The Sheikh’s Unexpected Bride (Qazhar Sheikhs series Book 16)

by Cara Albany

  The simple truth was she hadn't come here to fall in love with a sheikh.

  That hadn't been the plan. Not at all.

  She could feel the beginnings of a very familiar sensation in her stomach. And it had nothing to do with the way they'd made love.

  Doubt flickered in her middle.

  More than that.

  Worry.

  She felt anxiety begin to grow as she considered all the possible outcomes for the morning.

  For the morning after.

  What was she going to do? What was she going to say to him that wouldn't devastate him? Because she'd seen just how much last night had meant to him.

  As far as he was concerned, last night they had forged an unbreakable bond. They'd made a connection that now seemed almost destined by fate. There was no other way to explain this instant attraction, she told herself.

  This instant love.

  Before she'd even had a chance to figure out how she was going to handle this, Ahmed emerged from the tent.

  Anxiety tightened her throat, made her heart beat quicker.

  He looked so amazing. He was wearing his robe loose, opened at the front. As he started toward her, she could see his powerful body on full display. All his taut muscles, the dark hair on his chest. In spite of what she'd been telling herself moments before, she felt desire stir.

  He smiled at her. "Good morning," he murmured.

  Ahmed came to her and wrapped his arms around her. He smelled wonderful, she reflected as he leaned in and kissed her. His lips were soft and she felt the stirrings of his firmness against her body.

  Was this man completely insatiable? He was ready for her again, and he didn't mind her knowing that simple fact.

  He leaned back and ran his gaze across her features. "You look beautiful, this morning," he murmured.

  She felt her cheeks flush. "Thanks," she said. "You don't look so bad yourself," she added defensively.

  She looked hesitantly at him and saw that he'd noticed her uncertainty.

  His brows narrowed. "What is it?" he asked.

  "Nothing," she replied.

  He didn't look convinced. He gazed steadily at her and she could see he was trying to judge her reaction.

  "Is there something I should know?"

  She shook her head. "No. Why do you ask that?"

  "You look distracted," he said.

  "Last night was slightly distracting," she retorted, trying to make the remark sound casual. He didn't laugh. Again, he didn't seem convinced.

  He took a step back and gazed at her, assessing her for a moment. She could see the beginnings of doubt in his eyes, now.

  "Why do I think you've got something you want to say to me?"

  "I don't," she replied, moving away from the tree and walking along the sandy edge of the pool.

  He followed alongside her. Gemma thought for a few moments and then stopped. She halted and peered at him.

  Ahmed took her arms, holding her gently, but firmly. His touch produced an instant reminder of last night, of every gentle caress, every passionate embrace.

  She tried to ignore that, but it was almost impossible.

  "You've changed your mind already, haven't you," he said evenly.

  "What are you talking about?"

  "Last night."

  "What about it?"

  His gaze darkened. "Do I have to spell it out? What it meant for me?"

  She looked away from him. Then she felt his fingers beneath her chin, and he moved her face so that she was looking straight at him again.

  "You remember what I said to you, last night," he stated.

  She peered into his dark eyes, seeing the same fierce need she'd seen so many times before. "Of course I remember what you said."

  "And?"

  He waited for her reply, but she didn't know what she could say to him.

  She sighed and moved away from him. "It's all happening too fast, Ahmed," she declared.

  "Too fast? Isn't that how love works? Doesn't it just take hold of two people in an instant?"

  She shook her head. "I don't know," she moaned.

  Gemma walked away from him even faster, needing to put some distance between herself and him.

  He caught up with her and took hold of her elbow. She turned and gazed at him. She really didn't want to do this, she told herself. Why couldn't she just admit the truth of what she'd felt last night?

  She knew the answer to that almost immediately.

  Somehow, in the bright light of the morning, what she'd done seemed too impulsive. Almost unreal. What had happened last night had been incredible, but it had just been one night.

  That was all.

  Nothing else.

  Didn't he realize that?

  She looked at him and could tell instantly that it had meant so much more to him.

  "Gemma," he murmured. The way he said her name made her remember how he'd said it to her hours before. How he had said it during one of their shared climaxes.

  Emotion caught in her chest, making her breathing tight.

  "You know what I mean, Ahmed," she pleaded.

  "No, I don't," he replied.

  Or was it that he didn't want to hear what he knew, in his heart, she was about to tell him.

  "Last night was beautiful," she said. Her voice was shaking and she had to force the words out. But she knew would have to. Otherwise this would all end very badly for them both.

  "Was?" he asked, his brows furrowing with concern.

  She nodded. "It was one night, Ahmed. Can't you see that?"

  He shook his head. "How can you say such a thing?"

  "Because it's true. That's why."

  He let go of her arm, turned away, and ran a hand through his hair. He dragged in a deep, harsh breath and then faced her again. "You're not telling me you want to leave, are you?"

  She gazed steadily at him. Then she nodded. "Can you take me back to Qabiyah?"

  He stared incredulously at her. He seemed lost for words, his features frozen in disbelief.

  She hated doing this, she told herself. But, she had no choice. It was either this or facing the consequences of what had happened. She wasn't sure she would ever be ready for that.

  "Well?" she prompted, feeling the pain in her heart, sensing the hurt that would be with her from this moment on.

  But she had to do it this way.

  Didn't she?

  Ahmed gazed at her for a very long moment. She could still see the incredulity in those eyes. There were impatient flashes in the dark pools. The moment seemed to stretch forever, but finally he answered her.

  "I'll take you back," he said. His voice was heavy and slow. She could almost feel the pain in that voice. The truth was, they were both hurting. But there was no other way. This craziness had swept both of them up and turned both their lives inside out.

  She smiled at him. "Thank you," she said and started to move back toward the tent.

  "Gemma," he said sharply.

  She peered at him and he gazed back at her. "You're sure about this?"

  She nodded. "It's for the best, Ahmed. You know it as well as I do."

  "But I don't," he replied. "That's the thing."

  She shook her head. "I have to get ready," she insisted.

  Then she walked away from him, feeling her heart aching, but desperately trying to convince herself that what she had just done had been the best for both of them.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  The journey back to Qabiyah was a stark contrast with their nighttime trek to his encampment.

  As Ahmed held Gemma close to him this time, the mere touch of her body triggered an ache and longing in him.

  The whole journey felt utterly different than two nights ago. He did not want her to leave. He'd been shocked at the suddenness of her decision this morning. He still could hardly believe it.

  But it was true.

  Perhaps this whole sudden attraction had been doomed from the beginning.

  He made sure she
reached her rental car. He'd offered to arrange for his limo to take her home to Qazhar city, but she'd been firm with him. She wanted to drive back on her own.

  He'd watched her get into the car and drive off along the dusty desert track. As he'd watched her go, he'd felt the same burning disappointment he'd felt back at the encampment.

  How had this all fallen apart so quickly? Last night, they'd shared a passion that had moved them both. She'd made him feel things he'd never thought possible. And he had been sure she had felt exactly the same way as he did.

  But, he'd obviously been wrong. It hadn't been the first time he'd misjudged Gemma.

  Would it turn out to be the last?

  Once she had left Qabiyah, Ahmed went into the village and found his driver, who had been waiting for him since Ahmed had decided to gamble and pursue Gemma to Qabiyah.

  He instructed his driver to take him immediately back to the city.

  As Ahmed sat in the back seat of the limo, gazing out the window, the desert landscape no longer seemed so glorious to him. In fact, it seemed positively barren, now that Gemma was gone.

  He wondered what she was planning back in the city. Perhaps, once she'd posted an account of her escapade in the desert, everything would return to normal. It would all seem so exotic, so exciting to her hordes of followers.

  Ahmed wondered how she would describe her experience. How she would exploit it for her own benefit. Because, he suspected that somehow, she might do that.

  There was also the chance that once Rashid had heard about where she had been, he would be eager to take some advantage of it, for himself.

  That thought made Ahmed grit his teeth, tighten his jaw and peer darkly out through the limo window.

  He would not let that happen. His time with Gemma at the encampment had been too special for it to be made into something trivial, mere entertainment for others.

  No.

  Ahmed was sure that Gemma would resist such a move by Rashid. In fact, he was almost sure she wouldn't tell anyone. Not even her social media followers.

  Would that be the ultimate test of the bond they'd forged between each other? Whether Gemma would keep her experience with Ahmed private?

  Because if she did, that just might be a signal for him.

  A second chance for him.

  If she did keep it all between herself and him, if she refused to share it with the outside world, might that mean she'd changed her mind? That she did really want him?

  Time could be a great healer. It could wash away all doubt. It might give Gemma the chance to reflect on what she had just cast aside.

  Because, hadn't she just pushed Ahmed firmly away. Just like she'd done on almost every occasion.

  Except, of course, last night. She hadn't kept him at bay then. In fact, it had been quite the opposite. She'd scarcely been able to let him go. Especially after her first peak had been reached.

  He thought of the way she'd embraced him, held him, kissed him.

  She belonged in his arms. Destiny had brought her to him and he wouldn't be denied the chance to follow that fate all the way to its end.

  Their love-making had been so intense, so incredible that he hadn't even considered the possibility that Gemma would turn her back on him. Not in the way she'd done.

  Not with such suddenness.

  He wondered what had driven her to that. He refused to believe she considered what had passed between them as nothing more than a temporary encounter. One that could be forgotten like a one night stand.

  Fate had something very special in store for them both. He could feel it in his bones.

  And he was sure she felt the same way, even if, right now, she didn't know it. He could understand her being thrown off balance. His own world had been turned upside down, so he wasn't surprised that she'd felt like that this morning.

  Maybe she'd acted too hastily.

  But, he'd had to respect her choice. He always would respect her choices, however inconvenient he found them.

  Even as he thought that, Ahmed knew what he was really trying to convince himself of.

  And what was that?

  It was simple, really.

  He wasn't going to let Gemma go. She had come into his life and he was not going to lose her.

  The storm around the tent last night had felt like his heart was feeling right now. Gemma had been like a whirlwind sweeping into his life.

  His love for her was a force of nature which had taken possession of him.

  And he wasn't about to give that up.

  Not without a fight.

  He knew what he had to do, and he could not wait to get back to the city.

  "YOU'RE BACK!" NATALIE SCREAMED DOWN the phone at Gemma.

  Gemma sat back on the sofa in her apartment and pictured Natalie's expression. She could just see the excited look on her friend's face.

  "Where did you go?" Natalie asked breathlessly. "I was so worried about you."

  "You didn't have to worry about me, Natalie. Everything was fine. I just needed some time to myself."

  "Yourself? You mean, you weren't with someone?"

  Gemma smiled. "Well. I was on my own for most of the time," she admitted. "But I'm not saying anything more, for now," she said over the sound of Natalie's screaming from the other end of the line.

  "It was him, wasn't it?" Natalie demanded to know.

  "I made a promise, Natalie. And I'm not ready to break it."

  "What do you mean?"

  "Just what I say. I have some thinking to do," Gemma explained.

  Natalie made a sound that told Gemma her friend was now intrigued. But she wouldn't give Natalie any more details.

  Not until she'd made the decision which she'd been mulling over during the drive back to the city.

  That decision might possibly be life-changing. She smiled wryly. As if what had happened up there, in the desert, hadn't been life changing enough, she told herself.

  "I see you haven't posted online anything since you got back," Natalie said.

  "I'm still thinking about what I want to tell everyone."

  Natalie snorted. "You do know you're driving me nuts with all this mystery, don't you," she exclaimed. "And everyone is still talking about you and..." Natalie paused a moment, then added, "the other person," Natalie said, avoiding any mention of Ahmed.

  Gemma was relieved that Natalie hadn't mentioned Ahmed by name. That would have opened another line of questioning, and she definitely didn't want to go down that route.

  Not until she'd made sense of everything.

  "I'm not trying to drive you or anybody else crazy," Gemma replied. She thought for a moment. "I've been doing enough of that to myself recently," she muttered.

  "What's that supposed to mean?" her friend asked.

  "Nothing," Gemma replied. "Forget I said it."

  "Sounds like you've got stuff to think about. Like, serious stuff?"

  Gemma nodded. "You could say that. I thought by going away for a while, I'd make things easier for myself. Instead, I seem to have made things more complicated."

  Natalie sighed heavily. "I'm going to hang up any minute," she stated. "Any more of this teasing of yours, and I'll have to go online myself and tell everyone you're back." Natalie paused dramatically. "But behaving very strangely," she drawled.

  Gemma knew Natalie was probably only joking. Natalie wouldn't do anything like that. They'd been the best of friends for too long for that to happen.

  "I'm sorry, Nat," Gemma said. "Just give me a little time."

  "Okay," Natalie agreed.

  Gemma felt relief when she heard her best friend agree to keeping her secret for just a little while longer.

  "I just wanted you to know I'm safe," Gemma said. "You know I love you," she added.

  Natalie paused and Gemma was sure she could hear a little snuffling sound at the other end of the phone.

  "And I love you too, Gemma," Natalie replied, her voice cracking slightly.

  "I gotta go," Gemma anno
unced.

  "Call me later, okay," Natalie said.

  And that was that, Gemma told herself. The first person she'd wanted to speak to since coming back had been Natalie. And she'd done it. She didn't want Natalie worrying any more.

  Gemma peered at the screen of her phone. She scrolled through both of her main social media accounts. Things had quietened down a little since she'd been gone.

  Well, at least that was one thing to be grateful for, she told herself.

  Still, there were plenty of desperate messages demanding to know how long her "social media holiday" was going to last. It seemed as if going dark online, as she'd done for two whole days, was enough to drive some people crazy.

  There were lots of photos of Ahmed. They'd been dug up by some of her more enterprising followers. Many of the images had been tagged with messages that varied from the funny to the downright crude.

  It seemed as if Ahmed had made quite an impression while she was gone. Even when he had been isolated in the desert with her, life had carried on.

  Gemma wondered how Ahmed would react to all the extra attention.

  Probably he'd take it all in his stride, she thought. It would take more than a few online comments to ruffle his feathers.

  Some of the photos of Ahmed had been taken at receptions and events over the last few years. As she scrolled through them, she could see the changes in his appearance. How he'd developed and grown more mature.

  A few years ago, he'd still retained a youthful, almost immature quality. But now, there was nothing immature about the man with whom she'd shared a bed only hours before.

  No.

  Ahmed was all man, in every possible way.

  She glanced at the more recent photos, admiring his gorgeous good looks, his winning smile, his sheer unadulterated sexiness. Just looking at the pictures reminded her of how she'd felt lying with him, alongside him.

  Beneath him.

  She sighed and stretched back on the sofa. She groaned and stared up at the ceiling, wondering what on earth she was going to do.

  During the entire trip across the desert with him, coming back to Qabiyah, she'd felt the way he'd held her. It hadn't been like the way he'd held her close on their first horse ride together.