The Sheik's Secret Bride (13 page)

Zahir chuckled.  “There’s my word for it.  And you’re going to lose your two cookies if you try to argue for more.”

Luca understood that.  His face was stunned for all of two seconds.  And then his little body raced away, heading towards the palace kitchens.  Callie watched him until he was out of sight, Junar right behind him. 

When they were relatively alone once more, he turned to face Callie, his hands fisted on his hips as if he were bracing for the next challenge.  “Okay, talk to me.  What’s going on?”

Callie sighed and wiped her cheeks once more.  “Honestly, I’m not completely sure myself, Zahir.”  And she plopped herself down on one of the brocade chairs.  “I’m very confused.  On the one hand, I know that Luca is thriving here, with you, and he’s needed you in his life for so long and I didn’t even know it until you arrived.”

Zahir sat down next to her.  “And you?  Do you need me in your life?”

Callie stared up at the ceiling, trying to stifle the tears.  “I don’t want to need you, Zahir.”

“Because that too, will make you vulnerable.”  He didn’t ask.  He was understanding the words that she couldn’t utter out loud.

“Yes,” she nodded.  “You make me feel things that anger and excite and drive me crazy and the whole gamut of other emotions.  And I’m so confused and terrified of what will happen tomorrow or next year and it isn’t fair that you can do this to me so completely!”  She sniffed and wiped her cheeks again.  “You’re a bully and tender at the same time.  Do you have any idea what that does to me?”

“Drives you crazy?” he suggested, trying to think of the words she’d just used.

“Yes!  You drive me crazy!  You swoop into my life, turn everything upside down.  Not once, but twice!  Five years ago, I was in college and having a fine time!  Then you come into my life and show me all the things I hadn’t known I was missing.  I hadn’t even believed most of them were possible!”

His dark head tilted at an angle as he listened.  “And this is a bad thing?”

Her fury increased exponentially with that question.  “Yes!  Don’t you get it?  I was fine!  I was getting along!  Things were okay and then you swoop in again, tell me that everything I’d believed about my life was a lie.  That you owned the building in which I lived, owned the company where I worked, employed the people I thought were my friends…!” She buried her face in her hands.  “Oh, what’s the use!  You don’t get it!”

He pulled her closer, ignoring her when she fought back.  “And you think your life is out of control and that’s making you more vulnerable.” 

Callie sagged against him when she heard that he truly understood.  “You don’t play fair, Zahir,” she sobbed. 

He rested his chin on top of her head.  “No.  I play to win.  And I’m going to win you Callie.” 

They sat like that for a long time.  Not speaking.  Just thinking. 

It was in that moment that he knew what he had to do.

The following day was a much more mysterious excursion.  This time, they had to fly across the country though.  And that just made Callie more anxious. 

“Where are we?” Callie asked as Zahir walked with her from the limousine. He had Luca in one arm and Callie was holding onto his other. He slipped his hands down and captured hers as he said, “This is the Fortress of the Guards, an ancient fortress that was built partly by my ancestors in order to protect the land and the people.  No one is allowed admittance to this fortress without permission from either myself or three other people.” The guards in front of them saluted smartly as they held the doors open for their ruler.

“I’ve never heard of this place,” Callie said, her eyes wide as she looked around at the old walls that looked like they’d taken a beating but were still standing strong. This was nothing like the palace she thought. Where Zahir’s palace had elaborate tile work and marble columns, flooring made up of numerous kinds of materials, this fortress was made of stone. It wasn’t meant to show off a ruler’s wealth, it was meant to protect and defend.

“It isn’t a secret, but we don’t advertise that we have started using it again.” They headed through long, dimly lit hallways that felt vaguely ominous.  Thankfully, there were lights that lit the way and broke through the thickly oppressive darkness. The fortress might look old and antiquated but the modern conveniences had obviously been installed at some point. There was lighting and air-conditioning even though the air still felt slightly damp. Even that was an interesting perception since they were still in the desert. “Is there water nearby?” Callie asked

Zahir nodded his head. “There are underground wells and various access points throughout the fortress. It was one of the reasons why it was built here. The architects of this fortress wanted to ensure that the people the building protected would have access to water, which was one of the main ways that people died centuries ago. Lack of clean water could win a war more effectively than arrows or bullets.”

Callie couldn’t stop the shudder that ripped through her. It still continued to shock her the ways that people tortured others in order to gain power. “So why are we here?”

Luca’s eyes were wide as he looked around, his chubby arm holding onto the back of his father’s neck as he took in his new surroundings. “I like it!” Luca announced.

Zahir smiled, proud of his son. “The people you are about to meet are going to surprise you.” He looked into Callie’s eyes, trying to get her to grasp the significance of who they were about to meet. “I understand your fears about the war starting up and your anxiety over being vulnerable. The people you are about to meet, the people that you will be spending the next twenty-four hours with, are going to prove to you that there is an absolute dedication among the four, previously warring countries to maintain the current peace.”

Callie opened her mouth to say something, but she wasn’t exactly sure what to say.

At that moment, there was noise that seemed to be coming from the end of the hallway where they were standing. Suddenly, the doors at the end of this hallway opened up and bright sunshine flooded in, almost blinding the three of them.

“I guess they are already here,” Zahir said. He chuckled slightly as he shook his head and moved further down the passageway.

Callie’s eyes squinted as the intense, desert sunshine warmed everything up relatively quickly. The difference between the dim hallway and this large, open courtyard almost hurt her eyes. She slipped the sunglasses down from the top of her head to shield her eyes from the harsh glare. As soon as her eyes adjusted, she was startled to see three equally large men walking towards her. The stern expressions on each of their faces caused her to involuntarily move closer to Zahir. “Who are they?” she whispered to Zahir.

Zahir looked down at his wife, surprised that she didn’t recognize the men. Then again, perhaps it wasn’t such a surprise. Callie had endured a horrible ordeal five years ago. She probably tried very hard to block any sort of memory about that from her life. It was a coping mechanism that many people used, and he should have been aware of that.

“Callie, I would like to introduce you to Sheik Tarek bin Faisal of Tularia, Sheik Garon al Sharhi of Lurasa and Sheik Dassar bin Sarook of Altair.”  He paused as each man greeted her, lifting her delicate hand to his lips in a gentlemanly fashion.

Tarek smiled down at the lovely little lady. “It is indeed a pleasure to meet you. I understand that it was because of you that this ugly old buffoon decided to end this ridiculous war.” He bowed over her hand once again. “I am completely in your debt. If there is ever anything that you need, please do not hesitate to contact me. My people are truly thankful to you for putting up with this man for so long.”

Dassar laughed at the exchange as he too took Callie’s hand in greeting. “I believe that we are all in your debt. I don’t know how you put up with him, but please continue to make him happy so that we can avoid any other altercations.”

Garon agreed “Your patience in dealing with this ugly and annoying man must far exceed your incredible beauty.”

Callie kept glancing up at Zahir’s expression, noticing that he rolled his eyes at several of their comments. Luca wasn’t as subtle. His little hands were covering his mouth as he tried to smother the giggles while each man greeted his mother.

“I don’t think that I understand,” she said, looking at each man and then back at Zahir.

Zahir took her hand and placed it right back on his arm, exactly where he preferred it to be. “I wanted you back. I knew that you wouldn’t come back if there was a war going on so I figured out a way to stop the war.”

Tarek nodded his head. “If it weren’t for his ideas, and his initiation, we would all still be at war. More people would be losing their lives daily. But it was your husband who brought us all here to this place, showed us how we could stop this war.”

Callie was stunned. She really wasn’t sure exactly what to say. All four of these men were so powerful in their own countries, and they were crediting her with a cessation of the war? Here she was standing beside some of the most powerful men in the world, and they were thanking her? It all felt more than a little surreal.

Tarek changed the subject. “I hear that this little guy is a really good soccer player. I think we should see for ourselves.”

Dassar and Garon both nodded their heads in agreement. “I saw the video. I’m on his team,” he said, pointing to Luca.

Zahir turned to his son, looking at him with pride in his eyes. “Do you think we can take them on?”

Luca was grinning from ear to ear, his whole body wiggling with the excitement of playing soccer with these four enormous man. Not to mention, he wanted to show his father how good he was on the soccer field.

Callie watched with fascination as four men and one little boy converted what she suspected was a former military training field into an improvised soccer field. Furthermore, she could not believe how silly the normally stern and terrifying-looking men could be while trying to entertain her tiny son. Not to mention, the cheating between these men was hilarious.

One would kick the ball down the field and, because the four of them were so tall, one would pick Luca up and carry him down the field. All of them would kick and battle as the one carrying her son got him into position to kick the ball. Sometimes they set Luca back down on the ground and let him chase the ball and kick it. In those cases the men would all cheer, laugh, and actually punch each other, as if those punches were congratulatory. Other times, whichever enormous man holding her son would swing her child through the air. Luca knew to keep his feet steady and the momentum of the swing would shoot the ball across the field.

A servant magically appeared and provided a chair as well as a glass filled with ice and the most delicious drink she’d ever had. So Callie was allowed to sit and watch the five males play a rambunctious if not exactly rule-abiding game of soccer. She laughed and cheered and, by the end of the game, had absolutely no idea who had won or even who was on either team. They all seem to change teams as the need arose in order to score a point. It was one of the most ridiculous soccer games she’d ever seen in her life, and also the funniest.

Luca hurried over to where she was sitting. As he approached, Callie knew exactly what was going to happen. Too many times, her little boy had been out on the field, racing back and forth, kicking the ball, cheering with his friends. He might be little, but he was also a very sweaty little boy. Sure enough, he threw himself into her arms, exhilarated by his success.

No matter how many times she cringed as his sweaty little body threw himself into her arms, she still loved his enthusiasm.

What she hadn’t been anticipating was Zahir pulling her into his arms, plastering her linen clad body against his very sweaty one and kissing her until she was clinging to him. After a moment, she didn’t mind. All she cared about was that the kiss continued.

The chuckles behind Zahir were her first indication that she had to stop kissing him. Peering around his body, she noticed that Dassar, Tarek and Garon were all staring at the two of them as they kissed. Tarek had even lifted Luca onto his shoulders. And the little traitor was rolling his eyes as his parents kissed.

He bent over Tarek’s head as he explained, “They do this a lot.”

Zahir turned around, his arms still around Callie’s waist. “Don’t you guys have something else you need to do?”

Garon, Tarek and Dassar all quickly shook their heads. “You are the master. We are all trying to learn from your technique,” Tarek teased.

Dassar nudged Garon in the ribs. “If only we’d found Callie first, Zahir would never have stood a chance.”

Garon chuckled and nodded his head. “It’s too bad that she had to settle for second best.”

Callie was so shocked at their words that she wasn’t exactly sure what to say. So she was relieved when Zahir squeezed her waist, indicating that they were only teasing her. “Go find your own women!”

He then reached up and took Luca off of Tarek’s shoulders. “And get your own kid too.” Zahir ruffled Luca’s hair. “This one is taken.”

The three other men laughed. “So dinner tonight?”

Zahir nodded, holding Luca in his arms.  “It should be ready within the hour.”

Everyone agreed and they slowly dispersed, shoving each other as they bragged about how they’d scored a better point with Luca than the other man had before they separated. Callie glanced over her shoulder as Zahir pulled her towards one corner of the fortress. Each of the men were heading towards opposite corners of the courtyard in which they played soccer. “Why are they all going in different directions?”

Zahir took her hand as he carried Luca towards the section of the palace that sat on his land. “This fortress is built on the spot where the four countries intersect. It was built before our countries were formed, but as the centuries went by, the leaders of each country built their own section of the fortress. It was always intended to be used as a private place where the four leaders could get together and negotiate issues between the four countries. It’s just been in the past 10 years when those negotiations had broken down. This fortress hadn’t been used since the beginning of the war. But it has been the place where we’ve secretly met, away from the eyes of the world and the press, to figure out how we could end this war. So they each live in their country’s section of the fortress while we’re negotiating.”

She nodded her head as she followed Zahir down the hallway. She was painfully self-conscious of the way he was still holding her hand as they walked, but each time she tried to pull her hand away, to put more space between them, he only held her hand more firmly.

And since Callie wasn’t exactly sure what was going on, what she was going to do, or what was expected of her, she finally stopped trying to pull away. She was in a foreign country, not sure where she was, and she wanted to accept the security that his touch offered to her.

Dinner that evening was just as raucous as the soccer game had been. Gone were the severe, stern expressions that each man showed to the rest of the world. At this table, the teasing and jibes flipped across the table with abandon. It was obvious to Callie that these men more than respected each other. They were friends. And as the evening wore on, she understood that they were close friends. It underscored what Zahir was telling her previously about how the peace was more than just a treaty that had been signed by four countries. It felt like these men were dedicated to maintaining their friendship, and maintaining the peace.

That night, after Luca had gone to bed, she waited in the bedroom for Zahir.  Her hands were twisting together nervously and she wasn’t sure what to say or do.  She was so used to pulling away from Zahir, from what he meant to her, that facing those emotions was leaving her more vulnerable than she’d like to be. 

So when he stepped through the doors, she was startled and jerked in his direction. 

“What’s wrong, love?” he asked, moving over to her and taking her hands so she wasn’t rubbing the skin raw any longer. 

“You did it all for me, didn’t you?” she asked softly, feeling like a fool.  “And for Luca.”

He knew exactly what she was asking.  “Yes.  I couldn’t stand it any longer.  I would have done it five years ago but the leadership wasn’t right.  I knew I couldn’t get the previous rulers to go along with my plan.”  He kissed her fingertips.  “When they passed away, I pulled the four of us together and showed them a plan, a way to get this war behind us.”