Page 7 of Her Irresistible Sheik
He wasClyde.
She turned back to the monitor, pulling up a new window for an image search.The database yielded few photos of Princess Nahla—unsurprising, considering the royal family’s tight grip on media access.But the few that existed?
Nahla was… gorgeous.
Long, thick waves of dark hair.Piercing blue eyes.The kind of figure that could make a woman cry into her nachos.Even in grainy news footage, the woman radiated confidence and charm.
Leona glanced down at herself—faded sweats, oversized flannel shirt, and a bowl of cold ramen and cheetos next to her keyboard.She crunched a chip and shrugged.Cheetos and stretchy clothes were her domain.
Still… maybe it wouldn’t kill her to step into the sunlight once in a while.
Just not today.
Today, the most dangerous man she knew had set his sights on a princess.And for once, Leona wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to help him finish the job.
Chapter 4
The alarms were as shrill as they were sudden—piercing the council chamber with a metallic wail that sent a shockwave through the room.Everyone seated at the long table jolted upright, heads snapping toward the ceiling speakers.Papers rustled, chairs scraped against the marble floor, and a collective sense of dread crackled in the air like static.
The heavy double doors burst open.
Khal’s personal bodyguards stormed in, weapons drawn, eyes scanning every corner with the intensity of men expecting gunfire.Their presence ignited a fresh wave of panic among the meeting participants, but the guards focused only on Khal.
Khal rose immediately, the legs of his chair screeching across the floor.His expression, already hard from a morning of tense negotiations, turned glacial.“What’s going on?”he demanded, his voice low but edged with fury.
“There’s been a breach in the palace, Your Highness,” one of the guards replied, his stance rigid, finger gently touching his earpiece as if he were listening to more information coming through the communication lines.
Khal’s gaze sharpened.“Where?”
The guard hesitated, one hand pressed to the device tucked into his ear.His brow furrowed as he listened, then he gave a short nod.“The palace is secured, Your Highness.”
Khal’s jaw flexed.“My family?”he asked, his voice tighter now.“My grandson?”
The guard straightened as if bracing himself.“Everyone is accounted for.Prince Griffin is with Prince Zayn in the nursery under full guard.”
A shallow breath escaped Khal’s lungs, but his shoulders remained tense, muscles coiled under the tailored suit jacket.“Who was the intended target?”he asked, already certain it wasn’t him—not this time.Something colder, heavier twisted in his gut.A father’s instinct.
Before the guard could respond, the doors creaked again, and Tasha Al-Sintra stepped inside.Her face was pale, eyes wide with restrained fear.
Khal crossed the room in two long strides and pulled her into his arms.She sank against him without hesitation, her fingers bunching the fabric at his back.He pressed a kiss to her temple, but his eyes were still on the guard.
“What do you know?”Khal snapped.
The guard’s expression darkened.He touched his earpiece again.“Preliminary assessment suggests the breach may have been directed at Princess Nahla, Your Highness.That’s not confirmed—”
“Where is Nahla?” a new voice cut in, sharp with alarm.
Crown Prince Zayn barreled into the room, his son tucked tightly against his chest.Griffin, just a year old, clung to his father’s shirt with sleepy confusion, his head resting against his father’s broad shoulder.
“I heard someone got as far as the family quarters,” Zayn said, scanning the room as if expecting his sister to materialize in front of him.“Where’s Nahla?”
“She’s safe, Your Highness,” the guard answered quickly.“She’s in her apartment with a full detail.No injuries.She’s unharmed.”
Relief swept through the chamber like a collective exhale.Shoulders lowered, hands dropped from resting tensely on tables or hips.
But not Khal’s.
He turned on the guard, his eyes blazing.“Thenwhy the hellis someone targeting my daughter?”he snarled.
