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She huffed a little "It was easy to get to know you I just had to search your name on the internet to coirlfriends"

He deserved that And it was probably more than a thousand and one, but he appreciated the irony "I wasn’t talking about that I want to just spend tih I won’t be telling you the dating stories since you already know theave her a smooth smile, the one that let Kade knoas about to be thrown under the bus "I did not date as much I was too busy with school"

Kade let his eyes roll "Yes, he’s the perfect angel, Piper Whatever you do, don’t look up the words Rafiq and Spanish night club"

His brother huffed "You did not have to tell her that"

"Already seen the video" Piper sipped her tea, calet arrested"

Rafe shrugged "The police in Barcelona are very forgiving when the bribe is big enough And I could not know they had caht ere alone"

"Yes, it was just hirew serious "No I wasn’t talking about our past scandals I was thinking about what happened to Talib and how it still affects hiive hih a lot"

She turned to hihtly as she put the tea back on the tray "Are you talking about the rebels taking him captive?"

It was inevitable she would read about that The family had attempted to keep it quiet, but the radicals had released videos of Talib al Mussad broken and battered and silent

"Yes" Kade sighed Though it happened years before, he could still feel the panic of the day "Tal had gone to one of the drill sites He used to do it once awith the workers Our fathers had us working rigs by the ti his hands dirty They found out where he was going to be and they showed up with twenty men They killed Tal’s security detail and many of our employees They took hiirl he’d ht her back to Bezakistan He’d never been serious about her She’d been too needy for Kade, but he’d knohat she could give his brother right away What he didn’t tell Piper was that Lily had been more than an assistant She’d been Talib’s submissive for many months before they had been kidnapped After his release, Tal had never spoken of her again, but Kade had read the reports

"She died" The words fell out of Piper’s lips like a lodestone pulling her down She shook her head "Sorry I got a little dizzy just thinking about it Do you think he had to watch?"

Rafe took her hand in his "Yes, habibti I believe they forced my brother to watch her torture It was part of his own"

"Did he love her?" Piper asked

Kade shook his head She picked up on ave her credit for "Not at all He cared about her, felt responsible for her He had a relationship with her that went beyond mere employment, but he didn’t love her"

She put a hand to her head, her voice tre all said Tal was fine"

"We kept the press far away The Aht their way in, lost a few men When it all shook out, ot separated from the teaet hi held here?" Piper asked

"No He was taken to a neighboring country It’s why the A to keep it quiet No one wants this part of the world to destabilize," Rafe explained "So the story the press got was that Talib was able to escape on his own about teeks after his actual rescue We cleaned hio in front of a ca like his old self"

Kade thought about the hollow shell his brother had been those days after his rescue He’d sat in his bed, silent and unblinking for days as though trapped in a private hell "I don’t think he’s recovered even today, habibti So, please, give this soive us a chance"

"I don’t know" She tried to stand "I need a minute"

Kade stood with her "Piper, sit back down, please You look so pale Rafiq, she needs to eat"

"I can’t Oh, help I think I’ to…"

She never finished the sentence She passed out, her body dropping like a ht her in his arms as Rafe shouted for help

Chapter Eleven

Talib looked down at his concubine as she lay sleeping She was frail, ile than he’d ever seen her He realized one of the things he loved about Piper was her strength

Liked He liked that about her He wasn’t going to love her at all, dahness" The doctor who had delivered him stood at the head of his bed Dr Haumoud was so to have it tested for toxins, but I believe she has just had a couple of very stressful days Her heart rate has returned to nor, but he doubted this was anything so si violently ill on the day after her betrothal was far too coincidental for his tastes "Thank you, Doctor We will take very good care of her Please contactat all"

Piper’s chest raceful symphony of life Tal couldn’t help but stare down at her and wonder what she was drea what her life would have been like if they hadn’t brought her here?

He stepped back out into the living area of the suite he now shared with his brothers and Piper It was full Rafe and Kade paced, both of his brothers pale orry Alea stood near theDane and Cooper were talking quietly, conferring together Landon leaned against the wall, his eyes on Alea The big guard didn’t see except Alea

Tal couldn’t even think about that proble him the minute they realized he was there Dane looked up, his shoulders squaring

"Sir"