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“I have, and I’m not, but don’t worry. I plan on finding another job quickly,” Mila assured her. She didn’t want Sahaar to think that she was taking advantage of her.
Before Sahaar could respond, Mila’s phone started to ring. She dug it out of her jeans and checked it. “Oh! It’s Liyah!”
“Tell her that I miss her.”
Mila put the phone up to her ear and headed to her bedroom. “Liyah! I’ve been dying to talk to you. Now that you’re all married and important, you’re impossible to get a hold of! You’re doing all this traveling and exploring.” Mila sighed with jealousy. “You’re living the dream.”
She heard Liyah laugh. “I told you to come with us! But no, you had to work!”
“I know.” Mila cringed. “What was I thinking? Tell me everything new.”
Her friend paused for a moment. “Well, I hear that I might be getting a new sister-in-law.”
“Khalid is getting married? I didn’t know that. I just saw him the other night, and he didn’t say anything about it.”
“Not Khalid.”
Mila slowly sank onto the bed as her heart dropped. Rashid was getting married?
It made sense. Why would he propose to her unless he needed to get married? And she’d turned him down.
Realization dawned, and anger filled her. “That cad!” she cried out. “He’s been sending me presents, and he’s going to marry someone else?”
“Whoa, slow down, Mila. I meant you. I just saw a news article about you two spending time together, and Asad broke down and told me that his brother had proposed to you.”
Relief swept through Mila, and she nervously plucked at a string on her bedspread. “It’s not quite what you think.” She was taking a deep breath to get ready to launch into the story when Liyah cut her off.
“Mila, I want you to think about this. There are times in this kind of life when every moment of your life is planned out. You don’t go anywhere without a bodyguard. Clothes are picked out for you. You’re told what you can and cannot say. You’re expected to be docile and submissive. Sweet. Loving.” There was silence on the line for so long that Mila thought perhaps Liyah’s phone had dropped the call, when her friend’s voice came again. “Mila, I love you, but I don’t think this life is for you.”
Shocked, Mila let Liyah’s words sink in. She’d never heard Liyah say a bad word to her. “So you’re telling me that you’re fit to be a princess, and I’m not?” she asked hoarsely.
“No. That is not what I’m saying,” Liyah said quickly. “Mila, please don’t be mad.”
“Rashid did propose to me. A marriage of convenience. He was even going to pay me, but I turned him down because I’m not for sale. Now I’m getting to know him as a person, and I’m not going to stop just because you think it would be embarrassing for me to join your new family!”
Before Liyah could defend herself in response, Mila hung up. She shook with anger as she stared at the phone.
How could her friend judge her like that? Was that what money did to a person? Turned them cruel?
Her angry words echoed in her head, and Mila pressed a trembling hand to her mouth. How could she call Liyah cruel when Mila herself had just judged Liyah for her friend’s actions, the actions that had set Sahaar up in a beautiful home and a business that she could be proud of?
She wanted to call Liyah back and apologize, but this was the kind of apology that needed to be made in person. She would find out when Liyah and Asad were scheduled to return to the palace, and she’d be waiting.
7
Rashid’s week was already not going according to plan. Mila had not responded to any of the gifts that he’d sent, and the press had already run an article about whether he’d grown tired of his mystery woman. He started to worry that he really wouldn’t be able to woo Mila.
So when the police showed up at his office at the arena, he was already in a bad mood.
“Sheikh Sharif.” The officer bowed his head in respect. “I am Hamad Al Zayed of the Criminal Investigations Department. I’m afraid that I have some questions for you.”
Rashid flicked his eyes at the security guard who had escorted the officer in and nodded his head. “Please. Come in.”
Hamad looked visibly relieved as he entered. “I apologize for the inconvenience, but I’m afraid that there has been an incident with Azizah Hatami.”
Rashid immediately stiffened. Azizah was one of the key football players for the UAE Arabian Gulf League. He’d played last week at the sports complex, and everyone had been disappointed when the team had lost. “What happened?”
“He was attacked outside a sports club two days after the game. He’ll survive, but he’ll miss a few games. We’ve caught the culprits, but I’m afraid they’ve indicated that there is an illegal betting ring attached to your arena.”
