The Sheik's Arrangement

by Elizabeth Lennox

  “This way, Your Highness,” one of her personal guards called. She smiled up at him as he led the way towards another door. Once she was inside, she locked the door and leaned against it. “Why?” she whispered, then angrily wiped the tears away. “Doesn’t matter!” With that in mind, she pushed away from the door, dropping her clothes on the immaculately made bed and headed into the shower.

  Pulling on a pair of jeans and her favorite blue sweater, she put on enough makeup to hide the fact that she’d been crying, told the maid cleaning her room that she’d be leaving within an hour, ignored the stunned maid’s face and walked out to find the dining room. She just needed to catch her brother up on a few issues, then she’d head back to Piara and…Zuri didn’t know. She was stuck. She couldn’t extricate herself from the engagement without either Jabril or Tarin agreeing, stupid laws and politics! But nor would she set a date and start planning the event.

  In the dining room, she was relieved to find Tarin not there and Jabril sipping coffee with the rest of the guys. All of them looked at her curiously, but she ignored them, moving over to stand behind Jabril. “After you finish your coffee, could we talk?”

  “Sure honey,” he replied quickly. He set down his coffee cup, about to stand up when Tarin stepped into the dining room.

  “We need to talk,” he stated firmly.

  She lifted her chin a bit, and glared right back at him. “Absolutely! I just need to discuss a few things with my brother, then I’m…” She’d been about to say “I’m all yours” but that was a bit too…true. And she didn’t want to give him that ego boost. “I’ll text you when we’re done.”

  He nodded curtly, then walked over to the side table where a feast was set out for the occupants of the room.

  Tarin was fuming, so angry, he wanted to mimic Jabril’s actions from the previous night and toss Zuri over his shoulder. But he wouldn’t be taking her to bed. He’d paddle her sexy butt! She’d walked out after that outburst. Romance? She wanted romance? When he could barely control his lust around her, she wanted roses and sweetness. Okay, so yeah, she deserved a bit of romance. But…maybe he’d be able to give her romance, once this insane lust for each other –and he had no doubt that it was mutual– died down a bit. Their last two interludes proved that this lust could too easily get out of control. Marriage needed to happen sooner rather than later.

  Then another issue struck him. He hadn’t used protection last night. Damn it! He never forgot protection! Except where Zuri was concerned. She just…there was something about her that drove him crazy! Just the scent of her, the feel of her soft skin, the weight of her breasts in his hands…he wanted to make her scream with the same need he felt. He wanted to obliterate that blasé look she wore every time he was around her. He wanted...!

  Tarin wanted to know that she was his, forever and ever! He wanted the right to protect her, laugh with her, share meals with her. He wanted to be the first smile she saw each day. When something bad happened in his country, he wanted to know that he could walk down the hallway and talk with her about it, hear her opinion. He wanted to share everything with her.

  And the damn woman wanted to have nothing to do with him! No, not true. She wanted flowers and sonnets and things that he couldn’t give her. Hell, his hands were so big, they’d crush any flowers he held. Especially if he saw her smile as he brought them to her.

  A pretty blond woman walked into the dining room and Tarin smiled as he poured two cups of coffee, adding two spoonfuls of sugar to one, then carrying them both to the table. He handed the sweetened one to Zuri, who was still ignoring him, then stepped back, watching and waiting.

  “Good morning,” the blond greeted everyone and he saw the blush stain her cheeks as she remembered her anger from the night before. She said something about the day and then Jabril started the introductions. When Zuri stepped up, he clenched his teeth, waiting for her to introduce him as well. Jabril looked at him curiously, knowing that it really was Zuri’s place to officially introduce him since they were engaged. When it became obvious that she wasn’t going to do that, he stepped forward, putting his arm around her waist and did the job for her. “I’m Tarin, Zuri’s fiancé,” he took Princess Ilara’s hand.

  Ilara was beautiful, but in a different way than Zuri. While Ilara was elegant and lovely, Zuri’s beauty was earthier, more sultry. Zuri’s eyes were angled like a cat’s with long, dark lashes that made him want to pet her. All over.

  The rest of the group introduced themselves, then chatted amicably as they ate their breakfast, but Tarin didn’t really hear any of it. His mind kept flashing back to the previous night, to the way Zuri had held him, her head resting against his shoulder. Damn, he wanted to pull her onto his lap and just hold her.

  But she and Jabril left, Ilara following right afterwards.

  Tarin sat in the dining room, working out what to say in his mind. She wanted roses and romance. He wasn’t the most romantic person in the world, but damn it, if Zuri wanted romance, he’d figure out how to give her romance! He was more practical, needing logic to run Catare. It was a big country with a thriving economy and a large military, with enemies on the northern border that irritated him and his people occasionally. The same country that snipped at Kazar’s borders as well.

  Jabril came back into the dining room a while later, looking surprised to find him here. “I thought you needed to talk with Zuri?” he asked, pouring himself another cup of coffee.

  Mika and Kazar chuckled, shaking their heads. “He’s been sitting here looking furious for the past hour. I doubt he knows that his beautiful fiancée has left already.”

  Tarin glanced up, then at the door. “She left?”

  Jabril nodded his head. “Her plane took off about five minutes ago. I’m sorry, Tarin, I thought she’d already spoken with you.”

  Tarin rubbed the back of his neck. “She…uh…” he couldn’t tell his friend that they’d had incredible, mind-blowing sex last night. Tarin might be bigger than Jabril, but not by much. Jabril would kill him and…well, Tarin might just let him. Maybe that would solve her problem. Because Tarin couldn’t seem to give her up and she…

  Hell, Zuri wanted romance. Aw hell!

  Chapter 6

  “I’m thrilled that you’re willing to join me for this trip,” Ilara said, about two weeks after Zuri had basically run away from Tarin in Ditra.

  Zuri looked up, forcing her lips into a smile. “I’m happy to help you. This is important.”

  “I know, but,” she rubbed her forehead. “It all seems so pointless. There’s so much to do and fix and people to help in Ditra. And yet, I’m here on a plane going to buy clothes.”

  Zuri understood and her smile turned genuine. “Ilara, you have to understand the optics of leadership. If your people see you in cheap clothing, they think of themselves as cheap and won’t strive to do better. You are more than just a figurehead,” she told her new sister-in-law and, after the past several days, a friend. “You represent their hopes and dreams.” She sat back, a twinkle in her eyes. “Besides, my brother can afford to outfit you in nice clothes. You won’t be taking any money away from the people of Ditra.”

  Ilara laughed, shaking her head. “I know. But I just keep thinking that spending a couple hundred dollars on a dress is wrong when that money could go to helping someone purchase inventory for their store and get the economy going again.”

  Zuri nodded. “I understand your point. I have the same issue when I buy a new wardrobe versus putting that money towards the charities that I support. But look at it from a different perspective. You’re giving your people a sense of pride. And psychologically, that will help them even more than donating money to them, which could undermine their pride.”

  “Good point but…” Ilara stopped. “No, you’re absolutely right,” she said with a firm nod. “I’m sorry. This trip is necessary and right!”

  Zuri laughed, happy to bring the lovely woman on board. “I heard that Sebastian Hughes is in Ditra right
now, working with your people.”

  “Yes. He is.” Ilara tilted her head slightly. “Do you know him?”

  She smiled. “Yes. He’s possibly the coldest, scariest man I’ve ever met. And I know there’s a story behind that intimidating exterior, because underneath that look of pure ice, he’s a very good man.”

  “I agree,” Ilara replied with a shiver. “Jabril says that he’s one of the most powerful bankers in the world. Not to mention, Mr. Hughes guarantees the lowest loan rates and easy repayment terms for the citizens of Ditra. I was surprised at how fair he was because the man comes across as…” she paused and shivered. “Well, he comes across exactly what you said, cold and merciless!”

  “I think there’s a tragedy in Mr. Hughes’ past, but my brother never discusses it. There’s definitely a mystery there. He has a sweet, adorable daughter, although Sebastian keeps her out of the press as often as possible. The man is frighteningly wealthy, so he has to protect her from threats. There are a lot of people in the world who would hurt his daughter to get to him.”

  Ilara sighed. “The world is not a nice place sometimes.”

  The pilot came over the intercom at that moment, announcing that they’d be landing in London in a few moments. Ilara and Zuri gathered up their belongings and tightened their seatbelts, waiting as Jabril’s private jet landed at Heathrow Airport.

  It took another hour to get through customs, even though they were escorted through a private section of the airport due to the security issues surrounding their visit, but finally, they were in the limousine and heading towards their hotel. But instead of a hotel, their chauffeur pulled up outside of a stately home. “What’s this?” Zuri asked as she stepped out onto the sidewalk in front of a gorgeous, palatial building that didn’t look like a hotel. It looked like a private residence.

  Ilara stepped out behind her. “Jabril arranged for us to stay with Sheik Tarin for the weekend. Isn’t that nice?”

  Ilara was already walking up the steps of the beautiful home while Zuri stared at the door with increasing dread. She hadn’t seen or spoken to Tarin since she’d ditched him in Ditra and she didn’t want to see him now. But Ilara didn’t know that and, by the time her friend reached the top of the stairs, the door had already opened. Was a butler standing there waiting for them? Nope! It was the man himself.

  Tarin greeted Ilara with a smile, kissing her hand in a gentlemanly fashion. Someone obviously was right behind him and encouraged Ilara to step into the house. Then Tarin turned and looked at her, his big, muscular arms crossed over his massive chest, straining the seams of his dress shirt.

  Zuri frowned, not sure if she wanted to go inside. It was a bit like the fly zooming into a spider web, she thought. Would she ever come out? Would she want to?

  “Come inside, Zuri,” he ordered.

  Of course, any sort of command just irritated her. “I think I’ll stay at a hotel, if it’s all the same to you.”

  He laughed. The big jerk actually laughed! Zuri stood on the sidewalk, making her guards nervous, while he laughed at her! How rude!

  She wanted to step back into the limousine, but it had already driven away. Her escape was eliminated so she took a deep breath and waited as he walked down the steps, stopping in front of her. “We need to talk.”

  Zuri knew that he was right, but that didn’t ease her feelings. “Talk about what?”

  He leaned down, brushing his lips across hers briefly before she knew what he was going to do. So, she didn’t have time to prepare for the caress.

  “You know what we need to discuss,” he said, and without waiting any longer, he took her hand and led her up the stone steps, and into the house.

  Tarin looked down at her, wanting to let his fingers dive into her soft hair and enjoy her even softer skin. But the hand he held at the moment trembled and that wasn’t good. She was nervous for some reason and that was one of the last emotions that he wanted to generate in Zuri.

  Passion? Yes. Lust? Absolutely! Love…in an ideal world, yes.

  “What’s going through your mind right now, honey?” he asked gently as he led her into his office. He waited until she was perched on the edge of the leather chair before sitting in front of her, then waited.

  And waited.

  “Honey, just spit it out. I’m a tough guy. Whatever is bothering you, I can take it, I promise.”

  She smiled slightly, but it didn’t reach her pretty eyes. And worse, she didn’t talk. He could see that she was debating what to say because her mouth kept opening and closing, as if she would think of one thing, then think better of it and discard the idea.

  “You think you’re tough?” she teased, relaxing slightly now that she knew that he wasn’t going to carry her up to his bedroom. Although, that plan would also have been pretty nice!

  NO! Shaking her head, she reminded herself that she was here for a purpose. A mission. “I really need to help Ilara with shopping,” she told him.

  “You didn’t know that you were coming here, did you?”

  “No.”

  “And if you’d known, would you have accompanied your sister-in-law?”

  Zuri shrugged slightly, shaking her head. “You’re starting to know me a little too well.”

  Someone knocked on the door.

  Ilara poked her head in the door. “I’m so sorry to interrupt you, but Jabril…well, he sort of expedited the whole process by sending the designers to me instead of me going to the stores,” she explained, looking more than slightly frazzled. “I don’t know what to do with all of these people.”

  Zuri stood up, ignoring Tarin for the moment in order to help her sister-in-law. “I’ll be right there,” she told Ilara. “Just give me a moment.”

  Ilara nodded gratefully, then flashed another apologetic smile to Tarin before pulling the door closed again.

  When they were alone, Zuri turned to face Tarin. “I didn’t know that you had a house in London, but I’m warning you, Tarin. I’m here to help out Ilara and not to continue our affair.”

  He leaned back in his leather chair, a dark eyebrow lifting at her challenge. “You have to be around to have an affair, Zuri. You’ve been avoiding me.”

  “Yes, well,” she looked down, not sure what to say. “I think that our time together was…it was a mistake. We shouldn’t have…become intimate.”

  “I thought it was amazing,” he countered. “And I’d love to see if it was a just a two-time experience or if we will replicate that explosion of sensations again.”

  Zuri looked up at him, unaware of her mouth hanging open slightly and not exactly sure how he came to be standing so close to her. Surely he’d been over by the leather chairs a moment ago?

  Before she could react, his arm wrapped around her waist and he kissed her. Not a soft caress but a hot, searing kiss that caused her mind to go blank and her arms to wrap around his neck as she kissed him back with equal fervency.

  Over and over, he kissed her, exploring her body with worshipful hands, scorching her skin even as she moved closer, needing more.

  A loud banging and someone yelling on the other side of the doors pulled her out of the sensual haze. But she didn’t pull out of his arms, too stunned by the kiss.

  “Why does that…?”

  Another loud bang stopped her from asking a question that she probably didn’t want answered anyway.

  “I have to go,” she told him. Without another word, she hurried out. As she looked back over her shoulder, Zuri was unaware of the longing in her gaze before she went to help her friend.

  But Tarin was fully aware of that look and knew that the day wasn’t over. Two weeks, he thought. Two weeks of not seeing or hearing from her. After their time together in Ditra, he’d accepted that she needed a bit of space to think and regroup, to absorb what had happened between them and come to terms with it. But he hadn’t anticipated her avoiding him and his calls, texts, and messages for two full weeks.

  When Jabril had casually mentioned that Zuri and Il
ara would be traveling to London, everything had fallen into place.

  Now he just had to use the situation to his benefit, without hurting Zuri. But there was no way he’d allow this situation to go on much longer. Being without her for the past two weeks had been hell! Every night, he’d thought about their afternoon together. And every morning, he’d woken up with an erection that had gone unappeased.

  No one could fix this need except Zuri. He wanted her. Just her!

  How did he convince her that she was the one for him? The one woman that made his body ache as he thought up different creative ways to make love to her, to make her happy?

  He wasn’t sure, but he had three full days to get to know her better. And find out!

  Zuri stepped out of Tarin’s office and took in the chaos of Tarin’s previously beautiful living room and foyer. There were arrogant designers arguing and vying for position, each of them eager to design for the newest princess. Ilara was beautiful and lushly built and in the news more often than anyone at the moment – a designer’s dream! So, they all wanted to use Ilara to promote their designs.

  A moment before Zuri started issuing orders, a shrill whistle sounded amid the chaos. Everyone froze, including Zuri, as they all looked around. Zuri wanted to applaud when she realized that it was Ilara who had whistled. She took control of the frenzied situation smoothly and emphatically.

  When she had everyone’s attention, Ilara smiled politely, her hands clasped lightly in front of her. “I appreciate everyone coming here to help me with the next phase of Ditra’s evolution. But this kind of petty vindictiveness will not be tolerated. If you wish for me to work with you, then it would behoove you to be kind and considerate. Anyone who acts in an inconsiderate manner will be asked to leave immediately.” She paused, locking eyes with each of the designers, both young and experienced, and they all nodded in reluctant and somewhat sullen agreement.