Or even worse, he might have given up on her. He’d come all the way to London just to talk with her. He’d pushed aside most of his meetings that week in order to get to know her better, to see if they were compatible. Then he’d put himself out there by asking her to think about setting a wedding date and…she’d ignored him. Complete radio silence.
What must he be thinking? And now she just showed up?
Good grief!
“Tamara!” a deep, furious voice echoed across the courtyard. She hadn’t even stepped through the security doors but there he was, storming towards her!
“I just…” she didn’t have time to explain because he swept her up into his arms and kissed her.
When he finally lifted his head, he frowned down at her, still angry but with a different kind of heat now. “Why are you here?” he demanded. “Wait!” He stepped back and took her hand. “This way,” and he led her into the palace and through a maze of hallways. Her confusion lasted until he closed the massive double doors to what must be his personal apartment, then turned around and took her into his arms again, kissing her with her back pressed against the wall. When he lifted his head this time, they were both panting and, when she looked down, Tamara realized that her legs were wrapped around his waist.
“Tell me,” he ordered, his hands sliding along her back as he cupped her bottom, carrying her into his bedroom.
“I needed to see you,” she whispered. “I missed you.” Well, that wasn’t what she’d planned to say!
“And?” he prompted, standing her beside the bed as he pushed her coat off her shoulders, then began to strip off her clothing.
“And I…” she gasped when his mouth found that spot on her neck. She loved it when he teased that spot!
“And what, love?” he asked, pushing her jeans down over her hips. “I hope you got a lot of sleep on that plane, because I’m not letting you sleep for a while.”
She smiled as he took off the last of her clothes. Then laughed when he gently pushed her backward so that she tumbled onto the bed.
“I think I might just tie you to this bed for a few days.” His gaze burned across her bare skin. “I’ve missed you, Tamara,” he said as he moved onto the bed with her.
The laughter died as she lifted her hands, cupping his face so that he had to look her in the eye. “Did you miss the sex?” she asked, holding her breath, waiting for his answer. “Or did you miss me?” As she looked up at him, she knew that she had to be honest with him. If not for him and their future, but for herself. “Because I missed you, Jurid. I missed talking with you, laughing with you, and being with you.”
Jurid froze at her words, looking down at her. He was fully aware of her soft breasts just inches from his chest, but he couldn’t seem to pull his gaze way from her eyes. She’d been so honest, he could do nothing less. “I missed you, love. I missed that stubborn chin of yours and the way you dare me to agree with you so that we’ll start another argument.” He lowered his body so that his hips were cradled against hers. “I missed your laughter and the way your eyes light up when you hear something funny.” He kissed her lips gently, just a soft, brief caress. “I missed the way you snuggle up to me every morning, making me hard and aching to roll over and make love to you, but I don’t, because you feel so good snuggled against me.”
With each admission, she’d released a button on his dress shirt, pushing it out of the way so that she could feel him, pressing her hand against his heart. It pounded solid and steady, but when she released the catch on his belt buckle, that heart rate picked up dramatically. Several minutes later, when he entered her, his heart raced as fast as her own.
He made love to her slowly, inching up their passion by increments. But this moment was different. It felt different and Jurid knew that she was different. There was a softness about her that hadn’t been there before.
The week he’d spent with her in London, she’d held something back. He hadn’t known it then, but as he thrust into her today, amazed once again by her tight, hot sheath, that restraint was gone and he felt it with every thrust.
When she cried out with her pleasure, he could feel it in her cries and released his own control. His climax this time was more mind-blowing than he’d thought possible!
Afterwards, he held her in his arms, her head cradled against his shoulder and he realized how much he’d needed her to come to him like this. To know that she gave herself to him fully and not because of some ridiculous betrothal contract that neither of them had known about when it was signed.
This was the Tamara he wanted. This was the Tamara that he loved.
“I love you,” she whispered, her fingers threading through the hair on his chest.
At her words, he shifted so that he was over her again. “Say it again,” he ordered, his voice urgent and forceful.
She smiled sadly up at him, her hand moving along his shoulder to his neck. “I love you.”
He lowered his head to kiss her swollen lips, stunned by how her words made him feel. “I love you too, Tamara. I can’t believe that it happened, but I love you.”
There was surprise in her eyes for a long moment after that declaration, but then that surprise slowly morphed into happiness. She smiled up at him, rubbing her inner thigh against his hip. “So I guess we should…” she stopped, her eyes widening. “I have something for you!” She pushed against his shoulders so he’d let her up. “Where is my coat?”
He stood up and grabbed his slacks as he walked out of his bedroom, coming back moments later with her coat. “Is this what you need?” he asked, shooting her an odd look.
“Yes!” she gasped, then rifled through the pockets and pulled out Mike’s phone. “Here. Give this to your guards and have them analyze it. My friend, Mike, recorded something. I didn’t listen to it. I don’t have his password either, so they’re going to have to break into it.”
“A recording?”
“Yes. That’s all I know. Except that he took a very roundabout way of getting the phone to me, so I know that it’s important.”
His eyes narrowed and he stood painfully still, looking down at her. “Is this why you came back to me?”
She looked up at him, noticed the tension in his shoulders and understood instantly. Getting up on her knees, she placed her hands on his chest and locked eyes with him. “It’s the excuse I used to come back to you. Not the reason.” She willed him to understand what she was saying. “When I told you that I love you, I meant it, Jurid.”
He nodded, then grabbed a shirt. “Hold that thought,” and he walked out of the room, coming back a few minutes later. “Now, where were we?” he asked and pulled her into his arms.
Tamara laughed and wrapped her arms around his neck. “You were going to tell me that you love me again.”
Chapter 16
Jurid walked into his office, feeling like whistling. So he did. Tamara was here. She was safe and they were discussing a wedding date. Life was pretty damn good!
“Hamid?” he asked, noticing that his cousin was standing on the other side of his desk. The side of his desk where no one, absolutely no one, was ever allowed to be. Even worse, he was holding a piece of paper, and jumped when he noticed Jurid. “What’s going on?”
Hamid had been with him for over ten years, and he’d never rifled through his desk before. At least, not that Jurid knew. Now seeing the guilty look on his cousin’s face, Jurid was wondering if his trust all these years had been misplaced.
“You…” He looked around and stepped back. “If you’d just listened to me!” he hissed, and pulled a small pistol from underneath his shirt. “Damn you! You wouldn’t listen to me! You only listened to that bitch!”
Jurid glanced at the gun, but focused on Hamid. The eyes were a better indicator of menace, even though the gun would do more damage. “What didn’t I hear?” he asked, moving so that his back was to the windows, pulling the potential for danger away from the doorway. If Hamid didn’t have good aim, he might hurt someone
else. At least this way, a stray bullet would only break the glass.
“The resorts! You wouldn’t listen to me about the resorts! They could bring in billions in taxes!”
Jurid shrugged. “That small fishing village? The people in that region already have jobs. A resort would only destroy those jobs, pollute the waters, and rape the land.”
“What about the others? What about the people who still need jobs and security?”
Jurid eyed his cousin carefully and something about the conversation struck him as odd. He remembered a report about a land sale in that area recently. It had been out in the middle of nowhere, which is why it had struck him as odd. The land hadn’t been inside of the village, but outside of the city limits where there was only fields of weeds and rocks. “Hamid, did you invest in the land around that area? Are you losing your money because I didn’t approve the resorts?”
“Yes!” he snapped. “I bought up all that damn land! Every piece I could get my hands on!” he waved the gun carelessly. “I even had plans drawn up to show investors what could be done with the land! I went out and solicited their capital! I was the one who put all of this together! But you! You had to go and ruin it by being noble! By listening to that stupid woman who doesn’t know anything about how to run a country! She just wanted to protect a few people instead of raising revenue for the treasury!”
The door opened and he heard Tamera’s footsteps. “Jurid, I think we should…”
“Go away, Tamara!” he yelled. “Get the hell out of here!”
Of course, she didn’t run. In fact, she paused, evaluating the situation quickly, dropped the papers she was carrying, and hurried over to him, taking a stand right in front of him as if she could shield him somehow.
“Who are you?” she demanded.
“It doesn’t matter who I am!” Hamid barked, spittle flying from his lips. “And I heard from my investors that you were the one who finally convinced him not to go through with the resort project during some dinner event in London,” he waved the gun in Jurid’s direction, “to not move forward on the resort plans. So you get to die as well!”
Jurid took her arms in his hands, trying to push her behind him, to protect her. But the woman stepped forward, out of his reach and still standing in front of him. The damn woman was trying to protect him!
“So, you’re the reason he’s had four meetings about the same issue? You’re the reason he keeps telling people no?”
“Shut up, Tamara,” he ordered.
“Yes! Shut up, you stupid woman! You don’t know anything and your bleeding-heart stupidity ruined everything!”
Tamara stiffened with outrage. “According to what I heard at that dinner, the plan wasn’t going to move forward anyway. The investors you brought to the table the last time weren’t really interested in building. They just wanted to have dinner with Jurid.”
That stopped the mad-man, who blinked. “You lie!” Hamid bellowed. “They were all on board.”
Of course she was lying, Jurid thought. Those investors had pushed hard to get his agreement. It wasn’t until Tamara had gone off on her tirade about how bad the idea was for the villagers and stormed out of the restaurant that they’d fully grasped the extent of his lack of interest.
But Hamid didn’t need to know that.
“No, it wasn’t because of her, Hamid,” Jurid repeated, bringing Hamid’s gaze back to him. “I’m the one who wouldn’t let the plan go forward. I’d heard it all before and I didn’t think it was a good plan. So if you are angry with anyone, then you need to be angry with me.”
Tamara turned and glared at him over her shoulder before turning back to Hamid. “No, he had nothing to do with it.” The door to Jurid’s office opened silently behind Hamid, who was too confused and furious to pay attention as one of Jurid’s guards inched into the room. As soon as one guard was in place, several more stepped inside, stealthily moving closer.
Tamara watched their movements carefully but kept talking, trying to keep Hamid’s attention on her. “Jurid was the one who was listening. But I got angry and left the table. He tried to stop me, but I didn’t let him.”
Since that was the story Hamid wanted to hear, he latched onto her admission. “You! You’re the reason I’m ruined? You! You’re nothing but a stupid girl!”
Tamara took a breath to retort, but the guard behind Hamid attacked. He didn’t have a weapon, but he was very capable with his hands and, in moments, had Hamid on the ground, gasping for breath. The gun fell out of his hands and he went limp.
Tamara spun around, staring up at Jurid. Before she could even run to him and throw herself into his arms, he jerked her there himself.
“Don’t you ever do anything like that again!” he ordered, and then he kissed her. Hard! Tamara tried to be cool and composed, but the sobs were forcing their way out and she could barely kiss him back because she was crying so hard. She didn’t realize it, but she was also punching his arms, furious with him.
When he lifted his head and glared down at her, she fisted his shirt in her hands. “Don’t you do that! Don’t you dare ever do that again! I love you, damn it! I’ve spent years avoiding you! You can’t make me fall in love with you and then get yourself killed! I won’t allow it!”
She cried and he pulled her into his arms, holding her gently as he rubbed his cheek against her dark hair. “Oh Tamara,” he groaned.
Meanwhile, the guards were busy pulling a handcuffed Hamid out of Jurid’s office. The guards didn’t protect the man’s head very well. It seemed to hit every piece of furniture along the way. She would have snickered if she weren’t so furious with Jurid for putting himself in danger like that.
“I love you,” she whispered again.
“I love you too, Tamara. But don’t you ever try to protect me again.” He soothed the words with his hands.
She laughed and hiccupped as her arms tightened around his waist, her head pressed against his chest. “I will, you know.”
He laughed, then sighed. “Yeah. I know.”
“I love you,” she whispered again.
Jurid buried his face against her neck, breathing in the sweet, feminine scent of her. “I love you so damn much!”
Epilogue
Tamara waddled into Jurid’s office, one hand resting on her round, pregnant stomach. “You’re the ruler here, right?” she grumbled as she settled in the leather chair next to his desk.
“Last I heard, yes,” he replied, chuckling at her question even though he knew where this conversation was going. She was huge. And sexy, he thought, but he also knew that his nearly full term wife didn’t think so. But as he looked at her, he didn’t notice the weight gain that she worried about. He saw the long, silky hair that graced her shoulders and the round, full breasts that were more than a handful now. He saw the color in her cheeks and the glow about her that made her look even more beautiful.
“So…if you’re in charge of everything, how about if you order this obstetrician to just…get on with this baby being born? Why not just induce this little guy so that we can meet him and I can get a good night’s sleep?”
He laughed softly, standing up and coming around to the other side of his desk. They hadn’t had sex in over a month because Tamara was too uncomfortable, but he didn’t care. He loved her and loved just holding her. So instead of picking up the phone and ordering her doctor to induce his beautiful wife, he took her hands and pulled her into his arms, turning so that he sat down in the chair and tugging her down onto his lap.
“I’m too big,” she grumbled, trying to stand up.
He only laid a hand over her thighs, keeping her still. “You know that I’m not going to do that,” he said, then nuzzled her neck to ease her discomfort. “Our son will come when he’s ready. And you wouldn’t have it any other way.”
In fact, his Tamara refused to eat anything that wasn’t healthy, even though his lovely wife was craving chocolate and peanut butter. She wouldn’t eat the chocolate truffles he’d broug
ht back from Paris for her because she didn’t want their son to have too much sugar in utero.
“I want a peanut butter sandwich,” she sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder.
Jurid tightened his arms around her, caressing her belly. “I don’t think that peanut butter would be bad for our baby,” he pointed out.
She shifted, burying her nose against his neck. “The amount of peanut butter I want might be.”
He laughed, but then stood. “Come, it’s time for dinner and I want you to eat something tonight.” She’d skipped dinner the previous night, feeling too uncomfortable to do more than nibble.
“I’m really not very hungry,” she told him, but followed him out of his office. They walked slowly towards the dining room. Well, Jurid walked. Tamara waddled as she made her way towards dinner, sighing every few minutes. “Jurid, I’m really not…”
“You’re eating,” he countered. Then he saw the exhaustion in her eyes and relented. “Just come and sit with me. Maybe the smells will tempt you.”
“Fine,” she muttered, and leaned more heavily against him as they entered the dining room. The chairs were too small for her to be comfortable, and she shifted as the pains in her belly increased. “This really sucks,” she grumbled, rubbing her belly. She pushed the rice and vegetables around on her plate, wishing that it was a pile of chocolate-peanut-butter cups.
“I know love, but it’s almost over.”
She groaned and pushed her plate away. “I know that I should,” she told him when he gave her a look. “I just can’t do it, Jurid. There simply isn’t any more room inside of me for food.”
He would have laughed if he weren’t so concerned. “Let’s go talk to the doctor,” he suggested.
Tamara agreed, because even she was worried about her inability to eat anything. She was just…too uncomfortable.
Awakened by the Passionate Sheik (The Ladies of The Burling School Book 2) Page 15
