by Holly Rayner
“I understand. I’ll get there as soon as I can. Until then, don’t do anything that will jeopardize our position with them. You’re lucky I’m not firing you on the spot.”
Gary sounded panicked as Jenson hung up the phone. Leaning over, he placed his face in his hands.
“Not good?” Jasmina surmised.
The night had been spectacular, to say the least, but now, in the light of day, Jasmina was suddenly unsure of how to act around Jenson. The mood had crashed with the ring of that cellphone, and she was navigating uncertain territory.
Jenson turned and faced her.
“Not good. I’m on the verge of losing a major client, and I’ve got to get back to the States if I want to save that account. They’re saying they’ll deal with no one but me.”
Jasmina hesitated, unsure how to respond. They had just spent an amazing night together, and here he was, setting to fly off.
“The wedding is next week,” she reminded him.
Why was she saying that? Days before, Jenson missing the wedding would have been the best news in the world. What was the matter with her?
Jenson ran a hand over his eyes, his expression weary.
“Time flies, doesn’t it? Don’t worry, I’ll make the ceremony. I just have to take care of this first.” He stood, then, tossing on the outfit he had arrived in, then paused. “Am I even going to be able to leave the country?”
“Why wouldn’t you be able to?” Jasmina asked, confused.
Jenson gestured to the room around them.
“Safe house? Threat to you and by proxy, me?”
“Right,” Jasmina said, mentally kicking herself. “I can make a call and see what our status is. You should get to the airport—I’ll let my security know.”
He sat back on the bed and his hand reached out as though he would take hers before he pulled it back. Shields were up and electrified once more, Jasmina realized. For a moment she had thought that she could possibly find happiness with Jenson, but now she wasn’t so sure. He wasn’t as boorish as he had been in the past, but he certainly wasn’t acting as a man in love would either.
Not that she wanted him to be in love with her. That would be foolishness at its height.
“Jasmina…” he began, hesitating as he reached for words.
She sat in silence, waiting for him to say something, anything really. What they had shared had been beyond belief, but the cold morning light painted another picture entirely. Jasmina had never been so confused.
“I’ll make it back for the wedding, I promise,” he said again. He stood and walked to the door, hesitating as he turned to look at her one more time. “Goodbye, Jasmina.”
“Goodbye,” she said.
A pause that spanned a lifetime drifted over them before Jenson exhaled and left the room. Jasmina waited for the front door to close before she collapsed back onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. The pillow next to her still held his delectable scent, and she hesitated for only a moment before pulling it to her face and breathing him in.
Jenson had bewitched her. That had to be the answer. She had no reason for feeling emotions that might be associated with love for him. There was simply no justification for it. Still, the memory of his skin against hers gave her pause, haunting her even in his immediate absence.
After a while, she realized that she didn’t have time to waste mooning in the bed they had shared. Jenson was gone, and there was no way of knowing whether or not he would really be back. Their relationship had gone from textbook to complicated very fast, and those complications might have been enough to chase him off for good.
Rising, she made her way to her room, turning on her cellphone and calling Deniz.
“Your Highness. Is everything all right?”
The worry in his voice was palpable, and Jasmina was quick to reassure him.
“Everything is fine, Deniz. I just wanted to let you know that Mr. Black has to leave the country immediately. He might be by to get his things.”
The frown in Deniz’s voice was deeply evident.
“I see. And everything went…according to plan?”
“It did,” she said, her voice neutral. “I think he has a much better idea now of what is at stake.”
“I certainly hope so,” Deniz said, his tone cold.
“Anyway, the ruse is over. Can you have a car sent by to pick me up? I’d like to meet with the council today.”
“Of course, Your Highness. We will have someone by immediately.”
“Thank you, Deniz.”
“You’re welcome.”
His terse tone was so out of character for him, to the point that Jasmina realized he had deeply disapproved of either her plan or her fiancé, possibly both. Either way, it was none of his business, and Jasmina reminded herself of that as she emptied the fridge and cleaned up the house before hearing a car pull into the garage.
The driver from their previous adventure smiled at her as she slid into the back, her emergency bag in tow.
“Your Highness! I trust you had a nice stay,” he said, jovial.
Jasmina thought about the past couple of days with Jenson. She had actually enjoyed herself with him, in more ways than one. She grinned at the driver’s reflection in the rearview mirror.
“I did, thank you. That was quite the adventure.”
“I bet. I see we are one person short on this trip. I trust your escort isn’t lost?”
Jasmina chuckled.
“No, not lost. Just traveling onward. We’ll see him again in a week.”
“Ah yes, the big day! Are you excited?”
He pulled out of the garage and began the trip back to the palace in a much more direct pattern. It was a far shorter journey as a result.
“I am. I’m sure it will be a great celebration for our people.”
“I asked if you were excited, Your Highness. Not the people.”
His tone was light, but it gave Jasmina pause. Was she excited? If anything, she was simply a bundle of nerves. If he had at least kissed her goodbye or something she would know where she stood. As it was, she was at a complete loss when it came to her future husband. At the very least, their nuptial bed would be something to look forward to, even if they never grew to love one another. It was something, wasn’t it?
“I’m very excited,” she said, reminding herself that she was still playing the part of love-struck Sheikha.
The driver nodded, accepting her answer before they fell into a comfortable silence for the rest of the journey. When they pulled up to the palace, Jasmina felt a soothing sense of relief.
“It’s good to be home,” she breathed.
“I’ll bet. I hope that you have a wonderful day, Your Highness. Please let me know if you need to be anywhere else today.”
“I will,” she promised, exiting the car on her own.
She was still in disguise, so she made quick work of sneaking back to her room to get cleaned up and changed before meeting with the council. Asha was fluffing her pillows when she walked in.
“Well, look who has arrived,” Asha said, smiling.
Jasmina nodded to her lady-in-waiting, stripping as she walked.
“Is the council meeting now?” she asked.
Asha nodded.
“They’ve been in session for about fifteen minutes. There are some important developments I think you’ll want to hear about.”
“I look forward to it,” she said, stepping into her bathroom and making quick work of washing up.
The scent of Jenson still lingered on her skin, and she hesitated before washing it away with honeysuckle soap. If he really planned to be there the following week, she had no reason to hold onto aging relics of his presence, did she?
Stepping out of the bathroom, Asha helped her dress in a royal gown and sweep up her hair before they made their way quickly to the council chambers. When Jasmina opened the door, every man in the room stood.
“Your Highness, it is a pleasure to see you again. This must mean
that the threat to you has passed.”
Javir met her with a warm handshake, and she squeezed his hand reassuringly.
“I’m sorry if you were worried, but yes, it has passed, thank you.”
No one had known about the falsity of the claims except for the few members of Deniz’s security team. Jasmina had done that on purpose; if the council found out she was spending her time concocting elaborate schemes for the benefit of some man—even for the benefit of her country as a whole—she knew she risked losing all her credibility with them.
“What developments have occurred in my absence, gentlemen?”
Javir’s eyes lit up as he preceded her to the table, where they both took a seat.
“Very eventful ones, I must say. Yesterday evening we received intelligence regarding the whereabouts of the men who stole your father’s money.”
Jasmina’s heart leapt into her throat.
“Are you certain?” she choked. She had spent so much time the past few days focused on her emotions that she forgot to put on her diplomat face. She did so, forcing her face back into a neutral position.
Javir nodded.
“It is not confirmed yet, Your Highness, but I think we may be able to bring them back and try them for their crimes, not to mention get those funds back to their rightful place.”
Jasmina nodded, her heart beating fast.
“That also means that your wedding next week may not need happen at all,” he said.
She shot him a look, wondering at the comment, and Javir shook his head.
“We are smarter than you think, Jasmina. We know that your marriage to Jenson Black was planned solely for the purpose of filling the state coffers. We don’t want you to sacrifice so much if you don’t have to. If we can get that money back, you will be saved from making such a choice.”
Jasmina stared at him, not giving her emotions away. Had she been that obvious? She should have acted more in love, more engaged. Hiding her panic, she gave a tinkling laugh.
“You are mistaken, Javir. Still, thank you for this news. Can you please give me updates as they come in?”
Javir agreed to do just that, and the meeting proceeded on as usual. In the back of her mind Jasmina’s thoughts were raging.
If she could back out of a marriage with Jenson, would she? Was it too late?
Did she want to?
Chapter Eighteen
Seven days later, Jasmina stood in front of her mirror, contemplating her reflection.
They had heard no word of her father’s traitorous council members. She wasn’t sure what she felt about that fact, except that it meant that her wedding would proceed as planned. At least, it might.
In the week since they’d last been together, she’d seen neither hide nor hair of Jenson Black, nor had he bothered to reach out and call. Every night that week Jasmina lay awake, wondering what direction her life would take. She ran every conversation they had shared over and over in her mind, and come to the conclusion that her sacrifice really would be just that.
Jenson Black would never care about anything more than money. He had left her a week before they were due to be married to ensure that he didn’t lose out on a business deal. While there may be more to him beneath the surface, his actions belied any of it. Jenson would always put his own success first, and Jasmina reminded herself that in the end, that was the only reason he was marrying her to begin with.
“You look beautiful,” Asha said, toying with the lilac veil in Jasmina’s hair.
Wedding gowns in El Jayiah had always been lilac colored—a light, shimmering purple that glistened beneath the rays of the sun. The gown itself was corset styled with a wide, shimmering bustle that started at her waist and fell in waves, brushing lightly against the ground. Her hair had been swept up into a diamond tiara, and beneath that crown, her eyes were glistening with the beginnings of tears.
“Thank you,” she said, unable to hide her discontent from Asha.
“Everything will be all right. You’ll see,” the old woman said, patting Jasmina on the shoulder.
“I hope so,” Jasmina replied.
“I know so,” Asha said, her voice charged with confidence. “You look just like your mother on her wedding day.”
Jasmina choked up at that comment, her eyes brimming with tears which she refused to shed. She was very aware that neither of her parents were there to give her away that day. She would be walking down the aisle alone, destined to make her own family, now that hers was gone.
“Now, now,” Asha said, holding a tissue for Jasmina to take, which she did, wiping her eyes delicately and checking her dark makeup.
Asha was about to say something else when Jasmina’s bedroom door flew open. She turned, her eyes colliding with Jenson’s, which were filled with wild emotion as he took her in.
“Told you,” Asha said, grinning at Jenson as she passed by him and made a quick exit, closing the door behind her.
“Jenson? What are you doing in here? It’s not tradition for the bride and groom to meet before the ceremony.”
Jenson strode toward her, and before she knew it Jasmina was wrapped tightly in his arms. A wave of joy washed over her, and she held him back just as tightly.
“I wasn’t sure you would come,” she whispered, voicing her fears for the first time.
He pulled away, keeping her in his arms as he gazed into her eyes.
“I couldn’t stay away. I had to see you, and there’s something I’ve been wanting to say to you every day since I left your side. I just didn’t have the words until I got back home.”
“Back home?” she asked, confused.
Jenson nodded.
“The business deal was a quick fix, and I was going to come right back to you when I got a call from my mother. She asked me to stop in and visit, and so I chartered a plane up to the Vermont mansion.”
His eyes grew heavy and distant as he relived the memory.
“When I got there, everything was exactly as I remembered it. The gardens were pristine, the house clean as a whistle. To this day, it looks like a museum more than a home. When I got there I had to search high and low to find my mother, and when I finally did it was in the east wing of the house.”
Jasmina had no idea why that mattered, and seeing the confusion in her eyes, Jenson continued.
“She and my father used to stay together on the other side of the house; they shared a room together. But as the years have passed, their love of money hasn’t been enough to keep them tolerating one another. The only reason they’re still together is because they are worth more as a couple than individually, and when I finally tracked down my father you would think they were strangers.”
He shook his head, his thoughts coming out in a jumbled rush.
“I realized then that I couldn’t do that to you, Jasmina. I was wrong to try and force you into a marriage you didn’t want. You’re too wonderful to live in a loveless, money-driven marriage like my parents. Marrying for wealth and status is a recipe for disaster, and I was an idiot for thinking that it was something we should do.”
Jasmina stared up at him. His arms were still around her, but he was saying he didn’t want to marry her anymore. What did he want?
“I don’t understand,” she said. “You no longer wish to marry me?”
Jenson chuckled, holding her a little closer.
“I didn’t say that. I said I didn’t want to marry you for wealth and status. I realized while I was away that I missed you terribly. I thought of you every morning when I woke up, and every night as I fell to sleep. Pretty much every moment in between, too. I’m afraid, Jasmina Bel Hasnawi, that I have fallen in love with you, body and soul.”
She gazed up at him in wonder, thinking of her own week without him. It had been its own kind of torture, with all the silence, the not knowing. She realized then that those emotions stemmed from a feeling she hadn’t wanted to name, and had been trying to ignore since the moment he pressed his lips against her own.
> “Why didn’t you call me?” she asked.
He ran his thumb along her chin, his eyes caressing her face as though he was memorizing her features to keep with him always.
“I almost did, several times. I pulled your number up over and over again, but I didn’t want to tell you how I felt over the phone, across an ocean. I wanted to tell you here, where I could pull you into my arms and beg you to forgive me. Can you forgive me for the terrible way I’ve behaved, Jasmina?”
She gazed up into his eyes, tears finally winning out as she beamed up at him.
“I suppose I might be able to,” she said, grinning from ear to ear.
“You are kindness personified,” he said, squeezing her and twirling her around with joy.
Jasmina laughed, wiping away errant tears.
“And you are a scoundrel,” she said when he stopped spinning her around.
“But I’m your scoundrel,” he replied with a grin.
“Yes you are,” she said.
A pang of guilt shot through her as she realized that there was still so much she hadn’t told him…so much she had lied about.
“What is it?” he asked, sensing the change in her.
“I have something to confess to you, too,” she said, holding her breath before she released her lie.
“There was never any threat to me—to us. I worked it all out with my security team as a ruse to get you to see that El Jayiah was worth so much more than money. All of it was a lie.”
He gazed at her for a moment, and she looked down. Gently, he tilted her chin so she could look back up at him.
“I hope not all of it was a lie.”
His meaning was clear, and Jasmina’s lip twitched at the thought of their beautiful night together.
“Certainly not that part,” she agreed, giggling a little.
His smile was warm and filled with love as he looked at her with pure adoration.
“Thank you for telling me. The truth is, your little scheme might just have saved my life.”
“Oh I highly doubt that,” she laughed, and he pulled her closer.
“It’s the truth. Without our time together, seeing the city, exploring your world, I would never have realized just how amazing you are. Well, maybe not never, but it certainly would have taken longer. I can be pretty dense sometimes.”