1
Kara turned this way and that in front of the full-length mirror in the corner of the luxe bridal suite, which had been bedecked in white silk hangings. Hair, check. Makeup, check. Wedding dress, check.
It still didn’t seem quite real. Six months ago, she never would have dreamed she’d be marrying a sheikh from Raihan. Now she stood in a guest suite in the palace. The room had been made over into a bridal suite for her brother-in-law’s wedding and redecorated for her own bridal preparations. In a cascade of ancient marriage laws, Zayid, the crown prince of Raihan, had been forced to marry so that Kara could marry his younger brother, Yaseen.
She turned to the left and smoothed the silk of her dress over her baby bump. Yaseen had hired the best designers in Raihan to create three different gowns for her, and she’d chosen this one. The empire waistline wasn’t quite what she’d always pictured, but Kara had to admit it flattered her bump. The silk gave way to lace at the sleeves. A dip in the back added a bit of mystery, Kara thought. And with her blonde hair in shining, perfect waves...she looked great. Even pregnant. Especially pregnant.
But still. She had never once, not in all her life, even imagined the possibility of getting married because of an accidental pregnancy. Next week she’d be six months pregnant. Kara would have been a sheikh’s wife for seven days by then. Married, with a ring on her finger and vows spoken in front of his family and her most trusted colleagues from Community Connections. The NGO had brought her to Raihan. She hadn’t had any idea that it would bring her to the father of her child.
“You look lovely.” The voice from over her left shoulder came along with a light touch on her arm. Laila, who would be her sister-in-law in a matter of minutes, met her eyes in the mirror. “If I’m the first to tell you that today, then we’ve made a terrible mistake.”
Amusement danced in Laila’s eyes. She had married Zayid in a fantastic ceremony of her own—one that had been an elegant disguise for the fact that Zayid had no choice but to get married. For Zayid and Laila, it had turned out to be a true love story. Kara smiled back in the mirror, a flutter of unease batting against a twin flutter of anticipation. For all she’d tried to convince herself that the middle son of the royal family in Raihan wasn’t as much of a media draw, this would be the first time she showed the world her new body. And the truth of what had happened with Yaseen. One night of passion had changed her life completely.
She’d met him at a club six months ago. His name had been the least important fact about him that night. More important? How utterly, devastatingly handsome he was. His jaw could cut diamonds. And those dark eyes, roaming over her body—
Oh, it had sent an incredible flash of heat through her from head to toe. They’d circled each other on the dance floor. Kara had found herself moving farther and farther from her friends until she and Yaseen danced close together. Then closer. And even closer still. She’d lost herself completely in the bump and grind of the club. Of his palms brushing against her hips. Of his hard body against hers. He’d whispered flirty, filthy things into her ear, barely audible above the music.
When she went home, she took him with her. How could she resist? She’d known out on the dance floor that he would be excellent in bed. She’d felt it in her hips and the way desire curled between her legs and pulsed with the beat of her heart. Plus, she’d had a couple strong vodka tonics and that, more than anything else, made everything seem like a good idea. It had all been such a very good idea.
Including kissing him hard and hot, her fists curled in his shirt, as he tried to push the door of her apartment open with an elbow. Including letting him stare deeply into her eyes while she told him about her work. Including stripping down to nothing and falling into bed with him, condoms be damned. There was no way, she’d thought then. No way that this would be her short fertile window for the month. What were the odds?
Good enough that she found out about the pregnancy early. Ten days later,