Page 27 of The Forbidden Sheik
If there were commercial benefits to the berry, Jadwat wanted to get in on the ground floor. If he could get one of those berry bushes back to Uftar, he could hire a scientist to propagate thousands of the plant. Even if there was no real benefit to the berry, Jadwat didn’t mind lying to the public. Hell, he could make up health benefits and sell the damn berries all over the world. By the time the health gurus figured out that the berries were just berries, he’d already have made millions in profit.
So, this was a win-win for him.
“I will do this. For my cousin,” Jadwat finally replied. Then he walked down the stairs of the plane. Thankfully, there was a car and driver waiting on the tarmac, so he didn’t need to stay out in the humid heat. Jadwat much preferred the dry heat of his beloved Uftar. Yes, it was a desert country but it was a beautiful place to live. Plus, one didn’t sweat in the desert!
As he slipped into the waiting limousine, he sighed with relief. The chauffeur had turned up the air conditioner so the vehicle was pleasantly cool. Jadwat didn’t like the fact that the infernal bodyguards followed him in, sitting next to and across from him, but he simply huffed and looked out the window.
As soon as the driver pulled away from the airport, the issue of Princess Marianna resurfaced in his thoughts. He had only received a brief text message from the individual he'd hired to orchestrate the princess's abduction on the initial day of the operation. Since then, there had been only silence. While silence was sometimes preferable, Jadwat couldn't shake the gnawing worry until he received confirmation that the princess was alive and in custody. It was one thing to carry out the kidnapping, but if anything happened to her, if she was hurt in any way during this endeavor, there would be dire consequences.
Still, Jadwat was comfortable with the plan. He could provide evidence that Amit had been behind the kidnapping, should there be problems later.
Chapter 33
“It’s not here!” Angela groaned impatiently, slumping onto the floor with a huff of frustration. She stretched her legs out in front of her as she sighed, completely deflated.
“It’s here somewhere,” Rafi countered, fisting his tiny hands on his hips in a favorite pose of his father’s.
Laith dropped down next to Angela, leaning his head against the wall. “We’ve looked everywhere.” He glanced over at his twin brother. “Read it again? Maybe we missed something.”
Rafi pulled the small piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it.“Amongst the tapestries old and grand, your next clue rests, waiting to be found."
Zayn squatted down in front of his cousins, not really interested in the hunt. He just liked being with the older cousins. Still, he pretended to search. He’d found a suspicious something a while ago, but since he was just starting to read, he wasn’t sure if it was important. But because his cousins were so frustrated, he pulled the piece of paper out and offered it to Laith.
“Could this help?” he offered.
“Where did you get that?” Laith demanded, leaning forward eagerly.
“Over there,” Zayn replied, indicating a small tapestry enclosed in glass. “It was just laying there on the floor, so I didn’t think it was what we were looking for.”
Rafi, Angela and Laith leaned in, their heads bowed as they read the next clue. “Venture to the palace gardens fair, where floral scents fill the air.”
Angela’s eyes widened. She hadn’t put the green makeup on her nose today, tired of how the makeup made her face itch. But she continued to channel her favorite hero regardless.
“The gardens!” she gasped.
The children leapt to their feet, rushing to the door. Carefully, they peeked out into the hallway, looking both ways to ensure the coast was clear. The guards, alerted to their success by their charges’ eager voices, had already backed away, hiding behind the door and in the surrounding rooms so that the kids could head to the gardens unhindered.
One of the guards muttered into his microphone, “It’s one hundred and ten outside. Should we contact His Highness and ask for a distraction?”
“Affirmative,” the lead guard agreed.
Five minutes later, the foursome settled in the palace kitchen, eating chocolate cupcakes. Instead of green on Angela’s nose, she sported a chocolate smear and all was good with the world. For the moment.
Chapter 34
“Checkers?” Amit repeated, blinking down at the lovely woman who had distracted him all day. “You want to play checkers?”
“Yes,” Marianna replied with an affirmative nod. The movement caused her ponytail to bob, adding to her fresh, vital appearance. “Or cards. Maybe, we could play gin? Or Uno?”
“What’s…” he paused, wondering if she was making up words just to mess with him, “Uno?”
Marianna bounced on her toes, causing his gaze to shift lower. Her breasts were so lush and perfect, it was difficult to think when she wore just a thin blouse and jeans. Because she didn’t plan on leaving the apartment, she hadn’t bothered to put on shoes. Her bare feet peeked under the hem of her denims, making her look…hell, every inch of her was sexy and adorable. He’d never thought those two words should be in the same sentence, but Marianna broke all the rules.
“It’s a card game,” she explained. Her smile suddenly dimmed in doubt. “But…sorry!” She stepped back and Amit lost the hands that had been holding his. “I know you’re busy. You probably don’t have time to play cards.”
Amit felt like he’d been slapped. He wanted her smile back and he would do just about anything to make that happen. “We’ll play cards,habibti,” he announced. He turned and pressed a button. Almost immediately, a servant appeared in the doorway. “Would you find us a deck of playing cards? And…Uno…if we have it?”
The servant bowed immediately and walked away.
