Awakened by the Passionate Sheik (The Ladies of The Burling School Book 2)

by Elizabeth Lennox

  Tamara’s painting revealed her confusion, anger, and resentment over her engagement to Jurid, a man she hadn’t known before a few weeks ago. Jurid’s image and the colors of Tular were clear, although the objects surrounding Jurid’s face weren’t as obvious.

  For a long moment, Jurid stared at the painting. Then he looked down at Tamara, his eyes softening. “Let’s go,” was all he said, taking her hand and leading her out of the office.

  Tamara felt the other staff members watching, eager for her to leave so they could bombard Mike with questions. But she didn't have time to worry about the inevitable invasion of her privacy. Jurid was leading her out of the office and a guard was waiting with the back door to a limousine open.

  When Jurid stepped into the limousine behind her, Tamara shifted over to make room for him. As soon as he sat down, he pulled her into his arms. “You look stunning today,” he said before he kissed her.

  Tamara didn’t hesitate this time, wrapping her arms around his neck and returning his kiss with interest. This was what she’d needed all day. His touch and his kisses made her mind swirl with desire, pushing all of her questions and confusions away. At least for the moment.

  When he finally lifted his head, staring down at her as they worked to get their breathing under control, she stared up at him with a secret smile.

  “Do you always dress like this for work?” he asked, his fingers sliding underneath the hem of her dress.

  Slowly, she shook her head. “No,” she whispered, her fingers playing with the strands of his hair at the nape of his neck. “I wanted to impress you today.”

  He laughed softly as his eyes moved down her figure. “I am impressed,” he told her roughly. “And we’re changing our plans.”

  “We are?” she asked, emphasizing the “we”. Because she hadn’t made any plans, which meant that she couldn’t change their plans. That meant that “we” wasn’t the issue, but “he” was the issue.

  His hand inched higher along her thigh, his fingers teasing the lace of her panties. “We could head over to the restaurant,” he began, watching her eyes as her lips opened slightly with his teasing, tempting caresses.

  Tamara bit her lip, closing her eyes when his fingers slid higher along her thigh. “Do you have another option?” she asked, and blushed when she realized that she had basically told him that she wanted to have sex.

  “Absolutely,” he told her, leaning forward to nibble her neck. When he lifted his head, his hand moved away from her thigh and Tamara couldn’t stop the whimper at the loss. But Jurid only took the time to lift his cell phone. “Head to my house instead,” and he ended the call without waiting for the person’s response.

  Tamara understood because there were very few people who would argue with Jurid, least of which would be his guards or the chauffeur. But before she could change her mind, Jurid slipped his hand back under her dress and, at that point, she didn’t want to argue. She just wanted the driver to hurry.

  Only a few minutes later, the driver pulled up outside of a huge, elegant house in Mayfair. Tamara vaguely knew that she should wait for the guards to step out and survey the surrounding area, checking for threats before she stepped out of the vehicle, but she’d been gone from home for too long and she’d forgotten the protocols. So instead of waiting, she jumped out and turned, waiting for Jurid.

  Immediately, several guards rushed over, surrounding her, blocking her with their massive bodies. Tamara looked around, confused for a long moment, then she understood.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered to the men, furious with herself twice over for forgetting protocol and for putting these men’s lives in danger. If someone were waiting at Jurid’s residence for him, ready with a sniper weapon, these guards would take the bullet for him. And for her, apparently!

  The guards were on their radios, communicating with someone who obviously was on the roofs of various other buildings and finally, signaled the “all clear” message.

  Jurid stepped out of the limousine and frowned at Tamera. “Don’t–”

  She lifted her hand. “I know,” she told him, putting her hand to his chest. “I know I shouldn’t have done that and I apologize.” She turned to the guards, who were looking out towards the perimeters of the buildings. “I’m sorry, gentlemen. I won’t do that again.”

  “Good,” Jurid snapped, taking her hand and tucking it into his arm. “Let’s go,” and they all moved, en masse, to the building where yet another guard stood at the door, weapon at the ready.

  Once inside, Jurid didn’t stop at the foyer. Instead, he took her hand and led her straight through another set of doors. Tamara looked around, realizing that it was a library or, more likely, his home office. All four walls were lined with bookshelves from the floor to the ceiling, interspersed with windows every few feet.

  “What was that?” he demanded as soon as the doors closed behind them.

  She sighed. “I was wrong, Jurid. I’m sorry.”

  “You’ve already said that.” He crossed his arms over his chest and waited.

  She took a deep breath, accepting that only total honesty would appease his temper at the moment. “I was thinking about you,” she admitted. “I didn’t think about the security issues. I’ve been away from that life a long time now.” She folded her hands in front of her, ashamed that her urgency had put lives in danger. “It’s going to take me a while to get used to that life again. In my job, I have to work fast. There are too many issues to resolve every day and I don’t have time to slow down.” Stepping back, she wrapped her arms around her waist. “It’s a different lifestyle, Jurid. I haven’t had to think about personal safety for a long time.”

  His eyes sharpened at her explanation. “Why don’t you have a security detail? Why would your father allow you to walk around without guards?”

  She laughed. “First of all, my father doesn’t ‘allow’ me to do anything. My father barely speaks to me. Since he shipped me off to boarding school at the age of thirteen, I’ve pretty much been on my own, Jurid.” Her eyes narrowed up at him. “And let’s get one thing straight right now. You’re not going to ‘allow’ me to do anything either. If that’s how you think a marriage should work, tell me now because I don’t answer to anyone.”

  “You will answer to me!” he ordered.

  His response infuriated her. “No, I won’t! I’m my own person. I make my own decisions. You are not in control of my life or what I do every day.” He opened his mouth to respond. “But…what I did out there was thoughtless. I admit that. I don’t ever want to put anyone in danger. And I will be more careful going forward.”

  He paced back and forth, frustrated. “Tamara, there are constant threats to my life and, as my fiancée, that puts you in danger.”

  “Yes. I know that. I agree, and have apologized for my thoughtlessness. When I’m with you, I won’t hastily step out of the building or vehicle. I promise. But…” she paused, looking at him carefully. “You really need to understand that I won’t ask you for permission. Is that what you want from a wife?”

  “No! Of course not!”

  “You said that you’d pushed back on meeting with me because of my father’s description of me as submissive and docile. You said you didn’t want that. But do you actually want the opposite? Someone who is strong and opinionated? Because that’s what you’ll get with me.”

  Jurid stared at the furious beauty in front of him and couldn’t believe how angry he was. But at the same time, his admiration increased tenfold at her daring to challenge him. She was right and he knew it, but the fear he’d experienced when she’d stepped out of the limousine still resonated within him. He’d panicked because he hadn’t been able to reach her to pull her back into the safety of the armored limousine.

  The chatter recently had increased. There were always threats, but over the past several weeks, his security team had picked up evidence that there was a serious plot to assassinate him. There was also evidence that the increased threats were caus
ed by the possibility of a wedding date. It would be easier to kill him off as a single male than if he were married with an heir on the way. Unfortunately, there were many factions, enemies of his government, that didn’t want his wedding to take place.

  As much as his guards had tried to keep his presence in London a secret, his enemies had discovered his whereabouts. And also knew that he was seeing Tamara. Everyone was eagerly waiting a wedding date announcement. Even the press were speculating that a date was imminent.

  “I want you, Tamara,” he told her, stepping closer and resting his hands on her hips. “But I want you safe. I don’t want you putting yourself in danger.”

  She gave him a tentative smile. “I don’t want to be in danger either. But I need time to readjust. Because, believe me, I won’t immediately remember all of the rules, although I’ll try.”

  “Good enough,” he replied roughly. A moment later, his features cleared. “Now, where were we?” he asked, bending down and nuzzling her neck with his lips and teeth.

  She smiled, tilting her head slightly. “You were going to feed me.”

  His mouth froze and he lifted his head. “You are hungry?”

  “For food,” she replied, then laughed at his grimace. “Sorry, but you got me all fired up and now I’m hungry. I skipped breakfast this morning.”

  He stepped back and took her hand. “Food it is, then,” and he led her out of his office to the dining room. “But after lunch, we will satisfy the rest of our hungers,” he warned, his lips brushing her ear.

  The kitchen staff hadn’t had much warning, but Jurid nodded with approval at the light lunch that was brought out as soon as they stepped into the dining room. “Now, please explain why your father hasn’t assigned body guards to your protection, and why you didn’t eat breakfast this morning. I know that you went out for a run and had coffee. I would have thought you’d be famished after that.”

  “How do you know that I didn’t just head out for a muffin this morning? Why are you assuming I went for a run?” she teased.

  “Because I am not as lax in protecting my fiancée as your father is at protecting his daughter,” he said, sipping the crisp, white wine.

  That was news to her, and Tamara wasn’t sure how she felt about his announcement. “You put a body guard on me?”

  “Tamara, you are my future wife. You have a whole team of guards to watch over you. And if you would allow them closer, they would have an easier time doing their job.”

  He watched her closely and saw the exact moment that she accepted the guards instead of becoming angry again. But it was a toss-up for a long moment. Amused, he waited for her to catch up and remember their conversation in his office several minutes ago. The threats were real and he couldn’t ease up on her protection detail. In fact, he’d like to increase the number of guards. Ideally, she would even move into this house. Her apartment was small, but that didn’t mean it was easy to guard. The opposite, in fact. Guarding her in that small apartment meant that there wasn’t a base of operations for his guards to use to evaluate threats, change shifts, and alert the team members to issues.

  Perhaps he’d ease her into the idea of staying here. He had several ideas on how to make that work, the most obvious was for him to stay here with her and make love to her every morning and night. Yes, he could sacrifice and make that happen, he thought with relish.

  Over lunch, Jurid rediscovered that Princess Tamara was a lively conversationalist. He knew that she was lovely and uninhibited with a passion that rivaled his own. But sitting across from her, debating the issues confronting his country and comparing those problems and solutions to those she’d encountered while living in Great Britain, he remembered the delight of talking with her. She was highly educated, well read, and creative in her problem solving.

  By the end of the meal, all he wanted to do was spread her out over this damn table and hear those soft sighs of pleasure as he rediscovered all the places on her body that she liked to be touched.

  “Thank you,” he said to the butler after a light sorbet was finished and the plates taken away. Jurid was done waiting. He stood up and took Tamara’s hand. “This way, my dear,” he ordered, pulling her up from the chair, then led her out of the dining room.

  Tamara glanced over her shoulder at the butler who was standing stiffly against the wall. She tugged her fingers out of Jurid’s grip and turned to face the extremely formal butler. “Please tell the chef that lunch was delicious. And thank you to you and your staff for making everything so delightful on such short notice.”

  The man’s eyes widened almost imperceptibly. With a formal bow, he closed his eyes. “It was our pleasure, Your Highness,” he replied.

  A moment later, Tamara felt Jurid tugging her wrist and, this time she followed. Through the interminably long luncheon, she’d wanted to just clear the table with a sweep of her arm and demand Jurid make love to her. Yes, she’d been hungry earlier. But she’d only needed a sandwich or a cup of yogurt. Instead, the staff had delivered a four-course meal, complete with accompanying wines. She’d only finished about half of each serving, but found everything delicious.

  But now, she wanted Jurid.

  So when Jurid led her up the stairs to the master bedroom, she was in full agreement. Her fingers itched to strip off her clothes and hurry the process along, but she wasn’t quite that brave yet. Yes, she’d spent a wonderful night in his arms. Did he still…?

  “Now,” he growled, slamming his bedroom door and spinning her around so that her back was pressed against the wall, “as much as I love that dress, take it off!” he ordered, his eyes heated with the desire that never failed to set her body on fire.

  Tamara shivered, shocked by how turned on she was by his command. “I think…”

  His hands spun her around. “No thinking, my dear,” he growled, his hands sliding up her back, then down again to cup her bottom. “No thinking allowed.” He bit her earlobe gently, then soothed it by sucking it into his mouth and teasing her with his tongue. Tamara’s eyes just about rolled back in her head as desire melted every particle of resistance in her body.

  She felt the zipper of her dress slide down her back, then his hands were there, pushing the material down. “Jurid!” she gasped, her head falling forward as her fingers curled against the wall.

  “Say my name again,” he told her, and his hands slid around to cup her breasts. “I love hearing you say my name when I touch you like this.”

  She wanted to laugh, thinking he was teasing her, but the amusement vanished into a wave of need as his thumbs flicked against her already taut nipples. Unconsciously, she pressed her bottom against him, silently sending him the message to hurry up. But when he pinched her nipples, she whispered “Jurid!” again, overwhelmed by the sensations bombarding her. “Please!” she hissed when his fingers moved away, but she wasn’t exactly sure if she was asking him to stop or to continue.

  “Take off your dress,” he repeated, tracing a finger along the nape of her neck.

  She pushed the material down to the floor and stepped out of it.

  “Excellent!” he groaned in her ear. “Now, take off your bra and panties, but leave the shoes on.”

  Again, she wanted to laugh, feeling light-hearted and free and yet, his fingers and the way he touched her, his hands sliding down over her stomach, meant that she was completely constrained. Every part of her was now trembling in anticipation of where his fingers might go next.

  “You’re not moving fast enough,” he warned, nipping at her ear again.

  Her head fell back, although his broad chest was there to cushion the back of her head. But she reached behind her and fumbled with her bra. It took her several moments and Jurid didn’t help. His fingers kept tracing the lace along her panties, and teasing the skin on her stomach. When his fingers dipped lower, sliding along the edge of the lace on her thighs, she almost collapsed, her knees no longer able to hold her up. Thankfully, his strong arm came around her and caught her waist, pu
lling her against his chest. But he didn’t relent.

  “Get rid of the bra, my dear,” he repeated, his voice harsh.

  “Trying,” she groaned in response.

  “I don’t believe that your mind is fully engaged. Is that the case?” he asked, and his finger slipped under the lace of her panties.

  Her breath caught in her throat as she waited for this magical fingers to…! “No. Not engaged. Not at all.”

  “I think I should do something about that then,” he warned as his fingers moved away from her panties and traveled back up her stomach. Instead of waiting for her to push the material away, Jurid simply swished it so that it dropped onto her dress.

  “That’s better,” he said, then his lips teased the skin on her shoulder, moving higher and higher along her neck.

  Tamara wasn’t aware of her own hands, but they’d moved from the wall to his thighs. Jurid was fully clothed, so she couldn’t feel skin, but she could feel his heat even through his clothes. Unconsciously, she pressed her bottom against him, his erection against the small of her back. But it wasn’t enough. Her hands gripped his rock-hard thighs, her fingers moving along the ridges. Before she could reach that hard part of him that she needed so desperately, he lifted her into his arms, carrying her over to the huge bed.

  “Now, we really get to explore,” he announced, standing beside the bed as he stripped off his clothes. “Take off your panties, Tamara.”

  Her fingers fumbled with the scrap of lace as she watched him unbutton his shirt. The material parted, giving way to tanned skin over hard muscles. Her mouth went dry and she licked her lips, which meant that she wasn’t as nimble at discarding her panties.

  “You’re going to hurt yourself,” he chuckled, tossing his slacks and boxer briefs onto a chair. When he turned back to her, he soothed her hands out of the way and extricated the piece of lace from the heel of her shoe. “That’s almost exactly how I want you.”

  She blinked at him, feeling as if she might explode if he didn’t touch her again. “What else do you want?” she asked, licking her lips again as her eyes moved down his body, lingering at that impressive erection. Had it only been last night that she’d felt him moving inside of her? It seemed like a lifetime ago.