Page 26 of The Forbidden Sheik
Leaning forward, she pressed a kiss to the middle of his chest, then slid her mouth over to his nipple. When she kissed it, he hissed. That caused her stroking hand to tighten in surprise. When she looked up at him, Amit was staring down at her, his eyes on fire. That only excited her further. She kept stroking him and teasing his nipple, before moving to the other, teasing him the same way he’d teased her. It was thrilling to have this power over Amit and she shifted, pressing her thighs together. Now that she knew what could happen, she wanted to feel that overwhelming pleasure again, but she wasn’t sure, wasn’t confident enough, to do it in front of him.
As his breathing sped, she tightened her grip, stroking his erection until…his body exploded on her. She tightened her hand, listening to his growls as he leaned his forehead against hers.
“Mari!” he groaned, thrusting his hips against her hand. He even grabbed her fingers, tightening her embrace as he thrust against her as the warm water washed away the remnants of his release.
Marianna felt…strangely empty. She pulled her hand away, thrilled that she’d given him so much pleasure, but also…bereft and not sure what to ask.
Apparently, Amit knew exactly how she felt because he ducked his head under the warm water and kissed her fingertips. “Your turn,” he assured her.
Before Marianna knew what he was going to do, he knelt in front of her. Pressing her back against the wall of the spacious shower, he lifted one of her legs, draping it over his shoulder. Marianna wanted to protest, but before she could utter a word, his mouth closed over her swollen and aching nub. Marianna gasped, gripping his shoulders, stunned by the shock of his hot mouth. Yes, she’d read about this, but reading hadn’t prepared her for the reality!
His tongue lapped at her nub while one finger slipped into her body. Marianna moaned in a mixture of relief and desperation. The delicious sensations coalesced into a pinnacle of need as his tongue swirled around that sensitive nub.
For several long, frustrating moments, he teased her, stroking her insides with his fingers while his mouth teased her folds. But soon, he started gently sucking, making her body quake. His tongue lapped at her, then his mouth sucked in turn. Each swirl and suction moment built higher until….her body convulsed into a whirlwind of pleasure that her legs couldn’t support.
Amit caught her, holding her close under the warm water. He peppered her neck, her shoulders, her forehead, and the top of her head with kisses before returning to her lips. This was a slow, sensuous kiss that stirred her soul.
“Wow!” Marianna whispered, clinging to him because her legs refused to hold her up.
Amit grinned down at her with a smile that made her heart flip. Gone was the triumph and smugness, the challenging gaze he’d leveled at her in the past. This smile was pure satisfaction!
Chapter 32
On the other side of the world, Jadwat’s day wasn’t as pleasurable. They’d finally landed and the flight attendant opened the jet’s doors, then disappeared. Jadwat needed to check in with his team. He was ninety-five percent certain that the princess-bitch was well ensconced in her makeshift prison, but until he heard from his team, Jadwat couldn’t feel confident.
Unfortunately, the guards wouldn’t leave the plane without him! They stood in formation, surrounding him, silently waiting for him to exit the plane.
He wanted to tell the guards to go to hell. But, they made him look important, which stroked his ego. But, the overly attentive bastards didn’t give him enough space to make calls! And he needed to check in with the team he’d hired to capture that bitch. He still hadn’t received word from the team leader and Jadwat was becoming worried.
“Why the hell won’t you give me some breathing space?” he snarled at the bodyguard walking beside him. “I have to make a call! I have many business issues to deal with!” Jadwat commanded.
The guard remained resolute – and close. The guard even looked around warily, as if he needed to ensure that his words wouldn’t be overheard. He leaned forward, conspiratorially whispering, “His Highness expressed his concern about your safety should anyone learn of your mission before it is completed.” The guard shifted back to his bland and unconcerned expression, impervious to Jadwat’s impatience. “The trip is scheduled to be only two days,” he continued. “If you need to attend to your business duties during that time, then we have a backup person for this mission.”
Jadwat’s temper fired. “A backup?” he hissed, wondering who could possibly take his place. “I’m the only person that my cousin trusted for this mission!”
The guard nodded. “Yes, that’s true. But he knows you’re very busy. So, he had a backup ready to take your place, should the need arise.” He gestured towards the plane’s still-open door. “This mission is a top priority, but if you have any concerns, His Highness understands.”
Jadwat silently debated for several moments, chewing on his lower lip. Maybe he should just abandon this trip.
And yet…if this berry was so powerful, and this godforsaken island was trying to keep the berry a freaking secret, and the Lativa government was trying to establish a foothold in the industry, then it must be lucrative. Jadwat hadn’t ever met Sheik Khal, but the bastard had a reputation for being incredibly clever.
So was Amit, Jadwat thought. His cousin was always ten steps ahead of his competitors.
And that last thought gave him pause.
Was this trip a conniving, manipulative way to get Jadwat out of the country for some reason? The timing was suspicious. So far, the goons he’d hired had been able to keep the kidnapping out of the press. No one knew that Princess Marianna had been stolen. As long as she was out of the way, then Amit was under Jadwat’s control.
Or he would be as soon as he had confirmation that the bitch was in the prison he’d designed! It was difficult to use a person’s kryptonite against him when one didn’t know if the kryptonite was in his possession! Was Princess Marianna tucked away in the abandoned warehouse? Jadwat needed confirmation! However, he couldn’t get confirmation if he couldn’t use his phone privately!
He looked around the airfield. There was only a small, one room building off to the side with three people waiting on the wooden deck. The building looked more like someone’s home or…actually, it looked like someone’s fishing cabin! Besides that one building, there were only trees. Lovely trees! Lush vegetation dappled with flowers in various colors, but nothing else as far as he could see.
Was this a setup? Had he been sent here as a joke? As he took in all of the details, Jadwat was becoming skeptical. Was there really a mission in some Podunk little island country?
Was this trip legitimate? Perhaps Amit thought to use Jadwat as a pawn in a larger game? Maybe Amit was telling the truth and he simply needed someone to hurry over to this pathetic little country so that Lativa’s plan could be thwarted. Jadwat knew Amit had put obstacles in the pathway of corporate plans many times before. It was one of the reasons that Uftar had grown so quickly over the past several years. Nothing illegal, Jadwat mentally snorted. No, his ridiculous cousin wouldn’t dirty his pretty hands with anything that could get the bastard into trouble. But he couldn’t seem to keep his thoughts from wondering.
In the end, Jadwat accepted that either scenario was possible. Either Jadwat was being played, or Sheik Khal was about to lose in a tricky race to get a potentially lucrative commercial product out to the world in a devious game of one-upmanship.
Either way, Jadwat would be out of the loop for less than two days. Forty-eight hours. No cell phone usage for two days wasn’t such a hardship, especially if he could smuggle some of those stupid berry plants onto the plane.
