Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 59308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59308 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 297(@200wpm)___ 237(@250wpm)___ 198(@300wpm)
The moment passed, and when her vision cleared, she saw that the sheikh was still there, waiting for her, his hand reaching for her—-
Trust in me, Tory.
Triumph, sinfully sweet and powerfully heady, heated the sheikh’s blood the instance he felt Anisah place her hand in his. Finally.
Anisah tried not to stiffen when the sheikh kept her hand in his grip as they ascended the steps leading up to the palace. So much for secret affairs, Anisah thought numbly as she fought against the urge to put distance between them.
Must. Trust. Him. She repeated this in her mind over and over as she and the sheikh entered the palace, and more employees of the royal family bowed to the sheikh in greeting while gaping at her.
Must. Trust. Him.
Anisah started to relax when she realized the sheikh had brought her to the palace’s Public Relations office. Finally. She tried to pull her hand out of his hold once they were inside, but the sheikh refused to let go.
Pretending he didn’t feel Anisah’s scowling gaze on him, Tarif shook his head briefly when the people inside the room rushed to stand up and bow. “Be at ease, please. I only came here to let you know what direction I wish this office to take regarding Professor Kahveci’s involvement with me.”
Heads bobbed in rapid motion, alongside a quick, fervent chorus of Yes, Your Highness.
“Listen closely then.”
Heads bobbed once more in response, and Tarif almost smiled when he realized that the look of concentration on the employees’ faces was almost completely identical to the one Anisah was wearing as well. They were looking at him like he had just promised them a miraculous mathematical formula to solve world hunger—-
And in a way, he supposed he was...since this matter was that important to him.
“From here on, if anyone requests for information about Professor Kahveci, please let them know that my fiancée—-”
Gasps and cries of shock filled the office, with the loudest of them coming from the woman beside him.
“—-will be glad to answer them during her first press conference, with the time, date, and place to be announced within the week.”
Chapter Thirteen
All of his cousins were already in Tarif’s private office by the time he strolled in, and the four men shared a look of disgust at the way satisfaction practically oozed from the other sheikh. To say that Tarif Al-Atassi was in a good mood would be an understatement, and when one considered the reason behind it—-
The king, seated on one of the armchairs, attempted to draw first blood as he commented with mocking disappointment, “Second base in two months, Tarif? That’s not like you at all.”
The other men snickered, but Tarif’s broad shoulders only moved in a nonchalant shrug as he claimed his seat behind his desk. “The result is all that matters, my brothers. And as she is irrefutably mine now...” Tarif’s tone was one of lazy complacence, the sound of which had his cousins almost gagging.
Malik decided to take the second shot at his older cousin, pointing out, “You may be happy about staking a claim, but does Anisah feel the same? Last time I spoke to her, you were still the sheikh she hated the most.”
“That is true,” Tarif acknowledged with indestructible good humor. “But I also seem to recall your wife once feeling that way about you as well. Did she not?” The sheikh turned to the king. “And the same goes for you, too, Your Majesty.”
Malik and Khalil grimaced, both unable to retort since Tarif had spoken the complete truth. Kyria and Malik had a major falling out that had caused them to avoid each other for two years while Harper hadn’t exactly been the king’s greatest fan before their whirlwind romance.
Rayyan shook his head, feeling inexplicably irritated at the air of contentment surrounding Tarif. “Don’t you think you were being a little too hasty in announcing a fake engagement?”
“It would seem so...if my pretend fiancée didn’t happen to be Anisah Kahveci. But as she is, regardless of the outcome, I don’t see her as the type who’d cause the kingdom any problems.” Tarif paused. “And even if she did, I honestly don’t give a fuck. I want my woman safe and happy, and if it comes at the expense of a little scandal that’s no more than a storm in a teacup...” He lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “Then again, that’s how I prefer to handle things. You’re probably different, considering how you treat your women.”
Color flushed Rayyan’s cheeks at the suggestive way the other sheikh’s tone trailed off, and he said coldly, “If that is a dig about the way I treat Hyacinth—-” Khalil, Malik, and Altair turned to him in surprise, and too late Rayyan realized he had neatly fallen for Tarif’s trap and exposed his secret in the process. “Fuck you, Tarif.”