SHEIKH'S SURPRISE BABY: A Sheikh Romance

by Knight, Kylie

  “I have to go now,” she said into his chest. “Your father will be awake again soon.”

  He released her slowly, kissing her tenderly one last time. “Come. I will take you back to him.”

  They walked quietly back to the king’s wing, and once inside the sitting room, Alex turned to face the prince.

  “Thank you for dinner,” she said. “I enjoyed it.”

  He held her face in his hands, and smiled down at her. “As did I, habibti,”A he replied. “I will see you before you go to bed.”

  He kissed her forehead just as there was a knock on the door. They moved apart as Malik entered with Simone, who was grinning ear to ear.

  “Mommy!” she greeted her. “The horseys were so big!” The little girl’s exclamation was full of amazement. “Can I go back? Please?”

  Alex chucked at her daughter’s enthusiasm, and promised her she’d let her go back if she was a very good girl in the meantime. Then she turned to Malik.

  “Thank you for entertaining her for me, Mr. Faisal,” she said. “I hope she wasn’t too much trouble.”

  Malik beamed at her. “Oh, she was no trouble at all, Ms. Downing. I enjoyed our time together. And whenever she wants to go visit the stables again, I’ll be more than happy to take her.”

  “Thank you,” she murmured again, as he turned and walked back to the door. The prince looked at her meaningfully and then followed his assistant out, closing the door quietly behind him.

  Alex settled Simone at the little play table that the king had ordered to be brought for her, and then went in to her charge. He asked to be taken out to sit with Simone, so that he could watch her play, he said, and Alex helped him into his wheelchair and wheeled him out to sit at the French doors. He had not so far interacted with the little girl, and Simone wondered if he had a daughter of his own. The prince had not spoke of siblings, and they had being only children in common.

  She wondered what else they might have in common, aside from the insane attraction that had her opening up to his kisses and enjoying his teasing. She didn’t know much about love, but she knew she had never felt this deep an attraction to anyone ever in her life. There was just something about him that drew her in. Maybe it was his kindness to her and Simone, because she realized that he could just as easily have passed her over in favor of a childless woman. And come to think of it, he could have chosen a fully qualified nurse instead of an LPN. The way her mind worked, the idea that he wanted her just as she was did not compute. It would take her a while to get used to it.

  “Did you enjoy your dinner?” the king asked.

  Alex turned to look at him, wondering if he knew with whom she had had her dinner, but his eyes had a faraway look in them, and if she wasn’t mistaken, they were blurred by tears.

  “Yes, Your Majesty, I did,” she replied.

  She didn’t need to add anything that would make him ask more uncomfortable questions.

  “My sheikha was not the most beautiful woman in the world,” he said, as though she had not spoken, “but to me she was more enticing than any other. She was my world.”

  His voice broke, and tears slid down his cheeks. He didn’t seem to notice them, and his chin trembled. In that moment, his age seemed to descend on his frame like a heavy cloak, and he shrivelled before her eyes. He was no longer the powerful ruler of his kingdom, nor even a commanding gentleman who happened to be ill. He was just an old man, dying from a broken heart and Alzheimer’s disease.

  Alex felt her own eyes prick with tears. She swallowed them, knowing it wouldn’t help for her to follow him down the path he was on. She knew he needed to go where he was headed, and she also knew she couldn’t stop him, even if she tried. And because of the unpredictability of his moods, she knew it might cause him more emotional harm than good for her to try to cheer him up. She rose from her seat and went to turn on the CD player, choosing the track she had discovered he loved the most. She put it on repeat, and turned it down just low enough for him to hear, like a subliminal lullaby, and she watched as he raised his hand to dry his cheeks, and then clasped them together in his lap, and turned his eyes to her daughter, who was still putting together a jigsaw puzzle made for young children.

  Gradually, his eyes slid closed, and he slumped in the chair. He would doze for a half hour or so before he woke and needed to be readied for bed. She took the time to change his bed linens, tidy his room and prepare fresh pajamas for him. She placed the hamper with the dirty linens and the garbage container with the soiled articles by the door for ease of removal, and returned to where he sat. Simone had moved on to coloring, and she alternated between watching her daughter and her patient, and thought about the ways in which the very young and the very old shared the same vulnerabilities, and needed the same level of care.

  Her thoughts went to his son, the man who wanted to explore the attraction between them, the man who made her body tremble from his kisses, the man who made her want to throw caution to the winds and forget her place. She could see in the way he interacted with his father that Amir loved the sheikh, and would miss him when he passed on. She knew, from their dinner conversation how close he had been to his mother before she passed. She knew he dreaded the day his father died, especially because it meant he would be alone, unless he had a wife to cheer him through his grief. She wondered, despite his words, if he was pursuing her because she was a convenient shoulder to lean on.

  The king sniffled and stirred, and she went to him. He woke and looked around as though he didn’t know where he was.

  “Are you ready for bed, Your Majesty?” she asked, watching to see if he was even aware of who she was.

  He stared into her eyes for a long moment, and then nodded, as though he was too tired even to speak. She wheeled him back into his bedroom and pulled the cord that would bring the male assistant whose only task was to wash him and dress him each morning and evening. He waited patiently, not speaking and barely even breathing, it seemed. She worried that he might be worsening physically without any outward signs. But his temperature was fine when she took it, and his blood pressure was normal for a man of his age and physical condition.

  She stepped out of the room while he was being washed, and dealt with Simone, giving her a quick bath and changing her into her favorite pj’s. She would read to her when the king fell asleep, but for now, she let her choose her favorite cartoons, and left her giggling at the antics of the characters. The king was in bed when she returned, his eyes focused on the gilt picture frame he held in his hands. She knew which picture it was…his queen had been a pretty woman, and in the photograph, they were smiling into each other’s eyes.

  “Your little one is a beautiful child,” he said, still gazing at the picture he held. “My son was a beautiful child, as well. Just like his mother. I worry about him. He will have no one, when I am gone. A man always needs to have someone.”

  Alex wasn’t sure how to respond to such a personal remark. She fell back on her standard response when her patients became pensive. She spoke in general terms, and tried to soothe his worries.

  “Prince Amir is a very intelligent and capable man, Your Majesty. I’m sure he will find just the right person for himself when the time is right.”

  He looked up then, his eyes unexpectedly shrewd. “I think he believes he has,” he said.

  Alex felt herself flushing, because somehow, he seemed to know what his son had planned for her. She held his gaze, even though inside she cringed with dread. Despite what Amir thought, she wasn’t sure his father approved of what he wanted with her.

  “You remind me of my sheikha,” the king said. “You hide your feelings beneath a smooth mask. I am too old not to know what my son sees in you, and what he wants from you. And do not suppose you can hide your own interest behind that cool mask that you show me. It has never taken me long to get the measure of someone, and there is a mystery to you that troubles me. I hope he knows what he is doing with you.”

  His tone had increased in
sharpness, and he rested the picture on his lap and closed his eyes. Alex tamped down her emotions and adjusted his bed so he was reclining rather than sitting up. He did not open his eyes again, not acknowledge her in any way. She left him to his memories and sadness, and took her own fractured thoughts with her back to her suite where she found Simone dozing on the couch. She picked her up and took her to bed, tucking her in and watching her sleep for a moment, a smile playing over her lips. The little girl was her whole world, and she thought she understood even a little bit the feelings that the king obviously had for his son. She would give anything, do anything to make her daughter happy, and she would fiercely defend her against anyone who tried to hurt her.

  She went back to sit with her patient, taking her tablet with her, and catching up on her reading while he slept. Given how emotional he had been all day, she thought he might need her during the night more than ever, if he became agitated, or had troubled dreams. She found that that sometimes happened with Alzheimer’s patients, after they had had a hard day emotionally. She watched him sleep, and he fidgeted more than usual, tossing his head back and forth on the pillow and muttering in his sleep.

  Finally, he settled, and she sat back and found the place she had been reading. She would sit with him for another, in case he woke up, but so far he had slept through the night. She suspected it had something to do with the sedative she gave him before his evening ablutions, as prescribed by his physician. The hour passed quickly, and she lost herself in the intrigue surrounding the heroine. A soft knock made her turn her head to see Prince Amir waiting quietly by the door. She stood and walked out to meet him, pulling the door almost closed behind her.

  “It is late, Alexandra,” he began, foregoing any greeting. “You should get some sleep.”

  She nodded, feeling suddenly tongue-tied, because she had managed to forget his promise to return before she went to bed.

  “Will you have lunch with me tomorrow? I have an evening engagement that I cannot break, and I won’t see you again until this time tomorrow if we don’t share lunch together.”

  “Of course,” she said at once, forgetting he was making the request as a man interested in a woman, not as an employer to an employee.

  His swift kiss reminded her immediately of the roles they were playing in that moment, and she gasped when he grazed her neck before planting a wet kiss in the place where her neck touched her shoulder blade.

  “I won’t be able to see you again after tomorrow until next weekend,” he said, regret clear in his voice. “Then, I will have you relieved for a day and night so that I can take you to a special place. We will take Malik and Simone with us.”

  “No security detail?” she wondered aloud.

  “You will not know they are there,” he promised.

  “What will I need to bring with me?” she asked, feeling excitement begin to curl in her chest.

  “A swimsuit, sunglasses and sunscreen, a cool dress and sandals, and a nightgown.”

  His eyes flared as he gave her the list, and she knew instinctively that he was imagining her in a nightgown.

  “I look forward to the day when you let me see you,” he said, his voice husky, “and touch you and taste you.”

  Feeling unaccountably bold for some reason, and needing to lighten the mood, which she could feel thickening rapidly towards hot and heavy, she teased him.

  “You already do all those things, Your High…”

  He stopped her with a hard finger against her lips. “I will need to devise a punishment for you for every time you refuse to call me by my name,” he said sternly, but she saw the twinkle in his eyes. “And to answer you, kissing and holding you are not enough for what I need.”

  “I am still trying to wrap my mind around this,” she confessed, and he nipped her bottom lip.

  “Ah, another reason to devise suitable punishments for you, eh? You continue to question my truthfulness. What shall I do to you?”

  He tilted his head to the side, as though he were giving it serious thought, and Alex found herself chuckling at his teasing.

  “As long as it doesn’t involve bodily harm, I suppose I can handle anything you dish out, Your Highness!”

  She dared to give him a cheeky grin as she called him by his title again, and his mock glare delighted her. She loved that he was playful…there had been very little to laugh about in her life up to this point, and she relished the freedom to find humor and enjoyment in another person’s company, especially when the person wanted her to relax enough to let him do naughty things to her. The thought of all the things she could imagine doing with him brought heat surging to her cheeks, and she wasn’t surprised when he noticed.

  “What thoughts have made your cheeks glow, my pretty?” he asked, kissing her heated cheeks.

  “Just remembering what you said,” she replied incoherently, because he was sliding his lips down her chin to her throat, tilting her head with his thumbs so he could sample the soft flesh hidden there.

  “And what was it that I said in particular?” he wanted to know, teasing the hollow of her throat with his tongue.

  She swallowed against the pleasure rising in her veins at his seductive touches. “About needing to see me more,” she managed to get out, before his teeth on her skin drew a breathless gasp from her parted lips.

  “Mmmmm,” he mumbled, coming back to her mouth and kissing her deeply, stopping all talk with the introduction of his tongue into her welcoming mouth.

  Alex had been kissed few enough times that she could still remember them and how supremely ordinary and unarousing they had been. None had been as potent as the ones Amir was drowning her in. She held on tight to his shoulders, and when he pushed himself against her, drawing her more tightly into his body, she wrapped her arms around his neck, effectively removing every barrier between her body and his. And in that act she opened herself to him, and to whatever he decided that he wanted to do to and with her. When he pulled away, she felt the loss of his body heat at once, and mewled a protest.

  “I must let you go to sleep, habibti,” he said, dropping a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose. “I don’t think you are ready as yet for all that I plan to do with you.”

  Alex had to agree, even though she knew it would have been an easier thing for him to seduce her completely now if he had tried. She loved that he was giving her time, and letting her get used to the idea of them as a couple.

  “I will see you at lunch tomorrow. Malik will come to get you,” he said, walking with her to door to her suite. “Sleep sweet, my pretty,” he added, and bussed her lips before walking away.

  Lunch next day was a picnic in the garden outside the king’s balcony. A tent had been set up, the table inside lavishly spread with so much food Alex had to laugh. Malik had taken Simone to school, and they were alone, except for the security detail whom she never saw but knew was there, somewhere.

  “Are we feeding the five thousand?” she asked, as he seated her. At his confused frown, she explained, “It’s a story from the Bible about how five thousand men were fed by five loaves and two fish that kept multiplying miraculously.”

  He chuckled, trailing his thumb over her smiling cheek. “I didn’t know what you might like, so I asked for a good sampling. Don’t worry, the food will not go to waste.”

  He served her, putting the things on her plate that she asked for, and then he fed her, though she protested.

  “I can feed myself, Amir,” she said, his name rolling off her tongue in annoyance.

  He laughed. “Ah, I see what I must do to get you to call me by my name. I shall feed you at every meal we share together!”

  His teasing threat dissolved her irritation, and she laughed with him, and let him have his way.

  “What about you?” she wanted to know. “When are you going to eat?”

  “When you are done,” he answered, but Alex was having none of that.

  “What would you like?” she asked, refusing the succulent morsel of lamb that he
was offering her on the fork.

  “It doesn’t matter,” he said. “Open!”

  She opened for him, and he slipped the spoon between her lips. The food was all delicious, but she had chosen mostly light fare. She decided to share him a portion of the mouth-watering lamb stew, some couscous, a fruit stew that had a lot of complex flavors that was enjoyable, and some rolls to sop up the juices.

  “I will let you finish feeding me, if you will let me feed you,” she said. “It’s only fair.”

  He stared at her for a long moment, and then nodded, offering her some more food. They fed each other, with Alex laughing as the prince regaled her with stories of his childhood. Before she knew it, she had eaten everything on her plate, and all that was left on his was a roll to sop up the gravy. She broke the roll into bite-sized pieces, stuck the fork in it, and swiped it in the gravy before putting the soaking bread to his lips. He shook his head, and she said,

  “Are you full?”

  He smiled at her. “I can have one more roll, but I wish you to use your fingers.”

  She tried not to blush, wiped her hands on a clean napkin, and put the piece on the fork to his lips again. As she expected, he nipped her fingers as he took the bite, and laughed quietly when she rolled her eyes at him. He repeated his teasing, until the last bite. This time, when she put it to his lips, he sucked her fingers into his mouth, and groaned. She tried to remove her fingers, before she groaned with him, but he grabbed her wrist and held her hand there, swallowing and returning to lick her fingers clean. The feel of his tongue on her fingers sent a riptide of sensation straight to her clit. She gasped, unable to stifle the moan that escaped her when he took her fingers all the way into his mouth.