Sheikh’s Fiancée (2 page)

One day,
Karim thought to himself as he fingered the ring in his pocket, which would shortly go on Sheridan’s finger. One day he, too, would be married, and he would have his happily ever after as well.

Chapter Two

“Karim, is everything all right with you?”

Karim cursed as the tennis ball went bouncing past him and turned on his heel to chase after it. He was out on the tennis court with Kahlid early in the morning, as was their usual tradition. When he was home, they always started off the morning with a friendly tennis match, both to get the blood moving and to have a little time together before the day started.

“I’m fine,” Karim grumbled as he snatched the ball up. He returned to the court, then tossed the ball into the air and served it to Kahlid.

Kahlid effortlessly returned the ball with a graceful backswing, and Karim darted backward to hit the ball before it sailed over his head. But he miscalculated, leaning too far backward. Though he clipped the ball with the tail end of his racket, he lost his balance, landing on the green pavement with a jarring
thud.

“Okay, that’s it.” Frowning, Kahlid set aside his racket and closed the distance between them. The ball bounced off into the distance behind Kahlid’s side, forgotten as he held out a hand for his brother. “I haven’t seen you this clumsy on the court since we were fourteen years old. What has gotten into you?”

Karim sighed as he took his brother’s hand and let Kahlid pull him to his feet. “It’s just… Azira said that she wasn’t going to be able to make it today. Her modeling job in China has been extended.”

“I see.” Kahlid eyed him warily. “And this is upsetting to you?”

Karim sighed. “I suppose it shouldn’t be. I knew that as a model she would have engagements that would create scheduling conflicts between us. But if she couldn’t be here for the wedding itself, I at least had hoped she would be here for the
Valima.
It’s just… I fear this sort of thing will be viewed as a slight to our family.”

“I would not worry too much about what the public thinks,” Kahlid said. “What really matters is what you think.”

Karim set his jaw. “I think she is healthy, beautiful, and a good match. And those are the things that matter most when you choose a wife.”

 
“Indeed.” Kahlid inclined his head, choosing not to engage in an argument the two of them had already had several times over the past couple of months.

Karim sighed. “Can we just play tennis?”

“As you wish, brother.” Kahlid turned away, then hopped over the low net to retrieve the ball. But as Karim watched his brother walk away, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Kahlid’s unspoken words would come back to bite him very soon.

***

“You know,” Alice murmured to Sheridan as they walked into the banquet room, “I have to say that the food around here always smells completely divine.”

Sheridan snickered as she caught Alice scanning the buffet tables laden with silver pans and trays of food. “Down, tiger. You’re getting drool on your dress.”

“Only a little.” Alice mimed wiping drool off her chin, and then she approached the wedding party table with Sheridan. This was the final leg of the wedding ceremony, the
Valima
, where the groom’s family hosted a huge feast that signified the consummation of the marriage, which was supposed to happen the evening before.

From the glow on Sheridan’s face when she woke up this morning, and the twinkle in Kahlid’s eyes as he rose from his seat to greet his new bride, Alice had a feeling they’d definitely consummated the marriage, and then some. She felt a flash of jealousy at the idea – it had been two weeks since she’d last gotten laid, what with this trip, and the resulting frenzy of actually getting everything done at work she needed to before taking off. She could definitely use a little pick-me-up sex right now.

“My beautiful wife!” Kahlid exclaimed as he approached Sheridan with open arms. His dark eyes twinkled as he embraced her. “You look gorgeous as always.”

“Why thank you, husband,” Sheridan teased before she planted a kiss on his cheek. She wore a deep blue
abaya
with silver embroidery that matched her eyes perfectly, and her hair was done up in a burgeoning pile of curls that almost made Alice wish she’d kept her hair long so that she could have done something similar.

“And you look lovely as well, of course,” Kahlid told Alice, embracing her as well. He then pulled out a chair so Sheridan could sit next to him, then gestured to a chair on the opposite end of the table. “I had initially intended to seat you next to Sheridan, but her father insisted on having that honor. Would you mind taking this seat instead?”

Alice blinked as she glanced at the chair on the other side of the table. It was directly across from the chair she’d intended to sit in, just two away from Kahlid’s… and right next to the empty chair stood Karim, who was staring directly at her. A warm flush spread across Alice’s cheeks at the intensity in Karim’s amber eyes, and her pulse sped up.

“Umm, sure, that’s no problem,” she blurted hastily.

“Well, are you sure?” Sheridan’s father placed a hand on her shoulder. “I don’t want to kick you out of your chair if you were set on sitting here.”

“It’s not a problem.” Smiling, Alice quickly kissed Daniel on the cheek, earning a grin from the old man. “I’m sure Karim doesn’t bite.”

She winked at Karim then, whose eyes flashed with surprise. But he quickly recovered with a grin of his own, pulling out the chair next to him.

“I don’t bite unless food is involved,” he murmured near her ear as he pushed her chair back in.

Another blush warmed her cheeks. “Well, as far as I can tell, food does seem to be involved here,” she pointed out as he settled himself in the chair next to her.

Karim laughed. “Yes, and it is excellent food indeed,” he said as the servants came around to serve them.

Alice was given butter chicken, some kind of pureed spicy spinach, basmati rice, and a small bowl of cucumbers swimming in spicy yogurt sauce into which bread could be dipped. She spent much of the time conversing with the various family members at the table, of which there were many – it would seem that the royal family had cousins and distant relatives aplenty. They were all very pleasant and well-mannered, and with all manner of stories to tell – Alice had been worried they might be a little averse to her because of the difference in race, but in actual fact they were curious and asked her as much about her own customs as they told her about theirs.

When the feast was over, the tables were cleared away from the floor, and Kahlid and Sheridan went out along with several other couples to dance. Alice watched longingly from the sides as Sheridan swirled across the dance floor with her new husband. She loved to dance, but in this unfamiliar territory she wasn’t sure of the appropriate way to approach a man and ask him for a twirl out on the floor. Usually when she asked a guy to dance back home, it meant she was sizing him up for sex, and very often she ended up back at his place. But here, amongst all these middle easterners, she was lost.

“You look like you’re sorely in need of a dance partner.” Alice started at the sound of Karim’s voice at her ear. She glanced up to see him standing at her right, his amber eyes twinkling down at her though no smile graced his lips. He’d traded in his
sherwani
from yesterday for a dark suit that fit his tall, lean build perfectly, the crisp white collar of his shirt a stark contrast to his dark skin. His features were God-graced like his brother’s; high cheekbones, square jaw, but his nose was a little softer, his eyes paler, his lips just a little bit fuller. And the way those thick lashes framed those sparkling amber eyes…

Stop it, Alice. He’s taken.

“I am in need of a dance partner,” she responded, her lips quirking up at the corner. “Are you offering?”

“Well, considering that my beloved isn’t here to dance with me tonight, I find myself in need of a dance partner as well.” Karim offered a hand to her.

Butterflies fluttered in Alice’s stomach as she stared at Karim’s outstretched hand. Was this a good idea? Should she go out there with him?

Why not? Surely he wouldn’t ask you to dance if it was going to create a problem… not at his brother’s own wedding.

“This isn’t inappropriate or anything, is it?”

Karim shook his head. “Not at all. Partners are not required to be couples to enjoy a dance, so long as we follow common decency.”

“Right.” Swallowing hard, she placed her hand in his. Warmth from his palm soaked into her hand as he curled his fingers around hers, then rolled straight up her arm and into her chest. The crowd parted slightly as he guided her onto the dance floor, and she held her breath, waiting for someone to object. But no one did. In fact Sheridan shot her a brilliant smile from across the room, clearly giving her approval.

Well, I guess that’s that then.

Alice lifted her head to stare into Karim’s amber eyes as he placed one hand on her shoulder and the other at the curve of her back. A lively, exotic melody began to play from the speakers, and Karim joined his hand with hers, sending a jolt of electricity through her.

“Relax,” he murmured, a smile curving his lips. “You’re too tense.”

Alice sucked in a deep breath through her nostrils, and then let it out slowly through her mouth, forcing her shoulders to relax. They danced to the music together, falling into perfect sync, and eventually Alice forgot about being self-conscious, forgot about the sensations Karim’s hands inspired in her as she lost herself to the music.

“The music here in the Middle East is very different,” she commented. “Much more… dramatic than what I’m used to in America.”

Karim smiled at her. “This is an Arabesque song,” he told her as he whirled her across the floor. “Just one of many different styles of music you’ll find here in the Middle East. You’ll find we have quite varied tastes culture to culture.”

“I can only imagine,” Alice said. “Are you a music aficionado?”

“I’ve collected an album or two in my time.” His eyes twinkled. “Perhaps the next time you come to visit, I can show you some of them.”

Alice’s cheeks warmed – a guy inviting her to his place to share his album collection with her was, in her world, an invitation for something a lot more than just listening to music. But Karim wasn’t stroking her inappropriately, and his manner was genial rather than lustful.

Relax, girl,
she scolded herself.
He’s probably just trying to be friendly.

“I’d like that sometime,” she told him.

They danced in silence for a few minutes more, before she finally blurted out the topic that had been nagging her. “So I heard you have a fiancée?”

Karim faltered in his steps for just a moment. “I do. Her name is Azira Shahaad.”

“Oh!” Alice’s eyes flew wide as an image of a dark-skinned Arabian beauty flashed in her mind. “The model?”

Karim’s eyebrows rose. “Indeed. Do you know her?”

“Well, not personally,” Alice said, “But I work in the fashion industry so it would be hard for me not to have heard of her. She’s a rising star in the fashion world right now.”

“Ah, so you work in fashion as well?” Karim’s lips quirked up again. “How ironic.”

“Well, I’m not a model,” Alice told him, “I’m a buyer for Armani.”

“Is that right?” Karim’s amber eyes scanned her up and down, and this time there was an unmistakable flash of heat in their depths. “Well, you certainly could do a runway justice, if I’m any judge.”

Warmth spread through Alice’s lower belly at the look in his eyes combined with the compliment. Karim changed their direction then, his movements effortless and graceful, and a tingle raced through her body as his chest brushed against hers. The warmth in her body built steadily into a sizzling heat until her heart was pounding again, and the air between them had thickened to the point that she almost couldn’t breathe. She’d never felt anything like this when dancing with a man, and certainly not with one she wasn’t even trying to seduce.

Jesus, what was happening to her? Why couldn’t she keep her mind out of the gutter as far as this man was concerned?

The song finally ended, and Karim guided her to the edge of the dance floor. Relief coursed through her as he released her from his dangerous grip – she had a bad feeling that if they’d continued on for another song she might have crossed a line she would regret.

And though Alice had few lines in her life, she prided herself very highly on refusing to cross the ones she did have.

“Thank you for the honor of allowing me to dance with you.” Karim sketched a bow, his amber eyes still gleaming.

“It was a pleasure,” Alice said, automatically returning the bow with as best a curtsy she could do with her
abaya
.

“I assure you, the pleasure was all mine.” Karim inclined his head, and then turned away and left Alice staring after him as he disappeared into the crowd.

She would have to remember not to find herself alone with him under any circumstances, she told herself as she watched him go. A man who could inspire feelings like that in her were dangerous, and if she wasn’t careful, he would unravel her.

Chapter Three

Four months later

Karim sat at his desk and chewed on the end of a pencil as he stared at a schematic for a new architectural design he was working on. Since he had a background in architectural design, Kahlid always put him in charge of any new structure they were building, and these current schematics were for a new hotel they were building right on the water here in Dubai.

As if they really needed another hotel. But he trusted his brother implicitly regarding business acumen, which was his strong suit. Just as Kahlid would never question the integrity of one of his designs, he would never question one of Kahlid’s business decisions.

That wasn’t to say either brother shied away from pointing out flaws or impracticalities to the other. If Kahlid truly thought one of Karim’s designs was a disaster he wouldn’t hesitate to say so, and Karim would do the same if he thought Kahlid was walking in on a terrible business deal. But, in general, the brothers trusted one another’s decisions.