The Sheikh’s Instant Family (The Safar Sheikhs 2)

It was hard to say no, but she managed to. Not that it did any good.

“You feeling okay?” Amad kissed the top of her head as he walked by, fiddling with his watch. “I can go grab dinner for us later if you’re not feeling up to going out again.”

“I think I’m fine,” Vanessa said, stretching out on the couch. Her morning sickness was still lurking, but the fascination of this gorgeous city thankfully helped stymie it slightly. “Just a little rest and then I’ll be good to go.”

“Excellent.”

A soft knock sounded at the door, and Amad breezed over to answer it. She overheard him conversing quietly with the person at the door in French. The door shut a moment later, and he came into the sitting room holding a large black bag.

“What’s this, Amad?” she asked, unable to hide the suspicion in her voice.

“One more present,” he said with a devilish grin, setting the huge bag on the coffee table. “Or should I say presents?”

She sighed, shaking her head. “Babe, this is enough already! I don’t need all of this—”

“But they’re gifts. I don’t understand why you can’t accept them.” He tugged out thin, flat boxes from the bag, handing them to her one by one. A flicker of curiosity licked through her, and the eagerness on Amad’s face made her hesitant to put her foot down the way she wanted. She didn’t understand why it was so hard for him to get that these things were just…things. Unnecessary. Lavish. Extraneous.

“Well, let’s see here,” she murmured, tugging off the top of the box. Soft tweed greeted her; she tugged the fabric out, revealing a pair of designer dress pants.

“Wow,” she said, blinking as she checked it out. There was no price tag, of course. These things were too expensive for commonplace concerns like prices. “Babe, this is…gorgeous.” She sighed, setting the pants back in the box. “But I won’t even be able to wear these in a few weeks. You know, some maternity clothes would be the practical choice.”

“But you can wear them now,” Amad said, grinning. “Won’t you try them on? Please? I’ve had such a hard-on imagining you in these clothes. Do your poor husband a favor. Model the clothes.”

She couldn’t help but laugh as she dragged the clothes to the bedroom to change. “Fine. But only because you’ve got a hard-on and I don’t want you to suffer,” she said before sliding the partition door shut.

She heard Amad cackling in the other room as she shrugged on the silky ivory blouse and the tweed dress pants. Honestly, the ensemble was amazing. Paired with her muted makeup palate and her wavy blowout, she felt every inch a sexy entrepreneur. Which was what she wanted for hers

elf. To earn a place in the family business.

When she walked into the sitting room a moment later, Amad’s jaw made a slow trek to the floor. He gave a low whistle.

“Be still my beating heart,” he whispered.

She tucked some hair behind her ear, then struck a few poses, hooking her thumbs in the tiny belt loops of the pants. “These clothes are amazing.”

“But you’re missing one thing,” he said, walking toward her.

“Shoes? I have heels I’ll put on.”

He shook his head. “Something else.”

“Um…” She blinked. “A modeling contract?”

His devilish grin spread ear to ear. He pulled out a long black box from his pocket, handing it to her. “You’re missing this.”

She bit at her bottom lip, searching his face as she held the slim jeweler’s box. Another gift? The man needed an intervention. “Amad—” she started.

“Just open it.”

She nodded, forcing it open. A delicate diamond necklace lay inside. She couldn’t help but squeak with appreciation as she ran her finger over the fragile strand of gold. When she looked up at Amad, adoration shone on his face.

“Please, babe, let’s put it on.”

She didn’t have the heart to say no when he was looking at her like that. She swallowed hard, gently removing the necklace from its bed.

“This is too much, you know,” she said as she handed the necklace to him.

“It’s not too much. It’s actually less than what I wanted to get you, because I knew you’d say that.” His breath came out in hot puffs at the back of her neck as he arranged the necklace and clasped it. “Let’s consider this a compromise.”