Modern Romance Collection May 2023 Books 1-4 by unknow

Author:unknow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2023-04-27T22:01:11+00:00

CHAPTER TWO

THE DIPLOMAT FROM Ras Sarat opened his mouth to reply but a man to the Sheikh’s right beat him to it. ‘His Highness has spoken.’

It was all that was needed to silence the rest of the room and move them towards the door. Eloise felt the barbed looks aimed in her direction as they filtered from the boardroom but she kept her back straight and pretended not to notice—ironic when she was such a keen student of human nature and expression. When they were almost all gone, she collected her folder and began to move towards the door herself, needing that fresh air and breathing space even more now.

‘Not you, Miss Ashworth.’

Miss Ashworth. Hearing him address her in that way made her body tingle all over. ‘Your Highness—’

‘Yes, Miss Ashworth?’

Again? She dug her fingernails into her palms.

‘Really, Your Highness, I don’t think this is at all necessary.’

‘Did I say anything you disagree with?’

He brow furrowed. ‘Not exactly, but—’

‘But?’ He moved closer, his voice deep and mesmerising.

She swallowed, wondering if he felt the air crackling around them too. It was deeply inappropriate to reprimand a sheikh, particularly when acting as a representative for Elana, and yet she heard herself say, stiffly, before she could stop herself, ‘I suppose a little notice of your intention wouldn’t have gone astray.’

‘I’m not in the habit of consulting anyone about my decisions.’

‘Evidently.’

‘Is that a mark against me already?’

Her lips quirked and again, despite the fact she knew she should be exhibiting purely deferential behaviour, she said, ‘Let’s just say I’m not a fan of autocracy.’

His laugh was as unexpected as it was delicious. She stared at him, open-mouthed, the sound rich and raw and virile and mesmerising. She gripped the back of a chair for support, and it was just about the only thing holding her upright.

‘Let me see if I understand you, Miss Ashworth.’

She couldn’t bear it any longer. It was so seductive to hear what his voice and accent did to her very prim surname. ‘Eloise, please,’ she insisted, allowing the informality on the basis that this man was very likely going to marry her very dearest friend, which would make them...friendly. It was okay for him to use her first name, surely!

‘Eloise.’

Uh-oh. Hearing him say her name was like falling into a warm lagoon—even more dangerously seductive than the way he’d rolled his tongue around ‘Ashworth’. She tried to tamp down on the butterflies in her tummy, but they beat their wings frantically regardless.

‘You have come here uninvited—’

‘I was sent here by the Crown Princess of Ras Sarat,’ she interjected sharply, before she could stop herself.

His eyes narrowed. It was obvious that he wasn’t interrupted by anyone, ever, and Eloise was almost as shocked as he! She had had three years of being spoken down to, denigrated, disrespected, and yet she held her course with calmness and dignity—always.

‘Unexpected even by your own delegation,’ he continued as though she hadn’t spoken, and she was glad he didn’t react, because her interruption was a misstep she didn’t intend to make again.

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