She brushed at the tears on her cheek. “Sorry,” she whispered. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Tell me no.”
Her hazel eyes met his. “I can’t. I owe them too much.”
“What about what you owe yourself?”
“I could say the same thing to you,” she said. “I hate being dutiful.”
“Me, too.”
She drew in a deep breath. “Yes, Jamal, I’ll marry you.”
He ignored his disappointment and slid the ring onto her finger. Then he leaned close and kissed her cheek.
She stared at the diamond. “It’s very big.”
“Do you like it?”
“I don’t know. I’ve never been a jewelry person.” She offered an insincere smile. “Thank you.”
Oddly enough, her lack of enthusiasm made him feel a lot better. Maybe it wasn’t going to be so bad. While he didn’t know Heidi that well, on the surface she was nothing like Yasmin. That would help.
“We should talk about the marriage,” he said. “If we approach the situation logically, we should be able to find some common ground. Each getting what we want, that sort of thing.”
“All right.” Heidi glanced around, then pointed to a small bench tucked into a vine-covered alcove. “Although it’s going to be tricky to each get what we want when neither of us wants to be married.”
“We’re both reasonably intelligent adults. We’ll manage.”
She settled onto the bench. “I have to warn you, Jamal. I’m more than reasonably intelligent. Actually I get quite impatient when I have to deal with stupid people.”
“I’ll remember that.”
“Not that I meant to imply you were stupid.”
“I didn’t think so.”
“I’m sure you’re quite bright. For a man.”
He sat next to her. “Do you want to change the subject before you dig yourself a deep pit?”
She sighed. “Probably a good idea.” She wiggled on the stone bench, then turned to face him. “So, what do you want from our marriage?”
He thought for a moment. “I want to be friends.”
“Oh, that’s good. All right. Friends. What else?”
“We’ll have to have children, but I think we should wait. Get to know each other better.”
Heidi’s eyes widened behind her glasses. She cleared her throat several times. “Yes, that would be wise. Waiting, I mean. Children are something of a strain on a relationship. Or so I’ve heard.”
Whatever else might happen, she had the ability to make him laugh, Jamal thought in relief. Although he was careful not to let her see that he was amused. He knew she wouldn’t understand. Heidi was so innocent as to be an anachronism. But he didn’t mind that. When the time was right, he would be patient with her.
The thought of making love with her was intriguing, and he found himself caught up in wondering what she looked like without her dreadful clothes. From the little he saw of her body, she seemed to have all the right parts. Despite his reputation for being a ladies’ man, he didn’t insist on physical perfection in his women. He preferred enthusiasm and humor to a perfect pair of thighs.
“I want to keep working,” she told him. “I love what I do, and I’m only just getting started. You won’t get all Neanderthal on me and insist I keep our suite clean or anything, will you?”
“The palace has servants for that. You may do as you wish with your day. Although there will be some official functions that require your presence.”
She pressed a hand to her stomach. “Don’t talk about that. It will make me more nervous than I already am.”
“You should know what to expect. Don’t worry. Fatima and Dora will help you.”
She nodded. “Yes, well, I’ll think about that another time. There is another matter.”
She paused just long enough to let him know she was embarrassed by whatever it was she was about to say.
“Go on,” he prompted.
“You won’t like it.”
“Say it anyway.”
“All right. It’s about your women. I would prefer you didn’t have any.”
He knew what she was getting at but he pretended ignorance. “Any what?”
“Women.Mistresses. Lovers. Whatever you want to call them. You have a reputation, Jamal. I won’t be made a fool of.”
“I see. You want exclusivity.”
Color flared on her cheeks, but she didn’t look away. “I expect you to respect me and our vows.”
“What about my animal passions? Will you be able to satisfy them?”
“A-animal passions?” Her voice quivered. “I—I guess I can. Perhaps you could provide written instructions beforehand so I’ll know what to expect.”
He coughed to hide a laugh. “No problem. I’ll have my secretary type them up.”
“As we’ve already established, I’m very bright. I’m sure I can study them enough to be able to satisfy your…well…you know. And if the act doesn’t seem overly appealing to me, I’ll simply endure.”
Her words cut through him like a knife. His humor faded, as did his good mood and any hope that this marriage might be better than his last.
Without wanting to, he remembered his beautiful young wife standing naked in front of him, her mouth twisted in disgust as she stared at his arousal. “You’re an animal,” she’d said. “I don’t understand why I have to endure you touching me all the time. I hate it, and I’m not very fond of you.”