Page 41 of The Sheik's Kiss

Mandy nodded. “Absolutely,” she confirmed.

“Good!” the man snarled.

It was almost comical how easy it was for the guard behind Isfari to pluck the pistol from his grip. A moment later, the second guard viciously grabbed him and forced him to the ground, pinning his arms behind his.

The man struggled even as handcuffs were slapped onto his wrists. He lifted his head from the floor, his neck at an odd angle, so that he could roar, “You’re going to pay for this!”

The guards lifted the man up from the floor, steadied him and forced him out of the small office. Afterwards, there was a silence that was…almost painful!

Raven stepped closer and Mandy glanced over at her. “That was…anticlimactic!” she whispered. “I knew that you were working on something, but I had no idea…” she paused, then smiled. “I’m still not completely sure what just happened.”

Mandy nodded, too stunned to speak.

When she looked over at the door again, Zahir was striding towards her and Mandy gasped, then ran into his arms. He lifted her up, hugging her close as he buried his face in her hair.

“I heard everything, love!” he whispered. “He will be going to prison for the rest of his life. He’ll never get close enough to harm or threaten you ever again!”

Mandy laughed, hugging him back. Relief that the man was finally arrested made her head spin. “Is marriage to you always going to be this exciting?”

“No!” he growled, pulling back to look into her eyes. “I will protect you better going forward. I just need to find the security guard who–”

“I know who it is!” she whispered, her voice low but excited. “I’d just found him. He’s a security guard assigned to one of the back entrances. I’ve been going through every guards’ banking records and I found only one man who had several thousand dollars in unexplained deposits. I know who is working with Isfari!”

Zahir stared at her, stunned for a long moment. Then he kissed her. “You’re brilliant!” he hissed when he lifted his mouth again. “Absolutely brilliant!”

“What’s more, I’d said that there were four other agency employees that were working with Isfari, right?”

“Yes,” Zahir nodded. “Did you find out who they are as well?”

“They don’t exist,” she told him, bouncing on her toes with excitement. “They are fake employees! Hasan Isfari made them up and gave each identity a salary. I finally figured out that Isfari was slowly transferring their salaries into two different banks, and then into his personal Swiss account that was held under a relative’s name! I have evidence that all four identities are fake, and linked to him!”

There was a long silence as everyone absorbed that news. “Wow!” Raven finally said, breaking the silence.

“I want to hire your fiancée,” a new voice announced.

Everyone turned to find Sean, Timothy, and that new guy standing in the doorway, each wearing a bland expression.

Sean and Tim both turned to look at the new guy.

“I’m sorry?” she replied, not sure what to say.

The man stepped forward. “I’m Edward Worthington,” he explained.

Sean snorted. “He’s a bloody duke! Don’t give him the time of day!” Everyone laughed at the Irishman’s teasing tone that didn’t match the harsh words.

“Men are weird,” Raven whispered as she rolled her eyes.

Mandy was about to say something, but the words died on her lips when she saw…no, felt…the tension between her new friend and…Timothy? Logical, analytical Timothy? The brilliant scientist was interested in the non-logical Raven?

Oh, this was going to be wonderful, Mandy thought!

Chapter 13

“Eight ball into the left corner pocket,” Raven announced.

Three men stood beside the pool table, all grim-faced as they watched Raven bend down, sight the ball, shift her pool stick back and forth and then…snap! Raven tapped the white ball and everyone watched as it rolled smoothly across the green felt table. It looked as if it might come to a stop right in front of the eight ball, which was perched just at the very edge of the pocket. But at the last moment, the white ball bumped the eight ball. There was a communal inhalation of breath and then…the eight ball dropped into the pocket.

“Damn!” Edward replied, gazing at Raven with admiration. “Well done!”

---