Desert Rogues Part 2 (47 page)

“My father would ensure compatibility. The point is a few weeks ago my father mentioned he'd found me a bride. I told him I did not want any arrangements made. I assumed the matter was closed. But I was wrong.”

Billie stared at him. “If you're lying…”

“I give you my word. I did not know about Tahira yesterday.”

She supposed that was something. At least he wasn't a complete bastard. “And now?”

He hesitated long enough to make her furious.

“What?” she demanded. “Are you engaged or not?”

“As I said, the situation is complicated.”

“By what?”

“Tahira herself. She was raised in a particular way.”

“What? By wolves?”

“Nuns.”

Billie took a step back. “Are you telling me this girl is fresh from the convent?”

He nodded.

“Great. Let me guess the rest. She has no family, nowhere to go and golly, she's been trained to be the perfect princess.”

He sighed. “Why do I know your understanding is not a good thing?”

“Because you're not always an idiot. So what exactly makes her the perfect princess?” Billie couldn't remember anything about the girl. Just that she'd been painfully young.

“She is all I requested.”

Not sure she wanted to hear this, she still insisted, “Give me specifics.”

“I requested a wife who was reasonably attractive with a docile temperament and a fondness for children.”

She blinked. “What? You asked for that? This is a marriage, not eBay. You can't just place an order and then wait for the future princess to be delivered.”

“Why not?”

Billie wished she was big enough to slap him and have it hurt. Worse, she hated the sudden need to smash in his perfect face, but she couldn't seem to shake it, either. She thought briefly about her high-heeled sandal, but didn't think she was strong enough to actually pierce stupid, male flesh with the heel.

“I do not expect to love her,” Jefri said as if that explained everything. “Ours would be a marriage of convenience.”

“Tell me about it. A marriage in the tradition of all great misogynistic monarchies. I'm sure you'll enjoy sleeping with your reasonably attractive, docile wife and that together you'll produce reasonably attractive, docile children.”

“You do not understand.”

“I understand perfectly. That's not a marriage and it's sure as hell no way to live a life. If that's what you want, you're not the man I thought.”

She clung to that revelation and hoped it would be enough to help her get over him. Gathering her tattered dignity, she headed for the exit.

Unfortunately Jefri wasn't going to allow her a clean getaway. Instead he followed, keeping up with her easily.

“You are angry,” he said.

“Thanks for the news flash.”

“In time you will understand.”

She doubted that. Her fantasy was that in time he wouldn't matter to her. Not that he mattered now. Okay, they'd had some laughs and a really fabulous night, but that didn't mean anything. She hadn't fallen for him.

He reached for her arm. She spun toward him.

“Don't touch me,” she said, her voice low and angry. “You no longer have the right.”

“Billie, you have to be reasonable.”

“I don't think so. I don't think I have to be anything I don't want to be, and certainly not because you said so.”

“Please. You mean the world to me.”

“Ha! Even if I believed you, I wouldn't care. If you need a woman, I suggest you go check out Miss Docile and Reasonably Attractive. I'm sure she'll welcome you with open arms.”

B
illie hid out at the airport for another hour, but knew she couldn't stay there forever. Not unless she planned on moving back. The option gave her pause—was she willing to give up the perfect bathroom because of a broken heart? She quickly decided that living tubless would only add to her pain, so better to be at the palace and suffering than in a tent and hating life.

Once back at the palace, she found herself unable to stay in her room, so she collected Muffin and hurried toward the garden. Maybe being outside in something so beautiful would ease her spirits.

“I didn't expect to recover in fifteen seconds,” she told her dog as she set her down on the path. “But I would appreciate being able to breathe without shooting pains in my chest.”

Muffin gave her a quick sympathetic look before hurrying off to check out the nearby plants and shrubs. Billie sank onto a stone bench and contemplated her options.

She could leave. Contract or no contract, she could simply walk away from the job.

As soon as the thought formed, she dismissed it. She didn't run away and she didn't quit. Which left her in the unique position of having to regularly see the man who had hurt her.

Could she do it? “Dumb question,” she murmured. “Of course I can do it. The trick will be doing it well.”

She probed at the open wounds to gauge their depth. How long until she recovered? How long until she was able to look back at all this and know it had been an important lesson for her to learn? If nothing else, the sex had been fabulous. She'd figured out she had the kind of body that responded really well to the right sort of touch. Maybe she should stop thinking about Jefri and start figuring out who she could find to replace him. Would taking another lover make her feel better?

She wasn't sure of the answer to the question, but the thought of another man doing what he had done made her stomach roll. Okay, so she would need a little time and distance before searching out another lover. That was fine. She had time.

Muffin trotted past on her way to another tree where a long sniffing session was in order. Billie watched her, then stiffened when she heard footsteps on the path. Her heart fluttered, then slowed when she realized they didn't belong to Jefri.

How horrible that her world had been reduced to him or not him. Funny how she hadn't known she was involved and now she had to work on getting over him.

The king rounded the corner in the path and moved toward her. Billie knew bolting wasn't an option so she braced herself for the interruption and rose to her feet.

“Please,” he said as he waved her back onto her seat. “Do you mind a little company?”

“Of course not, Your Highness.”

He sat next to her and took her hand. “I will admit that spending time with such a beautiful young woman brightens my day.”

She did her best to smile. “While I appreciate the compliment, you're in a position of great power. Doesn't that mean you can get all the young women you want?”

He raised his eyebrows. “You are right. I had forgotten. I will see to acquiring as many as possible this very afternoon.”

Her smile turned genuine. “That would make for an interesting to-do list.”

“I agree. My staff would not know what had happened to me.” He patted her hand, then released it. “Tell me about the training. It goes well?”

“Yes. You have excellent pilots in the program.” None better than Jefri, but she wasn't going to talk about him if she could help it. “We're taking their individual strengths and honing them, while shoring up weaknesses. At the same time, we're working on making them a team. Your deserts will be well protected from the skies.”

“That is good to hear.” The king sighed. “Times changed. A hundred years ago could anyone have imagined having to patrol the deserts in such a fashion?”

“Probably not. But change isn't always bad.”

“I agree. We must keep up with the times, as they say. Move forward. Invest in our future.”

“Is that what Tahira is?” she asked before she could stop herself. “An investment in the future?”

She kept her gaze on Muffin rather than the king, but she felt the monarch study her.

“I am an old man,” he said. “Is it so wrong for me to want grandchildren to brighten my days?”

“Not at all. I wish you a great many.”

He patted her knee. “Our ways are different and can be confusing, but the desires of a parent are universal. We want our children to be happy, to produce the next generation.”

“You're certainly going to get that.”

“You do not approve of Tahira.”

Billie glanced at him. “I don't know her, but I'm sure she's a lovely young woman.”

“Then you do not understand why Jefri would enter into an arranged union.”

“I'll admit that practice is a little mind-boggling.”

“He was married before. Did he tell you?”

She nodded. “He said she wasn't what he thought. That she was more interested in money and position than being his wife.”

“That is correct. When Jefri learned of this, he came to me to ask for a divorce, which I granted. He was sad to see his marriage end, but not heartbroken. I realized then he had never loved her.” The king looked into the distance. “I have married for duty and for love, and I have learned that marrying for love is better. I tried to tell him that, but he would not listen. When it was time for him to produce heirs, he asked me to find him the proper bride.”

Billie bristled as she remembered Jefri's list. “Docile, reasonably attractive and good with children.”

The king raised his eyebrows. “He told you that?”

“Sometimes the prince only
looks
intelligent.”

He laughed. “Perhaps you are correct. I waited for him to find his own bride, but he did not seem to be interested in looking, so I agreed to conduct the search myself.”

“Enter Tahira.”

“Yes. She is a good girl, raised by the sisters, instructed on how to be the right kind of wife.”

Billy couldn't help thinking of the trained animals in a circus.

“How lucky for her,” she said, hoping the words didn't sound too sarcastic.

“You do not approve.”

“I doubt my opinion matters.”

“There are other circumstances,” the king said. “Her father was a close friend of mine and I promised to look after her. The school sheltered her from the world and now she has to leave.”

Billie turned to him. “You chose the school specifically. You wanted Tahira to be innocent, raised in a manner to make her worthy of being a princess. You thought she
should
marry one of your sons.”

He nodded.

“Why not Crown Prince Murat?” she asked in a moment of desperation.

“Tahira would not survive the rigors of being queen. She isn't strong enough.”

“Which leaves only Jefri,” Billie said dully.

“It is a matter of honor. To break the engagement now would be to dishonor the memory of my friend and Tahira's good name.”

Of course, Billie thought. Why would anything be easy?

“Tahira could break things off,” the king added. “If she wanted to.”

“Right.” Because she had so many other choices. No doubt she'd been raised expecting to marry Jefri from the time she could grasp the concept. What young woman in Tahira's place would
want
to say no?

“Still, I will not force my son into a marriage he does not want,” the king said. “Should Jefri come to me…”

He let the words trail away, but she had already figured out what he meant. Should Jefri go to his father and demand the engagement be broken, the king would agree. But there would be a scandal and Jefri would be seen as selfish and willful. Tahira would be dishonored and while Billie wasn't sure what went along with that, she knew it couldn't be good.

It was a lot to ask, based on one night of great sex.

“Jefri won't come to you,” she said with a sureness that made the ache inside worse. “He and I…” She swallowed. “We never had a relationship. There's nothing for either of us to get over.”

“As you wish, my dear.”

It wasn't as she wished, but it was exactly as it was. Billie excused herself and called for Muffin. Most of the time she really liked her life, but sometimes, like now, it sucked.

 

Billie and Muffin walked back to their room. Billie figured she was due a long soak in the massive tub. She would use her most expensive bath salts and do her best to float away her troubles. She would stay in until she got all wrinkly, then she would put on the fluffy robe provided by the palace, curl up in bed and watch chick flicks from the DVD collection. She'd more than earned the time to lick her wounds.

But as she walked toward her door, she saw someone leaning against the wall. As her heart didn't even flicker, she knew it wasn't Jefri. Muffin gave a little bark of excitement and ran down the hallway. Her dog only ever got that happy when Doyle was around.

“What do you want?” Billie asked as she approached. “Just so you know—I'm not in the mood for a lecture.”

“I wasn't planning to give one,” he said as he held her dog and fondled Muffin's ears. “I'm just checking on you.”

“I'm still alive, still breathing. Is that information enough?”

One look in Doyle's blue eyes told her the answer was no. She sighed, then pushed opened the door and stood back to let him in.

“You have ten minutes,” she said. “Then I want to take a bath.”

Her brother set down the dog. “How bad are you hurt?” he asked.

The unexpected question, not to mention the concern in his voice, nearly did her in. Tears burned in her eyes and she had to blink them back.

“I'm fine.”

“You never were much of a liar,” he said, his expression grim. “Dammit, Billie, I tried to warn you.”

“I'm fine,” she repeated, doing her best to mean it this time. “We had a few laughs, a good time and now it's over.”

Doyle narrowed his gaze. “Tell me he didn't break your heart.”

She dismissed the statement with a flick of her wrist. “I didn't know him long enough for him to break anything. Come on. It was a few days. Am I happy that there's now someone else? No. But I'm not destroyed. I'll get over this and move on with my life.”

She liked how the words sounded, how
she
sounded, but there was a cold place inside that told her she might not be telling the truth about any of it.

Better not to go there, she thought.

“He's a bastard,” Doyle said flatly as he shoved his hands into his slacks pockets. “I should go beat the crap out of him.”

“While I appreciate the sentiment, I would urge caution. There are several flaws in your plan.”

“Such as?”

“Jefri isn't totally to blame. He didn't know about Tahira either.”

“He sent his father looking for a wife. In my book that makes him damn guilty.”

“Agreed, but he also asked him to call off the search.” Billie tried to focus on the sweetness of her brother wanting to take care of her rather than the pain of Jefri's betrayal. “He was just as shocked as the rest of us.”

“But you're the one who was hurt,” Doyle insisted. “I should go find him right now and reduce him to mush.”

“Not a good idea. Whatever the outcome, you'd probably be thrown in prison. I doubt they'd treat you very well, so I'd be forced to sell myself to the head guard just to get you food and water.”

Doyle moved close and cupped her cheek. “I'm not kidding, Billie. I want him to pay.”

She nodded. “I'm not kidding either. I want you to stay out of this. You're not in charge of my life.”

“I told you this would happen if you got involved with him but you wouldn't listen.”

She hadn't wanted to listen. She'd wanted to be with Jefri. He'd excited her and challenged her. She'd thought…

She'd thought a lot of things, she admitted to herself. She'd wanted the fantasy—a handsome prince who adored her. Well, for twenty-four hours she'd had just that. Now it was back to the real world.

She stepped back from Doyle's touch and squared her shoulders. “I'm going to be okay with this,” she said firmly. “I'm a little rattled by what happened because coming home to Jefri's fiancée seems grossly unfair, but I suppose that's the downside of dating a prince. We had a good time. I don't regret what happened and I refuse to apologize for it.”

“That sounds pretty tough.”

“It's the truth. You can believe it or not.”

He shook his head. “This is why we've all tried to protect you. Left on your own, you get into trouble.”