Khalid smiled at her, which left her uneasy. “Your things, as you call them, are here—in impound. Now, shall we go.” He put a hand on the small of her back, gestured for her to walk with him.
The small voice in her head that always told her she was about to do something dumb right before she did it was yelling just now. She silently admonished it.
Not like she had much choice here.
Besides, she had the inside track right now on a story that could push her from just another reporter to a byline that carried clout. For that, she could put up with being a pretend fiancée.
And it was going to be more than interesting to hear what the Sultan of Sharjah thought of all this.
3
She’d seen rich before, but not on the level of Sultan of Sharjah’s palace.
From just inside the gates that let into the palace grounds, she could see rows of tall palm trees, hedges that separated lush gardens from the driveway, and a white, sprawling structure, three stories of stairs, columns, windows, and balconies.
The architecture seemed very traditional to Casey, mirroring what she’d seen elsewhere in Sharjah, but this was on a far more lavish scale.
The chauffeur stopped the limo in front of the wide steps that looked to lead to the main entrance. Glancing over, she caught Khalid watching her. She was glad her mouth wasn’t hanging open like some country girl.
“So this is where you live.” She tried to make the words sound casual, as if marble steps, wrought iron and doors trimmed in gold didn’t impress her much.
“Where we live,” Khalid corrected. He smiled.
Oh, yeah, well, so not sharing a bedroom with you.
But the thought led to an image of Khalid naked, all that beautiful tan skin on display—and all those muscles. She hadn’t missed that under the robes, the man had strength in his arms and moved with athletic grace.
She turned and got out of the car without waiting for the chauffer to jump to it. The man gave Khalid an apologetic look, but Khalid only slipped from the limo and stood next to her.
Standing at the bottom of the steps and looking up at the palace, she was starting to think of Disney movies and every princess story she’d ever watched with her sister when they were little. Truth be told, she’d always thought of herself of more a Princess Tiana type—all that good Cajun food and N’awlins as a backdrop, but Khalid was definitely no frog.
Khalid put his hand on the small of her back again—seemed to be a habit with him—and said,“ Come, Casey Connolly, I will show you to your room. Then I will leave you to get ready for tonight when you will meet the sultan.”
“Do we really have to do that tonight?” She’d been hoping for shower and bed and a few hours starting to shape up her story. She also had to call Luke and fill him in on what had happened..
He stared at her as if expecting her to take this—and everything else—in stride. And, okay, maybe that was a compliment.
“You should be excited,” he insisted. “There has not been a reporter within our house—not ever.”
“Right. Excited. Happy to be engaged. Are we really going to pull this off?”
He smiled at her and let the way up the steps, taking hold of her hand now.
The front door towered like something out of a castle, arch included. Khalid let go of her hand to open the door for her and she was a little surprised to see a blend of lavish and modern.
Marble floors, towering ceilings, columns—but also comfortable furniture, clean lines and carpets that had to be worth a fortune. Khalid led the way up a set of stairs to the right to the second floor, down another hall, and she noticed the entire place seemed scented, as if incense or the flowers from the garden spilled inside. It was cooler inside—either great and quiet air conditioning or really thick walls.
Halfway down the hallway, Khalid stopped and opened another door, She peaked in and saw it looked like any New York upscale apartment—emphasis on upscale. You didn’t get garden views like this in New York.
She stepped in, taking in what seemed to be a sitting room. She’d never seen so much white—couch, pillows, tables, doors. The door on the left stood ajar, showing a bedroom also done up with a lot of white, but right now she was just hoping now for a bathroom that matched the rest of the luxury. Thick carpets with intricate designs covered marble floors and French doors opened onto a balcony that overlooked the gardens. In the distance, she could see more of the palace and then the skyline of Sharjah’s capital.
Khalid waved to the phone by the couch and said, “If you need anything, call the staff. Everyone speaks excellent English.”
She shot him a sideways glance. “You have room service?”