Page 30 of Desert King's Forbidden Temptation

‘Tariq,’ she murmured, as the engine of the car throbbed beneath them. ‘This is—’

He tilted his face to hers, skimming her features with an expression she couldn’t read.

‘Relax. I have a meeting out that way and thought you would enjoy accompanying me. It’s a beautiful part of the country, you’ll enjoy it. Plus, you can get to know me some more. It’s why you came to Savisia, is it not?’

It all sounded so logical. And yet... ‘It’s not that simple. Surely you can see that?’

‘Why?’

‘Because there’s danger here,’ she said with hushed urgency.

His lips pressed together, but at least he didn’t downplay her assessment. ‘I see risk, not danger, and risk we can guard against. We both know nothing more can happen between us, and so it won’t.’

Eloise could only wish she shared his confidence.

‘Hold on a second. What are we doing here?’

He tilted a glance at her. ‘What do you mean?’

She pointed a finger towards his Gulf Stream jet. ‘Exactly how far are we going?’

A flicker of amusement warred with frustration and impatience. Not with Eloise, so much as with an indefinable force. ‘To the east, I told you.’

‘But, I mean, that could be an hour’s drive away.’

‘More like a two-hour flight.’

The colour drained from her skin.

‘Relax,’ he muttered, his ego smarting from her clear panic. ‘I’ve promised you nothing will happen. I’m not dragging you across the country to have my way with you.’

That jolted her eyes to his and the look in them had something new shimmering in his gut. Shame. Confusion. He stared back, careful not to reveal a thing.

‘I know that.’ She held his gaze a moment then turned away, eyeing the plane once more with obvious trepidation. Was she that terrified of being alone with him? Did she trust him so little? ‘Then let’s go.’

Every step she took was accompanied by a frantic voice in her mind, telling her to confess the truth to him.

Tell him about your fear of flying. That you haven’t been on a plane in forever and you don’t intend to start now. Tell him you can’t bear the thought of being in that tin can, high up above the earth.

But she was embarrassed by her childish phobia and how much it revealed about her, embarrassed to admit such a vulnerability to him, and so she ground her teeth together and took the stairs with a sense of purpose, telling herself all the things the therapist had drummed into her, years ago.

Planes fly every day. They’re meticulously maintained. Driving is far more dangerous than flying. That the lack of control she’d felt growing up with two parents who fought so constantly had translated into an anxiety in any circumstance where Eloise wasn’t in control, and flying was a perfect example of that. It was too much of a leap of faith, and Eloise didn’t trust anyone except Elana.

She was shaking as she stepped onto the plane, but Tariq occupied himself, talking first to the pilot and then taking a call, so Eloise found her own seat and snuggled into it, closing her eyes as if she could blot out her location if she tried hard enough.

The door closed with a bang and she startled, eyes immediately landing on Tariq, who wasn’t looking at her. Good. She still didn’t want him to know what a chicken she was. It usually helped people overcome their anxiety when they understood the root cause of it, but for Eloise, that hadn’t been the case. She dreaded relinquishing control, and there was nothing that would ever make her feel better about that.

The engine began to rumble and she dug her fingers into the armrests as the sound built and built to a deafening crescendo. She focused on the action outside the window, the men in military uniforms moving away from the aircraft, the airport in the distance, loaded with other planes. The emptiness of the skies—clearly a wide berth had been given to the Sheikh’s aircraft.

She was so overwrought she barely noticed the extravagant luxury of the plane. She couldn’t take in the details, like the plush leather seats, crystal chandeliers, cinema-sized screen at the back of the plane, oak dining table. Any other time, she might have been overwhelmed by the details, but she couldn’t notice anything beyond her paralysing fear.

Her heart was firmly lodged in her throat.

She needed to get off the plane.

She flicked another glance to Tariq. He was off the call now, his eyes focused on the view beyond his window, a frown on his face. He was so handsome. Her gut twisted for a whole other reason now, making her blood spin and bubble.

How on earth could she navigate this?

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