When he got off the elevator to enter the short hallway that led to the penthouse, he saw the two guards there, and he scowled.
"What the hell are you doing here?" he snapped, too tired to be diplomatic. "Is there something wrong at the townhouse? I swear, if you left her unguarded..."
"I promise you, Sheikh Jahin, we have done nothing of the sort," one of the guards said stiffly. "But the lady requested a change of properties, and she indicated that this was the property she wanted to be at."
Jahin stared at the man for a moment, and though the man quailed, he stood firm.
Jahin couldn't blame him for this. He could only blame himself, and setting his shoulders straight, he walked into the penthouse, resisting the urge to knock because after all, it was his goddamn penthouse.
"Bedelia?" he growled. "Where in the hell are you?"
He had it worked out in his head. He would talk to her seriously, tell her that the rules were in place for her own good, and that flouting the rules to irritate him was simply not going to work out for her. Surely she would see reason after that...
He received no answer, but then he heard the hiss of the shower, and his heart sank.
There was a smarter version of him somewhere, he thought. A smarter man would have waited for her in the living room, never thinking about what was going on in the shower. But his mind provided him with vivid pictures, richly detailed, of what she was doing in there, how he had once touched her body, making her sigh with pleasure, and how she had touched him.
I'm just looking for an answer, he told himself. I just want to know what the hell she's playing at.
He knew it wasn't true the moment that he thought it, but knowing that didn't stop him from opening the door and stepping into the steamy warmth of the bathroom.
Her hazy and obviously naked form turned behind the shower door’s fogged glass, and the door rolled open to reveal her inquisitive face. Instead of being shocked or indignant, she smiled at him, that same sweet, faintly mischievous smile that he had grown to crave.
"Hi," she said. "You were working a long day today."
"You have no idea," he said, momentarily distracted. "It just never stopped, and..."
He paused, shaking his head. "That wasn't what I came in here to discuss..."
"Good," she said with a laugh.
"I meant that I want to know what you are doing here," he growled. "The last I heard, you were doing well at the townhouse. I was prepared for you to stay there for at least a while."
"Oh, the townhouse is amazing," she said sweetly. "I loved it there. Did you spend a lot of time there when you were a child?"
"When I was... No, not really, it belonged to a relative then who has since passed on... Bedelia, what are you doing here?"
She looked at him as if it were obvious. "I am taking a shower?"
"I can see that," he said, and for some reason, that made her smile.
"Do you really?" she asked, and his heart beat a little faster as she slid the door open wider. Even through the narrow opening, he could see a thin strip of her belly, the roundness and the sweetness of her form calling to him.
"Close the door," he said, and he knew his tone was coming out harsh and strange.
Making a brief moue of disappointment, she did as he said, but she didn't close it entirely.
"I'm doing what you told me I could do," she said with a careless shrug. "You told me that I could go to any property of yours that I wanted to go to, that I could find a place that was comfortable to me while I was pregnant. Was I wrong to take you at your word?"
Her green eyes were so large and deep that he could drown in them. He knew how dangerous that could be, losing himself in this woman. After all, he had done it once already.
"No, of course not, but I hardly expected that you would--"
"Good," she said briskly. "Now, Jahin, I really do have to insist."
"Yes?"
"I'm taking a shower, and the more I stand here with the door open, the more I'm losing hot steam. So you have a choice. Either step outside...or come in here."
The blatant heat of her invitation left him gaping. Was this truly the shy virgin that he had taken in the citadel in Masir? The look she gave him was hot enough to scorch leather, and almost before he could stop himself, he took a step forward.
Jahin wanted her, he wanted her with every fiber of his being, and if he couldn't run his hands over her sleek curves right now, he thought he might die of it.
Then sense returned, and he took a step back.
"Very well," he said, and he walked out of the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
Jahin felt a little better when there was a solid wooden door between them, but at the same time he knew how very easy it would be to simply open the door again, to strip off every stitch of clothing and join her in the wet warmth of the shower. He could run his hands over her luscious curves, he could taste her soft skin, the very interiors of her mouth...
He shook himself, wondering savagely when he had lost so much willpower. If he had thought that he would be acting like this a year ago, he would have laughed himself sick. He was Sheikh Jahin Abdul Kattan, and to be brought low by a woman was unthinkable.
Yet here he was, and he knew that if it were not for that last shred of strength, he would open the door and go back to do every single thing he had thought of to her sweet body.
With a shudder, Jahin walked into the living room, his hands fisted with control.
***
IN THE SHOWER, Bedelia rinsed her hair out slowly. She was mildly disappointed that he hadn't come into the shower with her, but this was still the first opening gambit. She hadn't expected it to be easy, but as openers went, it was promising.
When he had opened the door to the shower, she had been afraid that he would simply shout at her, telling her that she had to get out of the penthouse. Then she had heard him freeze in the doorstep, and she knew that wasn't going to happen.
Bedelia chuckled a little to herself when she thought of the look on his face, but if she were honest with herself, she hadn't been unaffected either. It might have only been a short while since they were together, but her body had gotten used to the pleasure they could create together, the fire that could spring up at a moment's notice between them. It was delicious and hot and everything she had ever dreamed of sex with a man being and more.
She hadn't expected to be so very seduced by his seduction, and she knew she needed to keep her wits about her.
Bedelia resisted the urge to hurry through her shower. She was a naturally polite person, and normally if she knew that someone was waiting for her, she moved faster.
But right now, she was playing a game.
She rinsed herself off slowly, then she toweled herself dry with deliberate care. She dried her hair but left it slightly damp, hanging down over her shoulders. Her silk robe, the one he had brought her when she’d complained about being cold one night, was still hanging on the door, and she slipped into it.
For a moment, the memory of him giving her the robe, her delight and his delight at her pleasure, made her sad. Was she just shouting into the wind? Were they ever going to get back to that? There was no way to tell, not really.
The important thing, she thought decisively, is that I am not going down without a fight.
A thin silk robe was about as far away from being armor as it was possible to get, but she tied it tight around her waist and made her way casually to the living room as if it was just a normal evening.
It wasn't a great sign that Jahin was pacing close to the mantle, but she ignored it for the moment and curled up on one end of the couch.
"I can't tell if I'm getting lazy or if the pregnancy’s catching up with me," she said. "It's getting so I don't want to stand up for very long."
Jahin turned towards her, frowning with concern. She caught the slight hitch in his breath when he saw her bare legs stretching out from under the robe, but he recovered quickly.
"
Are you feeling unwell?" he asked. "Should I call for the doctor?"
"Oh god no," she said, waving away his concern. "I'm fine. They said I was going to be getting tired easily in general, so I just have to watch for that."
He scowled at her, but at this point, she thought the dark expression must be more reflexive than anything else.
"Are you going to keep standing up over me?" she asked softly. "Why don't you come sit with me?"
For a moment, she thought she had him, but then he straightened up.
"I do not think this is a wise idea, Bedelia. If you are having issues standing up in the shower, a bath would likely be better for you. The townhouse has a bathtub, and..."
"Or I could just take sponge baths," she suggested. "I mean, that would be easy enough, right?"
He stared at her, and with a growled curse, he strode out of the room. She heard him pace to the bedroom that they had shared before slamming the door, leaving her in silence.
For a moment, it occurred to her to be hurt, and then she started giggling instead. She had mentioned the sponge bath as an alternative, more for making conversation than anything else, and now she realized how he must have taken it.
Your move, Jahin, she thought, going to the guest room. Some part of her wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed with him, but she thought that might be pushing too far, at least for the first night.
In the darkness of the room, however, she felt far less confident of what she was doing, far less assured.
After all that had happened between them, she ached for him, and the idea of having him just a short distance away was a kind of subtle torture. Even though the room was perfectly well heated, she couldn't help but feel a little cold tucked under the covers. She thought suddenly that if she couldn't return to him, she would always be a little cold.
Oh Jahin, please, she thought, tears beading up in her eyes.
Chapter Sixteen
The next day, Bedelia rose early and found a fairly nutritious breakfast in the fridge. The early morning light streamed into the tall windows, and dressed in a light tank top and a pair of yoga pants, she took herself through the exercises that she had been taught.
She heard Jahin stirring in his room, and then his familiar step in the hall, but she ignored him. She could feel his gaze on her back, but she continued doing the graceful exercises that would keep her limber and healthy throughout her pregnancy.
"Who taught you how to do that?" he asked softly, and she still didn't turn.
"The people at the hospital gave me a few pamphlets, that led me to a few different sites, that led me to some videos," she said, gesturing towards the replacement phone Jahin had left for her use at the townhouse, which she’d brought with her. "I don't have them memorized yet, but I figure that I will after a few repetitions."
"And these are meant to make labor easier?"
"Yes, and to keep me active for my pregnancy. I can already tell that it's very easy to give in to the fatigue and the sleepiness. It'll be better for me and for the children if I stay up and on top of things."
There was a pause, and somehow Bedelia was still certain that he was behind her, watching her with a dragon's avidity.
"There is a long tradition of dance among the women of Muneazil," he said softly. "I think in the West you call it belly dance, but there are dozens of different dances that are celebrated here. The dances are taught and performed for celebrations throughout the year, but the history states that they were originally created to help women through childbirth."
"Really? That sounds amazing. I don't know how to dance, but I've always wished that I did."
Jahin chuckled softly, and though she wanted to turn towards him and throw herself into his arms at that sound, she kept herself back. It felt as if anything at all could break the spell, and right now, she could not bear that.
"But of course you know how to dance," he said. "Every woman does."
"That doesn't sound very scientific," she commented with a slight smile. "When I was in the fifth grade, I danced so badly once at a school event that I knocked over an entire table of drinks, and that was basically that for my dance career."
"Ah, but you are not in the fifth grade any longer."
She gasped a little when she felt his hands on her shoulders, turning her around to face him. They were so close that she could feel the warmth of his body, closer than they had been since before he’d left, since before she’d found out about her pregnancy.
"Here, let me show you..."
He placed one of her hands on his shoulder, one of his on her hip, and he clasped their free hands together as he hummed a soft song.
"Now just follow me, forward and back..."
She did as he said, clumsily at first, but he was almost shockingly patient. In less than fifteen minutes, she was slowly but smoothly following him around the room. He was in a suit, and she was in workout clothes, but somehow, she had never felt more graceful and elegant than she did in his arms just then.
"And step back, and I bow to you...and you incline your head graciously to me. Good, just like that."
They stepped back from each other, and in the morning light, they simply looked at each other. It was as if they had never seen each other before and were just now noticing the other person.
He was still a painfully handsome man, but for some reason, that wasn't the most important thing, Bedelia thought. She could see now, after having spent so much time with him, how kind his hands were, how his mouth was made for laughter and for talk and for pleasure, how his copper eyes showed what he was feeling, sometimes whether he wanted you to see or not.
This was the man she loved, and every part of her ached for him. That would never change.
"See?" he said after a moment. "Easy as anything. I knew you would be a natural at it."
"If we have a daughter, will you teach her as well?"
He looked surprised at her statement, and then a kind of softness that she had never seen spread across his face. No matter who his children were or what became of the two of them, she knew he would always love them, and it made her chest contract with longing.
"But of course," he said, bowing to her slightly again.
The spell was broken, and he had business with the governmental offices that day. After the door closed behind his exit, the apartment was so quiet that she nearly went to the men stationed outside for a talk.
What if he doesn't come back? she wondered. The thought was horrid, but she had to face the possibility. If he was truly irritated with her being here, if he didn't want to see her, there were things he could do. Jahin could go to one of the other properties that he owned, and this time she might not be able to find him so easily. He might go to a hotel where she could not follow him.
She shuddered.
He could go stay with the families of one of the women who he was routinely associated with. Wouldn't that delight them, the sheikh showing their daughter such favor.
For a moment, Bedelia wished intently that she was one of those women, born wealthy and beautiful with a place in Jahin's world as fixed as the North star. She longed to be someone that it was appropriate for him to look upon, to court properly, but then in the next moment, she dismissed it.
"This is where I want to be," she said out loud, and she was surprised to realize that it was true.
If she was one of those girls, she and Jahin would never be in this situation. Their children wouldn't exist. There would always be a wall between them, one made of expectations and assumptions. That was one thing they had going for them; they had always seen each other truly and honestly.
Bedelia sighed, gazing out the enormous windows. Below her the capital city buzzed away, thousands and thousands of lives rolling on whether hers did or not.
She didn't know what she would do if he didn't come back. How long could she chase him? How long before she grew tired and heartsick?
She squared her shoulders.
I will chase him as long a
s it takes, she thought to herself. As long as it takes.
***
JAHIN FOUND HIMSELF thinking of Bedelia throughout his day.
She was in the back of his mind as he went over the budget with his chief financial officer.
She popped up with her sweet smile and green eyes as he was trying to hammer out a good plan with a policy maker from Dubai.
She was with him when he ate and talked and waited for meetings to start, and he knew that he was in a dangerous place.
During a short break, he sat at his desk, all ten fingers buried in his thick, dark hair, and he simply breathed.
The image of her in the shower, blurred and warm and wet, echoed in his mind, but he knew that wasn't it.
His craving for her went beyond the physical, though he thought that the physical was plenty powerful enough, to be sure. No, he wanted more than just sex. He craved the warmth that had been between them, the power of her heart and the cleverness of her mind.
You can have that, his own traitorous brain whispered to him. Of course you can have that...
He couldn't. She was dangerous. She had tried to betray him. She was perhaps the least suitable woman he could bring into his life, and they were both damned lucky that the tabloids hadn't gotten wind of their affair.
For some reason, the word “affair” made him flinch. That wasn't what they had, but it was what the world would call it. It made him furious, and that was not a thing he could afford. She deserved so much more than that, and he felt as if he could have cheerfully killed anyone who put her in that position.
The clock was ticking, and Jahin realized that he had to make a decision. According to the men he had guarding her, she was still at the penthouse. At some point, he was going to need to decide if he wanted to come back--come home--to her, or if he was going to find some other place to go.
It would be the smart thing to go to a hotel, he knew that. He could go to a hotel and bar her from entry. There were, after all, plenty of other properties where she could be very comfortable. He could bar the hotel’s door against her, no matter how much that would hurt her, no matter how much it would hurt him.
Sheikh's Virgin Love-Slave Page 23