The Sheik’s Vow (The Billionaire’s Club #13)

Chapter 11

Kaia paced the thick carpet of the breakfast room, trying to figure out her next step. She had five minutes before Riaz would join her and she was ready to scream! She’d been here with Riaz for three whole days. They’d been delightful and relaxing, but…well, something wasn’t right.

“Problems, my dear?” Riaz asked, walking into the breakfast room early and startling her.

“Why are you here?” she demanded, huffing slightly as she watched him move to the coffee station and pour himself a cup. He grabbed a second cup and poured hot water over one of the herbal tea bags that he’d added to the extra-large mug.

He brought the mug of tea to her, then sat down at the dining room table to sip his coffee, watching her patiently. “I’m not sure I understand your question.” His voice was teasing, but that only enraged her further.

“Yes, I have problems!” she grumbled, wrapping her hands around the mug.

His eyes moved over her figure and Kaia felt self-conscious in the worn denim jeans and the green tee-shirt. She’d worn this outfit three days ago. The mysteriously efficient palace staff had washed, dried, and folded her clothes every night, returning them a few hours later. They were always placed on the bed she was using.

“What’s going on with the investigation?” she asked, instead of listing the numerous problems she was experiencing.

“Not much has changed since the briefing yesterday,” he replied calmly, while Kaia was roiling with strange emotions. “The team of investigators that I sent to Kentucky has met up with Zayed’s team. As Dihrain mentioned yesterday, the men and women have been in place and are monitoring the situation. We’ve connected with the wireless cameras that you put in place, and we’ve added a few upgrades.”

“And Ethan? Have they seen him?” Kaia set the tea down on the table and wrapped her arms around herself, trying valiantly to control whatever was going on within her. She felt like she was going to explode if she didn’t…do something! But what the “something” was that she was supposed to do, Kaia couldn’t figure out.

“They haven’t spotted him yet. There are whispers that he’s left the compound.”

“Compound?” she parroted, her green eyes wide with surprise. “Why do you call it that?”

He shrugged and took another sip of his coffee. “What else would you call an area that is controlled and patrolled regularly? The compound is protected and the cult followers inside are nervously searching for answers as to why their leader isn’t around.”

“Cult followers?” she whispered. “You’re calling it a cult?”

“What else would you call a group of people that have been brain washed by a charismatic leader, not allowed to leave, and given daily messages, both subtle and overt, demanding complete and absolute submission?”

Her mouth fell open at the end of that statement. But after thinking about it, her head slowly began to nod with agreement.

“Yes. Yes, you’re right. Ethan does brainwash the residents.” She shivered and tightened her arms. “I hadn’t thought about it like that. ”

“I’ve already contacted the Kentucky health department, explaining the problem. There is a process of deprogramming those who have gone through coercive persuasion, which is the medical term for brainwashing. It’s going to be more difficult for the people in that community because the messages they’ve been fed have been followed up with physical violence. It’s going to take a long time to break through that programming. The people will need months, probably years, of therapy.”

Kaia’s hands flew to her head and she resumed her pacing. “That’s…going to be expensive,” she whispered. Unconsciously, she tugged at her hair. “I have several thousand dollars in my bank account now.” She bit her lower lip. “Yes. Yes, when I get back, I can find a job. I can help them. I might not be able to help them all at once, but eventually, I can–”

“Kaia,” Riaz interrupted, standing up and coming to her. He lightly gripped her shoulders to stop her pacing. “Look at me, Kaia,” he repeated softly, but with a firm tone. When she looked up at him, he stared into her eyes. “Helping those people is not your responsibility. I know that you want to help, but you won’t be able to afford the intensive therapy, not to mention the hospital costs, that those people are going to need after we break Ethan Howell’s hold on them.” He kissed her forehead, then pulled her into his arms. Feeling her in his arms like this felt so unbelievably right. She trusted him enough now so he could hold her. After just three days of living here in Bidar, he’d gotten her to trust him this much.

For a moment, Kaia leaned into him, her arms wrapping around his waist and her cheek rested against his chest. Damn, she felt good! She might be a short woman, but every part of her fit perfectly against him.

“You’ll be…,” he started, only to have Kaia jerk herself out of his arms. “Are you okay?”

Kaia stared up at him, her big, green eyes filled with…confusion? Why would she be confused?

Then she backed away as she stared up at him. “You can’t hold me like that,” she whispered, her pretty, white teeth coming out to bite at her lower lip.

“I can’t?” he asked. Now, he was confused. “But I’ve held you like that several times over the past few days. What’s different now?”

There was a long silence and he watched as Kaia fisted her hands in her hair. She took a couple of steps, stared up at him, and…Riaz could have sworn that there was longing in her eyes. But before he could fully interpret her gaze, she looked away.

“I don’t know!” she hissed, releasing her hair so she could rub her palms against her jeans. “I don’t know what’s going on inside of me. I don’t understand why I feel so…raw and strange whenever you touch me like that! It’s making me crazy and I haven’t been able to sleep. I’ve been exhausted and feeling weird and…!” She turned and glared at him. “And you can’t touch me anymore!”

Riaz's gaze lingered on Kaia, his thoughts caught in the web of her impassioned monologue. Her demeanor seemed off—was it sleep deprivation or a descent into madness, mirroring his own struggles? The possibilities swirled in his head, yet each thread led to a disconcerting conclusion: Kaia might be grappling with the same insatiable longing he felt, but she remained oblivious to it. Was it possible she'd never experienced desire for a man? A consequence of a life on the run, haunted by the relentless specter that shattered her tranquility. Now, as Kaia unknowingly yearned for him, the tension thickened, entangled in a web of confusion where desire and the ghosts of their pasts converged.

Clearing his throat, he pulled his attention back to the present. She was standing on the far side of the breakfast table from him. “Kaia, come here,” he ordered.

“No!” she snapped, even taking another step backwards.

Riaz chuckled, enjoying this stubborn side of her personality. “I promise that I can make you feel better, but you have to trust me.” He tilted his head slightly. “Do you trust me?”

“No!” she replied, but there was a slight hesitation and her tone wasn’t nearly as adamant.

Another chuckle and Riaz slid his hands into his pockets. A different tactic was needed. “Okay, fine. Don’t let me help you with what you’re feeling. Why don’t we sit down and eat breakfast?” He lifted a brow. “And I mean you and I eat our breakfast.”

Kaia’s chin went up a notch. “I don’t know what you are implying, Riaz.” She pulled the dining chair out and sat primly on the edge, her hands hidden under the linen tablecloth.

He shook his head, amused at her efforts at stealth. “For a woman who has successfully evaded a sociopath for the past fourteen-plus years, you are incredibly obvious about sneaking food to Dibi and Marta. They get more bacon each morning than you do.”

Kaia glanced down under the table at the canines that were pretending to sleep. Marta lifted her eyes, but not her head, as she waited in stealth mode for her next treat.

When Kaia looked up again, she wore a mockingly disdainful expression. “I don’t know what you mean.” She lifted the linen napkin and primly spread it over her lap. “The dogs are sweet and wonderful. And even if I was sneaking food to them, which I am not ,” she snapped, glaring right back at him, “what’s the harm?”

Her serious effort was marred by the smile lurking at the corners of her mouth.

“The harm is that you need to eat more,” he replied and pressed the call button beside his plate.

Two waiters pushed through the door, their hands full. One put a plate in front of Riaz and the other delivered Kaia’s. Her plate was filled with bacon, fruit, and a bran muffin that had extra cinnamon and raisins, exactly how Kaia preferred. Riaz always ordered an egg white omelet with vegetables, no cheese, and some sort of cracker that looked like it was made up of seeds.

Kaia split her muffin open, appreciating the steam as she slathered the butter thickly. “What’s on your agenda today?” she asked.

“I have a few meetings about road construction and military issues, and then you and I are meeting with Dihrain to have a video conference call with the teams in Kentucky. We’ll get an update on what they’ve learned. I think that Dihrain has enough evidence to hand over to the FBI. If the American authorities will investigate, then we’ll step back but continue to keep track of the investigation.”

“And what will happen if the FBI doesn’t think that the information provided is enough for a criminal investigation?”

“From what I’ve heard, there should be enough for, at least, a financial investigation. Apparently, Ethan Howell has stashed away a mass of funds, all of which come from the farming families in the community. As you mentioned, they are not given adequate payment for their crops or the sale of their livestock. The money and food is distributed based off need, not the financial value of their contributions.”

Kaia nodded, causing her curls to dance around her shoulders. “I’ve always suspected that Ethan wasn’t being honest about the amount of produce that was sold at the various markets. He required everyone in the town to bring their harvest to him. He always explained that he could get a better price by selling a large quantity than if each person brought their harvest to market individually.”

“He’s right about that,” Riaz replied, rolling his eyes when Kaia took a piece of bacon from her plate, tore it in half and then dropped her hands under the table. “You’re not even trying to hide your bacon offerings now?”

“Nope,” she replied, then took another piece and bit into the end, smiling smugly at him. “You’ve already told me I failed in being stealthy, so why bother?”

“Because Dibi and Marta will get fat,” he replied with a mock scowl.

It was her turn to roll her eyes. “The dogs race around the palace all day long. When we visit the kittens–”

“We visit the horses,” he interrupted. “The kittens are just for fun. ”

“When we visit the kittens ,” she reiterated, emphasizing the last word, “Dibi and Marta sprint all the way from the palace to the stables. I’m pretty sure that they burn off whatever extra calories they get from the bacon.” She reached under the table, scratching both dogs behind the ears.

“You’re spoiling them.”

She laughed. “Right. I’m spoiling the dogs?” She offered a snort. “I saw you last night throwing the ball into the pool so that they could play. Don’t even try to claim that you don’t spoil them as well.”

She had a point, Riaz thought, so he stopped arguing. But he did lower his hand and snap his fingers. Immediately, Marta came to his side and he gave her head a scratch, but frowned at Dibi, who lifted his big head to snuffle at Riaz over the top of the table.

“Traitor,” Riaz grumbled, then pushed back his chair to give Marta extra attention. “You’re my good girl, aren’t you?” he soothed, scratching Marta’s back.

Dibi whined and moved over to Riaz, ready for his attention. But Marta, the hussy, returned to Kaia, nudging her elbow as she shamelessly begged for attention.

The dining room door opened and, instantly, the dogs shifted from begging for attention to alertness, their lithe bodies swinging around to glare at the person entering the room unannounced.

“ Yumsik, ” Riaz commanded, ordering the dogs to “hold”. The dogs remained alert, but sat down on their haunches, watching the newcomer intently.

It was Riaz’s personal assistant. The man eyed the dogs warily, then turned to Riaz. “I apologize for interrupting your breakfast, Your Highness, but the prime minister is here for your meeting.”

Riaz sighed heavily as he lifted his napkin and wiped his mouth. “Right,” he grumbled and stood up. “Tell Hussen that I need ten minutes.”

The assistant bowed and left the room, pulling the door closed behind him.

“Don’t you need to go?” Kaia asked, standing up as well. She picked up her plate and his, preparing to bring them into the kitchen.

“Put the plates down, Kaia,” he ordered. Thankfully, she obeyed, but there was a touch of belligerence in her glare. He walked over to stand near her and took one of her hands in his, lifting her fingers to his mouth. “You mentioned that you’re not sleeping and that you’re feeling a bit off lately.”

“Yeah, well, I’m going to go for a run in your gym while you’re in your boring meeting.”

“Good. However, the frustration will return,” he warned her, kissing the middle of her palm. “If you’d like to explore potential solutions to your…problem, I’m ready and willing to help.”

He leaned in and lightly brushed his lips over hers, lingering briefly. And then he turned and left the dining room. At the doorway, he turned and looked at Dibi. “ Yaqdi, ” he said to the male dog and pointed at Kaia. “ Yahmi .”

Dibi walked over to Kaia and stood by her side. He smiled up at Kaia with absolute adoration, waiting for further instruction.

“You’re not leaving Dibi with me?”

“Yes. Dibi is now your protection. I’m also going to assign a couple of bodyguards as well.” He started to leave again, then paused. “Maybe I should get you your own guard dogs,” he commented, tilting his head as he watched her reaction. But when Kaia merely stared back at him, Riaz turned and walked out of the dining room.

Her own dogs? But that would imply that she was staying here longer than a few days. She wasn’t. Was she?

No! Absolutely not! Kaia never stayed in one place for long! She was a nomad, always moving, so Ethan couldn’t find her!

Despite her mental admonitions, Kaia couldn’t stop her hand from reaching down to scratch behind Dibi’s ears. The guard dog closed his eyes and leaned his body against her leg, returning the comfort with interest.

“I guess you’re stuck with me for a bit,” she told Dibi. Dibi, obviously, didn’t respond. But he stood up, prepared to accompany her wherever Kaia was headed next. The gym wasn’t a very appealing option now.

“Let’s go explore, shall we?” she suggested.

Dibi’s ears twitched and she smiled, resting her hand affectionately on the loyal dog’s head for a moment.