Page 9 of At the Sheikh's Bidding
“Well,” he continued, as if he was truly unaware of the cold shoulder she was giving him, “I’m sorry I surprised you. But I have to say I’m surprised you’re surprised. Surely you knew I was from Sifra?”
She shot him a sharp glance. “How would I know that?”
He raised an eyebrow. “My name. Your research interests. They overlap.”
She gritted her teeth again in annoyance. “You seem to have forgotten that you didn’t give me your first name.”
He stopped mid-step. “I didn’t?”
“You didn’t.” She kept on walking until she arrived at a door which required electronic access to open. She knew that, beyond it, was her room. She had no other choice but to wait for him to open up the secure wing.
She listened to his leisurely steps approach, but didn’t turn around. She knew it was rude, but she was terrified of what she’d see, of what she’d do. She didn’t trust herself.
“Ah, I’d forgotten that. I only use my first name in formal situations. And how we met could hardly be described as formal.” He grinned. She blushed. “I prefer Amare. Sounds… I don’t know, more romantic, I guess.”
“I hardly call what you did romantic!”
It was his turn to look surprised. “You consider my lovemaking deficient? It didn’t seem so at the time.”
She blushed. “I’m not referring to that. I mean, when you told me…” She really didn’t want to bring it up.
“Told you what?”
“You know… That we would marry,” she said in a rush. “I mean, how ridiculous was that?”
From Amare’s expression, she could tell he didn’t agree. He shrugged. “Not ridiculous at all. I was just stating the natural outcome of our feelings.”
“Ourfeelings? I think you presume too much!”
“Do you? Really?” He didn’t appear in the least fazed.
“Yes, I do! We did what we did, and that was an end to it.” Still, he didn’t look moved. She had to pull out the big guns. “Can’t you understand? I’m not interested. Not now and not then.”
“Ouch!” He grimaced as if he’d been physically struck, but his eyes still held the same unwavering confidence. “But… I think the lady doth protest too much,” he said in that warm, creamy voice of his which poured into her ears, soothing her brain and mind. He was like a magician, a bewitching wizard who could calm and charm a woman at five paces. A woman whisperer. He took a step towards her.
“No,” she said hoarsely, putting out her hand to stop him. “Don’t do that. I don’t want you to do that.”
For the first time, a shadow passed over his eyes. He stood still. He didn’t touch her but his eyes roved her face and a slight frown line formed between his eyes.
“You know,” he said, rolling back onto his heels, his hands slipping into his pockets. The frown remained. “I don’t like not understanding something. It doesn’t happen often. But when it does happen, I make it my mission to get to the bottom of it.”
Her stomach twisted, forming a knot which she knew would not unravel easily. This man threatened every cell in her body. She opened her mouth to speak but only shook her head.
“You don’t need to say anything now. You look done in. Go to bed, sleep well, and I’ll see you in the morning.” It was his turn to raise his hand to stop her from speaking. “You may as well know now that there’s nothing you can say that will prevent me from coming to you in the morning and picking up where we’ve left off.” He leaned in to her so that she had no option but to meet his direct gaze. “Don’t get me wrong. I have no intention of pressuring you into something you don’t want. Never in my life have I done that. I didn’t do it the last time we met—I didn’t have to—and I don’t intend to do it now, or in the future. I will not harm you, Janey, and I’ll take nothing you don’t wish to offer. But Iwillunderstand you—make no mistake about it—and Iwillfigure out why you left me two years ago without a word.”
He plucked a key fob from his pocket, clicked open the door and handed it to her. “Your key. It fell out of your bag at the reception.”
Her fingers brushed against his as she took the key. For a moment she looked into his eyes and forgot her fears and saw only the man she spent one amazing night with two years ago. His touch had awakened something inside of her she’d kept buried for too long. For a split second, she felt truly alive.
“Thank you,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper, her heart racing.
He gave her fingers a brief caress before withdrawing his hand from the key fob. She gasped. “Sleep well, Janey,” he said, his eyes full of desire.
With that, he turned and walked away, leaving Janey standing in her open doorway, still shrouded in the cloak of his magic. She forced herself to step into her room. She pushed the door, and it closed with a slight slam behind her. Only then did she feel the energy drain from her and she fell back against the door, listening to his receding footsteps. She couldn’t help but feel a pang of disappointment mixed with relief. Her mind was telling her to be practical, but her body yearned for his touch. She couldn’t deny that Amare had awakened something inside her she’d felt only once before in her life—two years ago beside a white sandy, surf-fringed Australian beach.
But she felt exhausted by the contradictions flowing through her body, which told her one thing, which she strenuously resisted with her mind. Mind over matter, she thought with a grunt. It’s not so easy when the matter is so compelling.
As she undressed and slipped into bed, Janey thought there were no two ways about it. She was in deep trouble. She couldn’t deny the attraction she felt towards Amare, but she also knew that getting involved with him would be dangerous. She needed to focus on finding the missing diamond, not on getting tangled up in a love affair.
