by Kristi Gold
She sighed. “Would you like for once to tell me a little bit about yourself that doesn’t involve your portfolio?”
To do so could create suspicion if he made one slip of the tongue. “I would prefer to spend the rest of the evening partaking of the pool.”
“I don’t want to get my hair wet since I just washed it.”
“Perhaps a walk on the beach?”
“In the dark?”
“The full moon will guide us.”
She pushed her chair back and stood. “Definitely a walk on the beach. And while we’re at it, you can tell me exactly what you’re hiding.”
Four
After discarding their shoes, they walked along the gray-sand shoreline side by side, without touching or speaking. Kira waited for a time for Tarek to break the silence and when he didn’t, she took the initiative. “It’s so peaceful here.”
“Yes, it is,” he replied without looking at her.
She opted to continue with lighter conversation in hopes of drawing him out. “When I was in college, we traveled to Barbados during summer break.”
“We?”
He sounded oddly suspicious. “Yes. Myself and my former fiancé. His family owned a condo there. He had the entire place to himself the majority of the summer months because his parents preferred Europe.”
“The man who wounded you,” he said in a simple statement of fact. “He must have been wealthy.”
She would provide some insight into that doomed love affair, but only a little. “Actually, he was a sultan’s son from Saudi attending university in Canada. We were both in the hotel management program. Since I could speak Arabic, we made a connection, dated for a couple of years and became engaged before we broke up.”
“Why did you part ways?”
She should have known he would ask and she would really rather not go into too much detail. That would completely ruin the mood. “Incompatibility.”
“I thought you were a champion of honesty.”
“I’m telling the truth.”
“Only a partial truth. Was he unfaithful?”
She’d never found any proof of that, but there had been plenty of rumors before and after their breakup. “Look, I’d really rather not talk about it.”
He paused and faced her. “I suspect he did have other women.”
All the bitter memories came rushing back like the nearby waves hitting the shore. “Not that I was aware of at the time. If you must know, he found out that aside from the King of Bajul paying for my education, I had no blood ties to the royal family, so he cut me off completely. In other words, I wasn’t good enough for him.”
He sent her an oddly stern look. “The king financed your education?”
“Yes, out of appreciation for my parents’ years of service in the palace. He was a very generous man and like a second father to me.”
When Tarek muttered something unflattering in Arabic, Kira’s inquisitiveness kicked into overdrive. “Did you have some sort of falling out with King Aadil?”
“I never met the man nor did I ever attempt to meet him. However, I did not always agree with his archaic policies. I have already heard rumors regarding infidelity.”
Her inherent loyalty to the Mehdis spurred her anger and she couldn’t help but wonder if maybe he knew something about Adan’s birth mother, Elena. Regardless, she didn’t dare bring that up in case he didn’t. “Talk is cheap, Tarek. Rumors are just that, rumors.”
“I have often found they hold a modicum of truth, especially when repeated by many.”
“Yet none of that stopped you from doing business with his sons.”
“They are from a more progressive generation, and the water conservation project is a good investment.”
His continuing focus on money disturbed Kira and reminded her of why they might not make a good match in the long run. As if he’d ever acted like he wanted anything more than an occasional conversation and some slap-and-tickle sessions. “I still find it a bit extreme to build a mini-palace in Bajul so you can oversee that project.”
“I own houses in many places, including a villa in Barbados.”
Of course he did. She saw the revelation as a means to lighten the mood and move back into the present. “Do you visit the island often?”
“No, I do not,” he said gruffly as he began to walk again. “I rarely have time for leisure.”
So much for lightening the mood. She had to quicken her steps to keep up with him and with his long-legged gait, she might find herself having to sprint. “Are you angry at me because I happened to respect and like the former king, despite his faults?”
He stopped again and stared straight ahead, giving her a good glimpse of his stellar profile. “That is not my concern. I am displeased that you seem determined to dissect my past.”
Her instincts had always been relatively good, leading her to believe she might be on the right track in regard to his secrets. “It’s only because you seem so guarded about your life.”
“As I have told you, I value my privacy. It is at times difficult to retain that privacy in light of my work.”
That she could understand, but still... “All right. Keep your secrets and your privacy. It’s neither here nor there whether you’re open about your life, even when I just opened up about mine. Just remember, that doesn’t bode well for building a true friendship.”
He sent her a quick glance. “Perhaps I do not wish to be your friend.”
For some reason, that stung her to the core. “Fine. We’ll keep this strictly business since candor clearly isn’t your strong suit.”
He turned and took her by the shoulders. “If you require candor, then I will give that to you. I wish to be your lover again.”
“Tarek, I—”
He pulled her closer, effectively quelling her protest. “I want to kiss you again, be inside you again, and I sense you want that as well.”
Oh, how she did want that, but... “You’re making this hard on me.”
“You have made this hard on me in every sense of the word.” He proved that point by moving her hand slowly, slowly down to his distended fly before sliding her palm back to his chest. “Seeing you tonight in that dress, watching you now and the way your hair ruffles in the breeze, only causes me to desire you more.”
“You’re trying to distract me from asking too many questions,” she said, her voice sounding somewhat strained.
He brushed feathered kisses across her neck until his lips came to rest beneath her ear. “I am attempting to be candid.”
“You promised you wouldn’t do this.” The lack of conviction in her tone, her inability to push him away, demonstrated her waning determination to resist him.
“I said I would try not to do this.” He softly kissed her cheek. “Or this.” Then he pressed his lips against hers, once, twice, before taking her mouth completely.
Kira internally debated the foolishness of giving in to him, all the while actively participating in that kiss. She readily accepted the gentle stroke of his tongue against hers, his palms roving down her back, the rush of damp heat when he pressed his erection against her pelvis. Exactly what happened the last time, she thought as he began to work her dress up to slide his hands inside the back of her panties. He kneaded her bottom, continued to press against her, as their kiss became deeper, more frenzied. If she didn’t stop him now, they’d be making love not on marble, but on a bed of sand.
With all the strength she could muster, Kira broke the kiss and backed away, her respiration and nerves both ragged. “Tarek, we can’t.”
He swiped a palm over his nape. “Believe me, we could. In a matter of seconds.”
“This isn’t what I want.” This wasn’t what she had planned.
He narrowed his dark eyes and st
ared at her. “You are saying you do not want me?”
If she said that, she would be handing him a giant fib. “It’s not about whether I want you or not. I just don’t want to make a mistake I’ll regret.”
“Then you believe our need for each other is truly a mistake.”
He had no idea how severe a mistake they’d made due to that desire. “I believe it’s unwise to answer it again.”
“Then I shall escort you back to your quarters,” he said in a tone that revealed a hint of dejection mixed with irritation.
As they headed back to the house in silence, Kira couldn’t deny her disappointment. On one hand, she did want to experience that intimacy with him again. On the other, she needed to maintain a clear head in order to establish if he was suitable to be involved in her child’s future. If he would even want to step into the fatherhood role. She had no doubt that he would support their baby monetarily, but not necessarily emotionally. She refused to settle for less, even if it meant walking away from him for good.
Once they arrived at her room, Kira felt the need to say something to soothe his obviously wounded ego. “I really did enjoy our evening, Tarek, and I want you to know that any woman would be flattered to have your attention.”
“But not you.”
“Of course I’m flattered. I’m simply being cautious. Before I even consider being with you again, I have to be certain I’m not going to be hurt.”
His features relaxed somewhat. “If you recall, we both agreed that our relationship would remain casual with no complications. What has changed?”
Everything. “I suppose I’ve learned I’m not the kind of woman who can engage in casual sex. I have to have more.”
Now he looked concerned, as if his fight-or-flight reflex had kicked in. “How much more?”
“I need someone who appreciates me for who I am. I need to know that I’m not only a fling.”
He swiped one hand over his jaw. “My lifestyle has not allowed me to consider settling into a serious relationship.”
“Don’t you want to someday have a wife and children?” She sounded almost desperate, even to her own ears.
He took both her hands into his. “I refuse to make empty promises to you for the sake of having you in my bed. Yet since that night, I have thought of nothing aside from you. Nevertheless, if you cannot accept what I can offer to you at this point in time, an attentive lover who will treat you the way you deserve to be treated, with great care, then say so now and I shall not bother you again.”
Not at all what she needed to hear. “You mean you want sex with no strings attached.”
“Life is very brief. I endeavor to make the best of each moment. What better way to do that than to spend those moments with a remarkable woman?”
She leaned back against the wall next to the open door. “Are you trying to sway me to your side with pretty words?”
“Never doubt my sincerity where you are concerned. You are a remarkable woman. Highly intelligent and innately sensual. Your former lover was a fool not to recognize those attributes.”
Common sense told her to let him go immediately. The child growing in her belly said she couldn’t right now. Yet the loudest voice in her head came from her heart. The same voice that had cautioned her during all their lengthy conversations and heady flirtations—she could easily fall in love with him.
She would keep that voice quieted for the time being. “I understand what you’re asking of me, and I can only promise I’ll sleep on it.” If she was in fact able to sleep at all.
He lifted her hands, turned them over and kissed each palm before releasing her. “And that is all I ask. I will see you early in the morning.”
Perhaps in the morning, she would see things more clearly.
* * *
As soon as the limo pulled into the drive leading up to the resort, the magnitude of Tarek’s wealth finally hit home for Kira.
Perfection. Absolute perfection, from the white stone facade to the elaborate dual rock water features flanking the hotel’s entrance. Three floors of rooms, all containing large balconies, fanned out on both sides of what appeared to be the main lobby. The manicured landscape would be described as lush and green and tropical, laid out precisely to her father’s standards. Unfortunately, she couldn’t express her favorable opinions to the proprietor since he’d departed for the resort long before her, according to Alexios. She couldn’t help but wonder if he’d reconsidered and decided to shelve the seduction. That should give her some relief, but in reality, it gave her a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach that had nothing to do with the pregnancy. As silly as it seemed, a part of her wanted him to persist.
After the driver stopped beneath the portico, he rounded the limo and offered his hand to help her out. Kira strolled toward the entry, expecting to be greeted by Tarek, only to see a woman emerge from the double copper doors. A classically beautiful, dark-eyed, golden-skinned woman dressed in an impeccably tailored white linen suit. Her shoulder-length raven hair had been styled in soft waves, reminiscent of a Hollywood icon from decades ago. Her makeup was equally perfect, as was her dazzling smile that almost seemed rehearsed. “Welcome, Ms. Darzin,” she said as she offered a slender hand. “I am Athena Clerides, Tarek’s business associate.”
The goddess-like name fit her well, Kira decided, though she found it odd Tarek had failed to mention her during their many conversations. She also felt completely underdressed in her simple pink sundress and sandals. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Clerides,” she replied as she shook her hand.
“Please call me Athena.” Her accent hinted at her Greek roots and so did her striking features.
“As long as you call me Kira.”
“Agreed. Now, if you will follow me, we will get started on your duties.”
Evidently the taskmaster sent someone else to do his dirty work. “Is Tarek not here?”
Athena opened the door wide. “He is currently working on his own project. He has instructed me to have you look over the plans for the kitchen.”
At least the woman didn’t seem offended by the request. “I’m not certain what I have to offer you in that regard, but I’m willing to give my opinion.”
“Obviously Tarek values your opinion,” she said, the first touch of acrimony in her tone. “Now if you will please follow me.”
Kira complied, trailing behind Athena as they walked through the high-ceiling lobby, complete with a gigantic purple Persian rug covering polished black marble floors—reminiscent of another marble floor.
She shoved the memories away and continued to survey the area. Unlike Tarek’s beach rental, the décor was much more traditional, evident from the rich wood furniture and sofas covered in red, violet and gold fabrics. They continued through a lengthy corridor to the left and paused at an opening that revealed a large space, barren aside from a stainless-steel prep station centered in the middle of the room.
“This is it,” Athena announced. “Or where it will be once the kitchen is complete.”
“It’s definitely a blank slate,” Kira said. “Do you have some sort of blueprint for the layout?”
“Of course.” Athena strode to the industrial island, picked up a notebook computer and held it out to Kira. “This is the current plan.”
She studied the diagram before regarding Athena again. “Only one refrigerator?”
The woman looked at Kira as if she were daft. “A large refrigerator.”
She studied the plan a few more moments before regarding Athena again. “Do you intend to serve wine?”
“Yes. We will be catering to travelers from around the world.”
Well-heeled travelers, no doubt. “Then I suggest you add a wine refrigerator.”
“I will take that into consideration, but the cupboards are scheduled to be installed
this afternoon and the appliances delivered in the morning. It would cost money to make these last-minute additions.”
As if the missing mogul would care. “I’m sure Tarek has a contingency in the budget to cover any added expense if the original layout needs to be reconfigured.” Kira returned to the graphic to avoid Athena’s glare. “Will the restaurant be serving only guests, or will it be open to the public?”
“Both.”
That sent the mental wheels into a spin. “Then perhaps you should add another prep area next to the dishwasher since you have some wasted space. My mother always said you can never have enough room for food preparation.”
Athena actually smiled. “That is a good suggestion, though it might not be feasible to have it here for a few more days.”
Finally, they were getting somewhere. “A few more days shouldn’t matter too much.”
“Tell me, was your mother a cook?”
Kira handed the notepad back to her. “A chef. She worked for the former king of Bajul for many years. My father tended to the palace’s gardens.”
Athena lifted a thin brow. “Ah. You are the daughter of domestics.”
She suddenly felt like that inadequate schoolgirl again. A commoner among royalty. Yet she would not let Athena’s snobbery shatter her confidence. “Yes, I am, and very proud of my heritage. So much so I am following in their footsteps.”
Athena leaned a narrow hip against the metal counter. “As a cook or a groundskeeper?”
Kira felt her internal temperature begin to rise. “Neither, actually. I’m the director of the household in charge of all the palace staff.”
The woman’s smile was entirely too snide. “How nice that your parents’ humble lifestyle afforded you that position.”
She felt puzzled by Athena’s suddenly disagreeable demeanor, yet Kira wasn’t beyond matching her condescension. “A degree in hotel management afforded me that position, as well as a recommendation from the current king.”
“I see. Did the current king recommend you to Tarek?”
Every word that came out of the woman’s mouth sounded like an indictment. “As a matter of fact, he requested I accompany Tarek here as a temporary assistant.”