While Yara would never admit this out loud, Sheikh Altair happened to be one of her most favorite persons in the world, and she had always secretly hoped he would find someone to make him forget about the past. It was for this reason Yara had originally disliked the idea of her sheikh entering a politically motivated betrothal, and afterwards, when she had gotten to know Safiya better, she had even more reason to dislike the idea.
Yara had feared that Altair would think Safiya was merely putting on an act with all of her adorable eccentricities, but after what she had witnessed multiple times in Mushriq, she had become gradually convinced that the two were a perfect match.
A man like Altair, who held himself to the most exacting standards, would only be able to unbend around someone as completely lacking guile as Safiya. In the princess' company, the sheikh became more relaxed, and his normally forbidding expression replaced by faint winces and quick twists of his lips every time his fiancée said or did something extraordinarily...serious.
For the sheikh to truly fall for the princess was something Yara hadn't even allowed herself to dream of; since Altair was like a modern-day knight and Safiya a damsel in genuine distress, having the two end up together seemed too much like a fairytale, and that was probably why she felt most uneasy about the whole thing.
In her experience, things that were too good to be true never lasted, and with how smooth sailing it had been between Altair and Safiya—-
Yara couldn't help but worry that it was only a matter of time before someone started causing trouble.
And she was right.
BACK IN THE ROYAL PALACE, Altair's nose started getting itchy and ended up releasing a sneeze that had the guards posted in the hallway glancing at him in surprise.
It felt as if someone had trampled all over his grave, and the sheikh had a grim feeling that whoever the person was, it was probably someone thinking the princess was too good for him. Maybe Ella or Aurora, whom Altair knew still didn't completely trust him, or his own cousin even. And then of course there were the thousands of male university students in Mushriq; while Altair's frequent appearances had succeeded in deterring the idiots from pestering the princess, that did not mean any of them had stopped admiring and wanting her altogether.
As evidenced by the constant stream of photos that Aurora sent to his inbox, which Altair had no doubt was simply meant to irritate the fuck out of him, there wasn't a day that Safiya didn't receive extravagant gifts and letters filled with gushing praise and declarations of undying love from her secret admirers.
Truthfully, the amount of attention his betrothed received from his sex was bordering on ludicrous; Khalil had not experienced the same kind of competition when his engagement to Harper had been announced, and as far as he could remember, neither had Khal nor Mihail. Was his situation unique simply because Safiya was beauty incarnate...or was it because those idiots believed Altair's scarred face made him a beast?
Regardless of the reason behind it, the situation had ended up becoming a blessing in disguise -—or so Altair told himself as he informed his younger brother of his decision.
Any form of press or media was strictly forbidden in Mushriq, and this was the only reason Safiya's name hadn't made it to the headlines of late. But once the princess was back in the limelight, Altair was certain the whole Ramilian Khaleesi obsession would start all over again, and after that?
"Having the press hound Safiya during your wedding is an unnecessary distraction—-"
"Then shouldn't we kick the press out rather than keep your betrothed from attending?"
"There are still people out there who want nothing more but to make it seem your relationship with Kyria is immoral. If you make your wedding private, those people wouldn't hesitate to make it seem that you and Kyria had something to hide. Or worse, they could make it seem that you feel guilt and shame over your decision."
Malik's lips tightened as he was forced to see the truth in his brother's words. But while he did appreciate Altair's desire to protect his bride-to-be from any unpleasantness—-
"What about the princess?" Malik asked finally. "Has she agreed to this?"
"Your wedding also coincides with her finals week. She is not the type to use the royal wedding as an excuse to enjoy special privileges."
Malik was about to remark on how everything seemed to work out a little too neatly to be real, but before he could say another word, their mother had walked inside the living room, and the look on her face immediately had Malik feeling rather wary.
"Just the man I needed to see."
Malik, seeing that their mother was looking at her firstborn, shook his head with feigned disgust. "So that's how it is now?" You're not even going to try hiding the fact that Altair's your favorite?"