Kaye spent the rest of the day relaxing for the first time in ages. She opened her suitcase and found all the toiletries from Amir’s guest house before taking a long, luxurious shower. The water was hot, the room was cool, and Kaye was in absolute heaven.

After her shower, she reached down to find the call button to be more of a remote. There were options for cleaning, room service, and “other.” She wondered what qualified as other, but, feeling a bit peckish even after the delicious lunch, she pressed the button for room service. A phone next to her bed rang almost instantly.

She picked it up on the second ring.

“Um, hello?”

“Miss Kearney, you rang?”

“Uh, yes, I did. I was wondering what options you had for food?”

“There is a menu in your bedside drawer, miss.”

Kaye pulled the drawer open, finding a small menu as well as a few books for light bedtime reading. Glancing at the menu, she ordered a fresh fruit and vegetable platter, thinking it was a good idea to make some healthy choices after the heavy meals she’d been having. After the food arrived, she proceeded to do absolutely nothing but enjoy the beauty and comfort of her bedroom.

The sun crossed the sky. At some point she ordered another snack—this time, seafood— and ate it in bed while reading one of the books, then fell asleep with the book on her pillow. It was one of the best days she could remember having in months, though a part of her wished that Amir had been there to spend the time with her. She wondered what he had spent his day doing.

Perhaps reconnecting with his family, she mused as she drifted off to sleep. His eyes were the last thing she thought of, and she reminded herself sleepily to watch her thoughts as they dreamily drifted back to Amir.

The next morning, there was a knock on Kaye’s door again. Rising, she padded over and cracked it open, hoping to find Amir. Unfortunately, she was not so lucky.

“Get up. We have filming to do.”

“Merle, what a pleasant surprise,” she said, her tone bone dry.

“Whatever. Just get ready. I have makeup here ready to prepare you for the day—she’s coming in now.”

Jen gave Kaye a cheerful wave as she dragged an enormous bag into her room, waltzing right past her.

“Morning!” she chirped, positively brimming with energy.

Kaye needed coffee to deal with this. The jet lag wasn’t helping, either. Merle nodded and walked away, apparently done with the conversation.

Closing the door, Kaye turned to face Jen, who watched her with sympathetic eyes.

“You need caffeine,” she declared.

“You’re a mind reader,” Kaye chuckled. “Or a face reader. I imagine it looks pretty bad up in here,” she said, gesturing in the direction of her face.

“Nonsense. You look great. I need coffee! I just figured I’d tell you that you did, too.”

“Fair enough. Let’s place the order.”

Kaye pressed the magic button under the nightstand once more, and before she knew it, the aroma of freshly-pressed coffee beans filled the room as Jen worked her magic, finally dressing her in a beautiful yellow summer dress.

“This will be sure to impress the Sheikh and Sheikha,” Jen said, and Kaye smiled.

“Here’s hoping.”

“I heard they were pretty brutal while the camera was rolling. They’re really getting into this, huh?”

“So it would seem,” Kaye said, rising as Jen finished dabbing a little more makeup on her cheek.

The two of them exited, making their way down the hall as Jen’s radio informed them that they were requested in the royal viewing room. When they got there, filming was already underway, with Amalia whispering to Amir with a deep frown on her face. One of the cameras turned toward Kaye, and she fixed an expression of fear on her face as she made her way over to her future mother-in-law and husband.

“Good morning,” Kaye said, her voice shaking slightly.

The Sheikha glared at her.

“You sleep in late,” she grouched.

“Mother, we have jet lag. Give her a break,” Amir pleaded.

“You take a break! You spring this woman on us and expect us to just accept your marriage to some…American!”

She threw her hands up in the air in rage, her eyes like dark storm clouds. Kaye stepped forward, as though finding her courage.

“Your Highness. I admit that I haven’t made the best impression, but I love your son. I want to make him happy. I will do whatever it takes to do so.”

“Sing the anthem,” Amalia said, crossing her arms with a smug expression.

She thought Kaye wouldn’t have time to memorize it. She was wrong. Taking a breath, Kaye began to sing it word for word, first in Amir’s native tongue, then again in English. She was grateful for her ability to memorize lines very quickly. Amalia’s stricken expression had to have been a little bit real.

“Yes, well. You can learn a song. Good for you,” Amalia huffed before storming off.

Kaye and Amir watched her go, the two of them locking eyes afterwards. Amir placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, his eyes consoling.

“It will be all right,” he said.

“Cut!”

Jesse walked forward, his eyes on Amir.

“Amir, buddy. You’ve got to be brasher, okay? We want you to be a strong, assertive character. We’ve already got enough of the gentle romance between you two. Let’s have a little more spice, okay?”

“Got it,” Amir said, squaring his shoulders. “More brash.”

Jesse nodded.

“Great, let’s pick it back up you guys!”

He jumped back behind the cameras, which flicked back on. They continued their conversation in an entirely different tone.

“You need to do more to impress my mother. Without their approval, I can’t marry you.”

“What, your life is dictated by mommy and daddy?” Kaye sneered.

“I don’t need to be patronized by you. I knew them first. You’ve still got to earn a place in this family if you want to be a part of it.”

“You can’t be serious!” Kaye cried, stomping her foot. “Amir, you’re being ridiculous. I don’t even know who you are, here!”

“I’m the same man I’ve always been. I expect a lot from the woman I love. I would hope you do the same. Please try harder with my parents. Our marriage depends on it.”

Amir stormed off then, leaving a shocked Kaye to watch him disappear before Jesse ended the shot.

“Excellent! That was much better. Now, I want to film some scenes with Amir and his father talking about the marriage. And Amalia?”

Amir’s mother poked her head back into the room.

“Yes?” she asked.

“Let’s do some more scenes with you and Kaye having a heart-to-heart. We want there to be a strong disapproval, but in the end, you’ll accept your son’s wishes.”

“Got it. Mean until we’re green.”

“Sure,” Jesse said with a chuckle.

Kaye and Amalia walked off with Jesse and a few of the crew while Amir and the others headed off in the direction of his father, presumably elsewhere in the house. Amalia squeezed Kaye’s hand as they walked.

“You’re doing great,” she whispered.

“So are you. I think you all need to get into acting after this,” Kaye said.

“Nah. Got a country to run. Someone has to do it,” the Sheikha replied, staring ahead as though this was nothing at all.

Kaye was amazed by her candor and good humor.

“Things in Al Rayyan must run pretty well under your leadership.”

“We are blessed to have a thriving economy, it’s true. It is easy to run a country when the coffers are full.”

“Ladies, this would be a great conversation to have on film. Let’s try and get some of that done in here,” Jesse said.

They filmed a scene with the two of them reluctantly bonding over family values, with Kaye slowly winning Amalia over with her discussion about children, family and love. As they were finishing up, Amir appeared in the doorway.

“I hope to love my children as I was loved, with all my heart,” Kaye said, and Amalia reached over and squeezed her hand.

“It is one of the greatest gifts a person can ever have.”

Amalia looked up and saw Amir there, then patted Kaye’s hand as she released it.

“You might have a better one here than I thought, boy.”

“I certainly think so,” he said, and his eyes were warm as they rested on Kaye.

“Cut!”

Kaye and Amir were still staring at one another as Jesse stepped forward.

“Okay, scene, you guys! Now I’d like to get a shot of the two of you running off together into the city to get away from it all. Can we start on that now?”

“Sure,” Kaye said, bidding Amalia a fond farewell.

“Let’s do dinner. I don’t believe you’ll be staying past tomorrow,” Amalia said.

“We won’t?” Kaye asked, looking back at Amir.

He shook his head.

“We’ve got to keep to the schedule. We’ll be filming with your family next. The plane is scheduled to leave for Indiana in the morning.”

“I see,” Kaye said, blanching.

“Is that all right, Kaye?” he asked.

“Sure. Of course. We’ll figure it out when we get there,” she replied. “Now, let’s run off on an Al Rayyan adventure. I’m ready for some fun!”

Amir looked as though he was going to ask more about her family situation, but Jesse took her cue and ushered them away from the room, leading them toward a massive garage.

“Now, I want you to whisk her away. Try to be daring, and again, not so…soft.”

Kaye stifled a chortle. The number of times Amir had to be reminded to be a more macho version of himself was a little outrageous, in her opinion. He simply nodded, reaching for a pair of helmets as the cameras began to roll.

“Let’s get out of here,” he said, his tone gruff.

He was like some superhero pretending to be his alter ego. Kaye fought hard to maintain a straight face as she stared up at him, appearing, for all the world, as a forlorn lover who had been rejected by her fiancé’s family.

“And go where? I don’t belong here, Amir. Maybe this isn’t going to work after all. Maybe we acted too fast.”

“Are you kidding me?” he asked, grasping her gently by the shoulders. “We’re made for each other, Kaye. It’s you and me against the world, and we’re going to win!”

“Against who? Your parents? Mine? Is that really winning, in the end?”

“We win in the end because we have love. Isn’t that enough?”

Jesse made a gesture for more masculine lines. Amir audibly sighed.

“Come on. On the bike, now. I’m taking you out.”

“And if I refuse?” Kaye asked, trying to help him out.

He leaned toward her, towering above.

“Then I will sit you on it myself and kidnap you from this palace.”

“Dangerous,” Kaye cooed, a smile in her voice.

“Don’t tempt me,” he said, wrapping his arms around her lower back and pulling her close.

Before he could kiss her, he plopped the black helmet over her head, kissing the top of it instead.

“It’s just you and me, Kaye. Let me show you what life is like in my world when my parents aren’t breathing down our necks.”

“That’s the best idea you’ve had all week,” Kaye replied.

He revved the engine, and they zoomed off, two cars filled with cameras on either side.