She was escorted onto the jet and her eyes widened as she looked around. So many people working, all looking extremely busy and professional, and yet still no sign of Rashid. Personally, all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and sleep so not seeing him now wasn’t such a problem. It was just that she wanted to know where the enemy was, she thought. She’d been planning sleep during the flight while she’d lain in her bed last night, but that wasn’t on the agenda if all these busy people were any indication.
“Ms. York?” a tall, pretty woman in a crisp navy blue uniform asked Sidra.
Sidra knew she’d been standing in the doorway, looking lost and alone. She was grateful for the other woman’s welcome guidance. “Yes. Where should I sit? Is there a seat out of the way where I can sit and not bother anyone?”
“His highness has requested that you join him upstairs,” the uniformed woman explained.
Sidra didn’t like that idea one little bit, but it made her feel better to at least know where the man was now. She looked behind her at the stairs. “Why?”
The woman blinked and looked at Sidra strangely. “I’m….” the woman stammered, obviously unused to people asking that question. Apparently, when ‘his highness’ wanted one’s presence, one presented oneself. Another rule Debra forgot to mention. Or maybe she had and Sidra just hadn’t remembered. “Sorry,” Sidra mumbled, hiding her amusement at the woman’s stunned expression. “Just use those stairs?” she asked, feeling like a recalcitrant child.
The navy blue woman looked relieved that she didn’t have to answer Sidra’s question and stepped to the side. “Yes. John will meet you at the top level.”
Sidra nodded and tucked her bag full of notes onto her shoulder. “Thank you. I’ll check in with….him..” she said awkwardly, not sure she could ever call Rashid ‘his highness’, “but is there a place I could work when I’m through?”
The woman smiled. “Of course. I’ll make sure there is a table for you as soon as you’re finished.” She waved up the stairs, as if Sidra really shouldn’t keep the great man waiting. “Take off is in approximately five minutes.”
Sidra absorbed that information as she stood in the middle of the entryway, completely stunned by what was happening. This wasn’t real, she told herself. She wasn’t really here, she wasn’t exhausted and she wasn’t flying halfway across the globe with a man she’d met three weeks ago. No, this was all a dream and she was really in her bed, snuggled under her down comforter waiting for the sun to come up.
She was startled out of her mental arguments when a man came stumbling down the stairs from the upper deck and looked around frantically. Sidra noticed the moment his eyes spotted her and he rushed over to her. “Are you Ms. Sidra York?” he asked, slightly out of breath and looking extremely frazzled.
Sidra looked back at the man, wondering why he appeared to be so nervous. “Yes. Why?”
The man visibly relaxed. “If you would follow me, His Highness has been waiting for you to arrive so we can take off. This way?”
Sidra simply stood there, wondering when her dream was going to wake her up and she should shower and….
“Ma’am?” he prompted anxiously when Sidra simply stood there, probably with her mouth hanging open in stunned silence.
She blinked at the man, ordered her feet to move forward, but she was stuck, her feet plastered firmly on the floor. She even noticed the others around her that had previously been rushing about their business, all were now finding seats and locking their seat belts into place, some even looking at her expectantly.
The man’s anxiety once again increased and he moved forward so that he could quietly say in her ear, “I apologize for the rush, ma’am, but His Highness has been asking about you for the past thirty minutes. We’re scheduled to take off but if you’re not upstairs and in a seat where he can see you, then he will delay our departure. That will throw off several meetings that are all tightly scheduled for the day and could cause several international issues.”
Sidra snapped out of her stupefaction and shook her head. “Well, I wouldn’t want to be the cause of any international issues. Lead the way,” she said, but her voice was almost a whisper. She was terrified of seeing Rashid again. But because of Debra’s warning yesterday, she couldn’t turn back. The only course was to go forward and figure out how to deal with a cheating, heartless bastard of a man.
Be professional, she told herself as she carefully took each step to the upper deck. She might have been emotionally invested in their short relationship, but Rashid had had other ideas. She had to put that behind her and move forward. This was a wonderful opportunity and she needed to grab the bull by the horns and do a bang up job of decorating this man’s home. She could create an environment for him that he’d love! She just had to be professional about everything.
She followed the gopher Rashid had sent to hunt her down, hearing the plane’s engines rev up outside and she climbed the stairs with knees that were barely able to hold her weight.
The upper deck was filled with people sitting at a conference room table but as soon as she arrived, Rashid nodded and the whole area was vacated within moments. She stood there staring at Rashid, her eyes taking in his magnificent form in an immaculate suit and red, silk tie.
Rashid looked her up and down, noting the dark circles and the loose clothing. She hadn’t been eating or sleeping, he thought. That indicated she was miserable about something so at least he was in good company. Good! He didn’t like her being miserable, but at least it showed that she felt something for him and was just as miserable as he had been since they’d departed.
He should feel better knowing that she was upset about something but in reality, he felt angry and wanted to take her into his arms and make it all better for her. He wanted to protect her and tell her that everything would be okay, and he would make it okay. And then he would lift her into his arms and make love to her until neither one of them could move again.
“Coffee?” he asked, ignoring all the things he wanted to say to her. Primarily to demand who the bastard was that she’d been talking to last Friday night. Did she love him? Was their time in England just a weekend fling that she’d already dismissed in her mind?
Sidra looked over at the table filled with various breakfast materials but the thought of food turned her stomach. “No thank you.”