Sheikhs: Rich, powerful desert kings and the women who bring them to their knees...

by Clare Connelly

  “With regards to how to speak to her,” a different doctor interjected, “we suggest that you resist filling in too many gaps for patients with this type of condition. Of course, there will be some unavoidable pieces of information you will need to impart, but for the most part, the brain recovers best if it’s left to feel its own way.”

  “Thank you,” Zayn said without looking away from Julia. It was a curt dismissal and the two medical professionals took it as such. The first, and more experienced of the two, paused for a moment to press a business card into Zayn’s palm.

  “If you have any questions, this card contains my private telephone number and email address. You are welcome to contact me any time.”

  Zayn looked at the card and nodded. Once the well-meaning doctor had left, Zayn pushed against the door and walked into his wife’s hospital room.

  “Julia,” he said on a quiet groan. “What have you done?”

  He sat beside her for at least two hours, and in that whole time, only the slight rise and fall of her chest gave any indication that she was still alive. Her face was perfectly still, her arms not even twitching. At some point in his vigil, a nurse called him from the room so that she could undertake some observations. Zayn waited just outside the room, staring at the linoleum floor, trying to make sense of his life.

  “Zayn!” He looked up straight into Adina’s beautiful eyes.

  “Adina,” he said with an anguished expression that made her heart squeeze in sympathy for her brother in law.

  “How is she?”

  “Good.” He swallowed to moisten his throat. How long had it been since he’d eaten or drunk anything? “They expect some temporary memory loss. Other than that, no long term damage.”

  “I can’t believe it,” Adina expelled an angry sigh. “What of the man who did this?”

  “A stall holder.” He grunted. “He claims it was an accident. He was about to beat a small child – a five year old orphan who had shoplifted some fruit from his stall – and Julia stepped right into the middle of it. He was already delivering the blow.”

  “Pig of a man,” Adina said angrily.

  “Adina, I don’t know why Julia asked me to contact you, but I think it has something to do with the girl. Maysan is her name. Why would Julia think you would care?”

  Adina arched her brows in an expressive manner. “Apart from the fact I am a decent, compassionate human being?”

  Zayn winced. “Obviously.”

  “I can’t be certain, but if I had to guess, I would say she is thinking of us adopting the child.” Adina lifted her gaze to stare at her brother in law. “I told her of Amal and my difficulties, and our desire to adopt a child when the time is right. I daresay she thinks she’s found a perfect candidate.” Her smile was tinged with sadness. “The timing is not right, though. It could never be. Not now.”

  Zayn agreed whole heartedly. But something about the way his wife’s pleading eyes had sought his help prompted him to say, “I understand. Would you sit with her though, Adina, until I’m finished here? I don’t know what I’ll do with her. I don’t think Julia is going to be happy if I send her to an orphanage.”

  Adina’s pallor visibly changed at his statement, but she tried her best not to otherwise react. “Of course I’ll sit with her while you’re occupied with Julia. Where is she?”

  Zayn led her to the staff section that had been set aside for his private use whilst Julia was in the hospital. It didn’t take an expert to see that Adina’s heart was softening to the young girl with every word they exchanged. Adina was right; the timing was all wrong. And yet, sometimes things happened that were against the plan, and they ended up being for the best.

  When he walked back into Julia’s room, he saw, with a rush of relief, that his wife was awake. Quietly, he observed her from beneath shuttered lashes. She was toying with the large engagement ring he’d given her, wrapping it around her finger and staring at it broodingly.

  Zayn cleared his throat and her eyes flew wide, straight to him. And like a tiny little firework exploding in her brain, realization and memory flooded her face. “Zayn,” she exclaimed, pushing her feet over the side of the bed and easing herself to standing. Even in the standard issue hospital gown, she was stunning, he thought with a small flicker of appreciation. “I hoped it wasn’t just a dream.” She crossed the room on legs that weren’t at all steady, so that when she reached him, she had to lean gently against him for support.

  “That what wasn’t a dream, habibte?” He asked cautiously. After all, the state of her memory was yet to be determined.

  “Our marriage. I remember the wedding so clearly, but everything else is a blur, so I started to wonder if perhaps I’d got the wedding wrong, too.” Her face erupted into a huge smile. “I’m so glad it’s true.”

  “You are?”

  “Of course!” She thumped him playfully on the chest and then wrapped her arms around his waist. “You’re the only man I’ve ever loved. I woke up in this hospital bed and thought for a terrifying moment I might find myself married to someone else!”

  His heart actually seemed to skip several beats as he stared down at Julia; this Julia was the one he had first fallen in love with. Exuberant, playful, artless. Zayn was pretty sure it wasn’t the most moralistic decision he’d ever made, but in that moment, the fantasy of pretending their marriage was real, in the sense of being two people who loved one another openly and honestly, was too seductive to resist.

  He lifted a hand a cupped her cheek gently. “How do you feel?”

  She bit down on her lip. “I have a terrible head ache. As though someone’s let off a grenade behind my eye. And my body feels all weak and wobbly. But strangely enough, right now, most of what I feel is pleasurable.”

  His eyes flared as her meaning became clear. “I would be the worst kind of husband if I seduced you here, in hospital, after you’d sustained a brain injury.”

  “Or the best,” she teased, slipping her hands beneath his shirt and running them over his chest. He inhaled unevenly as her nails connected with the hair surrounding his nipples.

  He growled low in his throat. “I promise to ravage you at the first opportunity that is not in this public space,” he whispered into her ear. The sensation of his breath fanning the sensitive skin on her neck made Julia’s arms break out in goose bumps.

  “I’ll hold you to that.” She smiled up at him again, in that beautiful, sparkling way of hers, and Zayn knew he would never be able to tell her the truth. A small part of him almost hoped she wouldn’t remember that their marriage had only come about because he’d forced her into it.

  The hospital was cautious, and they insisted on keeping Julia in overnight for observation. “Go home, my love,” she’d ordered Zayn when the doctor had come to discuss her treatment plan. “Go and get a good night’s sleep. You’re going to have to wait on me hand and foot for the next week or so, and I intend on being very, exceptionally demanding,” she promised with a simpering pout.

  After he’d left, Julia had pushed her head back into the pillow and tried desperately to grab at the floating strands of memory that were moving just beyond her vision. She knew there were gaping holes in her life, particularly her marriage to Zayn. He’d explained that they’d only been married a little over a week, and the doctor had added that the most recent memories were always most at risk in accidents like hers. But she had loved Zayn for a long time. How come she couldn’t remember anything of their reunion?

  When she’d found out about the other women in his life, she’d been spitting chips mad. That she remembered. The fury was so real she felt it as though it was far fresher. And yet, at some point in the intervening years, he’d obviously come back into her life and made amends. So why couldn’t she pinpoint that?

  It was like a strange murky soup. She remembered her university degree, and everything about her course. She was confident she could sit down and write a three thousand word essay on Torts without difficulty, but everything el
se was muddy.

  Georgie would help her remember. She scrambled to reach a pen from the bedside table and wrote on the back of her hand, ‘Email Georgie’, so that she’d remember to do so the following morning. At this point, she wasn’t going to leave anything up to her natural abilities to recall detail.

  “Anything?” Zayn asked with a confidence he was far from feeling, as Julia walked slowly around his house, running her hands over furniture and presumably trying to remember.

  She turned to face him and shrugged. “No. But I guess I wasn’t here long before the accident.”

  Accident. It was a safe euphemism they’d stuck to by silent consensus; so much less confronting than attack. The hospital staff had urged him not to reveal details to her, and Zayn was afraid that once he started giving her information, it would all unravel around him. And he simply wasn’t ready to go back to the way things were before. She’d been so sad then, like a heartbroken version of herself. Now, he had what he really wanted; Julia in his life because she wanted to be there. Or believed she did, at least, a small voice warned him in his mind. After all, it couldn’t last forever. He just had to hope that he’d make enough ground up before she recalled all the gruesome facts of their relationship.

  “Do you mind not remembering?” He asked, unable to resist pulling her gently into his arms, and holding her against his chest.

  He felt her shake her head against his shirt. “It’s still early.” She lifted her eyes to his. “I’m sure I’ll remember soon enough.”

  He looked away, certain now that he didn’t want her to. “Perhaps. At least you have most of the important stuff,” he said reassuringly.

  “It’s just so strange that I wouldn’t remember anything about us,” she grumbled. “You’re the love of my life and I don’t remember anything about how we got here.”

  “But you remember that I’m the love of your life.” He said with a small smile. “That’s the important detail.”

  “I don’t think a thousand head blows would allow me to forget that fact.” She said confidently. “I’m going to give Georgie a call later. I emailed her from hospital but I think speaking to her will bring a lot back.”

  Zayn stiffened imperceptibly. “You can’t, Julia. You know what the doctors said. You mustn’t rush it. Pushing too hard for answers may have the opposite effect.”

  She let out a frustrated sigh. “Easy for you to say. You know everything.”

  He laughed. “Perhaps not everything.”

  “Most things, then,” she conceded with a teasing grin.

  She was so close, and her body so pliant against his, that he felt the familiar stirring of need in his gut. Julia lifted her hand to his belt buckle, and she hooked her finger inside the clasp, so that she was so close to his manhood.

  “Julia,” he hissed from between his teeth.

  Her expression was sultry when she lifted her face to his. “Yes, Zayn?”

  He didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know what he wanted. He had known he couldn’t sleep with her when it was all about the money he’d paid her father. The mercenary act of making love was definitely a turn off for him. But this was different. Julia now had no recollection of their marriage deal. She wanted him because she desired him.

  It was a game changer. Or it should have been, at least.

  There was a deeper moral concern for Zayn; that she only wanted him because she believed their marriage to be genuine. Was it wrong to be with her under those conditions?

  Sensual challenge was in every feature of her face. Her eyes glowed with a sheen of need that took his breath away.

  Zayn took in a deep breath, thinking he must be some kind of idiot. “We can’t. It’s too soon after your accident.”

  Julia lifted her brows, and pulled sharply at his belt so that it came away from his pants. “Did the doctor say that?” She asked challengingly, as she slowly slid the zipper of his pants down.

  Zayn was very still, capable only of watching as the woman he’d blackmailed into marriage flicked open his pants and pressed her hand against his erection. As her fingers slid inside his underwear and made contact with his warm flesh, and Zayn stifled an oath. Julia’s eyes flew to his.

  “I want you, Zayn. You’re my husband, and I need to be with you.”

  Zayn wanted her more than he’d known it was possible to want a woman, but still, he held onto his resolve. “I don’t want to complicate things for you, Julia. Your injury was a bad one, and you should be resting.”

  She wrapped her fingers around him, stroking with her thumb, and her eyes locked with his. “I don’t know why, but I know this is important. I need to be with you, Zayn. Please.”

  “Come with me,” and he laced his fingers through hers and pulled her towards his bedroom. Zayn ignored the stiff feeling of compunction that assuaged him.

  Julia paused on the threshold to his room, and for the briefest of moments, he saw a frown cross her face.

  “Are you okay?”

  “I’m fine, great.” She lifted her eyes to his. “It’s just… I thought our bedroom at least would bring back some memories.”

  Except they’d never shared this room. She hadn’t so much as stepped foot in it before.

  “Let’s not worry about old memories for now,” he said quietly.

  The playful smile was back on her face. “You’re right. We should just concentrate on making new ones.” Julia bit down on her lower lip again and let out a small laugh. “Only…It’s the strangest thing. I mean, you’re my husband, for goodness sake. But I actually feel nervous. Like this is our first time or something.”

  “We don’t have to do this, Julia.” He kissed the tip of her nose gently. “We have the rest of our lives. Why don’t we wait a few days, at least, until you’re feeling more like yourself?”

  “No.” She shook her head from side to side. “Make love to me now, Zayn, or I might just divorce you.”

  He wanted her with a force so strong it made his whole body ache and burn. Without missing a beat, he lifted her long shirt over her head and discarded it across the room, exposing just her beautiful breasts encased in a silky black bra. They were the perfect size for his hands, small but round, and so soft, like her whole body. He slipped the bra off with ease and let it drop from his fingertip onto the floor.

  Julia sucked in a deep breath as he brought his mouth down and tasted her nipple, flicking the sensitive aureole with his tongue; with his fingers, he massaged the other tip, until she was shivering against his body.

  “I feel…” she said and then paused, searching for the word. “I don’t know,” she said finally. “Just… I feel…wow.”

  Zayn’s smile against her breast was one of triumph. He dug his hands into the waistband of her pants and let his fingers run across the bare skin of her arse. So perfect; so smooth. Impatiently, he unbuttoned the pants and removed them quickly. He was impatient now. They’d have plenty of time to explore each other’s bodies. What he needed now was to bury himself deep inside her and slake his need with the only woman he’d ever craved like this.

  He disposed of his own clothes efficiently, and finally, after years of waiting, he brought her naked body against his, simply savoring the feeling of her warm skin against his own. Their heart beats raced in unison as the moment of truth approached.

  He moved his hands to sacred skin at her core and held his palm there, feeling the tiny beat of her pulse against his hand. “Are you sure you feel okay?” He asked earnestly. “I want you, but I can wait until you are feeling like yourself.”

  “No. I don’t know how I know it, but I know that making love to you now is important. Crucial.”

  He narrowed his eyes, hoping her mind didn’t know more than he did. After all, if making love was the act that brought her memory back, his plan would back fire. He needed more time with this version of Julia before she remembered that he’d tricked her into the whole marriage.

  “I’m relieved to hear it,” he said with a slow smile that
made her insides buckle.

  She glanced across at the bed. Enormous and comfortable in the center of the room, but Zayn had other ideas. He scooped her up easily – she was, after all, almost half his height, and kissed her hard on her lips. Instinctively, Julia wrapped her arms around his neck, and her legs she hooked at the ankles behind his back, so that she was secured against his torso. Gently, Zayn eased her downwards, at the same time as backing her into the wall of his bedroom.

  As soon as his tip rubbed against her entrance, he felt his control waning. He had dreamed about this moment for time immemorial, since he’d first met her. Only the greatest will power in the world had kept him from claiming her before this.

  With his lips still plundering her mouth, he continued to lower her slowly, so that bit by bit, they joined together in the most intimate manner. Julia’s face was flushed as he gradually took possession of her.

  Then, unmistakably, he encountered a barrier. It was swiftly removed, but it had been there. He would have bet his life, and his brother’s, on the fact that he had just taken Julia’s virginity. He swore, his eyes laced with confusion and accusation, as he looked into her face. Her own expression mirrored his – confusion, anger, fear, and pain.

  He pushed aside his own uncertainty and reclaimed her breast in his mouth. He breathed warm breath against her skin at the same time his tongue chilled and tortured her. And now, barrier removed, he allowed his entire length to be absorbed by her.

  Her moan of pleasure was enough. He moved slowly, gently, careful not to hurt her untested muscles, but, as her pleasure intensified he felt his ability to go slowly evaporate completely. Julia dug her fingernails into the flesh of his shoulders as she tipped over the edge of the chasm, into the deep ravine of fulfillment, and Zayn spilled into her all of his pent up need and hunger for this woman.

  As their breathing returned to normal, his mind regained its sanity, and he unleashed a tirade of curses in his mind. She had still been a virgin? He had photos to the contrary. He thought of the images she’d sent him years earlier. He’d been incensed by them, and he’d jumped to the conclusion that they were taken after a passionate encounter. But perhaps they weren’t.