The Sheikh’s Marriage Deal (Qazhar Sheikhs series Book 17)

by Cara Albany

Standing by the open windows, feeling the cool breeze against his skin, he could feel the need for her grow in him. It was like a vital force that swept through his body, igniting fire at the merest thought of her body being close to him.

  He made a simple admission to himself.

  It wasn't only for the children' benefit that he needed Abby. It was also for his own, he told himself.

  He considered the possibility that perhaps it had been so long since he'd been with a woman that Abby's presence was merely a raw, physical need. But, even as he thought that, he knew it wasn't true.

  That it would never be true.

  Abby was the only woman for him.

  He took a sip of water. Just as he was lowering the glass to the table, he heard a knock on the door to his suite. He frowned, wondering who it could be. It was rare for staff to come to him, except in connection with an emergency regarding the children.

  Taliq went to the door and pulled it open.

  Abby stood there.

  Taliq drew in a deep breath, drinking in the sight of her beauty. She'd changed into a loose white dress and was wearing flat shoes. He briefly drank in the sight of her curves inside the dress and felt an instant need tug at him. Her hair had been tied back into a bun, making her broad cheekbones stand out in sharper than normal relief. She gazed up at him, her blue eye shimmering slightly with emotion.

  "Abby?" he exclaimed surprised.

  She crinkled her nose. "Didn't expect to see me so soon?"

  He hesitated and then said: "I'm surprised. I thought we'd meet tomorrow at breakfast."

  She walked right past him and into his room without even the slightest invitation. He closed the door and turned to her. "Come on in," he said sardonically.

  Abby halted in the middle of the room and planted a hand on her hip, tilting her head and examining him. She was clearly emotional, Taliq told himself. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes shimmered brightly. "I can see you've got something on your mind," he said.

  She smirked. "You could say that."

  Abby gazed around the room. "I remember this place," she said.

  "So do I," he joked.

  He knew she was remembering all the times they'd made love in this suite. The door to the bedroom was closed and, for a moment, the thought of sweeping her up in his arms and taking her to his bed was almost irresistible.

  "How could I forget?" he added trying to disguise his desire with casual good-humor.

  She narrowed her eyes at him, obviously not amused. The corner of her mouth twisted slightly and he felt an immediate urge to go right to her and kiss her.

  Just like he'd done downstairs. But, judging by the defiant look in her eyes, he didn't think right now would be the best time for such a gesture. He reined himself in, ignoring the delicious sweet scent of her which filled his nostrils.

  Abby sighed heavily. "Why did you do that?"

  "Do what?"

  "Ask me to marry you."

  "It seems like the most obvious way to deal with things," he said. "You don't agree?"

  She shook her head. "Do you have any idea how that makes me feel?"

  He squinted at her. "The idea of marrying me? Or the idea of becoming a mother."

  "Both," she snapped. "It's so ridiculous, I don't even know where to start."

  He lifted a brow. "Why don't you start, and finish, by saying yes?"

  She frowned at him. "That isn't funny, Taliq," she said.

  "I never said it was. In matters of my family, I never joke."

  Abby groaned and turned away from him. She took a few steps toward the open window. When she walked, her hips swayed seductively and her steps were elegant and graceful. He wanted to follow her over there and sweep his arm around her beautiful waist, turn her right around and take possession of her lips, tasting her sweetness again.

  For a moment, he thought she was about to go out onto the terrace, but then she halted. She turned to him and obviously took note of the appreciation in his gaze. She narrowed her eyes disapprovingly.

  "What?" he asked.

  "Don't look at me like that," she said.

  He started toward her, moving slowly. He saw the way she watched him, saw the barely disguised pleasure in her eyes. She couldn't mask the appreciation in her gaze, he told himself.

  She wanted him as much as he wanted her. That wasn't being arrogant. He knew enough about that particular character defect.

  No.

  The way Abby was watching him as he advanced toward her was a clear indication that she still found him attractive. Even if she was doing everything in her power to hide that fact. Taliq knew all the signs. He'd learned them thoroughly a year before, and he was glad he hadn't lost the ability to read her.

  That was a start, he told himself. There was definitely still a connection between them.

  Then she did something which startled him. She lifted a hand and pointed. "Stop right there," she ordered.

  He halted and frowned at her.

  "Don't come any closer," she told him.

  At first, he wasn't sure whether or not she was joking. But then he saw the expression on her features and knew she was being deadly serious.

  "You don't trust me?"

  She cocked her head to one side. "Why should I?"

  He was momentarily shocked her question. "I am a man of my word," he said.

  "Just like you were last year?"

  So this was what it was about, he told himself. She was still hurting after last year's separation. "I told you, my life is not what it was then."

  "So you say."

  "In case you hadn't noticed," he said, "I have a few extra responsibilities that I didn't have last year."

  "Don't bring the children into this," she stated. "Right now, this is about you and me. And my parents."

  "You don't believe I will keep my promise?"

  "About the money?" She shrugged. "I'm not sure."

  He frowned in disbelief. "Why would I care about money? Are you seriously suggesting I would not keep my end of the bargain?"

  She narrowed her eyes. "Is that how you see it? A bargain? And I am what you'll be getting in exchange?"

  He started to move toward her, but the stern look she gave him made him freeze. "The money will be paid. Once we are married."

  He saw her eyes flicker downward, as if the mention of the marriage had triggered some emotion in her. Then she looked back at him. "Is that all it will be for you? A transaction?"

  "That depends," he replied. "On what you want the marriage to be."

  He saw her jaw tighten. "If it goes ahead, it will be what you said it would be. A marriage deal. Something that is convenient for both of us." She crossed her arms over her ample breasts. "Nothing more," she added in a flat voice.

  "Time will tell if what you say is true."

  When she heard those words, she couldn't resist the urge to advance on him. "There will be nothing between us, Taliq," she said bluntly. "Do you understand that? Nothing."

  She was within touching distance now. Once more, her exquisite scent filled his senses, triggering a visceral reaction in his body. He felt his throat tighten as he looked down at her defiant pose, as he gazed into those steady eyes that glared at him with such determination.

  This was a woman with spirit, he told himself. Even in such an important moment as this, she still had the will and force to face him down, to defy him.

  Had she forgotten that, in doing so, she only made his desire for her even stronger, almost impossible to control?He forced himself to remain calm. At least on the surface. There was too much riding on the next few moments.

  "There will always be something between us, Abby," he stated firmly in a deep voice. "You know that will always be the case."

  She shook her head. "No, Taliq. This is an arrangement. Nothing more."

  He leaned forward and restrained the impulse to slide his arm around her waist and draw her against him. That simple gesture might spoil everything, he told himself firmly.
<
br />   "Nothing?" he murmured.

  He could see the pulse at her long, bare and very graceful neck. He was certain it was racing quicker now. He remembered how it had once felt to kiss that neck, to feel her pulse against his tongue.

  "Nothing," she said evenly. In spite of her every effort, there was emotion in her voice. Did she have any idea of what he was going through? How just being this close to her again was making him feel?

  Taliq sighed and looked away from her, breaking the spell of the moment. He thought of what she was demanding from him. Was it possible to be married to this woman and not take her, not possess her in every possible way? He wasn't sure if he was capable of such restraint.

  When he looked back at her it was as if she had guessed what had passed through his mind. "There will be no physical relationship between us," she explained. As if he hadn't already worked out what she was demanding of him.

  He narrowed his eyes. "Now, you're the one who is sounding clinical. Even businesslike," he said evenly. "Have you forgotten everything we once shared?"

  She regarded him carefully a moment and then shook her head. "It isn't possible, Taliq," she said. "You know we can't go back to what we once had."

  A flash of regret took hold of him. A part of him wanted that to be a lie. Wanted to believe that she didn't really mean that. But, one look into her eyes told him she meant every word.

  "You will not share a bed with me?" he asked bluntly.

  He saw her mouth open, heard her breath catch in surprise, as if she hadn't expected him to be quite so honest. So brutally direct.

  "If that's how it must be, then yes," she said.

  He drew in deep breath and tightened his jaw. Indignation welled up within him. This was almost too much of her to demand, he thought. She could not seriously think they could exist under the same roof and not share a bed.

  His bed. The thought of having her so close to him and yet so far, so unattainable, already felt like a sharp wound.

  "Do you agree?" she asked.

  "Do you realize what you are asking of me?" he demanded.

  She frowned. "As much as you are bargaining for from me, Taliq," she stated evenly.

  Taliq felt something snap inside him and he moved suddenly toward Abby. He saw her take a step back and gaze up at him, a slight apprehension in her eyes.

  She raised one hand defensively to her chest and examined him, as if she was expecting him to seize her and try to force some sense into her, do anything that would change her opinion.

  Taliq froze and looked at Abby. They gazed at each other for a few moments, unspoken understanding passing between them both.

  He hated to see her like that. Disliked any hint that he could make her feel uneasy or uncomfortable around him.

  Once, Taliq had been happy to allow all his emotions full reign. There had been a time when Taliq had believed in the sheer power of his personality to obtain what he wanted from people.

  But those times were gone, now. Life was so very different.

  He nodded slowly and lowered his gaze away from her. "You're right, Abby. There is no other way," he admitted. "I agree."

  When he lifted his gaze back to her, he saw surprise on her features. Had she expected him to refuse such an outrageous condition?

  "You do?" she said.

  He nodded. "If that is the only way I can persuade you to become my wife," he said.

  He saw her swallow nervously as if she was relieved. She cleared her throat and peered at Taliq. "It is," she replied abruptly.

  Taliq ran a hand through his hair. He noted how she watched him do that, but all the other emotions flowing through him were too strong to ignore.

  She was laying down her terms, placing an insurmountable barrier between them. A barrier of her own choosing. It looked like he had no choice but to accept.

  Otherwise, who else could possibly become a part of his life and the life of the children? She was the only woman he wanted.

  Taliq gazed into Abby's eyes, seeing the steady, patient expression there.

  Taliq nodded. "I agree," he repeated, this time more softly.

  Her expression remained blank. Had she expected him to refuse to that demand? That somehow she could escape this solution by forcing such an obligation on him that she was sure he'd reject?

  There passed a long few moments between them when all they did was look at each other, almost refusing to believe what had happened.

  Then, Abby moved past quickly him and headed toward the door.

  He followed her and wrapped his fingers around her arm just as she opened the door. He felt the heat of her body. She glanced down at his hand, and he immediately released her arm. "Is that it? You will marry me?" he asked.

  She peered up at him. Her face had become suddenly pale now, and he could see the moistness in her eyes. She nodded. "I will, Taliq," she said evenly. "I will be your wife."

  And then, before he had a chance to respond, she walked out of the room, closing the door firmly behind her.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  She had done it, Abby reflected as she raced down the corridor. The agreement had been made. Thinking about it like that only made her feel worse. If that was possible. Disbelief had taken hold of her. Disbelief that she'd actually agreed to his proposal.

  Unease had taken hold of her. She had to get away from him, had to get back to the safety of her room. Because what she had done back there had been just about the hardest thing she had ever forced herself to do.

  Abby felt breathless as she hurried along the corridor. She was glad there was no-one else around to see her. She was sure her appearance, dishevelled and disturbed, would have shocked any of the palace staff. And she didn't even want to think what the children would think if they saw her red eyes, her flushed cheeks, her expression of absolute pain.

  Because, right now, that was how she felt. Pain burned inside her. Her heart was racing and her throat was tight with emotion.

  Abby reached her room and went inside, slamming the door behind her. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the door, trying to allow herself to calm down. It took a few moments for her breathing to slow, but eventually it did.

  She thought about what she'd just done. It seemed utterly unreal.

  She had agreed to become Taliq's wife. That simple realization was almost mind-boggling. She couldn't even think about what her life would be like going forward. Her mind was filled with a whirlwind of thoughts and images. A cold, hard knot of fear had settled in her chest.

  She had consented to marrying Taliq Al Kharif.

  But with one important condition. A condition which only a year ago would have seemed inconceivable.

  No intimacy.

  No sex.

  She would never share his bed. Never give in to the passion she had once felt for him. There would be no return to the past. As she thought that, she knew it wasn't completely true. Her future from now on would be very much a return to the past. Only more different than she could ever have imagined.

  She drew in a deep breath and sighed, wondering if she had just made the biggest mistake of her life. But, she told her herself, she'd had no choice. Speaking to her mother, earlier, had only confirmed the necessity of submitting to Taliq's crazy proposal.

  She'd felt as if she'd been pushed into a corner with no other option but to accept Taliq and everything that came with him. The children. A new life in the palace, in this foreign land. An uncertain future.

  He was right. There was no other solution. For all of them.

  Abby stepped away from the door and walked unsteadily to her bed and crashed down onto the welcoming softness. She let her entire body soften, all the tension easing temporarily out of her muscles as she forced herself to consider what was to come.

  How would her life play out from this moment on? One thing was for sure, it would never be the same.

  She'd made two promises.

  She had just agreed to become a sheikh's wife. And, she had just agreed to spe
nd the rest of her life being mother to two children.

  Abby groaned, almost unable to believe what she'd just done.

  But there was another promise she had made which was just as powerful as those two.

  She had vowed never to submit to any kind of passion with him. She had told him she would never share a bed with him. That they would never enjoy even one moment of intimacy.

  Abby wondered how she'd even managed to say that to Taliq.

  But, she had seen how that demand had affected him.

  There had been a sudden, fierce incredulity in his expression. Almost an impulsive rejection that she could make such demand. And when he had advanced on her, for a brief moment, she hadn't been sure what he had intended to do. Whether he'd been determined to deny her that ridiculous demand. Because it was ludicrous, wasn't it? How could she even think of a life without intimacy?

  Then she had seen him take control of himself. And, finally, she had witnessed him submit to her demands.

  For now, at least.

  Abby could only imagine how that had made him feel. In spite of his claims that he had changed, she knew that Taliq was still a proud man, a masculine force of nature, who knew what he wanted, what he needed and was willing to take it, no matter what the consequences.

  At least that had been the man she had known. And, in that brief lapse of control back in his room, Abby had seen the old Taliq. The one she had rejected. The one he had been totally unwilling to let her tame.

  But, no-one would tame Taliq.

  For a moment, she thought about the way he had looked at her. The way that look had made her feel. She had to be honest with herself, even if she had to hide that truth from Taliq.

  His hungry, defiant look had triggered a familiar, difficult to resist, need in her. Sensation had swept through her as he had come within touching distance. And, for a moment, she had been tempted. The prospect of his tender touch had enticed her. But she had resisted, forcing the sensations away.

  Those had been the same sensations she'd felt when he had kissed her. Sensations she did not want to admit to herself. Feelings she knew she had to control, had to keep locked away in the same place they'd been sealed for the past year.