Captured By A Sheikh

Zahad bowed, although no such formalities were necessary between the two men. “Of course,” he said, and retreated.

Sharif reminded himself that his cousin was a capable man. It was, after all, Zahad who had found the Crestline View Clinic in the first place.

Southern California was one of the world’s few locations that offered high-quality medical facilities, lax laws regarding surrogate parenting, and a population of liberated young women. Even so, it had taken Mrs. Wheaton many tries to find a surrogate who met the sheikh’s high standards.

From the top desk drawer, he withdrew a photograph. It was the woman he knew as H. J. Rivers.

Her face riveted him, the hazel eyes strikingly intelligent within a heart-shaped face. She had dramatic dark-red hair and a gentle mouth that reminded him of Yona.

The accompanying description was spare. “Age twenty-five, never married, Ms. Rivers works as a manicurist at a beauty salon and lives with her older sister. She has sung professionally.

“She wishes to help Your Excellency secure your people’s future, and plans to use the money to make a demonstration recording to further her singing career.”

Mrs. Wheaton’s one qualm was that H. J. Rivers had never previously given birth. Sharif, however, preferred that his son have a virtuous mother. A woman who lived an apparently chaste life, sharing quarters with her sister, suited him well.

Now he wondered whether anything had been omitted or misrepresented. Above all, why had this beautiful woman disappeared with his soon-to-beborn son?

From the desk, he drew the other photograph, the one he had received four months ago. A blurry ultrasound image formed the shape of a baby boy, a son who would enrich his father’s life, and those of their people.

Sharif had fallen in love with this child from the moment he saw the picture. How could he bear to lose him?

Suddenly finding it hard to breathe, he threw open the window. Outside the palace, October sunshine baked mud-brick houses, and a breeze carried the aromas of coffee, spices and frankincense from an open-air marketplace. It was a poor city, although rich in tradition.

The entire Arabian nation of Alqedar had its share of economic woes, but it was the fifty-thousand residents of Bahrim City and its environs who concerned Sharif, because they fell under his family’s protection. For the first time, prosperity lay within reach.

The region’s twisted, pale Jubah trees yielded a silklike fiber prized for its softness and durability. Recently, the fiber had been synthesized under Sharif’s patronage.

He owned the patent jointly with chemist Hakem “Harry” Haroun, who was married to Sharif’s cousin Amy. Soon large-scale production of Jubah cloth would fund badly needed public works. Then no man, child, or woman of Bahrim would die, as Yona had, for lack of a modern hospital.

All was not secure, however. Other regional leaders eyed the project enviously. Also, Sharif had received death threats for his role in overthrowing the late dictator, Maimun.

The future of Bahrim could not rest on his shoulders alone. He needed an heir. The love he felt for his unborn son had been an unexpected bonus.

The creak of hinges snapped Sharif to attention. Pivoting, he reached for his gun.

“Jumpy as a cat, aren’t you?” His aunt Selima glided into the room. In her late sixties, she had a strong, watchful face and black hair distinguished by a shock of silver fanning from a widow’s peak. A gold-embroidered crimson dress skimmed her ample figure.

“Has Zahad told you what happened?” he asked, withdrawing his hand from within his jacket.

“Yes, but we must hope for the best.” His aunt whisked aside piles of paper to clear a space on his desktop. “You requested my instruction and you shall have it.”

“Aunt Selima, this is no time for such matters!”

Ignoring his frown, she unrolled a pad and, from her woven shoulder bag, produced a cherubically naked plastic doll. “Well?” she demanded, holding out a thick, folded cloth. “You won’t learn anything standing over there!”

There was no point in fighting the inevitable. With a rueful smile, the sheikh went to take his first lesson in diapering.

Chapter One

Three months later

Harbor View, California

Where had the baby gotten those dark, piercing eyes? Holly Rivers wondered as she gazed down at the child in her arms. Whoever the father was, if he had eyes like those, he must exert a hypnotic appeal.

Little Ben blinked, and the impression of ferocity vanished. When he stretched his tiny arms and yawned, her heart clenched.

She had thought she knew what love was, until the first time this baby was placed in her arms. Then she’d discovered, in a burst of wonder, the true depth of the human heart.

Did he have to be such a chunky fellow at three months, though? Although her arms were beginning to hurt, Holly hesitated to position him any closer against her for fear of spoiling her antique lace wedding dress.

She hoped Alice Frey, her matron of honor and her employer at the Sunshine Lane Salon, would return soon with their flowers. She needed Alice’s help to feed Ben before the four-o’clock ceremony, and they only had half an hour left.

“Hey, can I come in?” The question was followed by a belated knock on the partly open door of the church’s dressing room. Without waiting for an answer, in marched Trevor Samuelson.

Her groom. The man she was to marry for all the kindness and caring he’d shown over the years, and for the secure home he was offering her and Ben.

Although black and white weren’t the most flattering colors for a blond, blue-eyed man, the tuxedo looked handsome on Trevor. “You look terrific,” she said, smiling.

“It’s not exactly comfortable.” With a wry expression, he tugged on the bow tie.

At forty-eight, Trevor, a successful attorney, was eighteen years older than Holly and a longtime friend of her late parents. Until recently, she’d thought of him as a kind of uncle.

Then, during the past year, his friendly manner had shifted into courtship. At first, she’d kept him at arm’s length.

But after her pregnant sister Jazz disappeared, Trevor had been her mainstay, offering emotional support and spending his own time and money on the search. It had been a relief to share her burden.

Just before Christmas, one of Jazz’s scruffy musician friends, Griffin Goldbar, had showed up with Ben. Astonished at being handed a baby, Holly hadn’t questioned him forcefully, especially after Griff assured her that Jazz would return in a few days.

When she didn’t, Holly had worried all through Christmas. She’d begun to fear that her sister might not return at all.

Two weeks ago, when Trevor assured her that his love was big enough to include the child, Holly accepted his proposal. Maybe his kisses didn’t set her on fire, but she needed him.

She was in no shape, financially or emotionally, to raise a child alone. Besides, he made her feel safe and cherished.

His eagerness had persuaded her not to delay the wedding. Fortunately, she already had her mother’s wedding gown.

“Did I mention how stunning you look?” Trevor brushed his thumb across the wing of dark-red hair that fell to her collar. “Honey, I’m just bursting with pride. I can’t wait to see you walk down the aisle.”

She blushed. “Have many of the guests arrived?” Holly’s parents were dead, and she had no other close family. Neither did Trevor, whose childless first marriage had ended in divorce five years ago.

The guests included her co-workers and some of Trevor’s colleagues. Many couldn’t attend, however, because courts were in session. The wedding had been scheduled on the salon’s afternoon off, a Monday, which was also one of the few days the church had been available.

“They’re straggling in.” The crease deepened in his cheek. “I’m nervous, can you believe that? It’s not as if I’ve never done this before, but it feels like the first time.”

“For me, too, Trev,” teased Holly, and startled a laugh from her fiancé.

He looped his arm around her and Ben, and angled for a kiss. At that moment, an armful of flowers swept through the door and a penetrating female voice rapped out, “Don’t you know it’s bad luck for the groom to see the bride before the ceremony? Out! Out!”