The man behind the desk stared back at Isla through thick, heavy glasses, his whole body frozen with indecision about what to do and how to respond.
When Isla calmly raised her eyebrows, the tiny gesture seemed to spur the man out of his frozen stupor. “Um….,” he stood up, knocking over several files from the corner of his desk as he came around to the front. He then knocked over a coffee cup full of pens and scrambled to try and gather them all up quickly, which only made the whole situation worse.
“Ah…yes….um…” he dropped the pens and walked down the hallway to another office which turned out to be a storage area filled with office supplies. He gathered up a box of pens, several note pads and then turned back to face Isla, handing them to her while still trying to push his glasses higher up on his nose. “The computer,” he stammered, “might be more difficult. I don’t know where we get the computers but I’ll ask my boss to get one for you, Your Highness.” He was barely speaking above a whisper towards the end of his statement and Isla knew that it was time to give the man some room to breathe.
“That would be very kind of you,” she replied and turned around, armed with her supplies and marched back to her newly acquired office.
With her pens and papers, she settled into the somewhat comfortable desk chair and opened up the file she’d been carrying around. As she read through the information, her heart ached for all that Hussan needed to accomplish. He had big dreams and high standards for his department heads. The five and ten year plans were ambitious and detail oriented.
What impressed her the most was that he not only had goals for almost every area in the country, he had detailed plans to reach all of those goals. They were well thought out, strategic and inter-related so that each department helped the other. She knew there would be infighting, but she also had confidence that Hussan could channel that towards a positive atmosphere.
“I’m sure you’re making some sort of statement, but what that could be eludes me at the moment,” the man himself said from the doorway, leaning casually against the frame with his arms crossed over his muscular chest and his eyes revealing nothing of his mood.
Isla closed the file and put her pen down, flipping back the pages on the notebook where she’d taken several notes about ideas she had. She leaned back in the chair and considered him carefully but tried to appear casual. “Why do you think I’m trying to make a statement?”
He raised one eyebrow in response. “Aren’t you?”
She nodded her head. “Yes. What’s my statement then?”
He shrugged and considered her pretty dress, thinking she looked extremely lovely in that particular shade of blue. “I have no idea what you’re trying to tell me. Why don’t you just say it so we don’t have to guess with each other? At least until we know each other better?”
Isla thought that was a good way to go, but she wished he could at least try to guess. It would show that he actually cared enough to try and understand her. “I’m not sure it’s very important now.” She stacked the file and the notepad together. “Can I get a computer? Or am I to survive without technology?”
He stepped into the room and leaned his back against the wall, still watching her carefully. “Of course you can have a computer. But what do you need a computer for? What are you trying to do?”
Isla pursed her lips and leaned forward, placing her elbows on the table and clasping her hands together. “I want to help. I’ve read through this file and I think your ideas are incredible. I can help if you’ll just let me.”
She could see in his eyes that he didn’t want her to have anything to do with the operations he was currently planning so she stopped his rejection before he could say the words. “Are you marrying me simply so I can give you children?”
His eyes widened and he shook his head. “That’s not the sole reason. Is that what you were thinking?”
She bowed her head and looked down. “I don’t know what to think anymore. Four days ago I thought I had you all figured out and I despised you.”
“And now?”
She took a deep breath, keeping her eyes low. “Now….I think you’re magnificent.” There, she’d said it and she didn’t regret it. The word hung in the air between them, a tense silence as she put herself in a vulnerable position that he could hurt her with.
“Look at me when you say something like that,” he growled out after a long, tense silence.
Isla heard the intensity of his voice and was startled. She finally lifted her head and looked up at him, the truth shining in her eyes but what she saw made her heart race painfully. The heat in his eyes was shocking and her mouth dropped open as she watched him. He was no longer leaning against the door frame but standing up, his shoulders tense and his hands fisted on his hips. He looked like the powerful sheik that he really was and it was awe inspiring.
With a sudden jolt, she realized that she actually loved this man. It was crazy to consider after only three days in his company, but it was true. She loved him so completely that it hurt.
The pain was probably because she knew that he didn’t feel the same about her. But as she looked up at him, seeing that heat in his eyes, she knew that she would be okay.
“If you think that about me, why are you in here?”
Her hand slid across the notebook that was on top of the desk. “Because you have so much that you want to accomplish. I want to help and yet, I get the feeling that you are trying to marginalize me. You don’t want me leaving the palace, maybe even my rooms. And that’s not who I am. I want to be out there helping you. I want to help you re-build Silaria by your side, hand in hand and I don’t think that’s what you want.”
It took him less than two strides to close the distance between them and he lifted her into his arms, holding her against him and crushing her in his strong embrace. “You have no idea what those words mean to me,” he said with that sexy, husky voice that never failed to turn her on.
He slowly loosened his hold and set her on her feet. “Do you know how much I love you?”
She pulled back and shook her head, completely surprised by his words. “You love me?”
“Damn straight I love you! I think I’ve been in love with you since I saw you laughing at your brother’s wedding over the mis-matched shoes. You were adorable but most women would have been furious or embarrassed over the situation. You just laughed. I was entranced from that moment on.”