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Grace glanced at Becca. The other woman's gaze was steady. There was a long pause.
Then Becca spoke, quietly and in an even voice. "If you mean, how did I get used to being the wife of a sheikh, I can tell you it wasn't as easy as you might think."
Grace's curiosity was piqued. She peered at Becca, but said nothing, waiting for her to continue.
Becca leaned forward on the balustrade. "It was no walk in the park for Zaheer and I in the first place. I almost didn't marry him."
Grace narrowed her eyes. "Really?"
Becca nodded. "It's kinda complicated. But, basically Zaheer and I had known each other a while before we got back together again. Then, one thing led to another and I came here for a while. Just to see how things would turn out. Zaheer really wanted me to marry him." Becca rolled her eyes. "I mean really," she added, emphasizing the last word.
"And you?" Grace asked. "Did you want to marry?"
Becca smiled and looked reflective. "I wasn't sure, to begin with. But, Zaheer was pretty determined. Persuasive, you might say."
Grace thought for a moment. That sounded familiar. Was it just a family trait? Once an Al Shirah sheikh had his eyes set on a woman, nothing on earth would stop him from possessing her.
Now that she thought about it, that did sound awfully familiar, Grace told herself.
"There was the whole business with Zaheer's father needing to step down as head of the family. That meant Zaheer would become the head of the Al Shirah tribe. With all the obligations and duties that would bring."
"How did Zaheer feel about that?" Grace asked.
Becca sighed. "At first, he wasn't too sure he could do it. But then, when he knew I'd become his wife, everything seemed to change for him. We got married." Becca shook her head as she remembered things. "Huge wedding ceremony. As you'd expect. Everything they do here is on a massive scale." Becca sighed. It was obvious the memories were sweet. "And finally Tariq came along."
Grace laughed quietly. "You make it all sound so simple."
"Believe me, Grace, it wasn't," Becca said and groaned softly.
"You seem happy now," Grace probed.
"Do I?" Becca asked. She tilted her head. "I suppose I am happy. Sometimes you don't really stop and think about it. But I guess I am. I have to admit, I pinch myself when I'm walking around the palace or in the gardens with Tariq." Becca sighed. "It's almost like a dream. Or at least, it must seem that way to others looking in from the outside."
"Don't you feel like you're living in a bubble?" Grace asked tentatively. She knew the question might seem intrusive, even almost rude, but she had to ask it.
Becca shook her head. "No. If it is a bubble, though, it's a pretty sweet one." Becca said grinning from ear to ear.
Grace smiled, feeling the infectious quality of Becca's obvious joy seeping into her with every passing moment.
"And you?" Becca asked.
Grace looked at Becca. "What about me?"
Becca seemed to hesitate again. Just like she'd done earlier a couple of times. Did Becca know about the baby? Had Qazim told her? Or some of his family?
"What are you going to do when you get back to the States?" Becca asked.
Grace shrugged, trying to appear vaguely interested, but inside herself, questions were tumbling through her mind.
It had only been a few hours since Grace had found out. Only been hours since she'd broken the news to Qazim. Had he gone to his brother's palace while Grace had been sleeping? She felt a slight tug of indignation at that thought, even if it was just a vague possibility. Surely Qazim would have kept the information private. At least for a while, Grace told herself.
Although Becca hadn't admitted it, Grace was beginning to think that Becca had gotten at least some hint of what was going on. Was that the real reason she'd come here this afternoon?
"Zaheer and I are planning a trip to the States later in the year." Becca said casually. Had she interpreted Grace's silence as rudeness?
There was a steadiness about Becca which Grace had to admire. She couldn't imagine anything throwing Becca off balance. She looked at Grace. "I suppose Qazim is going ahead with building that hotel in Washington."
Grace sighed. "That's still in the early planning stages, right now. Qazim has his own ideas about what kind of hotel it will be. Especially about the interior design," Grace explained.
