Qadir Sheikhs

The Sheikh’s Surprise Twins Holly Remington can’t believe the burning chemistry she feels with Sheikh Malik Abdul-Rahman. It’s like getting knocked in the head with a baseball bat—except far more pleasant. Though she’s supposed to be all business while her company tries to win a lucrative development contract in the oil-rich country of Qadir, Holly simply can’t stop herself from happily succumbing to his charm. When she’s called back home after her father suffers a stroke, thoughts of her sheikh romance are never far away. It’s only when she’s ready to return to Qadir to continue her work that she discovers Malik gave her more than sexy memories. She’s pregnant—with twins. And when she sees him again, Malik makes it painfully clear he’s not only rejecting her development proposal, he’s not interested in any other formal proposal either. He wants all of her. The Sheikh’s American Assistant Makayla Riggs is convinced her father was wrongfully convicted, and she’s going to prove it. Her father died in prison in Qadir, a tiny Arabic country, after being found guilty of stealing a diamond from the royal family. Convinced her father was framed by the al Baians, the powerful family he was working for, Makayla heads to Qadir and finds an unlikely ally in Sheikh Baqir Abdul-Rahman, who has his own suspicions about the al Baians. As the two work together to uncover the truth, Makayla can’t help but find herself falling under the charming sheikh’s spell. How can she not when Baqir is the only one who believes her father was framed? The Sheikh’s Stubborn Employee Emily Baker is in a heap of trouble. Her beloved horse farm is struggling financially, and she’s just found out her late father sold her favorite horse to a sheikh from a country she’s never heard of. The buyer, Zaman Abdul-Rahman is sexy as all get-out, the sort of man who makes a fling with a sheikh seem like a good idea. But Emily isn’t looking for romance, and certainly not with the overbearing alpha male who shows up to take away her beloved and pregnant horse, Riah. Emily refuses to let him until Zaman makes her a generous offer: he’s taking Riah, but he’ll also buy another horse and bring Emily to Qadir for six months to train it for an important race. Despite her hesitation, Emily knows the influx of cash will be enough to save the farm. Before she knows it, she’s traveling to the tiny kingdom and being seduced, not only by this beautiful foreign land but by Zaman, who’s just too gorgeous to resist.

Annalise “Lise” Danbury spent a wonderful, whirlwind two weeks with Bahir Al-Masri, a gorgeous and sexy man she met at the London university where she teaches languages. Then he went home, with only an “it’s been fun.” But he left more than just an angry woman behind—he left her pregnant. Traveling on business to Qasha two years later, she sees Bahir again. Only “Bahir” is really billionaire sheikh Raed Al-Qasha. And he’s just as stunned to find out he’s a father. Making matters worse, Lise is finding it impossible to ignore their attraction, even though she’s still steaming mad. Raed never forgot Lise and his guilt at leaving her nagged him long after he returned home. But he pushed thoughts of her away, knowing nothing could ever come of their relationship. If he married, it would be for strategic reasons, someone who could help him build his philanthropic foundation on an international scale. Which is why seeing Lise again has him torn. Having an old fling and an illegitimate child around might create a scandal that could destroy his efforts, yet he can’t deny the attraction they still have. Thinking to keep Lise and his secret son out of the spotlight, he requests they live in the royal palace and lures her by saying she can use his staff in her language-teaching pilot. Big mistake. It isn’t long before the two give in to their desire, complicating all his plans. Lise is nothing like the woman he envisioned marrying. But she just might be the woman he needs…

To Matek, a fierce and hardened warrior, love is a weakness. Since childhood, he’s been trained to be tough, fearless, and calculating. His life as a security specialist has no room for softness, and his heart certainly has no room for the sexy Nina Frank, his cousin’s nanny. But when she tells him she’s pregnant with his baby, his protective instincts go into overdrive, and his whole being suddenly feels soft and exposed. He doesn’t like all this feeling stuff, but for some reason, his heart won’t listen to reason. For Nina, finding herself pregnant was shocking enough. But discovering Matek is a prince is even worse. She thought he was just a security specialist and a distant cousin of her employer. Now, however, everyone is welcoming her into the royal family. There’s just one problem—Nina doesn’t want to be part of the royals. To her, their lives are suffocating and Matek’s obsession with security makes her feel like a prisoner. She longs for a normal, happy life with a man who adores her, and will give her the chance to create her own little family. Matek promises to be none of those things. Worse, Nina realizes she loves him. But she can’t help but wonder if he’ll ever allow his heart to see what he’s secretly been longing for all along...

Love was definitely not in the air the day Yaseen Hasan, Prince of Raihan, and American Kara Shaw got married. One night of passion led to a pregnancy, and under Raihani law, Yaseen had to marry Kara. After the pregnancy debacle, Yaseen needs to prove to his family that he can be responsible, and he’s convinced he can keep things on a business level with Kara, even though his attraction to her is nearly combustible. His one consolation is that the two of them will divorce after their child is born. Easy. Clean. This marriage of convenience is the perfect solution for both of them. Yaseen can continue with his numerous business ventures, and Kara can continue working for the underprivileged. But though they may have started out as virtual strangers, as Yaseen gets to know Kara and sees her dedication to her cause, things get a bit complicated. It seems saying good-bye to his beautiful wife won’t be as easy as he’d initially thought. Kara doesn’t know what to make of her new husband. On the outside, Yaseen’s all business. Cold facts, numbers, and balance sheets seem to be his only interests. Yet underneath, Kara begins to see a softer side, a side that makes her wonder if there is more to him. And though she’d initially agreed that their marriage would be nothing more than a business transaction, it’s not long before Kara is yearning for something more, something…permanent. All her life, she’s secretly longed for that proverbial white knight to sweep her away. Just when she thinks Yaseen is that man, she gets hit with harsh reality. Maybe Yaseen isn’t that knight, or maybe Kara will discover a sexy sheikh is even better.

Makayla Riggs is convinced her father was wrongfully convicted, and she’s going to prove it. Her father died in prison in Qadir, a tiny Arabic country, after being found guilty of stealing a diamond from the royal family. Convinced her father was framed by the al Baians, the powerful family he was working for, Makayla heads to Qadir and finds an unlikely ally in Sheikh Baqir Abdul-Rahman, who has his own suspicions about the al Baians. As the two work together to uncover the truth, Makayla can’t help but find herself falling under the charming sheikh’s spell. How can she not when Baqir is the only one who believes her father was framed? Baqir is trying to solve several other jewelry thefts and knows he’s treading in dangerous territory to place blame for all the thefts on the al Baians. Yet he finds himself willing to do just about anything to help Makayla. Their long nights investigating the original theft brings them closer, and it isn’t long before the two finally give in to the red-hot chemistry that's been torturing them since they met. When Makayla is threatened by the al Baians, Baqir is desperate to protect her; a kind of desperation that feels like more than chemistry: he’s fallen deeply in love with the beautiful American. But will Baqir be too late to save Makayla, will she disappear forever from his life?

Emily Baker is in a heap of trouble. Her beloved horse farm is struggling financially, and she’s just found out her late father sold her favorite horse to a sheikh from a country she’s never heard of. The buyer, Zaman Abdul-Rahman is sexy as all get-out, the sort of man who makes a fling with a sheikh seem like a good idea. But Emily isn’t looking for romance, and certainly not with the overbearing alpha male who shows up to take away her beloved and pregnant horse, Riah. Emily refuses to let him until Zaman makes her a generous offer: he’s taking Riah, but he’ll also buy another horse and bring Emily to Qadir for six months to train it for an important race. Despite her hesitation, Emily knows the influx of cash will be enough to save the farm. Before she knows it, she’s traveling to the tiny kingdom and being seduced, not only by this beautiful foreign land but by Zaman, who’s just too gorgeous to resist. Zaman isn’t the sort of man to fall for a woman, especially one with such a fierce streak of independence. But he can’t help being wildly attracted to the beautiful American, and he secretly admires her strength and intelligence. Emily will only be in Qadir for six months, so what’s the problem with giving into their searing passion for a short fling? After all, he’s an expert at not growing too attached to anyone. This time, though, things are different. Emily is different. Maddeningly hard-headed. Thoroughly lovely. And…pregnant with his child. At the news, Zaman’s world shifts dramatically. His protective instincts kick into high gear—and end up pushing Emily away. It soon becomes clear, though, that the only race he wants to win is the one for Emily’s heart…

Holly Remington can’t believe the burning chemistry she feels with Sheikh Malik Abdul-Rahman. It’s like getting knocked in the head with a baseball bat—except far more pleasant. Though she’s supposed to be all business while her company tries to win a lucrative development contract in the oil-rich country of Qadir, Holly simply can’t stop herself from happily succumbing to his charm. When she’s called back home after her father suffers a stroke, thoughts of her sheikh romance are never far away. It’s only when she’s ready to return to Qadir to continue her work that she discovers Malik gave her more than sexy memories. She’s pregnant—with twins. And when she sees him again, Malik makes it painfully clear he’s not only rejecting her development proposal, he’s not interested in any other formal proposal either. He wants all of her. But Holly isn’t sure that’s available, or ever will be. Sheikh Malik has never reacted to another woman like he does Holly. She’s all business—at least in the beginning—and he finds himself oddly compelled to get to know her other side. Intimately. When he finds out she’s pregnant with his children, he find himself wanting her more. But when Holly begins to talk about how she wants to develop his oasis herself—the one that her company had been desperate to buy and the very one his mother loved and hoped one day would belong to Malik’s future wife, he pulls the breaks on their whirlwind romance. How can he love a woman who seems so out of touch with everything he values? And yet, how can he not love the only woman whose ever touched his soul?

Until the late 20th century the West was unaware of the existence of an extensive corpus of Yezidi religious texts. These were traditionally transmitted orally, and were kept secret from outsiders. It was not until the 1970s that a few Yezidi intellectuals began to commit these texts to writing. These first publications included only specimens of the most prestigious genres, which for a time were thought to be representative of Yezidi religious literature as a whole. It was later discovered, however, that this literature was far richer. Furthermore it became clear that an understanding of Yezidi oral culture as a whole was indispensable for a proper understanding of the religious texts.The present work offers the reader a representative selection of the main genres of Yezidi religious texts, with translation and commentary. The texts are intended, moreover, to cover the topics most often addressed in the Yezidi religious tradition.The first introductory chapter aims to introduce the reader to the Yezidi community's history, aspects of its religion, and its social structures and institutions. The next chapter focuses on some of the implications of the oral transmission of this literature and on its contents, especially the sacred history of Yezidism. The third chapter discusses aspects of orality and the transition to written culture, questions of performance and reception, and the formal characteristics of the various types of texts.