Page 20 of The Sheikh's Matchmaker Bride

Aliyah shook her head. "You'll have to wait before you find out. Unless, of course, your faulty memory starts working properly," she said.

"Maybe I've been having too many late nights," Shahid said, immediately regretting his words because he knew they threatened to break the mood they had just built. "I probably need more sleep," he added quickly.

Aliyah didn't respond to that, and the blankness of her face reminded him he would be well-advised to think before speaking next time.

"Let's go before I change my mind," Aliyah ordered.

Shahid liked the sound of Aliyah telling him what she wanted. "Okay, my princess," he said.

Aliyah rolled her eyes and scowled. "Please, don't call me that," she stated firmly.

Shahid shifted gear and turned the car onto the road that would take them to the beach. "Why not. It's true, isn't it?"

Aliyah shook her head. "I'm no princess," she said.

"Is there something you haven't told me?"

Aliyah squinted at him. "What do you mean?"

Shahid pressed the accelerator and the car picked up speed. "If you're no princess, does that mean you've got some dark secrets you haven't told me about?" he asked glancing across at her.

She shifted nervously in her seat. "That's not it at all," she replied. "The only one who's got secrets here is you."

"Really? And who told you that?"

Aliyah peered at him. "I hear things, Shahid."

He nodded, trying to maintain his playful demeanor, but he had to admit he was concerned at the sudden shift in the conversation. "What kind of things?" he asked.

"Never mind," she said bluntly.

"No. I'm intrigued. What have people been saying about me?" he said, even though he wasn't sure he wanted to know. How much had Aliyah learned about him?

"You don't need me to tell you, Shahid. What did Nadyah say?" Aliyah's eyes lifted as she tried to recall. "That's right. Nadyah said you have a reputation."

Shahid nodded patiently. "And that's a bad thing?" he asked giving Aliyah a wolfish grin.

She frowned at Shahid. "You tell me."

"You always knew I was a bit of a bad boy, Aliyah," he said.

"And now? Are you still living that life?" Aliyah asked, and he could hear a sudden note of emotion in her voice. By the sound of her voice, he thought she was trying to hold something back, perhaps something along the lines of what she'd said to him in the garden, much earlier.

Shahid sighed. What could he tell her? The truth, of course. With Aliyah he would always be truthful. He'd already made up his mind about that.

He shook his head. "That's all behind me now, Aliyah. I've had enough of all that."

He saw a flicker of what looked like pleasure on her features. Had he said the right thing? Was that what she had wanted to hear him say?

"Why?" she asked.

Shahid gave her a puzzled look. "I thought it would have been obvious," he said. She still didn't look convinced, so he continued. "You," he added simply. The word sounded emphatic in the confined space of the car.

Playfulness turned to shock on her face, and she turned quickly away from him. He saw her hand snake nervously through the thick tresses of her hair. Right now, he wanted to reach across and take some of those beautiful dark locks in his own hand, lift them to his face and inhale the sweet aroma, feeling the tender strands between his fingers.

The car swerved slightly, and he twisted the wheel, straightening the vehicle. Aliyah made a little yelping nose as she bumped against the inside of the door.

"You okay?" Shahid asked quickly.

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