Page 32 of In the Hands of the Sheikh

So much so, that he could only return it. He put an arm out and pulled her to him, rolling her so that she could lie, tucked against his side. He liked the way she felt there. The way her hair smelled. The way her breath, warm and soft, fanned his chest.

“You will sleep here tonight.” He said firmly. His statement surprised him as much as it did Phoebe.

“Isn’t that breaking all kinds of rules?”

His look was one of arrogance. “There is no one in Mehran capable of dictating rules to me, Saleena. I want you to stay.”

“And so I will,” she responded, an emotional crucible warming her through. Pleasure, that he wanted her to spend the night. Anger that he commanded instead of suggested. Desire to repeat what they’d just done again and again. And happiness. Just plain old happiness.

“I’m glad.” He kissed her hair. “Thank you.”

It was such an uncharacteristically humble comment that she decided to forget her anger altogether.

CHAPTER NINE

She was showing off, and she knew it.

Hakim was watching, and Phoebe wanted to please him. She wanted to show him that she was brave, and clever. She wanted to show him that she didn’t need him to make things easy for her. That she could handle herself.

And so, in the process of showing Becca the horses, she’d saddled one up and taken it out on the sand just beyond the palace.

She’d glimpsed Hakim as she set the horse to a gallop, leaning into its muscular neck, and whispering words of encouragement. She’d gone fast, and she’d laughed, stroking the horse’s neck as they went.

The desert wind was warm as it brushed past her face, and she smiled. The sense of happiness had not evaporated. Her wedding was the following day, and Phoebe felt nothing but pleasure at the prospect.

She thought, as she turned the horse around and set it back towards the palace, how amazing it was that her feelings had changed so much in a week.

By the time she reached a cheering Becca, Hakim had joined her side.

“Geez, Phoebe, you ride like the wind,” Becca enthused with a low whistle, stepping back a little as the horse made a snorting sound.

“It’s easy,” she said, her blue eyes darting to Hakim. His face was thunderous. “I’ll show you how. Just start slow.”

“No,” Hakim interjected. “One of the stable staff will help you, Becca. I need a moment with my Saleena.”

“Oh.” Becca looked disappointed, but she nodded. “Of course.”

“Can it wait, Hakim?” Phoebe asked, elegantly sliding down from the black beast.

“No.” His expression was implacable. “It cannot.”

He signaled towards the stables and two attendants appeared almost instantly. He spoke swiftly, in his own language, and then took Phoebe’s hand in his. “Excuse us,” he spoke over his shoulder, towards Becca, already pulling Phoebe into step behind him.

“What is it?” She demanded, grabbing her hand free as soon as they were out of sight of the stables.

“What the hell do you think you were doing?” He demanded fiercely, spinning around to stare at her.

“What do you mean?” She asked, her eyes showing her confusion.

“Riding like that! As though you were fleeing the devil himself.”

Inexplicably, tears moistened her eyes. “I was having fun,” she said weakly.

“No, you weren’t. You were being reckless and thoughtless.” He bent forward, so that his face was only inches from hers. “What if you are pregnant? What if you are carrying my child? And you dare take risks like that?”

Her face paled. “I… I didn’t think about that.”

“No,” he ground out, his anger apparently without limits. “You did not. So help me, Phoebe, if you did any harm to our child…”

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