Will you take good care of him?”
“Yes, I will. I promise to feed him and give him water and take him for walks. What shall we name him?”
“That is entirely up to you, Yasmin.”
“I will have to think about it. When are you coming home? Soon, I hope.”
No matter what said he told her, he would disappoint her. “I told you about the new resort before I left Morocco. I still have much work to do on it.”
“You are always working. I wish you would take me with you.”
That would be impossible at this point in time. Very few knew of her existence, and he wanted to keep it that way. “Perhaps someday. In the meantime, take care.”
“I will.”
“I shall see you in a month when I return.”
A span of silence passed before she said, “I miss you.”
“I miss you as well, Yasmin.” And he certainly did, though too much affection would serve neither of them.
As soon as he hung up the phone, Tarek began to contemplate his previous conversation with Kira and her erroneous assumptions.
It’s my job to know everything about the royal family and their esteemed guests...
Little did Kira know, she was not privy to most aspects of his private life, as it had been with all friends and former lovers. Not only in regard to the child, but she was also unaware that he retained an important piece of the Mehdi puzzle. Only he held the key and no one else, not even the current monarch and his brothers. He harbored a great secret that might have died along with his parents, save an old man’s conscience and overwhelming guilt.
Since gaining that knowledge, he had been bound by a pledge to keep the information guarded out of respect for his mother, yet he had grown weary of the pretense. He wanted answers. He demanded answers. He vowed to do whatever he must to gain that information, and he hoped Kira Darzin could aid him in his search.
From the minute he’d met her, he had sensed she would know much about the Mehdis, and he would continue to gain her trust in an effort to convince her to confide in him. That had been his primary goal in the beginning, until he had crossed the boundaries into ill-advised desire. He had not intended to be as preoccupied by her and he would do well not to let his base urges rule his rationality.
If his plan with Kira did not succeed, he would continue to covertly search for confirmation through every means possible, work his way into the royal sons’ good graces, then he would properly introduce himself as the bastard son of the former king of Bajul.
Their brother.
Every evening at six o’clock sharp, Kira prepared to deliver her usual courtesy call. It was incumbent that she made certain all needs were met, though tonight that wouldn’t be easy, considering she would have to face the father of her child. After she walked into the elaborate dining room, she found the lengthy mahogany table populated with the usual royal residents—King Rafiq and his wife, Maysa, along with the newlyweds, Adan and Piper—and one not-so-usual sophisticated man dressed in a beige silk suit, sitting to the right of Rafiq. Anyone who didn’t know the Mehdis might mistake Tarek Azzmar as a relative, when in reality his only ties to the royals were big business, Middle Eastern roots and an abundance of good looks.
When Tarek leveled his gaze on her, Kira’s thoughts spun away like a desert whirlwind. She sincerely wanted to look away, yet it was as if he had her completely under some macabre magical spell. “Magical” would definitely describe his thorough kisses, his very skilled hands, his expertise at lovemaking, his obvious virility....
“Is there another bun in the oven, Kira?”
Taken aback by Adan Mehdi’s query, Kira directed her attention to the youngest prince, her face splashed with heat. “Excuse me?”
He held up the empty basket. “We are out of bread.”
Apparently, she was plagued by secret pregnancy paranoia. “I’ll see to that immediately.”
“And, Kira, if it’s not too much trouble, I’d like more water, please,” Adan’s auburn-haired wife added as she leaned back in the chair, providing a peek at her rounded belly. “I’m so thirsty I think I’m giving birth to a trout, not a mammal.”
Kira experienced a brief bout of envy when Adan and Piper exchanged a loving look. At least they had each other. At least Piper wouldn’t be raising her baby alone.
Whether that would be the case for Kira when it came to her own child still remained to be seen. “I’ll be certain to have the server deliver you an entire pitcher of water, as she should have done at the beginning of the meal. She’s new and still trying to gain her bearings. I also believe she’s a bit starstruck over her introduction to royalty.”
Piper’s grin expanded as she waved a hand toward Tarek. “I think she’s quite taken with our guest.”
Kira ventured a glance and discovered Tarek didn’t seem at all disturbed by the conjecture. When he failed to reply, she focused on the eldest Mehdi son. “Is the dinner tonight to your liking, Your Majesty?”
“As usual, the fare is excellent,” Rafiq replied as he regarded Tarek. “Would you would like more of the chicken kabobs, Mr. Azzmar?”
Tarek pushed his empty plate aside and leveled his gaze on Kira. “Not presently, but it was delicious. I particularly enjoyed the garlic yogurt sauce. Please give my compliments to the chef.”
Adan presented his usual dimpled smile. “Perhaps you would like to deliver the message yourself and inspect the help further, Tarek.”
Piper elbowed her husband, causing him to wince. “Stop it, Adan. I’m sure Tarek is more than capable of finding a date.”
Adan grimaced. “Bloody hell, wife. I like it much better when your pregnancy hormones lead to pleasure and not pain. I was simply suggesting Tarek might be interested in keeping company with a woman who is obviously smitten with him.”
“Your bride is correct,” Tarek added. “I am very selective when it comes to female companionship. Although the server is attractive, she is much too young, therefore she does not hold my interest.”
After the billionaire nailed her with another pointed look, Kira snatched the basket from the table and began backing toward the door. “I’ll let the chef know you’re all pleased with the meal and I’ll send someone out with more bread and water. Good evening.”
With that, she spun around and strode into the nearby kitchen, muttering a few mild oaths at herself over her inability to ignore Tarek. She mumbled a few more aimed at the businessman who seemed bent on keeping her off balance.
“Please take more rolls and water to the table immediately,” she said to the recently hired, very pretty fresh-faced staff member. “And from this point forward, pay more attention to the family and guests’ needs. Prince Adan requires more bread than most, and always make certain there is a pitcher of water close
