Desert Kings Boxed Set: The Complete Series Books 1-6

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Desert Kings Boxed Set: The Complete Series Books 1-6 Page 39

by Jennifer Lewis


  Osman hung up his phone again. She hadn’t even noticed him take another call. “Ronnie, you’ll be relieved to hear that another jet will be here to take you home tomorrow morning. And this time it won’t be left unattended for a split second. You’ll be back in D.C. by nighttime.”

  She stared at him for a moment, knowing she needed to utter some exclamation of delight, when all she wanted to do was say, Oh, no.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Her last night with Zadir.

  The idea made Ronnie’s chest tighten. Warm shower water dripped over her body, and she hoped it would soothe away the anxiety raking at her.

  All along she’d been dying to get home to her familiar surroundings and her reassuringly predictable existence. It was exhausting being here where she wasn’t in control of anything. It would be a huge relief to get back to her comfortable routine where she was the boss and set her own schedule, or could spend an entire day and evening at home alone if she wanted.

  So she should be happy, right?

  Tomorrow night she’d be in her own shower—that she’d designed herself—with its poured-in-place raw concrete walls and sleek German fixtures. There would be no more intricate mosaics of colored marble, or flaming torches on the walls, or men bustling about in long robes, muttering words she couldn’t understand.

  Everything would be quiet, calm, and exactly the way she liked it.

  And lonely.

  She heard the sound of a throat clearing. The normal Ronnie would be annoyed at having her privacy invaded, but this strange new one taking over her body found herself smiling. “Almost done.”

  She assumed it was Zadir, not some grizzled security guard, but suddenly couldn’t resist checking. She peeked around the mosaic wall of the big shower and saw him standing there, looking right at her with those amused blue eyes, clad only in a white wrap that covered him from waist to ankles, revealing his muscled chest and arms.

  She ducked back into the shower. It really wasn’t fair for a man to be so gorgeous. How was a girl supposed to be sensible around him?

  She rinsed the last of the rose-scented soap from her skin. Even the soap was wonderfully moisturizing and probably made from fresh goat’s milk. She spritzed more rosewater on her skin and toweled herself dry with the unbelievably thick, soft towels. Her body was already tingling with excitement at the prospect of pressing itself up against Zadir’s, even though her heart was trembling at the prospect of leaving him tomorrow.

  “I’m a patient man,” his deep voice penetrated her thoughts. “But I can see you from here and if I don’t hold you in my arms pretty soon, I might lose my cool.”

  She turned. “I’m still damp.”

  The desire in his eyes made her melt. “You’ll be wet all over by the time we’re done. And that’s a threat and a promise.”

  She smiled secretly. If you’d told her a week ago that a man would ever talk to her like that she’d be shocked. She certainly wouldn’t have believed she’d enjoy it. “Hold your horses.”

  “I’m trying, but they’re stallions and they can only behave for so long.”

  She could hear the grin in his voice and feel the passion in his gaze, as she finished drying herself and hung the towel on an ornate brass bar. She should feel self-conscious naked, but there was something about the warm air, and Zadir’s unabashed admiration, that made her feel fully clothed and utterly confident just like this.

  She heard his intake of breath as she turned toward him. “Damn, you look beautiful.”

  “I could say the same.” She crossed the cool stone floor and slid her fingers into the waistband of his white wrap. Already she could see his arousal rising against it. His arousal only spurred hers. She tugged gently at the fabric. Zadir stood like a magnificent statue while his wrap fell away to reveal his masculine beauty in all its glory. “Goodness.”

  It was hard to form words or thoughts, but luckily there was no need because their lips drew effortlessly together. Heat flooded her as her nipples touched his hard chest, then again as her belly bumped against his hard erection.

  His arms gathered her to him, and she felt his chest rise against hers as if it filled with emotion as well as breath. He’d kissed her almost completely senseless by the time he finally pulled his head back and said, “I’m really going to miss you tomorrow night.”

  “Me, too.” She wanted to smile and make light of it, but she couldn’t. The thought of leaving him was agonizing. They’d spent almost every moment together for days.

  “When do you you find out about the library commission?”

  “They said they were going to meet about it after we presented. We could find out tomorrow.”

  “And if you get it, you’ll be sure to take it.”

  She nodded again. Who wouldn’t? It was the opportunity of a lifetime.

  “And that will mean you’ll be very busy. Perhaps too busy to come back to Ubar and design my house.”

  “Did you not like my design?” This was the first time she’d heard him express doubt. Usually, he seemed to assume she would do the design whether she wanted to or not. His uncertainty was rather alarming. “I’m sure I could find the time for both. I often work on several projects at the same time. Most architects do.”

  “Even projects on opposite sides of the world?” Sadness and hope mingled in his blue eyes and made her heart squeeze.

  “As you’ve demonstrated to me, it’s not such a long flight.”

  He smiled, but she saw a guarded wariness in it. Then he kissed her softly on the cheek and led her into the bedroom. “We’re talking too much. Sometimes that’s not a good thing.”

  Standing beside the bed, he inhaled, then let it the breath out softly as his gaze drifted from her eyes down to the tip of her toes. His erection let her know exactly the effect such a view had on him. She’d never felt more desirable in her life.

  “Ilyrimas.”

  She cocked her head. “What does that mean?”

  A mysterious smile crossed his mouth. “You’ll have to learn more of our language when you return.”

  “You’re not going to tell me?”

  “I’m going to tell you, all right.” He stepped toward her and cupped her backside with one massive hand. “With my body.” A low growl sent arousal ricocheting through her.

  “Goodness.”

  “That’s the second time you’ve said that.”

  “My vocabulary seems to shrink around you.”

  “Then talk to me with your body.”

  She responded with her hands on his chest and his face. And with her mouth, licking and kissing him, enjoying the masculine roughness of his skin and the resilience of his hard muscle.

  She gave herself to him totally, holding nothing back. She had no idea what the future would bring, or how she’d navigate it, but she was learning to let go of the past and the future and fully embrace the present moment. Right now she was in her lover’s arms and all was right with the world.

  The next morning, she and Zadir ate breakfast in bed. Her plane was scheduled to leave at noon, so they only had a few more hours to share together. They’d just finished eating toast with honey and sliced fruit when they heard footsteps running in the hallway, followed by a knock on the door and a shouted announcement in the local language.

  Zadir jumped out of bed. “A fire at the oilfields.” Then he responded to the person at the door and started tugging his clothes on. “I have to find what’s going on.”

  “Of course.” She hurriedly donned her pajamas, which were beside the bed.

  “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  As he ran from the room and joined the scurry of footsteps on the stone tile outside, she got a nasty sense of foreboding. Did this new incident mean her plane would be grounded again?

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Ronnie showered and dressed and went looking for Sam, who she found in her office. Talking on the phone and taking notes, she excused herself and hung up the phone when Ronnie entered. �
��I was about to come looking for you. Don’t worry, Osman says your plane has been under close guard since it arrived and there’s nothing to stop you taking off on time. In fact you could leave right now if you want. The noon departure was an arbitrary time set by Zadir. I don’t think he’s quite ready to let you go.” She smiled softly.

  Ronnie’s heart tightened as she contemplated heading straight for the airstrip with her bags. “In some ways I’m not ready myself, either.”

  Her phone rang. “Do excuse me.” She saw her assistant’s number and answered it, heart now pounding like a drum. She expected the committee’s decision this morning.

  “I’ve been trying to get hold of you all night. I know your phone doesn’t always work there so I’ve emailed you at least ten times.”

  “What?” She’d been preoccupied with Zadir and hadn’t glanced at her email.

  “You got it!”

  “I got…the commission?”

  “Of course. What else?” Libby laughed. “They decided late yesterday. They want you to phone back and give them an answer.”

  “An answer?” No doubt they assumed the answer was yes. Who wouldn’t? She glanced at Sam, who looked at her expectantly.

  “Yes, and they had some ideas they wanted to go over with you. Something about changing the shape of the atrium and adding some skylights in the reading rooms.”

  “Skylights?” Her brain couldn’t quite process all this right now. They wanted yet more changes to the design? She didn’t like that. Skylights would compromise the building envelope and bring in light and heat that weren’t part of the original calculations. They would also undermine the cocoonlike atmosphere she’d intended for the reading rooms.

  “And something about a grand staircase at the entrance. Call them. It’s the same number as usual. She said to call at any time and don’t worry about the time difference. They’re very excited.”

  “Great.” Her sudden apprehension made the word sound hollow. A grand staircase? Her design was all on one floor. “I’m flying today. I’ll let you know when I’m in the air. If I can get a signal, that is. Otherwise I’ll see you at the office tomorrow. My plane will get in pretty late.”

  Was it really that simple? Would she just show up in her office tomorrow, the proud recipient of the commission every architect in the U.S. was buzzing about? If so, then why wasn’t she overjoyed about it?

  Sam was still looking at her expectantly when she slid her phone back in her pocket. “You got the presidential library commission, didn’t you?” Her mouth was smiling, but her eyes looked a little wary.

  Ronnie nodded.

  “You must be thrilled.”

  Ronnie swallowed. “It’s a big deal, I guess.” Why did she feel like a dark cloud had descended?

  “Are you worried about Zadir? Osman just called and said they’re together and the fire crews have almost extinguished the blaze. Luckily they got to it before the oil itself caught fire. They also caught the man who set it, so he’s pretty happy about that.”

  “Great.” Ronnie’s brain didn’t seem to be working properly. Data overload, perhaps. Then she remembered something. “You know some Ubarite words, don’t you?”

  “I’m learning more every day.”

  “What does ilyrimas mean?”

  Sam smiled. “That’s one of the many Ubarite words that don’t quite translate into English. This language has a lot of words for emotions. I think it means something along the lines of ‘you carry my heart.’ It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”

  Sam must know that Zadir had said it to her. How else would she have learned it? “It is beautiful. So much about Ubar is.”

  “You don’t quite want to leave, do you?”

  Ronnie bit her lip. “I’m not sure. That seems ridiculous. I didn’t even want to come here in the first place.”

  Sam laughed. “Same thing happened to me. I was totally excited to film my documentary, then go home with my fiancé—who, I might add, was not Osman.” She winked. “Then something about Ubar—and its charismatic and determined ruler—took me by storm. The world just never looked the same again. I knew that I couldn’t go home, because my home was now here, in Ubar.”

  Ronnie blew out hard. “That’s crazy. You simply abandoned your whole life back in the U.S?”

  “More or less. I still make films. In fact, I’m in the middle of pulling one together right now, but I find I don’t want to travel as much as I used to, so I’m pursuing more local subjects. I think before I was always looking for adventures because my real life was so dull. Now it’s so rich and exciting, I don’t want to go anywhere.”

  Sam’s eyes sparkled. She was so in love with her handsome and powerful husband, and the chemistry between them was evident whenever they were in a room together. She’d been brave enough to dramatically change her life to be with Osman.

  Didn’t Sam ever worry that she might have made the wrong choice? Ronnie had always sworn she’d never repeat her mother’s mistakes and give up her career to become a pampered trophy wife. Her mom had never even tried to get her career back once her father left, and her life seemed to shrink away to nothing once he was gone. She’d promised herself she’d never do anything that foolish.

  “When do you start the project?”

  Sam’s words startled her from her ruminations. “Oh, I’m not sure. I haven’t even spoken to them myself yet. That was my assistant.”

  “You should probably call them.”

  “Yes.” She blinked. “I’m glad everything’s okay out there. Are they coming back soon?” She couldn’t bear the thought of leaving without saying goodbye to Zadir.

  “They should be back in half an hour or so.”

  “Okay. Let me go back to my room and call the committee chair while I’m waiting.”

  “Congratulations.” Sam’s warm smile didn’t entirely hide the worry in her eyes. Maybe it was a reflection of the concern in Ronnie’s expression. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was starting to feel like a chore.

  She hurried back down the tiled hallways, where luckily the pace of the staff had slowed back to their normal, leisurely movements. Once inside her room, she took a very deep breath, and dialed the number.

  “Ms. Baxter, I’m delighted to hear back from you. Your assistant told me you’re still abroad, but you’re flying back today.”

  “That’s right.”

  “Wonderful, because we need you to fly to Chicago as soon as possible. We want to make a big announcement with the mayor and the local congressmen, and of course you’ll need to meet with the building department to talk through some of the more unconventional aspects of the project.”

  Ronnie’s mouth hung open. She hadn’t even agreed to do it yet. Of course, she had applied for it. It wasn’t like they’d come begging her to design the president’s library.

  “We’re putting together the press release right now. Do you prefer to go by Veronica or Ronnie? We’ve heard several people call you Ronnie so we wondered if we’re being overly formal and stodgy.”

  “Veronica is fine.” Could she really say no and let them all down now she’d wasted so much of their time?

  “Our engineer has a lot of questions about the skin and I did tell your assistant about some other modifications that the committee has proposed, but we can go over the finer points once you get here. I assume you’ll be moving to Chicago for at least the year of actual construction, but honestly the sooner you move here, the better.”

  Move to Chicago? She had her business in D.C. Her mom—who was now having health problems—was in New York, and the man who’d captured her heart was in Ubar.

  Suddenly this dream commission was beginning to feel like a nightmare. “Can you hold off on sending out the press release? I have a few details to think through.”

  “Until tomorrow?”

  “Yes. I’ll be back in the U.S. by then.” The long plane flight would give her a chance to think. Not that thinking seemed to help much lately. Did she want to commit
to a project that would suck her entire life, and keep her away from Zadir for probably at least two years? She was already successful and had clients, including Zadir, knocking on her door.

  On the other hand, backing out of a presidential commission that she’d personally applied for was potential career suicide.

  She hung up the phone and put it on the bed. “My head hurts.”

  “Your head hurts?” Zadir had rushed back from the oilfield as fast as possible. He couldn’t bear if Ronnie’s flight left before he could see her to say goodbye. His relief at finding her in the room was undermined by announcement that she was in pain. “Do you need an aspirin?”

  She wheeled around, obviously surprised to see him. “I didn’t hear you.” Her gaze softened when she saw him, which tugged hard at something inside him and threatened to unravel all the decisions he’d made on the way back. “I was just thinking aloud. It’s not really the kind of pain an aspirin can help. More of a soul ache.” Her quirky smile was another punch to the gut. “I was awarded the library commission.”

  “Oh.” Why did he feel like he was in a boxing ring? “That’s wonderful. You must be thrilled.” He tried to portray excitement he didn’t feel. Now she’d never design his house.

  Which he’d already decided might be for the best. He couldn’t guarantee her safety here. They had security guards everywhere and couldn’t even stop some yahoo from setting fire to their equipment. Right now Ubar wasn’t safe, and he already cursed himself for risking Ronnie’s life by bringing her here.

  “I should be thrilled, but suddenly I’m seeing all the downside. They want me to move to Chicago!”

  “Chicago’s a vibrant city.” It came out just like the canned response it was.

  She laughed. “It’s a cold and windy city.” She frowned, and looked away. “And there are other places I’d rather be. My mom is sick. The doctor thinks she had a heart attack. I’ve stayed away from her for too long.”

  “I’m sorry to hear about your mom. I hope she makes a full recovery.” He sounded like a robot. It was so hard to fill the air with words when all he wanted was to take Ronnie in his arms and hold her to his chest.

 

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