Sheikh's Pregnant Fake Fiancée (The Sheikh's Wedding Series Book 3) by Leslie North

Author:Leslie North [North, Leslie]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-01-12T16:00:00+00:00

9

“It’s so great to meet you,” Meredith said. “How do I hug you without squashing your belly?”

“Like this, from the side.” Willow slung an arm around her and gave her a squeeze. At nearly nine months pregnant, her belly still bumped Meredith’s. “I wish I could’ve come to the coronation, but the crowds, with the baby—”

“You’re here now. That’s what matters. And—hey! Watch out!” She stumbled back as two kids streaked past, a boy and a girl. They raced out to the garden, headed for the pool.

“Sorry about that,” Willow said. “They know I can’t chase them, so they’re taking full advantage.”

“Zak and Lale, right?” Meredith watched as they hurtled into the water, their shrieks of delight filling the air. “Well, they’re only young once.”

“Still, we should go after them. Can’t let them have all the fun.” Willow laughed, eyes twinkling, and Meredith laughed with her. She liked Willow already—she had an easy warmth about her, kind and inviting. Hadi was friendly as well, with a deep, booming laugh, which drew Willow’s attention from down by the pool. She waved to him, then her brow knit in a frown.

“I see Hadi and Zev, and there’s Yanni now. But where are Ilyas and Tatiana?”

“I’m not sure,” said Meredith. “Zev said they’d be here.”

“Only one way to find out.” Willow wended her way through the party—a family affair, aunts and uncles and cousins, kids splashing in the pool—and plopped down beside Hadi. “What happened to Tatiana? I brought her those sweets, but I don’t see her anywhere.”

“Well, as it happens—”

“If I could have your attention!” Yanni got to his feet, clapping his hands for silence. “I know, it’s a party. I won’t ramble on. But I do have an announcement I think you’ll all like: not only are we celebrating Zev’s rise to power, but we’re also welcoming a new member of our family.” He beamed ear to ear, the picture of joy. “Some of you might have noticed Ilyas and Tatiana aren’t with us. That’s because she went into labor first thing this morning, and she’s just delivered a healthy baby boy.”

A round of applause went up, and Hadi cheered aloud. Zev glanced at Meredith, and her heart skipped a beat. You’re one of us now, he’d said—and her child would be, too. Her child would play here one day, when she came back to visit.

Or, if I stayed—

“And soon, we’ll be toasting Hadi and Willow’s little girl, not to mention Zev and Meredith’s bundle of joy. Do we know the sex yet, or will it be a surprise?”

Meredith’s jaw dropped. Zev choked on his drink. Willow jumped up and ran to hug Meredith.

“I can’t believe it—you too? Congratulations! That’s wonderful.”

“Th-thank you.” Meredith felt faint. How long had Yanni known? Had everyone known, or—

“Wait, was that a secret?” Yanni’s face fell. “I didn’t mean to steal your thunder. Naima mentioned it at the garden party, so I assumed the cat was out of the bag.”

“Aunt Naima?” Zev shot her a wounded look, but Aunt Naima just shrugged.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.