Tarif: A Desert Sheikh Romance

by Marian Tee

Clearing her throat, Anisah asked, “Before Sheikh Tarif leaves, would you like to have your photo taken with His Highness?”

  Thirty or so young girls crowded around him in an instant, and the sheikh no longer had time to badger her as he was forced to smile for the cameras. By the time he managed to extricate himself from her students, Anisah had to swallow back a laugh. He looked like he had gone to war, with his badly rumpled blazer and his tie askew. She watched him touch his cheek with a grimace, and her eyes widened when she belatedly noticed the tiny bleeding scratch on his face. That was when she lost it, and she burst into peals of laughter.

  “What’s so fucking funny?” Tarif demanded testily under his breath as he reached her.

  “N-Now y-you k-know.” Laughter made her voice shaky and barely coherent. “H-How i-irresistible y-you are.”

  And then the damn harpy doubled over and started laughing again. The sight was as infuriating as it was arousing, and the sheikh shook his head in exasperation, knowing that there was no way he could get a sensible word out of her now.

  Anisah’s female students sighed when the sheikh gave them a courteous bow as he excused himself, and they all but swooned when the sheikh kissed their professor on the forehead before leaving the room.

  Tarif’s phone vibrated inside his pocket just as he stepped inside his limousine.

  Anisah: Sorry we didn’t get to talk, but…you may consider the words said.

  Tarif’s good mood remained glaringly evident by the time he joined the other sheikhs in the security room, and his cousins grimaced at the sight of it.

  “For fuck’s sake, Tarif. How long are you going to strut like a well-paid manwhore?” Khalil grumbled.

  “As long as you and Malik did during your honeymoon,” Tarif replied easily as he took his seat at the table.

  The other sheikhs shook their heads in shared disgust. It was truly no fun when Tarif didn’t rise to the bait like he usually did.

  Looking around, Tarif asked, “Andy isn’t here yet?” The palace technician had been the one to request for the meeting, having acquired a new set of footage of the attack.

  “He should be here any moment,” the kingdom’s army commander answered as he stood up to start handing out case folders to each sheikh.

  “I believe Tarif’s the only one who hasn’t been briefed about this,” Rayyan murmured.

  “No surprise there,” Malik drawled, “since he’s been too busy wearing his heart on his sleeve.”

  The sheikhs waited for Tarif to blow up.

  But Tarif’s broad shoulders only moved in an indolent shrug. “It wasn’t as if none of you knew where to find me if you had an urgent need for my services.”

  The sheikhs groaned at his all-too-calm response, and Tarif shook his head. “Give it up, you bastards.” Turning his attention back to his case folder, Tarif asked, “Any important developments on the security front I should know about?”

  “Nothing absolutely certain for now,” Altair answered as he returned to his seat at the opposite end of the table. “And you? Any developments on the emotional front we should know about?”

  “It’s going---” Tarif broke off when he realized the other sheikh had almost baited him into giving an actual answer. “Fuck you, Altair.”

  But no one was paying attention to him. The other sheikhs were too busy laughing, and Tarif was exasperated when Khalil, Malik, and Rayyan reached for their pockets to dig out cash. “What did you even make a bet for?”

  “The first person to have you act like the besotted fool you are,” Khalil answered without hesitation.

  Tarif flipped everyone the bird. “Go to hell.”

  “How are things between you two?” the king asked. “Since you haven’t fucked up for a month at work, I’m guessing it’s good, but I could be wrong.”

  “Why are you all so damn invested in my relationship---” Tarif broke off when the other sheikhs started grinning again. “What now?” he demanded in exasperation.

  “You used the big R word, brother,” Malik informed him gravely.

  “Big what?”

  “Relationship,” Altair spelled out.

  “Oh, for fuck’s sake!”

  “Does that mean you’ve told her you love her then?” Rayyan asked curiously.

  Tarif’s face became inscrutable. “No.”

  The other sheikhs exchanged looks, but it was the king who finally spoke, asking, “Why not? Your feelings – and the lady’s, too, actually – have been obvious for quite some time.” He saw his cousin’s lips twist at his words, and Khalil frowned. “Are you saying I’m mistaken?”

  “There was a time,” Tarif said lightly, “when the whole palace also believed my mother was an angel rather than the psychotic bitch she was.”

  Khalil wasn't able to answer right away. His Aunt Tamara had been monstrously manipulative, and even though Tarif had never blamed any of the other sheikhs for not realizing what he had been going through---

  A part of Khalil did blame himself for it, and he knew that the others felt the same, too. They had known each other their whole lives, and yet none of them had even a single fucking inkling that Tarif had been suffering that much.

  But…things were different now. Tarif might think that their constant ribbing had to do with their collective desire to bring him down a peg or two, but in all honesty, Khalil and the other sheikhs had one other motive – one that was too appallingly altruistic the king knew they would never actually admit to it out loud.

  And the truth was…they all just wanted the damn man to have his chance at happiness.

  They might not have had a chance to help their brother against Tamara, but they sure as hell had a chance now in helping Tarif make things work with the woman he loved. And because they knew the way Tarif’s mind worked, they had simply pretended not to see the woods for the trees and jested about the matter like Tarif’s interest in Anisah was but a temporary sexual obsession.

  Tarif had to see for himself that what he felt for Anisah was more than that, and Khalil and the others believed it truly was so, if the couple’s behavior in the recent weeks was anything to go by. To test the waters, they had even started mixing dreadful words such as “love” and “feelings” in their taunts – words that even the married Al-Atassi sheikhs normally avoided like the plague.

  The old Tarif would have bolted out of his chair the moment he heard of such words, would probably have even broke things off with Anisah if only to prove to himself that those words did not apply to him.

  But the Tarif in this room was a changed man.

  Malik had used the dreaded R-word – relationship – and although it had made Tarif swear, it had not made the other sheikh leave. Rayyan had taken things one level further by using the dreaded L-word next – love – but this hadn’t even made Tarif flinch.

  Instead, the other sheikh had stunned all of them by giving Rayyan a direct answer…and even speaking of his own mother, which Tarif had not done so for years.

  And the fact that he did so now ---

  The king chose his next words with great care, knowing that the slightest show of sympathy would alienate Tarif for good. “I won’t lie and say that I have not noticed certain similarities between your fiancée and your mother, but do you not think their differences are just as evident? Your mother’s obsession with the kingdom was unhealthy---”

  Tarif snorted. “And Anisah, with the way she hasn’t missed a single flag-raising ceremony, isn’t unhealthy?”

  Khalil winced. “You have a point.”

  “I don’t think Anisah’s love for Ramil is unhealthy,” Malik interjected in hopes of salvaging the conversation and painting Anisah in a good light. “Rather, I think her patriotism is quite, err, cute.”

  Tarif threw his younger cousin a disgusted glance. Did Malik really think Tarif couldn’t see through him?

  Malik turned to his other cousin in a silent demand for backup. “You think so, too, don’t you, Rayyan?”

  Tarif couldn’t
help bristling at the question. Even though he truly believed Anisah when she told him she hadn’t meant to compare him to his brothers, he still didn’t like it when his cousins concerned themselves with Anisah in any way.

  “Err, yes, I think it’s cute,” Rayyan said finally, thinking he was obliged to say so since Anisah was Hyacinth’s half-sister.

  Tarif’s gaze narrowed. “While I appreciate your vote of confidence for my fiancée---”

  Khalil and Malik exchanged looks at the distinct note of possessiveness in Tarif’s tone. It was a familiar sound, one that was remarkably similar to how they spoke of their wives.

  “I would rather none of you saw my woman cute in any way.”

  Altair shook his head. “Are you aware of how unreasonably jealous you sound, brother?”

  The doors to the security room opened, and Tarif was relieved to see the palace’s technician walk in, thus saving him from replying.

  After bowing and apologizing profusely for making the king and his vassals wait, Andy quickly loaded the USB into the system and right away played the first video for the royal family’s perusal.

  Tarif frowned when he saw that the video was of Anisah entering the royal library. “What the hell?”

  “If you would just wait, Your Highness,” Andy began nervously.

  “I pray you have a good explanation for this,” the king said coldly.

  “I do, Your Majesty, I promise.”

  “This is goddamn stupid---” But the rest of Tarif’s words died when the video showed Anisah deliberately disabling the security cameras in the library. The screen went black and resumed a moment later, with the timestamp showing that about thirty minutes had been unaccounted for.

  “It does not prove anything,” Altair said finally.

  “That is true, Your Highness.” Andy was quick to agree. “But it must also be noted that…” He swallowed hard. “Lady Anisah has done this seventeen times in the past month---”

  Rayyan was visibly incredulous. “Seventeen times?” He glanced sharply at Tarif. “Do you have any idea why she would do this?”

  Tarif slowly shook his head. “No.” He did not. But…he was starting to see that the reason might not matter at all.

  Andy moved on to the next video. “This is the newest footage that we have acquired, Your Majesty, Your Highness. The timestamp for this video shows that it took place several minutes before the attack. As for the location---”

  Khalil caught a glimpse of the palace’s outer gatehouse peeking at the edge of the video, and his lips tightened in understanding. “You are going to show us who is responsible for providing access to the palace, nem?”

  Andy confirmed the king’s words with a vigorous nod. “Yes, Your Majesty.” And now came the hard part.

  The five sheikhs tensed when the palace’s outer gates slowly swung open, and the mob came rushing in like an unstoppable flood of violence. A moment later, the doors of the gatehouse opened, and the sheikhs tensed even more, knowing that whoever would come out was likely involved in the plot of forcing Khalil to give up the throne.

  Finally, a woman came running out –

  Tarif whitened.

  And she was wearing a silver niqab.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “Professor? I think there are soldiers waiting outside our room.” The words, spoken with a mixture of confusion and curiosity, came from the student who had arrived fifteen minutes after the start of the class.

  Wondering if this was just the student’s ploy to distract Anisah from giving her a tardy slip, she stood up reluctantly while gesturing for Vicky to take her seat.

  Her students started chattering as she opened the door and poked her head out, and to Anisah’s surprise there was indeed a small number of soldiers stiffly lined up in the hallway, five of them in total, and the man who appeared to be their leader immediately stepped forward upon seeing her.

  “Professor Kahveci?”

  Anisah was startled at hearing the soldier speak her name.

  How did this man know –

  Her face paled. What if…something had happened to Tarif, and these men had been tasked to take her to wherever the sheikh was?

  Clearing her throat, she tried to keep her voice even as she answered them. “Yes, I’m Professor Anisah Kahveci.”

  “We have been asked to escort you to the palace as soon as possible, Professor.”

  It was like having her worst misgivings confirmed, and Anisah felt herself going faint. “Is it Tarif?” she whispered. “Did something happen to him?”

  “We are not at liberty to discuss, Professor…”

  Anisah didn’t hear the rest of the soldier’s words. All she knew was that the man was stalling – and it reminded her of the way nurses and doctors tended to avoid answering a terminally ill patient’s question about his chances of survival.

  “Please come with us peacefully, Professor.”

  “Yes, of course.” Did the soldier think she was the type to fall into hysterics at the first sign of bad news? “I just need to ask the faculty for a temp to take over my class. It shouldn’t take more than a few minutes---” She stopped speaking when an alarming thought suddenly occurred to her. What if she didn’t have a few minutes to spare? What if Tarif needed her now?

  “Forget I said that,” she heard herself say. “Just give me five seconds.” Rushing back inside, Anisah started stuffing her things back into her bag while informing the students of her emergency. “Therefore, I’m dismissing you early. If you have any questions about today’s lecture, please refer them to Professor Thorne---”

  Hands suddenly shot up in the air while those who were unable to restrain themselves simply started asking her questions.

  Has something happened at the palace?

  Was it Sheikh Tarif?

  Could they do anything to help?

  Although her students’ curiosity was palpable, so was the genuine concern in their eyes, and her eyes stung as she sought to reassure them. “Thank you for your concern, but there is no need to worry. I promise to keep everyone posted,” she said gruffly.

  Anisah was whisked into a waiting vehicle outside the university as soon as she left the classroom, and the ride back to the palace was spent in silence. Anisah closed her eyes and started to pray. Heavenly One. Please. Let him be fine.

  Anisah expected the soldiers to take her straight to the palace’s in-house health clinic or the sheikh’s private chamber, but instead she found herself escorted all the way to the security room. There, she found all five sheikhs waiting – all of them looking handsome and powerful – but the truth was, she only had eyes for one man.

  She rushed unthinkingly to Tarif as he rose to his feet. “I t-thought something happened to you.”

  The sheikh only pulled a chair out for her in answer. “Please take a seat, anisdi.” His tone was cold, his gaze inscrutable, and confusion swirled around her even as she found herself doing as he bid.

  “Tarif?”

  The sheikh’s jaw clenched, but he did not even look at her as he reclaimed the seat next to Anisah.

  “Thank you for joining us, Lady Anisah.” The king’s words gave her an excuse to look away, and she seized it gratefully, turning to Khalil while her body grew rigid in her struggle to keep her emotions in check. Why wouldn’t he look at her? Why couldn’t she stop feeling something was wrong? Why?

  “We have invited you here to clarify certain matters.” It was the kingdom’s army commander who spoke this time, and Anisah forced herself to concentrate on Altair’s words. “Our technician will be playing several videos, and we would appreciate if you could answer a few of our questions afterwards. Do you agree?”

  “Yes, of course.” Her fingers laced with each other on her lap. She still didn’t know what this was all about. The only thing she knew was that Tarif was not looking at her.

  A technician stood up to play the first video, which showed Anisah fighting against those who tried to attack the queen.

  “I
s this you, anisdi?”

  “Nem, alshaykh.”

  The second footage showed the palace’s outer gates swinging open and thus allowing the mob entry to the royal family’s residence. The person taking the video suddenly swung his camera towards one side, and this time she saw the gatehouse’s doors bursting open.

  Whoever came out that door, she thought faintly, was likely involved in the plot to destabilize the kingdom’s government –

  A woman finally came running out of the gatehouse, her body covered completely, her hair concealed from sight. She made a completely nondescript figure…except for that silver niqab.

  Horror rose inside of her as she realized how that one piece of clothing could implicate her.

  “Is that you, Lady Anisah?”

  “N-no.”

  Beside her, she heard Tarif hiss in disbelief, and the sound made her feel violently sick. She clumsily rose to her feet, and the sheikh lunged to his full height as well. “Tarif---” She tried to reach for him, but then she saw the look on his beautiful face, and her arm fell to her side.

  He was looking at her…like she had turned into the same monster as his mother was.

  “I k-know how bad things look,” she whispered, “but please believe me when I say I have nothing to do with the attack. The woman you all saw in the second video was my friend, Joanna. I bumped into her later on, and I b-borrowed her headdress to hide my identity. I didn’t want myself recognized, in c-case anything happened. I didn’t want Hyacinth to be affected---” Her voice trailed off.

  Tarif still hadn’t spoken a single word.

  “You believe me, don’t you?”

  “There are also videos that show you disabling the security cameras in the royal library for a total of seventeen times in the past month alone.”

  Anisah paled.

  “Do you have an explanation for this?”

  “I c-can’t---”

  Tarif’s voice hardened. “What do you mean you fucking can’t?”

  She looked at Andy. “I don’t want him to hear---”

  “For fuck’s sake – right now I trust him more than I trust you.” A stricken look crossed her face at his words, but Tarif steeled himself against it. “Tell us what you were doing in the library, anisdi.”