Rashidâs piercing blue eyes burned through her. The heavy scent of roses, the bitter taste of coffee in her mouth, the feel of heat surrounding her all combined. Polly watched, fixed like a rabbit in headlights, as Rashid drank his coffee.
She noticed the movement of his throat as he swallowed. Noticed the way his hand held the cup. Strong, beautiful hands. The kind of hands you would want to caress your body. And then her eyes travelled up to his lips. The kind of lips you would want to kiss you.
This was fantasy. She didnât know him. Knew very little about him, even. He wasnât and couldnât ever be part of her world, but what she was feeling was as old as time itself. She knew it, even though it frightened her.
Natasha Oakley told everyone at her primary school that she wanted to be an author when she grew up. Her plan was to stay at home and have her mum bring her coffee at regular intervalsâa drink she didnât like then. The coffee addiction became reality, and the love of storytelling stayed with her. A professional actress, Natasha began writing when her fifth child started to sleep through the night. Born in London, she now lives in Bedfordshire with her husband and young family. When not writing, or needed for âcrowd controlâ, she loves to escape to antiques fairs and auctions. Find out more about Natasha and her books on her website www.natashaoakley.com
âOne of the best writers
of contemporary romance writing today!â âcataromance.com
THE BRIDES OF AMRAH KINGDOM
Donât miss the future King of Amrahâs story Coming soon!
Dear Reader
There is something so dangerous about a sheikh. The ultimate fantasy hero, perhaps? Strong, charismatic, and the ruler of all he surveys. I love them.
You wonât be surprised to learn that I couldnât resist the opportunity to create my own slice of Arabia, particularly since my dad spent much of his working life building hospitals and schools across the Middle East. My brother and I grew up with his tales of meeting sheikhs in their sumptuous homes and descriptions of shopping in the souk.
Think modern cities, exotic palaces steeped in history, dunes shaped by the wind to create a starkly beautiful desert landscape and you will have caught a glimpse of the Kingdom of Amrah. Now think of two powerful men, and imagine what kind of women might stop them in their tracks and change them for the better.
The Brides of Amrah Kingdom duet begins here, with Rashidâs story. Loyal and fiercely protective of those he loves, heâs a man who yearns for acceptance. Polly might be a twenty-first century âCinderellaâ but she does the saving.
And then thereâs Hanif. Serious, dutiful, and the man who will be King of Amrahâ¦
He needs a bride he really doesnât expect! Remember Princess Isabella of Andovaria, Sebâs irresponsible sister from CROWNED: AN ORDINARY GIRL? I think sheâll be just perfect.
With love
Natasha
CINDERELLA AND THE SHEIKH
BY
NATASHA OAKLEY
For my Dad
CHAPTER ONE
âSHOULD I know him?â Polly Anderson pulled the A4 photograph across the table so she could see it more clearly. She squinted down at it, trying to bring it into focus.
Her friend smiled. âForget your contact lenses this morning?â
âI didnât forget them.â Polly accepted the black coffee Minty handed her and took a quick sip of the scalding liquid. âIt was a late night and my eyes feel like theyâre filled with grit if you really want to know.â
âAnd youâre too vain to wear your glasses, of course.â
Polly grimaced. More that sheâd put them down somewhere and had absolutely no idea where. She set the blue and white mug down on the table. âIâm sure Iâve not met him. Heâs not exactly in the usual run of sheikhs that do business with Anthony, you know.â
âNot fat or old.â
âSomething like that.â
Minty laughed her husky laugh and slid a second photograph along the table. âYou should see him without the headscarf. Then we just get tall, dark and deliciously dangerous.â
âNice,â Polly said, looking down at the image of an aggressively handsome man. Actually very nice. Her sight wasnât so short she couldnât see that. It was all about the eyes, she decided. Mostly about the eyes. Unexpectedly blue in a face that was unmistakably Arab.
Exotic and familiar at the same time. And incredibly sexy. Those eyes seemed to promise feelings and sensations sheâd no experience of. Or very little.
She smiled. Maybe there was more of her scandalous great-great-grandmother in her than sheâd supposed. Now that was an interesting thoughtâand probably one her mother would prefer her not to dwell on. âSo, who is he?â she asked, looking up.
âOfficially, His Highness Prince Rashid bin Khalid bin Abdullah Al Baha. But for Western consumption heâs generally known as Sheikh Rashid Al Baha. Much simpler. Twenty-nine. Six feet two and a half inches. Single. Keen horseman. Rich beyond your wildest dreams.â Minty leant forward. âPretty damn sexy all round.â
Polly laughed. âNot that youâre interested or anything.â
âActually Iâm not. Heâs a bad idea as anything other than eye candy. Heâs Crown Prince Khalidâs second son. The one he had with his English wifeââ
âOh, okayâ¦Iâve heard of him,â Polly interrupted. âHeâs Amrahâs playboy sheikh, right?â
Minty nodded. âThatâs him. Plays hard and fast. Only thing he really exhibits any sort of commitment to is his horses. I donât understand all that, but heâs something big in the horse world. Breeds them or something. Which is why I thought you might have met him through that slimy stepbrother of yours. But if not it doesnât really matter. Weâll manage.â
Polly picked up the more traditional of the two pictures and held it out in front of her. Long flowing white robes and his dark hair concealed beneath a white headdress. Minty was right. Prince Rashid bin thingy was really very sexy. If heâd been to Shelton sheâd have remembered.
She closed one eyelid to focus more clearly. âA couple of sheikhs did come over from Amrah but they were both much older. And I doubt they were royalty because Anthony would have been much more impressed. I
