The Sheikh's Pregnant Wife - Leslie North Page 0,22

her out on it, and climbed over her. He filled her, relishing the feel of her velvety passage, keeping an iron grip on his control so he wouldn’t crush that beautiful belly under him. It didn’t help that she pled for more. She came again, fists clenching at the bedsheets. Yaseen lost himself in her—in the sweet sounds of her voice and the tight pulse of the muscles inside her. Her orgasm triggered his own, and he spent himself in a rush of heat and that unnamed emotion that he knew now was more than lust. While she caught her breath, he got up and padded back to the bathroom.

He’d draw them another bath. He didn’t mind starting over—not at all.

10

Kara sat on one side of the big meeting table at the Community Connections office, her PowerPoint slides from the week in Mennah finished. “So,” she continued. “Realistically, the royal family isn’t fully on board with a full partnership because of the profitability issues. There’s some concern that the project won’t earn out in what they would consider a timely fashion. The government isn’t ready to make an investment that might not be in the black for a decade—or a generation.”

One of her colleagues, Michael, narrowed his eyes. “But isn’t the profitability of a center like this a matter of long-term returns, anyway? And what about enriching the community? Isn’t that important?”

“Not important enough,” chimed in Leslie, a woman with striking red hair and a determined expression. “I don’t get it.” Leslie leaned back in her seat, staring at the final slide of the presentation on the wall. “What are we going to do to convince them?”

Kara’s stomach tightened with a new wave of worry. The last few days with Yaseen—the last week, their trip to Mennah, and last night especially—had nearly convinced her that there was something to their unconventional marriage. Something that would make it last. But what if Leslie’s assessment was right? What if the value to the community would never be enough for Yaseen? What if she would never be enough for him?

No. That wasn’t the way to think about it. Things had been different over the past few days. If she and Yaseen could keep connecting on a personal level, there was room for change. Lots of room.

“We’ll get the project funded.” Kara looked Leslie in the eye. “We’ll figure it out. I’m absolutely sure of it.”

Later, in her office, Kara’s assistant Jean breezed in with changes to her schedule. She dropped into a seat on the other side of Kara’s desk. “Got your book?”

Kara shot her a look. “Of course I have my book.” She slipped it from her top desk drawer. Her own mother had always kept a little notebook calendar of all her appointments and dates, even if there was an official calendar at work. Kara felt her close by every time she picked up a pen to do the same thing. “Go ahead, Jean.”

While Jean scanned the paper, Kara let herself linger over the memory of her mother. What would she have said about Kara’s marriage? Her mom had believed in true love and finding the one, which was probably why she’d never remarried after her father passed away. He’d been the only one for her. But Kara wasn’t so sure about that. Her friends had married and gotten divorced, and she herself had gotten married knowing that the end was in sight. Maybe her mother had just gotten lucky.

“Kara?”

“Yes?” She snapped her head up to find Jean looking at her with a curious expression.

“You look like your mind is a million miles away. Should I come back later?”

“No, no.” Kara tapped the pen against the calendar. “I’m ready. Hit me with those changes.”

“Okay.” Jean pressed her lips together in a thin line, then launched in. “The speech you’re giving in Geneva has been moved up to the first day. It’s now the keynote speech.”

“Wow. I—” She let out a nervous laugh. “I’m not sure how to write that in this little box.” Kara flipped a few pages forward—three weeks—and scribbled down Give the keynote speech. “Why did they change it to the keynote?”

“The organizers wanted to highlight your work, since you’re a princess of Raihan now and using your influence to push the projects forward.” Jean flicked her eyes up to meet Kara’s. “I thought you’d approve of the change.”

Normally, Kara would scoff at that kind of thinking. Her work was just as important whether she was a princess or