Stormy Affair

by Mayo, Margaret

  'Do you really love me?' he asked in a hushed voice. She nodded. 'Completely—enough for the two of us —if—if you still want to) marry me, that is?'

  He nodded. 'Of course I do, but I don't want you to have any doubts. I don't want you to do anything you'll regret later.'

  She could not swear to this, not knowing how deep his own feelings went. If, an unbearable thought, he later rejected her for someone else, she'd regret it then. She would wish she had never allowed her heart to rule her head. She said, 'That's a strange thing to say, coming from you, I thought you always took what you wanted, regardless of consequences.'

  'Not if I love that person very dearly. Perhaps my methods were a trifle unusual—but you are an unusual girl,' and he pulled her into his arms, lowering his head and kissing her very thoroughly and satisfactorily.

  When he had finished Amber pushed him away, still trying to work out whether she had heard him correctly. `Did—did you say—you loved me?' she enquired breathlessly.

  Hamed nodded, smiling.

  ,'But why didn't you tell me—it would have saved all this heartache.'

  'I thought you'd guessed, but I couldn't put it into so many words, not until I was sure of you. Even now I can't believe it's true,' and he pulled her close again as though he never wanted to let her go.

  But Amber pulled back. 'I'm still a bit frightened—about our future. Rafika said that you had promised to marry her—that it had been agreed between your two families. What are you going to do about that?'

  `Rafika's still a child, cherishing childhood dreams,' he laughed. 'It's all nonsense, a story she makes up to frighten away any girl in whom she thinks I am becoming too interested. Like the china she broke. She knows I can't stand clumsiness and did that to try and get rid of you. I'm sorry I shouted—I didn't find out until afterwards what had really happened.'

  Amber was glad he no Monger blamed her. 'And Rafika herself, she means nothing to you?'

  'I love her-like a sister; my little jealous one—not like a woman—not like I love you.' His voice deepened and he pulled her roughly towards him, kissing her with such an intensity that it was almost frightening. 'I don't think I can wait to make an honest woman out of you,' he muttered, swinging her into his arms and crossing towards the door.

  Amber wanted him just as much as he needed her, but she knew that a few more days now would make no difference. 'No, Hamed,' she laughed, kicking her legs. 'I'm old-fashioned in that respect, as you well know. Besides, we've got a whole lot of talking to do. There are many things that still puzzle me.'

  He laughed and set her down. 'Go ahead, ask what

  you like. From now on I intend to be perfectly open with you—and you with me,' he added threateningly. 'No more trying to hide your feelings.'

  'What I want to know,' said Amber, sitting on a chair near his desk, crossing her ankles daintily and looking beguilingly up at her lover, 'is how you knew who I was. That very first day in the medina you knew my name—and after that—the things you said—you knew so much. I thought you had some ulterior motive.'

  'And how do you know I still haven't?' he asked, leaning back lazily against the edge of his desk, his hands thrust into the pockets of his trousers.

  'Because I love you,' she said, 'and I wouldn't love a man who was up to no good.'

  'Such trust—I hope I warrant it,' he mocked.

  'You do,' she returned fervently. 'But come on, answer my question.'

  He shrugged and looked slightly abashed. 'You're not going to believe this,' he said, 'you'll probably laugh, but it's true all the same. I fell in love with your photograph.'

  This really did astound Amber. 'I don't understand. What photo? Where?'

  'The one your Doctor Greer keeps in his wallet.'

  'Doctor Greer? What has he got to do with it?' The more she heard the more astonished she became.

  'I was taken ill while on business in England and I went to see him. I gather he was a very great friend of your family?'

  'That's right, he brought me into the world, used to treat me as his own daughter. He never had children himself. But what has he got to do with it? How

  did he come to show you a picture of me?'

  Hamed's eyes glinted. 'I asked him if he knew any pretty English girls who would be willing to marry me.'

  Amber's mouth fell open in shocked disbelief and he laughed. 'No, seriously, when he discovered that I came from Tunisia he mentioned that he had a young friend who was holidaying here. Without me saying any more he produced your photograph. He is very proud of you, Amber. He told me how you had nursed your mother through her long illness and that he had had the devil of a job persuading you to take a holiday.' He frowned. 'I think he took a liking to me too, because he asked me if I would look you up and make sure you were happy and recovering from your own near breakdown.'

  'And of course you jumped at the chance?' Amber felt bemused. The coincidence was unbelievable.

  'I had already fallen in love with you,' he said. 'As soon as I saw your tawny eyes looking out at me from that photograph I knew you were the girl for me. There and then I made up my mind that I would marry you.'

  'And go to any lengths to do it?' she asked, mocking him as he had mocked her.

  'Not at first,' he laughed. 'I intended doing the whole thing properly, but when it became clear I was getting nowhere I decided to kidnap you, hoping you would find my charm irresistible.'

  'What did you think when I said I hated you? Was it a blow to your plans?'

  'I knew you didn't mean it,' he said. 'Your body betrayed you every time, my passionate one. Remember that night when you told me you loved me and said you didn't mind me making love to you—and I walked out?' She nodded. 'It was all part of a plan. My sadistic streak, I suppose. I thought if I played it cool the fires within you would do the trick and that soon you would come crawling. But it backfired—miserably. I couldn't keep away from you for long. That's why I took you on that trip—it was the only way I could think to keep you close without you actually guessing my motives.' He pushed himself away from the desk. 'That too was a dismal failure. You left me in no doubt then of your feelings towards me. I'm sorry if I hurt you,' he touched her face gently, 'but when I found out that everything I had done was in vain I couldn't help myself. I was in a blind fury. I think I could have killed you.'

  `But you didn't.' Amber took his hand and kissed it, holding it against her cheek. 'You came up fighting, declaring that you were still going to marry me no matter what. That's what frightened me. I loved you desperately, but I didn't want to marry a man who didn't return my feelings, or who had no compunction about hitting a woman.'

  `Please,' his face mirrored pain. 'Don't remind me about that. I can't apologise enough. It won't happen again, I assure you. But what I can't understand is why you came back, after all that. Weren't you afraid, knowing how violent I could become?'

  'I was willing to risk it,' said Amber softly. `I'd made up my mind that a few months' happiness would be better than a whole lifetime's misery.'

  She lifted her face to his and his kiss was infinitely sweet.

  'One last thing,' she said, when he eventually let her go. 'Would you really have let me return to England? Despite this great love you say you have for me would you have let me go without making any effort to stop me?'

  Hamed shook his head. 'I was having one great fight with my pride. I wanted to come after you, you don't know how much, but I had hurt you enough trying to keep you here. I couldn't inflict any more hurt. But I would have come—eventually. When we had both had time to know what it. was we really wanted.'

  'I'm glad it never came to that,' said Amber. 'I don't think I could have lasted out. Please, Hamed, hold me tight. Never let me go again.'

  'I won't, my dearest,' he whispered harshly. 'I won't. We belong to each other now—for all time.'