Page 4 of The Sheik's Kiss

She stopped because she didn’t know the other woman. Hell, she didn’t even know this man. So how could she possibly have an opinion on their relationship? Trying to come up with a benign response, she said, “Well, the two of you made a beautiful couple.”

He turned back, his mouth twisted into a derisive twist. “Yes, well, that’s probably true. But with new information discovered about my previous fiancée, I suspect that whatever offspring we created would have been spoiled brats.” He sighed and fisted his hands on the countertop of her tiny kitchen. “I need to find a new wife and I need you to help me.”

She almost laughed at the absurdity of his request. “You need me to help you find a new fiancée?”

“Sort of,” he replied, then shook his head. “No. I mean, yes,” he huffed with exasperation. Dropping his chin to his chest, he paused briefly. When he looked up at her again, he seemed to be back in control. “Yes, I need your skills to sift through the financial backgrounds of various candidates,” he explained. “However, that will just be the story I tell the rest of the world.”

Mandy’s mind worked quickly, but she was still confused. “If that’s the story you’ll tell the rest of the world, what’s the real issue you need me to investigate?”

A muscle flexed on his jaw and Mandy stared at it with fascination while she waited. Over the past two years she’d been in business, Mandy knew that, sometimes, a client needed to work through their own mental machinations before they admitted the real problem.

“Someone inside my government is embezzling money. I don’t know who, and I think that someone on my security detail is in on the scheme.”

Mandy stared up at the man, intrigued. “What evidence do you have for this concern?”

Zahir shook his head. “I overheard someone in a hallway talking about moving a large amount of money to a personal account. The conversation sounded suspicious, but before I could get around the group of people in my way, the individuals were gone.” He paced, visibly frustrated. “I need to know who is stealing from my country.” He turned, his eyes burning into hers. “And I need you to find out who it is, but in secret. I’ll bring you to Sidrina under the guise of investigating potential candidates to be my wife.”

“Okay, well,” she started off, her mind working through the issues. “That seems like a very…intriguing investigation.” Mandy was careful. “I can definitely investigate for you. I can start searching for signs of embezzlement, and also look into any woman that you are considering for marriage. If you send me the names of those you are contemplating, I can dig into their financial histories.” She shrugged. “Unfortunately, that’s all I can learn. I don’t have any expertise in other behaviors. So if the potential candidate was arrested, or didn’t graduate from the college or university she claimed to have, I don’t have the tools to find that out.”

He waved that aside. “My security team will do a deep dive into any candidate’s activities.” He sighed heavily and looked into her eyes. “Besides, it’s actually the embezzler that you’ll be searching for.” He waited a heartbeat before continuing. “I spoke to Clarissa about your expertise. She said that you are the best. If you start sifting through all of the financial backgrounds of the employees that work closely with me, I’m confident that you will find the culprit. There are a few security officers that I still trust. They’ll work closely with you as well, but your expertise is in forensic accounting. Plus, you would be able to look through all of the accounts under the guise of candidate research, correct?”

Mandy nodded slowly, thinking through the challenges of a dual investigation. “Yes, I am very good at uncovering the financial details that someone doesn’t want found.”

“And you will discover whether the female candidates I am evaluating are seeking a husband solely for financial security?”

Ah! A clue about this odd request! “Your fiancée was hoping for a financial bonus during your marriage?”

He nodded. “I’m a very generous man, Ms. Sullivan. The woman I marry will be well cared for. However, I do not want someone who will brag about her financial boon when she comes to my bed.”

Mandy couldn’t hide her cringe at those words. “You have mistresses who do that, eh?” she teased.

He didn’t laugh and Mandy’s smile quickly faded. “My apologies, that was unprofessional of me.”

“You’re correct,” he replied. “My mistresses were well compensated for their time.”

Mandy cringed. That sounded so…transactional. “Right. Well!” She rubbed her hands down the outside of her thighs. “Why don’t you get me the names of the women you are considering? Is there any way you can also get me a list of names of anyone that you suspect of embezzlement? I have ways of getting those lists as well, but it would be faster if you were able to sneak the names to me.” She looked at him carefully. “However…about your wedding. Are you sure that you don’t want to take some time to get over your broken engagement? Maybe…do some healing before you dive into another relationship?”

He sliced an impatient hand through the air. “I don’t have the time nor the need for healing,” he replied flatly. “Finding a new wife will give me the cover I need to find the traitor in my government.” He frowned at her for a long moment. “So do you agree to my terms?” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “I will pay you handsomely for your expertise.” He named a number that made her gasp. “Do you agree?”

“Of course!” she replied quickly, barely taking the time to contemplate such a project. It sounded fascinating and…well, if her heart ached a little at the unflinching manner in which he was going about finding a new fiancée, she would just have to ignore those sensations. His love life wasn’t any of her business.

Correction. Doing financial background checks on the various women he might marry would make his future fiancée exactly her business. But not in…well…not in a personal way. This would be just another job. Another client.

Shifting slightly, reminding herself to be professional, Mandy began thinking through the possible issues of such a challenging project.

The first problem was the rate. She couldn’t accept such a large payment for a job that she could accomplish for a fraction of that amount. “Your Highness, you don’t have to pay me that much money. I have an hourly rate and I guarantee that it will be less than the number you just quoted. Even if I’m working full time for you, it won’t cost that much.”

He shook his head slightly, but his intense eyes never wavered. “I’ll need you to be in Sidrina for this project, Ms. Sullivan.”

She gasped and stepped back, shocked by his assertion. “Why?”

“In order for this ruse to work, and for you to be able to hack into the palace security system, you will need to be inside the palace. Also, I’m hiring a professional matchmaker. I wasn’t kidding about finding a new fiancée. I truly need to get married and that has to happen soon.” She noticed his jaw clench briefly, revealing that he wasn’t as complacent about the issue as he sounded. “She will be at the palace as well. In order to appear as if you’re simply providing financial background for my potential spouse, you’ll also need to sit in on the interviews, speak with the women personally, and ask them for information that might not be readily available during a regular investigation. And that aspect of the job isn’t a ruse. My security team did a deep background check on Nisiri. The data didn’t reveal her avaricious nature.” He paused for a moment, that muscle in his jawline flexing again. “I spoke to Levi Harris, Clarissa’s husband. He said that you have a process that could filter through the data to find more than just the facts.”

She felt a rush of gratitude for Levi and Clarissa for vouching for her. Making a mental note to send Levi a bottle of his favorite scotch and chocolates to Clarissa, she pulled her focus back to her current predicament. “It’s true that I have a few tricks that allow me to evaluate some aspects of a candidate’s personality against the background of their financial data, but I don’t need to be in Sidrina to do that. If you want me to sit in on the candidate interviews, I could just–”

“You’re going to suggest that you attend via video conference?” he interjected.

Mandy saw the twitch of his lips and bristled. “Well, yes. That seems like a much more efficient use of my time.”

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