The Sheikh's Crown (Sheikh's Wedding Bet Series Book 2) (6 page)

He circled his arms around her. “I’ve got you,” he whispered in a quivering voice. “I’ve got you.”

They were silent afterward. He traced his hands down her bare back, seeming to memorize everything about her. Samine was growing increasingly uncomfortable, despite having the best sex she’d had in a long time, possibly ever. But this moment was too intimate. It was just supposed to be about sex, she kept reminding herself.

“That was nice,” she muttered softly as she pushed away. Searching the sheets, she found her hair band and pulled her hair back.

He reached out and grabbed her arm. “You’re like two different people. A minute ago, you were as hot as can be, and now you’re freezing cold. You don’t feel anything, do you?”

She stared at the wall. She could understand his frustrations. It was hard to keep the wall up during sex. More than just her body was bare to him, and he had no idea what he had just seen. He had no idea which Samine was the real one, and the problem was that she was starting to feel that as well.

“There’s a difference between having no feelings and not showing any,” she said angrily as she pulled the sheet off the bed. He grunted when it slid out from under him, and she wrapped it around herself. “You want to talk about making judgments? You don’t know anything about me. You don’t even realize how easy you have it. No one expects anything from you. No one needs anything from you. You are completely independent and free.”

“I’ve seen your body,” Adil pointed out. “You don’t have to cover it now.”

“You are so frustrating,” she cried as she tucked the ends of the sheet around her. “What the hell do you want from me? You’re pissed because I kept you at arm’s length, so I sleep with you, and then you tell me that I don’t have any feelings. I try to tell you more about myself, and you comment about my nakedness.”

“But you’re not telling me anything about yourself. You’re telling me about myself. I know that no one needs anything from me. If you want me to be happy, you’ll tell me why you’re stealing the crown from me.”

Samine stared at him. Part of her desperately wanted to tell him the truth. She wanted him to think of her as someone other than a thief. “You think I’m cold and unfeeling. I came from a family that fled Iran, and by fled, we left everything behind. My father died a broken man. My brother almost killed himself trying to get back what we lost. And now, I…let’s just say that loss isn’t something I’m unfamiliar with.”

“I asked about the crown,” Adil murmured.

She took a deep breath and shook her head. “Why does anyone steal anything? Money. I’m going to sleep. Don’t wake me.”

He opened his mouth to argue, but she held up her hand to quiet him. Slowly, she crept into bed and turned her back to him. There wasn’t nearly enough space, and she was pressed right up against him. Still, he didn’t reach out to hold her, and as she drifted off to sleep, she couldn’t help but wish he’d at least try.

A
dil watched
her chest rise up and down as she slept. The woman was maddening, but he couldn’t help but feel like she’d revealed something real to him. Every time he brought up the necklace, she got that same look in her eyes, as if she wanted the crown but also hated it. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that this wasn’t about money. She was personally involved. He just didn’t know how.

Reaching over, he slowly stroked her bare arm. “I wish you would tell me what you wanted,” he whispered in the darkness. She hadn’t slept with him because she wanted sex. It hadn’t been about release. It was more than that. And if he were being honest, it was the same for him as well.

He should wake her up. He should make her tell him the truth. If they were honest with each other, maybe then they could work faster. Work better.

But she was sleeping. It could wait. They would talk in the morning.

Getting up, he pulled on his boxers and pants and quietly left the room. Padding down the hall to the shared bathroom, he used the toilet. Turning to the sink, he splashed water on his face as he looked at himself in the mirror. He didn’t recognize the person staring back at him. Before he finished, he heard a loud noise out in the hall. Opening the door, he was surprised to see police pushing their way into the room.

Rushing down the hall, he watched as Samine was jerked out of bed.

One of them called out, “Samine Isme. You are under arrest for grand larceny.”

“What?” Adil tried to push into the room, but he was jerked back. “Wait, you’ve made a mistake. She’s not the thief! What is going on here? Who told you?”

“Adil Khalidizack, get dressed. There’s a plane waiting for you.”

Adil watched in disbelief as they forced Samine at gunpoint to dress. When they handcuffed her, she finally looked up to meet his eyes. Relief. There was relief in her eyes.

He felt his heart drop when they escorted her away. She wasn’t going to fight. She was going to let them take her away, and Anton was going to get away with the theft. He didn’t stop staring at her until she was completely out of sight.

“Sheikh Khalidizack, you have to get going. Your father is waiting for you.”

“I just bet he is,” Adil muttered. Wrenching out of their grasp, he turned and finished dressing. He was the only one who knew that Samine was innocent, but it wasn’t going to be easy to convince his family of that.

* * *

“
W
here is he
?” Adil growled when he entered the house. The servant bowed his head slightly, but Adil didn’t want a polite and respectful hello. He wanted to know where the hell his father was.

“Adil.”

The low gravelly voice stopped him, and he looked up to the top of the bannister. Jaymin, his father, and Bruce were all standing up there. “Join us,” Sheikh Quadir ordered.

His father didn’t look happy. With a sigh, Adil took the steps two at a time. “We need to talk,” he muttered. “Without them.”

Jaymin crossed his arms. “I’m not going anywhere, little brother. I was responsible for that collection, and I thought you could handle it. Obviously, I was wrong. I want to know what happened.”

“And I want to make it very clear that he was the one who hired Samine. Not me,” Bruce said nervously.

“There are things at play here that you do not understand,” Adil said tightly. “First, Bruce blamed me for the theft, and now you arrest Samine? You have no proof!”

“The guards said that you found Samine breaking into the crates,” Bruce argued.

“And instead of calling it in, you tried to cover it up and jet-setted off to Venice,” Jaymin chimed in.

“Enough,” Quadir thundered. “The study. Now.”

Everyone immediately bowed their heads, Adil included. When their father was angry, they treated him with respect. There was nothing but anger in his face as he pushed past Adil, and they all followed him.

When the double doors shut behind them, Quadir stood by the window and stared out of it. “Is Bruce right, Adil? Did you know that Samine opened the crates in Paris?”

“They were empty,” Adil said as he tried to keep his temper in check. Quadir wasn’t looking at them, so he focused his anger on Bruce. “If Bruce had bothered to ask me about it, I would have told him that.”

“But the intention to steal was there. And you chose to trust her anyway.”

“I did. She tracked the shipment down to Venice. She found the collection.”

“So did Bruce,” Jaymin argued.

“Bruce followed us. And you can’t trust him. You want to know who stole from us? Anton Negatin. Who do you think helped him?”

Jaymin straightened. “Anton is in Interpol custody.”

“He’s not. All you have to do is make a call, and you’ll find out. Samine didn’t steal anything.”

“But she had the intention of stealing from us,” Quadir said quietly. “And you weren’t going to tell us. That’s my problem.”

“Jaymin was threatening to cut me off,” Adil yelled suddenly. “What did you think I was going to do?”

“I thought that the reputation of this family was worth more than your inheritance,” Quadir roared. “Of all my sons, you show the least amount of interest in this family. You don’t give a damn about anything. I have given you everything that you wanted, and I never wanted anything in return from you other than for you to be a part of this family. And the moment that I needed you to be honest, you picked your inheritance over us.”

Stunned, Adil could only stare at him. “Is that really what you think of me?” he said hoarsely. “Is that what you’ve always thought of me?”

Quadir turned to face him, disappointment in his eyes. “Jaymin will take over the search for the crown,” he said softly. “Think about what you want from this family, Adil. Think about the man you want to be.”

He turned and walked out of the room. Bruce lowered his head and followed him out. Left alone with his brother, Adil could only stare at Jaymin. “What are you doing?” he asked hoarsely. “Please tell me that you know me better than to think that this is about money.”

“I don’t know you, Adil. Just step aside, okay? Go back to being a playboy. That’s what you’re good at.” He shoved past Adil and stormed out of the library.

Adil closed his eyes and shook his head. Maybe Jaymin was right. He could just go back to pretending that nothing mattered. After all, his father had never believed in him. Never.

Why make that change now?

A
dil slept fitfully that night
. He tried to come to terms with the question of what kind of man he wanted to be?

When he dressed the next morning, he took a long hard look at himself in the mirror. He was the reason that this was happening. When he was a child, his father had always told his brothers to look after him, to keep an eye on him. He’d grown complacent. He’d assumed that his brothers would always look after him. It was his turn now to take responsibility.

With a deep sigh, he turned and jogged down the stairs. Jaymin was already in the kitchen. “Adil,” he said coldly. “How was your night?”

“I’m surprised to still see you here. I figured you’d be out trying to ruin someone else’s life. How does it feel up on your high horse?”

“Throwing a fit so early in the morning, Adil? Father’s not cutting you out, despite my argument. You can breathe easy. Once again, despite the mess you made all on your own, you’re off the hook. If you wanted to make my life easier, you’d clean up your own damn mess.”

Adil shrugged. “My mess? You were the one who had Samine arrested. You were the one who told father that I couldn’t handle it. This is your problem, Jaymin. You clean it up.” He snagged an apple and tossed it in the air before catching it. With a wink, he sailed out of the room.

He knew that Jaymin would be pissed, but that also meant that he would be busy. Adil needed him to be busy.

Very busy.

Confident that he had bought himself plenty of time, he drove straight to the jail. He knew his father would have had Samine extradited out of Italy, and that meant that he could throw his weight around with law enforcement. Climbing out of his car, he took a deep breath.

“Relax, Adil. This won’t be the first time you’ve pressed your advantage,” he muttered to himself. Slamming the car door louder than necessary, he stormed inside the small building as the guards looked up in surprise.

“Why is she still locked up?” Adil said tightly as the guards stared at him. “We are not pressing charges. Release her.”

“We don’t have the proper authority…”

Adil slammed his hand on the desk. “I am the authority. I may be last in line for the throne, but that collection was my responsibility. Release the woman, now, or I’ll see to it that you’ll have to move to a different country to find work. Do you understand me?”

The terrified men nodded. “Yes, sir. We’re sorry, sir. We’re just following procedure.”

Adil nodded. “Fine. Release her. Now.”

Hustling, the men took off, and a few minutes later, Samine walked out dressed in the same clothes she’d been wearing in Venice. She gave him a weary look. “They said I was free to go,” she muttered. Her voice cracked, and he inhaled sharply.

“Get her some water,” he ordered. He reached out to take her hand, but she didn’t give it to him. “Samine? Are you okay?”

She gave him a tired look. “If you could just get my things, I’ll be on the next plane out of your country.”

Was she pissed at him? “Samine, I’m sorry. My family made a mistake. But we do need to get you out of here, because unfortunately, they haven’t quite realized that they made a mistake.”

Her eyes widened. “Adil, what have you done?” The guards returned with her water, and she took it slowly. “Thank you,” she murmured, as she drank.

He grabbed her arm and pulled her forcefully along. “Come, we’re leaving.”

“Adil, I know you think I’m a terrible person, but escaping jail isn’t on my bucket list.”

After they were outside and out of earshot of the guards, he whirled her around. “You haven’t defended yourself. They asked you if you stole it, and you didn’t say no. Why?”

She narrowed her eyes. “I was going to steal it. What’s the difference?”

“The difference is that you haven’t stolen it, and I want it from the person who did. And I can’t do it without you.”

“I think I just need to stay away from your family,” she said softly. “And if you’re busting me out, then I don’t want to be in this country when your father finds out.”

Adil shook his head. “I thought the crown was important to you. I thought the money was important to you.”

“Yeah, but I can’t have the necklace, can I? So what’s the point?” she said angrily. “Not only did I get myself thrown in jail, but I did it without even getting my hands on the crown. I guess you can’t really call me a thief anymore.”

Cupping both sides of her face, he stared down at her. “Well, that’s too bad, because I need you now. I need your connections and your skills to help me find Anton. Please, Samine.”

She clutched at the bottle of water she held, crinkling it in her hands. “Adil, for the record, I don’t think this is a good idea. But I’m in.”

He smiled. “Excellent. Your bag is in the car. Let’s get some fresh clothes on you and figure out our next move. Because you’re probably right. When my father finds out what I’ve done, it’s best if we aren’t in the country.”

“Then we’d better go.”

* * *

S
amine felt
a hundred times better after she showered and put on fresh clothes. It was humiliating to be arrested naked, but it was another thing entirely to spend the past couple of days wearing the same clothes.

It wasn’t even the jail time that bothered her. It was that she’d failed in the worst kind of way. No matter what happened now, she’d never get her hands on the crown. And if she did, it would require a huge act of betrayal. It couldn’t have been easy for Adil to break her out of jail. But she still couldn’t figure out why he did it.

He couldn’t possibly want the crown back that bad.

Adil came into the room with a sour look on his face. “That was my father. I don’t think a plane is going to get us out.”

“Shit.” Samine bit her lip. “Look, it’s your family. I’d like to think that eventually, I’ll be released on my own accord. We don’t have to run.”

“We’ll drive,” he said as he tossed the phone on the bed. “Under the radar. Samine, you’re not going back to jail.”

She reached up to pull her hair back, and he gave her a tiny smile as he reached over to grab her hands. “I like your hair down,” he said softly.

Her whole body relaxed under his touch. She leaned into him as he put his arms around her and hugged her. She told herself she should pull away, to distance herself, but she melted against him. It felt good to be held.

She pulled reluctantly away. “We lost a lot of time, and Anton’s trail will have grown cold, but I’ll make some calls to try to pick it up.” She reached over and grabbed her bag. “Let’s go.”

“Okay. I’ll grab some food and meet you in the car,” he said as he tossed her the keys.

She snagged them and gave him a small smile. If she was doing this, she needed to ignore her feelings. The only way this was going to work out well was if she found a way to extricate herself from the Khalidizack family. And that meant that she couldn’t give in to her desire when it came to Adil.

With shaky hands, she got into Adil’s car and pulled out the burner phone. Tapping on the dashboard in irritation, she began the search for Anton.

Adil slid into the driver’s side a little later and tossed a cooler in the backseat. “Do you know where we’re going?”

He sounded cold, which was good. She needed to distance herself, but why did it have to hurt so bad?

“We tracked the crates through Venice. Last stop was Graz. Looks like he’s moving east,” she informed him.

“Austria. You think he’s looking for a buyer?”

“Anton is a thief, but he doesn’t need the money,” she murmured. “He’s planning on keeping the crown. For him, it’s more about possessing it. He needs the satisfaction to know that he has something that no one else has.” She opened her computer and pulled up her files. “If Anton is wanted by Interpol, he can’t fly. Border checks are one thing, but his picture would be plastered all over the cities.”

“That doesn’t mean the crown isn’t going to leave,” Adil pointed out.

“Anton won’t want to be that far from the crown. Until he finds something else to steal, it’ll be his baby,” Samine muttered. She was looking for something, but she just couldn’t find it.

Adil glanced over at her quickly. “Are you a psychologist now?”

“I told you. I’ve done extensive research on your family,” she murmured. “I wanted the crown, and Anton Negatin was a major concern. I was keeping tabs on him when your family hired Fleur. I knew that Fleur’s stepbrother worked with Anton. Masoud getting him arrested made my day.”

“So what else do you know about my family?” His tone was light, but held an underlying edge.

“Maybe it’s better if we don’t talk about this,” Samine said softly.

“I didn’t think we had any more secrets between us. I know you’re a thief. You know I’m a playboy. So tell me what you think you know about my family.”

“Fine. If you want to play this game, I’ll play. Your father has been the crowned sheikh for twenty years. He’s well loved by his people, and well-respected by his sons. Your mother, Nabila, is suffering from early-onset dementia. She believes she’s a child.”

“Samine,” Adil growled.

“Too personal? Fine. Let’s talk about your older brother. Jaymin is the next to be crowned. He worships his father, and he feels like he’ll never be able to follow in his footsteps.”

Adil snorted. “How can you possibly know that?”

“Doesn’t everybody? Jaymin has focused his entire adult life on running your country. If he thought it was going to be easy, he’d slack off. He’s put himself under a lot of pressure, and he does it because he’s afraid of what will happen if he doesn’t live up to his expected potential.”

He was quiet for a minute. “And me? What do you think about me?”

Samine looked down at her computer and began scrolling through her files. “You want to know what I thought before I started doing this or after I got to know you?”

“Is there a difference?”

Samine gasped. “That’s it! I found it!”

The car swerved, and Samine shrieked as she clutched at her laptop.

“What the hell, Adil? Are you trying to get us killed?”

“You’re the one who yelled first,” he yelled back. “What did you find that made you so excited?”

“Anton has property outside Budapest. He doesn’t need to fly anywhere.”

“What? No way. Interpol will be all over that property.”

Samine smiled. “I should clarify. Anton has secret property in Hungary. It’s purchased under an alias.”

Adil snorted. “Wow. You really did research him. You thought he would get to the crown before you?”

“He did,” Samine pointed out. And maybe, if she played her cards right, she could steal it out from under him.