“You must really love this research of yours,” Arvin commented. “To come so far away and for so long, be away from your family and peers. You don’t want to go back home soon?”
“I, uh …”
Desiree’s hand shook as she put her fork down and for a brief moment, she looked perturbed. It sent alarm bells ringing in Karim’s brain. Did she look flustered or was it his imagination?
“I’m not done with my research.” She seemed to have composed herself as she popped a piece of bread into her mouth, chewing it slowly and carefully.
“And what have you found out?” Zafirah inquired.
“Oh, some really good things,” Deedee answered. “But, I’m not quite ready to reveal them yet, not without sitting down and sifting through the data.”
“What about Zhobghadi?” Zafirah prodded. “Did you find anything interesting about us?”
“Actually, I wasn’t allowed to do any research here.” Deedee shrugged. “Or I couldn’t find any resources to get permission. You don’t have any embassies abroad or any representation other than trade offices. I sent an inquiry, but I didn’t hear back.”
Karim didn’t realize that she had known about Zhobghadi before, but he supposed if she was doing research in the area, she would have heard of their country. “You do understand why we keep our borders shut?”
“I do,” she said. “And really, now that I think of it, I probably wouldn’t have been able to find anything useful to my research because I study the movement of the people in the region, but Zhobghadi seems to be trapped in this time capsule where very little has changed. I mean, even your religious and cultural practices are vastly different from the other countries in the region. I would say it’s more similar to the earlier cultures here, like the Assyrians or early Mesopotamians. And the people here, at least from what I’ve seen, look like they’re of Persian or even Caucasus descent than of the other people in the area, perhaps even older than most civilizations we know of.”
“And you don’t think that’s worth studying?” Arvin asked.
“Oh, I find it fascinating. It’s actually like a starting point of humanity in this region, where it all began.”
“Maybe you could stay here and study Zhobghadi!” Amaya popped in.
Karim felt a strange twinge in his chest, but ignored it.
“I could be your assistant,” Amaya continued. “And we can go in the desert and dig for artifacts. Maybe even find some mummies.”
“Is that so?” Desiree smiled at her. “What else would we do?”
“We can go on adventures, and fight off our rivals while we go searching for gold.…”
Amaya continued to chatter on, and Karim was relieved that his sister was mostly talking the sort of nonsense children her age would prattle on about. Because really, it would be an absurd notion. Desiree stay here? She would have to be suffering some sort of Stockholm syndrome to want to remain in Zhobghadi. Most likely, after she left, she would walk away, and they’d never see each other again.
That twinge in his chest came back, this time, stronger. “I think it’s time for dessert.” He wanted to hurry this dinner along and have Desiree to himself again. Yes, that’s all he craved from her—her sweet delectable body. His damn chest could twinge, pluck, or pang all it wanted, the only spasm he was going to relieve tonight was the one in his trousers.
The meal, thankfully, did not last much longer. Amaya was once again drowsy by the time they were finishing their tea and coffee. She only agreed to go to bed if Desiree came with her and Aunt Zafirah to tuck her in.
“Are you sure I should go?” she asked him.
“It is all right,” he said. “The entire residential wing has been cleared of staff and guards.” Normally, they would be crawling with the Almoravid at least, but since it was the Easifat, he felt less worried about security inside the palace. He had, however, told Captain Fariba that he wanted security outside to be doubled and that only the most loyal staff were to come inside the palace, and no one at all in the residential area. “Go ahead.” His gaze flickered over to Arvin, and his cousin acknowledged the silent signal with a short nod. “I will meet you back in my room.”
When the three females had gone, he turned to his cousin. “Walk with me.” Arvin nodded, and they began to make their way back to his suite. “Have you any more information about the incident from last night?”
“I’m doing my best to look into the matter discreetly,” Arvin said. “I didn’t have a chance to go back to the desert until this afternoon. When I did, I found that not only was the net they used to capture you gone, but it seems whoever took it back erased their tracks.”
“You should have taken it with you when you came to get me.”
Arvin raised a brow. “Apologies, I was busy trying to save your life and also escape in case your captors were still around.”
Karim cursed inwardly. His cousin was right, of course. Desiree had been there as well, and if she had been captured … “What else?”
“I’ve begun by inquiring into the whereabouts of your staunchest critics that night.”
“And?”
“I … have a list of five people whom I think would be bold enough to harm you.”
He stopped in his tracks. “Who are they?” he demanded. “Tell me their names and I will—”
Arvin held a hand up. “This is just a preliminary list. And I do not want them to get wind of my suspicions, especially if you start to act strangely around them.”
“Strangely?” He echoed. “What do you mean?”
“I do not want you treating them differently,” Arvin said in a hushed tone. “We want whoever is trying to harm you to get confident and think he can succeed. Otherwise, if he knows we have suspicions, then he’ll withdraw before we can gather more evidence.”
Godsdammit, he hated to admit it, but Arvin was right. Setting off any suspicions would send his enemy scurrying back into whatever hole they crawled out of. Or make them more crafty and harder to find.
“All right.” They stopped outside his door. “Thank you, Arvin. For your help and advice. As always, I know you cannot steer me wrong.”
“I am your humble servant, Your Highness.” When he looked up at Karim after he bowed his head, he added. “And may I advise you on another matter? As your family?”
“What about?”
“The nature of your relationship with Ms. Creed.”
“That is not up for discussion,” he snapped. Did Arvin suspect anything? Of course he did, otherwise, he wouldn’t have brought it up. But this was not something he was going to go into detail with him.
“I only wish to advise you to be cautious and prudent.” Arvin bowed his head and placed his fist over his heart. “Good evening, Your Highness.”
Karim didn’t bother to return the pleasantry, nor wait for him to turn and leave before yanking the door to his suite open and slamming it behind him. Of all the nerve. Arvin dared to inquire into his personal affairs?
He walked briskly to the liquor cabinet and took a bottle of Three Wolves Whiskey, a gift from his friend Duncan, made in their family distillery, and poured himself a measure. The liquor did not make him drunk, but he did enjoy the way it went down his throat so smoothly. And of course, it brought back the memories of spending time at Kilcraigh Castle, Duncan’s family’s home. He had met Duncan MacDougal back when he studied at Eton, the two of them becoming fast friends because they were both foreigners and hated by the snooty English students. While his father didn’t permit him to visit them while he was in school, once Karim went on to University in London, he went home with Duncan to visit his family during shorter breaks and even once during Christmas.
With the MacDougals, he felt like a normal person. Not a crown prince, or the bearer of The Great One, but just him. Karim. No responsibilities, no kingdom, no obligations, and the only thing he was worrying about was if the paparazzi was on his tail. Out there, he could just be him, doing whatever he wanted, anywhere he wa
nted to be.
“Karim?”
Or be with anyone he pleased.
“Desiree.” He turned to face her. He had been so deep in his thoughts he didn’t hear the door open. “I hope Amaya didn’t give you any trouble.”
“Not at all.” She laughed, her voice like bells tinkling. “She was pretty tired and was down in seconds.”
He wondered if it was a mistake, to let her spend so much time with Desiree. Amaya would be distraught when she left. “I have something for you.” He fished a box out of his pocket. “Here.”
Her brows knitted together, but she accepted the box anyway. “Karim … this is beautiful.” Her eyes went wide. “I can’t—”
He plucked the box out of her hand and took out the contents. It was a decorative gold comb, studded with diamonds that formed the shape of a flower. In the middle of the flower was a yellow-green diamond that matched her eyes perfectly. The jeweler he had visited had two more of the same stone, and he bought them as well, thinking he might have earrings fashioned for her. “Here.” He placed the comb in her hair, the stones winking at him. “It pleases me to see this on you.”
The Great One rumbled in his chest in agreement.
“I …” She touched the comb self-consciously and stared at her feet. “I wouldn’t know where I would wear it.”
His fingers skimmed down the side of her face, tracing her jaw, and tipped her chin up. “To bed, with me,” he rasped. “It would please me even more to see this on you and nothing else.”
As their lips met, he pushed away all other thoughts that were bothering him. Because Desiree deserved his utmost attention, both body and mind.
Chapter Thirteen
Deedee had never believed in fairy tales. Even as a child, she knew those stories about princes and princesses were just that—stories. Made up to make hearts flutter. But she couldn’t help but feel giddy when she thought of Karim.
In the last two days, they had fallen into a routine—dinner in the evenings with Amaya and Zafirah, then a few hours of glorious, heart-racing sex before midnight when he had to leave. When he came back at dawn, he woke her for another round before getting an hour or two of sleep so he could wake up refreshed for his duties. During the hours they were apart, she was thinking of when she would see him again, and when he did appear, her heart went flip-flop, like a high diver jumping off the board.
That’s not giddiness, she scolded herself. That’s horniness.
Yes, that was it. Just sex. Surely, it was just intimacy, and she would feel the same with any future lover—
Her wolf growled at the thought.
Ugh. Her stupid she-wolf was acting weird again. Maybe she should feed it more food. Certainly, she had eaten so much in the last few days that it should be satisfied. Last night during dinner, even Amaya had noticed that she ate three plates of food.
“Desiree?”
Oh, his voice never failed to make her shiver. “Karim,” she greeted as she stood up from the couch.
Their routine seemed ingrained in her that she knew to be dressed for dinner by the time the sun was setting in the distance. Tonight, Zafirah had brought her a more daring outfit—a green western-style gown that had a low V-neck.
Normally, she’d feel self-conscious in such a dress, but it showed off the simple gold chain Karim had given her. Sure, he’d also given her other jewelry since that night—sapphire earrings, a gold bracelet studded with diamonds, a necklace with a ruby pendant, plus some thick bangles decorated with all kinds of precious stones—but for some reason, she loved the simple chain most of all.
He probably did too, as his eyes immediately zeroed in on the chain that lay between her breasts. “You look …” His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down. “Exquisite.”
She felt exquisite, especially with the way his eyes devoured and undressed her. “Thank you. I think it’s too fancy for dinner with Amaya, but Zafirah insisted.”
“We are not having dinner with my sister.”
“We aren’t?”
He took her hand and pressed his lips to her palms. “No, I have something else planned.” Before she could ask anything else, he tugged her toward the balcony. “Come.”
They walked hand-in-hand with Karim leading her outside. She was wondering what was going on, until she saw it. “Oh my …”
A large carpet had been spread out in the middle of the balcony, and several cushions and blankets were laid out on top. A low table on the side was overflowing with food, and a bottle of champagne chilled in a silver bucket next to it.
“Ramin prepared it while you were getting ready.” His arm slipped around her waist and he pulled her to his body. “I hope you like it.”
“It’s so …” Romantic? She bit her lip. “It’s wonderful, Karim, thank you. Is there a special occasion?”
“You can say that.” He guided her toward the spread, leading her to the middle of the carpet where they sat down and reclined on the cushions. “Tonight is a thanksgiving of sorts.”
“Thanksgiving?” As he opened his arm to her, she automatically moved into his side, cuddling up against him.
“Yes. The Easifat is fading, and Zhobghadi has once again survived the worst of it.”
“Oh.” She plucked an imaginary piece of fluff from the cushion beside her. “That’s wonderful.”
He motioned to the sky. “And so tonight, we celebrate.”
The sun had set long ago, and the night was dotted with hundreds of stars. Deedee stared up, mesmerized, wondering when was the last time she’d seen such a sight. “It’s beautiful out here.”
“It is.” When she turned her face to his, she realized he’d been staring at her. His finger came up to her collarbone, lazily caressing it. “Everyone will be out in the streets tonight, celebrating. There will be music, dancing, and—”
He was interrupted by a loud whistle, followed by a brilliant burst of light in the sky. “Fireworks,” he finished. “Looks like they are doing some tests.”
“Looks like it.” She did her best to sound casual, but the implication of what he had said was weighing on her. With the end of the Easifat came the end of her time here. Soon, she’d be on her way home.
“You must be hungry.” He reached over to the table and began to put food on a plate. “Come, let’s eat and enjoy this feast. The fireworks won’t start for a while.”
She accepted the plate as Karim began to explain the various traditional dishes prepared only during the Easifat. It seemed fascinating from the way he described it, but the words didn’t quite sink into her head, and the food itself tasted like sand in her mouth.
I should be celebrating, like the people of Zhobghadi. Because they had survived the sandstorms, and she had survived her time here.
“Champagne?” He offered her a flute. “I cannot get drunk, a side effect of being the bearer of The Great One, but I do like its taste.”
“Thank you.” She accepted the glass and put the rim to her lips. However, something about the smell of the bubbly drink made her nauseous, and she stopped halfway before the liquid reached her lips.
“Are you well?” he asked.
“Me?”
“You seem quiet.”
She let out a laugh, hoping it sounded casual. “Oh, you know, just tired.” Placing the champagne flute on the floor beside her, she turned to him. “You’ve been keeping me up and waking me so early.”
He placed his glass next to hers and then snaked his arm around her waist to pull her on top of him. She chuckled even as she struggled to balance against his chest. “Karim …”
“You didn’t seem to mind staying awake with me before I take my evening flight. Or welcoming me back when I returned.” He nuzzled at her temple.
“Now, I didn’t say I minded.”
“Is that so?” He flipped her over, so she lay back on the cushions and he was on top of her. The heat of his body burned through his clothes and hers, and those intense blue eyes bore into hers with the intensity of the sun. R
eaching between them, his finger traced a path down her neck, between her breasts, to the chain that lay between them. “The ruby would have matched this dress.”
“I know,” she said. “But I like this most of all.” It was the first one he gave her, after that first time. And when she left, she might even be tempted to keep it. Because there was no way she could accept all those extravagant gifts.
His eyes flashed silver briefly. “I like it most of all too.”
Her heart did that strange flip-flop as he lowered his head to hers. His mouth was warm as it brushed over hers. Oh, how did such firm lips kiss so tenderly and make her knees turn to jelly?
The kiss deepened, his tongue seeking entrance into her mouth. She opened up eagerly, wanting to taste him just as bad. He tasted of champagne, heat, and something that was just him. Once again, his scent was threatening to overwhelm her, and she didn’t know how much she could take. How would she be able to forget him once she left this place?
It was wrong, so wrong to think of an ending to this story that didn’t involve anything else but a goodbye. No promises, they had said, and she tried so hard not to let her emotions run away again. Her brain screamed at her to stop her heart from running into the unknown. Turn around right now and never look back, it said to her, that is, if you ever want to leave here whole.
As Karim began to trail kisses down her jaw and neck, she lay back on the cushions. Let me have this, she said to nothing and no one in particular. Just this night. Let me have this. It would be enough. It would have to be enough.
He pulled the shoulders of her dress down, baring her breasts to him. Her nipples tightened in the cold night air, and she let out a moan when his mouth covered one bud. The heat of his mouth and the cool air were a maddening contrast, sending pleasure signals across her body.
A hand moved under the skirt, pushing swathes of silk aside until it landed on her inner thigh. The simple touch, and the anticipation made heat and wetness rush to her core. He must have known, smelled her arousal as he slowly teased his way up. Fingers brushed along her skin at an achingly slow pace, caressing her in every place but the one where she wanted to feel his touch.
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