Hidden In The Sheikh's Harem

Hidden In The Sheikh's Harem
Michelle Conder

Amanda Cinelli

?Kidnapped by the desert prince…Prince Zachim Darkhan of Bakaan never expected to find himself bound and at the mercy of his nemesis. But with a skilful ease born of years as a warrior he escapes his bonds…then takes the man’s daughter as his captive and hides her away in his harem!But Farah Hajjar is no man’s prisoner, and as the power play between them escalates so too does Zachim’s desire to taste the forbidden sensual delights their chemistry promises. As the line between hatred and desire blurs he’s led past the point of no return…Now they’ll find themselves captured…in marriage!Praise for Michelle ConderRussian’s Ruthless Demand 4* RT Book ReviewExotic Russian phrases and the wintry splendor of St. Petersburg will heat readers’ blood in this beautifully crafted tale. The heroine’s acerbic humor and the hero’s bluntness are both fantastic.Prince Nadir’s Secret Heir 4* RT Book ReviewConder travels to the desert for her poignant second-chance romance between a reluctant king and his dancer, a relationship that is a constant uphill battle thanks to too much pride and too little communication.Socialite’s Gamble 4* RT Book ReviewConder’s romance is full of fireworks and her narrative is a heady mix of sensual banter and humor. Set in a tropical paradise, the book has an arrogant, vulnerable hero and a heroine with an unjustified image. They may seem like an unlikely pair but will win hearts on their passionate journey.

‘I’m not sleeping with you!’

Zachim tugged the horse blanket over the top of them. ‘No, you’re not. You’re sleeping next to me. There’s a big difference. We need to share body heat to keep warm. Relax and this will be a lot easier.’

Relax? Farah couldn’t have been more tense if she’d tried. It had been a long time since she had been physically close to anyone, and all this bodily contact was messing with her head.

‘This isn’t right.’

‘But kidnapping your Prince is fine?’

‘Must you always have the last word?’ she grumbled.

‘I was going to ask the same of you.’

Not wanting to find him at all amusing, Farah curled herself into a tight ball to try and put distance between them. Self-sufficiency was a prized trait in the harsh desert climate, and Farah was proud that she could survive on her own if she had to. She wanted to point this out to the Prince, but that would involve speaking to him and she’d much rather pretend he wasn’t there. She’d much rather pretend she was in her own bed than on the cold, hard ground, wrapped in the strong arms of her father’s number one enemy.

With two university degrees and a variety of false career starts under her belt, MICHELLE CONDER decided to satisfy her lifelong desire to write and finally found her dream job. She currently lives in Melbourne, Australia, with one super-indulgent husband, three self-indulgent (but exquisite) children, a menagerie of over-indulged pets, and the intention of doing some form of exercise daily. She loves to hear from her readers at michelleconder.com (http://michelleconder.com)

Hidden in the

Sheikh’s Harem

Michelle Conder

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

For my family, with love. Always.

And to Bobo, shokran!

Contents

Cover (#ue0dd816f-d641-5850-a6cf-c26610b5c6ba)

Introduction (#u5749f0b8-67fb-5f45-a005-9fcafadfbb7c)

About the Author (#u133336f4-1dbe-5ad1-87b4-1b2074c2fe4d)

Title Page (#uc92d067a-f40b-540f-94d3-ee205e3f2624)

Dedication (#ued13f71d-88b2-5ab5-a3c5-8d32f4d9d0fb)

CHAPTER ONE (#ubbdc8a06-e9b2-5c0a-a8db-701fd99616f2)

CHAPTER TWO (#u3c6b810f-611e-5f28-80e0-fb0cc41d9831)

CHAPTER THREE (#u824414ad-584c-5e94-93f5-65d03bd701cf)

CHAPTER FOUR (#u56d4dbb8-6c06-5e56-8493-9c716b45c7dc)

CHAPTER FIVE (#uc482b08e-24d7-5616-b6c2-ad78a67c4615)

CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FOURTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER FIFTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

Extract (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ONE (#ulink_16d88dfe-1fc6-517c-a503-04aa7351e3ad)

PRINCE ZACHIM BAKR AL-DARKHAN tried not to slam the door as he left the palace apartment his half-brother was using for his brief visit but it wasn’t easy. Nadir was being a cranky, stubborn hard-ass, refusing to take his rightful place as the next King of Bakaan, which left Zach in line for the job.

‘Everything, all right, Highness?’

Damn; he was so preoccupied with what had just gone down he hadn’t even sensed the elderly servant he’d known all his life waiting in the shadowed recess of the arched windows.

But, no, everything was not all right. Every day that passed without a leader made their people more and more uneasy. His father had only been dead for two weeks but already there were whispers of some of the more insurgent tribes gathering for ‘talks’.

Yeah, like the Al-Hajjar tribe. Once their families had been rival dynasties, but two centuries ago the Darkhans had defeated the Hajjars in a brutal war, creating resentments that still remained. But Zach knew that the current leader of the tribe—Mohamed Hajjar—hated his father, not only because of their history, but because he held his father responsible for the death of his pregnant wife ten years ago. And probably his father had been partly responsible because, Allah knew, he had been responsible for the death of Nadir’s mother for entirely different reasons.

The fact was their father had been a miserly tyrant who’d ruled through fear and had been ruthless when he didn’t get his own way. As a result Bakaan was stuck in the dark ages, both in its laws and infrastructure, and it was going to be an enormous challenge to pull it into the twenty-first century.

A challenge that his brother was better suited to take on than Zach. And not just because Nadir was politically savvy with finely honed boardroom instincts, but also because it was his rightful place as the eldest son. With Nadir taking charge it would also free Zach up to do what he did best—creating and managing change at street level where he could do the most good.

Something he’d already started doing after his delicate mother had begged him to come home five years ago when Bakaan had been on the brink of civil war. The cause of the unrest had stemmed from a rogue publication started by someone in one of the mountain tribes detailing his father’s failings and calling for change. There wasn’t much in the publication Zach could argue with, but he’d done his duty and settled the unrest in his father’s favour. Then, appalled at the state his country was in, he’d set aside his Western lifestyle and stayed, working behind the scenes to do what he could until his increasingly narcissistic and paranoid father had either seen sense or died. Death had come first and the only thing Zach felt was hollow inside. Hollow for the man who had only ever seen him as the spare to the throne, and not a very worthy one at that.