Page 40 of Forty Days and One Knight
“Good. I’ll be joining you.”
Amar’s intense gaze met his. “What about Her Highness and the trip to your hometown?”
“We’ll still go but just cut it short.” He glanced at Bastide, who acknowledged the change in plans with a nod of his head. “We’ll be in D.C. by late afternoon. Do me a favor and let Diallo sweat it out until then.”
“That can be arranged,” Amar said with a smirk before pausing. “What are you going to tell Her Highness?”
“As little as I can until we find out what the fuck is going on.” Darius sighed and stood. He was exhausted and needed sleep if he was going to deal with both his father and Diallo tomorrow. “When are you going to let the king know?”
“First thing in the morning before I leave for D.C. My men will accompany him and Queen Azhar to New York.” That said a lot about how much Amar trusted his team when he handed over the detail of guarding the most important man in his country to them.
Nodding, Darius headed for the door. “Keep me posted.”
32
When Darius returned to the suite, he found Tahira sitting alone on the living room sofa, with worry in her eyes. She’d changed out of her dress and heels into pajamas with a robe and slippers. Her gaze met his. “Is everything okay?”
“Of course,” he replied with a fake smile painted on his face, as he unbuttoned his dress shirt to reveal a white T-shirt underneath.
She frowned at him. “Darius, please do not lie to me. I know when something is wrong, and we should not have any secrets between us. After all, we share the biggest secret of my life.”
After removing his suit jacket, shirt, and tie and draping them over the back of one of the chairs, he sat down on the couch next to her and took her hand. He didn’t want to do this, but, when she put it that way, he couldn’t deny her. “We may have discovered who was involved in your kidnapping.”
Her eyes widened. “Who?”
“There were phone calls we've connected from your cousin’s friend, Diallo, to Felix Secada.”
She blanched, and Darius figured it was more from her rapist’s name, than the man’s connection to someone she knew. Her face turned red, and outrage flared in her eyes. “I never liked him, but—but why would he have done this to me? Why would he have done this to any of us? He likes Lahana—I know it. He’s always flirting with her and staring at her. Why would he put her, Nala, and me through that?”
Shrugging, Darius shook his head. “I have no idea, sweetheart. But we're going to find out instead of returning home to Clearwater after visiting my brother and sister and father. Amar is having Diallo and Farid brought to the embassy in D.C. for questioning.”
An incredulous gasp escaped her. “You think Farid is involved?”
“No. Well, we don’t know, honestly, but we’ll find out tomorrow. Since they’re best friends, even if Farid is not involved, he may know something he doesn’t realize he knows.”
Sagging back into the couch, Tahira shook her head. “I cannot believe ... I mean, why?
Darius’s heart broke when he saw her eyes overflowing with tears. He knew she was reliving the horror of her captivity and rape again. Reaching over, he pulled her onto his lap. He cupped her face in his hands and gently kissed her cheeks, sipping the salty tears from her skin.
“Don't cry, Princess,” he whispered. “God, please don’t—it kills me when you cry.”
He lowered his mouth to hers, and she parted her lips immediately, allowing his tongue to pass between them and taste her. Her tongue tentatively danced with his. He should let her go, but her arms went around his neck and kept him close.
A cough, a giggle, and some murmurs came from her brother’s bedroom, and Tahira pulled away, but not far. Her heavy-lidded gaze made him hard as a rock, but he restrained himself. He would follow her lead, not giving her anything more than what she asked for. Hell, probably less than she asked for. Tahira wanted to be a virgin on her wedding night, and Darius was determined for that to happen, despite her torn barrier of womanhood. His aching cock would just have to deal with it. He’d been taking cold showers almost daily. If he had to take them throughout their short-term marriage, then so be it. But at least he could show her she was desirable and not every man was a bastard who liked to hurt women. He’d show her how she deserved to be treated and not to accept anything less from whoever her future husband was.
“Would you come lie down with me for a little while?” Her husky whisper nearly drove him crazy.
“Is that a good idea? If your brother—”
“If our doors are shut, he will not suspect a thing. Besides, I am certain he has other things on his mind at the moment. He and Kainda wish to have a baby.”
Her knowing wink caused him to chuckle. Tahira might be innocent, but she wasn’t naïve about what was going on in the other bedroom.
“Please, Darius. Just for a little while. I do not want to be alone.”
Before she could stand up, Darius tucked his arm under her legs and got to his feet. Her eyes widened in surprise, but then she cuddled against his broad chest. How could something so wrong feel so right? Had Tahira not been raped, Darius would never have gotten this close to her. He wished it had never happened and felt like a fucking ass for being grateful that it did.
He was falling for her—a woman he had no right to be holding in his arms, but he couldn’t stop himself from wanting her.
