Desert Kings Boxed Set: The Complete Series Books 1-6 Read online

  And dammit, she was going to.

  Hope swelled in Zadir’s chest. Other parts of him swelled predictably, too, as he kissed and caressed her. He could tell she was scared, but that her feelings for him were growing. He’d been pretty sure, after that one night in the desert, that Ronnie was the woman for him. The time they’d spent together since had only deepened that conviction.

  She’d been resistant. Nervous, fearful, probably sensible, she’d wanted to keep him at arm’s length and stick with her predictable and familiar life in the States. Being selfish, he’d put his needs ahead of hers and whisked her here anyway.

  He didn’t regret it. Even though he’d now put the biggest project of her life in jeopardy, he wouldn’t turn back the clock and change things even if he could. Having Ronnie here meant far too much to him.

  He undressed her slowly and carefully, admiring each curve and line of her gorgeous body as he uncovered it. He wanted to lose himself in her, in her beauty and warmth, in her affectionate caresses.

  He needed to. Tomorrow promised to be a turning point—the proclamation was the brothers’ first bold act as the new rulers of the land, and Ronnie’s big meeting would chart the course of her future.

  The prisoner in Nabattur put a face on their enemy, but he wasn’t acting alone, and it was impossible to predict what would happen next. He’d been selfish to bring Ronnie into a danger zone.

  She moaned gently as their kiss deepened and her fingers roamed into the waistband of his pants, creating another potentially explosive situation. The rose petals stirred beneath their feet as he guided her to the bed and they climbed onto the soft covers.

  Ronnie removed his pants, stroking his thighs and making the tiny hairs on his skin stand on end. Then she ran her lips and tongue over his erection in a way that made him shiver involuntarily. He wasn’t sure how long he could last tonight. He felt so on edge, so aroused and excited, so apprehensive of the future, that every second seemed precious and volatile.

  He attempted to still his mind and calm his overstimulated body, but his skin and his insides were superheated to boiling point. Every touch, every breath seemed to drive him closer to an edge he’d never known before. He wanted to stretch out each second and make it last, but with each kiss and caress he felt himself drawing closer to the edge of a precipice.

  It was all he could do not to come while Ronnie rolled on the condom with her long, elegant fingers. When she climbed on top of him and slid her slim hips down, drawing him deep inside her, he had to call on all his resources to hold back the tidal wave inside him.

  As she moved up and down, so slow, and he let his hands roam over her breasts, he began to wonder if he’d already died and wound up in some rose-scented paradise of ultimate pleasure.

  He managed to hold back long enough for them to shift positions and play with different rhythms, but he’d never been more relieved than when he heard the tiny cries and felt the subtle squeezes that heralded her orgasm and allowed him to finally give in to his own.

  “Are you okay?” She murmured, smiling, when he could finally open his eyes again.

  “I’m not sure yet.” He managed a cheeky grin. “But I feel amazing.”

  She rested her head on his chest. “Your heart is pumping like a piston.”

  “Other parts of me are, too.” He chuckled.

  “You’re bad.”

  “In the best possible way.” He stroked her soft earlobe. “You bring out something in me that I’ve never felt before.”

  “I’ve never felt any of this before. I probably shouldn’t admit this, but I never had an orgasm during sex before I met you.”

  “I’m glad to initiate you into a new realm of pleasure.” It was hard to believe that such a beautiful woman could have so little experience of love and sex. Or so few good experiences. But it only made him more determined to ensure that she enjoyed every aspect of their romance. “I freely admit I’ve never had to work so hard to keep an orgasm at bay.”

  “I hope it wasn’t torture.”

  “It was, but the sweetest possible kind. You can torture me like that any time.”

  She sighed, a sweet sound that made his chest ache with pleasure. Now that he had her here, in his arms, it was hard to imagine living without her.

  Yes, it was selfish, but he wanted to keep her here. He wanted to share his days and nights with her, and learn and grow and even grow old with her.

  So why did he still know—deep in his heart—that if he said that aloud, she’d run a mile? He wanted to talk but knew better than to reveal the depth of his feelings.

  He rubbed her arm gently. “Are you nervous for your meeting tomorrow?”

  “Not really.” She flashed that big, bright gaze at him. “I’m a pretty cool customer when it comes to business. I’m a lot more daring in my creative and professional life than I am in my personal life.” She smiled.

  He smiled back. Again, she was warning him off, telling him not to expect too much. If he could hold back that orgasm for long enough that she could climax, then he could hold back the feelings welling inside him long enough for her to grow more comfortable with them as a couple.

  “How about you? Are you nervous about speaking to the people? From what Barbit and Zahaina said, there were more protests than ever today.”

  “The protesters are a bunch of old men with banners. I’m not afraid of them.”

  “But what about the violence? Did you manage to get a confession out of the guy who torched the plane?”

  “He hasn’t admitted it in so many words, but we both know he did it. I also know he was the pilot who crashed our plane in the desert.”

  “What?” She sat up suddenly. “Why didn’t you say so?”

  “I didn’t get a chance to talk to you until now. And I had more important matters to attend to once I got you alone.”

  She sucked in a breath and stared at him. “Wow. You are a dark horse.”

  “He didn’t exactly come out and say it. I just teased enough out of him that I’m sure. He’s arrogant. Can’t help wanting you to know what he’s achieved. With enough time he’ll tell us everything we want to know; it’s just going to take a while.”

  “Frustrating.”

  “Yes. Especially when we have no idea what the people who he works for are planning next.”

  “Do you think they intend to do something tomorrow?”

  “We’re counting on it.”

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  The scent of rose petals was overpowering as the bright dawn light pierced through the ornate wooden shutters. They didn’t look so pretty in the morning either, as most of them were wrinkling and starting to lose their color. Even the blooms in vases of water were starting to droop and wither.

  Won’t we all? She couldn’t understand why cut flowers had come to symbolize love in so many cultures. She didn’t like the powerful and humbling way they symbolized the transience of all life.

  And happiness.

  Zadir was gone. He must have slipped off at some point during the night and she was embarrassed to have slept right through it. He’d be busy with the divorce announcement and whatever fires needed to be put out after that—literally and figuratively—and she should probably stay out of the way.

  All she had to do was somehow keep her sanity until nine a.m. Washington, D.C., time, which unfortunately was well into the afternoon here in Ubar. Although she felt more like puking than eating right now, she resolved to have breakfast, then test the video conferencing equipment and go through her notes one more time. Hopefully she could grab something to eat and disappear without talking to anyone.

  Her heart sank when she saw Zahaina biting into a big wedge of melon in the dining room. Sam smiled and waved at her from the buffet table, where she was loading her plate with sweet pastries. Sam was probably almost as nervous as her, with her husband about to go out in front of a hostile crowd and overturn centuries of grim tradition.

  “Hi Sam. I hope everything goes smooth
ly today.”

  “It’s not too late to stop it.” Barbit mumbled into a piece of bread she was dipping in yogurt. “If someone hurries after them to Nabattur. These young boys don’t understand how things are done here in Ubar.”

  “Mom, they’re in charge and you’re not.” Zahaina lifted a shapely brow. “I’m sure they’ll figure it out. They don’t give out degrees at Harvard and Oxford and wherever to just anyone, you know.”

  It was heartwarming to see Zahaina standing for the brothers. Ronnie felt a sudden glimmer of friendliness toward her. Of course she was probably pursuing her campaign to end up married to one of them. Which, as long as it wasn’t Zadir, wasn’t really her problem.

  That thought stopped her in her tracks. She didn’t want Zahaina to pursue Zadir because…what? Because she wanted to keep him for herself?

  Of course she did.

  Even though she didn’t actually intend to.

  What a mess.

  “They’re speaking in the marketplace. It’s only forty-five minutes. My nerves are a mess.”

  “Are you going to film it?” Ronnie helped herself to some fruit and toasted bread.

  Sam stared at her. “Can you believe that idea never once occurred to me? History is being made here in Ubar, and I’m expecting the local news—which is one elderly man with a tiny radio station—to make the historical record of it.” She shook her head. “Please excuse me! I have some rushing around to do.”

  Ronnie smiled as she ran out of the room. “At least she’ll be too busy to worry.”

  “Are you worried?” Zahaina tilted her head, so that her gold-streaked hair fell artfully over one well-clad shoulder.

  “Sure. I want things to go smoothly for them.”

  “You care a lot about Zadir, don’t you?”

  “Yes.” She lifted her chin. “I do.” Why shouldn’t she tell the truth?

  “Very touching. You’re going to break his heart, though, aren’t you?” She looked at Ronnie hard through her heavily lined brown eyes.

  Ronnie swallowed. “I…I can’t predict the future better than anyone else. Please excuse me.” She grabbed her plate and rushed out of the room with it. She had enough to worry about with her big meeting today. She didn’t need to deal with an inquisition about her love life as well!

  Part of her wanted to accompany Zadir to nearby Nabattur. On the other hand, she had a feeling he’d want her out of harm’s way, and common sense told her to stay here and quietly prepare for her big meeting. The decision was made for her when her phone rang.

  “Mom?” She could hardly believe it. She phoned once a month or so just to make sure her mom was okay, but didn’t even remember the last time her mom had called her. “Isn’t it way early in the morning there?” She hurried back down the hall toward her bedroom.

  “I couldn’t sleep. Last time you called you told me about your big meeting with the president today. I wanted to wish you luck.”

  Ronnie blinked. “That’s so sweet of you to remember!”

  “It’s not every day my baby gets to meet with the president. A mother pays attention to things like that. Even me.” Her once-beautiful voice was raspy. “I’m so proud of you, sweetheart.”

  For a moment Ronnie hoped all this sentiment wasn’t fueled by a night of champagne drinking, then she felt bad for the suspicious thought. “Thanks, Mom. Unfortunately I won’t really be meeting with him, though.” She went into her room and closed the door. Someone had cleaned up all the dying roses and restored the room to its former austere splendor.

  “He canceled?” She could hear the disappointment in her mom’s voice. Maybe she’d been telling her friends—if she still had any—that her daughter was a close personal friend of the commander in chief.

  “I’m in the Arabian Gulf.” She knew her mom would never have heard of Ubar. “I came here for the weekend and got stuck. I’m going to do the meeting via teleconferencing.”

  “What a shame. Still, maybe once you’re introduced to him you can go visit at the White House when you get back.”

  She managed a laugh. “I’m not sure about that. I do hope he likes my design, though.”

  “I’m sure he will. I looked you up on the Internet and you’re famous.”

  “I’m not exactly a household name. This would be a big feather in my cap.”

  “Is that art gallery built out of aluminum foil?”

  Now she did laugh. Critics had asked the same question. “No. It just looks that way.”

  “I admit I don’t really understand what you do, but I know you’re well respected and brainy as well as beautiful. If I didn’t love you so much I’d be jealous.”

  Ronnie was speechless. Her heart beat so fast she could almost hear it. She didn’t remember her mom ever saying something so nice, even after large quantities of wine. “That means a lot to me.” It was hard to admit it. Her mom was volatile and could take it all back on a whim.

  “I’ve been having heart trouble.”

  “What?”

  “I had something wrong with my stomach last week. It wouldn’t settle. The doctor says he think I had a heart attack.”

  “Oh no.” She sat down hard on the bed. “Are you okay?”

  “Very weak. More so than normal.”

  Mysterious weaknesses were the reason her mom spent much of her life in bed. Ronnie had wondered over the years if she had Fibromyalgia or something similar, but her mother had steadfastly refused to do proper testing, insisting that doctors were all snake-oil salesmen who were only good for writing prescriptions. Now she wondered if her mom had suffered heart trouble all along and kept quiet about it.

  “What did they tell you to do?”

  “I need to do physical therapy. Start limited exercise. Eat a bunch of leaves and crap. You know that won’t ever happen.”

  “Mom!” She rose off the bed and started pacing. “You’re still young. You have to take care of yourself.”

  “I’ve been dying a little every day since your father left me. I may not have much time left.”

  “Don’t say that!” Tears sprang to her eyes. “You have to take care of yourself. You’re the only mother I have.”

  “And you’ve done just fine without me interfering in your life for a long time now.” She sounded wistful.

  “I’ve done my best to be independent, but I always knew you were there. I need you.” She realized with a stab of fear that she meant it. She couldn’t imagine a world without her mother in it somewhere, thumbing through a glossy magazine while munching on gourmet chocolates. “You’ll be yourself again in no time. I’ll make sure of it.”

  “You’re too busy to worry about me. My time is over. You don’t remember the time I played Carnegie Hall, but I’ll never forget it. Everyone knew who Selena Wilmington was that night, I can tell you.” She could almost hear tears on the edge of her mother’s voice.

  “Mom! I’ll be back very soon. Maybe even tomorrow. I’m waiting for a situation here to get cleared up. I’ll come see you right away, and we’ll figure out a plan to get you healthy again.” She paced nervously around the room.

  “Go on, sweetheart. You go have your meeting with the president and don’t worry about me. I’m sure you’ll knock his socks off.”

  “I hope so. Is there anyone I should call to come check on you?” Her mom had a sort of maid-helper who came every day, but she barely spoke English, which was one of the things her mom liked best about her.

  “I’ll be fine, sweetheart. I just called to wish you luck. Let me know how it goes, okay?”

  “Okay, I will.” Ronnie blew out a breath. Her head was spinning. “I’ll talk to you later. Take care of yourself.”

  By the time she hung up she was shaking. Her mom had a heart attack? People often didn’t even survive them. Her breakfast lurched in her stomach, and she realized that the possibility of losing her mom had pulled the rug right out from under her.

  She was going to make a real effort to mend their broken relationship and st
art over. She wasn’t a bored and resentful teenager any more. And now that she’d become entangled with Zadir, she could see how a man could turn someone’s world right upside down.

  She put her phone down, hands still trembling. What if her mom did something stupid before she got back? She had a whole cabinet full of prescription pills that she got from some crooked doctor she had in her pocket. If she mixed them with booze—which she totally did—then with her system weakened by a heart attack and her spirit lower than usual…. Ronnie wondered for a moment if she should call her dad and ask him to step in. She quickly came to her senses. Her mom had survived all these decades on powerful prescription drugs and large quantities of champagne, and she’d just have to pray they’d get her through the day until she got back.

  Which would be when, exactly?

  She wanted to ask Zadir, but he was preoccupied with the social unrest. There were protesters outside that she could hear even from her bedroom in the inner part of the palace. Men’s voices, chanting something, drifted on the air and further jangled her nerves. How did she end up in this crazy situation, and on the most important day of her life, too?

  She dialed her assistant, and they talked through the presentation one more time, decided it was perfect, and convinced each other she was bound to be chosen. They were both kidding, of course, but it helped.

  Since the last thing she needed was to march around her bedroom waiting for some other calamity to happen in the two or so hours before her video conference, she decided to head out of her room and see what was going on.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  Zadir followed Osman and Amahd down off the balcony and back to their car. The crowd had listened quietly to the pronouncement, then started to rumble with dissent that made the security guards hurry them into their bulletproof sedan.

  “They’ll settle down.” Osman eased back against the seat. Sam, in traditional dress, was unwrapping her headscarf next to him. “I consulted with as many so-called experts as I could and they all said I needed to get the business part over with, then disappear. No sense standing there while they get brave enough to throw rotten eggs.” He lifted a brow. “I plan to field questions later, but we’ll wait until they’ve had a chance to settle down and realize it’s now the law of the land.”