It was a beautiful November day: The sun was bright and the temperature was a moderate seventy degrees. The climate, the foliage and the ranch animals were all as familiar to Cara as her own heartbeat.
She’d been born here on the Carson ranch and raised by her parents, Grace and Ford. For all her twenty-seven years she’d been completely happy here. She’d been surrounded not only by the love of her family, but also by the beautiful land that had made them prosperous.
But in the past year she’d felt a growing, vague sense of dissatisfaction, a dissatisfaction that had exploded into utter unhappiness three days before the last school year ended.
She hungered for something new…something different. She was tired of Texas and the predictable life she had built for herself.
She entered the house, grateful that she didn’t encounter anyone as she made her way up the stairway and toward Fiona’s suite of rooms.
It was obvious that Fiona had packed in a hurry for her impromptu trip to Paris. Clothes were strewn on top of the unmade bed and across a chair, and Cara knew it wouldn’t be long before one of the maids came in to make sense out of the disorder her sister had left behind.
She went directly to the huge walk-in closet and eyed the selection. There was no doubt about it, Fiona was a clotheshorse. Formals, tea-length dresses, riding habits and sportswear—she had clothing for every occasion imaginable.
It took Cara only a few minutes to choose several casual outfits and two more formal dresses; then, with the clothing in her arms, she headed out of the bedroom.
“Fiona?”
Her mother’s familiar voice stopped Cara in her tracks. She turned, and her mother smiled.
“Oh, Cara, it’s you. I thought for a moment your sister had cut short her trip.”
“No, I just decided to borrow a few of her things. She called me this morning and told me it would be all right for me to wear some of her clothes.”
Grace Carson looked far too young to be the mother not only of twenty-seven-year-old twins, but also the mother of two strapping sons in their thirties, Matt and Flynt.
She now eyed her daughter curiously. “I’ve never known you to be particularly interested in borrowing your sister’s clothing,” she observed.
“I just felt like something different…something a little more colorful, a little more stylish than what I normally wear.”
Grace held Cara’s gaze and crossed her arms over her plump chest. “Does this have anything to do with the male species? Usually when a woman has her hair restyled or buys new clothes, it means a new man in her life.”
Cara hesitated. “It’s Sheik Omar Al Abdar,” she blurted out, as a blush heated her cheeks. “I hadn’t mentioned it before, but for the past year he and I have been writing each other. He arrived in town yesterday to see me.”
Grace smiled. “That’s wonderful, dear. You spend far too much time cooped up in that cottage. Be sure to bring him around to see your father and me. We’ll show him some of our famous Texan hospitality.”
“Mother…” Cara began. “The sheik…he’s very formal. He calls me Elizabeth, and I would appreciate it if you and Daddy would call me Elizabeth when you’re in his presence.”
A frown tugged at Grace’s plump, pretty features, and once again she studied Cara. “I’m not going to ask questions, Cara. You’re an adult and I trust your judgment, but…”
She knew. Somehow Cara’s mother knew something wasn’t quite right. “Everything is fine,” Cara assured her. “I know what I’m doing.”
Of course, I really have no idea what I’m doing, Cara thought a moment later as she left the main house and headed back to her cottage.
All she knew was that somehow she’d already made the decision to give herself more time… Just a little more time. Then she’d tell Omar the truth.
Omar handed Rashad his suit jacket just before he and Elizabeth were set to take off for their walk around Carson Ranch.
It was just after noon and the sun overhead was bright and beat warmly on his broad shoulders, but he noticed only how it played in her hair, teasing out impish tones of red and gold in the dark brown strands.
“Rashad will wait here with the car where there is a phone,” he said to her, then frowned apologetically. “I’m afraid that my negotiations are at a crisis stage and I cannot be away from a phone for too long.”
Elizabeth nodded and smiled at Omar’s aide. “Rashad, if you or the others get thirsty or anything, please feel free to go into the cottage and help yourself.” The “others” were the driver of the car and two bodyguards.
Rashad gave a formal bow. “Your hospitality is most appreciated, but I will be fine here.”
“Shall we begin the tour?” Omar asked as he took her hand in his. He smiled at her. “Although I would be just as content to stand here and look at you all day long. You look like a piece of sunshine.”
He was granted one of her beautiful smiles. “Thank you,” she replied.
It was true. Wearing yellow slacks and a matching blouse, she looked beautifully vibrant. The bright color emphasized the richness of her dark hair, and the cut of the clothes complemented her shapeliness.
“I don’t wear yellow very often,” she explained as they began walking away from her cottage.
“You should. It becomes you. I’ll see to it that you have a dozen outfits in that color when we are married.”
Her eyes seemed to flirt with him as she cast him a sideways glance. “You’re very sure of yourself, considering the fact that I haven’t agreed to marry you yet.”
“Ah, but you will.” He squeezed her hand lightly. “I will see to it that you find me utterly irresistible. There are women in Gaspar that find me so.”
She eyed him again, her eyes twinkling. “Perhaps they have lower standards than I do.”
He laughed, delighted that she could not only meet his wit, but challenge it, as well. “Then, for you, I will simply try harder.”
As they walked toward the outbuildings in the distance, Elizabeth shot a quick glance behind them. “Do they go everywhere that you do?” she asked.
He knew she was speaking of the bodyguards who followed behind them at a discreet distance. “I am only without them when I am in my private quarters in Gaspar. That is one of the things you would have to become accustomed to as my wife—the presence of guards in your life.”
She nodded thoughtfully. “I’m sure life in Gaspar would be far different from life here in Texas.” She pulled her hand from his in order to open a gate that led to a pasture.
As they walked through the lush green grass dotted with wildflowers, she shared with him some of the history of the ranch.
He listened with interest as she explained to him about Big Bill Carson and J. P. Wainwright, who had met on a cattle-buying trip in 1898 and become good friends. In 1923 the two families had founded the Lone Star Country Club.
When the large herd of cattle came into view, Omar was surprised at how knowledgeable she was about the breeding, buying and selling process.
While he found the conversation interesting, far more fascinating to him were the expressions on her lovely face as she spoke. She had a face made for storytelling, expressive and animated. It was easy for him to imagine her entertaining their children with stories of her days in the faraway land of Texas.
“I’ll bet you were a wonderful teacher,” he said, as they paused to rest for a few minutes in the shade of a small grove of trees.
“Why do you say that?” She leaned with her back against a tree trunk.
Omar stood directly in front of her and braced himself with a hand on the trunk next to her head. “Your face lights up when you speak of things you care about. You must have generated a lot of enthusiasm among your students.”
“I liked teaching.” Shadows momentarily doused the light in her eyes.
He fought the impulse to reach out and stroke the shiny length of her hair. Instead he eyed her curiously. “You never told me why you decid
ed to take some time off from your teaching position.”
A frown creased her delicate forehead, and she gazed off into the distance. When she finally looked at him once again, the shadows in her eyes were deeper, darker.
“It was three days before the end of the school year,” she finally said. “The bell had just rung for the end of the last class of the day, and the students were all leaving the building. I was gathering up my things, also getting ready to head home, when Donny Albright burst into my room.”
She paused, and once again looked off into the distance. “And who is Donny Albright?” Omar asked.
She sighed, a deep, tremulous sigh that made Omar want to sweep her up into his arms and hold her against his chest. At the moment she looked achingly vulnerable.
“He was a senior, a troubled young man. But until that day none of us realized just how troubled he was.” She reached up and tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Anyway, when he came into the room, he was distraught, crying and yelling so that I couldn’t understand what was wrong. I finally managed to get out of him that he’d failed his math class and wasn’t going to graduate.”
She pushed herself away from the tree trunk and gestured to Omar that she wanted to walk once again. He grabbed one of her hands, surprised to find it bone cold and trembling slightly. “What happened?”
“Donny wanted me to speak to Mr. McNair, his math teacher. He wanted me to get McNair to change his final grade. When I told Donny I couldn’t do that, he pulled out a gun. He held me at gunpoint for three hours before I finally talked him into giving up to the police, who by then had surrounded the building.”
Horror shot through Omar, and he halted in his tracks, drew her against his chest and wrapped his arms around her. He couldn’t imagine the terror she must have gone through.
She leaned into his embrace, as if gathering strength from his arms. The clean scent of her hair filled his senses, and he tried not to focus on the evocative sensation of her warm breasts pressed against his chest.
“You must have been terrified,” he murmured as he ran a hand up and down her slender back.
She sighed once again, then stepped back from him, and they continued to walk. “It’s funny, I wasn’t frightened while it was all happening. I never believed Donny would actually shoot me. What I worried about more was Donny getting hurt by the police.”
The fact that she had been concerned for the boy impressed Omar. “If that had happened to you in Gaspar, I would have thrown the boy into a dungeon.”
“Do you have dungeons in Gaspar?” she asked.
“No, but I would build one specifically for people who threatened the safety of what belongs to me, for people who would attempt to harm you.”
Her eyes brightened, and she smiled at him. “While I don’t necessarily approve of the method, I appreciate the sentiment.” Her smile fell away. “Besides, Donny didn’t need a dungeon. He needed help. We learned later that both his parents were severe alcoholics and that Donny had spent the previous two years raising his three younger sisters. He was frantic about his diploma because he was certain without it he wouldn’t be able to get a good job, and he was trying to save up enough money to take his sisters and leave his parents.”
“A sad affair,” he replied. “However, I can understand why you were reluctant to return to the school.”
“Actually, I returned the next day and finished out the school year and thought I was fine.” Again the shadows appeared in her eyes.
“But you weren’t fine.”
She shook her head, dark strands flying on either side of her heart-shaped face. “I think for a couple of days I was kind of in shock, then I started having nightmares about the whole thing. The nightmares don’t come as often anymore, just occasionally. But I made the decision that I didn’t want to go back this year.”
“I don’t blame you. I’m sure the idea of entering that building again must be difficult.”
“That isn’t why I decided not to go back.”
He looked at her in surprise. “Then, why?”
She waited until they had left the pasture and she’d carefully locked the gate behind them before she replied.
“I think that whole incident with Donny made me realize just how short life is, that it can be taken away from you in the snap of a finger. I just decided I wanted to take some time off and enjoy life to the fullest.”
“Ah, so what you seek is a confirmation of life,” he observed.
“Yes, something like that,” she agreed.
He grinned at her teasingly. “They say the best way of doing that is to make love.”
Her cheeks warmed with sweet color. “I wouldn’t know about that.”
He looked at her in surprise. “You have never made love?” he asked incredulously.
She raised her chin. “Well, it certainly hasn’t been from lack of opportunity,” she exclaimed defensively.
“I wouldn’t have dreamed anything to the contrary,” he replied with amusement. “I just assumed in this day and age that you had enjoyed an intimate relationship before.”
They had almost reached the cottage, where his car was parked out front. “I guess I’m more old-fashioned than I pretend. Besides, I simply haven’t met the right man,” she said.
Omar pulled her into his arms once again, enjoying the way her eyes flared in surprise. “You have met him now, Elizabeth. I will be the man who will introduce you to the pleasures of making love.”
“Omar…”
Whatever she was about to say was drowned out by Rashad yelling his name and holding up the phone. Omar frowned, torn between his desire to spend more time with Elizabeth and the duty that called him yet again.
“I must take that,” he said. “Rashad would not have called me if it wasn’t an important call.”
She nodded, and he hurried to where Rashad stood and took the cell phone. The call required Omar to return to his hotel room, where he had the paperwork required to deal with the problem. He hung up the phone and went back to where Elizabeth waited.
“I am so sorry,” he said. “I’m afraid I must return to the hotel room to attend to some business.”
“Of course, I understand,” she said, but he thought he saw a whisper of disappointment in her eyes. He leaned forward and pressed his lips to her forehead. “Dine with me tonight?”
“I’d love to,” she replied.
“Good, then I will send the car for you around seven.”
“I’ll be ready.”
How he wanted to gather her back into his arms and taste the sweetness of her lips. But he knew now was not the time or the place.
“She is perfect,” he said to Rashad moments later, when they were driving back to the hotel. “She is perfect, just like I knew she would be. I have made a wise and good choice.”
He stared out the window, thinking of the woman he’d just left, then looked back at Rashad. “She is intelligent and sensitive and has a compassion inside her that will make her valuable not only to me as a man, but to my country as my queen.”
“And it doesn’t hurt that she is not hard to look at,” Rashad said slyly.
Omar grinned at his assistant and friend. “No, that certainly doesn’t hurt.”
He redirected his gaze out the window, his thoughts once again filled with Elizabeth. He liked her even more than he’d thought he would. He’d known from her letters that there were many things he admired, but he hadn’t expected to enjoy her company quite as much as he did.
Of course, his feelings for her would never deepen into anything remotely resembling love. His father, Sheik Abdul Al Abdar, had warned him from an early age that love took away a man’s power, made him look dependent and weak in the eyes of his countrymen.
Love was out of the question—but desire certainly wasn’t, and the thought that Elizabeth had never been with a man before stirred Omar with anticipation.
If he could seduce her tonight, he had a feeling she would easily succumb to his
wishes that she marry him.
He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, planning the seduction of the lovely Elizabeth Fiona Carson.
In a jungle in a rain forest in the Central American country of Mezcaya, Luke Callaghan leaned his head back against a tree trunk, closed his eyes and for a moment imagined he was back home in Texas.
The sound of distant gunfire, the buzz of the infernal mosquitoes and the exhausting humidity seemed to fade away as he thought of home.
Luke had grown up on an estate twenty miles north of Mission Creek. Orphaned at seven, he’d been left an amount of money that made him a millionaire many times over, but he’d never cared much about the money.
The military had provided the family Luke had wanted, and now at the age of thirty-four he had achieved his desire. He was a double agent, working for the military in a position so secretive even his best friends didn’t know about it.
He smiled grimly and raked a hand over his jaw as he thought of his buddies back home.
They would all probably think he was off on another party jaunt, wining and dining women all over the world. None of them would believe that he was in a stinking jungle fighting terrorists.
His mouth watered as he thought of a rack of ribs dripping with barbecue sauce. Ribs and a cold beer—that was the first thing he’d order when he got back to Texas.
If he ever got out of this infernal jungle alive.
Four
For the first time in her life, Cara felt just a little bit like Fiona as she stared at her reflection in the mirror. The red silk dress she’d borrowed from Fiona’s closet, and now wore, made her feel flirty and sexy and desirable. Or was it Omar who made her feel that way?
She had spent the afternoon after he’d left, playing and replaying in her mind the entire time with him. Each time he’d looked at her with those beautiful dark eyes of his, she had felt a shiver of excitement. For in his eyes she’d seen desire.
When she’d told him about her trouble at school and he’d pulled her into his arms, she’d wanted to remain standing there forever.
Promised to a Sheik Page 4