As if he’d just been stabbed in the heart, Sada realized. She stepped back, watching and absorbing all of the emotions. Most of them were furious but...
Sada almost burst out laughing as she slowly interpreted the various emotions overwhelming the group. She glanced at the door where the Giselle had departed, then back to her oldest brother. The frustration level Jaffri showed was unprecedented. Which meant that the emotions he was coping with were…. Which meant….
Could the events coordinator… be important to her brother?
If he was in love with Giselle…why was…? Looking over at Princess Mila, Sada noticed she had her arms wrapped around her waist as she glared defiantly at…Tavon? What in the world was going on here?
Her father was yelling at Sheik Sidoon, Jaffri was running a frustrated hand through his increasingly tousled hair, looking ready to chop everyone’s heads off as he glared at the now-closed door. Tavon and the lovely princess were unaware of everyone else as they shot darts at each other and her mother was…Sada shared a knowing glance with her mother. Oh, this was going to be so much fun!
She and her mother slipped away from the men who were still yelling, reaching out to get Princess Mila’s attention. With a gentle touch, Princess Mila started and pulled her eyes away from Tavon. With a jerk of her head, Sada indicated that the Sidoon princess should follow.
The three slipped away unnoticed. Well, mostly unnoticed. Sada suspected that both of her brothers were fully aware of where their ladies were.
“This way,” she urged her mother and the princess, waving them towards another area of the palace.
Sada opened the door to an empty sitting room decorated in gold and yellow with formal chairs and settees. Making sure that they hadn’t been followed, she closed the door, ensuring additional privacy.
Turning to the lovely princess, she smiled gently. “So…by the look on your face, I’m guessing you were unaware of your father’s announcement?” she asked, waving for everyone to take a seat.
Princess Mila shook her head, her fingers tightly clasped in front of her. “I’m the one that suggested that we form a trade alliance with Altair,” she offered. “And I worked with the lead negotiators and some of the corporations on both sides, including the universities that would trade information and scientists.” She bowed her head, looking down at her clasped hands. “I’m trying so hard to pull my father out of his antiquated way of thinking, but every step forward pulls us two steps backwards lately. He’s one of the most stubborn men I’ve ever known!”
Katherine chuckled knowingly. “Oh, wait until you meet Tavon, Jaffri, and my husband!”
Sada watched as the lovely woman jerked slightly at Tavon’s name. That reaction sealed the deal, so to speak. It confirmed what Sada had suspected from the moment she’d entered the room earlier. “But you’ve already met Tavon, haven’t you?” she asked quietly.
Mila continued to stare at her hands, not sure how to answer. Finally, she lifted her head and took a breath. “Yes,” she answered with as much confidence as she could muster. “But he’s furious with me at the moment, so my…relationship with your brother is not very helpful.”
Sada laughed delightedly, clapping her hands together and beaming brightly at her mother. “This is going to be so much fun!”
Queen Katherine’s eyes narrowed on her daughter. “What’s going on?”
Sada’s smile brightened further, her sparkling blue eyes turning mischievous. “We’re going to play matchmaker,” she announced.
Mila stared at Sada, her eyes wary. “How?”
Sada only leaned forward. “Never fear, this is won’t hurt a bit!”
Chapter 8
Giselle re-read the summons, not sure why she’d been called to this particular meeting instead of her boss. It had been less than twenty-four hours since the engagement bombshell and Giselle knew that she wasn’t ready to face anyone quite yet. Which was why she’d been hiding in her office, working late last night and coming in early this morning.
“You’d better hurry,” Stephen said, sticking his head in through her office doorway. “Queen Katherine and Princess Sada don’t like to be kept waiting.”
Giselle looked up, blinking in confusion at her boss. “But, why aren’t you going? This is more in line with your skills.”
He tapped a pen against his notebook. “I have meetings set up with Prince Tavon and Prince Jaffri. Apparently, there are some difficult negotiations happening over the next few days and we’re going to have to divide and conquer.”
A moment later, he disappeared as Giselle stared uncertainly at the empty doorway. With a sigh, she grabbed her own notebook and walked down the hallway to the room the message had indicated.
Stepping into the room, she found Princess Mila, Princess Sada, and Queen Katherine already seated and ready to start the meeting. “Good afternoon, ladies,” she announced, still not sure what was going on. And still furious with the stunningly beautiful woman who was ostensibly engaged to the man she’d been…having sex with just two nights ago.
The three ladies turned around, smiling. “Good afternoon, Ms. Jones,” Queen Katherine greeted her. “Please come in and join us. I’m sure your mind is spinning after yesterday,” she laughed. “It can be difficult to keep up with palace politics, don’t you think?”
Giselle stepped into the sunshine filled room. “How can I help you today?” she asked, feeling silly and awkward. She’d gone home last night, sobbing at the loss of…well, everything. No matter how hard she’d told herself that a relationship between herself and Jaffri wouldn’t work, she’d still held onto a tiny kernel of hope. A hope that she hadn’t accepted until it was gone.
So today, her eyes were all puffy and red-rimmed from anger and sadness. She’d barely slept and around midnight, had finally turned off her phone, refusing to answer it because she knew that the occasional ringing was Jaffri calling her, trying to explain.
In her mind, there was no explanation. He was engaged. He’d cheated on his fiancée and that made him…that made him a bad person. She’d thought he was good, but his actions defined him and she couldn’t, wouldn’t, talk to him.
The ladies took in Giselle’s red eyes and pale complexion. “Oh!” Sada whispered, remembering how she had slipped out of Jaffri’s office yesterday. Now all of the pieces of the puzzle finally fit together. “You too?”
Giselle had no idea what the woman was talking about, and she was in too much pain right now to deal with palace politics.
“I’m so sorry, Your Highness,” she whispered, then cleared her throat. “I apologize, but…” and without another word, she rushed out of the room.
Giselle heard someone call her name, but she only ducked her head and walked faster. By the time she reached her office, she was almost running.
Chapter 9
Giselle sat alone in the darkness of her apartment. Again.
The sun had set about an hour ago. The shadows no longer danced along the white walls. Instead, the shadows from the streetlights and traffic created monsters on the walls and ceilings.
But she saw none of it. She couldn’t. She saw nothing.
Her mind only saw the beautiful, dark haired princess holding hands with Jaffri…the woman’s father blessing their engagement with the traditional kiss on their united hands.
Shaking her head, she tried to banish the image from her mind, but the picture wouldn’t leave.
She hated him. Wiping bitter tears from her eyes, she blew her nose and grabbed another tissue, furious with herself for putting herself through this torment. She hadn’t known the man long enough to have feelings this strong! How could his betrayal hurt so much?
There had been people in her life she had disliked, but she had never hated anyone like she truly hated Jaffri right now. She felt used. Humiliated, even though no one in the palace knew about their affair. But she knew and she felt…raw. Like there was an aching hole in her chest that wouldn’t go away.
Yes, that
was the only image she could use to describe what she was feeling
A knock on the door startled her. She wasn’t expecting anyone tonight, so that could only mean…
“Giselle, open the door,” Jaffri demanded, his deep voice commanding and loud.
She should open the door, just so he didn’t disturb her neighbors, but she wasn’t going to. She was going to stay right here and ignore him. After yesterday’s news conference, she couldn’t handle him tonight. She needed to just process and come to terms with…
Okay, that had been her plan before she heard the key slide into the lock. Before the lock clicked open. That had been the brilliant plan…to get her head on straight before confronting him so that he wouldn’t know how hurt she was by his betrayal.
Although, perhaps it hadn’t been such a brilliant plan since the man she’d been trying to avoid all day was now standing in her darkened living room.
“Go away,” she ordered in an agonized whisper, pulling the blanket closer around her shoulders. Her apartment wasn’t cold. Not with the desert heat seeping in through the windows. But she was freezing, her whole body aching from the pain in her heart. Unfortunately, not even the blanket could warm her up. As she stared at the wall, she wondered if she would ever feel warm again. Warm like she’d been when he’d held her in his arms. Or warm like when they’d been talking in his office that first day. Okay, well, that warmth might have been from the scotch, but…still, her point was valid. He made her warm and now…now he couldn’t ever hold her again. She’d never let him hold her again!
Jaffri had been looking for her ever since that nightmarish declaration during the press conference yesterday, but she’d refused to answer her phone last night. Today had been another marathon set of meetings, not allowing him to get away, to explain. The past couple of weeks with Giselle had been…incredible. No matter what happened during the day, no matter how frustrating his meetings or irritating the issues he had to deal with, talking with her at the end of the day and especially those two nights, coming into her arms had been like coming home. Seeing her smile, talking with her, and feeling her respond to his touch, his kisses, his lovemaking, was a high he couldn’t…wouldn’t…do without.
After talking with her every day for weeks and then experiencing the magic of her touch, as well as holding her in his arms over the past two nights, Jaffri wasn’t willing to give her up. No way! He needed her and no idiotic, presumptuous gesture and hopeful dreams of an old man, was going to mess up what he had with Giselle.
He’d sent her several notes over the past several hours, asking her to come to his office, but she’d either ignored all of them or, when he’d become more adamant during the afternoon, she’d replied that she was working with his mother, his sister, and…“his fiancée”.
What the hell she was doing that was more important than meeting with him, he hadn’t a clue.
But now, seeing her like this, sitting in the dark and looking like he’d just hurt her puppy, he felt horrible. All he could do right now was go to her and soothe whatever was hurting her. Even if he was the one hurting her, he was going to make it better! He had to!
Jaffri wasn’t going to put too fine a label on what he was feeling right now. All he knew was that his woman was hurting and he had to help her. He had to comfort her. The only way he knew to do this was to hold her.
“Giselle,” he groaned, walking over to where she was sitting and simply lifting her into his arms. He sat down with her on his lap and just held her in his arms. She fought him for a moment, but he only tightened his arms, holding her firmly but gently so that he wasn’t hurting her but also so that she couldn’t hurt herself. For a long time, he just sat there with her in his arms as she cried. It wasn’t one of those angry, sobbing tempter-tantrum cries. No, this was a soft, heart-wrenching, soul-robbing, pain-inducing sob. She sounded like a wounded animal.
He’d done this to her. He’d made her his woman and then not protected her.
Damn, he was going to fix this! He had no idea how, but one way or another, he was going to reverse the ridiculous announcement and he was going to marry Giselle.
When his shirt was soaked from her silent tears, he turned his head. Her soft lips were right there and he couldn’t resist the temptation. Holding her wasn’t enough, so he took it to the next level and kissed her.
She resisted for only a moment, but then she kissed him back. One kiss after another, he slanted his mouth over hers, kissing her, making her understand that she was his and that he was hers. His hands moved along her body, trying to ease her pain. When his hands came across clothing, he simply swept it out of his way.
“Don’t…!” she started to say, but he stopped her denial with a kiss. “Just let me make you feel better, honey. You don’t have to do anything, just let me.”
When she shook her head, he moved his hand over her soft skin. “You don’t want me to do this?” he asked, watching with fascination as she closed her eyes, releasing the stiffness from her arms so he could pull her sweater off, and drop it on the floor by his feet.
“We shouldn’t,” she began, but then he slipped the strap of her bra down, his mouth latching onto her breast. Within moments, she was gasping, her fingers holding his head in place. Standing up, he moved them to the bedroom, gently placing her in the middle of her bed.
He didn’t even take a moment to curse her tiny apartment or the postage stamp she called a bed. He just knew that she needed him and he was going to help her through this. They could talk later. He would tell her that he wasn’t engaged, that they needed to figure out how to extricate both himself and the princess from this misunderstanding without undermining Sheik Sidoon’s authority. Then he’d make love to her again. More talking and then more making love. By the time he was finished tonight, she would understand and they could figure out what to do next.
That was the plan anyway. When she cupped her fingers around his jaw and gently lifted his head up from her stomach, he looked into her eyes, barely able to see them in the darkness. “Let me turn on a light,” he growled, needing to see her. Her eyes were so expressive, he always knew what she was thinking when he could look into her eyes.
But instead, she held onto him. “Just make love to me, Jaffri,” she pleaded. The break in her voice as she said those words was his undoing. In moments, he had the rest of her clothes off and he moved between her legs, his mouth teasing over her soft, pink folds that smelled and tasted so incredibly erotic.
Not this time, he told himself, pulling himself back from diving into her wet, warm heat. This was all about helping her. His body ached, his erection pressing against his slacks, but this was about her right now. He needed to see her smile, to know that she was okay. And the only way he knew to do this was to give her this pleasure.
His fingers moved along those folds, teasing and tormenting her.
“No more!” she begged, lifting her hips, offering herself to him.
He took the offering, bending his head lower and taking that nub into his mouth. Sucking hard, he teased with his tongue and his lips, his hands holding her hips steady so that she couldn’t dislodge him from where he wanted to be. Over and over, he sucked and released, feeling her getting closer and closer. Damn, she was so beautiful and tasted so good!
When she screamed and he felt her body throb with her climax, only then did he ease up, gentling his ministrations until she finally collapsed against the mattress. Quickly, he stripped off his clothes, pulled the comforter over her and she curled up against him.
“What about you?” she asked, yawning hugely as she draped her arm over his stomach.
“I’ll be next,” he promised. “I need to talk to you about today, Giselle,” he announced. It was easier now that she was sated. And not crying. Yeah, he hated seeing her cry. That had made his stomach ache. He knew that he never, ever, wanted to see her cry!
He pulled her leg over his, feeling the softness of her inner thigh against the roughness of his own. Yes, he wanted
to slide his erection into her warm heat. But right now, talking with her was much more important.
He looked down at her, to make sure she was paying attention.
That was when he noticed her eyes had closed, her breathing was soft and even.
Dropping his head back onto the mattress with a thud, he sighed, but pulled her closer. He’d talk to her later, once she’d had a bit of time to sleep. He knew that she’d cried herself into this exhausted state so he tightened his arms around her, then stared up at the ceiling, thinking about everything he needed to tell her.
The first unequivocal point was that she was moving into the palace.
No, that probably wasn’t a good idea. Not until this mess was figured out. A new apartment. Yes, he could get her an apartment. One with a bigger bed, he thought grumpily as he shifted, trying to get his feet onto the mattress. Unfortunately, every time he moved, she jerked slightly, her fingers curling up into small fists. He gritted his teeth as her fingers tightened on his chest hair, but he quickly figured out that rubbing her back released the tension she was carrying, even in her sleep, and her breathing would even out, indicating she was sleeping peacefully again.
Chapter 10
Giselle opened her eyes and stared at the dimly lit bedroom. Everything seemed the same and yet, everything was different.
Looking around, trying to get her mind working, she realized that she felt awful! Horrible even. Her crying fit the previous evening had left her drained, feeling a bit hung over. She knew it was just dehydration, but that knowledge didn’t help a whole lot.
The Desert Prince's Bride (The Sheiks of Altair Book 2) Page 10
