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"Eliana!" her mother exclaimed. Gretchen hurried toward Eliana and hugged her. "We were so worried about you."
"I'm fine, mother," Eliana replied.
Eliana peered over her mother's shoulder. Her father didn't look pleased to see her. His brows were furrowed. His lips were tight, disapproving lines. He glared at Eliana as if she was already a disgraced daughter. It was just as well her father didn't know what had really happened at Kadeem's, Eliana told herself.
Gretchen released Eliana and guided her over toward her father. "What did I tell you, Azem. Everything's fine. Nothing to worry about."
Her father's eyes narrowed. "Why did you leave the palace without taking your guard?" he demanded.
"I wanted to go out," Eliana stated. "I just had a sudden impulse to go out. That's all."
"Unaccompanied?" he snapped.
Eliana looked to her mother for some support, but saw that none was forthcoming. Her mother's features were set in a blank, but patient expression. A marked contrast to her father.
"I did have company," she stated. "I wasn't exactly alone."
"You were with him," her father said sourly.
"Kadeem? Yes," Eliana replied.
"That was unwise," Azem declared, shaking his head.
"I think I can trust him," Eliana retorted. "Kadeem and I have known each other long enough for that."
"I will be the judge of that," her father said.
"Azem," Gretchen interrupted. "There's no need to be like this with Eliana. She's young. Don't you remember what it was like to be young? What we were like when we met?"
Azem shook his head and turned away. He rested his hand against the corner of the ornate fireplace mantel. "That was different."
Gretchen smiled. "Not so different. I seem to recall you could be pretty impulsive yourself."
Azem's eyes widened at Gretchen as if he couldn't believe what she'd just said. He looked back at Eliana. "What you did was reckless, Eliana. May I remind you were are guests in this country. We cannot allow even a hint of scandal to find its way into our family."
"Scandal? What do you mean, father?" Eliana asked. "There was nothing scandalous about myself and Kadeem leaving the embassy for a while."
Azem lifted a brow. For a moment, he gazed at her with a steadiness she found unsettling. Eliana could see he had opinions of his own about what might have happened while she was with Kadeem. If only he knew, she told herself.
She wondered if there was any visible remnant of her time with Kadeem. A lingering trace of their passion. Perhaps her face was flushed. Or maybe there was a certain look in her eye that she just couldn't disguise, no matter what she did.
Azem sighed and looked sternly at Eliana. "You must promise me that this will not happen again," he demanded.
"That I won't choose how to spend my own free time?" Eliana replied. "Why would you want me to do that? I'm old enough to make my own decisions."
"You are a princess. You cannot make your own decisions in anything," he stated. "There are other considerations beyond your selfish desires."
For a moment, she was astonished that he would say such a thing to her. She gasped. "You're right. I am a princess. And I will have a life of my own," she exclaimed. "And on my own terms."
Azem came toward her. He shook his head. "We will see what tomorrow brings."
She squinted at him. "Why?"
"As far as I am concerned, this Qazhar sheikh is not fit to be your husband," he said.
Eliana's mother let out a cry. "Azem! You cannot say such a thing."
He lifted his chin proudly and peered at his wife. "I can and I do. I have had my doubts about this Kadeem Al Kharif ever since I met him. He does not conduct himself in a proper manner. There is a roughness about him. Something uncouth."
