A Diamond for the Sheikh's Mistress

by Abby Green

  Zafir’s hands curled into fists now, as if that could halt the rise of something dark and tangled that he didn’t want to decipher.

  He turned around and strode back to his rooms, irritation and sexual frustration making his movements jerky. Damn her for throwing up more questions than answers. Damn her for not making this as easy as he’d expected it to be. And damn her for looking so right here...as if she belonged.

  She couldn’t belong here. Zafir had closed the door on that possibility comprehensively and for ever. He had a future to build, and Kat was not a part of that future. Very soon she would be in his past and Zafir would have no regrets.

  But in the meantime he would use every skill he possessed to make her acquiesce one last time, and then—then—he would be able to let her go, and when he moved on and chose his Queen it would be someone who didn’t look at him and make him feel as though she could see all the way to the depths of his soul...

  * * *

  Late the following afternoon Kat was in a helicopter, looking down in awe as they flew over the vast Jandor desert. The spiderlike shape of the helicopter’s shadow undulated over high sand dunes as the sun set in the distance. It was magical.

  Much as she had intended blocking out Zafir’s far too magnetic presence, it was almost impossible. The space in the back of the helicopter was small, and his thigh was pressed firmly along hers. And she didn’t like the look in his eye—far too intense and determined. As if he knew something she didn’t.

  She hated that he’d checked if she’d be okay in the confined space before they’d left, mindful of her claustrophobia. At every point where she was doing her best to rebuild her walls of self-defence, he was just kicking them down again.

  After about thirty minutes they landed in a small airfield and Kat saw a fleet of four-by-fours waiting. One for them, and the rest for the security team and entourage. Zafir led Kat to the first four-by-four, and when she was in he got into the driver’s seat. They drove out of the airfield and into the desert, surrounded on all sides by nothing but sand and massive dunes.

  Kat was surprised to feel a sense of liberation—as if there was nothing but this in the world. She looked at Zafir’s proud profile and the inevitable stubble shadowing his jaw. She wanted to reach out and touch it but she kept her hands to herself.

  ‘How do you know where to go?’

  Zafir looked up to where the sun was lowering in the sky. ‘The position of the sun tells me where to go...and this...’ He tapped at a navigation dial on the dashboard. He glanced at her. ‘I know this place like the back of my hand. I used to come here a lot as a teenager.’

  Kat turned to face him more, curious. ‘What did you do out here?’

  Zafir looked away and shrugged. ‘Dune racing with my bodyguards. Meeting the nomads and hearing their stories. Learning how to fight and shoot. Training my peregrine falcon.’

  Kat didn’t say it, but she thought it: he’d obviously done all that alone. Her heart ached in spite of her best efforts.

  Gradually she could make out a shape in the distance. She squinted, wondering if she was hallucinating, but it got bigger and bigger until she could see that it was green and lush. Trees... A circle of tall palm trees... An oasis!

  She’d been to oases before, for fashion shoots, but they had invariably been close to cities. Not like this, in the middle of an ocean of sand, with nothing as far as the eye could see except sky.

  When they stopped she got out of the four-by-four, shading her eyes against the setting sun that was burnishing everything red and gold. She stepped forward to join Zafir, who was rounding the bonnet, and stumbled in the sand, her leg momentarily stuck in the soft surface. Before she could take another step Zafir had caught her and swung her up into his arms.

  Kat hated how breathless it made her when Zafir lifted her into his arms, and she huffed against his shoulder. ‘I hate this aspect of my disability—that I can’t just walk where I used to and that I’m so portable.’

  Zafir snorted inelegantly. ‘Disability? I’ve never met anyone more able in my life!’

  Kat’s chest swelled, and she hated him at that moment for making it so hard to resist him or to stay cool towards him. She felt hot all over now, and it had nothing to do with the temperature of the desert and everything to do with that inner fire Zafir stoked so effortlessly.

  The oasis was indeed ringed with palm trees, and when they stepped through the perimeter Kat gasped. Zafir let her stand, as the terrain here was more solid, and she looked around, drinking in the sight of the lush green idyll.

  The oasis was carved out of a natural gorge that held a pool of crystal-clear water. There was a small waterfall down at the one end, sending up a spray of white foam. It was breathtaking.

  There was one tent set apart from all the others, with a tented domed roof and lanterns outside, already lit. Zafir led her to this tent, and Kat’s heart was thumping unevenly.

  He had brought her here to seduce her.

  How could she resist him in this place of pure fantasy?

  Maybe you don’t have to, whispered a wicked voice that she tried to quash.

  When they got inside the tent a few more of Kat’s defences crumbled. The interior was lit only by candles, and it was a sumptuous decadent fantasy, straight out of an Arabian fairy tale. An X-rated fairy tale. Because what dominated the lush scene was an enormous bed, on top of which lay jewel-coloured cushions and satin bedding. Or maybe the bed was all she saw because she couldn’t stop thinking about sex with Zafir again.

  One last time.

  She somehow managed to tear her gaze from the bed and looked at Zafir. He stood near the entrance, watching her with that intent gaze.

  Even though she suspected she already knew the answer she asked, ‘Where are you sleeping?’

  Zafir even allowed his mouth to tip up minutely, as if she merely amused him. ‘In here—with you.’

  He moved into the tent. Kat panicked even as her insides quivered with anticipation. If he touched her—which she yearned for as much as she feared—he’d surely guess how far she’d fallen for him all over again.

  She put up a hand, seizing on anything to try and remind Zafir that she wasn’t worth pursuing. She blurted out the first thing she could think of. ‘You’ve accused me of having no ability to manage money and you’re right!’

  Zafir shook his head. ‘Kat, we’re not here to discuss your credit rating.’

  She ploughed on, determined to try and make him turn away in disgust. ‘The money you’ve given me upfront for this job? It’s gone. Already.’

  She waited with bated breath, but Zafir just kept coming closer and said easily, ‘It’s none of my business what you do with your money, Kat. But as a matter of interest what did you spend it on?’

  Kat was deflated. She wished she could brandish some gaudy bauble under Zafir’s nose, but of course she couldn’t—and she also couldn’t lie.

  She avoided his eye. ‘I gave it to the rehabilitation centre where I went after my accident because they’re in trouble. And some to Julie, because she supported me.’

  Zafir’s feet came into her line of vision. He put a finger under her chin, tipping her face up. There was an enigmatic look on his face.

  ‘I know, Kat.’

  Her eyes widened with shock. ‘How did you know?’

  ‘Because whenever such a large sum of money is wired to another account the bank checks to make sure it’s a genuine transaction. My accountants had to verify it. If you’d told me your intentions I could have given it directly to them...’

  Kat couldn’t escape his gaze and she shifted uncomfortably. ‘I hadn’t told you yet...about my leg.’

  She pulled her chin free and stepped back a few paces, sensing the walls of the tent closing in around her—but not in a scary way. It was in a way that made her blood leap with illicit excitement. Still she resisted, though.

  She wrapped her arms around herself. ‘That’s why I agreed to the job, Zafir, because I re
alised I could use the money for good. I wasn’t looking for an affair—or an easy payday.’

  His mouth tipped up wryly. ‘I think you’ve made that clear.’

  He came towards her again, as if determined not to give her any space, and for a moment Kat might have believed that they’d slipped through time to another age, where he was a medieval warrior king and there was nothing beyond this place but untamed lands and fierce desires.

  He put his hands on her arms.

  Far too weakly, Kat said, ‘Zafir, no.’

  His eyes were silver in the flickering candlelight. ‘Kat, yes. All that matters is this moment. Here and now.’

  His words impacted on her like little bombs, blasting the last of her shaky defences.

  He pulled her so close that she could feel his chest moving against hers, and the blunt thrust of his burgeoning arousal. Then he cupped her face with his hands, tipping it up to his, and as his mouth covered hers Kat stayed tense, even though she knew it was futile. She wanted this as much as he did.

  She was fooling herself if she thought that denying herself this would make things easier in the end... Or at least that’s how she justified it to herself as she found herself softening, tipping over the edge of resistance, responding to Zafir’s expert touch and kisses, letting his strength hold her up because hers was gone...

  CHAPTER NINE

  HOURS LATER, WHEN the oasis was bathed in silvery moonlight, and after they had gorged themselves on a succulent feast and then made love again, Kat was curled into Zafir’s side, one arm across his chest, her hand idly tracing patterns on his skin. He felt sated, languid, and at peace.

  Peace?

  When that registered, a prickle of panic skated over his skin. He wasn’t looking for peace. He had peace—didn’t he? He was just looking for an end to this insatiable hunger he felt.

  So why did you bring her here to this place? asked a snide voice.

  To seduce her ruthlessly and get her to admit she still wanted him. That was why. And Zafir had felt ruthless as he’d noted Kat’s attempts to ward him off. The fact that she’d done it by trying to remind him of the accusations he’d thrown at her before had impacted on him in a place he didn’t like to acknowledge.

  He’d wanted to stop her saying those things, stop reminding him of how wrong he’d been about her...

  Kat moved beside him then, coming up on one elbow. He looked at her and his chest tightened. She was sexily dishevelled and still flushed. His hunger was like a sharp spike, clawing at his insides all over again.

  She looked at him, and he saw how her eyes had turned more green than amber and she seemed concerned. A sense of desperation joined his panic. Everything in him resisted letting her see the pit of emotions he couldn’t analyse in his gut. And so, in a crude reflex to avoid hearing what she was thinking, he moved, gently disentangling himself from her to sit up and reach for a robe.

  ‘Where are you going?’

  Her voice was husky, and even that had an effect on him. Zafir gritted his jaw.

  He handed her another, smaller robe and watched as she sat up and pulled it on. ‘I want to show you something.’

  She came to the edge of the bed and started to reach for her prosthesis, but Zafir lifted her into his arms, saying gruffly, ‘You don’t need it.’

  ‘Zafir, I do need it,’ she said, her breath warming his neck. ‘I don’t want to get too used to this—it’ll make me lazy.’

  There was something in her voice—an edge that made Zafir’s jaw clench even tighter. Especially when he thought of any other faceless man lifting her into his arms. But he was already walking out through the tent opening and across the oasis.

  Kat curled into him and hissed, ‘Someone will see us.’

  ‘No, they won’t. We’re totally private.’

  He walked until they reached the edge of the large pool, its surface rippling and glistening under the moonlight. The waterfall fell nearby—a muted roar. Zafir put Kat down on her good leg and held her steady as he let his robe drop. Then he pulled hers off so they were both naked.

  He lifted her again, and stepped into the pool. Kat clung on and squeaked as Zafir lowered them both into warm, silky water. He held her until they were deep enough to float, feeling her nipples pebble into hard points against his chest, which almost undid him.

  And then he asked, ‘Okay?’

  She nodded.

  Zafir let her go and Kat swam a couple of metres through the satin water before flipping onto her back, her wet breasts gleaming enticingly above the waterline in the silver light.

  Zafir’s body was so hard it ached, and he swam towards her like a magnet drawn to true north. He couldn’t help smiling when he saw the grin on her face, and the way her hair was spread out around her like skeins of silk.

  ‘You like this?’

  She flipped over again, treading water. ‘Swimming was my favourite part of rehab... For a moment I could almost forget what had happened, pretend I was whole again...’

  Moved by something that scared him with its intensity, Zafir caught her under the arms and pulled her into him, so their bodies were touching. ‘You are whole, Kat.’

  Her eyes were huge and unreadable in the darkness, but even though Zafir couldn’t analyse what was in their depths it didn’t make him feel any less exposed. He knew now that he’d crossed an emotional line that he’d never wanted to cross with anyone, and he was afraid there was no way back.

  ‘I feel whole when I’m with you.’

  Kat immediately bit her lip, as if regretting what she’d just said.

  The water lapped around them and Zafir gave in to the carnal dictates of his body with an eagerness that spoke of his desire not to think about emotions. He pulled her close, catching her thighs and wrapping them around his hips.

  She reached down a hand and curled it around his erection, making him suck in a breath and see stars. Witch.

  ‘Make love to me, Zafir...’ she breathed.

  He needed no further urging. He walked in the water until Kat could rest her back against the soft grassy bank. She arched towards him, offering herself. It was all Zafir could do not to tremble in the face of such sheer feminine power as he smoothed a hand down over her breasts and belly.

  Catching her around her waist, he drew her closer so that his erection nudged against where she was slick and hot. He stroked himself against her body, teasing them both unmercifully until she was begging... Only then did he plant his legs wide and hold her steady as he thrust up into her body, making everything explode around them and finally, mercifully, dulling the tangled voices in his head and soothing the ache in his chest.

  At least for now.

  * * *

  Early the following morning Kat tried not to be so aware of Zafir watching her from a slight distance as one of the senior nomads instructed her patiently on how to let the peregrine falcon fly from where it was perched on her arm, protected by a heavy glove.

  Her eyes were as wide as saucers as she listened, and she tentatively stroked the belly of the majestic bird. She was terrified of this beautiful creature, with its huge talons, sharp beak and beady eyes, but trying not to show it.

  She lifted her arm to let the bird go free, as she’d been instructed, and it flew up into the air before landing on a nearby stand. The old man with the turban on his head, the wrinkled face and kind eyes, put some food on Kat’s glove and the bird swooped back to land on her hand again.

  She felt a ridiculous sense of triumph, even though she knew the bird had been trained for years to do exactly this. She couldn’t stop smiling, and looked at Zafir.

  The smile slid from her face when she saw his expression. He looked as if someone had punched him in the gut. He was pale, and staring at her so intently that she instinctively moved towards him, forgetting about the bird until it moved.

  She stopped. The nomad took the bird off her glove then, enticing it to hop back onto his own arm, and when Kat looked at Zafir again it was as if she’d
imagined it—now he looked completely fine... Well, except for the intense way he was looking at her.

  Memories of their X-rated swim in the pool rushed back, and she was glad of the long traditional kaftan she wore that would hopefully hide the effect Zafir had on her body from these strangers who had appeared to pay homage to their King.

  He came towards her, his expression inscrutable. ‘It’s time to leave. We have a busy day ahead of the function this evening.’

  Kat forgot about his enigmatic look as she realised that this was the last function and then she’d be free to go. She nodded quickly and avoided Zafir’s eye as took off the glove, handing it back to the nomad with a smile that disguised her sorrow that she’d never see this place again.

  * * *

  Sitting in the back of Zafir’s car on their way to the palace, an hour later, Kat was trying not to feel needy. She had to keep reminding herself that their night at the oasis hadn’t really meant anything other than a lavish attempt on Zafir’s part to prove that he could still seduce her.

  And he had.

  It was all a game to him. A battle of wills. She had told him she wouldn’t sleep with him again, and naturally he had done his utmost to prove her wrong.

  Self-disgust curled through her that she’d been so easy. And yet could she regret the intensity of their lovemaking in that idyllic fantastical place, where it had felt as if they were the only two people on the planet? Or the magic of that pool at midnight?

  No. Already she wanted to hug those memories to her, like a miser protecting her gold. And Zafir hadn’t made any great attempt to engage her in conversation since they’d left, so it couldn’t be any clearer really...

  She was so distracted with her thoughts that it took a second before she heard Zafir calling her name. She turned her head and looked at him, steeling herself. He was holding out his palm tablet and he looked grim.

  ‘There’s something you should see.’

  It took her a second to absorb the headline.

  The Real Reason Kat Winters Disappeared!

  She scanned the piece with a growing sense of panic mixed with terror. Apparently ‘a source’ close to Kat had told the papers all about her accident, and the subsequent amputation and rehabilitation, with some added salacious details about how she’d wanted to hide away from the world because she was so ashamed of what had happened to her.