Total pages in book: 53
Estimated words: 50149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 251(@200wpm)___ 201(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 50149 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 251(@200wpm)___ 201(@250wpm)___ 167(@300wpm)
“Good night, sheikh.”
She felt him smile against her hair. “Do you not think it’s time you call me by my name?”
Harper thought about it, tried to imagine her saying his name, and she just...couldn’t. He had always been the sheikh to her, and to have that change overnight was—-
“Impossible,” she muttered.
The sheikh sighed. “And you would think that, of course.”
“Maybe next time,” she hedged.
“I would like to say that you sound very convincing, but you do not.”
She pulled away, grumbling, “Do you have to have your way with everything?”
“Is it too much to ask for my bride to call me by my name?”
And because she was feeling contrary now, she said hotly, “Yes, it is!”
They stared at each other.
A moment later, they were smiling.
“We will have a good marriage,” the sheikh declared.
Harper couldn’t help laughing. “You’re crazy.”
“But you believe me. Nem?”
She wanted to lie, just to be contrary, but looking into his dark eyes and seeing the soft gleam of tenderness in it, she realized she couldn’t do it. And so she mumbled, “Nem.” And then she quickly got inside her room and slammed the door on his face.
Harper leaned against the door, face flushed, heart swaying.
God, that had been embarrassing.
But it had also been true.
She did believe him.
Even though they didn’t love each other and came from different worlds – no, universes...
She believed him. They would have a good marriage. She would damn make sure of it.
WEDDING PREPARATIONS commenced the very next day, and Harper was immediately caught up in a whirlwind of activity. There were countless fittings to attend, names and faces to memorize, and then there were the rules.
There were so, so many of them, and worse was how they sometimes clashed against each other. There were rules in Arab culture that did not agree with certain customs distinct to the kingdom of Ramil. There were rules observed in Islam that were not known to Christians. And those just made up the tip of the iceberg, and it didn’t help at all that Harper’s court tutor was adamant that she would not only become familiar but proficient with them as well.
In the other part of the palace, the sheikh continued to receive daily reports on Harper’s activities, and reading it had become his private source of enjoyment. Her impressive progress in engaging in political and economic discussions he already expected, but what pleased the sheikh the most was how Harper never voiced a complaint to him even when her court tutor meted out punishments like she was no different from an ordinary pupil.
The day before the wedding, Harper made her first official appearance outside the palace as the sheikh’s future wife and queen. It was to be a quick visit to the American embassy, and rather than Khalil, she would have Sheikh Altair as her escort.
It was a test, of course, and Harper knew and accepted this.
The sheikh called her while she and Altair were still on the road. “Nervous?” he asked.
“To the point of throwing up,” she said shortly.
“Is there anything I do to ease your anxiety?”
Only one thing came to mind. Maybe an hour of making out? Her face turned red, and she coughed. “Nothing.”
“But it seemed that you’ve already thought of something.”
“Nope.” Shit. Why did her voice sound so squeaky?
“I do not believe you,” the sheikh said huskily. “Tell me.”
“There’s nothing to tell. Okay?” She heard him start to speak, but this time she didn’t let him. One quick press of a button, and the call had ended.
“Did you just hang up on Khalil?” Sheikh Altair, who was seated across her in the limousine, asked her curiously.
Harper grimaced. “Kinda?” But she had no choice. Khalil would’ve seduced the truth out of her if she hadn’t.
“You know he will not let you get away with that.”
“Yup.” Her tone was half-glum, half-resigned, and Altair smiled. Most women would have been downright terrified, but Harper Griffiths was once again proving herself different from the rest. If she could be this brave with the king, Altair thought, then she should have no problem dealing with the rest of the world.
And Altair was right.
Although Harper’s knees threatened to buckle when it was finally her turn to address the crowd at the embassy, she only allowed herself a quick prayer and several deep breaths before she began with her speech. A small part of Harper expected herself to choke and stammer, but the words flowed out smoothly. And as she gazed at the deployed soldiers in front of her, men who willingly risked their lives for love of country, she remembered her own father, and it was in that moment the words she had merely been reading from a piece of paper became words that came from her heart.
The time you spend away from your loved ones alone makes each and every one of you a hero. The world may not know this, or they may forget it is so, but we won’t. We will always remember, and we thank you for this. Our future is made safer and brighter because of you.