‘You should have told me. I could have made better plans for leaving.’ Or not left at all . Then she remembered Claude and what he stood to gain from her deal with this devil. Guilt tore through her once again. She was doing this for Claude and Annie, not for herself and never for Kazim. As soon as she could, she would leave Barazbin and her marriage behind.
‘What plans would they have been? To slip away, assume a new identity and take on another job in an equally unsavoury establishment?’ Although his deep voice was courteous there was an underlying patronising kick in it.
She blushed. He’d guessed her thoughts but she kept her voice light, trying to provoke a reaction from him, to shake his rigid composure. ‘Would you rather I had told everyone who I was?’
‘No.’ His voice was brusque as she sat forward again. ‘But be warned, Amber. If this episode in your life gets out and threatens all I’m trying to achieve in Barazbin, you will pay dearly.’
‘Now we are getting to the bottom of it all.’ She smiled sarcastically at him. ‘Just what is it you are trying to do—apart from blow my life to pieces again? Why exactly am I, the woman you married and turned your back on in one night, so necessary?’
Just when she thought she was about to unravel the mystery of Kazim’s sudden intrusion into her life, the car stopped. The private jet looming above them brought reality hurtling at her.
She was about to leave with Kazim—a man who had dismissed her from his life so coldly. She had no idea when she would return to Paris, but one thing she was sure of was that she would not be staying in Barazbin long.
* * *
‘We’re here,’ Kazim said, grateful for their timely arrival at the airport. He’d nearly let things slip, nearly told her she was not only of paramount importance to his succession to the throne, but crucial in a deal he was making—a deal to secure peace to his people, a deal very important to him. It was his duty to return to Barazbin with her. A duty he intended to fulfil, whatever obstacles he had to remove.
He’d always wanted to help the nomadic tribes, previously his father’s venture. Now it was time for Kazim to step aside from his successful oil company and take up the position he’d been born to. Duty called and that call was becoming increasingly more insistent.
In an effort to forget a life he’d been forced to forgo, he focused his attention on Amber, watched as she all but physically rooted herself to the seat, her full lips parting, drawing his gaze, and his control wavered. She’d thrown herself at him on their wedding night and he’d turned his back on her. He’d had his reasons—good reasons. But now he couldn’t ignore what he’d felt that night, stirrings of passion so strong it still simmered in his blood. He wanted her.
Was that so wrong? For a man to want his wife?
He leant further forward, closing the distance between them, surprising himself as much as her, as his lips claimed hers. A dizzying sensation hurtled around his body as he met no resistance from her, her lips moving beneath his. After a second she stilled as if she was about to pull away then her lips parted against his, encouraging him. She tasted of mint, so clean and vibrant it infused his body, making him want much more than a kiss.
The polite cough of the driver and the cool air rushing into the car dampened the desire flooding his body and he moved abruptly away. Her lovely face was flushed beneath her dusky complexion, her eyes burnished bronze and her lips plump and extremely kissable.
His body stiffened. As did his resolve to achieve what he’d set out to do. Reclaim his wife. It was more than time to claim his bride, make her his.
‘You are my wife, Amber, and it is past time you started being just that.’ The harshness of his voice had echoes of his father, but he couldn’t dwell on that now. Not when hot desire raced around him in a way he’d never experienced before.
‘No, I can’t.’ Her eyes were wide with shock, her cheeks lightly flushed, fuelling his desire even more.
‘I will not accept that. You belong to me and it’s time I claimed what is mine.’ Even to his ears his words sounded barbaric, like something uttered by a sheikh of many years ago—or his bullying father. He’d never wanted to be either but as soon as his lips had touched hers he’d lost all reason, all ability to think rationally. Wildness raced in his blood, driving him on.
‘Please, Kazim, I can’t be your wife,’ she begged, her eyes beseeching him. ‘You can’t just whisk me back to Barazbin.’
‘We’re not there yet.’ A gust of wind all but snatched his words away as he got out of the car, tossing them around the airfield, and he saw a frown of confusion furrow her brow.
‘Why did I have to come now?’ Amber got out of the car, the wind pressing her blouse against her, and he savoured her slender figure until she glared at him. She stepped closer to him, her chin lifted in defiance and, although her height didn’t quite match his, she was still tall for a woman. ‘I’m not a wayward pet that needs bringing to heel.’
‘This way,’ Kazim said, touching her arm and guiding her towards the plane, determined not to rise to her provocation. At his side, she kept pace with his strides and it felt strangely right to be walking with her, as if they were matched and meant to be so.
‘We will stay in London this evening. Tomorrow, we will attend a polo match where I am due to meet with several other rulers. Once my business is concluded we will return to Barazbin.’
He climbed the steps into the small private jet, turning as he entered it. ‘From the small amount of luggage you have, I’m assuming you don’t have evening wear or anything suitable for a polo weekend.’
‘Weekend? This is getting worse by the minute, Kazim. Why can’t I just travel back to Barazbin with you?’ Her eyes were wide as she stood on the threshold of the jet, looking like a startled animal. A flicker of guilt pulled at him but he couldn’t afford to heed it now, not when so much was at stake. If emotional force was needed to keep her at his side then so be it.
‘Do you really need to ask?’ He pushed aside all notions of guilt, needing to remain focused.
‘Yes, as a matter of fact, I do.’ Indignation made her stand tall and he met her gaze, seeing the challenge in her eyes.
‘You could refuse to go.’ She would have every right to do so. He knew that, just as he knew how he’d handled things on their wedding day would be enough to make any woman turn and run. But she hadn’t, because last night he’d seized the one thing that meant something to her and used it to his full advantage. She’d made it all surprisingly easy for him.
‘As long as you keep your side of the bargain and send Claude to the States, I will go with you. For a time, at least.’ Her eyes hardened and deepened to mahogany as she looked at him, defiantly laying down a challenge. He held her gaze and something zipped between them—something more than just attraction and desire. Again, he ignored it—for now.
‘The child will have his medical treatment; you have my word. I will send the one person I trust above all others to ensure that.’ The flight attendant halted any further discussion on the subject as she showed them to their seats and carried out the necessary safety checks in the cabin. He sat and relief rushed over him as Amber did too, but she didn’t look at him, pretending instead to be engrossed in a magazine.
* * *
Amber wanted to get up and run out of the plane. She watched as the flight attendant closed the door, its heavy clunk ominously final. Was it final? Was she leaving to go back to Barazbin for good? No—she shook her head in silent denial—she couldn’t do that.
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