“Is he still alive?”
“Alive and well and has the second-largest number of semiconductor patents in the USA. He’s on his fifth or sixth wife. I’ve lost count. Luckily, he makes enough money to support all of them. I couldn’t wait until I got old enough to support myself and get off the payroll.”
Zadir crouched, still listening. “Your mother is still alive?”
“Yes. If you can call it that. She rarely leaves her Upper West Side apartment. In fact, she spends most of the day in bed popping prescription pills. She was a singing star for about twenty minutes around the time she met my dad, but she lost all interest in working once he began to pay for everything.”
“So she probably wasn’t the greatest parent in the world, either.”
She grimaced. “Not by a long shot. Lucky for me, I had a good nanny for some of my formative years, and I learned to depend on my own resources at an early age.”
“Damn, your childhood sounds almost as fun as mine. Did you go to boarding school?”
“Of course.” She smiled ruefully. “Boarding school is the salvation of wealthy and neglectful parents. I went to Smithson Ladies Academy in Foxton, Connecticut, which was an ongoing contest for who had the most expensive designer toys. How about you?”
“Eton. Not so different but pretty fun all the same.”
“Were you there with Prince Harry?”
He nodded, blue eyes sparkling. “And he’s every bit as wild as the newspaper stories would have you believe.”
“I suspect you are, too.” She said it with a joking tone, half hoping he’d contradict her. His reputation as a ladies man might be just a rumor.
“Probably.” His mischievous grin confirmed her worst fears. “But now that I’m a monarch with a reputation to protect I’ve turned over a new leaf. I’m sober as a judge and twice as dull.” He rose from the floor and sat in the pilot’s chair.
“I find that hard to believe.” Especially since he was flirting with her right now. She wasn’t going to fall under his spell like all those other silly girls. “You must have more women after you than ever now you’re going to be a king.”
“The funny part is that I have to marry one in order to take the throne. It was one of the conditions of my father’s will.”
“Why would he do that?”
“To make us all settle down, I suppose. But he seems more than a little hypocritical, considering how he treated the institution of marriage. I’m sure he thought his wives were the ones with the problems. To tell you the truth, my father’s behavior has always scared me off marriage.”
“You’re afraid you’ll grow bored and want out?”
“Who isn’t? Forever is a very long time.”
“You’ll feel differently when you fall in love. At least that’s what everyone says.”
“But you don’t believe it.” He leaned back in the chair.
“I don’t intend to place my happiness in anyone else’s hands.” She sat in the copilot’s seat. “I’m quite happy with my work.”
“Your buildings are your children.” He looked curious.
“I suppose they are, yes.”
“I do want to have kids. I enjoy the energy and enthusiasm they bring, and I suspect they could teach me as much as I’d teach them. I’ve been thinking more about it lately.” He looked around the quiet cockpit, and she knew they were both thinking the same thing. They’d be lucky to ever get out of here and live long enough to have a child.
“Every now and then I think it might be wonderful to have a baby, to try to give them the happy, warm childhood I’ve always longed for. But what if I’m even worse than my own parents?” She sighed.
“You’d be a good mother. I can tell.”
She laughed, trying to pretend his pointless comment didn’t mean anything to her.
“How? You barely know me.”
“You’re a planner. You plan things and craft them. You’d create a wonderful childhood for them.”
“But people aren’t like buildings. They have their own spirit and character and might resist every effort of mine to raise them the way I intend.”
He laughed now. “So true. I suppose you can only do your best and hope it all works out.”
“Too risky for me.” She pretended to stretch. Really, she wanted to hide the uncomfortable flash of emotion that roamed through her at the thought that she was too cautious to risk a real family.
“Everything’s a risk. You took a flight from Dubai to Bahrain and ended up flying off course into a desert.”
“I guess I should have taken that commission to build a family compound outside Dallas.”
“It would have been safer.”
“But boring. I’d have hated myself for doing it.”
“And you’d have missed out on meeting me.” His slow smile tripped something inside her. “I won’t say I’m glad we’re here, but I am glad we’re together.”
“I hope we’re not going to die together.”
“I don’t think we are.” His smile broadened. “I believe I’ve fixed the radio.”
“What?” She leaped forward. Why was he flirting with her when they could be calling for help?
He handed her the headphones, and she tucked them over her ears. “Why can’t I hear anything?”
“Listen.”
She pricked her ears and heard a low-grade hum of static barely distinguishable from the rattle of the sandstorm outside. “Do we have to be on a particular channel to call for help?”
“I know we need to be on VHF, but I don’t know what frequency. There should be a flight manual right here with the information, but the pilot must have removed it. Let’s try turning the dial and seeing if we can raise anyone.”
They held the headset between them, so close she could almost feel the heat of his breath, and she turned the dial slowly. When they heard a muffled voice, speaking in Arabic, they stared at each other. Zadir cleared his throat, pressed the mic button and spoke into the microphone. “Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.”
5
“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday.” Zadir’s voice rang out again in the tiny cockpit. The speaker on the radio continued the whole time he was talking and didn’t stop afterward.
She pressed the earpiece to her ear, hoping for a response. “I don’t think he can hear you. What is he saying?”
“It’s a prayer.”
“We need a prayer. Try again.”
He repeated it three times, then she tried, but the man never paused in his recitation of the prayer. Panic tightened her throat. “Do you think the mic is broken?”
“Let’s try to find another channel.” He fiddled with the dial, repeating the Mayday signal with each turn. Three more times they heard a voice, but it seemed as if no one could hear them. Shoulders hunched together, they tried for over an hour, taking turns to repeat the international plea for help, until they were both hoarse. The ridiculous proximity to Zadir and his intoxicating male aroma would have been enough to drive her mad, but it was even more frustrating to hear people out there, sitting somewhere out there in the civilized world, who could help them out of this nightmarish bind if they could only make contact.
She felt a tear roll down her cheek as they reached the end of the dial for the third time. “No one can hear us.”
“We need to rest. There’s no sense getting exhausted and wound up. Maybe sleep will give us a fresh idea to try in the morning.”
They made their way back into the cabin and drank some water. She offered him some of her food, but neither of them had an appetite. Zadir folded all the chairs in their row down so that there was a flat double bed on either side of the aisle.
“This is very luxurious under the circumstances, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to sleep.”
“Me either.” He spread a blanket over the makeshift bed on her side of the aisle. “But we need to take a break and maybe some inspiration will come to us.”
“I don’t think inspiration will do us much good
out here. And the sandstorm is louder than ever.” Sand rasped against the windows in gusts.
“We’re still alive and in good health and spirits.” He stood directly in front of her and placed his hands on her upper arms, which heated the skin there. “This plane was intended to crash without us being aware that the pilot was gone, so we’re already ahead of the game. Now we’ve fixed the radio. Tomorrow we’ll have another breakthrough.”
“Tomorrow is the wedding. I wonder if anyone’s noticed we’re not there.”
“I guarantee Najib has noticed his best man is AWOL.” He stroked her cheek. The gesture made her inhale sharply. “He’ll start calling around to see what’s happened to me. Eventually they’ll find out that our plane never arrived at the airport. As long as the water holds out, we can stay safely here for days.”
Her stomach tightened at the prospect of being trapped here for days on end. But it was so much better than the alternative. “What if no one ever finds us?”
“They will. You have to believe that.” Now his thumb roamed to her mouth and stroked her lower lip. “We both have a lot of things left to accomplish. You designing my palace, for example.”
“And your town. Honestly that’s more compelling to me.” Why not be truthful? It wasn’t likely to happen anyway.
“Why stop at a town? I think it should be a city.” He leaned in close enough for her to smell the scent of his skin, masculine and reassuring.
“A whole city? That will take a long time.”
“It could be a lifetime’s work. You don’t think that Baron Haussmann redesigned Paris overnight, do you?”
“I suspect he had a lot of assistants.” A smile crept across her mouth in spite of her misgivings. He was far too close to her again, and the way he kept touching her was doing something to her brain. Or to her body. Or both. “I do love the idea of designing a city. One that perfectly fits its environment and makes the most of its natural resources.” She was trying to distract herself from looking at his mouth by thinking about design. Solar panels to take advantage of the sun, subterranean aqueducts to irrigate the desert, masonry walls to regulate heat…. It wasn’t working. His mouth moved closer to hers, and she felt frozen in place.
Except that she was melting. His lips lowered over hers very slowly, so she could have moved away or stopped him with a hand on his chest or a turn of her head. But she didn’t. Their mouths met and her eyes closed as a gust of sensation shook her.
His hand settled on her hip, steadying her, and her fingers rose to touch the bare skin of his back. Warm and supple, his thick muscle soothed and stirred her. He felt so strong and capable, able to land a plane in the wilderness and bring sabotaged equipment back to life. He’d get them out of here, she was sure of it.
His arms closed tighter around her back, pulling her against his hard chest. She kissed him with conviction, wanting to lose herself in this moment of madness and forget where they were and why.
Arousal snapped through her, stronger than she could ever remember, and her fingers slid lower, to explore the waistband of his pants at the base of his spine. Her nipples tightened beneath her thin shirt, crushed against his pecs. She felt his erection thicken against her, and that finally stirred her enough to pull back and stop this runaway freight train.
“This is not a good idea.” She blinked. Even the tiny dots of light along the ceiling now seemed too bright.
“I beg to differ.” He still held her in his powerful arms, though an inch of steam-heated air now hung between them. “I’m confident we both feel better already.”
“We’re just losing our minds because of the stress of being stuck here.”
“My mind is clear as the Arabian Sea.” He looked at her, a smile in his ocean-blue eyes. “And kissing you is the most sensible thing I’ve done this year.”
She almost believed him. He had that kind of charm and charisma. No doubt it had worked on many women before her. “It’s late and we’re tired.”
“Suddenly I’m not tired at all.” His teeth flashed in a grin.
She reflected it back. His enthusiasm was infectious. “I can tell.” She’d felt his arousal. “But we’d regret it in the morning.”
“No we wouldn’t.” He spoke softly but firmly and laid another kiss across her lips like an offering. Her body hummed with signals telling her to grab this man and hold on tight. Which wasn’t her style at all! She hadn’t even been on a date in over a year.
She kissed him back, unable to stop her lips from responding. Now his hands roamed to her backside, which he caressed, then to her waist and under her light shirt where they pressed gently into her skin.
A shiver of raw arousal ricocheted up her torso, and she pressed herself against him again. She was hungry for the feel of his skin against hers. She pulled her mouth from his with effort. “I think some primal survival instinct is taking hold of me.”
“Me, too. Don’t they say you should always trust your gut?”
“I don’t think it’s my gut that was talking.” The area yelling at her was several inches lower and grew hotter and more insistent by the moment. His erection pressed against her, hard as steel. “It’s another part that usually gets people into trouble.”
He chuckled. “You’re not going to believe this, but I have condoms in my bag.”
“I believe it.” He probably never went anywhere without them, just in case.
He fixed that potent blue gaze on her. “I don’t sleep with every woman I meet, you know.”
“Only every other woman?” she quipped.
“Only a woman that I feel a strong connection with. You feel it too, Ronnie. I can tell.”
She drew in an unsteady breath. “I feel something, alright. Though I’m not sure what.”
He kissed her again. His tongue thrust in to joust with hers and sent a ripple of electricity to her toes. Her hands had somehow snuck into his jeans and cupped his curved backside with gusto. She didn’t usually give in to instinct, but right now that seemed the only possibility.
He stroked her cheek. “You’re brilliant and beautiful, and for once I’m glad we’re trapped here together.” He unbuttoned her shirt swiftly—it wasn’t even the first time her blouse had been off that day—and touched her breast through her bra. Her nipple tightened and she suppressed a gasp.
“You’re handsome and charming and I’m sure I’ll regret this, but…” She unbuttoned his jeans and lowered the zipper. With some more tugging and writhing they were both naked on the unfolded luxury seats of the private jet, rolling Zadir’s condom on over his impressive erection.
Desire dimmed her doubts and fired her enthusiasm as they wound their naked bodies together, exploring and enjoying each other. He entered her carefully, working his way in gently as she opened up for him and softened in his arms. It felt so wrong—but so good—to let go of her fears, to let herself be swept away by this powerful man.
He guided them in a hypnotic rhythm that made her moan against her will. When she heard the sound of her voice in the sand-swept hush of the cabin, she wondered for a second if she’d totally lost her mind. The answer was simple: of course she had, but there was nothing she could do about that now except surrender to the passion of the moment.
They moved together, sometimes her leading the rhythm and sometimes him. At one point, she climbed on top and brought them both to the very brink of climax, then she slowed the pace and pulled back, prolonging the bliss as long as she could, as if this was the last pleasure they’d have.
Which, given the circumstances, was a distinct possibility. The sudden memory of their grim predicament made her grip him with added force and soon their orgasms propelled them both into an abyss of ecstasy.
Damp with perspiration, panting and shuddering with the aftershocks of their release, they held on tight to each other.
“We probably shouldn’t have let ourselves sweat out precious water.” Her voice was a raspy whisper.
“I’ll lick it back off you.” He fla
shed a cheeky glance from where he lay next to her.
Her belly shook with laughter. Could something that felt so good—and that had released the tension racking her body—really be wrong? She pushed her fingers through his silky hair, feeling affectionate toward this handsome and resourceful man. She didn’t want to be anywhere else but in his arms right now.
Though she wouldn’t mind being in his arms safe in a comfortable hotel in Bahrain. But if the crash hadn’t happened they would have continued the flight without exchanging more than a few pleasantries to each other. He’d never have learned that she was an architect who could design not only his palace but an entire new world for him.
The first misgivings hit her like raindrops falling from a cloud. If she wanted the commission so badly she should never have slept with him. This man was a king, for crying out loud, or soon would be, and he was hardly likely to want a relationship with an American commoner. Their intimacy would be an embarrassment and any attempt at professional relations would be awkward and impossible.
By sleeping with him she’d probably lost out on the commission of a lifetime.
“You’re breathing hard.” His deep voice tugged her from her thoughts.
“I’m a bit overwhelmed right now.”
“Understandable.” He stroked her hair, pushing it gently off her forehead. “But I suspect that you’ll be able to sleep and everything will seem more doable in the morning. I think the sandstorm is dying down already.”
She listened hard and could barely hear the sand flying against the metal skin of the airplane. “That would be a relief. Though I hope it hasn’t buried the plane.”
“If it has, we’ll dig it out. We have plenty of water left, and we’ll be good here for a few days. My instincts—the same ones that told me to make love with you—tell me that we’ll be rescued tomorrow.” He removed the condom in the plane bathroom. They really did have every convenience here. It was kind of funny.
“How?” She wanted to laugh at his confidence, even if it was fake.
“Either we’ll raise someone on a radio, or figure out another way to send a distress call from the plane, or they’ll send out a search party and spot us.”
A Taste of Heaven (Billionaires' Secrets Book 3) Page 18