Page 8 of The Sheik's Kiss

Mandy’s fingers tightened around her cup and she looked down into the purple tea. “Yeah, I don’t get it either. However, Sheik bin Aristi wants to find a new fiancée and he’s asked me to discover any secrets that this new batch of candidates might be hiding. He doesn’t want to propose to another woman who has mercenary intentions.”

Jenny nodded her agreement. “Smart man. If anyone can discover a person’s financial secrets, it’s you. You’re not just a pretty face!” she teased.

Mandy laughed, as her mother had expected. “Dad used to say that to me all the time.” She looked up at her mother. “Why didn’t you ever remarry after he passed away?”

Jenny’s eyes turned dreamy. “Your father was the love of my life!” she sighed. “He was so amazing, sweet, and kind. We both worked full time, so he never expected me to maintain the house as well.” She smiled, looking dreamily off to the side. “If I cooked, he did the dishes. If I vacuumed the family room, he cleaned the bathroom.” She turned to her daughter with a sweet smile. Shaking her head, she continued, “He used to make me laugh. He’d come home from work and pull me into his arms, just because he needed me.” Her eyes filled with tears and she bowed her head, looking into her tea. “That kind of man is hard to find.”

Mandy nodded her agreement. “Yeah, Dad was pretty amazing.” She lifted her eyes, looking into her mother’s gentle gaze. “Sheik Bin Aristi also asked me to investigate the government agencies to find any evidence of financial wrongdoing.”

Jenny immediately perked up, smiling with delight. “Well, that’s exactly what you love doing! So, why are you hesitating?”

“Because I don’t…I can’t trust him.”

There was a short silence, then her mother said, “Because he’s someone high up in the Sidrina government?”

Mandy toyed with the teacup, turning it slightly on the matching saucer. “He’s not just high up in the government, Mom. He’s…the top of the government. Sheik bin Aristi, himself, asked me to do the investigating.”

Jenny nodded and leaned forward. “That just proves that your reputation is sound!” She gave her daughter a startled laugh. “Your friend Clarissa has some well-placed friends!”

Mandy smiled, but the expression quickly dissipated as her worry returned. “Yeah, Clarissa really jump started my career.”

Her mother’s excitement faded. “But you don’t want to help this sheik? Because of what happened to your father?”

Mandy nodded, trembling with the anger at the memories. “I don’t trust him. I don’t think I could ever trust someone so rich and powerful, Mom.”

There was a long silence as both women thought about the past. Then her mother said, “Mandy, honey, your father’s accident was-”

“It wasn’t an accident,” she interrupted. “Dad was murdered because he started asking questions. He was getting too close to the truth.”

Jenny nodded. “Yeah, we know that, but we weren’t ever able to prove it. Regency Construction was a corrupt company. And your father’s death was…awful.” She paused for a moment, the pain washing over them. “However, it sounds like this sheik might truly want to ferret out the truth. You said that you’d be investigating the agencies within his government?”

“Yeah.” Mandy lifted her eyes again. “He suspects that there is a traitor among his staff members and, possibly, within his security team. But I don’t know if that’s just a smoke screen.” She rubbed her forehead. “Maybe I’m not right for this job. I worked for Ian and thought that he was a good guy, until I heard him trying to swindle Clarissa out of her inheritance.”

Jenny leaned closer, gripping Mandy’s arm. “But you did figure it out, dear. You found the proof and saved Clarissa from being robbed of her inheritance. Plus Ian Montrose, along with his corrupt friends, are in prison for embezzlement and corruption as well as that business about hiring someone to kill off your friend. That’s because of you, my dear. You looked into your former accounting firm’s activities and figured it out.” She squeezed Mandy’s arm again. “Do it for the people of Sidrina. Do it for this man who is looking for a wife he can trust.”

Mandy snorted in disgust. “The video just came out last week and the guy is already looking for a new wife.” Her mouth twisted into a grimace. “Well, a new fiancée. I don’t know if he’ll follow through and actually marry the woman. Maybe he’s the type of man who just likes the idea of an engagement and all of the benefits without any of the responsibilities.”

Jenny chuckled. “And maybe he’s a good person who has a solid moral compass. Maybe he’s someone who genuinely wants to discover corruption within his government.” She pulled her hand away and selected another cookie. “There are good people who are also powerful.”

Mandy sighed, her shoulders slumping with disbelief. “I haven’t met any.”

Jenny laughed. “You haven’t been looking. You’ve only seen the muddy side of the corporate world. It would do you some good to investigate on behalf of someone who is honest and trustworthy.”

“I doubt that the Sheik of Sidrina is one of those men.”

“Fine,” Jenny replied and broke the cookie in half. “Then do the job, investigate the candidates’ histories and the staff members’ financials and get paid. If the man is corrupt, then he’ll ignore your findings and you can be on your merry way with a big, fat check in your bank account. If he’s a good person, then you’ve helped him weed out the bad characters, and you still come home with a big, fat check in your bank account. Either way, it’s a win for you.”

Mandy bit her lower lip, not sure if she wanted to admit to her mother the way she’d reacted to Zahir’s presence. In the end, she kept silent. That just wasn’t something that her mother, who had been single ever since her father had been killed in a construction accident, would understand.

In fact, Mandy didn’t understand her feelings either. Mandy’s dating life had been filled with boyfriends who were…blah. A couple had been genuinely nice guys, but none had stirred this…overwhelming reaction within her. They’d just been nice guys who had been nice to talk with.

Okay, they’d been friends and she’d occasionally had sex with them because she’d felt it was expected. Not that the sex had ever been great. But nor had it been horrible. Sex just wasn’t something that excited her much. It was just…fine.

Pulling herself back to the present, she nodded her head firmly. “You’re right. I’ll do it. The man in charge might not be good and honest, but if I can find him enough evidence, then I might make a difference there. Otherwise, I’ll leave the country and come home to my normal work. Nothing will change and I can just move on, right?”

“Exactly,” Jenny replied with an affirmative nod.

Perking up, Mandy smiled. “It will be an interesting challenge to manage the office from Sidrina,” she said, then finally took a sip of her tea.

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