everything in his power to convince her that he was going to spend the rest of his life proving how much he loved her. He was going to take care of her and protect her and be impressed by her and hope it was enough. Because at the end of the day, he would be offering all that he had.
* * *
CADE HAD NEVER been to El Bahar before and didn’t know what to expect. The airport was large and modern. He went through customs easily, and then got a cab. It was only when the driver asked him where he wanted to go that he realized he still hadn’t come up with a plan.
He’d gotten the first flight he could out of LAX. That meant changing planes first in New York and then in Frankfurt. Including layovers, he’d already traveled more than twenty-six hours and he still didn’t know how he was supposed to get in touch with Bethany.
She’d disconnected the phone she’d used in Happily Inc. If she’d given Pallas her real number, his sister hadn’t bothered sharing the information with him, so he was on his own.
“Take me to the royal palace, please.”
The driver nodded and pulled away from the curb.
They quickly merged onto a multilane highway. Traffic flowed briskly in both directions. The exits were clearly marked, the road signs were in English. To the southwest was the Arabian Sea and up ahead were the modern high-rises of the downtown area.
They drove past what he would guess was a large financial district, judging by the names of banks on several of the tall buildings, followed by more office buildings. When they exited the highway, there was a large park on one side and a shopping center on the other.
They passed several residential neighborhoods, more parks, schools, a sprawling university, then entered what seemed to be an older part of the city. Streets became more narrow, buildings closer together. The traffic was denser here.
Thirty minutes later, the cab drove down a long tree-lined street. At the far end was the fabled pink palace of El Bahar. Cade stared at the turrets and domes, the walls, the gardens and the tourists’ buses.
The cab pulled over and the driver pointed to the amount due. Cade groaned.
“I didn’t have time to exchange my money,” he said, pulling out his wallet. “Are US dollars all right?”
The driver smiled. “Of course. Very welcome here.” He pushed a button on his meter and the amount was converted to US currency. Cade paid him, grabbed his duffel and got out.
The sun was high in the sky, the temperature warm. He could see the blue water to his left and the palace in front of him. Tourists swarmed, taking pictures. Guides held colored signs aloft in an attempt to keep their groups together.
How was he supposed to find Bethany is all this? He knew she lived in the palace, but it wasn’t as if they were going to simply let him in. Should he have gone to the stables instead? Called Pallas to beg for Bethany’s number? Not knowing what else to do, he walked up to the information booth and spoke to the woman inside.
“May I help you?” she asked.
“Yes. I’m Cade Saunders, from the United States.” He pulled a business card out of his wallet. “I was hoping to see the king.”
He waited for hysterical laughter, or the guards to pull out their guns and force him back into a cab. Instead the young woman looked at the card, then him, before asking, “May I see your passport?”
“Sure.” Cade handed that to her, as well.
“One moment,” she told him, and picked up the phone.
* * *
“BUT IT’S INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S STUDIES,” her mother said for maybe the sixth time. “Wouldn’t that be interesting?”
“Mom, if you’re that intrigued, you go get your degree.” Bethany smiled to soften the words. “I love you, but you’re making me insane. I’m fine. You don’t need to hover.”
Only part of a lie, Bethany thought. She wasn’t fine, but she really didn’t need the hovering, either. Eventually she would be fine. Or at least all right, which was close. Right now the wounds were too fresh. She’d only been home a few days and she ached for Cade with every breath. But in time, she would heal—of that she was sure.
Her parents had welcomed her with open arms, as had her brothers. She’d given herself twenty-four hours to sulk like a five-year-old, then she’d told herself it was time to