The Sheikh's Island (Sheikh's Wedding Bet Series Book 4) by Leslie North Page A

with every breath I take. He was the love of my life, but I met him through his brother."
    "Haris’ father?" Wynifred asked softly.
    Shifa nodded. "I met Mohammed when I was sixteen. He was devastatingly handsome and charming. I couldn’t believe my good fortune when he asked me out. I was a naive teenager, full of dreams, and I couldn't have possibly predicted what would happen. After dating him for a year, his mother got sick, and his older brother moved back to help take care of her."
    "Rameez's father." Qaura sat on the other side of Shifa and touched her arm. "You fell in love with Mohammed's brother."
    Shifa nodded. "I was supposed to meet Mohammed one day, but when I stopped by the house, he wasn't there. Asad was. Something happened when I laid my eyes on him, but I tried to ignore it. Asad invited me in and told me that I could wait, but he didn't leave my side. We talked. We got to know each other. By the time Mohammed finally walked through that door, I knew that I was deeply in love with his brother. Still, Asad was a gentleman. He never touched me, and he never did anything to indicate that he had any feelings for me. I didn't leave Mohammed for Asad. I left him because I knew that I didn't love him."
    "How long until you started dating Asad?" Wynifred asked softly.
    "Six months." Shifa smiled fondly. "I stayed away from the whole family, but I would occasionally run into Asad. At the time, it felt like the universe was pushing us together, but Asad was actually orchestrating things so that he could run into me. He'd fallen in love with me, but he didn't want to hurt his brother. Finally, one night, I was walking home, and I could feel his eyes on me. I stopped and looked up, and there he was. Staring at me from across the street. I knew in that moment that I couldn't ignore my feelings for him anymore, and he felt the same. He nearly killed himself crossing the street to get to me. He kissed me like I'd never been kissed before, and we were wed within a month of that night."
    "That is so romantic," Qaura murmured.
    Wynifred thought the same, but she wasn't about to let that skew her feelings for the situation. She asked the obvious question. "How did Mohammed take it?"
    "At that time, he was already seeing someone else. He didn't say anything until the night before my wedding. He showed up at my house drunk. Took one look at me and told me that his brother didn't deserve me. We never spoke of it, and he never made any accusations against his brother or our marriage after that."
    Wynifred sat back and frowned. "He couldn't. Asad was his older brother. He probably worshipped him, respected him, just as Haris worshipped and respected Rameez."
    "I'm not ashamed of what happened, but I didn't tell you because I didn't think it was relevant. The boys were competitive growing up, but it wasn't until a few years ago that the competition turned bitter. That was long after Mohammed and Asad were gone."
    Wynifred turned and stared at Qaura. "Yes, it was long after they were gone. But something happened when they were children, something to drive them apart. And then something happened to them as adults to trigger it."
    "You don't think?" Qaura asked with a frown.
    "I don't think." Wynifred closed her eyes and took in a shuddering breath. Everything was so clear now. "I know."
    A look of horror crossed Qaura's face. "But they don't know."
    "No, they don't. And if we don't do something quick, they might do something they can't come back from."

12
    " Y ou're here early ,' Quadir commented as he joined Rameez in the study. "I haven't even had breakfast yet."
    Rameez had left Wynifred’s apartment and gone straight to the Khalidizacks. He was afraid that if he stopped and replayed everything that he'd said to her, he'd sink so low that he'd never be able to crawl back out again.
    "I need to start development as soon as possible," Rameez muttered as he ignored the Sheikh's inquisitive gaze. "I want to meet with your people