"I have something to tell you."
And why does Mr. Mine sound so tense all of a sudden?
"The truth is—-"
Grandpa Paco cuts him off, saying in a grudging tone, "Alright, I admit it. You're right, you found me out. I do know who he is—-"
"Ha! Knew it."
"But I'm guessing you don't."
It's my turn to feel defensive. "Just because we haven't known each other for very long—-"
"Rashad, my dear Maddy, is one of the royal princes of Huzna."
Oh.
Okay.
Um.
Right.
Rashad takes my hand under the table, and I'm not sure what to think when his grip tightens around mine.
"Will you excuse us, Paco?" he asks my grandfather while still holding my hand like he thinks I mean to escape him. "I'd like to speak to Madeleine somewhere private."
I'm not sure how he manages it, but maybe this is just how royalty works, and the next thing I know it's the restaurant manager himself offering the use of his private office, and Rashad is gently guiding me to sit on a couch.
He waits until we're alone before crouching down in front of me.
"I'm sorry you had to find out this way."
His voice is harsh, and he takes my hands into his in a grip that makes me feel I'm more like his captive than his date.
"Are you really a prince?"
"I'm a sheikh with royal blood, yes."
A sheikh.
It sounds very exotic, and very much him, but—-
"Aren't sheikhs supposed to marry...lady sheikhs?"
He chokes.
"Did I say it wrong? Is it sheikhess? Sheikhueen? Maybe Sheikhina like Shakira—-"
"Are you trying to make me laugh?"
I grin, and he groans.
"Damn you."
He's saying those words that way again, and the sound tugs painfully at my heartstrings.
"I thought the truth would make you..."