Midnight Under The Stars: Woman in a Sheikh's World

Mal refused to be deflected even though part of him was wondering why he was choosing to ask these questions now, when it was too late for them. ‘Did he leave when you were young?’ It was a personal question, and probably unadvised given his vow to avoid the personal, but nevertheless he asked it. He’d always assumed that her father was somehow responsible for her aversion to marriage but she’d never given him any detail.

‘Why the sudden interest in my father? We were talking about Kalila’s situation, not mine.’

‘I’m just thinking it must have been hard for you growing up without a man in your life.’

‘You’re doing it again—assuming that a woman needs a man to survive.’

Mal breathed deeply, refusing to rise. ‘That is not what I assume. Why are you deliberately misinterpreting my words?’

‘I’m not. I just know you, Mal.’

‘Maybe you don’t.’ He wondered how he could have been so blinkered. She was afraid. Why hadn’t he seen that before?

‘We both know you have very traditional views on the role of women.’

‘Do not assume to know what I am thinking.’

‘It’s not hard to guess. You’re marrying a woman you barely know so that you can have a traditional set-up and breed children.’

‘Is it so wrong to think a child benefits from being raised in a traditional family unit?’

‘I wasn’t raised in a traditional family unit and I’m fine.’

No, he thought. You’re not fine. ‘I’m not saying that a child can’t be fine with one parent. But family offers security.’

‘You’re talking rubbish. Take Kalila’s father—would she be better off with a mother who teaches her to be strong and independent or a father who bullies her?’ She spoke just a little too quickly. Was a little too anxious to move the conversation away from her own situation.

Mal thought of his own father. Strict, yes, and often busy, of course. But never too busy to spend time with his son. ‘Your mother didn’t remarry?’

‘I don’t know why you’re going on about fathers. Kalila’s has frightened her into running away and yours has pressured you to marry a woman you barely know.’

She hadn’t answered his question. ‘He didn’t pressure me.’ This was the point where he should tell her the truth about his union with Kalila but something held him back. ‘We are well suited.’

‘Because you give out the orders and she says yes? That’s not a relationship, Mal. That’s servitude. You’ve barely had a conversation with her. You know nothing about her likes and dislikes and you have no idea why she’s run away or where she could be heading. None of that suggests an unbreakable bond.’

Their conversations had always been lively, but never before today had she been so openly antagonistic. It was as if she were trying to goad him.

‘I have a great deal of respect for Kalila and I value her opinion.’

‘When has she ever expressed an opinion? When has she ever actually voiced a thought that isn’t yours?’

‘Perhaps we think alike.’

Her beautiful mouth twisted into a wry smile. ‘More likely she’s afraid to tell you what she really thinks. Or perhaps she doesn’t even know what she really thinks because she’s never been allowed to find out. You need to do something about that, Your Highness. Not only is it politically incorrect to want a passive wife, it’s going to bore you in five minutes.’ The car bumped into a pothole and she winced. ‘And while you’re ruling the world, you really do need to do something about the state of your roads.’

And the state of his nerves. He was tense. On edge. Angry. ‘This road is not my responsibility. We left Zubran half an hour ago. You are now in Arhmor and infrastructure has never been a high priority for the Sheikh.’ The scenery had changed. They were approaching mountains and the road was rougher. Everything about Arhmor was rougher. ‘Let’s hope we don’t blow a tyre. This is not somewhere to break down.’

‘So instead of mending his roads, the Sheikh tries to build his empire. I suppose that’s what this marriage is about, is it? You are the wealthier state. I assume he’s hoping that if you marry his daughter, you’ll fix his roads for him.’

‘It’s true that this marriage will bring political advantages—’ Mal turned the wheel to avoid another deep rut in the road ‘—but that is not the only reason for the marriage. Kalila is a princess with an impeccable bloodline.’

‘You make her sound like breeding stock. On the other hand, I suppose that’s what she is. A brood mare to produce lots of little Sultans for the future.’ Her tone flippant, she turned her head and looked over her shoulder. ‘Are you sure you’re taking the right route? Because according to the sat nav you should have turned left back there. You should have let me drive. Everyone knows a man can’t do two things at once.’

She was definitely goading him.

What he didn’t understand was why. Why would she want to make this journey more difficult and unpleasant than it already was?

Mal breathed deeply, transferred his gaze to the screen and cursed softly. She was right. He’d missed an important turning. Not because he couldn’t do two things at once, but because he’d been so distracted by Avery and by his impending marriage that he hadn’t been concentrating. Slamming the vehicle into reverse, he took the correct route. Around them, the landscape grew steadily more bleak and barren. ‘Say one word and I’ll dump you by the side of the road.’

‘I wouldn’t dream of making a sound.’ It was clear from her voice that she was enjoying his mistake and he tightened his grip on the wheel.

‘You’re infuriating, you know that, don’t you?’

‘Because I pointed out you were going the wrong way?’

‘I’m perfectly capable of driving. If you want to pick a fight, you’re going to have to choose a different battleground.’

‘This is why our relationship ended. Because we can’t be civil to each other for five minutes. The only thing we were ever really good at as a couple was fighting.’

So that was it. That was the game she was playing.

She was snapping because she was terrified of what they’d once shared. She was terrified that if she stopped snapping, something else would happen. Something far, far more dangerous.

Wondering how he could have been so dense, Mal slammed his foot on the brake and the car stopped suddenly.

Anger throbbing inside him, he turned to look at her. ‘That is not why our relationship ended.’ His voice thickened with emotion and he wondered what it was about this woman that triggered such extreme feelings. ‘And we were good at a great deal more than fighting.’ He saw the change in her. Saw her spine grow rigid and her breathing grow shallow.

‘No, we weren’t.’

‘We both know exactly why our relationship ended, Avery, and it had nothing to do with the arguments.’

Her skin was flawless, smooth and very, very pale. Her mouth was a tight line in her beautiful face. ‘There is nothing to be gained by talking about this.’

‘Maybe not, but we’re talking about it anyway.’

‘Mal—’

‘Our relationship ended because I asked you to marry me,’ he said harshly. ‘And you said no. That’s why it ended.’

CHAPTER FOUR (#ulink_94a14496-578e-598a-b46e-278120d9cdde)

‘STOP the car!’ For a fleeting second she’d tried telling herself that it wasn’t worth going over this, but her emotions were too raw for that. She was so angry that all of her was shaking. Her knees. Her hands … ‘Stop the damn car, right now.’ She was out of the door before the vehicle came to a standstill and Mal was right behind her, the slam of the door breaking the stillness of the burning air.

Theirs was the only vehicle in sight. They were alone in the spectacular open space of the desert, surrounded by shimmering dunes and the soaring mountains.

‘You intend to walk from here?’

‘Is that really your recollection of events? You truly believe that you “asked” me to marry you?’ Her hair swung across her back as she turned to confront him. Her heart was racing and she felt the heat of the sun beating down on her head. She realised that she’d left her hat in the car, but it was too late to care about that now. ‘We must be existing in a parallel universe or something because I remember it very differently.’ Right now her anger was hotter than anything produced by nature but underneath that pulsing anger were layers of different emotions. Pain. Desire. Sexual awareness. Feelings. Feelings she didn’t want to feel. And he clearly didn’t either if his expression was anything to go by. He was watching her with the same cautiousness he would give an enraged scorpion.