Page 5 of Sheikh's Unexpected Triplet Babies

"I am so sorry about that," she said. "I don't know what I was thinking, and--"

"You were badly frightened, and I caught you while you were trying to compose yourself," he said with a slight grimace. "Truly, the fault is mine. Are you all right?"

Bedelia was relieved when his question didn't bring up a fresh tide of tears. "I'm fine. Just a little shaken up, I suppose. It's...it was a little unnerving, that's all."

He looked concerned. "Was it just their words and them grabbing you? They didn't do anything else?"

"No," she said darkly, "though I have the idea that they wanted to. Thank you for making sure that they wouldn't."

"Well, as far as I am concerned, you more or less rescued yourself," he said with a slight smile. When he smiled, she caught a glimpse of sharp white teeth, and for some reason, that made her shiver a little. "I merely came along for the ride."

Bedelia scrubbed her hand over her stinging eyes. It should have been embarrassing to be this disheveled in front of a man who was so handsome, but right now, that was the last thing she cared about.

"I'm the one who should have watched where I was going. I didn't even notice for a while that there were no other women in the lines of horses. Something worse could have happened much sooner. I got lucky."

To her surprise, he put his hand over hers. His hand was as warm as the rest of him, and she had to swallow before she could look up to meet his eyes.

"No. You might have been lucky, but it was certainly not your fault. Muneazil has...perhaps a long way to go when it comes to true equality, but it has never been appropriate or legal to touch a woman in a way that she does not welcome. You might have been unaware of how things are usually done, but they had no excuse."

She could see how intent he was about the situation, and she merely nodded at first. Then it occurred to her that they were speaking English, something she hadn't done since she had left the emirate's capital city.

"You speak English very well," she said. "Did you spend some time studying abroad, perhaps?"

He grinned faintly at her. "I did. I spent some time at Oxford before I decided it was not for me, and then I spent a year in Canada on a foreign exchange. The travel was exciting, and I will never regret learning a language that so many people in the world speak, but at the end of it, it was very good to be home."

"Muneazil is beautiful," she said, hoping she hadn't come off as if she were making fun of his home. "I...I'm from Iowa originally, in the United States, and I have never seen anything like this. This is one of the most amazing places I have ever been, and even what happened earlier...that will never make me regret coming here."

The man flashed her a smile that was as bright as the sun. "I am very glad to hear you say that. My country...well, it is my heart, and outsiders...foreigners...do not always have such a kind view of it. Thank you for restoring my faith a little."

Bedelia smiled, but her smile faded slightly when she thought of what Miller was likely going to do with the information that she gave him about Muneazil. Perhaps she simply wouldn't mention that to this man.

"I'm glad I could do something for you that didn't involve ruining your day," she said with a smile. "I’m Bedelia Lindow, by the way."

"I am very pleased to meet you, Bedelia. I am called Jahin."

He offered her his hand, and when she took it, instead of shaking it, he ghosted his lips over her knuckles. It was a strangely gallant, courtly gesture, and yet somehow, on a man like Jahin, it didn't seem that strange at all.

"That was an impressive stunt you pulled with the horse on the track," she said. "I heard someone saying that they might have to shoot to wound to get them apart."

Jahin's face darkened unexpectedly. "Fools. Even some of the so-called experts here. They are fools, and should never be allowed around horses of any kind. The black is nervy and more aggressive than he should be, this is true, but he is also very young. I found that out when I talked to the breeder. He is large for his age, and he lost his head, that is all."

"Oh, I thought perhaps he was yours, that you were selling him."

Jahin flashed her a grin that was surprisingly boyish. He was a handsome man in general, but when he smiled, her heart beat faster.

"Quite the opposite, really," he said. "Immediately after the run, I went to find his breeder, and as soon as the bell rang, I paid full-price for him. Blood like that belongs in my family's horses, and I already have a few plans for him after he proves himself, which I am certain he will."

He paused for a moment, and when he spoke again, there was something cautious about his tone. "Would you like to meet him?"

There was honestly nothing that Bedelia wanted more. A part of her tried to say that it would be excellent research for Miller, but another part of her simply didn't want to let go of Jahin, not when she had just met him.

"Do you mean it?" Bedelia asked shyly. For some reason, she was suddenly nervous about it, as if a man like that could never ask her for something like this. "I mean, I feel like I have already taken up enough of your time..."

"Certainly, I mean it," he said, his voice firm.

Jahin climbed up from the booth, offering her his hand. "Come on."

It was on the tip of her tongue to question him again, but something held her back. There was something about this man that did not care to be questioned, and that meant he was a man who knew what he wanted, and as far as she could tell, he had told her what he wanted.

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