Sarah Morgan - Royal Affairs - Desert Princes & Defiant Virgins

Alexa tensed in her seat, knowing that it was true. ‘As his wife I can be extremely useful in many ways.’

‘There will be only one way that interests the Sultan.’ Karim glanced at her briefly, his expression thoughtful. ‘But you shouldn’t worry about it. As I discovered last night, you are clearly an extremely sexual young woman. I’m sure you’ll be able to keep him satisfied, as long as you take plenty of rest in the hours that he is working.’

‘Now you really are being ridiculous.’

‘On the contrary, the Sultan is a man who sets himself a punishing work-agenda. He has little time for relaxation and even less time for physical exercise so these days he tends to combine the two. He has an extremely high sex-drive, but you shouldn’t find that a problem. You’re clearly a woman with energy and drive of your own. The more I see of you, the more convinced I am that this marriage is to be celebrated by all concerned.’

‘The Sultan and I will share a great deal more than sex,’ Alexa said stiffly, ignoring the sudden churning of her insides. ‘My background is not so dissimilar to his. I’m sure that once I understand him, I’ll be able to help in all sorts of ways.’

‘The Sultan will not require you to understand him. And he seeks the help of no one. As I said, your role will simply be one of—’ he paused as he hunted for the word ‘—recreation.’

‘You can’t possibly know that.’ Alexa sat back in her seat. ‘For a start, he has never even met me. He may not find me attractive.’

‘The Sultan does take a great interest in the international press,’ Karim said gently. ‘Like most people, he is already intimately acquainted with your charms.’

The memory of just how those photographs had been taken made her insides churn with misery. ‘Those photographs were taken without my knowledge. I was set up.’

‘You weren’t really with the man?’

‘Yes, I was, but—’

‘You don’t owe me an explanation. And as for the Sultan …’ Karim gave an expressive shrug. ‘I have no idea how he feels about it, of course, but it probably isn’t a good idea to raise the subject. Obviously he isn’t expecting a virgin bride, but that needn’t necessarily work to your disadvantage. On the contrary, having an experienced woman in his bed means that he won’t feel obliged to curb his appetites. Am I driving fast enough for you?’

His question made her wonder whether he had guessed that she was suddenly wishing they were driving in the opposite direction, and Alexa looked away from him. She didn’t want to think about the photographs, she didn’t want to think about discussing her past with the Sultan, and she especially didn’t want to think about being in the Sultan’s bed! It just wasn’t a thought that had even crossed her mind before now. And then she realized why she was feeling so uncomfortable—during all the references to sex with the Sultan, her mind had conjured up disturbingly explicit pictures, and all of them had involved Karim.

The chemistry had been alive from the moment they had met, but it seemed to be growing in intensity with each moment they spent in the desert. Perhaps it was because he seemed so comfortable in these surroundings. Comfortable and confident.

And breathtakingly sexy .

The thought shocked her.

This was not the time to be noticing a man.

Alexa kept her eyes forward, reminding herself that marriage to the Sultan could only be a step up from the life she’d had up until now. ‘Perhaps the Sultan and I will get on extremely well. Have you known him long?’ Glancing towards him, she wondered why the question should make him smile.

‘All my life.’

‘You were playmates?’ She guessed that they were about the same age, so it was the only explanation.

‘Of a sort.’

By that he presumably meant that the Sultan was of royal blood whereas he wasn’t. ‘So you know him well?’

‘Too well. I am closely acquainted with all his most irritating personality traits.’

‘Such as?’

‘The list is endless. He is far too intolerant of the deficiencies of others. Impatient and quick to anger. He’s arrogant, and rarely, if ever, believes that anyone else can understand and grasp the subtleties of a situation as well as he can.’

‘Perhaps he’s right.’

Karim frowned. ‘I wasn’t complimenting him.’

‘No, I realize that. But if he’s as ferociously clever as they say, then it’s entirely possible that no one else does grasp the situation as well as he does. Which makes that the truth, rather than arrogance.’

‘That’s a generous assessment.’ He studied an instrument on the control panel and flicked a switch.

‘Or maybe simply an alternative assessment. Sometimes the facts don’t speak for themselves.’ As she well knew . ‘What else? What matters to him?’

‘Honesty and loyalty. Does that worry you, Alexa?’

‘No. I appreciate the same qualities.’

‘Really? How honest is it to marry a man you don’t love?’

‘Completely honest, because I’m not pretending to love him.’ She glanced towards his arrogant profile, her gaze direct. ‘It means that the Sultan and I know where we stand. There are no lies. I think that’s a good place to start. I’m confident that we can make this work.’

‘And yet you have no idea what the Sultan expects from his wife.’

She didn’t care. Once she was safely living in the palace within the high walls of the Citadel, the rest would be irrelevant. They could work it all out, she was sure of it. ‘I’ll be a good wife.’

‘So you’re basically happy to do anything at all as long as you have access to his wealth, is that right?’

Not his wealth, no. His protection .

The truth hovered on her lips, but she clamped her mouth shut, bewildered as to why she would even contemplate confiding in

this man when she knew the dangers of trusting another person. Hadn’t she learned from bitter experience that thoughts were best kept private? ‘Does the Sultan have a sense of humour?’

Karim concentrated on the road for a moment. ‘In the three years since his father died, there have been many problems in Zangrar, none of which have given much cause for laughter.’

‘Disputes over oil and problems with an irrigation project.’ Sensing his surprise, she shrugged. ‘I can read, Karim. There was a report on the Internet. He takes his responsibilities seriously.’ And she’d liked that about him. It had given her hope. Once she had explained the situation, he would help her with Rovina, surely?

‘The fortunes of Zangrar and the people depend on the Sultan.’

The contrast to William cheered her. ‘I’m quite confident that the Sultan and I can have a harmonious marriage.’

‘The Sultan isn’t a man who could be harmoniously married to anyone.’ Karim stopped the vehicle without warning and stared up at the sky.

‘What’s the matter? Where are we? And where’s the road?’

‘Underneath the sand. The wind is picking up.’ He flicked a switch on the dashboard and several instruments flickered to life. ‘The weather is not looking as stable as I would have liked.’

‘What are you saying? Is this a sandstorm?’ Shielding her eyes from the glare of the sun, she looked at the sky but could see nothing but endless blue, broken by a few wisps of white. ‘It looks fine to me.’

‘At the moment. Conditions change very rapidly in the desert. We will stop here briefly and rest.’

‘Don’t stop on my account.’ Glancing over her shoulder, she checked that there were no other vehicles in sight. ‘I’m quite happy to just push on.’