“So why the fuck,” I ask, wonderingly, “are you pushing me away?”
“I’ve just made it easy for you, haven’t I?”
I don’t understand and raise my eyebrow.
“You get your trophy wife who follows you around doe-eyed, waiting to be shown some affection…”
“Stop. Right. There.” My sharp voice and command silences her. When her eyes meet mine again I’ve a full smile on my face. “We’re on the same page, habiti. I’ve longed for you as long as you have for me. Six fucking years I’ve been waiting for my chance.”
She rears back, her mouth dropping open. “Rais, what, what are you trying to say?”
I put it plainly, as my heart swells to bursting. “I don’t want a trophy wife. Fuck, I could have had any I wanted over the many years since my wife died. I want the one woman I love. And that’s you, Aiza. I was going to take you any way I could. If that meant having to have Hunter and Rami in our relationship, I would have agreed to it, just so you could be happy.”
As her mouth gapes again, I take full advantage. My lips meet hers, at first just in a gentle caress as I try to assimilate that this beautiful woman wants me as much as I do her, that her longing for me matches mine. Placing her hand around the back of my head, she pulls me to her, her action deepening our kiss, making it more urgent. Now my cock comes back to life and starts to lengthen, and it’s nigh on impossible to remember that tonight she’ll be too sore. She arouses me like no one else.
Our mouths mate, there’s no other word for it. Without breaking our connection, she moves closer, still straddling my lap, and now our bodies are touching. She lifts up and gives a little wince as she rests on her bare arse. The arse that’s bearing my handprints.
I’d thought Hunter and Rami had more to offer than myself. I’d pushed myself in, inserted myself until we became a trio. I’d have a small part of her even if I couldn’t have the whole package. Her declaration of love has changed everything, and all the possessiveness I’d tried to push down rises to the surface.
Suddenly my fingers entwine into her hair, and I pull her away, staring deep into those dark eyes that mirror my own. “You’re mine. Mine.”
There’s still a tear at the corner of her eye. I watch as it traverses the soft, smooth skin of her face.
“What’s the matter, habiti?” She tries to pull out of my hold. I don’t let her. “Speak to me, darling.”
She swallows, and then starts to speak. “Rais, I can’t believe this is happening.” Me neither. A declaration of love, a confirmation that she reciprocates my own feelings was not what I’d expected tonight.
“I’ll give you time if you need it.”
Her fingers grasp my arms and tighten. “I don’t need time to know it’s you that I want.”
“But?” I’m sure there’s one coming. Despite how I want her to be only mine, I know her experiences, how she likes playing. It’s her needs that are important. I’ll take her anyway I can.
“Rais, I don’t want anyone else.” Fuck. Have my ears heard right? Are they hearing just what I want her to say? I need confirmation.
“You don’t want Hunter and Rami to touch you?” My voice sounds hoarse. Again, I still as I wait for an answer, and loosen my grip on her hair, which allows her to shake her head.
Her eyes cast down, and although she mumbles, the words are clear. “If that had been the only way to have you…”
I snort a laugh. Her thoughts are so fucking close to mine. “Habiti, I’m yours, only yours, if that’s what you want. And if you only want to be mine, so be it.”
She leans close, her cheek resting against my bare chest. “What will Hunter and Rami say? They’ve got expectations…”
“Don’t worry about that. You’ve given me the words now I’ll make it happen. You’re mine. Only mine. They’ll have to accept it.” If it means I pick up more scars to get my point over, so be it.
As she snuggles in closer I stroke her soft hair, grinning into the empty dungeon. They’ve lost. I’ve won her. She’s an incredible prize.
Chapter 31
Aiza
I barely remember Rais carrying me out of the dungeon last night, mentally and physically exhausted. When I wake in the morning, finding myself held in his strong arms, everything that happened last night returns to my mind.
My face is flushed, embarrassed as I twist to face him, memories of the words we had spoken slamming back into me with full force. He doesn’t give me a chance to speak, instead his mouth comes down onto mine, ignoring my morning breath. I give in to the sensation of being loved by the man I never thought would look twice at me. When he at last pulls away, I raise my hand and touch his face, tracing the scar over his eye.
“How did you get this, Rais?”
He yawns, then grins. “That was courtesy of Nijad. I think when he was about ten. He got the better of me.”
“And this one?” I trace the slightly raised red line running over his torso. He flinches as my light touch tickles him. “Nijad and I had gone riding, came across jihadists trying to cross the border. There were six of them, two of us.”
He’s still here, so they must have come out the victors.
“One got in a lucky strike. Nijad took him out.”
For a moment I envy how close he is to my brother. Before I realise, if I marry him I’ll be as close, if not closer. For the rest of my life. It seems too much like a dream come true. I need to confirm things said in the dead of the night. “Rais. Are you sure you want to marry me?”
He rolls onto his back, taking me with him. I try to ignore the very hard evidence of his arousal beneath me. “After my first wife died, I refused to bow to any pressure to marry anyone else. I enjoyed my freedom too much.” He places a soft kiss to the top of my head. “There was this annoying little girl who tried to get Nijad to play with her. I thought she was cute.”
“Cute?”
“Yeah. Cute. Then you started to grow up, I started to like the young girl you became. Then when you were eighteen and had developed into a woman, I started to notice other things about you, and that you weren’t a pain anymore.”
Giggling softly, I tell him, “I’m glad about that.”
“You’re right about when it started. It was that first trip to Switzerland. The first time we’d been alone together. My tribe started to hint again I should marry before I got too old. I always refused. I’d found the only woman I wanted to commit too, and if I couldn’t have her, I’d stay a widower.”
“Don’t you need an heir?” Most tribes pass the leadership through the male line.
“Need, no. Want? With you? Yes.” Placing a hand either side of my head, he gives me an explanation. “I’ve been grooming my nephew, Fuad, to take my place. He’ll make an excellent leader.”
Now I’m confused. “So if…” I break off, the thought is incredible. “If we had a son, wouldn’t that put Fuad’s nose out of joint?”
He laughs. “The Haimi have different rules of succession than the other tribes. We elect a leader on merit, not just on birth lines. If the successor isn’t up to it, the tribe will vote in someone else.”
“Wouldn’t you want your son to follow in your footsteps?”
Now Rais surprises me. “It depends on what a child of mine wants. Being a warrior will be in his blood, but he might not want to take on the leadership. He might want to be doctor or a scientist instead.”
If it was possible to love Rais anymore, that would seal it for me. He wouldn’t pressure any child into a life they hadn’t set their heart on.
Suddenly he turns me over and looms over me, making me remember I’m totally naked. His quick grin where I’m more used to seeing a scowl makes me relax. When he moves down, his mouth sucking one of my nipples, my back bows with the pleasure.
Both nipples are peaked and overly sensitive, and electricity is sparking, alighting my throbbing clit by the time he finishes his administrations. He moves down, kissing my stomach on the way, his short beard
tickling my skin. When he reaches that so sensitive area between my legs I’m already on fire, ready to go over at the slightest touch. As he breathes over that hub of nerves my muscles go tight.
“Come for me.”
His mouth suddenly sucking is all that it takes. I tense, my body going rigid as I attempt to process the wonderous feeling washing over me. I’ve never come so hard before as he continues to stimulate my clit. I forget to breathe, only taking in air when my lungs start to protest.
Before my muscles cease convulsing I feel his hard cock prodding my entrance, and then working in through my swollen tissue, momentarily wishing he hadn’t somehow found the time to cover himself with latex, wanting to feel him skin on skin. Although I’m still sore, I welcome the burn as I yield to him, and the man I’ve loved for so long from afar invades me. My physical senses combing with my mental joy, and my legs come up to surround him, hooking my feet over his back, allowing him in even deeper.
He responds, starting to move faster, quickening his pace until he’s hammering in, taking me up to the point of no return once again. I gasp as I tighten around him. He responds with a groan.
“Habiti,” he shouts in warning.
Then I’m there, my back arching as incredible waves wash over me, my muscles clenching and almost trapping him inside.
With a roar he comes and empties himself inside me.
With his weight on his hands he lifts his body, staring down into my face, then planting a soft kiss against my lips. “You were worth all the time that I waited. I knew it would be good, but never imagined anything like this. And knowing I was your first? Habiti, that was a bonus I never expected.”
I could have given my virginity a hundred times before. It’s not as though I hadn’t had offers, yet I’d never wanted to take that final step, though I’ve lost count of the hands and mouths I’ve had on me. Now I know why I’d always hesitated and what I told him in the dungeon last night was the truth. I was waiting for him.
When his now flaccid cock falls out of me, he signals I’m to stay put as he goes to dispose of the condom, then administers to me once again, getting a washcloth and cleaning me. His hand rests on my stomach.
“Would you mind carrying my child, habiti?”
Covering my hand with his own, I smile. “I’m marrying a caveman. Don’t think you’ll give me much choice.”
He gives a half laugh, then looks serious. “You’ll always have a choice, habiti.”
I sit up and wrap my arms around him, not wanting to look into his face. “Why do you think I work with children, Rais?”
“Because you always wanted one of your own?” he suggests tentatively.
“With the right man.” Now I realise I wouldn’t have wanted a baby with anyone else.
“Fucking hope I’m the right man then, as the way you drain me dry, reckon we’ll have results the first time I plant my seed in you.”
There’s a quivering feeling in my stomach as I realise I hope that he’s right. I start to hope we can get married fast.
As I hear voices from the next room, and then someone trying the door handle, Rais closes his eyes, breathes deep, then opens them again. “Time to face the music I think, habiti.”
Frowning, I start to pull away. “I need a quick shower first…”
He holds me back and speaks into my ear. “You go shower, I’ll go front it out.”
“We should do this together, Rais.” I’ve never run from confrontation.
He shakes his head. “No, it’s on me. I changed the rules…”
“We both did,” I correct him.
“Nonetheless, you leave this to me.” As I go to object once again, he continues, “You’re my woman now, and it’s my job to protect you. From anything. That includes saving you from two disappointed and potentially angry men.” He stands, pulls me up, holds me for a second, then points me in the direction of the bathroom. “Go take your shower.”
His voice, so full of authority, gets me moving, and I’m standing in the shower before I know it. As the water blasts down on me I can’t stop worrying about Hunter and Rami’s reaction, only hoping they accept with good grace that the best man won, and that there won’t be bloodshed.
After I’ve dried and dressed, I brush out my long hair and return to the bedroom, unable to hear any sound coming from the living room. Taking a few deep breaths, I’ve got my hand on the door knob, summoning up the courage to open it, when a loud explosion rocks the palace.
Hesitating no longer, I pull open the door, bursting out in the living area, my heart beating so fast I feel faint. “What was that?”
Rais is on the phone, Hunter on the radio, Rami’s nowhere in sight. The guards are running in as additional multiple explosions can be heard along with gunfire.
Coming to my side, Rais puts him arm around me, drawing me close, his presence immediately calming the worst of my anxiety. I try to listen. There’s so many voices it’s hard to get any information from the sharply barked questions.
“We need to get the princess to safety.” Dharr makes himself heard. “The outer walls have been breached.”
“The troops are holding the attack off for now.”
There’s a shattering sound of glass being broken. It’s the windows to the suite. Something’s thrown in and there’s another smaller explosion which has my ears ringing. I can just make out Rais’s shout.
“Out now!” Rais’s arm is around me and half lifting me off my feet as he runs me through into the bedroom. We’re quickly followed by Hunter, Dharr and the other three guards.
I’m starting to cough as Rais pushes me through the hidden door. Almost tumbling down the old worn stairway, I would have fallen were it not for the sheikh’s strong arms holding me up, my heart pounding and my lungs heaving as whatever was thrown into the suite starts to choke me.
He leads us through the door leading down to the dungeon, stopping to lock it to buy us more time. I’m starting to panic. Why’s he leading us here? We’ll be trapped. There’s no way out…
Suddenly I’m swept up into strong arms as Rais tears around the play equipment, coming to a stop at the opposite wall and puts me down. Pulling back a dresser which must be lighter than it looks, then pressing a code into a modern keypad that’s appeared. As soon as the hidden door in front of us opens, an alarm beeps. Rais is quick to enter another code. He stands back until everyone else has passed, slides the dresser back into place, then the door, which I now notice is steel and heavy, closes behind us, and a final sequence of numbers is entered.
It’s only then I realise we’re descending again as we go after the others, and now we’re moving fast down a long twisting corridor, our progress punctuated by bouts of coughing as we each try to rid ourselves of whatever it was we breathed into our lungs.
We’ve gone a long way when Hunter, in the lead, calls a halt. Listening, I can hear no footsteps behind us.
“They can’t follow us,” Rais tells them. “I changed the number sequence on the door when we came through. It’s reinforced steel and will take them time to blast their way through.” His hand comes under my chin and he examines my face, then continues grimly, “I spoke to Ghalib. Everything’s prepared in case we had to resort to this option.”
I’d worried about Hunter’s reaction when Rais had told him about our change of plans. Any anger he had is put behind him, he’s all business again now. “Thank fuck you did. Is he in position?”
“I checked before we left the suite. He’ll be there ready and waiting, yes.”
Waiting? Where and for what?
Rais then bends over and coughs. My own throat is tickling, and my head’s still woozy.
“What was that?” I ask. “What was thrown through the windows?”
“Stun grenade. And a canister of gas.”
“Poisonous?” My lungs are burning.
Hunter moves back to reassure me. “No, just meant to incapacitate. They want you alive, Princess.”
Thank goodness I was
with men who knew what to do. Talking of men, I suddenly remember what I’d forgotten in the confusion—Rami’s missing.
“Where’s Rami?” I ask urgently, worried we’d left him behind.
Hunter glances at Rais accusingly, then at me. “Rami didn’t take Rais’s announcement very well. He stormed off. I don’t know where he went.”
My hand covers my mouth. “He could be hurt…”
“It’s you they’re after,” Rais reminds me.
I think of the prince, so gentle and kind. I might not want him as a husband, or, after being with Rais even in as part of a polyamorous relationship, I hate to think that he might be injured, worse, if he’s dead. If he’s killed on Amahadian soil, that would be disastrous for our diplomatic relationship with Alair. There’s only one thing to do.
“We must go back.” I’m determined.
“Princess…” Hunter looks worn. “On my part, I didn’t take kindly to Rais’s declaration, or the decision the two of you made. For now, we must put all that behind us. Rais will take you somewhere safe, and once you’re away I’ll go back and look for the prince.” He glares at Rais. “That’s my job. Yours is too look after Aiza.”
Rais gives him a sharp nod. “We better keep moving. Ghalib will have had enough time.”
Hunter agrees. “More than enough. Thanks to you, Rais, we were prepared for this eventuality.”
They start moving forwards. Grabbing his hand, I pull Rais back. Though I’m anxious to get moving, this tunnel feels claustrophobic, and I need to know how much longer we’ll be hiding down here. “Where are we going? What is the plan?”
“Only very few people know about the tunnels under the palace. There’s three different exits. Ghalib’s waiting at one. Even if they followed us down, it would be guesswork as to which escape route we’re taking.”
Dharr speaks for the first time. “Not even the guards were informed, Your Highness. So you can be assured they won’t even think of following us.”
With a direct attack on the palace, I don’t think I can be assured of anything at all. There’s clearly nothing else to do but get moving. I accept Rais’s hand, refusing to be carried again. The effects of whatever we breathed in at last seem to be fading.
Hard Choices (Blood Brothers #6) Page 27
