by Erin Snihur
Groaning at her sister’s vulgar language, Teresa palmed her face with her free hand. “How are you the older one? Aren’t you supposed to be the mature responsible sibling?”
Shrugging, Samantha leaned back in her chair. “Just lucky, I guess. Now, forget about all your doubts, but if you want to make that man grovel for a smidgen of your attention, you need to look fierce tonight.”
“I don’t want him to grovel,” Teresa protested as Samantha stood and darted inside the room, scanning Teresa’s hung up clothes in the closet.
“Trust me, you do. That way, the ball is in your court. With Gerry, the ball was never in your court. He always took advantage of your sweet nature. Not tonight. Tonight, you are in charge,” Samantha called out as she took another sip of her cocktail.
“If that was the case, then I would be the one deciding what to wear and how to act tonight,” Teresa pouted and leaned against the balcony door jamb as she watched her sister sift through her dresses.
Looking over her shoulder, Samantha winked. “I’m the oldest, remember? Heed my wisdom, young one!”
“Explain to me again why I have to come with you on this date?” Tariq asked loudly from Amoz’ suite balcony.
Amoz stood before his bedroom mirror, fixing the collar of his blazer and dress shirt underneath. Scanning the mirror and meeting Tariq’s eyes briefly, Amoz inwardly rolled his eyes as his friend took another sip from his whiskey glass.
“I need tonight to go well and the only way Teresa will feel comfortable with me is if her sister is there. So, her sister needed a date. Here you are,” Amoz recalls again as he fiddles with the top button of his dress shirt, trying to decide if he should button it or leave it open as a more casual look.
“Why do you need me? I can remember when we were attending boarding school you conquered the Smith twins both separately and at the same time,” Tariq called out, laughing to himself.
Grimacing, Amoz turned away from the mirror and strode out on the balcony, leveling Tariq with a hard look. “Don’t mention any sordid details of my past at dinner and don’t mention the whole royalty thing. For either of us. We’re just two friends who are on vacation.”
Tariq choked on his drink and sputtered as Amoz grimaced and stalked back into the room.
Following hot on his heels, Tariq cried out, “How the hell do you plan on hiding the fact that you're the freaking Sheik of Elish? How can I hide that fact, anyway? Don’t you think these women know the truth? Why else would they agree to go out to dinner with us?”
“They don’t know anything about Elish other than the basics. That’s why they are visiting. Teresa mentioned something about falling in love with Arabian culture as a child and wanting to visit the Arabian Coast for some time. Her sister just joined her, probably to keep an eye on her. Teresa’s been through something awful and clearly deserves to have the best vacation possible,” Amoz muttered as he slid his sterling silver watch on his wrist.
“Oh my god, you’re in love with this woman! For the love of the gods, has everyone gone insane? First Khalid with Amelia, then Malik with Samara and now you!” Tariq yelled loudly.
“I’m not in love with her, Tariq. I like her and she’s beautiful. This is the first woman I’ve been attracted to in a long time and I won’t have you messing it up. Now are you with me or not?” Leveling his friend with his most serious Sheik stare, Amoz waited.
His friend was silent for a while as they stared each other down. It was clear Tariq was in disbelief about this turn of events, but Amoz was determined that this night go off without a hitch.
“Fine!” Tariq grumbled finally and downed the last of his whiskey. “You owe me for this one.”
“Teresa’s sister is beautiful and smart, you’ll have fun,” Amoz grinned and patted his friend on the shoulder.
“They’re Americans,” Tariq protested.
Laughing, Amoz shook his head. “Careful. One of these days a pretty American is going to catch your eye and you’ll regret that statement.”
Shoving Amoz aside, Tariq stood before his mirror and straightened his blazer, “Never. Unless I meet a woman, who can best me both physically and mentally, I will never settle down.”
Amoz rolled his eyes heavenward and sent a prayer to Allah, Make it so.
7
Teresa pulled down the hem of the tight, maroon cocktail dress Samantha had demanded she wear for dinner tonight. Sliding her hands down the soft material, Teresa cringed. Her ass must look huge in this dress. Coupled with the silver, high heeled shoes, Teresa worried she might make a complete fool out of herself.
“Stop playing with it. You look amazing. I saw the way Amoz looked at you in your maroon colored dress at the club and he’s sure to lose his tongue when he sees you tonight,” Samantha ordered at her side.
Clutching her hands to her sides, Teresa turned to face her sister away from the entrance of the restaurant. “I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can. Be brave, be you. He already likes you enough to go to this much trouble, let the dress do the rest!” Samantha crooned and fiddled with her own sapphire dress by pulling up the front to give her cleavage a little boost.
Rolling her eyes at her sister’s provocative show, Teresa scanned the area. Amoz was nowhere in sight. Maybe it had all been a trick? Boys back home had always liked playing pranks on Teresa when she’d been younger. Maybe things were the same way in Elish.
Before Teresa could protest again and demand they return to their room with their tails between their legs, two tall, familiar looking men strode out of the restaurant. Amoz smiled at her and swept out a hand to introduce his grey eyed friend.
“Teresa, Samantha, this one of my best friends, Tariq,” Amoz said and the grey eyed man, Tariq, nodded, his charming grin spreading across his face as he stepped closer to take Teresa’s hand. Placing a kiss on the top before reaching out to take her sister’s hand, Tariq winked at her sister who blushed and giggled in response.
“A pleasure to be invited to dine with you beautiful ladies,” Tariq murmured against Samantha’s hand.
Rolling his eyes, Amoz playfully pushes Tariq away. “Ignore him. He’s a hopeless flirt.”
Mockingly shocked, Tariq held a hand to his chest. “Cut to the quick, Amoz.”
Ignoring his friend, Amoz held out his arm for Teresa and Tariq did the same for Samantha.
“They have our table all set up and I hope you don’t mind, but I already ordered some authentic Arabian food,” Amoz said softly, keeping his pale brown eyes firmly on Teresa’s.
Samantha spoke up then, her cheery voice taking with her Amoz’ gaze, “Sounds perfect. Teresa and I were hoping to take a cab into the city or one of the smaller towns to experience the local food.”
Tariq offered, “Amoz and I can take you. Allow us to be your tour guides. Amoz himself grew up here while I grew up in the neighboring Arabian country, Hattan, but they are not so different when it comes to food.”
Once they were seated in a private section of the restaurant, Teresa finally noticed they were the only group in this section.
Leaning close to Amoz, who sat at her side while Samantha and Tariq flirted over something silly, Teresa whispered, “How were you able to reserve an entire section of the dining room for our dinner on such short notice?”
Amoz leaned forward and winked at her. “I have my ways.”
“Uh-huh, just like you had your ways of finding out where our room was so you could send those flowers?” Teresa asked as she took a sip from her water glass, her eyes never leaving Amoz’ heated gaze.
Amoz’ grin widened. “I could never reveal all my secrets. Especially on our first date.”
Teresa’s insides warmed and she blushed, staring down at the table cloth as she mumbled, “This isn’t our first date. It isn’t a date at all, remember? Just friends.”
“We’ll see,” was all Amoz said before an approaching waiter interrupted and greeted their foursome.
After detailing the wine
listing to which Teresa was hardly an expert in, the waiter departed, stating their first course would be arriving shortly.
Teresa had never been gifted in small talk. She’d only been on a few dates before Gerry and after Gerry she hadn’t been ready to date. What did one ask in this type of situation?
As if sensing her sister’s confusion, Samantha piped up, her eyes bright and her smile cheerful, “So, Tariq, Amoz, what do you do for work?”
Tariq took the lead and Teresa couldn’t help but try to avoid Amoz’ gaze as he stared at her, while Tariq spoke of a few corporations he was invested in and a few charities he ran back in his home country of Hattan.
When Samantha began asking more questions, Teresa leaned in close to Amoz. “I’m sorry for being rude to you tonight, this is lovely.”
Leaning in closer to her as well, Amoz whispered back, “You were right though. This is not our first date. If it was, my friend and your sister would not be here.”
Laughing at his joke, Teresa felt herself beginning to grow comfortable with Amoz’ teasing and before she knew it, the first course had been served, taken away and they were onto their main course.
The main course, a soup like substance, sat in a large bowl with a ladle in the center of the table.
“It looks like a bowl of gravy with green things mixed in,” Samantha grimaced as she and Teresa both inspected the bowl’s contents.
Off to the side on a warm plate was warm naan bread cut into medium sized triangles. Good-naturedly, the two men laughed at Samantha’s comparison.
“It is called foul meddamas. Don’t let the name fool you,” Amoz murmured. “It is very hearty and good for your bones. Here, let me show you how we eat it here in Elish.”
With practiced ease, Amoz carefully filled his own empty bowl full of the brown soup and took a few pieces of warm naan bread for his side plate. Expertly, Amoz took a piece of naan bread and, with his own spoon, scooped the hot beans and veggies onto the top. Folding the naan bread like a burrito, Teresa half expected the sexy man to bite into it. Instead, he held it up to her lips.
“Bite,” Amoz ordered, his pale brown eyes boring a hole through hers.
Shivering, Teresa felt herself moving and lips opening without even a second thought. Biting down into the warm bread, Teresa’s eyes widened as the rich flavor exploded in her mouth.
Moaning in delight, Teresa chewed and swallowed before laughing aloud as she covered her mouth and turned her gaze to her sister who watched amused. “I can taste the lemon and fava beans! Try some, Sam.”
Turning back to Amoz, who was now finishing the naan bread she’d only taken a bite out of, Teresa blushed at the thought of sharing food with such a man.
“Thank you,” Teresa whispered to him and Amoz politely inclined his head before gesturing to her to take more.
The night continued in a blur of laughter, wine and tantalizing food. Before she knew it, the food was gone and they were now walking around the resort. In the tropical trees and entangled in the low bushes were twinkling lights. While she saw a few people passing them on the cobbled stone pathway, the resort was relatively quiet. At some point, Amoz’ hand met hers and she didn’t pull away when he held it while her sister and Tariq walked ahead, arguing over politics.
“I had an enjoyable time tonight,” Amoz murmured when Tariq and Samantha were a few feet away.
Smiling, Teresa nodded. “I did too.”
“I didn’t want to say it in front of your sister, I know how nervous you are, but you look beautiful tonight,” Amoz said, pulling her to a stop so that Tariq and Samantha disappeared around a corner up ahead.
Shyly staring at their entwined hands, Teresa blushed, feeling his eyes boring into hers as she whispered unconvincingly, “Thank you.”
“You don’t sound very convinced,” Amoz said, his words light and teasing, but rang of the truth. Teresa wasn’t convinced. All night she’d heard funny, yet daunting stories of Amoz and Tariq as little devils in boarding school and then what a charmer Amoz was when Tariq would ever get into trouble. If he was that much of a charmer, why would he be so interested in her?
Ugly cow. Useless cow. Cold, heartless bitch, had been Gerry’s favorite words to describe her in the later years of their marriage when he’d go on an alcoholic binge.
Who knew when she would be truly rid of him and his hateful nature? Even thousands of miles away on the other side of the planet, she heard those words. Her vision blurred as she continued to stare at Amoz’ large, tanned hands holding her small, pale ones.
“Teresa?” Amoz murmured and before she could stop him, he dropped her hand and cupped her chin, forcing her to stare into his eyes with her own. He must have sensed her withdrawing and, when his thumb smoothed a tear across her cheek, Teresa released a harsh breath.
Teresa wasn’t sure what to say. She wasn’t sure how to say it, period. How could she tell this handsome, strong man that she was scarred, both visibly and emotionally? Her mind racing as Amoz called her name a second time, forced her to open her mouth and blurt out the only thing she could think of. The one statement that would surely cool his attentions.
“I’m married.”
8
“I’m married.”
Teresa’s words had startled Amoz into shock. He stared down at her as her gaze met his, waiting for his response. As he stared, Amoz knew what she wanted him to say. She wanted him to pull away. She thought her statement would scare him.
It only infuriated him. What kind of man allowed a woman such as Teresa to escape?
Not taking his eyes off of hers, Amoz dropped his hands, inwardly tensing as her face relaxed, but tensed further when he gripped her left hand. Softly caressing each finger until he came to her bare ring finger, Amoz tilted his head toward her.
“Where is your ring?” Amoz asked simply.
Amoz watched as Teresa’s face flushed and she glanced down at her left hand. Her face frowned for a minute before breaking out into sheepish smile.
“I threw it into the Atlantic Ocean when we landed in New York before catching our second flight to Elish,” Teresa murmured, clearly embarrassed.
Laughing softly, Amoz shook his head and tucked a strand of her hair away from her face. “You don’t sound like a happily married woman.”
As if trying to come up with a response, Teresa blew out a harsh breath and pushed him aside. Strolling past him, Amoz watched and waited. She only walked a few steps away and stopped before a beautiful lily bush that grew wild off the side of the path.
“He’s not a pleasant man. Our marriage is over, but it’s not legally over yet,” Teresa finally murmured and turned away from the flowers to stare at him.
Amoz smiled gently. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
“So, you see?” she asked him with hope in her voice.
He did. He understood why she was so frightened of him, of any men really. Her husband. He was no man. He was a coward.
“I do.” Amoz nodded and stepped closer to her, his hands moving to her shoulders, “Now that I understand what has you so scared, we can take our time and I’ll be gentle when I take you to my bed, ya helo.”
Amoz felt her tense and heard her intake of breath before she pushed against his chest and he was met with her glaring green eyes.
Shit.
“What are you talking about?” Teresa exclaimed, her lipstick stained lips gaped open in shock. “You think I want to sleep with you?”
Teresa had never felt so embarrassed in all her life. She’d just revealed to almost a complete stranger a horrible part of her past. Something she didn’t wish to even think about, but found it reared its ugly head more often than not since she met Amoz.
Amoz sputtered, reaching out his hands as if to touch her, but when Teresa flinched at the contact, he dropped his hands in exasperation.
Running his hands through his thick hair, Amoz leveled her with a smoldering look. “I thought you were explaining to me why you were nervous about our attractio
n. You must feel it, ya helo.”
Teresa did. How could she not? His close shaven face and pale eyes called to her. Amoz reminded her of every erotic dream she’d had over the years and every romantic novel she’d read.
Shaking her head, Teresa set her jaw stubbornly. “No, I don’t.”
“Liar,” was all Amoz murmured before his hand snaked out around her waist and pulled her against him.
With a thud, their bodies collided and Teresa only had a moment to place her hands on his broad chest. A gasp escaped her lips and as her mouth opened, Amoz struck.
His head descended and his mouth took hers with smooth ease. Teresa didn’t know what to do. All she knew was that she didn’t want it to stop. His lips tasted of their meal and his tongue quickly thwarted hers for dominance. With one hand wrapped around her waist, squeezing her side, his other hand slid up her back and delved into her hair.
Teresa moaned into his mouth, her body melting against his as her hands seemed to move of their own accord up the length of his chest and around his neck. As soon as her fingers touched his lightly bearded face, Amoz ended the kiss and pulled away. Leaning his forehead against hers, Teresa stared up at him through heavily lidded eyes as they both breathed heavily after the effect of his kiss and touch.
“That was hot,” the teasing voice of her sister, Samantha, called out and Teresa felt herself jumping away from Amoz as he reluctantly removed his hands from around her waist.
Samantha grinned only a few steps away from them, hands on her cocked hip as Tariq casually threw an arm over her shoulder. He too was grinning and Teresa had never felt so embarrassed in all her life. She felt like a teenager being caught by her parents with her boyfriend.
“What do you think, Tariq? Should we leave them alone and go find our own little corner of paradise?” Samantha crooned teasingly up at the attractive man leaning against her.