Close to the Heart

by Rebecca Stratton

  tion and I feel for p Lisa heard him heave a great sigh,

  and she could imagine his expressive hands spread in resignation. 'Very well, if you wish to try and talk to my brother about it, I will do what I can to arrange a meeting between you. I have a great respect for John Pelham, and I dislike seeing lovely women weep. 1 will help you if I am able/

  'Oh, thank you, thank you!' Lisa almost wept in her relief, and at the other end of the line Yacub Boudri made soft clucking sounds of consolation.

  'Do you know the cafe called La Place, on Rue Hassan?' he asked, and Lisa murmured agreement.

  'Yes, I know it.' It was not the whole truth, but she would soon find the cafe if it meant she might see Yusuf again.

  'If you will be there at one half-hour past one o'clock/ he went on, 'I will do my best to see that Yusuf is there with me. I cannot promise anything; you will understand that—my brother is not the man he once was, Miss Pelham, and I have a curious inclination to believe that you are in some way responsible for that/

  Lisa's heart sank, but she was not ready to give in yet, and she moistened her lips anxiously before she spoke. 'Did—did he blame me for what happened?'

  'He has said very little about what happened/ Yacub told her very seriously. 'But I have never before heard Yusuf curse the fickleness of the feminine character as he has since he returned from Zobi. and since you were the only woman on board his yacht and you apparently fled from it so dramatically, I am forced to believe that you are the particular woman against whom he raves.'

  'I'm sorry.'

  There seemed little else to say, for she felt very close to tears at the moment. But Yacub Boudri seemed to be taking it all in his stride. Then you should tell him so when you meet, my dear Miss Pelham. The cafe is small

  and quiet—very discreet, an ideal place for a rendezvous. All that you need to do is to be there, do you understand?'

  'Oh yes, I understand, I understand perfectly, and I'll be there f' Too excited and relieved to think clearly, Lisa laughed, making her feelings all too plain to the listener. *l don't know how to thank you, Mr Boudri; I'm so grateful to you for helping when you don't know me/

  A soft and very suggestive chuckle bubbled against her ear. 'That is something that can be remedied, perhaps/ he suggested. 'I will see you again at half-past one o'clock, eh ? Goodbye, Lisa!'

  Lisa found the cafe without too much trouble, but she hesitated for some time about going in. She had never felt more nervous and panicky in her life, and the thought of seeing Yusuf again gave rise to so many different emotions that her head was spinning. Twice she started to go inside and each time she retreated, until finally she reminded herself that Yacub Boudri had probably had a great deal of difficulty persuading his brother to accompany him, and that he had arranged the meeting at her request.

  Last-minute fears that he had not been able to persuade him after all were banished the moment she walked in through the door, for she spotted them right away, catching her breath at the sight of Yusuf s dark head. He sat facing Yacub across one of the small tables and he had his back to her as she crossed the floor, but her senses responded urgently, demolishing the last remnants of her self-possession.

  Yacub was chattering animatedly, the menu in his hand, but Yusuf appeared to be paying very little attention to what he said. Even from the back he seemed to have a distant, thoughtful air about him, and as she approached their table Lisa almost panicked once more

  and turned away. But Yacub had seen her, and he was already on his feet, a wide welcoming smile seeking to reassure her.

  Yusuf rose too, automatically polite whatever he thought of her personally, and her heart skipped wildly when he seemed to tower over her suddenly. 'Ah!' Yacub Boudri said with a convincing show of surprise that Lisa would have been fooled by it if she had not known better. 'I remember—you are the lovely lady whom I found hiding in my father's garden one evening, are you not? How could I forget so charming an intruder?' He extended a hand and when Lisa placed hers into it, he immediately turned it over and conveyed it to his lips. 'Do you remember me, dear lady?'

  'Oh yes. Yes, of course.' Lisa licked anxiously dry lips and tried to smile, but she was too aware of that other tall, glowering figure beside her, and her hand trembled. 'Mr Boudri—Mr Yacub Boudri.'

  Tou know my brother, of course?' He skimmed over the formalities and invited her to sit with them. 'I did not know on that occasion that your father was John Pelham.' Lisa nodded, not yet accepting the invitation to sit down. 'Please sit down and join us. Miss Pelham, will you? Will you allow me to buy you lunch?'

  It was not a situation that a man of his nationality would have staged normally, and certainly he would not have approached a strange woman, and a foreigner, so boldly. But Lisa had come to the conclusion that Sheik Abahn's youngest son was a law unto himself, especially where women were concerned. In the circumstances there was little she could do but take the invitation at its face value, and she sat down, though she carefully avoided Yusuf s sternly suspicious gaze.

  She hesitated about taking the menu from her beaming host, too intent on Yusuf s reaction to take notice of anything but him for the moment. He was so close

  that she could have reached out and touched him, but unlike Yacub he did not sit down again. Instead he remained on his feet, standing behind the chair he had occupied, with his big hands curved tightly over the back. He addressed himself to his brother, quietly but with an obvious dislike of the situation he found himself in, and Lisa knew he had not been fooled by Yacub's strategy, however convincing it had seemed.

  'I agreed to have lunch with you because you disliked eating alone/ he told Yacub in his deep and perfectly controlled voice. 'Now that you have found yourself a companion I will return to the work I interrupted to come with you, Yacub. I am sure you will excuse me in the circumstances.'

  'Oh, but in such charming company, surely you will stay,' Yacub insisted.

  But if Yacub really believed he might persuade him, Lisa knew better. Perhaps she had more often been on the receiving end of Yusuf ben Dacra's disapproval than his younger brother had, and recognised the signs more readily. She had never felt more unhappy in her life, although she tried hard not to let it show, keeping her eyes downcast to hide the hurt she felt.

  The familiar warmth of his nearness played on her senses as it always did, and when he moved, his sleeve brushed her shoulder, setting her heart racing wildly. She felt she would never be able to come close to him without feeling as she did now, and in the circumstances she despaired of ever being able to forget him. He was turning down his brother's invitation not, she felt sure, because he had important work to occupy him, but because he would rather do anything than sit down to another meal with her.

  Tusuf.' She ventured his name, but dared not look at him yet, and her heart hammered urgently as she sought for words that would convince him. 'Please believe me,

  I—I didn't want to go with Geoffrey '

  'I am to believe that ? When you wasted so little time, after he came for you?' he interrupted harshly. 'And ringing the bell to let your friends know that you were safely freed from my clutches and they could go ahead with their destruction—whose idea was that, mademoiselle? Yours or your—friend's?'

  'Neither!' Lisa denied, breathlessly anxious, i didn't know Geoffrey was coming, and I hit the bell by accident ! It wasn't a signal!'

  'But it triggered off the attack on the site/ Yusuf said, relentlessly pressing home his point. 'And you cannot have struggled for very long against your rescuer since you were already in his car and driving away when I arrived to see what had happened/

  'But I did try to get away from him!'

  *Why?' Yusuf demanded remorselessly. Tour father told me that you have been seeing the man for some time, and you warned me often enough that he, or someone, would be coming to take you back! Why deny that he is your lover simply to try and convince me? Or do you think me a complete fool because I allowed myself to be—pleasant to you
?' Lisa noticed how tightly the big hands were on the back of the chair, and shivered. 'Perhaps you do have reason to believe me a fool/ he allowed in a harsh flat voice, 'but no longer. Miss Pelham, I promise you!'

  Lisa glanced up, suddenly understanding, she thought. Yusuf ben Dacra would not forgive easily, but especially he would not forgive someone whom he had allowed to see the softer, more gentle side of his character. But Yucub was clearly in the dark, shaken by the virulence of his brother's anger, and he attempted to soothe the situation without yet knowing the cause of its violence.

  'Yusuf, please/ he said, and a wary kind of smile hovered about his mouth. '1 am sure you do Miss Pelham an injustice. You are angry '

  'And with good cause, as Miss Pelham well knows!' Yusuf told him impatiently.

  'But surely/ Yacub ventured a second attempt, *you should listen to what Miss Pelham has to say/

  'Oh, please!' Lisa's voice choked in her throat and she could only shake her head for several seconds before she recovered enough to go on. 'It's no good, Mr Boudri, Yusuf—your brother's made up his mind and he isn't going to change it on my account!'

  Yusuf still stood with his hands on the back of the chair, and the waiter had been deterred enough by his expression and his obvious anger not to approach them so far. Catching his eye, Yacub shook his head slightly, then once more looked up at his brother. But he was given no time to say anything more; Yusuf was still very firmly in charge of the situation.

  'I have a great deal of work to be done/ he said, once more addressing himself to his brother. 'If you will excuse me, Yacub; I am sure that Miss Pelham will find it less embarrassing if I leave you/

  Tou are determined?' Yacub was not accustomed to being on the losing side either. 'Yusuf-^—'

  'Please excuse me! Mademoiselle! 9

  He inclined his arrogant head with chilling politeness and Lisa watched him go stalking back the way he had come, with her hands pressed tightly on the table top. No one said anything until that tall, autocratic figure had disappeared from view, then Yacub turned and looked at her, his handsome features distorted by a grimace.

  *What can I say?' he pleaded, and was obviously at a loss to understand his brother's lack of co-operation. 'I had not thought he would behave so, Miss Pelham, and I do not pretend to understand him in his present mood/

  Unwilling to condemn him out of hand, for all his stubbornness, Lisa offered excuses for him. 'I can see why he's so angry/ she said, and Yacub Boudri was bound

  to notice how small and unsteady her voice was. 'I—I just wish he'd given me the opportunity to explain my part in it—or my innocence of taking any part at all/

  'You knew nothing of what they did—those others?' Lisa shook her head, and Yacub's dark eyes narrowed shrewdly. Leaning his elbows on the table in front of him, he looked at her for a moment, then half-smiled. Then he must be convinced of it/ he declared.

  Lisa was shaking her head, her eyes brimming with unshed tears, and her voice was barely more than a husky whisper as she put down the menu unread; she couldn't eat anything, it would choke her at the moment. 'He won't listen,' she guessed. 'I know him—he won't listen once he's made up his mind/

  'You know him?' Yacub Boudri reached for her hand and raised it to his lips, leaning towards her and watching her with those velvety dark eyes. 'Not as well as I do, I think, my dear Lisa. I shall arrange for you two to meet again, and this time you will make him listen to you. Oh yes, you con make him listen/ he insisted when she would have denied it. He raised her fingers and kissed them lightly, his smile wide and confident once more. 'I am not a gambling man/ he told her, 'but I would wager many dirhams that in the right circumstances you could make my brother Yusuf do almost anything you wished/

  Lisa gave him a small and very uncertain smile, but said nothing. She had her hands held very tightly together on the table, and in her heart she prayed that he was right. She could not bear to think of Yusuf going on thinking she had lied to him—she did not for the moment even remember that her father and Geoffrey had a lot at stake too. Only that she had to convince Yusuf that he was wrong about her part in it.

  CHAPTER NINE

  For three days now Lisa had been waiting for something to happen, and so far nothing had. Yacub Boudri had promised that he would do something about arranging another meeting with Yusuf, but after the reception of his last effort, she was doubtful if he could manage another, no matter how willing he was to help.

  She had not seen Geoffrey since her last meeting with Yusuf either, but when Madame Raymond told her that he was there to see her, she shrugged resignedly and said to let him come in. While she waited she made a determined effort to look less woebegone than she felt, although her smile definitely looked strained, and her caller did not miss the fact.

  'Hello, Lisa.' He looked as if he was about to take her hands, thought better of it, and sat down in one of the armchairs instead of on the ottoman beside her as he would normally have done, although Lisa was too distracted to notice at the moment. 'I—1 hope you're O.K./ he ventured, and she nodded.

  *Yes, thank you.'

  'I haven't been again, because ' He shrugged uneasily and did not look at her but down at the floor between his feet. 'I had the feeling last time I was here that you more blamed me for getting you off ben Dacra's yacht than looked on it as a rescue.'

  Lisa shook her head. It was difficult to know just how honest to be with him, for she had never felt so distant from Geoffrey before, and it made her uneasy. 'I didn't need rescuing, Geoffrey; my father knew where I was, he's known the Sheik's family for years although I didn't

  *7S

  know it, and I wasn't exactly a prisoner on the Djenoun.'

  'So I noticed.' His grey eyes met hers, remembering and resenting the glamorous red caftan she had been wearing, and the way she had been smiling to herself as she came along the deck. Tve realised since that you were probably enjoying yourself—sorry I broke it up!'

  He was bitter, and Lisa could not really blame him. He had been so sure that she was a miserable captive of the man they had all decided was some kind of monster, when in fact nothing was further from the truth. Particularly at that moment when she had just left Yusufs arms, thrilling with the warm excitement of his kiss. She avoided Geoffrey's eyes again, her hands in her lap and the fingers of one hand encircling the other wrist; and Geoffrey noticed that too.

  'I'm sorry about the bracelet too,' he said in a flat cool voice. 'I gathered you set some store by it, although I don't remember seeing you wear it before.'

  Tusuf bought it for me in Goulimine.'

  'In Gou ? You went to ' He stopped, frowning darkly, and his face looked faintly flushed. 'I have been a fool, haven't I?'

  Lisa was too hurt herself not to appreciate his feelings and she looked across at him anxiously. 'Oh no, Geoffrey, not a fool, I won't allow that! You took a chance, coming for me as you did, but if only you'd let me explain what was actually happening at Zobi when I tried to, I shouldn't be feeling quite so wretched.'

  'Like I said,' Geoffrey insisted bitterly, 'I was a fool!' They were silent for several moments, then he looked across at her again, his eyes questioning. 'What happens now, Lisa? Was your—your contact any use to you? Could he help?'

  Lisa got up and paced restlessly about the room while she talked, wishing she knew just how much Yacub Boudri was able to do for her. 'He tried,' she told

  Geoffrey, *but the meeting was a dismal flop; Yusuf wouldn't listen to me. He's promised to arrange another meeting, but—I don't know. I honestly don't see what he can do if Yusuf goes on digging in his heels.' She jerked her hands impatiently and frowned. 'Oh, why is he so stubborn? Why won't he let me explain that I didn't know about the wretched raid on the village?'

  Geoffrey pressed his fingertips together and studied the resultant steeple thoughtfully, his mouth set firmly into a straight line. 'It matters to you, doesn't it?' he asked. 'It matters to you that he thinks you knew about what the group were doing in the village?
'

  Lisa nodded. Tes,' she admitted after a second or two, 'it matters to me.'

  The grey eyes were raised and met hers squarely, and there was something in them that showed such hurt, Lisa flinched from it. 'I was afraid so,' Geoffrey said quietly.

  'Oh, Geoffrey ' She looked across at him and her

  mouth trembled. She could think of nothing else to say at the moment, but she knew he hurt in the same way as she did herself, and she wished she was not so sure of the reason.

  Tou know how I feel about you,' Geoffrey said in a quiet, steady voice that affected her dangerously. 'Maybe I should have said something sooner, but I thought you knew.' Briefly his solemn features softened into a rueful smile. The reticent Englishman, I suppose,' he suggested, 'I took it for granted it would work out, and I didn't take into account the effect that men like ben Dacra can have on a woman.'

  Lisa had never before been in such a situation, and she felt too unsure of herself, too vulnerable, having it spelled out to her as Geoffrey was doing. It was like losing both of them in a way, and she felt horribly close to tears when she realised it. She had little hope that Yusuf would relent, and she could never again be on

  quite the same easy footing with Geoffrey after this moment.

  'Would you rather I went?'

  Geoffrey's voice dragged her back to immediate.decisions, and she looked up quickly, unsure if she wanted him to go or not. 'I suppose it might be better/ she

  agreed in a small wistful voice. 'Somehow I feel '

  When she realised there were tears in her eyes she brushed them away with the back of a hand. 'I'm sorry,

  Geoffrey, I—I'm not unaffected by ' She swallowed

  hard. 'I didn't want you to fall in love with me/ she told him huskily. 'I—1 know how it can hurt/

  'Oh, Lisa, Lisa!' He did not take her in his arms, but put his hands on her shoulders and pressed his fingers into her flesh with a fierce tautness, while he looked down at her unhappy face. 'If that—that damned Sheik of Araby of yours doesn't melt at the sight of you, he isn't worthy of his French father! He won't be able to forget you, not if he's anything of a man!' He bent his head and lightly kissed her mouth. 'I know I never will/ he whispered. 'Goodbye, my love I' He kissed her once more, then turned and was gone.