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And he was counting that Elizabeth would not. She held her ground when everything inside her longed to flee the truth. She was in love with Roark. Despite her determination to stay strong, she’d tumbled head over heels.
“You and I belong together.” Sabeen set her hand against Roark’s cheek and stared up at him. “My father knew that. It’s why he asked you to watch over me. He believed once I was old enough you would see me as your perfect mate.”
Roark seized both her wrists and held her away from him. “Your father entrusted me with your fortune and your welfare. He expected nothing more than that I do right by you and your brother. This fantasy of yours needs to stop. I am not meant for you or anyone. Elizabeth is pretending to be engaged to me because Rothschild is trying to take over Waverly’s and I need the board to be confident that Ann, Vance and I are the perfect choice for the future of Waverly’s.” He gave her a little shake. “Do you understand?”
“No.” Sabeen tore free. “I love you. Why can’t you give us a chance?”
Roark set his hands on his hips. “Sabeen…”
Before he could say more she backed away. “This isn’t over.”
Elizabeth began to breathe again as the brunette vanished the way she’d come. “Do you think she’ll tell someone?”
“Who is she going to tell?”
Elizabeth pictured the roomful of New York society a few steps away. “I can think of a couple hundred people out there.”
Roark’s arm came around her. He lifted her chin and kissed her passionately. Elizabeth responded as if the past ten minutes had never happened. It was easy to forget everything in Roark’s strong embrace. His lips transported her to another universe, a whole new dimension where her senses were in control and passion ruled.
“Don’t worry about Sabeen,” he murmured. His lips swept across her cheek and lingered near her ear. “She’s just worried about her brother. Once she calms down, she’ll forget all about what she heard tonight.”
Elizabeth longed for even a fraction of Roark’s confidence. The best she could do was press her cheek against his powerful chest and gather strength from the arms that circled her. He had more to lose if their masquerade became public knowledge.
“You might be underestimating what your rejection might drive her to do.” Elizabeth pushed out of Roark’s arms. She had no more claim to him than Sabeen and it was time she remembered that. “She’s an emotional young woman with strong feelings for you.”
“She’s a girl who should be focused on finishing school and tormenting boys her own age.”
Roark’s words made Elizabeth shake her head. He might not have encouraged Sabeen, but he didn’t understand how intoxicating his c
harisma was in large doses. And Elizabeth had been absorbing the stuff for two weeks now. She was hooked. No doubt the young Egyptian girl had become addicted in a similar fashion.
Roark had been put in charge of her welfare by the girl’s father. He’d rescued her brother from the Amazon jungle. It made perfect sense that hero worship had become infatuation.
“And if we stick to our story,” Roark continued, squeezing her hand. “Stick together, it’s the word of a hotheaded girl against the two of us.”
Elizabeth forced away her anxiety. Over the next week, she was in charge of six different events, two of them last minute parties she’d scored thanks to the connections she’d made while on Roark’s arm. All that meant she had enough to worry without loading up on Sabeen’s drama.
“Is her brother really in danger?”
“He is unless I find and stop him.”
“Is that why you’ve been so preoccupied these last few days?”
Roark cocked an eyebrow. “Have I neglected your needs?”
“No.” She felt her cheeks heat beneath his loaded question. “It’s just that you’ve been carrying your phone more as if you’re waiting for someone to call.”
All expression dropped from Roark’s features. Worry shadowed his eyes. “The boy is a fool. He has gone to Cairo to steal Fadira away before her wedding. If he’s caught, he could face imprisonment, maybe worse.”
“Can you stop him?”
“If I can find him. I have friends looking for him now.” Roark sounded annoyed and Elizabeth almost felt sorry for Darius. “And from what I discovered earlier today,” he continued. “I’m not sure she’ll go with him if he gets to her.”
“Why not?”
“Her family is in trouble. It’s why her father is forcing her to marry.”
“Financial trouble?” Elizabeth recalled the reason Darius had gone looking for the temple in the Amazon.
