As they walked down the hallway together, Lily breathed in a new cologne he hadn’t been wearing before. She considered commenting on it but thought better of it. She didn’t want him to know that he affected her so deeply. Besides, who said that?

Hey, you know you smell good, right?

Once again, she thought about why she hadn’t dated enough. She had no idea how to conduct herself around the opposite sex; she had spent most of her time writing about them. She had been an English major, after all.

They passed through the dusty open foyer and into another hallway that led to a large kitchen that looked like it belonged in a restaurant.

“This place could serve an entire army!” Lily exclaimed, her eyes wide as she took in the sheer size of the place.

“I suppose,” Atnan replied. “Though it hasn’t served anyone but myself in quite some time.”

“I’m a little surprised that a sheikh knows how to cook. Then again, I don’t know why I should be when I imagine this palace isn’t exactly where a sheikh would choose to live in the first place.”

He ignored the second half of her statement, instead answering only the first.

“When I was young, I used to sneak into the kitchens for sweets. Eventually, the cook set up a stool for me and let me spend my days down there, first watching, then helping prepare and cook the food. I learned quite a bit from that man. He was a good friend.”

“You are speaking of him in the past tense. Is he…”

“Alive and well, I believe. At least, the last time I saw him.”

“And how long ago was that?”

Atnan’s eyes sparkled as he turned toward a large fridge and began pulling ingredients out.

“Oh, no. You won’t be getting answers from me that easily. I have to know I can trust you before that information makes its way to the surface.”

“And how am I to trust you?”

He set a container of fresh beef on the counter and met her gaze, placing his palms flat on the large, wooden cutting board.

“I saved your life, didn’t I?”

Lily scoffed.

“I’d hardly say that. You certainly helped me, but do you really think I was near death?”

“You don’t know our police force,” he said, his tone ominous.

Lily’s eyes widened as she sat on a tall kitchen stool. Atnan opened the meat container and began pulling out jars of spices from a cabinet. He then looked up, saw her spooked expression, and laughed.

“Lily, I was kidding. They’re tough, yes, but they wouldn’t have harmed you. Here, try this and tell me what you think.”

He cut a slice of white cheese from a block on the counter and held it out to her. She stared at it and then back up at him.

“You are the strangest man I have ever met,” she told him.

Atnan grinned.

“You might not be surprised to know that I have heard that before. Now, try this. Go on.”

He held the slice of cheese out to her again, and she took it, careful not to touch his fingertips. She had learned early on that her body would react to him in ways it had never done before, and the risk was too great. Lily had no ties to this country. In fact, the place was trying to force her exit at that very moment. She shook her head gently, taking a bite.

The cheese was cool and salty, with a sharp, lingering aftertaste of almonds.

“Woah! I’ve never tasted anything like this!”

Atnan smiled, pleased by her reaction.

“In Al Yibri, we have certain goats that thrive off and love almonds. Their milk and cheese maintain that flavor when produced. I was surprised that nowhere else in the world can you find a concoction quite like this.”

He cut one more slice and handed it to her before he placed the rest of the cheese in a pan and turned on a gas burner.

“What is that going to be?” Lily asked.

Grabbing a whisk, he poked the cheese as it began to melt into a sauce.

“Tonight I’m going to make you one of our specialties: spiced beef with an almond cheese sauce. I think you will find that the cheese offsets the spice nicely, making it a perfectly balanced dish.”

“That sounds heavenly,” Lily said, sighing, and Atnan turned away from the stove for a moment to look at her.

“Are you much of a chef?” he asked, and Lily laughed.

“Do you count boiling water and letting cheap noodles go soft in it as cooking?”

Atnan grinned.

“I’m sure in some ways it is. In any case, it provides sustenance.”

“Well, it does keep you alive, when there are no other options.”

“That is all you could eat?” he asked, his voice peppered with concern.

Lily blushed, embarrassed. She hadn’t meant to admit to her own poverty, but she had no reason to lie, either.

“I wasn’t exactly in the best place when I decided to move out here and start a new life,” she said.

Atnan turned fully then, facing her. He reached for a bottle of wine, popped the cork, and poured her a healthy glass before setting it before her on the counter.

“It would seem there is much about you I have yet to learn.”

Lily raised an eyebrow at him.

“I thought we weren’t in the way of show and tell around here?”

Atnan shrugged, turning back to the stove to sauté the beef in a large black pan. The smell coming from it was sensational.

Lily sipped her wine, unapologetically watching the back of him as she did so. The Sheikh seemed concerned for her well-being, but how could he be when, at the drop of a hat, he’d apparently turn her in to the authorities?

Atnan left the meat simmering as he opened the fridge and pulled out a series of vegetables, tossing them into a pan and sprinkling various spices over them. As Lily continued to watch, she realized it was the first time since meeting him that Atnan seemed truly relaxed. A sense of peace washed over the room, which was welcome after such a dramatic afternoon.

Lily took the last sip of her wine, and, as though he could sense that she was ready for a refill, Atnan turned and picked up the bottle, refilling her glass.

Lily laughed.

“You would have made an exceptional restaurateur, had you not been born in a palace.”

Atnan chuckled. It was a soothing sound, one Lily was hopeful to hear more of for however long they had in their gilded prison.

She frowned, then.

She didn’t like thinking of Atnan’s palace as a form of jail. Instead, she opted to do her best to enjoy the adventure of it. Anyway, if she thought about the scary truth, it would be too overwhelming, and right now, being cooked a gourmet meal by a sheikh, she didn’t feel at all like a prisoner.

“I admit that I have considered opening a few places of my own around the country, just so I can pop in and cook whenever I please. I don’t think the chefs would be very happy with me, though, so perhaps I will have to keep my talents a secret for now.”

“Who said you have talent? We haven’t tasted the food yet.”

Atnan turned and looked at her with a critical eye.

“You doubt my skill?”

Lily lifted a shoulder, glancing down to avoid the searing gaze coming at her from the direction of the stove.

“I’m just saying I have yet to try it, so I will have to reserve my opinion for later.”

He stared at her.

“You realize you just told a royal family member that his cooking might stink, right?”

Lily met his gaze then, and didn’t back down.

“What, the sensitive prince can’t handle critical feedback? Did you get all perfect grades in school because you were smart, or because no one backed down from this?” she said, gesturing to his glare.

His eyes narrowed. “You are making some pretty insulting insinuations, Lily Hawthorne.”

“And you, sir, are burning the food. You’re about to prove my point.”

Atnan turned back to the stove and flipped over the beef, which had gotten dangerously close to being overcooked. Removing the pan from the burner, he finished stirring up the cheese sauce and vegetables and plated the food. It looked as though it had been done by a professional. He turned back to her.

“Are you going to antagonize me all night, or can we go back to enjoying a meal together as new friends?”

“Oh, I’m your friend now?”

“You have a strange way of treating the people who help you.”

Lily bit back a retort, realizing that there was some truth to his words. Yes, she was frustrated, and a part of her realized she was pushing Atnan away on purpose, because the more time she spent with him, the closer she wanted to be to his perfect, kissable mouth.

Lily sighed, then.

It wasn’t Atnan’s fault. In fact, he had been the only person in the country to help her at all since she had arrived. The least she could do was be nice.

“I’m sorry,” she said, setting down her wine glass. “It’s been a rough couple of weeks. Well, a rough couple of years, actually, and you don’t deserve to be treated with anything less than respect.”

Atnan watched her as she delivered her apology, his chocolate eyes penetrating, as though he could see right through her to her core. She fought the urge to look away. She fought the urge to walk up to him and press her face to his. Maybe it would be wise to lay off the wine a bit.

“That doesn’t mean that I’m going to lie to you, however. So, get ready for someone who isn’t afraid to tell the Sheikh the truth.”

Atnan’s lip twitched, and he nodded.

“Apology accepted. I have confidence that your critique of tonight’s meal will not be upsetting in the slightest. Let’s have a seat, shall we?”