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MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 41
All was quiet in the hallway as she walked along it. Even Elenora was nowhere to be seen. And the door to Dami’s study was shut tight into its housing, telling her that he must have taken Adelina in there.Outside, it was still raining, raining, raining. She waved down a cab and climbed inside. Linate Airport was busy. It was always busy, but she managed to get a seat on a flight about to leave for London. Three short hours later, she was walking through the arrivals gate at Gatwick.And the first face she focused on was her father’s. Tears once again started to threaten. "H-how did you—?""Dami called me," he explained, then nodded his head at someone standing behind her.Charley glanced around, then withered out a smile as she turned back to her father’s sombre face. She had been followed from the moment she’d stepped out of the apartment, tracked every foot of the way here by one of Dami’s security team.She didn’t know why her tears picked that moment to break, but she threw herse
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 42
The light was soft in here, the ceilings lower than those in his homes, so he suddenly looked taller and bigger, his face not quite as pale as it had looked on the doorstep a moment ago, with the autumnal cool helping to blanch the color out of it. And—tired, Charley noticed for the first time—the grim lines of tension he’d worn on his face throughout the week before Adelina had turned up well and truly back in place."You’ve lost weight," he said, making her aware that while she had been studying him, he had been doing the same thing to her."No, I’ve not," she denied, but she wrapped her arms around her body all the same as if they were going to disguise the pounds she knew she had dropped."And you look tired." He ignored her denial. "Missing sleep over me, cara?""Oh, isn’t that just typically arrogant of you to say that?" she snapped back.To her surprise, he grimaced and said, "Probably not." Then, with a sigh, he lifted his hand. "May I remove my coat?" It is warm in here.Char
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 43
Charley stood still in the doorway. "Won’t what?" she demanded."Be home soon," Dami extended. "He knows I am here," he explained huskily. "He thinks I am taking you out to dinner."‘Dinner?’ Her shoulders wrenched back. "I don’t want to have dinner with you.""It is the only way you will get rid of me, Cara," he said.It was the cool way he relayed that that made her twist back to look at him. The moment she saw the way he was standing there, looking as contained as hell, she knew he had turned back into the cool-headed Dami De Santis who did not play fair in a fight.Tall, though, lean, and sexily handsome. Charley found herself nervously moistening her lips. "Explain that," she instructed."Dinner," he repeated. That is all. I have already reserved a table. All you have to do is sit down with me and eat.Never in a million years was that all he expected her to do."Or I will call in your family debt."Ah, now he was talking, Charley thought. She understood this Dami so well! The un
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 44
But his face didn’t wear a hint of mockery anywhere, and neither did his sigh sound mocking as he reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, then leaned forward to place something on her menu.Needing to swallow the lump in her throat now because his eyes were so dark and intent on her, Charley looked down—and froze."Tell me," he said quietly, "which part of this note upset you so much that you screwed it into a tight ball and threw it to the kitchen floor."Charley shook her head, the tears gathering. "I didn't know I had dropped it there."‘This part?’ he persisted as if she hadn’t spoken, pointing with a finger at the bit where he’d written, "Dinner eight o'clock." This part upset you because you believed I was issuing one of my arrogant commands instead of a request? "Or was it this part, Cara," he went on gently, "where I was insensitive enough to point out it would be our first date?"He knew which part it was that had upset her—he’d just teased her with it before he produce
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 45
"What do you want me to say?" He demanded heavily. "I’m a 34-year-old man, and I did not embrace celibacy while getting to this age." "I didn’t think you did," Charley said stiffly. "I just didn’t—" She stopped, taking a bite out of her bottom lip, because she knew what she had been about to say sounded stupid and immature and totally unfair—but she just hadn’t thought about Adelina with him in that way. She didn’t even know why it should matter to her so much, yet it did. "With Adelina, it was just—" "Don’t," she choked, not needing to hear him compare the two of them as if they were— "No," he sighed, hunching his shoulders and turning away from her, his stance weary and bleak. Then—"No," he said again, spinning back to face her again. His chin jutted, and his expression turned fierce. "I am going to say it," he insisted, "because I think it needs to be said." Adelina and I were engaged to be married, so of course we were intimate. This is the twenty-first century, Cara, an age
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 46
Hi Fam!!! Here is the beginning of another sizzling romance story. TITLE: PURE LUST Enjoy!!! The moonlight that poured over the mountaintop hotel gave it an ethereal, mysterious quality. From one perspective, it looked enticing and welcoming. From Dianne’s perspective, the shadows it cast spelled danger. The moonlight shouldn’t be silver. It should be red. But this was no time for imagined threats. She was here for one purpose and one purpose only. Taking a fortifying deep breath, she waited for the barrier to rise, then drove through and parked in the main car park. No valet approached to whisk her Chevrolet Traverse off to the secure parking area filled with Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Maseratis, and the like. Ambient music greeted her in the sprawling lobby where hotel guests were lounging around in their finery sipping on pre and post-dinner drinks. She didn’t make eye contact with anyone, intent on slipping through to the function room at the back. The closer her steps took he
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 47
When he next spoke, she could hear the tightness of his vocal cords. Excuse me, ladies.’ With those polite parting words, he bore her away, taking hold of her arm and clasping it tightly enough to prevent her escaping but not so hard as to hurt her.Eyes followed them as they walked in silence to the far corner of the garden, the part where discreet benches were placed amongst the blooming flowers for lovers to be alone. With every step she took, Dianne forced her mind to concentrate, to remember the words she’d spent the day rehearsing.Being here with him was a thousand times harder than she’d imagined it would be.The last time she’d seen her husband had been exactly six hundred and thirty-three days ago.The last time she’d seen her husband, they’d been screaming at each other, real hate and fury spilling out like a bunch of fireworks detonating in one big bang. She’d left that night and hadn’t seen him since.She’d thought all the hurt and anger from that evening and everything t
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 48
He waited for gratification to hit him, but all he felt was something akin to guilt, although why that should be the case he couldn’t begin to fathom. Dianne had left him. After three years of his lavishing his money on her, helping her to improve herself, supporting her, giving her everything she desired, she’d refused him a child.After three years of stringing him along, dangling the promise of a child over his head, she’d finally admitted the truth. She didn’t want to have his baby.Their whole marriage had been a lie, reduced to nothing but a cauldron of recrimination and hate.And now she had the nerve to ask for his help.Yet, staring at her now, her skin as pure as alabaster under the moonlight, Taylor had to clench his hands into fists and hold them tightly to his sides to prevent them reaching out to touch her.The first time he’d met her, he’d just taken over the running of the Moore Hotel chain, the family business run by his father until he’d suffered a major stroke. Desp
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MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 440
He moved suddenly, turned to her, and gripped her arms; she glimpsed the desperation in his eyes as he dragged her against his chest. "I will do whatever it takes to win you back, Kalila." "You are my wife, the love of my life, and I won’t let you go." His warm breath fanning the curls that framed her face, he pressed his lips to her temple, his eyes briefly closing as if in pain."I have told my father to name his brother Sulim as the interim ruler of Qubbah in the event of his dying before Hazem comes of age." Kate stared at him, shocked beyond words. "But... but why?" she finally stumbled.I thought that you were to rule until Hazem was older. "You are the King’s only son, and it is your duty." Ahsan shook his head. "My first duty is to my wife, and my father agrees." Even if he did not, I would still be here for you."Don't you understand, Kalila?" he asked urgently. "You are more important to me than Qubbah, my father, everything." You, me, and Hazem are a family, and the only thin
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 439
The still silence in the garden that followed his astounding statement was broken by the piercingly sweet song of a blackbird. Kate licked her suddenly dry lips, her heart beating so fast she was sure it would explode. "I don’t understand.""It’s quite simple." He sounded impatient and stared at her haughtily. But to her amazement, streaks of dull color highlighted his cheekbones, and his eyes veered from hers as if he were afraid to meet her gaze. "I love you, Kate."Her rebuttal was fierce and immediate. "No, you don’t.""I should have known you would want to argue about it, Kalila." A little of his tension left him, and his smile stole her breath."You don’t love me," she said again. It was probably some cruel trick, and she had more sense than to be fooled. "You married me for Hazem." You love Farrah. Malika said so.Malika said a lot of things, most of them untrue. Ahsan’s voice was suddenly harsh."But not the things she said about me," Kate said thickly. "My mother was a prosti
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 438
The blue sky was dotted with cotton wool clouds, and the warm breeze carried a scent of lavender and old-fashioned roses. There was no place on earth more beautiful than Ingledean on a spring day, Kate mused—except an oasis in the middle of the desert, where palm trees provided shade from the scorching sun and an azure pool glinted beneath a cloudless sky.She had been home for a month—although Ingledean no longer felt like home without Hazem. The image of his huge brown eyes and impish smile caused the familiar agonizing pain in her chest, and she bit down hard on her lip, tasted blood, and cursed the tears that slid unchecked down her face. She couldn’t cry forever. Somehow she was going to have to find the strength to move on, pick up the threads of her life, or maybe make a new one, far away from Ingledean and all its memories. But since she had left Qubbah, a terrible lassitude had settled on her, and she could not plan anything when the only two people she loved were far away on
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 437
In less than an hour, she was expected to attend the lavish dinner organized in honor of King Kabir’s recovery and his return as supreme ruler of Qubbah. And somehow she was going to have to do so without revealing that she was breaking up inside, which Kate acknowledged despairingly as she stared in the mirror at her paper-white face and red-rimmed eyes.When she first returned to the palace after her explosive confrontation with Malika, she locked herself in her dressing room and recalled, in stunned disbelief, everything the young Arab woman had told her. Could it be true? Had Ahsan always intended to divorce her once he’d gained custody of Hazem and marry his beautiful advisor?She did not know how long she’d sat there, but eventually her maid had knocked on the door and reminded her that it was time to prepare for the banquet. She should have made the excuse that she was ill—no one who saw her pallor would fail to believe her. But the steely backbone of pride that had seen her th
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 436
Despite the warmth of the early-evening sunshine, Kate shivered. "You’re talking nonsense," she said firmly, striving to sound confident despite the sudden lurch of her heart. She was perfectly aware of why Ahsan had married her, but he had given no hint that he wanted a divorce. Ahsan told me he was never engaged to you. She lifted her chin and glared at Malika, trying to ignore the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach."He wasn’t," Malika agreed, looking surprised. "I was engaged to Farhan; Ahsan was engaged to Farrah."The world seemed to tilt alarmingly for a few seconds, and Kate actually gripped the edge of the wall for support. Ahsan and Farrah! It couldn’t possibly be true, could it? "Jamila told me that Ahsan was in love with his fiancée," she said faintly. "She doesn’t know why the marriage didn’t take place."Malika gave a careless shrug. ‘Jamila knows. Everyone at the palace knows that Ahsan adored Farrah and that she eloped with his brother on the eve of their wedding.
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 435
He was suddenly aware that the children had finished their dance and everyone was waiting for his response. Kate had turned her head to him, frowning at his inattention, and he quickly clapped his hands in applause. Once the dancers had filed out of the marquee, his personal assistant Zaid appeared at his side and informed him that a group of local potters had brought their best work for his gracious inspection. Stifling a sigh, he led the royal party out into the blazing sunshine.The garden party continued all afternoon, and Ahsan was not in the best of moods when he strode back to the palace. He suddenly realized that he was too far ahead and slowed his pace, waiting for Kate to catch up with him. He frowned when he noted how pale she looked beneath her wide-brimmed hat. She made no attempt to speed up, and the dejected droop of her shoulders fueled his impatience."I appreciate that an afternoon spent admiring traditional crafts and customs is not likely to top your list of exciti
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 434
Her feet briefly touched the floor, and he spun her around, tugged her zip down her spine, and removed her dress before she had time to catch her breath. Her bra went the same way before he lifted her again and threw her onto the bed as if she were a rag doll, his eyes glittering with a mixture of anger and sexual hunger that made Kate’s stomach dip."At night, I’m happy to give you all the attention you could possibly want," he growled, his shoes, trousers, and shirt hitting the floor with barely controlled savagery until he stood in his silk boxers. "This is the only bed you’ll ever sleep in." The boxers joined the rest of his clothes, revealing his powerful, unashamedly aroused body in all its glory. "But I wouldn’t bank on sleeping for many hours yet."Kate stared up at him, her breath coming in shallow gasps as she struggled to control the wild excitement that was pounding through her veins. She was conscious that she was wearing nothing but a pair of tiny lace pants and the pric
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 433
Clearly embarrassed, Aaliyah determinedly changed the subject to Hazem and how fast he was growing. But although Kate smiled and made token conversation, her mind was whirling. If Malika’s family had expected her to marry Ahsan, was she the woman he had been engaged to years ago—the woman Jamila had said he had loved? But, if so, why had they not married? It didn’t make sense, and she brooded miserably as she stared at Ahsan. He was smiling at Malika and clearly enjoying her company. Perhaps they had argued and broken off their engagement. Was he now regretting his lost chance to marry a beautiful, clever Arab girl who would have made him the perfect wife?From that moment on, the party became a blur of faces and stilted conversation with people she had never met before. She was sure they viewed her as an oddity, with her pale skin and vivid hair—and her glaring lack of sophistication. But until his father had recovered, Ahsan was king, and one of her wifely duties outside of the bedr
MARRYING MY BEST FRIEND'S FIANCEE Chapter 432
As Ahsan had predicted, his team of advisors was waiting for him when they arrived back at the palace. Even on the journey across the desert, he’d had his mobile phone clamped to his ear, and Kate had sat silently beside him, lost in her thoughts. The honeymoon was over, and he had made it abundantly clear that he now saw her role as his wife as a walk-on part—or perhaps a lie-down part, she thought bitterly. But what had she expected? She had married him for Hazem, and he had married her for sex, and they had each gotten what they wanted.At least she had Hazem, she told herself later that evening, when she tucked the toddler into bed. She had missed him desperately, and his evident delight that she was back was a comforting balm to her raw emotions. She was Ahsan’s wife, a member of the Royal Family of Qubbah, and no one could ever take him away from her now.But as she prepared for the state banquet, her insecurities returned, and she felt sick with nerves. She had been horrified w
