Page 25 of The Sheikh's Secret Family

Tariq waved her off. “No. You and Owen are more important. How is Owen?”

“Fine, I think. I left him with Noora for his lessons and I’ll pick him up again in about an hour. Then I was thinking that we could go over to the soccer field you showed us yesterday and kick the ball around. He always loves that.”

“I wish I could come,” Tariq said, and Emelia was sure that he meant it. His brown eyes were full of yearning. “For dinner, do you have anything in mind? I can ask the chefs to put something nice together.”

“Al Salyan food, please,” Emelia said. “If it’s anything like this, it’ll be delicious. Oh, but Owen doesn’t like olives or raw onions.”

“Thank you.” Tariq gave a quick nod as if committing the food preferences to memory. “Okay, I better go.” He stood, brushed off his slacks, and took a step towards the door. Then he turned back and rested a hand, very lightly, on Emelia’s shoulder. “Thank you.”

“For what? I should be thanking you.” Emelia tried not to think of the warmth of his hand, but it seemed like all her senses were focused on that shoulder now.

“For being here,” Tariq said, simply. “And for bringing Owen. Okay, I’m going. See you later.”

With that, he was gone. Emelia watched him leave, her mind spinning. She was still hungry and wanted to get started on her lunch, but she found herself repeating Tariq’s words over and over in her head again. He’d thanked her, with such sincerity that it was hard to ignore. He’d looked so handsome in his suit, with his broad shoulders and tall frame. And when he’d put his hand on her shoulder, a completely innocent touch, Emelia had felt warmth flood her whole body.

Maybe it was going to be harder to keep her feelings out of this than she’d thought.

CHAPTER15

TARIQ

Tariq found it hard to focus all day. He went from meeting to meeting, talking about everything from fishing rights to taxes, but his mind was on Emelia. She’d looked so at home on the terrace and, for a moment, Tariq had almost forgotten that she hadn’t always been there. He’d almost forgotten that they hadn’t seen each other for six years. He’d almost reached out to pull her in for a kiss, like he had when they were young.

But he hadn’t. Of course, he hadn’t. Everything had changed since they were college students. He had become a sheikh. She had spent years struggling on her own. And they had a son together.

Tariq tapped his foot impatiently, glancing at the clock. In just half an hour, it would be time for them to eat dinner together. He couldn’t wait. Tariq had asked his chefs to send a selection of Al Salyan delicacies, from their famous saffron rice to lamb kebabs and kalish, a delicious dessert of pomegranate, pistachios, and flaky pastry, to Emelia and Owen’s rooms. Tariq smiled to himself, imagining sharing these foods with people so dear to him for the first time.

Finally, after what felt like years, the clock chimed and Tariq stood, ignoring the surprise on his advisors’ faces. Tariq was known for being beyond dedicated to his job, staying late almost every night and starting work early every morning. For him to leave right at five was completely out of character.

“We’ll continue this tomorrow,” Tariq said firmly. “Thank you all.”

With that, he hurried to Emelia’s rooms, his heart pounding with excitement. As he knocked on the door, he could already smell the delicious scents of spices wafting out of the room. Dinner must already be here.

The door opened and Owen was standing there, bouncing a little on his toes.

“Hi!” he said.

“Hey.” Tariq came in, slipping off his shoes and taking in the apartment. Already, it looked different than the other generic rooms for guests. A few crayon drawings were on the walls, chunky Legos were spread across the coffee table, and Emelia’s e-reader was sitting on the edge of the couch. Tariq smiled. It was a definite improvement.

“You’re here for dinner, right?” Owen asked excitedly. “Some guys brought a giant plate of food. Giant!” He held out his arms as wide as he could to show just how giant the plate had been.

“That sounds pretty cool,” Tariq said. “How was your first day of school?” He followed Owen towards the dining room, the smells growing stronger.

“Miss Noora is so funny,” Owen said, giggling a little. “We played so many games.”

“Don’t worry,” a familiar voice called out. Tariq looked up to see Emelia laying the table, which was already full of the giant plates of food that Owen had been talking about. “He also learned a lot, too. Apparently, Noora is the queen of educational games.”

Tariq nodded, but he was having trouble focusing again. Emelia looked absolutely stunning. She’d traded out the jeans and gray shirt she’d been wearing earlier for a blue and green dress that clung to her in all the right places. She noticed Tariq looking, flushed, and smoothed the edge of the dress.

“After class, Noora took us to a huge room full of clothes and things and let us pick out some outfits,” she said, flushing and glancing away. Tariq was pleased to note that her cheeks still turned the same rose pink as before. “She said you wouldn’t mind. Is it okay?”

“Of course,” Tariq said, taking a seat at the table. “Anything that’s mine is yours. We keep a lot of things on hand at the palace. Since we’re in a desert, it can take a while to ship things in and you never know what you might need.”

“There were toys, too,” Owen said, clambering into his seat across from Tariq. “But Mom said I could only take one.” He stuck out his lip.

Tariq glanced at Emelia. “That seems reasonable. Maybe if you do well in class, we can go back and get another.”

Owen’s eyes brightened a little. “Miss Noora says I’m doing great already.”

---