Page 17 of Death and Desire

Chapter Four

“Remind me of his name?” Dina skimmed her hand across the glass counter at the jeweler.

Violet glanced around the small shop. While many of the patrons were English, none of them paid attention to the two women as they indulged in an afternoon adventure by visiting every prominent jeweler in Cairo for information about her bracelet. Alas, they’d found no answers, but they had ample time to become better acquainted.

“Khalid,” Violet said, picturing him once more. Tall, dark, and handsome had suited him well enough when she’d described him to Dina earlier, but he was more complex than that. Something she couldn’t quite capture with words. One had toseehim to grasp it.

And yet, that was the crux of the problem. No one had seen him. Not her father nor brother. Not David. Not Dina. It was as if he were a figment of her imagination.

Only...she had danced with him. Spoken with him. There was nothing imagined about the way he touched her waist. The way his voice slid over her like a soothing balm of spiced tea on a winter day. She warmed through at the memory.

“The name does little to aid me.” Dina tapped her finger against her lips. “And while the description you gave is somewhat vague, I’m intrigued by this mysterious man you encountered.”

“I wish you had met him.” Violet reached the front of the shop and turned.

“Perhaps we’ll be fortunate enough to cross his path again.” Dina’s grin dissolved into a pout. “I never meet handsome strangers at the gala, only men who wish to meet my father.”

“I have a similar problem.” Violet sighed. “Are there no men who wish to knowmeand not what my acquaintance will afford him?”

“A plight shared by all daughters of successful men.”

“I cannot complain. The handsome stranger saved me from a pretentious arse who first approached me last evening.”

“He saved you?” Dina’s eyes widened.

“Not really.” She chuckled. “I spotted him in the shadows, thought he was my brother, and used him as an excuse to escape.”

“How romantic.”

“I wouldn’t call itromantic.” Violet scrunched her nose. “He didn’t offer much in the way of conversation, let alone flirtation.”

“Quietandhandsome? You may have discovered a treasure with that one!”

Violet smiled at Dina’s laugh. “Perhaps. There was just something...strange about him. Like he didn’t belong there.” She shook her head. “I must be imagining things. No one saw him. I have no proof of the encounter. I must be going mad.”

“I believe you.” Dina reached out to take Violet’s hand. The gentle touch soothed her agitation. “I’m sure we’ll find proof of this mystery man.”

“I hope so.” Violet moved closer to the door, tugging Dina with her. “Otherwise, I will never hear the end of my brother’s infernal teasing.”

“You and your brother have a close bond. I envy it.”

“You envy being tormented on a daily basis by someone who hasn’t given me a day’s peace since I was a year old?” Violet smiled. “You can have him.”

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