The Royal Wager

by Kristi Gold

  She bolted upright like a jack-in-the-box. “What are you doing?”

  He regarded her over one shoulder as he crossed the area, his muscled buttocks flexing with each step he took toward the desk. “I’ve told you, I prefer to sleep in the nude.”

  “So do I, but in deference to you, I’ve left my clothes on.”

  He snapped off the light, sending the cabin into total darkness. “Feel free to remedy that situation. I will not see anything this time.”

  “What do you mean ‘this time’?”

  She could hear the floor rasp as he approached the bed, sensed his presence even before he spoke again. “At your house earlier, you left the bathroom door open while you changed.”

  “That was so I could hear you.”

  “Are you certain it was not so that I could see you? Because I did see you, Raina. In the open door. In the mirror’s reflection. And I have suffered the effects all evening.”

  Actually she’d assumed that from his position at the bar he hadn’t been able to see anything, and she hadn’t considered anything beyond his sudden appearance. Yet the thought of him watching her undress brought back the utter need, the searing heat.

  The mattress bent with his weight and although it was basically pitch dark, the limited light coming from the windows allowed her to make out his profile as he stretched out on his back, his hands laced behind his neck.

  If she knew what was good for her, Raina would lower the flaps over the windows so she couldn’t see any details. She would turn over and smash her mouth against the wall to keep from answering the urge to kiss him. Before she asked him to make good on his promise to be very good.

  Instead she fell back against the bed, as inflexible as a steel beam, her hands rigid at her sides. No way on earth could she go to sleep like this. She flipped over onto her stomach and buried her face in the pillow, her gown now scrunched up beneath her belly. This was why she didn’t wear anything to bed. She hated having to tug and pull and adjust fabric that had managed to knot beneath her or practically crawl up around her neck.

  She considered taking off the nightgown. Why not? Dharr hadn’t thought twice about removing his pajamas, and he had suggested she do that very thing. Besides, he couldn’t see her, and she could leave her panties on. He hadn’t moved so he could already be asleep. Still, that meant both of them would wake in the morning in bed together, without clothes and with only a few inches separating them. He might get the wrong idea. Or was it the right idea?

  No. She couldn’t allow him to make love to her. That was too risky, albeit very tempting. She had no intention of marrying him. No intention whatsoever of sleeping with him. If she did, he might expect more from her than she wanted to give. She didn’t belong in Azzril anymore. She had a life in California. She couldn’t compromise her plans, her freedom, by getting involved with the wrong man. A man very much like her father, set in his ways and strong in his beliefs. A man who had admitted he had no use for love in a relationship.

  Then why did she sit up, cross her arms over her chest, slip the gown over her head and toss it onto the end of the bed? Why did she lay back, leaving the sheet at her feet? She had no explanation for her behavior, no reason to invite Dharr’s attention. No rationale to be lying in a bed, practically naked, with a man who was more or less a stranger, worrying about whether or not he would touch her when she should be worrying about her father’s health.

  That was it. She was obviously on emotional overload, suffering from a lack of sensibility due to an abundance of concern. But from the beginning, she’d suspected Dharr hadn’t been telling the complete truth about her father’s condition. In fact, she was starting to wonder if the whole thing was a ploy to get her back home for a wedding—her wedding. Otherwise, if her papa had been in dire straits, someone would have called her. She could have made a few calls before she’d left Los Angeles to verify the information for herself.

  Instead, she had agreed to get on a plane with Dharr Halim regardless of her suspicions, followed him on board without any coercion like a sheep following a shepherd. A seductive shepherd.

  Reality hit her with the force of a sonic boom. Had she been waiting for Dharr Halim to show up on her doorstep? Is that why she’d been so eager to go with him? Would that explain why she’d had a number of boyfriends and a bevy of excuses for never making love with any of them? Her reasons had all seemed valid at the time. The dangers of indiscriminate sex in the form of sexually transmitted disease. Those boyfriends’ lack of responsibility to anything aside from hedonistic pastimes, the next thrill. She’d been involved with men who’d been anything but safe and steady, committed. Mature.

  Which begged the question—had she been saving herself for Dharr?

  No. Her mind repelled that thought as she reached down for the sheet to cover herself. But before she could, Dharr’s hand gripped her wrist. And if he dared to touch her, she wouldn’t be able to resist him.

  But he only drew the sheet up her body, as she’d intended to do.

  “Turn to your side, facing the window,” he commanded.

  She readily complied, thinking that was probably wise. But when he fitted himself against her back and told her in a rough whisper to sleep, she didn’t care about wisdom. Her attention was drawn to the feel of him against her—power and strength and heat. Scorching heat that seemed to flow through her, intense and unavoidable.

  She highly doubted she would get any sleep this night. She also doubted that this foolish fascination with Dharr Halim would be gone in the morning.

  A few hours before, Dharr had showered, dressed and joined his men in the main cabin downstairs to discuss business for a short while before returning to his quarters. At the moment he was seated in the chair near the bed while Raina still slept, unaware that he’d been watching her, captivated by her innocence, overwhelmed by his desire to make love with her.

  He imagined in explicit detail exactly how he would begin—with his mouth trailing over her warm skin, lingering at her breasts, finding the heat between her thighs until she trembled with her own need. Then he would sink inside her, bringing her to a climax again…and again. He endeavored to keep that fantasy only that—a fantasy—for to do any more than imagine would test his honor. She was already testing his strength.

  The captain’s voice came over the intercom announcing the need to prepare for landing in London, forcing Dharr from his musings and startling Raina awake. She bolted upright, the sheet slipping to her waist. Her silky gold-brown hair veiled her breasts with the exception of one nipple peaking through a parting in her long locks.

  Dharr shifted against the menace of another erection as he took in the sensual sight—until awareness dawned in her sleepy expression and she snatched the sheet back up to her chin.

  “What’s happening?” she asked in a grainy whisper.

  Dharr considered showing her exactly what was happening to him but instead said, “We are about to land.”

  “In Azzril?”

  “No. London to refuel. We will need to take our seats.”

  She glanced around the bed, lifting the sheet to look beneath it and giving Dharr another inadvertent view of her breasts. “Where’s my gown?”

  Dharr smiled and nodded toward the floor near the end of the bed. “It seems you are a very restless sleeper.”

  Concern replaced her frown and she gripped the sheet once more. “I didn’t kick you out of bed, did I?”

  In some ways, she had. “No.”

  “Do you mind handing it to me?”

  He stood and approached the bed. “That is not necessary. You might wish to return to bed after we are on the ground. You might as well remain comfortable.”

  She inclined her head and sent him a coy look. “Are you suggesting I belt myself in naked?”

  A prime suggestion at that. But the sound of the landing gear dropping spurred Dharr into action. Without thought, he leaned over and pulled the sheet from the mattress, tucked it securely around Raina and the
n scooped her from the bed. “We have little time to argue about your state of dress.”

  “Undress,” she corrected. “And I can walk, Dharr.”

  Truthfully he wanted to feel her against him, at least for a few moments before he secured her into the seat. “You should save your energy.”

  She looked at him quizzically. “Save my energy for what?”

  He considered several responses to that as he buckled himself in beside her. “For when you arrive in Azzril. You will need your strength to deal with your father.”

  “That’s true. I might have to sit on him to make him be good.”

  Dharr considered asking her to sit on his lap so he could prove to her how good he could be before thrusting the hazardous thoughts away.

  The plane rocked on its descent and Raina immediately gripped the edge of the seat. Determined to ease her distress, Dharr lifted the armrest between them, draped his arm around her and tipped her head against his shoulder.

  “I’m really okay.” She stiffened against him when the plane swayed again, belying her calm.

  “It will be over soon,” he assured her.

  “Not soon enough,” she said, her face turned into his neck.

  Although he had thought not to repeat kissing her for his own sanity, Dharr decided doing so again might help her relax, even if it robbed him of his returning composure. On that thought, he tipped her chin up and pressed his lips to hers in a succession of soft, coaxing kisses. Without warning, she clasped his nape and pulled him closer, opening her mouth as if she regarded him as her lifeline.

  Lost in her kiss, the gentle glide of her tongue against his, Dharr slid his hand down her back, taking the sheet with him as he guided his palm lower until he contacted the satin edging of her panties below the dip of her spine. How easy it would be to work his hand beneath the fabric. How easy it would be to keep going. To forget that anything existed beyond bringing her pleasure…

  The plane bumped onto the runway, causing Dharr to pull away from her mouth. Yet he could not quite find the will to remove his hand from her back, even after the plane taxied down the tarmac and came to a stop.

  Raina stared up at him, eyes unfocused, lids heavy. “We’re here,” she murmured.

  “Yes, we are,” he said as slipped his palm beneath the satin to knead her buttocks without regard to caution.

  “How long before…we’re off again?”

  Dharr feathered his fingertips over the smooth curves even knowing he must stop. The captain’s voice announcing their arrival forced Dharr back into reality. Reluctantly he moved his hand away and set it in his lap. “We should be departing in less than an hour.”

  Raina collapsed back against the seat. “Do I have time to take a quick shower?”

  The image of her naked and wet came to him clearly. “Certainly. If you are not quite ready when it’s time to leave, I will ask for a short delay.”

  She smiled. “Oh, I’ll let you know when I’m ready.”

  With that, she unbuckled the belt and slid from the seat, turning her back to him. The sheet gaped, revealing the slender path of her spine, the curve of her buttocks where he’d had his hand only moments before and above that, some sort of gold image embossed on the small of her back, something he had not noticed until that moment.

  “What is that?” he asked.

  She glanced over her shoulder and looked down. “It’s a tattoo of a magic lamp.” She raised her gaze to his. “Didn’t you see it when you were spying on me at my house?”

  “No.” At that point, he’d been trying to avoiding anything that might have been deemed inappropriate, even though he had not been completely successful.

  She faced him again. “You certainly had me fooled, considering you seemed to be bent on rubbing it a few minutes ago. I thought maybe you were making a wish.”

  Had he known, he would have wished for more strength, and a weaker libido.

  Following a sultry look, Raina pulled a few toiletries from her bag and headed to the bathroom.

  Dharr stared out the window, absently watching the activity on the tarmac below yet seeing only the image of Raina’s body imprinted in his mind. He would like to see all of her, every fine fold, every soft crevice. How he would like to witness her face in the grip of a climax he had brought about.

  Shifting against the building pressure, Dharr drew in a deep breath and made that wish for more fortitude—something he would need in the next few hours.

  Three

  Normally Raina wouldn’t even attempt to wash her hair since it took so long to dry. But she wasn’t feeling the least bit normal at the moment, the reason why she’d immersed herself completely beneath the shower spray.

  How in the heck had she developed such a strong case of the hots for Dharr Halim? Why in the world had she let him touch her so intimately, kiss her so thoroughly? Of course, she had to concede that the depth of that kiss had been her fault. But the depth of her current need had been his. He was just too damn sexy for his own good—and hers.

  She slicked her hand through her hair, washing away the remnants of conditioner, wishing she could wash away the fire sizzling through her body—from forehead to toes, gathering force between her legs. Definitely there.

  After shutting off the faucet, Raina stepped outside the mini-shower onto the mat, fashioned a turban around her hair with one towel then dried off and wrapped up in another, knotting it between her breasts. Just then, the door opened to Dharr.

  Raina sent him a not-so-nice look even though she had some really nice chills. “Do you mind giving me a little privacy?”

  “Not at all.” He stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

  “Do you need something?” Raina asked.

  His eyes burned black. “I thought perhaps I would shave since it seems we will be detained for a while longer.”

  Panic bit into Raina. “Is there something wrong with the plane?”

  “Not the plane. The weather. Rain and heavy fog.”

  “Of course. It’s London.”

  Raina stifled a gasp when Dharr unbuttoned his tailored shirt, slipped it off and hung it on a hook fastened to the door. She wanted to touch his broad bronzed chest, run her fingertips over the tensile ridges of masculine muscle, taste his nipples with her tongue. She gripped the edge of the towel at her thighs to keep from giving in to those urges.

  As if unconcerned over her perusal, Dharr pulled out a razor and shaving cream from the cabinet. She watched as he smoothed the foam over his jaw with precision, recalling how good his hand had felt on her bottom. Imagining how good his hands would feel all over her extremely overheated body.

  He studied her from the mirror’s reflection. “Is there something you need from me?”

  Yes, she did, but she didn’t dare tell him exactly what she needed. “No. I’m just enjoying watching you shave. It reminds me of when I was a little girl. I used to stand in the bathroom while Papa shaved. He loved to give me a foamy moustache.”

  Taking Raina by surprise, Dharr reached back and streaked some of the cream across her upper lip. “Do you feel at home now?”

  She couldn’t stop her laughter as she pulled the towel from her hair and swiped the white foam away. “I feel a little silly since I’m no longer a girl.”

  His dark eyes went darker, hotter as he focused on her breasts barely concealed by the towel. “I have noticed.”

  Raina noticed how with only a look, he could make her dissolve into a she-devil. “I guess I’ll go get dressed now.”

  “What a pity.”

  She slapped him with the towel across his very tight butt encased in form-fitting slacks. “You are still a relentless tease, Dharr Halim.”

  “And you are a great temptation, Raina Kahlil. Almost more than I can withstand.”

  “I find that hard to believe, a big strong man like you.”

  Their gazes remained fixed in the mirror’s reflection for a long moment until Raina decided she best get out of there before she sugg
ested they initiate Dharr’s onboard miniscule boudoir—standing up against the wall.

  “I’ll see you later,” she said, then worked her way behind him. The small space allowed for little room to maneuver and her breasts brushed across his broad back. Her nipples tightened into hard knots against the towel and Dharr nicked himself, creating a trickle of blood streaming down his chin.

  “I’m sorry,” Raina said as she grabbed for a tissue, reached around him and dabbed at the cut, her front pressed against his back.

  “I can handle a slight injury.” Without turning around, Dharr clasped her wrist, tossed aside the tissue and drew her palm down his chest, down his abdomen and lower until she contacted the hard crest straining against his slacks. “This is more difficult to ignore.”

  Raina’s breath hitched as she fought the urge to explore him, to know the details even if the slacks provided a hindrance to really experience all that power. But before she gave into the impulse, he pulled her hand back up to his chest. “Now leave before I am tempted to put that to good use.”

  Stunned into silence, Raina hurried out of the bathroom, closed the door and leaned against it. Her legs trembled. Her whole body trembled. She wanted him with an all-consuming need that challenged wisdom. She wanted to know exactly what it would be like to make love with him.

  But she really shouldn’t, for that kind of intimacy might bring with it bared emotions. She didn’t want to feel anything for him beyond friendship. She didn’t want to get caught up in his sensual web and find herself entangled to the point she couldn’t break free.

  If she thought she could be assured that she could keep all emotion out of it, she wouldn’t hesitate to cross the limits just so she could know. But then, maybe she was stronger than she thought. So was Dharr Halim. And she probably wouldn’t be any match for his kind of strength.

  Admittedly the sheikh was a fantasy man. Her fantasy man. Not until now had she realized how true that had been most of her life. During her secret, intimate imaginings, he had appeared more than once even though she’d tried to force the images away. Even though she’d been little more than a child when she’d seen him the last time, she’d never forgotten him. She’d never forgotten his smile, his aura, his sheer masculine beauty. Maybe it was time to make the fantasy reality. She knew he would treat her with care if they made love. She knew he would be the perfect man to be her first lover.