Golden Bird

Rashid shook his head, frowning. “I don’t understand.”

“Yes, you do. Think about it. You came here, not out of love, but out of duty. You kept me locked up because of your duty, misguided as that may have been, and you let me go because of a sense of duty.”

Rashid felt his heart wrench. “But I love you.”

Sara shook her head with a sad smile. “You want me. It’s not the same. If you truly loved me, you would have come on your own, without knowing about the baby.”

“I only did what I thought you wanted.”

“That’s just it. You did what your sense of duty told you to do, not what I told you I wanted. You didn’t give me a chance to make my own decision. Even now you haven’t even considered what I want. You just expected that I would fall into your arms...”

“But you did!” shouted Rashid in exasperation.

Sara bowed her head. “I know. I don’t deny my feelings for you, but I only just realized what they were.” She raised her head and found his eyes. “Oh, I want you, my Prince. I want you more than any other man I’ve ever met, but...”

“I do not like this ‘but’.” His voice was hoarse with emotion.

Sara nodded. “I know you don’t want to admit the truth, but you have to face it. What we had, what we have, what we will probably always share, isn’t love Rashid.” She pushed a lock of his hair back off his forehead. “It’s passion, it’s excitement, it’s the taste of something forbidden. It cannot be sustained.”

Rashid took her hand and brought it to his lips. “No. You are my golden bird. I would cherish you forever.”

Sara gently pulled her hand away. “Oh, yes, you would cherish your pet in her gilded cage. But I am not a pet, Rashid. I am a person and like the bird of your legend I need to fly away from you to live my life.”

Emotions ran though him unchecked. He settled on anger.

“My son will not be raised by David Wilson. I will fight you on that. And I will win.”