Page 17 of The Sheik's Pretend Fiancee
Tiro didn’t want to wait three more days!Tiro wanted to hear her ideas about their fake engagement now.
Hell, he was fooling himself. He didn’t want to talk to her. He wanted to kiss her. He remembered the negotiations before that kiss. And yes, talking would be interesting.Angela was no pushover!
Three more days!
Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair. Impatience never solved anything, he reminded himself as he headed into his next meeting. Osman trailed behind him, taking a seat near the wall and pretending to fade into the woodwork. The meeting was about to start now that Tiro had taken his seat at the head of the table. But he lifted a finger and called Osman over. The man came forward, completely unconcerned that his boss had stalled a meeting. He whispered into his personal assistant’s ear and, when the man looked startled, Tiro nodded confirmation of his instruction.
Osman didn’t show any expression. He simply nodded and sat back down, looking down at his tablet. The shorter man might not agree with Tiro’s request, but the loyal assistant would be his normal efficient self and would get the information quickly.
Settling back, Tiro nodded to the man at his right, silently indicating that the meeting could commence.
Chapter 11
Angela stood at the entryway to the palace with her Uncle Khal on one side of her and her father on the other.
Her uncles had donned their formal military attire, complete with medals and what-not. They looked both dapper and intimidating. Angela had chosen a soft blue sheath dress with intricate folds at the neckline. The dress was a work of art that made her curves look more elegant. Plus, the soft color made her skin look creamier, which…she wasn’t sure why that was a good thing.Maybe she should have chosen a bold color? Did the blue dress make her look weak? Should she have chosen red? No, that was toosensual. Burgundy? Yes, maybe the burgundy dress with the full skirt would have been a wiser choice.
Angela ached to turn around and run back to her private apartment. Not to change. Nope, her hope was to avoid this public and extremely formal moment. Women all over the world experienced this kind of introduction. Romantic partners eventually had to meet one’s father. But…well, being a member of the royal family had some downsides, such as being forced to introduce an almost stranger to one’s father and powerful uncles.
It was a bit overwhelming.
Hopefully, her dad and uncle couldn’t see her trembling knees or hear the excited throb of her pulse as the three of them waited for the man of the hour to approach. They’d received word that his convoy had left the airport. In fact, they were receiving updates every three to five minutes. Apparently, the man’s progress toward the palace was international news.
Angela had received more than three hundred interview requests over the past several days. Every news outlet in the world wanted to know how the romance between herself and the powerful, mysterious Sheik Tiro el Maistri had come about. Everyone wanted to know how members of two royal families with a history of mutual animosity had been able to keep the budding romance out of the press.
No one could ever know that, before four nights ago, Angela hadn’t even met the man. The Lativa palace publicity engine had jumped on the idea of the mysterious romantic past, even encouraging continued secrecy. The head of the palace publicity department kept releasing small details of the supposed romance to the public, who was eating it up. They were claiming it was a Romeo and Juliet love story, but without a tragic ending.
Nervous at seeing Tiro again and impatient to just get this initial meeting over with, Angela smoothed a hand down over her blue dress, then opened her mouth to speak. “This is–” she began, but before she could continue, five black SUVs pulled up. A military escort had been provided, along with a line of color guard soldiers, standing at attention along the steps leading up to the palace.
It was one of the most formal greetings that had happened at the Lativa palace in more than a generation.
Angela’s thoughts couldn’t settle, bouncing from one issue to another, and wildly, she wondered what it would be like when Zayn finally chose a bride. Right now, her male cousins were happily perfecting their charm offensive toward the ladies of the world and determined to hold off on the marriage issue for several more years.
“We’re right behind ya, cuz.”
Angela turned to find that Zayn, Laith, and Rafi were standing behind her, decked out in dark suits with red, green, and yellow ties, the colors of Lativa’s flag. The jerks usually wore only slacks and a dress shirt without a tie, just like their fathers. Rafi had the audacity to give her one of their secret hand signals – the one that meant, “Run and hide!”
Which is why Angela was laughing as Tiro stepped through the door of the palace for the first time.
Chapter 12
“It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Sheik el Maistri,” Khal announced smoothly, stepping forward to shake Tiro’s hand.
Tiro took the man’s hand, absently appreciating the firm shake while his eyes strayed to the woman who had constantly invaded his thoughts over the past several days. She looked stunning in a blue dress that made her dark eyes sparkle. The smileon her soft lips was…!
He forced his eyes back to the leader of Lativa, reminding himself of the etiquette required for this moment. “The honor is mine,” he replied, lying through his teeth. If it weren’t for the beautiful vixen, who was struggling to hide her laughter during this tedious greeting, he wouldn’t be here. Hell, he never really thought about Lativa, other than when a company his government had been coaxing to set up business in Ginisia chose Lativa instead. And even then, it was only a passing thought.
The rest of the world thought that he hated Lativa and Tiro didn’t understand why. His predecessor, Tiro’s uncle, had been an ass, but there hadn’t been any indication about Tiro’s feelings toward Lativa over the years beyond his acceptance of Sheik Khal as a worthy competitor. Granted, he hadn’t fostered any communication with the country either.
Going through the familiar motions, he exchanged greetings with the men, wondering if they were intentionally forming a human wall, separating him from the woman he most wanted to speak with.
Even after he’d greeted the sheik’s brother, Angela’s father, Tiro then had to be introduced to the crown prince and the other princelings. Not that they were small men. In fact, Prince Zayn, Laith, and Rafi were all about his height of six feet, three inches tall. They were handsome too. But he didn’t give a damn about them. He wanted to see Angela. He wanted to speak with her and find out how she’d fared over the past few days. It had been such a tornado of phone calls and back channel questions coming at him after that video’s release. Every damn person in every damn country wanted clarification of his relationship with Angela and what that meant for trade agreements, the political environment, and all the hullabaloo that came along with what the world perceived to be a peace treaty between two hostile countries.
After Tiro had gone through all of the appropriate introductions, Sheik Khal finally turned to Angela, who had been standing off to one side. Out of the corner of his eye, he’d watched her the entire time. He didn’t know her well, but even he could see through the diplomatic smile she offered to the press that were cordoned off, snapping thousands of pictures of this moment. Tiro doubted that the others noticed the strain in her eyes, or the tension in her shoulders. But he saw it. Hell, he wanted to pull her into his arms and whisper assurances in her ear.
She was younger than the other diplomats that he’d worked with over the years. And yet, the list of her accomplishments was impressive. She had probably asked for a list of all the annoying issues that needed to be fixed in the world, according to Lativa, and was quickly checking them off, cleaning up the problems and soothing the wounded feelings.
Sheik Khal and his brothers were big, impressive men. But they couldn’t outshine Angela.
