His eyes narrowed. “What is it?”
Savannah recognized that stubborn look and knew she either had to make something up that he might believe or tell him the truth. Since she hated lying to him, she went with the truth.
“I was…just wondering if…” she trailed off, took another deep breath, then just blurted, “I was wondering if you’d like to come to my graduation ceremony. It’s just…I know it’s silly. I wasn’t even going to attend, but I sort of…well, I’ve sort of won an award for my grades and a design competition and my advisor warned me that I really should attend. It’s really nothing. I might just bail on it anyway but…well, if you’d like to come, I have a ticket for you.” She tried very hard to feign a casual attitude. She couldn’t quite manage to look into his eyes as she held her breath, waiting for his response. Would he think she was silly? Would he come up with an excuse as to why he had more important things to do?
She waited, still keeping her eyes lowered for fear that he’d see how important this was to her. Even as she told herself that it wasn’t important to her. It wasn’t. Not really. It was just…well, it was a silly event. It didn’t matter if she showed up. And if she showed up and no one was there to watch her receive that award, then so what? She’d still get the stupid award and she’d still…
“You want me at your graduation ceremony?” he asked, his voice soft, but with a raspy, sexy tone.
Savannah looked up at the strange tone in his voice. “Would you…want to attend?” she asked, her stomach tightening with dread.
He pulled her into his arms, holding her close. “I would be honored to attend your graduation, Savannah.” And with that, he scooped her up and carried her to his bed. There, he stripped off her clothes with no-nonsense determination, surveying her with primal desire.
“You’re mine,” he told her as he dropped her shirt on the floor. “You’re all mine!”
After that announcement, he proceeded to prove it to her, kissing every inch of her body, paying special attention to the spots he knew drove her wild. He wouldn’t let her touch him, keeping her hands pinned above her head or, as his mouth moved lower, against her sides. He kissed, teased, and tortured her neck, her breasts, sucking on her nipples until she screamed, almost climaxing with the tension of his mouth on one breast while his other hand teased the other.
Since he held her hands firmly away from his body, she could only react with her legs, she wrapped them around his waist, pressing against him in a desperate effort to have him fill her, take her to that climax that she craved so desperately. But he wasn’t in a hurry to get there. His mouth and hands were relentless as they moved lower and lower, teasing, tempting, and tormenting her with his gentle touch.
“Please!” she gasped, but he didn’t relent, continuing to explore her body at his leisurely pace. When his mouth finally moved over that spot, hovering, she felt as if she might splinter into a zillion pieces!
He laughed and caressed that nub with his tongue. Not with enough pressure to send her over the edge, but just enough to make her body writhe under his hold. “This isn’t fair!”
His tongue lashed at her sensitive flesh. “Why should it be?”
He teased those light, butterscotch curls, one finger sliding into her heat. She rolled her hips, trying to get his fingers to where she needed the pressure. But after all the nights in his arms, he knew what she needed and he wasn’t going to give it to her!
“Damn you!” she cried out, as he chuckled.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered.
Savannah lifted her head to watch him watch her and she wanted to close her legs or…she had no idea. “Just…stop, Gaelen!”
“You don’t really want me to stop,” he pointed out and he leaned forward, giving her exactly what she wanted. And oh boy, did he give her what she wanted. Over and over, he brought her body right to the edge of that cliff only to have him pull away before she could tumble over. She was screaming by the time he pressed into her heat. All the way, deep into her body and Savannah wasn’t prepared for the invasion. Her body was so primed, she climaxed almost at once. He released her hands and she clung to him as he drove into her over and over again, bringing her to another roaring climax. And then another before he finally found his own release.
By that time, Savannah was a rag doll, so overwhelmed with the three orgasms that she couldn’t even wrap her arms around him as he pulled her close, a satisfied smile on his handsome features. Savannah wanted to snuggle closer, but her body was limp. Instead, she sighed with contentment when he draped her body over his exactly how he wanted her.
“You’re horrible,” she whispered, as she fell asleep.
Gaelen watched as Savannah’s soft lashes fluttered closed, a deep sense of satisfaction settling in his chest. This was his woman, he thought, tightening his arm around her gently, needing to feel her against him. He didn’t wake her up, even though he wanted to talk to her, settle things between them. Her invitation to attend her graduation had been the signal that he’d unconsciously been waiting for. The moment when he knew that she’d accepted him as her man.
Staring up at the ceiling, he planned things out. Her graduation was next week. He’d propose to her that night. After dinner, he thought. A celebration dinner. He’d buy her the biggest diamond ring he could find. No, not the biggest. Savannah was too low key to wear a massive diamond. Besides, she was too delicate for a big ring. A small ring, but one that was perfect, just like her.
He’d watch her walk across the stage and accept her diploma and he’d cheer the loudest when she accepted this award that she’d been so secretive about. Hell, he hadn’t even known that she’d entered a design in any competition. Why hadn’t she told him about it before now?
It didn’t matter. She’d asked him to be with her during her graduation. The competition had probably taken place weeks ago. Maybe even months. It didn’t matter if it was just yesterday, she wanted him to be there for her. That was all that mattered.
He’d watch her graduate, then take her out to dinner. He’d toast her accomplishments with champagne, then he’d bring her back here and make love to her until she was…he smiled as he looked down at her. The phrase ‘limp with pleasure’ came to mind. Yes, he’d make love to her until she was limp, then he’d propose. Or maybe he’d just slip the ring on her finger. He liked that idea. He knew that she felt very strongly for him, although her exact feelings were a bit of a mystery. Did she love him?
Yes. She must. She wouldn’t have asked him to attend her graduation if she wasn’t in love with him.
After working everything out in his mind, he pulled her closer, kissed the top of her head and then fell asleep, certain that they would have a good life together.
Chapter 11
“No! I can’t right now!” Gaelen snapped, glancing at his watch. He had less than two hours before Savannah’s graduation started.
“He attacked the southern border, Gaelen!” Amit snapped.
Gaelen could picture his brother pacing across his office, fury in every step. He could also picture Harper standing off to the side, wondering when to step in and smooth thing out.
“I have something…!” he paused, closing his eyes. He couldn’t leave his country vulnerable like this! Allaena, this timing sucked! “Why would Santos attack now? He and I have been talking over the past several weeks. The peace negotiations have been going well and…” he paused before he said something really stupid. Like that he almost respected the bastard. “Amit, this doesn’t make any sense!”
“I agree!” he roared back. “And yet, the evidence is pretty damn clear!”
He shook his head. “No! I don’t believe it. There’s been nothing in our conversations that would cause this. He’s not like that! And besides, he has too much to gain. All of the concessions he’s given to Izara are mirrored in equal contributions to his country. Santos wouldn’t do this now!”
“What? Are you friends with the bastard now?”
�
�Hell no!” Gaelen yelled back furiously. “Santos is a bastard in every way. But…” he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “He’s a straightforward bastard, Amit. We’ve been talking and this just doesn’t seem like him. Something’s not right.”
Amit huffed and there was a world of emotions in that single puff of air. “Yeah? Then get your ass back here and figure out what the hell is going on! Because I’m about to counter attack and I won’t be as reserved!”
With that, Amit ended the call and Gaelen almost threw his phone across the room. Yes, he had to leave in order to sort this out. But how could he tell Savannah? He couldn’t reveal what was going on. This issue was top secret. She might inadvertently say something to the wrong person. Especially at an event with so many people around. Too many times, a casual comment had been overheard by a passerby and…well, things tended to escalate when inadvertent leaks happened.
He couldn’t risk it. Damn it…why now? What the hell was Santos thinking?! Pacing back and forth, he tried to process what he knew. Unfortunately, he didn’t have enough information.
With a sigh of frustration, he called his aides. “Tell Santos that we need to meet immediately.” He glanced at his watch. “In the next hour, if possible.” Maybe if they met fast enough, he could get some answers and still make it to Savannah’s graduation ceremony!
Two hours later, Gaelen paced back and forth across the carpet of the conference room, grinding his teeth as fury continued to boil inside of him. “Are you seriously going to sit there and tell me that you didn’t attack Izara, despite growing evidence that you did?”
Sheik Santos el Fazir straightened to his own impressive height, his expression blank. “I’ve already spoken,” he replied, his dark eyes cold. “You have accused me of something I did not do, nor would any of my generals do. Not now. Not when we are so close to resolving so many lingering issues.” He leaned forward, his biceps straining against his shirt as he glared at Gaelen. “Furthermore, you insult me by not accepting my word!”
Gaelen mimicked the man’s posture, leaning forward and glaring right back. “You’ve said you didn’t do it, and yet, it was your country’s bomb that exploded.”
“Impossible!” the man replied, coldly controlled.
The door opened and Gaelen’s assistant came forward, the pictures Gaelen demanded in hand. “Here,” he said and took the folder, pulling the pictures out. Slapping the first one down. “Is this not the missile that your country built in the southern district? I believe it’s the new design that your country developed, is it not?”
Santos glared at Gaelen for a long moment before slowly standing up and taking the picture. He glared at the picture.
Gaelen watched the man intently and saw the moment the leader recognized the missile’s remains.
“And this,” Gaelen slapped another picture down. “Tell me that this serial number isn’t one of your missiles!”
Gaelen continued to observe, his instincts firing hotter now. He saw the exact moment when the penny dropped for the other man.
“I have to go!” Santos announced, icy fury in his voice. He started to turn away, but stopped, glaring across the table at Gaelen. “You manufactured this evidence, didn’t you?” He leaned forward slightly. “Your country did this!”
A moment later, he walked out of the room, leaving behind a stunned silence.
Gaelen’s eyes narrowed at the door where the man had just departed. Was this a tactic to push the blame onto Izara? Or did Santos truly believe that…?
“What the hell just happened?” Gaelen muttered, glancing over to his assistant.
The other man, shorter and not nearly as muscular, but sharply intelligent and wise in politics, shrugged.
“I don’t know, Your Highness,” he replied. “I admit, the attack at this particular juncture in the negotiations was unexpected. And ill-advised. From all angles I can evaluate, a maneuver like this would only….”
Gaelen had already come to the same conclusion. “…Stall the talks,” he finished.
Once again, Gaelen glanced at his watch. He was going to miss Savannah’s graduation! Ealayk allaena, she would be devastated. Suddenly, something she’d said several weeks ago came back to him. Her father…she’d convinced herself that she wasn’t worthy enough for her father’s attention. Her bastard of a father hadn’t attended Savannah’s high school graduation. That meant that he sure as hell wasn’t going to be there today!
Rubbing his face, he tried to tamp down his panic. She’d look up into the stands and he wouldn’t be there!
“This is so wrong!” Turning to his aide, he shook his head. “Have someone go into my bedroom. There’s a ring on my dresser. Get it and wrap it up so that it doesn’t look like a ring. I don’t want Savannah to be in danger of being robbed. Get it to her with a note, telling her that I had an emergency and…” he stopped, thinking. She wouldn’t believe him if he just said it was an emergency. She’d automatically assume that he didn’t think she was worthy of his time. Damn it, her father was such a raging bastard!
And now that bastard Santos had done something, or not done something, that had put Gaelen into a situation where Savannah might think he was just like her father!
“Damn it!” he roared, startling his staff. Gaelen reined in his fury, running a hand through his hair. Pacing, he thought frantically about what he could say in the note that would help her understand.
In the end, he went with complete honesty. Grabbing a paper, he scribbled something on it, then shoved it into an envelope. “Here!” He passed the envelope at his assistant, who immediately took it and hurried out of the conference room.
Turning, he faced the rest of his staff, trying to work through the details of what needed to happen next. “Let’s return to Izara,” he finally told all of them, accepting the inevitable. “I can’t discover the truth until I’m able to see the evidence first hand.”
With furious resignation, he accepted that he’d have to leave Savannah, at least for a while. Hopefully, she’d read the note and understand. Or at least, wait so that he could explain.
With determination to get this mess resolved quickly, he stalked out of the conference room. An hour later, he was in the air while he brainstormed in the jet’s conference room on alternative theories about what happened overnight.
Chapter 12
Savannah pasted a smile on her face as she walked in line behind the other graduates. Where was Gaelen? She turned, peering up at the stands. She saw Cindy and Mickey. They’d closed the diner early tonight in order to be here to watch her walk the stage and get her degree.
It was very sweet of them. They would be losing a huge amount of money by not being open for these few hours and she was touched that they wanted to be here tonight. But her gaze moved to the empty seat beside Cindy. Obviously, her friend knew what she was thinking since Cindy glanced at the empty seat as well, and shrugged as if to say that she hadn’t seen him either.
Savannah shrugged as she walked past, pretending that it didn’t matter. That she was fine.
Unfortunately, it did matter. She tried to pretend that she was fine, but her father had ignored every big moment in her life. She’d thought that Gaelen was different, that he cared. Obviously, she was wrong.
Everyone sat down and she vaguely heard the numerous speeches. There was one about going out into the world and changing it. Something more about all the work that they’d put in to getting here. Blah, blah, blah. Savannah might be more interested if she were younger. Most of the other graduates were around twenty-two years old. At twenty-six, she was not particularly interested in someone telling her how she’d really made something of her life now that she’d graduated from this wonderful institution.
Whatever, she thought, blinking back tears as she glanced up at the seats again. Still empty. Facing forward, she vowed that she wouldn’t look again. If he couldn’t be bothered to get to his seat on time, then he wasn’t worth her energy. He didn’t matter.
Savannah told herself that this was her day, her final reckoning before she went out into the world. She was worthy and if Gaelen didn’t know that, then he could go to hell!
So, why did his absence hurt so much? Why did it feel as if there was an aching hole in the area of her chest?
She hated him, she thought. Absolutely hated him!
She tried to focus on the speeches. This was her day, Savannah reminded herself. She wasn’t going to let some ass who didn’t bother to let her know that he wouldn’t be here ruin it for her. Her name was called and she stood up, following behind the person in front of her. Just one foot in front of the other. The stairs were a bit of a problem, but she pushed forward, walking towards the person holding her degree. She wanted that degree! She’d be someone with that degree! She’d count! She’d matter!
She wouldn’t be a burden to anyone, ever! This was her validation, her ticket to a good job and recognition that she’d accomplished something!
Walking back down the stairs, she looked at her hand, startled to find the degree announcing her accomplishment in her hand. She’d done it. She’d made it!
Without conscious thought, her gaze returned to the empty seat. She saw Cindy and Mickey cheering for her and pasted a smile onto her face, and waved at them before she took her seat again. The other students all received their degrees, then the announcement of her award. Numbly, Savannah stood up and walked to the stage, beaming as the Dean of Students handed her the certificate. Walking back, she refused to look up at the audience. Gaelen wouldn’t be there. He hadn’t thought this was important enough. She wasn’t important enough to him.
After another thirty minutes, the ceremony was over. The dean of the university announced that they were all graduates. There was a roar around her as everyone stood up and tossed their hats into the air. Savannah was the only one that remained in her seat, feeling foolish for thinking that Gaelen would come.
As everyone walked away, hurrying to find their loved ones so that they could celebrate, Savannah slowly got to her feet, heading for the exit. Cindy and Mickey intercepted her. “You did it!” Cindy shrieked, hugging Savannah eagerly. “I’m so excited for you!”
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