don’t have an influence over the bid now that you’ve gotten yourself hitched to him, sweet pea?”
Lie number three. “Not at all.”
A span of silence passed before he responded. “I guess there’s nothing I can do about it now, but at least it’s good to know he’s got royal blood and money to burn.”
Of course that would be Walter McAdams’s main concern when it came to her choice in a life partner. It always had been. “I’m sure when you met him back in Chicago you realized he’s a very charming man.”
“A charming snake,” he muttered. “Of course, your grandmother’s all atwitter over this. She wants to talk to you, so hang on a minute.”
Piper heard him put down the receiver, followed by muffled conversation before someone picked up the phone again. “My little sugar plum is a married woman!”
Enough with the overly sweet endearments, she wanted to say, but kept her impatience in check. “Yes, Nana, I finally took the plunge.” Headlong into a humongous fabricated fairy tale.
“I saw a picture of him on the internet, Piper. My, my, he’s a good-looking young man. When did you two meet?”
Piper was frankly sick to death of fibbing, so she decided to try on the truth. “In a hotel bar. I attempted to seduce him but he didn’t take the bait. He’s quite the gentleman.”
As usual, her grandmother giggled like a schoolgirl, a good indicator she didn’t believe what she’d heard. “Oh, child, you are still such a cutup when it comes to boys. And you don’t have to tell me any details right now.”
But she did have to tell her more truths. “Nana, Adan is a very public figure, so you might hear a few rumors that aren’t exactly accurate.”
“What kind of rumors?” she asked with obvious concern.
She could trust her grandmother with some of the facts, even if the woman was a little too steeped in Southern society. “First, you have to promise me that whatever I tell you, it has to remain strictly confidential.”
“Sugar, you know how I abhor gossip.”
An advantage for Piper in this gossip game. “All right. You’re probably going to hear that we’ve had a baby together.”
Nana released an audible gasp. “Did you?”
Heavens, the woman wasn’t thinking straight. “Do you recall me even remotely looking pregnant over the past few months?”
“Well, no.”
“Precisely, because I wasn’t. Adan does have an infant son, but obviously I’m not his mother. That said, as far as the world knows, Samuel is my baby. The biological mother’s identity is a well-kept secret and has to remain so for reasons I can’t reveal.”
“Is she an actress? Maybe a singer? Oh, wait. Is she a call girl?”
Piper had no idea Drusilla McAdams even knew what that was. “Don’t worry about it. I just need you to refuse to comment on anything if any reporters track you and Poppa down, and keep everything I’ve told you to yourself. Can you do that, Nana?”
“I certainly can, sugar plum,” she said. “And I’m so proud of you, sweetie. It’s admirable you’re willing to take another woman’s child and raise it as your own.”
“I learned that from you, Nana.”
A span of silence passed before her grandmother spoke again. “I have never regretted raising you and your sister, Piper. I do regret that Millie could never be a decent mother to you. But that’s mine and your Poppa’s fault. We spoiled her too much, maybe even loved her too much. She never had a care in the world aside from herself.”
She still didn’t as far as Piper could tell. She’d barely even seen her fly-by-night mother over the past few years, let alone established a relationship with her. “You were very good to me and Sunny, Nana. Millie is responsible for her behavior, not you. And I don’t believe you can ever love anyone too much.”
“Only if they can’t possibly love you back, honey.”
Her grandmother’s words gave her some cause for concern. If she happened to stupidly fall in love with Adan, she wondered if he had the capacity to return her feelings. Probably not, and she certainly didn’t intend to find out. Sadly, sometimes intentions went awry. “Look, Nana, I have a few things to do, but first, do you have any questions for me?” Piper held her breath and hoped for a no.
“Yes I do. How is the sheikh when it comes to...you know?”
Regretfully Piper hadn’t experienced “you know”...yet. “Nana, a girl’s gotta have her secrets, so I’ll only say I’m not at all disappointed.” Should she and Adan take that lovemaking step, she would wager she wouldn’t be disappointed in the least.
“That’s a good thing, sugar plum. What goes on between the sheets better be good if you want to sustain a relationship. Your grandfather and I have been happily going after—”
“I’d better go.” Before they wandered into too-much-information territory. “I’ll talk to you both real soon.”
“Okay, but your grandfather told me to deliver a message before you hang up, the old grump.”
Lovely. “What is it?”
“Married or not, you still have a job to do, and he expects a full report on the survey crew’s progress within the next two days.”
So much for spending time with father and son. For the time being, Adan would just have to go it alone.
* * *
“Congratulations, Dad. Your baby is the picture of health.”
Adan turned from the crib to face Maysa Barad Mehdi—Arabian beauty, American-educated premiere physician and current queen of Bajul. “Are you absolutely certain? He seems rather small to me.”
His sister-in-law sent him a sympathetic look, much to his chagrin. “He’s not quite five weeks old, Adan, so he’s going to be small. Fortunately Ms. Thorpe had the foresight to include copies of his medical records since his birth. He’s gaining weight at a favorable pace and I expect that to continue.” She paused and sent him a smile. “And before you know it, he will have a playmate.”
Clearly the woman had taken leave of her senses. “I have no intention of having another child in the near future, if ever.” First, he would have to have a willing partner, and his thoughts immediately turned to Piper. With her he wouldn’t be seeking procreation, only practice. As much practice as she would allow, if she allowed any at all after being thrust into Rafiq’s harebrained scheme.
“Let me rephrase that,” Maysa said. “Samuel will have a new cousin in a little less than eight months.”
Adan let that sink in for a moment before he responded, “You’re pregnant?”
“Yes, I am.”
He gave her a fond embrace. “Congratulations to you, as well. How is Rafiq
