Page 9 of The Sheikh's Fake Bride Scheme

“No, sorry, I wasn’t clear,” Kareem said. “I don’t need government approval because of… my position.”

“I’m not sure I know what you mean.”

“I haven’t introduced myself properly.” He held out his hand. “My name is Sheikh Kareem Nusaybah, of Qalmar.”

Keira felt the breath leave her lungs. “You’re— you’re who?”

“I’m sorry. Now I think maybe I should have told you right away. I didn’t want you to treat me differently because of who I am.”

“Well… youdidwant me to treat you differently,” Keira pointed out. “You wanted me to devote my whole day to giving you a tour.”

And then, instantly, she could have kicked herself. “I’m sorry, Your Grace— Your Highness—” She shook her head, confused. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to address you. I’ve never met a sheikh before.”

“Kareem is just fine,” he assured her. “And I know that I’ve imposed on you today. I’m sorry for that. This is what I meant, though — I don’t want you to feel as if you can’t be yourself around me. I can see you now, worrying about what you might have said today, worrying that you might have been inappropriate. Am I wrong?”

He wasn’t. “I wouldn’t want to show disrespect,” she said, shocked by how soft her voice was. She wasn’t used to knuckling under in the presence of anyone.

And he didn’t want her to, she understood. She squared her shoulders. “You’re right.”

“Am I? What am I right about?” He smiled complacently, and Keira thought,This is a man who is used to being right.Or at least, used to being told that he’s right.

“You’re right that you went too far today,” she said. “You asked too much of me. I’m here to do a job. I don’t care if you are the Sheikh of Qalmar — if that’s the right way to describe you?—”

“I’masheikh of Qalmar.”

“Whatever. You shouldn’t have made demands of my time the way you did, and you certainly shouldn’t have cheated your way into the event. I know you could afford a ticket. I could press charges if I wanted to.” She had no confidence at all that that was true. He probably had some sort of diplomatic immunity. She was probably doing herself more harm than good by even mentioning the idea of getting the law involved. Besides, she knew she wasn’t going to go that route. If she’d wanted to do that, she should have done so back at the very beginning.

Kareem made eye contact with her and held it for a moment. His gaze was soft yet penetrating, and Keira’s heart fluttered.

This would all be so much easier if he wasn’t soattractive!

“I apologize for that,” Kareem said. “In truth, my reason for not buying a ticket was simply that I had no American currency.”

“I don’t understand. Why would you come to America without changing your money?”

“It was a bit of a last-minute trip,” he explained. “The royal treasury has some US dollars, but my father didn’t know that I was coming, so I couldn’t exchange my money there. And… well, to tell you the truth, I don’t usually need money in my day-to-day life, so I didn’t think about it until I was here.”

“How did you bribe your way in if you didn’t have any money?”

“I gave the man at the gate my watch,” Kareem explained. “It’s worth much more than the cost of a ticket, but I couldn’t have used it to purchase a ticket. It seemed the most honest way to get in without leaving and going to a currency exchange.” He shrugged. “Perhaps I should have done that, but it did seem rather like a victimless crime. I’m happy to have the cost of the ticket wired to you once I return to Qalmar.”

Keira shook her head. “You don’t need to do that.” It was enough that he had conceded the fact that his behavior had been out of line — truly, she hadn’t even expected that much.

“Then perhaps I might take you out for a drink?” Kareem suggested. “You must let me do something to thank you for today, Keira.” He hesitated. “I’ve just realized that I never learned your last name.”

“Well, I’m not secretly the ruler of a country. My identity isn’t going to change anything.”

“I’m not the ruler of a country either,” Kareem told her. “That’s my father. I’m not even in line for the throne — or rather, I am, but both of my elder brothers are ahead of me in the line of succession.”

“And that’s why you have time to flit around the world setting up motorsports races?”

“Something like that.” For the first time, Kareem didn’t respond with a lighthearted smile, and Keira wondered whether she had struck a nerve. Shehadintended to give him a bit of a hard time, but she hadn’t meant to be truly insulting, and the fact that maybe she had done so made her feel a little guilty.

She returned to the safer waters of his original question. “I’m Keira Harding,” she said. “It’s nice to have met you.”

And, to her surprise, she found that that was actually the truth.

Kareem’s jaw dropped. “Wait. Did you say you’re KeiraHarding?”

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