The Sheik's Secret Bride (4 page)
Read The Sheik's Secret Bride Online
Authors: Susan Mallery
Liana glanced around them, barely able to answer for all the wonders she saw. Open doors allowed her to see into great rooms with high ceilings and western-style furniture. She caught glimpses of gardens and fountains. Every few feet they walked by a small alcove that displayed some fabulous piece of art, be it a tapestry or glass-ware or a statue. The floor beneath their feet was marble, and much of the wall space was tiled. No doubt parts of the palace were hundreds of years old.
“I, ah, teach math,” Liana said absently as she took in the beauty of the El
Baharian
palace. The air was cool and faintly scented with flowers.
“High-school-level algebra and geometry.
Sometimes, if I have a bright group, I start them on calculus.”
Heidi smiled at
Bethany
. “I guess with a
mom
who’s a math teacher, you don’t get to say you don’t understand it, do you?”
Bethany
giggled shyly and clung to her mother’s hand. “No, I like math.”
“Good for you.” Heidi stopped in front of a single door carved with a relief of a gazelle. She pushed it open and stepped into a suite of rooms. “These will be yours,” she said, motioning to the airy space.
Liana and
Bethany
followed her,
then
came to a stop in the center of the main room. In front of them were floor-to-ceiling windows that looked out over the
Arabian Sea
, light-colored furniture collected in two separate conversation areas, and double French doors leading out to a balcony that was almost as large as the living room. Nearly as amazing as the view was a mural on both the left and the right wall of the room. Tiny tiles had been cut and pieced together to create a herd of Arabian horses racing across the desert. The horses were depicted nearly life-size, with manes and tails flying out as fast hooves thundered across the sand.
“Oh, Mommy, look!”
Bethany
cried as she raced over to stand in front of the right mural. She reverently touched the tiny tiles.
“Horses!
Beautiful horses.”
Just then two servants appeared with their luggage. Heidi pointed down a short hallway and the men disappeared. Seconds later they reappeared, without their burden of suitcases, then bowed and left as quietly as they’d come.
“You’ll find the horse motif continues throughout the suite,” Heidi explained. “It’s one of the features of the palace. All the guest quarters have a theme. I thought with your daughter being at that horse-loving age, you two would enjoy this suite.”
Liana felt stunned, as if she’d been drinking, or hadn’t eaten in a couple of days. “This is a regular guest room here at the palace?” she asked. “There are more suites like this, just standing empty, waiting for company?”
Heidi nodded. Her hazel eyes filled with compassion. “I know it’s a lot to take in, but you’ll get used to it. There are frequent guests at the palace. Some visiting dignitaries prefer to stay at the beachfront hotels, but others like the warmth and history of the palace.”
“I see why,” Liana murmured. This was the most magnificent room she’d ever seen. She could only imagine what the bedrooms and bathrooms would be like.
“The balcony is a common one,” Heidi went on to explain. “There aren’t any other guests staying here at the moment, so you shouldn’t see anyone, but don’t be alarmed if someone walks by. Actually, on this level you can make a complete circuit of the palace via the balcony. I recommend the walk in the evening. It’s very lovely.”
“Thank you, I will.”
Heidi started to leave,
then
paused. “I know it’s terribly rude to ask, but how well do you know the prince?”
“I don’t know him at all.” Liana recounted the events on the plane and at the airport. “Instead of taking us to the
“Obviously you caught
Malik’s
eye,” Heidi said.
Then he can have it back, Liana thought to herself, although she didn’t say it aloud. “I can’t believe that,” Liana said. “I’m just a teacher.” Didn’t sheik princes fall for movie stars and models?
“You’re very attractive,” Heidi said.
“Tall, blonde, blue eyes.”
Yes, she was those things, Liana admitted, but she was also about twenty pounds overweight and not the least bit interested in being fashionable. She preferred comfort to style. She’d been described as passably pretty, which she believed to be true. No, she was many things, but not someone to garner the attention of a prince.
“There has to be something else going on,” she insisted.
“Why do you find it so hard to believe that
Malik
could want you? Aren’t you interested?”
“Not really,” Liana said honestly. “I’ve reached the point where I don’t want another man in my life, and even if I did, I wouldn’t want someone like
Malik
. I would never be very good in the position of wife number three or four.”
Heidi smiled. “Ah, but this is El
Bahar
. The tradition of four wives is not allowed. Men have only one wife, and Prince
Malik
isn’t married.”
Liana told herself she wasn’t the least bit tempted. Sexual attraction was one thing—marriage quite another. “If I ever marry again, I want my husband to be interested in an equal partnership. Not likely with a Crown Prince.”
Heidi nodded. “You’re right there.” She looked around the room. “I’ll leave you to unpack, then. If you need anything, simply pick up the phone and ask for it. Someone will be by later to take your order for dinner.” She walked to the door and paused there. “It was very nice to meet you both. I hope you enjoy your stay in El
Bahar
.”
With that, she was gone.
“She’s very pretty,”
Bethany
said, staring after Heidi. “I never thought I’d meet a princess or stay in a palace. This is like an adventure in a book, isn’t it, Mommy?”
“Sort of,” Liana agreed, somewhat cautiously. “Let’s explore the rest of the suite and see what sort of arrangements the palace makes for its visitors.”
They walked down the short hallway and found two bedrooms, each with its own bath. The smaller of the two rooms was still big enough for a queen-sized bed, a desk, a dresser and a large built-in wall unit that housed a state-of-the-art television and DVD player. There was also a collection of movies in a drawer underneath. The attached bath was larger than their kitchen had been
back
home. The towels were thick enough to double as a mattress in a pinch and there were a collection of bath products by the oversized tub. Small versions of the mosaics in the living room continued here on the walls and floor tiles.
Liana’s room was even more impressive. The king-sized bed took up barely an eighth of the floor space. The four-poster monstrosity required a step stool to reach the mattress. Crisp white linens gave the room a cool air, and fresh flowers added to the ambiance. Her bathroom was huge, with a tub large enough for a committee meeting. Instead of the horses, her bath was decorated with a floral design. In addition to the baskets of bath products, Liana found an array of makeup, brushes and body lotions…all unopened, but calling her name.
“Wow,” she said as she finished her tour.
Bethany
tucked a blond strand of hair behind her ear. “I like it here, Mommy. Maybe we can stay.”
Liana grinned. “Wouldn’t that be nice?
To live like princesses?”
She pulled her daughter close and hugged her. “Maybe you could insist all your classmates bow to you.”
Bethany
giggled.
“Especially the boys.”
“Of course.
All the boys.
And some of the girls.
The ones who aren’t friendly.”
Still laughing, they returned to
Bethany
’s room and started to unpack. They’d barely begun the job when there was a knock at the door.
“Stay here,” Liana said as she hurried toward the front room.
Was it
Malik
? Had he come to talk to her? She found herself in the uncomfortable position of being both hopeful and fearful.
Which was crazy.
The man was handsome and high-handed, nothing more. Besides, in the morning she and her daughter would be gone, and she would never see him again.
But first you have to get through the night, a voice in her head whispered.
She opened the door and saw an attractive woman in her thirties standing in the hallway. She had dark hair and eyes.
“I’m Dora Khan,” the woman said. “May I come in?”
“Of course.”
Liana stepped back to allow her to enter. “Did you say Khan? So you’re…”
“The wife of
Khalil
, the youngest of the king’s sons.”
Dora wore her dark hair swept up in a chignon. She had perfect skin and her dress was as stylish as Heidi’s. Apparently princesses knew how to shop, Liana thought with a brief flash of wistfulness. She tried not to think about how rumpled her jeans and shirt were after nearly twenty-four hours of travel.
“I just wanted to tell you that I heard about what
Malik
has done,” Dora said. “I know you’ve been dating for a while, but this is high-handed even for him—to force you to live at the palace when you want to stay at the
Liana blinked twice. “Excuse me? What on earth are you talking about?”
“Your relationship with
Malik
.
I was led to believe that you’ve been seeing quite a lot of each other and that’s the reason you came to El
Bahar
.”
Were they all crazy, or was it her? Had crossing all those time zones affected her brain? She looked at the attractive woman standing in front of her. “I met the Crown Prince earlier this afternoon when he and several other men barged onto the plane and took away one of the women. Apparently she was engaged, and that was her idea of a romantic welcome back to El
Bahar
.”
Dora looked confused. “You just met him today? Then what are you doing at the palace?”
“My question exactly.”
She recounted the events of the afternoon, starting with the customs line-up and finishing with her entrance into the suite.
“How strange,” Dora said slowly. “This isn’t like
Malik
at all.” She gazed at Liana speculatively. “It’s been a long time since
Malik
has shown any real interest in a woman. His father will be pleased.”
Liana held up her hands in a gesture of protection. “He’s not interested. He can’t be. He doesn’t know anything about me. I’m not sure why he did all this, but please be aware that I’m leaving in the morning, just as soon as I get this mess straightened out.”
“Of course.”
Dora continued to study her. “Well, welcome to El
Bahar
, Liana. I’m sure you’ll enjoy your time here.” She smiled. “If nothing else, it’s going to be interesting. Let me know if I can do anything to help. If you really want to leave the palace, I can arrange it. Just say the word.”
“I
will,
thank you.” Liana watched her guest leave,
then
closed the door behind her. How odd. Who could have told the princess that she and
Malik
were involved? She’d only been on the palace grounds an hour or so. Had Heidi hinted at something or was it
Malik
himself?
The idea of the arrogant Crown Prince laying claim to a relationship that didn’t exist was so ridiculous as to make her laugh. Except that the situation wasn’t exactly humorous. It was more…intriguing, she thought to herself as she remembered her unexpected response to being in
Malik’s
presence. Something about him was appealing. Not so much his money and position—both of those would be more off-putting, at least for her. She was willing to admit he was plenty handsome. There was something about his height. Or was it his dark eyes? The way they seemed to see into her soul without giving away anything of their own….
She shook her head. “Stop fantasizing about a guy you don’t even know,” she told herself. “You’re leaving in the morning and you’ll never see him again.”
There was another knock on the door. Liana sighed and pulled it open. A tall, thin man with a white beard stood in front of her. He wore a suit with an odd pin on the lapel.
“Let me guess,” she said before she could stop herself. “You’re the king of El
Bahar
, and you’re here to congratulate me on my pending engagement.”
“No, ma’am.
I’m the butler and I’m here to see what you and your daughter would like for dinner.”
By the time they’d finished unpacking, had eaten the wonderful meal delivered to their suite, and
Bethany
had taken her bath, it was after nine. Jet lag had hit them both and
Bethany
barely made it between the sheets before falling fast asleep.
