The Sheik's Arranged Marriage by Susan Mallery Page B

had guessed that Yasmin was more interested in shopping and appearances than Jamal, and she had shared her revelation with the king. But neither of them knew the deepest, darkest horror that had been his marriage.
    Still, they had tried to be supportive. Eventually even his brothers had figured out his wife was not a gentle soul. By the time Yasmin had met her untimely death in a car accident, no one in the family had cared about her enough to truly mourn her passing.
    And now he was married again. He told himself that Heidi was nothing like Yasmin. Heidi was more interested in preserving the history of El Bahar than in any jewels or public appearance. Her clothing made it apparent that she wasn’t going to spend her days shopping. But she shared one vital trait with Yasmin—Heidi didn’t want to share her husband’s bed, either.
    “You’re not even speaking to me anymore,” she said, staring at him wide-eyed.
    “It’s not that,” he said. “I was lost in thought for a moment. I apologize.” He gave her a quick smile. “My evening was very pleasant. I had dinner with a friend from university. Nigel and I were at Oxford together. He’s in El Bahar on business and had an evening free.” He hesitated, dealing again with the unfamiliar guilt. “I thought of inviting you along, but as Nigel didn’t bring his wife, I was afraid it would have been boring for you. Two old friends talking about times and people you don’t know.”
    She nodded slowly. “I understand. To be honest, I didn’t know you’d left the palace.”
    He suspected she was trying to be kind and conciliatory, but her words only intensified his guilt.
    “Do you want something?” he asked, touching one of the bottles on the bar.
    “No thank you.”
    He motioned to the sofa, inviting her to sit down, then he topped off his drink and joined her.
    “Nigel has a position of some importance in the British government,” he said. “Although his interest is more general—all of the Middle East —he occasionally makes his way here. I told him that the next time he comes, he should bring the whole family. They could stay with us here in the palace. Then you could meet them.”
    Her hazel eyes were wide behind her glasses. She gave him a brief smile that didn’t erase her serious expression. “I would like to meet your friend. By family, do you mean he has children?”
    “Yes. Two children. Both boys. He showed me pictures. They’re five and two.”
    “I don’t know much about children, but those seem to be fun ages. Although two boys. That must be a lot of work.”
    Their discussion was purely polite social chitchat, yet Jamal couldn’t help wondering what kind of mother Heidi would turn out to be. After the first month or so of marriage, Yasmin had made it very clear that she wasn’t interested in having children but that she would because it was expected of her. Still, she’d been insistent on full-time help so that she didn’t actually have to spend time alone with her offspring.
    “As a princess, you would have help,” Jamal told her. “A nurse and a nanny.”
    “Not too much help,” Heidi said with her first flash of humor for the evening. “I would need to take care of my children sometimes. Otherwise what kind of mother would I be?”
    It was the correct answer, he thought, yet he knew Heidi actually meant it. She wasn’t Yasmin, he told himself again. Maybe her fears and concerns about them being lovers came more from her inexperience than a desire to wound. Maybe she hadn’t been rejecting him as much as she’d been protecting herself.
    She shifted until she was facing him with one leg tucked up under her. She smoothed a loose strand of hair behind her ear, then pushed her glasses into place. “Jamal, we have to talk. I know I’ve made a mess of things right from the beginning. You don’t know how much I want to go back in time to our wedding night and do things differently.”
    Her honesty and sincerity were painful to