Page 23 of Sheikh's Unexpected Triplet Babies

Chapter Eight

When he stepped out from under the shower, drying Bedelia gently with one of the big, fluffy white towels before he dried himself, Jahin's mind was buzzing. There were a dozen thoughts that clamored for his attention, but at the very top was one that he could not deny.

I do not want to lose this.

Last night, he had told himself that he wanted this for a short time, both to protect her and to make sure that his life stayed free of complications. Now, in the light of morning, after a bout of passion that he couldn't even believe, things looked a little different.

He couldn't marry her. When he married, it would be for position and power, to someone who would carry out his name and legacy with a full understanding of what history and tradition had come before. There was no foreigner who could understand that.

No, marriage was off the table, but perhaps...perhaps other things weren't. There might be years yet before he had to get married, and there could be so much pleasure, so much fun...so much passion.

Jahin didn't think of himself as a passionate man, not really. He did his duty, and he had his fun when he was able to do so, but at the end of the day, he did what was required of him.

For the first time, Bedelia was making him question all of that. She made him feel as if he was flying, as if everything was brighter, more beautiful. He didn't want to let that go. He couldn't.

That was why it was such a surprise and an unpleasant shock when she turned to him brightly at breakfast, a sweet smile on her face, and said, “I think, when it comes to one-night stands, that we've had the best one in the world.”

Jahin had to do a double-take and look at her closely. At first, he thought she must be joking, but under her smile, he could see she was perfectly serious.

“One night stand?”

“Of course,” she said, tilting her head. “Um, is that not a term you know? It means...”

“I know what it means,” he said, more snappish than he would have liked. “I just want to know what the hell you mean by it.”

She looked taken aback by his sharpness, casting around her for a moment.

“I mean...last night was amazing and wonderful, and I do not think I could have asked for anyone better when it came to my first time,” she said cautiously. “I just...I just know that we're really not made for the long-haul, that's all, and um, that's fine.”

It didn't matter how gentle her words were. There was still something about them that stabbed him straight through the heart. How could the girl who had sighed in his arms last night, who had clung to him this morning, speak so baldly of their passion, as if it was nothing more meaningful than a coffee date?

“I did not know that's how you felt about things,” he said, frowning.

She shrugged, looking down at the food in front of her. He had ordered them up a bag of breakfast pastries, something that had delighted her when she saw them.

“Practically, I think that's how we have to feel about things,” she said. “I...I wasn't joking when I told you about what I want. The fairytale, the romance, all of that. If we keep this up...well, I think that will go badly for both of us. Or at least for me.”

She slid him a grin that was only slightly crooked. “I don't think you can really fault me for wanting to protect myself, can you?”

He couldn't, but his mind was working furiously. There were words that were on the tip of his tongue...about how he had never known the kind of passion she had given him, how they had something special that should not be denied. But he pushed them away. She would think they were manipulations, or worse, perhaps she would think they were sincere but mock him for them. He did not think he could bear that.

“I want you to protect yourself,” he said, his voice level. “But I think you are forgetting something.”

She looked at him, suddenly wary. “And what am I forgetting, Jahin?”

Even his name in her mouth sent a sensual shiver through him. Before, it had given him a thrill and made him want to sweep her up into his arms. Now he wondered whether she would take advantage of it, whether she would find him contemptuous or laughable. What did one say to a one night stand that had gotten too clingy, after all?

When he spoke again, his voice was short and clipped. “You are forgetting that I am the sheikh of Muneazil, and the fact that you stand in this emirate is because of my grace and my grace alone. If I wished, I could have you barred from my borders, and if I spoke to the right people, from the UAE as well.”

He felt no pride or justification when her face went pale. There was not even a whisper of satisfaction there, but he went on anyway.

“And I think you have also forgotten how easy I could make it for you.”

“Easy?” she asked in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Last night, you went to the citadel with me, and you saw it as few ever do. It is an amazing place, isn't it? Valuable for your work and for your job? I hazard that you found it quite enjoyable and exciting as well, what we did all aside.”

She still looked a little taken aback as she nodded slowly. The look she was giving him was cautious, but there was definitely something curious about it as well. “Yes, and I have to say that what we did was quite enjoyable and exciting, too. What are you getting at?”

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