Teresa Southwick - To Wed a Sheikh

Dinner in the royal palace, Ali decided, was like being thrown into the deep end of the pool with no working knowledge of water safety and no arm floaties to keep her from sinking. One on one with Kamal was one thing. But the whole family together in a dining room that felt as big as her entire apartment at home was intimidating.

This environment of wealth and formal beauty was so far beyond her frame of reference, she could as easily be on another planet. The soft ting of goldware against china was an elegant, sophisticated sound she’d seldom heard and always in a restaurant. Nothing in her nurse’s training had prepared her for this. If someone choked on a crab-stuffed mushroom and became a candidate for the Heimlich Maneuver or clogged their arteries from froufrou food and needed CPR, then she was your gal.

A symptom of her intimidation was being tongue-tied. The silver lining to that was being able to observe her surroundings without interruption. If she’d been a brave little soldier who muddled forward, she wouldn’t have had as much opportunity to admire the crystal chandelier overhead and the graceful wall sconces that lighted the room with just the right amount of soft glow. Nor would she have been able to appreciate the arrangements of fresh flowers on the table and every other flat surface in the room.

She admired the intricate pattern on the crocheted lace tablecloth and suspected it cost a small fortune. Only the imminent threat of dehydration could compel her to move a hand anywhere near liquid and chance a spill on the costly material. The upside: her full glasses of water and champagne would save the hovering servers the necessity of refilling them.

Ali looked at Princess Farrah who was sitting diagonally across from her at the end of a table long enough to line dance on. The woman was engaged in a spirited conversation with her nephew Rafiq and his wife, Penny, regarding El Zafir’s greatest natural resource—children. King Gamil sat at the head of the table talking with Fariq and Crystal about the country’s opportunities for foreign investors. Kamal was between Ali and Johara. She felt like a bump on a pickle and just about as exciting. Taking call for a teenage mother-to-be was one thing. Having dinner with a multitude of royals at the invitation of the little mother’s aunt was something else altogether. What did one converse about with them?

Ali was in over her head. No question about that. Kamal was intimidating enough all by himself, although she’d managed to stand up to him. But now she was afraid to open her mouth—even with Penny and Crystal there.

In college speech class, she’d learned one of the techniques to get over stage fright was to picture the audience in their underwear. Her gaze slid sideways to Kamal. In his dark suit, tone-on-tone deep gray shirt and tie, he looked every inch the designer-dressed, powerful crown prince—a sight that made her pulse pound and her hands tremble. One thing became crystal clear to her in that moment. Picturing Kamal in his underwear wouldn’t cure what ailed her. If anything, it could double-knot her tongue.

“Ali?”

“Hmm?” She glanced past Kamal’s chest to his aunt’s amused gaze. “I’m sorry. You were saying, Your Highness?”

“I said I’m delighted that you could accept my invitation for dinner this evening. We wanted to welcome you and make your first night in the palace memorable.”

“I—I—” She cleared her throat when the word came out a croak. “I assure you, this is an experience I’ll never forget,” she replied sincerely.

“Is your room comfortable?” the princess asked.

“Is there anything you need?” The king looked like a gracefully aging movie star with his dark eyes and silver hair. Very Cesar Romero.

Leaving her dessert untouched, Ali settled her gold fork on the side of her delicate china plate. It seemed the prudent thing to do since she couldn’t eat anything anyway.

“My rooms are wonderful,” she said, picturing in her mind the large suite.

The living room had French doors leading to a balcony that overlooked the Arabian Sea. The large bedroom was littered with numerous pieces of matching cherry-wood furniture. Gold bathroom fixtures. Marble floor. What was not to like? Her rooms were definitely satisfactory—the most satisfactory rooms she’d ever had.

Johara leaned forward, looking past her brother. “I am happy you could stay. It relieves my mind to have you close. I will—”

“Farrah.” King Gamil interrupted his daughter and pointedly met his sister’s gaze. “Is there any progress on that matter we were discussing the other day?”

Ali glanced at the teenage princess and saw the flush that crept into her cheeks at being talked over as if she wasn’t there. Her mouth compressed to a straight line as her large dark eyes snapped with what looked like resentment. Ali couldn’t help feeling sorry for the young girl. But before she could dwell further on what had happened, Princess Farrah was speaking. She noticed the questioning look the woman slid in Kamal’s direction.

“Kamal and I have talked. I have high hopes that things will proceed well from now on.”

“Do we want to know what things?” Penny glanced at each of them, then her husband.

In response, Rafiq smiled lovingly at her. “Probably not, my dear. So I will change the subject.” He looked at his sister. “Johara, how are you feeling?”

Good for him, Ali thought. Just because her father seemed bent on pretending Johara wasn’t there didn’t mean the rest of the males had to as well. She saw the dark look the girl tossed her father before her chin lifted.

“Big,” the teen answered, staring ruefully at her belly. “I am very ready for this baby to arrive.”

“I can imagine,” Crystal said. “I’m barely showing, but I can hardly wait to hold this child in my arms.”

Fariq looked at her. “My wife is a wonderful mother. She’s proven that with Hana and Nuri.”

“Your twins adore her,” Penny said. “But seeing how uncomfortable Johara is, I vote we shorten the gestation period significantly.”

“I’ll draft a resolution,” Kamal said wryly. “And submit it to the El Zafirian ruling cabinet. We’ll see what we can do to accommodate your request.”

“Yes,” Johara agreed, shifting uncomfortably. “I second that.”

The king cleared his throat. “Are you well, Crystal? Penny? I understand the doctor was here yesterday.”

“Everything’s fine with Penny and me,” Crystal said.

Ali tried to think of something to add to this conversation. This was a subject she knew about. The king of the country had made an effort to be polite to her even if he was being an old poop to his daughter. Ali should be able to come up with a bonding sort of thing to say.

“Your Highness, you must be very excited at the prospect of having three new grandchildren here in the palace,” she finally managed to say.

King Gamil turned his dark-eyed gaze on her. “I have only two grandchildren on the way.”

Ali’s heart was pounding as she saw the tears in the young girl’s eyes and waited for someone to come to her defense. Crystal and Penny looked as shocked as she felt. The men stared daggers at their father, but said nothing. Ali felt the pressure build inside her. It was probably too forward, but she couldn’t keep silent. Outrage melted her intimidation.

“Johara is your daughter. When she gives birth in a couple weeks, that child will be your grandchild also.”

“Miss Matlock—Ali,” the king said. “I do not expect you to understand this. But I no longer have a daughter.”

“You can’t mean that,” she said. “I know her situation isn’t ideal, but—”