Hasan Sheikhs: The Complete Series Read online

  The people around them laughed, and Laila felt even warmer in the sun. Zein would have wanted this—she was sure of it. Today’s short ceremony would only be the beginning of what was to come. The ceremonial groundbreaking would be followed by a real groundbreaking, and the new building—only a few hundred feet down from the old pottery studio—would be completed by summer if everything went according to plan.

  By then, she’d have her baby in her arms. She’d be a mother, with Zayid by her side.

  For now, she followed him to the front of the stage, and she and Zayid and Talif, along with several other prominent members of the art scene and the tutors from the pottery center, dug their shovels into the ground.

  It was started.

  As they wended their way back to the SUV after the ceremony—slowly, because Laila couldn’t move quickly to save her life at this stage—Zayid kept a protective hand on her arm. She could feel him radiating pride next to her. “You really do have a thing for surprises,” she teased. “Waiting until last week to tell me about this takes the cake.”

  “I do love surprises,” he said. “But mostly I love the way you look when I break the news.”

  “I can’t believe you never breathed a word of it.”

  “To you. The plans for the new center came to mind long before we were together. But once I saw you with those children, I knew we had to move things along.”

  They passed a shop full of colorful fabrics swaying in the breeze. “It was worth the surprise.”

  “As long as we’re talking about secrets, I have two others to confess,” Zayid said, looking solemn.

  Laila laughed. “Out with it, then. We’ve got a long way to go before we get to the SUV.” Zayid stopped to buy Laila a peach from a market stall brimming with fruit. She slowed her pace even more as she bit into the sweet flesh, the flavor exploding on her tongue. “I hope you didn’t buy this just to sweeten a sour surprise.”

  Zayid sighed, then laughed, a low rumble. “I wouldn’t ruin peaches for you like that. But I do have to say that from the second day you worked at the pottery center, I made all the tutors aware of who you were and arranged extra security to surround the center while you were there.”

  Laila waved this off. “I know that. I made them admit it after a suite of new tools and supplies showed up with no warning. I knew they were giving free classes and couldn’t afford anything new. And I knew you were behind all of it.”

  “And you never uttered a word to me?”

  She winked at him again and took another bite of the peach. “You said you had two things to confess.”

  “Yes.” Zayid stopped and turned her toward him, looking deeply into her eyes. “You’ve made me the happiest man on the face of the earth. You’ve filled my world with color when I didn’t know it was missing in the first place. I love you, and I love our child, and I can’t wait to go on this next adventure with you.” He took her face in his hands and kissed her. “I mean it with everything in me, and everything I have.”

  “I love you too,” Laila murmured against his mouth. “But there’s one adventure I’d like to go on now, before anything else.”

  “What is it?”

  “Home with you.”

  End of The Sheikh’s Marriage Bargain

  Hasan Sheikhs Book One

  Blurb

  Love was definitely not in the air the day Yaseen Hasan, Prince of Raihan, and American Kara Shaw got married. One night of passion led to a pregnancy, and under Raihani law, Yaseen had to marry Kara. After the pregnancy debacle, Yaseen needs to prove to his family that he can be responsible, and he’s convinced he can keep things on a business level with Kara, even though his attraction to her is nearly combustible. His one consolation is that the two of them will divorce after their child is born. Easy. Clean. This marriage of convenience is the perfect solution for both of them. Yaseen can continue with his numerous business ventures, and Kara can continue working for the underprivileged. But though they may have started out as virtual strangers, as Yaseen gets to know Kara and sees her dedication to her cause, things get a bit complicated. It seems saying good-bye to his beautiful wife won’t be as easy as he’d initially thought.

  Kara doesn’t know what to make of her new husband. On the outside, Yaseen’s all business. Cold facts, numbers, and balance sheets seem to be his only interests. Yet underneath, Kara begins to see a softer side, a side that makes her wonder if there is more to him. And though she’d initially agreed that their marriage would be nothing more than a business transaction, it’s not long before Kara is yearning for something more, something…permanent. All her life, she’s secretly longed for that proverbial white knight to sweep her away. Just when she thinks Yaseen is that man, she gets hit with harsh reality. Maybe Yaseen isn’t that knight, or maybe Kara will discover a sexy sheikh is even better.

  USA Today Bestseller Leslie North invite you to indulge in a sexy sheikh romance with a smoldering billionaire, alpha male Sheikh falling for his head-strong American woman in this interracial romance...

  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, her period had failed to arrive.

  And now here she was in a wedding dress. A lace veil fell over her hair, which had been swept back in an expert chignon. The fabric brushed against her arms just above the elbows, giving her goose bumps.

  She shook herself out of the memory of the club, with the bass pounding against her ears and Yaseen’s body moving behind hers with a sinuous strength she never would have expected from a man of his size and build. Yaseen, she soon learned, was the same height as his brothers but far more built. His muscles weren’t just defined, each one a testament to many hours at the gym—he wore them well. Very well. And his well-tailored slacks over those legs—

  “You’re not the first,” Kara blurted. How long had it been since she slipped into the daydream? And, more importantly, how long would it be until the ceremony ended and they moved on with their lives? She had so much to do. With her new status as princess, she’d be able to make a difference to the people of Raihan on a far more accelerated schedule. “But thank you.” She put all the positive energy she could muster into a big smile, then took a deep breath. “Is every bride this jittery, do you think?”

  “I was. I can’t speak for any other brides, though.” Laila considered her in the glass. “Are you nervous about anything you want to talk about? I’m here. And everyone else.” She gestured behind them at the beehive of the bridal suite. They’d decided to keep the guest list to the royal family, and it seemed like every woman even remotely related to Yaseen bustled through the suite. Kara’s heart softened at the sight. She didn’t have any siblings, and her parents had been gone for years. Here in Raihan, she had a few colleagues at the NGO and, she guessed, Laila.

  Laila, who’d married Zayid as a direct result of Kara’s pregnancy. Laila, who’d been a bride of convenience for the sake of Raihan’s laws. Laila, who gave her hope—because it was clear from the light in her eyes that their marriage had become much more than convenient. If Laila and Zayid could have a happily ever after, why couldn’t she and Yaseen? Kara didn’t want to imagine it for another second. She wanted to get the show on the road.

  “I’m good.” She turned away from the mirror and faced Laila, scanning the bridal suite for the royal photographer. “Is it time for photos? If it’s not, let’s call the photographer and get started.”

  Yaseen needed to get through the ceremony and get back to work. The palace gardens bloomed full around him, but Yaseen found himself yearning for his office. Which was silly. Daydreaming of work, on his wedding day? Maybe it wasn’t so ridiculous. The biggest value he could provide to his family—which would soon grow by one member and then a second—was to work and work hard.

  Working hard had been the cornerstone of his life for as long as he could remember. Becoming a father would only make it more important. A strange feeling passed through him—a combination of lightheadedness and steel. Yaseen had never expected to get married out of necessity. He had never dreamed that Kara would get pregnant from their one hot night together.

  He wrenched his thoughts away from that night. Best not to think of it as he stood under a white canopy at an open end of the garden, his brothers close by and the imam murmuring quiet prayers to himself. The guests filed in over a deep green aisle runner decorated with flower petals and took their seats. Not many more of them, and the ceremony would start. And then he would be married. That feeling washed over him again. Anticipation? Dread? Both? It didn’t matter what he felt, only that he did right by Kara. The mother of his child. After one hot night—

  “Are you prepared for the consequences?” Zayid’s voice cut through his memory of Kara’s blue eyes glittering in the lights from the dance floor.

  Yaseen threw a look over his shoulder at Zayid. “Prepared for what consequences? I’ve been prepared for months.”

  “I don’t mean the wedding,” said Zayid.

  Their youngest brother, Nadim, let out a barely concealed yawn. “Zayid, don’t. Father will already have lectured him about how to be a good husband.”

  “Nobody needs to lecture me about being a good husband.” Nadim might need a reminder that they were being photographed as part of the royal wedding ceremony, but Yaseen kept an easy smile on his face. He’d perfected that light expression years ago. It served him well. Sometimes, he came across paparazzi photos of himself in unguarded moments. His face displayed nothing other than an attentive half-smile. In fact, his mother and father smiled back at him now as they made their way down the center aisle.

  The mood of the room shifted as the king and queen of Raihan took their places in the front row. None of the strain of the past few months showed in their faces. To the people of Raihan, Yaseen’s wedding was cause for another happy celebration, not a ceremony happening just in the nick of time. It would never do for a royal son to have a child born out of wedlock. Not in this family.

  “There can be unintended consequences.” Zayid’s kept his tone even but spoke faster, the cadence matching the quickening beat of Yaseen’s heart. He had nothing to be nervous about. Nothing. “If love gets involved, a marriage of convenience can turn out to be inconvenient in the best possible way.”

  “If love gets involved,” Yaseen scoffed. “I’m not marrying for love. I’m marrying because of the law. Nothing much about our lives is going to change after this ceremony.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Yaseen turned and put a hand on Zayid’s shoulder as if he were overcome with emotion, beaming into his brother’s face. “You will see,” he said firmly. In other words, shut up.

  Zayid returned the gesture. No doubt he took Yaseen at face value. Everyone did, when they bothered to notice him. The string quintet at the opposite corner of the garden paused, the air swelling with anticipation. Then Pachelbel’s Canon in D wafted over the guests, and the ceremony began in earnest. Laila, Yaseen’s sister-in-law, was one of two relatives who would stand next to Kara under the canopy. She came down the aisle at a measured pace, head held high, smile perfect for the camera. She’d settled nicely into her role as Zayid’s wife. Yaseen caught her winking at his brother, a flutter of her eyelash. He couldn’t see Zayid’s answer, only that Laila’s smile grew a bit wider.

  Kara appeared at the far end of the aisle, a vision in lace and silk, cap sleeves a nod to modesty but countered by a neckline low enough to stir something deep and animal in Yaseen. The dress wasn’t meant to conceal her bump. On the contrary, she’d insisted it be designed to showcase it. Yaseen couldn’t take his eyes off her, even if he’d wanted to. The pregnancy had made her lush with curves. Kara glowed with her second trimester, and another emotion broke loose inside of him. It knocked him off guard. He felt the powerful, beating edges of it, but couldn’t name it—not as she came down the aisle toward him. Possessiveness? Protectiveness? Lust, all wrapped up in something softer, just as Kara was softer now.

  Yaseen tipped forward into Kara’s blue eyes. They sparkled with anticipation and hope. In this way, at least, she was the same as she had been that night in th
e club. Brave. Utterly confident. The anxiety of the past few months—would Zayid get married in time? Would Yaseen be thrust into the spotlight as the son that brought scandal to the royal family?—fell away under the words of the imam. Yaseen heard himself repeating his vows. It felt less like something to be checked off a to-do list than an actual series of promises.

  As Yaseen pressed his lips to hers under the canopy and a fall of applause and cheers from their audience, Zayid’s words echoed in his mind. If love gets involved. Kara’s sweet softness against his lips chased everything away. Maybe this marriage was for more than the law. Maybe...

  2

  Kara stepped carefully out of the big black SUV that took her to and from work at the Community Connections office. Had it really only been a week since the wedding? She felt at least another month pregnant. Or maybe it had just been busy at the office. Either way, she finally felt a full appreciation for the SUV. When things had ramped up with Yaseen—when her pregnancy had been discovered—he’d insisted she take royal security with her every day. It had chafed at first, but now?

  Now she had not one single complaint about traveling in a plush, air-conditioned car. One step onto the cobblestone courtyard made her wish she could ride around the city forever. But that wasn’t in the cards today.

  Yaseen stood at the door to the home they’d moved into after the wedding ceremony. Even after six months, her breath still caught at the sight of him. Not that Kara was in love with Yaseen. Not that being in love with Yaseen was a requirement of the marriage—it certainly wasn’t. But she still found him exactly as attractive as she had that night in the club. Perhaps more.