by Snihur, Erin
Amina watches carefully as the doctor checks Maarku’s pulse, his eyes and then asks Maarku a few questions, like the date and his full name. The Prince answers all of them and when the doctor isn’t checking his eyes, his gaze is firmly on Amina as she sits on the very edge at the end of the bed. If her father had still been alive, he would have protested that it was highly improper for her to be in a man’s bedroom, no matter the security that is in place.
Amina hadn’t thought much of it, but when the doctor pulls back the blankets to reveal Maarku’s tan, rippled bare chest, she immediately begins to see her father’s reasoning. Blushing, Amina feels herself trying to look away, but she can’t help it, as the blanket falls down to his waist where a smattering of dark hair shaped in a ‘v’ pointed towards an equally hard portion of his body. Amina quickly remembers the feeling of that hardness filling her to the brim when they’d both reached orgasm in the closet.
Now, as the doctor listens to Maarku’s heart with his stethoscope firmly planted against his chest, Amina has to stop herself from gazing at his naked chest any further. Pushing away from the bed to give the doctor and Maarku privacy, Amina waltzes over to where Alexander and Maarku’s guard are engaged in a glare off.
Smiling in amusement as the two very stoic and serious men continue to glare at one another without seeming to notice her presence, Amina lets a light chuckle. This seems to break the spell between the two men.
“Making friends, I see, Alexander?” Amina croons, earning her guards familiar smirk as his mocking glare remains on Maarku’s guard.
“We are a hospitable people, your Majesty,” Alexander murmurs back.
Rolling her eyes at his sarcastic remark, Amina turns her gaze on Maarku’s guard, “It seems the Prince will need to remain here for a few days. If there is anything that you shall require please do not hesitate to ask and I will have it done.”
The doctor must have been listening intently to her words, because his gruff voice causes Amina to jump and turn to face him as he rises from Maarku’s bed, “Her Majesty is right. A few days of bed rest and limited movement is just the thing for our patient.”
Stepping forward, Amina smiles at the old man who had treated her father in his later life, “Thank you for your help, Doctor.”
Bowing to her, the Doctor grins teasingly, “Always a pleasure, your Majesty.”
Gathering his supplies, the Doctor moves to leave, but stops in the doorway and turns back to her, “Perhaps the Prince would heal faster if he bathed in the hot springs? The mineral water has been known to heal ailments and has been used by our people for centuries!”
Blushing at the old man’s advice, Amina nods and thanks the doctor who disappears out of the room. In the bed, now propped up on pillows with his foot still hanging from the sling in the air, Maarku smirks at her.
“Mineral hot springs?”
Shrugging, Amina moves to where the doctor had been sitting and begins folding the leftover bandages, he had removed from Maarku’s chest.
“What else has Kulaz been hiding from the rest of the world?” Maarku murmurs as she gets closer and then whispers so only, she can hear, “Other than their beautiful Sheikha.”
Inwardly, Amina is torn. Half of her warms at his words and the other half reminds her of Abrar’s accusations. Sitting in the chair beside his bed, Amina whispers back.
“I’m sure you tell all of the beautiful Sheikha’s that.” She hopes she is wrong.
Shrugging, Maarku’s smirk softens as he takes her in and shifts to get more comfortable on the bed, “I have met many Sheikha’s, mostly married ones.” Amina’s heart immediately sinks and she tries to keep her shoulders straight, but fails as he continues.
“But I have never met one as beautiful as you, Mina,” His words around the name she’d given him in the market is like a caress.
One she wants to continue. Though Abrar’s words echo in the back of her mind, she ignores them. It is time for Amina to stop being the goody-goody princess her people think she is and start living life for her.
His hand finds one of her own and warmth floods her chilly fingers as he continues to murmur, “Are you going to keep me waiting, Mina?”
Dazed, Amina is only able to let out a confused sound as she stares at their joined hands. Maarku smirks at her expression and chuckles, “I’ve never fished for compliments from a woman before.”
Gasping, Amina pulls her hand from his and stands, “I think you know exactly how to get what you want from a woman.”
Squinting his eyes, Maarku keeps his gaze on her before growling out a name, “Haseem.”
His guard takes a step closer, curiosity written all over his face as he waits for Maarku’s order.
“Leave us and take Alexander for a walk,” Maarku growls, his voice biting.
Haseem, the guard nods and motions to Alexander to follow him before marching out of the room, not even waiting to see if Alexander follows. Shooting Alexander a look, Amina watches as her guard bows and exits the room, though he keeps the door open. Always thinking of her protection.
Once they are alone, Maarku’s eyes soften and his lips turn up into a smirk, “I see people have been weaving wild tales about me and my past.”
14
Maarku inwardly curses. Amina’s eyes had grown fearful at his words and he recognizes the way she stares at him immediately. It is the same look many young women in his brother’s court had gazed at him. Fearful that his next scandal would pull them down like all the others.
In the back of his mind, Maarku cad faintly recall the way, as a child, matchmaking mothers would pull their eligible daughters away from him and push them towards his older brother. While Maarku was left to play alone to his own devices, it was his mother that began to spoil him. Then, later on, the wealth he had amassed opened doors for other spoils.
Grimacing as he tries to sit further up while still keeping the blankets around his chest, Maarku instantly hardens at the way Amina’s eyes drift over his flashed chest before blushing and looking away. Even after their night together, she remains innocent to the ways of the flesh.
“So,” Maarku sighs when he feels somewhat comfortable, “What did the gossip mongers say this time?”
Amina seems to ponder his question thoroughly as she gracefully takes a seat in the chair facing the bed. Throughout the doctor’s examination she had watched him and he had, in turn watched her. He couldn’t help but notice the way her lips parted so deliciously at the first sight of his chest. And her gaze only continued to work its way lower as the doctor’s examination went on. It had taken all of Maarku’s strength not to embarrass himself in front of the good doctor and those present.
Amina bites her lip and then releases the pink flesh, which only causes Maarku’s hardening length to throb painfully. What he wouldn’t give to be that lip.
“Well,” Amina begins and then blushes once more as her words rush out of her mouth, “Did you really have a sexual affair with an entire nun’s convent in Belgium?”
Of all the rumors and gossip he has heard told behind his back, that is the last thing Maarku expected from Mina’s lips. The way she said the word ‘sexual’ had even him blushing. She is so innocent in the ways of the flesh that she is making him sheepish.
Finding his voice, Maarku laughs out his words, “Where in the high heavens did you hear that?”
Shrugging, Amina lifts her chin, “After you revealed your true name, I did a little digging on the internet. You are very well known amongst the gossip columns around the world.”
Chuckling Maarku sighs and shakes his head, “Then I am sorry to disappoint you, your Majesty, but I have never participated in a sexual dalliance in a convent. I did visit one in Belgium on a world tour with my brother, Khalid, but only very briefly and those women, were quite old. I doubt they would even consider myself or my brother decent enough compared to Jesus himself.”
Giggling at his choice of words, Amina smiles then, her face softening as she leans back in the plush chair
. Maarku grins at the relaxed expression on her face, happy to have the real Amina back.
“So, what else have you heard… or read?” Maarku teases.
Humming to herself, Amina pulls her ankles up under her bottom as she sinks deeper into the chair, “Well, my advisor, Abrar, has warned me that you are after my crown.”
Maarku’s eyes widen a fraction before he sets his face into stone and shakes his head, “That is a lie.”
“If it is a lie, why did you tell me your name was Batin in the marketplace? Why didn’t you tell me you were a Prince?” Amina asks, her voice getting louder with every question, “And why did you go along with you know?” And she discreetly mouths the word, sex.
Turning his cool gaze on her, Maarku snidely responds, “Why didn’t you tell me you were the Sheikha of Kulaz? You lied and told me your name was Mina!”
Gasping in outrage, Amina jumps to her feet and stamps her foot on the ground, “I didn’t know you were a Prince! I would have told you, if I had known the truth!”
“Well, I didn’t want to reveal my true title on the off chance you were just another gold digging woman looking to secure a wealthy husband!” Maarku yells back, instantly regretting the words. The thought that Amina might be anything like the women of his past forces his stomach contents to curdle.
As Amina’s eyes widen in shock, Maarku curses under his breath and struggles to sit up further. Reaching out as fast as he can to stop her from leaving the room, Maarku grasps her wrist tightly in his grip and pulls her down to kneel at his bedside. Now that she is only a few inches from his face, Maarku inhales the familiar, vanilla scent that he’d only recalled from his dreams and memories of a few days ago.
“I have been hurt in the past, jamal, by women who start off as innocent and caring as you and then turn into vipers whose only joy is to spend my money,” Maarku murmurs and at the righteous anger in Amina’s eyes, he smiles, knowing her anger is reserved for the women who have hurt him in the past.
“I don’t want or need your money, Maarku,” Amina whispers, her face inching closer as his hand around her wrist loosens.
But what about my heart? The thing Maarku had spent months building walls around to keep from letting anyone too close.
Not waiting to ask her permission, Maarku strikes. Planting his lips on hers, he groans at the throbbing pain in his head and ankle at the sudden movement forward. Using his hands to wrap around Amina’s curvy waist and pull her in closer, Maarku relaxes against the pillows, letting her take control.
When he gives up the pressure on her lips, Amina responds instantly by replacing his pressure with her own. The kiss deepens and the smallest hint of her tongue sweeping his bottom lip is all the assurance Maarku needs to open his own mouth and let her in.
Hands squeezing her waist at the feeling of their tongues touching, Maarku groans into her mouth, swallowing her own responding groan. Head swimming, cock hard, Maarku pulls away first from her kiss, much to Amina’s whimpering displeasure. Still safely tucked in his arms, knees only a few inches off the ground, Amina’s grey, passion filled eyes slowly open to stare at him.
The sound of footsteps outside his chamber has both Amina and Maarku tensing. Amina is the first to act, as she jumps to her feet and backs away from the bed, her voice stuttering as she backs away.
“I should go fetch Haseem.”
Nodding, Maarku watches as her small tongue peeks out and runs across her lip, no doubt tasting him there almost as much as he can still taste her on his tongue.
Before she can escape out of the room, Maarku calls her name and as she turns to the side, he simply says, “I don’t want your crown, but I’ll settle for these next few days with you. If you’ll have me.”
She doesn’t respond and instead, darts out of the room to meet the voices who are getting closer and closer to his chambers. Falling back into the pillows, Maarku sighs, not even caring about the pain. He doesn’t even pay attention when Haseem enters the room, closes the door and begins questioning him about what led up to Maarku’s little accident.
To which, all Maarku can respond with is, “I don’t remember.”
15
Amina tries not to roll her eyes as Abrar continues his tyrannical speech about Maarku’s continued stay on at the palace. It had been a few days since Maarku’s accident and he is improving, though from the Doctors reports, it seems their guest is quite antsy to be done with bedrest. Alexander had even mentioned that Maarku’s guard had inquired about her and if she’d be able to visit the injured Prince again. It wasn’t to be. Abrar had kept Amina so busy with her new duties that she hardly had any time for herself.
“It has only been a few days, my Lord. I am sure the two bedrooms the Prince and his guard occupy do not directly impact the many rooms you utilize for the guests you see fit to stock the palace with,” Amina finally interrupts.
Sighing loudly, Abrar waves his hand around the room, “I have tried to reason with you, your Majesty, but you cannot see what is so clearly in front of your face. Sheik Khalid Majeed of Aman has clearly sent his only eligible brother here to swindle you into marriage so that Aman’s power will grow.”
Snorting, Amina shrugs, “Even if the Prince was trying to force my hand into marriage, which he is not, I still have a say in what guests I allow into my palace. It is still my palace, isn’t it, Abrar? Or have you forgotten your place here?”
Not letting him answer, Amina stands and moves towards her desk laden with paperwork and beneath it a map of Kulaz and the surrounding Arabic countries. Those along the coast are large and prosperous, while the ones that hug the Arabian mountains are small and not as ostentatious as their counterparts. The Arabian countries in the mountains prefer solitude and the peaceful life they have always held. Amina had always felt that her father had been wrong to keep Kulaz in the dark when it came to the worldwide economy. Perhaps it is time to bring Kulaz kicking and screaming into the twenty-first century.
Alexander had been muttering to her how she should have removed all of her father’s cabinet of advisors and council the moment she was crowned. Instead she preferred to wait and see who was more than likely to go along with her decisions and new ideas as opposed to those who would balk at them.
Mind calm, Amina continues, “Should we not be considering new alliances? Kulaz cannot continue to only rely on its own resources.”
Spinning in her spot, Amina shoots every man in the room a look that shows she means business, “It’s time for Kulaz to enter the twenty-first century and show the world what we have to offer.”
Another councilman speaks up then, his voice hesitant as he asks, “And what do you think Kulaz has to offer such a modern world, your Majesty?”
“We have been isolated for so long!” Another protests.
Strumming her fingers on the edge of her desk, Amina bites her bottom lip as she stares down at the large map of their world. Kulaz could export different things. From oil to precious metals, to different kinds of food and clothing. Narrowing down one item that would prove beneficial would prove difficult.
Abrar snorts then, gaining everyone's attention as Amina watches as the man waves his hand around the room, “I think that’s enough for today. Clearly her Highness is fatigued. It’s the heat, obviously.”
Amina doesn’t stop her council or advisors as they stream out of the room. Many murmur to themselves. Their wary eyes shifting between Amina and Abrar as they quickly exit the room. Once alone with Abrar, Amina allows her composed expression to break into an all out glare. Her monotone voice seems to be the only thing that startles Abrar.
“You seem to enjoy overstepping the boundaries of the Crown, Abrar.”
Face paling slightly, Abrar places his hands behind his back and straightens, “I was only trying to help, your Majesty. I do not wish for your father's memory to go up in smoke because of ideas that may not seem appropriate for the people of Kulaz.”
Smirking, Amina motions to the throne, “And that is why yo
u do not sit in this throne, Abrar. It is not within your power to make such decisions. Only to advise.”
Feeling Alexander step up behind her, Amina straightens and raises her chin as she steps off the throne’s dais. As she walks towards the doors of the throne room, Amina calls over her shoulder to Abrar.
“I trust you will remember this. For your sake.”
Not waiting to hear his response, Amina marches out of the room with Alexander hot on her heels. Once they are far enough away that Abrar will not hear, Amina collapses against the halls cool, stone wall and presses her forehead to it.
“I can’t believe I said that,” Amina whispers, knowing Alexander can hear her.
“I can’t believe you didn’t punch him,” Alexander mutters back.
Giggling at her friends’ comment, Amina sighs and her laughter halts as her mind wanders over the council meeting.
“I think I need to go speak to my father,” Amina ponders.
Nodding wordlessly, Alexander waits until Amina finally pushes away from the wall. Walking along the many hallways of the palace and down the backstairs towards the royal family’s private gardens, Amina pauses and turns to Alexander, her mind swimming with questions and self-doubt.
“Do you think I did the right thing in allowing Prince Maarku to stay here while he recovers?”
Tilting his head, Alexander seems to think her question over for a few minutes before finally shrugging and gives her a blank expression, “You are the Sheikha. It is not up to me to decide who you allow into your palace. I only protect you from those you let in.”
Before she can respond and even ponder the hidden message behind his statement, loud voices sound from the gardens. Peeking around the corner of the archway, Amina freezes at the sight of Haseem, Maarku’s guard and Maarku. The injured Prince, who hobbles behind his on crutches, is clearly the one who is making all of the noise.
Amina takes Maarku in full, after barely seeing him over the last few days. His chin and face are scruffier from his obvious decision not to shave. His ankle, still bandaged, is only slightly elevated off the ground as the crutches work to keep Maarku balanced. It is Maarku’s icy words that have Amina covering her mouth to keep her gasp from escaping.