Page 34 of The Sheikh’s Christmas Baby

It was a complex question for one so young, and Kristy wasn’t quite sure how to answer it. One thing she knew for sure, Arella deserved an answer.

“Well, you know how your father is a prince?” Arella nodded seriously. “He’s a prince in a country called Al-Harmid. Maybe when you see him tomorrow, you can have him point it out on a map. Anyway, four years ago, he came to the farm to visit with the puppies.”

“Dusty and Jane?” Arella asked with wide eyes.

She chuckled. “Dusty and Jane were here, yes. Anyway, your father and I spent some time together, but he was only here for a visit. He had to go back to his country because he’s a prince, and he has to learn how to rule.”

“So he can be a king?”

“Something like that. They’re actually not called kings. They’re called crowned sheikhs. Your daddy is currently Sheikh Kashif, and when he takes over after his father, he’ll be Crowned Sheikh Kashif. I didn’t find out about you until after he was gone. I tried to get in touch with him, but none of my messages got through, so he never knew about you. I’m sure if he did, he would have been here much sooner.”

“He’s here now,” Arella said with a drowsy smile. “We’re going to have so much fun, and he promised to visit me lots.”

Tears filled Kristy’s eyes when she leaned down to kiss Arella. Guilt weighed down on her chest when she realized how she’d been depriving her daughter. All this time, she thought she knew what was best for her, but the truth was that her daughter needed her father.

“I’ll find a way to make it work,” she promised her daughter as she tucked her in. “I love you.”

“Love you, momma.”

Before turning out the lights, Kristy gazed once more at her beautiful girl. When she finally closed the door, she knew what she had to do.

All this time, she thought stability was the way to go, but not taking risks had risked the most important thing of all. Her daughter’s happiness. She had to do better.

Grabbing her computer, she headed downstairs and sat in front of the fireplace while she searched for what she should do next. Kashif was right about one thing. The farm simply wouldn’t survive if she didn’t make changes. The tours of the forest and the delivery service would help, but they wouldn’t solve the bigger problem. Dog sledding had been their main source of income, and it had dried up. The horse riding lessons were barely keeping them afloat.

Hours passed as she researched. She read about a new sport big in the lower forty-eight—sand sledding—but it wouldn’t really solve her problem here in Alaska. She could turn the farm into a dog training school. She was good at that, and people had already asked her if she could train their dogs. That could even lead to a team of search and rescue dogs, but that kind of training started with puppies. Kristy had no doubt that she could turn her dogs into great search and rescue teams, but it would take time.

More importantly, it would take time away from the things that were most important to her. She had to ensure Arella’s happiness if it was the last thing she did. And that meant making sure that Kashif was a big part of her daughter’s life, even if he wanted nothing to do with Kristy.

Finally, she saw no other option. The dogs were her best source of income, but she needed a cushion of money if she was going to make it work, and the only way she could do that was if she sold the farm.

Would her father understand? Would Aunt Julia? Mistywood had been in her family for generations, and it pained her to realize that she would be the one to hand it over to someone else, but what choice did she have?

Maybe if she’d taken a chance sooner, she wouldn’t be in this mess.

“I’m sorry, Daddy,” she whispered as she closed the laptop. First thing in the morning, she’d go to the real estate agent to figure out what she needed to do.

19

Kashif was stiff when he walked into the lodge at Mistywood the next morning. He’d only been gone for less than a day, but he missed everything about the place and the people. Paradise Frost would never compare to here. He hadn’t slept at all, but he didn’t want to miss a single second of seeing Arella before he left.

A part of him had hoped to see Kristy as well, but he had no idea what to say to her. He was still very angry with her but at the same time, he could understand her fears. What bothered him the most was his disappointment that she’d thought so little of him to assume that he wouldn’t do the right thing for both her and Arella. That’s what hurt. Melka had a lot to answer for—assuming Kashif didn’t wring his neck first.

When he couldn’t sleep last night, he’d called home hoping to catch his father, but he was unreachable. Taking a chance, he’d asked his father’s secretary about the money Kristy said she’d been sent. Checking the files, the man informed him that it was Melka who’d requested the check on Kashif’s behalf. Then he’d noted that the check had never been cashed, which Kashif already knew. The pieces were slowly coming into place, and it was looking like Melka was at the center of it all. Once he returned to the palace, they would be having a very short chat followed by an escort out the door.

He still couldn’t understand why the bodyguard had said any of those things to Kristy. When Kashif was first notified that he’d need to return home, he’d left strict instructions with Melka, and the man had promised he’d follow them to the letter. Kashif had never doubted that the man had obeyed, and when Kristy hadn’t stayed in touch, he’d truly believed it had been entirely her decision. He realized now that he should have fought harder to speak with her—should have insisted that Wyatt put her on the phone, should have come back to the farm and refused to leave until she spoke with him. At the very least, he should have awakened her to tell her himself why he had to leave, rules be damned. But all that was in the past and he only had now, which he planned to make the most of before he boarded his plane.

He found Arella with her aunt Julia sitting at the kitchen table. The older woman looked like she’d been crying.

“Good morning,” he said cautiously.

“Daddy!” Arella yelled with a big smile on her face. Kashif couldn’t help but feel the pride swell up inside him.

“My sweet thing.” Swooping down, he picked up Arella and tossed her gently in the air before catching her. She giggled and begged for more. Hugging her tightly, he swung her around before settling her on his hip. “How are you feeling today?”

Arella lifted her arm to show him the Band-Aids on her arm and gave him a bit of a pout. “They still hurt a little bit.”

“Oh, my poor dear. Here, let me kiss them for you.” Kissing her arm loudly, Arella giggled then leaned over to kiss his cheek and he thought his heart might burst with what he was feeling for the little girl.

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