His Defiant Desert Queen(14)

                “I wish you had just let me go. We were leaving tomorrow morning anyway,” she said softly. “You were out of the country. You didn’t have to rush home to have me arrested.”

                “No. I could have allowed the police to come for you. They were going to arrest you. They wouldn’t have been as polite, or patient, as I’ve been. They would have handcuffed you and put you in the back of an armored truck and taken you to a jail where you’d languish for a few days, maybe a week, until you were seen by our tribunal, and then you would have been sentenced to five, ten, fifteen years...or longer...in our state run prison. It wouldn’t have been pleasant. It wouldn’t have been nice at all.” His expression was fierce, his gaze held hers, critical, condemning. “You don’t realize it, but I’ve done you a favor. I have intervened on your behalf, and yes, you will still serve time, but it will be in a smaller place, in a private home. My assistance allows you to serve your time under house arrest rather than a large state run prison. So you can thank your stars I found out.”

                “I’m amazed you’d intervene since you hate the Copelands so much.”

                His dark gaze met hers. “So am I.”





                                      CHAPTER THREE

                FOR SEVERAL MINUTES they traveled in silence.

                “So why did you rush home from Buenos Aires since you despise the Copelands?” she asked, unable to stifle the question, genuinely curious about his motives.

                He didn’t answer immediately, and when he did, his answer was short, brusque. “Drakon.”

                She picked her next words with care. “You must know he won’t approve of you locking me up, for six months or six years. I’m his sister-in-law.”

                “His ex-sister-in-law. Morgan and Drakon are divorced, or separated, or something of that nature.”

                “But he likes me. He has a soft spot for me.”

                Mikael’s lips compressed. “Perhaps, but you’re a felon. Even as protective as he is, he will still have to come to terms with the fact that you broke the law, and there are consequences. There must be consequences. Saidia cannot be lawless. Nor can I govern at whim.” His head turned, and his dark eyes met hers. For a long moment there was just silence, and then he shrugged. “And at last, the Copelands will be held accountable for their crimes.”

                Her stomach flipped. Her heart lurched. “You want to see me suffer,” she whispered.

                “Your father should have accepted responsibility and answered for his actions. Instead he ran away.”

                “I hate what he did, Sheikh Karim. I hate that he betrayed his customers and clients...friends. His choices sicken me—”

                “There was a reason your visa was denied. The refusal was a warning. The refusal should have protected you. You should not have come.”

                She turned her head and swiftly wiped away tears before they could fall.

                No, she shouldn’t have come to Saidia. She shouldn’t have broken laws.

                But she had.

                And now she’d pay. And pay dearly.

                She felt Mikael’s gaze. She knew he was watching her. His close, critical scrutiny made her pulse race. She felt cornered. Trapped.