by Mary Lyons
‘Okay.’ Leonie’s lips curved into a brief smile. She privately thought that the new governess was selling herself short. She wasn’t a beauty, of course, but with an infectious smile and twinkling brown eyes, she presented a warm, attractive personality.
A slight popping in her ears indicated that the plane was beginning to lose height, and it wouldn’t be too long before they landed. She rose from the table to go and see to Jade. The little girl had just woken up, still very sleepy and lethargic as she allowed herself to be changed into a thin cotton dress, before Leonie handed her over to Elizabeth while she went to gather her own things together.
Busily engaged in packing her case, Leonie nearly jumped out of her skin as the bathroom door opened and Badyr entered the room.
‘What are you doing in here?’ she gasped, noting that he had discarded his Savile Row suit, and was now clothed in his national dress. The sight of his tall figure in the long white robes brought back such poignant, disturbing memories, that her trembling figure swayed and would have fallen if Badyr hadn’t moved swiftly forward to put an arm about her waist.
‘Husbands and wives normally share the same room,’ he drawled softly as his grip tightened. ‘Or did you expect me to change my clothes in the main cabin, hmm?’
‘No . . . l. . .’ Leonie swallowed nervously. The elusive aromatic scent of his cologne and the close proximity of his hard, masculine form seemed to be having a disastrous effect on her nervous system, and making her shockingly aware of the emotional response of her own body. What was happening to her? How could she possibly feel like this about someone from whom she had been parted for so long? A man who had threatened to abduct her child, and who was forcing her to return to a country she hated? It simply didn’t make any kind of sense—none at all. Turning her head away, she closed her eyes as she fought to control the deep flush staining her cheeks, gasping as she felt him pluck the combs from her hair
.
‘What do you think you’re doing?’ she protested nervously as the thick, reddish-gold curls fell about her shoulders.
‘Merely admiring your crowning glory,’ he murmured, running his hand through her heavy mass of hair. ‘And, since we have a bed at our disposal--it would seem a shame not to use it, hmm?’ His soft, mocking laugh echoed ominously around the small room. Trying to twist away, she realised that she was hopelessly trapped, his fingers tightening in her hair and holding her head firmly imprisoned beneath him.
Her instinctive denial was smothered as his warm mouth possessed hers, moving softly and sensuously over her lips and evoking a trembling response almost impossible to resist. Every nerve-end in her body seemed to be tingling with excitement, a deep knot of
tremulous desire flaring into pulsating life as her arms slid up about his neck and her lips parted involuntarily under the delicate pressure, allowing him to slowly and erotically savour the soft moistness within.
Badyr’s husky murmur of satisfaction at her action did nothing to encourage her resistance. She seemed powerless to prevent her body becoming soft and pliant as he moulded it to his own, his hands moving down over her back to span her slim waist before reaching her hips. It was only when he relaxed his grip to lower her down on to the bed that sanity returned. It seemed to require an almost super-human effort to break away from the intoxication of his kiss and the seductive caress of the hands now savouring the rounded warmth of her breasts, but she eventually managed to pull her shattered mind and body together.
'No!’ she gasped, jerking back her head and striving to push him away. Panting breathlessly, her dazed eyes noted his sardonic grin as he let her go and rose to his feet.
‘Poor Leonie--you look somewhat disturbed!’ he said softly, gazing down at her trembling figure. ‘It would seem that your claim of amnesia was merely a temporary affliction!’ His low, cynical laugh was hateful, adding fuel to the flames of her self-disgust as she quickly rose from the bed on legs which felt as if they were made of cotton wool.
‘l don’t know what you’re talking about,' she muttered, inwardly cursing the betraying, husky note in her voice. Moving jerkily over to a mirror, she attempted to scoop her hair back up on top of her head, the coiled, nervous tension in her shaking hands making the task far more difficult than usual.
'You lie!’ Badyr said curtly. ‘Your body is crying out for my possession--just as much as mine demands release. It is pointless to deny it.’
She gave a shrill, incredulous laugh. ‘You can’t seriously imagine that you’re the only man who . . . who . . .’
‘Can raise you to the height of ecstasy, and far beyond’?’ he queried, moving slowly towards her trembling figure. ‘We both know it is so, and the sooner you acknowledge the fact, the better it will be for both of us.’
‘You . . you arrogant swine! I’ll never do that--never!'
‘Do not try my patience too far, Leonie.' His soft drawl held a warning that was impossible to ignore. Viewing in the mirror his tight lips and the stern cast of his countenance, she felt a frisson of fear shiver down her spine.
‘We shall be landing in Dhoman shortly. I hope that you will not make the mistake of ever forgetting that I am now absolute ruler of my country,’ he added, his voice heavy with menace. ‘There is no route open to you, other than to obey my commands.’ He paused for a moment. ‘Unless, of course, you wish to lose your daughter.’
‘You . . . you blackmailer! You’re every bit as evil as your old father!’ she hissed through clenched teeth, shaking and trembling with the effort to control herself as she stalked over to the door. ‘He was a fool to have locked you up in prison. If he hadn’t been so crazy, he’d have known that he should have polished you off while he had the chance, and . . . and made me a thoroughly merry widow!’
She might have felt happier if her Parthian shot as she slammed the door of the small cabin hadn’t been followed by his low rumble of sardonic laughter, the sound echoing in her ears as she made her way into the main lounge area.
Later, as she adjusted the straps about Jade’s sleepy figure, Leonie cursed her own folly. She was bitterly ashamed at her pitiful lack of resistance, her pathetic, emotional weakness as far as Badyr was concerned. She had taken great care to avoid all meetings with him--ever since that disastrous episode at the zoo--and how right she'd been! She didn’t know how she was going to evade any further contact with him, but the Harem quarters in that grim old fort were full of deserted corridors and long-forgotten rooms. Maybe, if she kept her wits about her, she could ensure that she escaped his presence?
Carrying Jade down the steps of the aeroplane, Leonie felt as if she was walking into a hot Turkish bath. A wall of heat came up to meet her, the dark night air carrying an unforgettable smell of the lingering effects of burning sun on sand, tarmac and machines, mingled with the evocative aroma of frankincense and other aromatic spices so peculiar to Dhoman.
It was all so extraordinarily familiar, that she half expected to see one of the late Sultan Raschid’s old cars come lurching up to the aircraft. Instead of which, a fleet of black limousines moved smoothly forward and together with Elizabeth and Jade, Leonie was led towards a black Rolls-Royce with dark-tinted windows.
‘It’s all very luxurious, isn’t it?’ Elizabeth said, looking about the plush interior of the car as it slowly moved away across the tarmac.
‘Purdah,' Leonie muttered, in answer to the other girl’s puzzled glance at the windows, ‘It is the custom in Arabia to make sure that the male sex aren’t tempted to run amok with unbridled lust, and so women are hidden from their gaze at all times—hence the dark windows. I suspect that my husband will have failed to mention an important facet of your future life,’ she added. ‘Namely, that you will be living in a Harem--the women’s quarters of the palace--and from which you will seldom, if ever, be released.’ She sighed and shrugged her shoulders. ‘However--welcome to Dhoman, Miss Jackson!'
Silence fell in the car, Elizabeth digesting the information she had just been giv
en, while Leonie cuddled the sleeping form of her daughter and stared blindly out of the window. It was still night, and there was little to be seen, although she was surprised to note that they seemed to be travelling along a wide highway, brilliantly lit by modern sodium lamps; very different from the conditions under the old Sultan’s regime.
The journey seemed to take a surprisingly long time, but at last the car slowed down, the wheels crunching over gravel before the vehicle came at last to a halt. The door was jerked open, the lights dazzling their eyes as the two women descended from the Rolls.
'WOW!’ Elizabeth breathed.
Wow . . . indeed! Leonie thought, looking about her in utter confusion. Instead of the grim, grey exterior of the old fort, her startled eyes swept over a long, white, two-storied modern building. The tall windows, shaped like Moorish arches, were ablaze with light which spilled out on to the forecourt and illuminated the wide expanse of green lawn. She was staring in awed fascination at the elegant pools surrounding the mansion, whose cascading fountains were lit from below, when she saw Badyr walking slowly down the wide steps towards her, the long white robes flowing dramatically about his tall, elegant figure.
‘Ah, you have arrived at last,’ he murmured, his lips twitching with amusement at the incomprehension on her face as he led her up the stairs and into the building.
‘I don’t understand,’ she muttered. ‘What . . . I mean, what’s happened to the old palace?’
‘It has been demolished,' Badyr said flatly. ‘I decided to build a new home well outside the old town, and this is now my principal residence here in Muria. It is a definite improvement on the old palace, wouldn’t you say, hmm?’
‘I certainly would!’ Leonie gasped, looking around at the wide expanse of white marble flooring in the entrance hall, the tall elegant columns which supported the high-domed ceiling way above her head. ‘It’s absolutely beautiful--and definitely an improvement on that ghastly old fort!’
They smiled broadly at each other, Leonie forgetting for a moment her mistrust of the man beside her in the shared memories of the ancient, grimly forbidding old castle. It wasn’t until Jade gave a tired moan of protest that she had been recalled to the need to see to her daughter’s comfort.
Now, lying here in the warm scented water, Leonie’s head was still spinning as she tried to come to terms with her new environment. It was clear that Badyr hadn’t, after all, been lying about providing her with a new home. Did that also mean that he would allow her more freedom of movement as he had promised? The brief feeling of optimism which swept through her tired body was sharply and abruptly terminated a moment later. She must be out of her mind! l-low could she have possibly forgotten the scene in the aeroplane and the other firm promise--the quite definite statement he had made in London . . .?
A knock at the door interrupted her distracted thoughts, the feverish flush, which had swept through her body at the recollection of Badyr’s determination to exercise his ‘husbandly rights’, dying away as her old servant entered the room. She had been delighted to see Hussa again, a happiness fully reciprocated by the Arab woman, who had greeted her former mistress with tears of joy running down her cheeks.
‘Ah, Majesty, all has been arranged. Your clothes have been put away in the cupboards and a small meal awaits you in the other room.’ Hussa clicked her teeth as she came over and insisted on scrubbing Leonie’s back. ‘You must not stay in the bath too long. Your skin will become dry and wrinkled—and that will not please your husband, eh?’ she cackled with laughter.
'This is a wonderful new palace,’ Leonie said quickly, anxious not to discuss her relationship with Badyr. ‘Does my husband’s mother live here too?’
‘Oh, no. The Sultana Zenobia and Princess Maryam have their own palace a few miles away, and Sultana Fatima and her daughters have also been provided with a home. His Majesty has been good to his two mothers, yes? And so busy! The country has changed overnight, it seems. Yes, we are indeed blessed with our Sultan. Day and night he has laboured to make all well for his people. You cannot imagine the miles of new roads from town to town, the new hospitals and schools for the children--it is indeed a wonder what he has achieved in the last five years.’
‘Not before time!’ Leonie muttered tersely, and then immediately felt contrite. It wasn’t Badyr’s fault that the reforms so desperately needed by the Dhomani people had taken so long to be put into effect. And if what Hussa said was true, then it would be churlish of her not to give her husband full credit for all his hard work.
‘Now His Majesty will at last be truly happy with the return of his beloved wife, eh? And the little princess--so pretty, so like her father!’ Hussa gave a deep sigh as she stood up. ‘I prayed that you would not lose the baby you carried, and that the child would be born well and strong. Praise be to Allah for his mercy, and for listening to my prayers. I was so worried when you left us, so frightened. You remember how it was, eh?’ The old serving woman gave another heavy sigh, and with a stern reminder to Leonie not to remain in the bath too long, she smiled and left the room.
Leonie climbed out of the bath, drying herself with hands that shook with tension. Oh, yes, she remembered how it was--only too well! Was it any wonder that she had been frantic at having to come back to this country, so deeply unhappy at being forced to become involved with Badyr once again?
Slipping into the nightgown and matching negligee which Hussa had put out for her, Leonie tried to calm her ragged nerves. It was only because she was tired and exhausted after the long journey, on top of the strain of the last two weeks, that she was allowing herself to lose her sense of proportion. What she needed was a good sleep, she told herself firmly, ignoring the food set out in the large sitting-room as she made her way into the enormous bedroom. Too fatigued to examine her surroundings properly, she slid between the sheets and a moment later was fast asleep.
She awoke to find the sun flooding into the room through the arched windows, the gauze curtains billowing in a soft breeze from the open casements. She gazed sleepily at the soft pink walls and the rose-coloured silk curtains which surrounded the windows, and which also fell in elegant loops and swags from the decorated cornice above the enormous bed. A small sound interrupted her lazy inspection, and raising her head she saw Badyr standing in the doorway which led to the bathroom.
‘Ah, I see you are awake at last,’ he murmured, walking slowly towards her across the white marble floor. Leonie idly noticed that he must have recently had a shower, since his black hair was still damp and he was wearing nothing but a short towel about his waist.
A shaft of sunlight caught his tall lithe figure, illuminating the smooth, golden-tanned skin rippling over the muscles of his arms and broad shoulders, the light mat of dark hair covering his deep chest. The passage of time had done nothing to diminish his powerful masculine attraction, nor the shivering response that gripped her stomach as she blinked nervously up at her husband. It was only when he sat down on the bed beside her that the alarm bells began to ring in her brain, breaking through the sleep-drugged mists of her mind with loud, strident urgency.
‘What time is it?’ she muttered, desperately trying to pull herself together.
‘It is now ten in the morning, sleepy-head,’ he smiled, his hand moving forward to toy with one of the tendrils of her long curly hair.
‘Oh, my goodness! What about Jade?’ She struggled to sit up. ‘I must go and see to her immediately, I . . .’
‘Be calm, my beloved, there is no need to worry She has had her breakfast, and is now having her first riding lesson under the competent supervision of my Uncle Feisal and Miss Jackson.’
Leonie’s nerves had begun to tingle at the soft emphasis he had placed on the endearment, a tide of crimson sweeping over her face as the gleaming dark eyes roamed slowly over the semi-nudity of her thin silk nightgown.
‘It’s very late. Oh, dear, I .. . um . . . I don’t know how I could have slept so long. I must . . . yes, I must get up and . . . a
nd get dressed,' she babbled, inching away from his tall, dominant figure.
‘No, I don’t think so, not just at the moment,’ he drawled with soft mockery, his eyes glinting with sardonic amusement. ‘I have . . . er . . . other plans for the next hour or two!’
‘N-no . . .!’ she stammered, giving up all attempts to pretend that she didn’t fully understand his intentions. ‘Please, no, Badyr. You . . . you don’t really want me--you know you don’t! There must be thousands of other women who . . .’
‘Do not insult me, or yourself, Leonie. I can assure you that I know exactly what I want!’
The amusement had died from his face. His penetrating gaze, hard and unwavering, sent shock waves spiralling down her spine as she recognised the ruthless determination in the chilly depths of his dark eyes.
‘No! Please--No . . . !’ she gasped, attempting to scramble away across the bed, her progress abruptly halted as Badyr caught hold of her wrist in an iron grip.