he coughed and looked down into his lap.
“Thanks for arranging the massage today, by the way. You didn’t have to do that,” she said, her eyes focused on the road ahead.
“We both had a rough night, all things considered. I imagine that you might have been a bit stressed after having to take down bad guys at my expense.”
This time she did look at him, and her deep brown eyes took his breath away.
“That’s the thing. Now that the moment has passed, I should tell you that I don’t really think that was just a freak occurrence. There were a few men at the club eyeing you from a corner. It’s what got my guard up fully in the first place. Whatever you may think about your safety, sir, I think there might be someone after you.”
Osman felt a sudden chill run down his spine. Who could possibly want to come after him? Yes, he was obscenely wealthy, but so were many other people in his country. They had oil, and plenty of it. They had innovation. They had some of the most brilliant minds in the world creating alternative energies and technologies to make life easier, and people were patenting that data as fast as their fingers could place the call. So why was he being singled out?
He felt Beth place a light hand on his shoulder, a more distant gesture than the hand holding from the night before. She was trying to maintain her distance. He didn’t want her to. He placed his hand over hers and held it tight, staring deep into her eyes. She tensed, but didn’t pull her hand away.
“Whoever it is that’s behind this, we’ll figure it out and be done with it. Whatever happens next, let me just say that I’m really, really glad I hired you Beth,” he said with a grin.
The car pulled to a stop and Adil opened the back door for them to exit. This time Beth didn’t hesitate when he held out his hand to her.
The restaurant was a chic, trendy place. Everyone was dressed to the nines, and the ceiling was covered in glistening crystal chandeliers. The main floor had a live band playing an unobtrusive jazz soundtrack, and everyone was quite busy talking and laughing at their tables. Osman gave the host his name and they were ushered to a table in a more private dining area, separated by a gossamer curtain.
“You always have to be set apart, don’t you?” Beth asked with a frown.
Osman laughed. “Don’t blame me. People see my name and automatically assume I want my own space.”
“And do you?”
“Do I what?”
“Want your own space,” she said, brushing away an errant strand of hair.
Osman was jealous. He’d wanted to brush it behind her ear long before she’d noticed it was dangling.
He grinned. “Depends on the company,” he said with a gleam in his eye.
For the second time that night, Beth blushed. Good. He was getting to her.
“I think I’ll just pop to the restroom before we order,” she said.
Osman translated that as Beth needing a moment to compose herself, and try to build up her walls again. He was enjoying watching them tumble down. He just wasn’t sure what would happen if he allowed himself to do the same.
“Of course. I’ll order us some wine,” he said, and she gave him a small smile as she stood and headed towards the bathroom. He gazed at her back as she walked away, her hips perfectly curved in that black dress, even though she’d opted for flats instead of heels.
Then his view was taken up by a large man in a gray suit.
“Hello, Your Highness. If you could please come with me, there’s someone here that would like to see you.”
Osman stared at the man, who continued to tower over him. He raised one eyebrow, not moving.
“Do I know you?” he asked
To his annoyance, the man had the audacity to sit down at his table. He poured himself a glass of lemon water from a carafe, his eyes fixed on Osman.
“You do not. But I know you, of course. Who doesn’t? The golden boy. Cairo Al-Haddeni’s playboy son, the great disappointment. Tell me, how are things going with the family business? Have you managed to spend all of your father’s fortune yet? I certainly hope not.”
Osman crossed his arms, unruffled. “You are cluttering my table with your presence, sir. I must humbly ask you to take whatever motivates you to bother me during a date and kindly shove it up your ass.”
The man chuckled. “A date? You mean with that ridiculous American bodyguard you’ve adorned yourself with? You should know that she’s being made quick work of in the bathroom as we speak. I’m sure it won’t take long to subdue her, but don’t worry. We’ve been ordered to cause minimal damage…for now.”
Osman shot up, but the man pinned him down, his hand like steel on his shoulder, his expression terrifyingly neutral.
“Oh, I wouldn’t do that, Your Highness. Let me tell you how this is going to play out. We’re willing to spare the girl’s life if you come with me willingly, right now. If you decide you’d rather make a scene, I will personally see to it that she is eliminated in the most painful way possible. Now, you are going to stand with me, and we are going to quietly make our way out of this restaurant. No fuss, no struggle. I’m not here to hurt you, but I will if I must.”
Osman stared the man down, trying to conceal his panic. Beth was in the bathroom, and her life depended on how he chose to act right now. His only option was to cooperate.
He glared at the man as he rose, and the gentleman grinned.
“Ah, it is so nice to do business with a man who can see reason. Right this way, Your Highness,” he said, gesturing grandly toward the front door.
Glancing around the room, Osman’s heart sank as he watched the downturned faces of the wait staff, too busy tending to their customers to notice him leaving before ordering a meal. He thought one more time about shouting out before thinking better of it.
They strode through the front doors and Osman was turned immediately into a back alley. The man’s grip became rougher as they wound through darkened streets, until they reached a black van with the engine running. The man then threw Osman against the van door, pinning his face against the vehicle.
“Sorry to get a bit rough, Your Highness, but my employer requested a touch of intimidation, you see, to make sure you know we’re serious.”
“Who are you working for? Who would do this? I don’t have any enemies!”
The man pulled out a pair of handcuffs and slipped them onto Osman’s wrists, clicking them a smidge too tight. Osman winced.
“You’re a rich brat, Your Highness. You had enemies the minute you were born.”
The man then opened the van’s back door
and tossed Osman inside. “Thank you for your cooperation, Your Highness,” he said, peering into the van with a sneer.
Osman glared at him, crouched on his knees, his arms already aching behind his back. “If you hurt one hair on Beth’s head…” he began, but the man interrupted him with a laugh.
“It’s too late now. My part of the deal is done. Your driver will accompany you to the next location. Have a lovely evening!”
With that, the man slammed the door in Osman’s face. Osman could hear him whistling a jaunty tune as his footsteps grew lighter, and eventually all he could hear was the gentle rumble of the van’s engine.