Free The Oil Prince (Contemporary Romance) by Kate Goldman Page B

casual navy blue trousers and a white polo shirt. Emily’s mouth hung open. What was he doing there? She knew that her grandmother had invited him over for dinner but she did not think it was going to be at their weekly Sunday lunch.
     
    “What are you doing here?” she asked him.
     
    Basil was seeing a different Emily. She was wearing a knee-length pencil dress with a pattern on it. Her long curly hair was not tied up nor was it straightened. She wore it down and it actually suited her. It made her face look rounder and more adorable.
     
    “Emily, don’t be rude,” her grandmother said as she walked into the room. She smiled at Basil and greeted him. She told him to sit down and make himself comfortable. He nodded and did as told. The rest of Emily’s family sat down.
     
    “This is Prince Basil, he works with our Emily,” said her grandmother.
     
    “Ohhh,” Emily’s brothers and cousin chorused.
     
    “So you are the Basil,” said Jake.
     
    “You know of me?” Basil asked softly.
     
    “A little,” Jake replied with a smirk on his face. Emily closed her eyes from the embarrassment. She had planned not to be there when her grandmother and Basil had dinner. However it had not worked out because her grandmother was too sneaky. She refused to tell Emily when the dinner was going to be, and had invited him over without telling anyone. Her grandmother was always trying to find her a boyfriend because she felt that it was time for Emily to marry. She was already 24 years old. She should at least have been in a committed relationship.
     
    As they were eating, Emily’s brothers and cousin were analyzing Basil’s every move. It did not surprise Emily that they were like that. Growing up, her brothers and Mathew were so overprotective when it came to Emily. She was younger than them and she was the only girl.
     
    “Which country are you from?” Mathew asked Basil.
     
    “Al-Bisha,” Basil replied.
     
    “This food must be different from what you eat in the palace,” said Sandy.
     
    “It is different in a good way. It’s quite delightful and rich in flavor,” said Basil with a smile on his face. Emily shook her head in amazement. He was being so polite and smiley. He was not like that to her when they had first met and he still was not like that to her.
     
    “Are you seeing my daughter?” Emily’s mother asked Basil. Emily almost choked on her juice.
     
    “No, he isn’t, Mom. We are just working together,” she defended herself.
     
    “Look her cheeks turning red,” Mathew pointed out.
     
    “My cheeks aren’t red,” Emily snapped. She just wanted to die of embarrassment.
     
    “Emily has a crush,” said Sandy. She smiled as she placed her hand on her heart. Emily’s family teased her for a little while and laughed at her. Basil barely reacted, he just smiled. Emily just wanted the ground to open up and swallow her.
     
    “Even though you seem like a nice guy, you have to treat Emily well. It doesn’t matter whether you work together or if you are dating,” said Jake.
     
    And there it was! Emily was expecting her brothers to say something like that. “Please stop talking,” she said to him but it was pointless. James and Mathew joined in the conversation. Basil agreed politely.
     
    When they were finished eating, Emily was thankful that Basil left straight away. She made sure to walk him to his car. “Why did you not tell me that you were coming?” she asked him as they walked out of the house.
     
    “How would I tell you?” he asked her.
     
    “Text message or phone call.”
     
    “You expect me to communicate with you when you pretend not to have my number?”
     
    “Huh? What are you talking about?” Emily tried to pretend as though she did not know what he was speaking about but she started smiling.
     
    “You can’t even lie with a straight face,” he said to her.
     
    “Well, why were you messaging me at night?”
     
    “It was not meant for