The Sheik's Secret Bride (3 page)

Without her even being aware of leaving the cab, she and Bethany had been ushered out of the car and into this mystery room just past the main double doors. She could hear conversation behind her and had the bad feeling that their luggage had been removed from the cab and taken who knows where.

This isn’t happening, she told herself firmly.
Really.
We’re not being kidnapped, nor is this anything more than a simple misunderstanding.

“Mommy, look!”

Liana followed
Bethany
’s gaze as her daughter stared up at an oval ceiling depicting the night sky. Glittering stars twinkled down at them, and, on what she assumed was the east side of the room, the first hint of sunrise
glowed
faint pink against the inky darkness. The entire picture was edged in gold paint. Or maybe real gold…she couldn’t tell. The walls were the same dark color as the ceiling, but the color came from hundreds of tiny tiles. More tiles covered the floor in a pattern showing a dragon guarding a kingdom she suspected was El
Bahar
.

“You think the ceiling is something,” Liana murmured, “look at what you’re standing on.”

Bethany
did so, then jumped back to study the large, dangerous-looking creature.

“I stepped on his tail,” her daughter whispered. “Do you think he’s mad?”

“People have stepped on more than that,” Prince
Malik
said as he walked into the room. “Welcome. I trust your cab ride was pleasant enough?”

“It was fine,” Liana said, determined to ignore the way her blood seemed to sing as it flowed hotter and faster throughout her body. Yes, the prince was rugged and fabulously good-looking—and well, a prince. But she refused to let herself be distracted by him.
By any of this.
And how had he had time to get to the palace ahead of them, let alone time to change his clothes? Or had he been wearing that gray suit under his robes?

“You will find the palace very comfortable,” Prince
Malik
said.

Liana wasn’t sure if he was making a statement or issuing an order. Not that it mattered. “It’s lovely. The palace, I mean,” she said.
“Impressive and not where we want to live.”

Bethany
came up beside her, and Liana put her arm around her slender daughter. “I am a teacher for the
American
School
. As such, I was promised housing there. I don’t know why you’ve brought me to the palace or what you hope to gain by it, but I insist that you allow us to go there now.”

Malik
waved his hand, as if brushing aside her comments. “You’ll be much happier here. The rooms are larger and you may explore as you like. Transportation will be provided each morning and evening to take you to and from the school.”

Liana felt as if she had a bit part in a bad movie, but she was determined not to give in to her threatening hysteria before she had all the facts. “Have we been kidnapped?”

Malik
looked insulted by the question. “Of course not,” he said, drawing himself up to his full and impressive height. “I am Crown Prince
Malik
Khan of El
Bahar
. I bestow on you the honor of being my guest at the royal palace.”

Liana pressed her lips together, not sure how to respond to that. A soft, snuffling sound interrupted her thoughts. She turned and saw a golden retriever hovering just outside the main door. Its tail wagged frantically, but it didn’t step inside the palace.

Bethany
caught sight of the dog and clapped her hands together. “Mommy, can I go pet the dog?”

Liana glanced at
Malik
. “Is it friendly?”

“Yes. Sam belongs to my nephews, all of whom are much younger than
Bethany
. He’s very good with children. She will be safe.”

Liana nodded at her daughter. “Go ahead, but stay within sight of the open door.”

Her daughter walked slowly toward the retriever, holding out her hand for the animal to sniff. Sam took a quick whiff,
then
licked the offered fingers, all the while wiggling with excitement at the thought of a new playmate.

Liana took the opportunity of her daughter’s distraction to step closer to the prince, not because she wanted to be even more under his spell, but because she didn’t want
Bethany
to hear what she had to say.

“We are not staying here,” she informed
Malik
. “I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but your conduct is completely unacceptable. I am an American citizen and a guest of your country for the next two years. As such, I expect to obey El
Baharian
law. In return I wish to be treated with respect and courtesy, neither of which includes holding me anywhere against my will.”

“You do not understand,”
Malik
said patiently. “It is better for you to be at the palace.”

He looked too intelligent not to get her point, which meant he wasn’t listening. It was a trait shared by many men. Perhaps it was exacerbated by his royal status. Regardless, she had to get through to him.

Liana opened her mouth to speak,
then
closed it. A whisper of a memory drifted through her mind. She tried to shake it off, but it would not be denied. Then, despite the potential peril of her situation, she couldn’t help laughing softly.

“Your Highness, you do not want to play this game with me. I’ve seen the movie.”

He frowned. “What are you talking about?”

“The schoolteacher brought to the foreign country, the man in the royal house who refuses to let her have her own house. You are not the King of Siam and I am not Mrs. Anna. But if you have any thoughts of recreating that situation, may I take this moment to remind you that not only does the king never sleep with Mrs. Anna, he has the misfortune to die at the end.”

She’d thought Prince
Malik
might look shocked or disapproving. Instead he startled her by leaning close. “We all die in the end, Liana,” he said, his warm breath tickling her ear. “And make no
mistake,
I will have you in my bed.”

“If you keep saying things like that, you’re going to scare the poor woman to death.”

Both
Malik
and Liana turned at the sound of the female voice. An attractive woman with curly light brown hair and wire-framed glasses approached. She wore a chic green dress that screamed designer, and there were the most amazing pearls around her neck. The woman shook her head at the prince.

“I can’t believe you’re using lines like that,
Malik
. Haven’t you ever heard of subtlety?”

He drew himself up and glared down at the woman. Even though she wore high heels, he was a good six or seven inches taller. “I am
Malik
Khan, Crown Prince of El
Bahar
—”

She dismissed him with a wave and turned her attention to Liana. “Pay no attention to that speech. All the princes give it and we’ve learned to ignore them.” She held out her hand. “Hi. I’m Heidi, wife of Jamal, the middle of the Khan
brothers
.” She glanced at
Malik
. “You’ve already been tormented by my brother-in-law. What is it about these sheiks? Give them a little power and they want to run all over everyone.”

Liana shook hands with the charming American and gave her a trembling smile, along with her name. She couldn’t remember ever being in a more confusing situation. She felt as if she’d landed on a strange planet…and in a way she had. El
Bahar
was a very different place from her native
California
.

“I’m pleased to learn one can disagree with a Crown Prince and live to tell the tale,” she said.

Heidi grinned. “
Malik
isn’t so bad. He talks tough, and he’s a fairly decent Crown Prince, but underneath all that, he’s basically a nice guy.”

Malik
made a sound low in his throat. “You, woman, tread carefully around me.”

“Or you’ll have me beheaded. I’ve heard the threat before.” Heidi leaned close to Liana and lowered her voice. “Actually, he’s an excellent ruler and everyone respects him tremendously, but he can be a bit imperious on occasion.”

Liana had had first-hand experience with
Malik’s
imperiousness. “I’ve already seen him in action,” she said. “I don’t belong here. I’m a teacher with the
American
School
.”

Malik
shook his head. “She is my guest.”

Heidi looked from one to the other.
“Interesting.
What happened? You saw her at the airport and decided you liked the looks of her, so you brought her home?”

Malik
looked faintly uncomfortable with the question. “I am the Crown Prince. I do not answer to you.”

Heidi glanced at Liana. “Let me guess. You don’t want to be here.”

“Exactly.”

“Well,
Malik
needs a willful woman in his life—even if he would never admit it. He’s a bit on the stuffy side, and being challenged by a woman would help make him more human.”

“I am not stuffy—”

“I’m not anyone’s woman—”

Liana and
Malik
spoke at the same time.

“This is
all your
fault,” she said, glaring at him. “Did you really bring me here because you liked the looks of me?” A voice in her head whispered it was actually a nice compliment, but she ignored the voice. She also ignored the steady thunder of her heart as she fought against her lingering attraction. “I’m not a puppy.”

“I never thought you were.”

Liana wanted to stamp her foot in annoyance. Nothing was going the way she wanted. She turned to Heidi. “Can you help me? I’m here to work and that’s all I want to do. If I could just get to the
American
School
everything would be fine.”

Before Heidi could answer,
Bethany
stepped into the foyer. She walked over to her mother and leaned against her. “I’m tired, Mommy. Are we leaving soon?”

“You see,”
Malik
said. “The child needs to rest. While you stand here arguing, you’re wasting time. Heidi will show you to your rooms.”

Heidi raised her eyebrows at her brother-in-law, but otherwise didn’t protest. “Actually, Liana, it might be easier to give in to this tonight. You’ve got to be exhausted from the long trip. In the morning you can gird your loins and fight the battle anew.” She touched Liana’s arm. “Seriously, you are perfectly safe here. This is a royal palace and all guests are treated with the utmost respect.”

Liana didn’t know what to do. She had the feeling that if she gave in on this point, nothing in her life would ever be the same. The smart move would be to insist that she be taken to her condo immediately. But she was tired, as was
Bethany
. Then there was the tiny detail of spending the night in a real-life palace. That sort of thing had never happened to her before, nor was it likely to happen again. Was she going to turn down this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity because of her pride?

“All right,” she murmured. “If you’re sure it won’t be any trouble.”

“None at all,”
Malik
said. He offered a low bow,
then
disappeared down a long hallway.

“Who was that masked man?” Liana murmured.

Heidi heard her and laughed. “The princes take some getting used to. Come on. Your room is through here. Don’t worry about the luggage, someone will bring it along.”

“You okay with this?” Liana asked her daughter. “Do you mind spending the night in the palace?”

Big blue eyes,
so much like her own,
stared up at her.
Bethany
smiled. “Mommy, if I stay in the palace, I get to pretend I’m a princess.”

“Oh, you’re right. Well, that makes this very special, huh?”

Bethany
nodded,
then
looked at Heidi. “Are you really married to a prince?”

“I sure am,” Heidi said. “
Which makes me a princess.
We have a little boy who is also a prince.”

“Wow.”
Bethany
’s big eyes got bigger. “Do you have a crown and everything?”

“You bet.”

Heidi led the way down a long hall. As they followed, Liana wondered about the woman who was being so kind. She dressed like a regular person—no robes or veils—and her voice had an American accent. Liana would bet that there was an interesting story in her past. If she was going to be here longer, she might want to ask about it. But Liana and
Bethany
would be leaving the palace in the morning, so there wasn’t going to be time to make friends.

“You’re here to teach?” Heidi asked as they passed through a carved archway.