Delaney's Desert Sheikh (8 page)

She turned to leave, then suddenly turned back to him. “And one more thing, Jamal.”

“Yes?”

“You have to promise to keep your hands to yourself.”

A rakish grin tilted the corner of his lips, and a wicked gleam lit his eyes. “All right, I promise.”

Delaney blinked, surprised he had made such a promise. She really hadn't expected him to. Without saying another word, she opened the door and went back into the house, wondering if he really intended to keep his promise.

 

Delaney was already settled in the hot tub when Jamal appeared on the back deck. She found it difficult to breathe or to look away. She finally let out a deep whoosh of air when she broke eye contact with him to take a more detailed look at his outfit.

The swimming trunks he wore were scantier than the boxer trunks he usually wore for kickboxing. Everything about him oozed sex appeal, and she felt inwardly pleased that for the next three weeks he belonged only to her.

“The water looks warm,” Jamal said, breaking into Delaney's thoughts.

She smiled up at him. “It is.”

Tossing a towel aside, he eased onto the edge of the tub. She watched his every move, mesmerized, as he swung into the water and took the seat in the hot tub that faced her. He sank lower, allowing the bubbly, swirling water to cover him from the shoulders down.

“Mmm, this feels good,” he said huskily, closing his eyes and resting his head against the back of the tub.

“Yes, it does, doesn't it,” Delaney said, raising a brow. Was he actually not going to try anything? He seemed perfectly content to sit there and go to sleep. He hadn't even tried taking a peek at her swimming outfit beneath the water. If he had, he would have known that she was wearing very little. On a dare from one of her college roommates, she had purchased the skimpy, sheer, two-piece flesh-tone bikini, although she had never worn it out in public.

Feeling frustrated and disappointed, she was about to close her own eyes when she felt him. He had stretched out his foot and it had come to rest right smack between her legs. Before she could take a sharp intake of breath, he had tilted his toes to softly caress her most sensitive area. She closed her eyes and sucked in a deep breath as his foot gently massaged and kneaded her center in tantalizing precision, slowly through the thin material of her swimsuit.

But he didn't plan to stop there. He lifted his foot higher to rest between her breasts. Then with his big toe leading the pack, he caressed the right nipple through the thin material of her bikini top, and when he had her panting for breath, he moved on to the other breast.

When all movement ceased, Delaney opened her eyes to find Jamal had covered the distance separating them and was now facing her in the tub.

“I don't need hands to seduce you, Delaney,” he whispered softly yet arrogantly, his lips mere inches from hers. “Let me demonstrate.”

And he did.

Leaning toward her he used his teeth to catch hold of the material of her bikini top to lift it up. Growling like the wolf she thought him to be, he sought out her naked breasts with a hunger that nearly made her scream in pleasure. Using his knee he shifted her body so that her breasts were above water. His tongue tasted, sucked, devoured each breast, and she became a writhing mass of heated bliss.

Moments later a moan of protest escaped her lips when he leaned back. She slowly opened her eyes to find him staring at her with raw, primitive need reflected in his eyes.

Her breasts, tender from the attention he had given them, rose and fell with every uneven breath she took. As she continued to look at him, he smiled hotly, boldly, and she knew he was not finished with her yet.

Not by a long shot.

She held her breath when he leaned toward her again and with the tip of his tongue traced the lines of her lips before traveling the complete fullness of her mouth. Automatically her lips parted, just as he'd known they would, and he slipped his tongue inside.

A shudder of desire swept through her, and she wondered what madness had possessed her to forbid him to use his hands. Improvising, Jamal was using his tongue to seduce her as effectively as he would have used his hands. Jamal was an expert kisser and he was using that expertise on her, showing her just how much he enjoyed kissing her. And by her response he knew just how much she enjoyed being kissed.

Moments later he ended the kiss and pulled back. A sexy smile tilted the corners of his lips. “I want to see you naked, Delaney.”

His words, murmured softly in the most sensual voice, touched Delaney deeply and sent a surge of emotions through her body. Once again he was able to shake up passion within her that she hadn't known existed—passion she wanted to explore with him.

Moaning, she leaned toward him. She was free to use her hands even if he wasn't. Feeling bold she circled her arms around his neck and kissed him again. Already used to each other, their tongues met, mingled and began stroking intimately.

When she finally lifted her mouth from his, she drew back, looked into his eyes and whispered thickly. “And I want to see you naked, as well.”

His eyes darkened even more. “When you are nude will I be able to use my hands?” he asked in a deep, husky tone.

She smiled and instead of answering she asked a question of her own. “When you are nude will I be able to use
my
hands?”

His voice lowered to a growl when he answered. “You can use anything you want.”

Her smile widened. “And so can you.”

J
amal was nearly at his wit's end as he watched Delaney towel herself dry. The swimming suit she had on was too indecent, too improper and too obscene for any woman to wear, but he was getting a tremendous thrill seeing her in it. His already ragged pulse had picked up a notch, and his breath was becoming so thick it could barely pass through his lungs.

She would be arrested and jailed if she wore anything so scandalous in his country with the pretense of going swimming in it. The material was so sheer he had to widen his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing naked skin. And both pieces clung to her curves in the most provocative way, nearly exposing everything. Everything he wanted. Everything he had dreamed about. Everything he craved. And everything he intended to have.

He frowned. She was deliberately driving him mad.

“Like what you see,
Your Highness?
”

And she was deliberately provoking him.

Awareness joined the arousal already flaring in his eyes. He crossed his arms and looked at her assessingly, eager for her to strip. “Yes, I like what I see, but I want to see more.” She was inflaming him one minute and frustrating him the next. He knew this was a game to her, a game she intended to play out until the end…and win. She may be amused now but when this was over he would be the one cackling in sensuous delight.

“Anxious, aren't you, Jamal?”

There was no reason for him to lie. “Yes.”

She grinned, tossing the towel aside. “I think we should go inside.”

He lifted a dark brow. As far as he was concerned here was just as good a place as anywhere. “Why?”

Delaney silently considered his question, sending him a sidelong glance. Did he actually think she would strip naked out in the open? “Because I prefer being inside when I take off my clothes.”

Jamal favored her with a long, frustrated sigh. “It doesn't matter where you are as long as you take them off, Delaney. I'm holding you to your word.”

“And I'm holding you to yours.” She turned to go inside.

Following behind, close on her heels, he crossed the deck and quickly reached out and opened the back door for her.

She looked back over her shoulder and smiled. “Thanks, Jamal. You are such a gentleman,” she said in a low, throaty voice.

Jamal smiled. He hoped she thought that same thing a few hours from now. A true gentleman couldn't possibly be thinking of doing some of the things that he planned to do to her. He would try to be a
gentle man
but beyond that he couldn't and wouldn't make any promises. As soon as they were inside with the door closed he said, “Okay, do it.”

Delaney shook her head thinking Jamal must have a fetish for a woman's naked body. But she knew the reason he was challenging her and was so anxious to see her naked was because he really didn't believe she would go through with it. He thought she was stringing him along. After all, she had told him she played to win. She glanced around. “Be real, Jamal. I can't strip naked in a kitchen.”

He frowned at her. “Why not?”

She shrugged. “It's not decent.”

Jamal couldn't help but laugh. “You're worried about decency dressed in an outfit like that?”

“Yes.”

Jamal rolled his eyes heavenward. “It's not like you have a whole lot to take off, Delaney. You're stalling.”

“I'm not stalling.”

“Then prove it.”

“All right. I'd feel better taking off my clothes in the bedroom.”

Jamal nodded, wondering what excuse she would come up with once he got her into the bedroom. Although he was frustrated as sin, he had to admit he was getting some excitement out of her toying with him, however he much preferred that she toyed with him in quite a different way. This game of hers had gone on long enough.

“Okay, Delaney, let's go to the bedroom.”

“I'll need a few minutes to get things ready,” she said quickly.

Jamal could only stare at her. Surely she had to be joking. What was there to get ready? She was half-naked already. Before he could open his mouth to voice that very opinion, she said, “Just five minutes, Jamal. That's all I'm asking.” She turned and rushed off, not waiting for his response.

“Five minutes, Delaney, is all you will get,” he called after her. “Then I'm going to join you, whether you're ready or not.”

 

Delaney glanced around the room. She was ready.

Because her bedroom was on the side facing the mountains, at this time of the day it was the one with the least amount of sunlight, which was perfect for the darkened effect she needed. The curtains in the room were drawn and lit candles were placed in various spots in the room. Already their honeysuckle scent had filled the midday air.

She had removed the top layer of bedcovering and the two pillows from the bed; arranging them on the floor and adorning each side with the two tall, artificial ficus trees in the room.

She smiled. Everything was set up to make the room resemble a lovers' haven, and as far as she was concerned it was fit for a prince…or a wolf in prince's clothing. It was time the hunter got captured by his game.

She turned when she heard the gentle knock on the door. Taking a deep breath, she crossed the room. Taking another quick glance around, she took another deep breath and slowly opened the door.

 

Jamal swallowed with difficulty and somehow remembered to breathe when Delaney opened the door, wearing a short, shimmering, baby-doll-style nightie that was sheerer than her bikini had been. Where the swimming suit had left a little to the imagination, this outfit told the full story.

Completely white, the material was a sharp contrast to her dark skin, and he could easily make out certain parts of her body, clearly visible through the transparent chiffon material. The first question that came to his mind was, why would a woman who thought she would be spending a month alone in a cabin out in the middle of nowhere, bring such intensely feminine apparel? He would have to ask her that question later…but not now. The only thing he wanted to do now, other than get his breathing back on track, was to touch her.

But first he needed to think…and then he conceded that his brain had shut down. He was now thinking with another body part. He forced his gaze to move to her face. She was looking at him, just as entranced with him as he was with her. He had changed into a silk robe and from the way it hung open it was obvious he wasn't wearing anything underneath.

The look of desire in her eyes made a deep, heated shudder pass through him, and when she took a step back into the room, he followed, closing the door behind him. He quickly took in his surroundings; the drawn curtains, the candles and the bedcovers and pillows strewn on the floor.

He then gave Delaney his full attention. Reaching out, he placed a finger under her chin. “Take it off, Delaney,” he whispered, holding her gaze. “No more excuses, no more games. You have succeeded in pushing me to my limit.”

Delaney stared at him, unable to do anything else. Through the haze of passion she saw him, really saw him, and knew that he might not love her, but she had something he desperately wanted. And from the way he was breathing and the size of the arousal he wasn't trying to hide, she had something he urgently needed.

A ray of hope sprang within her. He may be predestined to marry another woman, and he may have a mistress waiting for him in his native land, but now, today, right at this very moment,
she
was the woman he wanted and desired with an intensity that took her breath away.

“Take it off.”

His words, Delaney noted, had been spoken…or a better word would be
growled
…through clenched teeth and heated frustration. She would bet no woman had ever given him such a hassle to see her naked. The one thing he would remember about her was that she hadn't been easy.

Reaching up to ease the spaghetti straps off her shoulders, she gave the top part of her body a sensuous wiggle, which prompted the gown to ease down past her small waist, over her curvaceous thighs and land in a pool at her feet.

She met Jamal's gaze when she heard his sharp intake of breath. She watched as his eyes became darker still, and saw how he was focusing entirely on her naked body, seemingly spellbound by what he saw. His eyes roamed over her like a lover's caress, the deep penetration of his gaze blazing a heated path from the tips of each one of her breasts to the area between her legs. Then he reached up and released the clip on her hair, which tumbled around her shoulders.

A thickness settled deep in her throat, and her chest inhaled tightly a faint whisper of air. She thought she would always remember this moment when she had openly displayed herself to him, the man she loved. He was seeing her as no man ever had.

“Now it's your turn,” she managed to say in the silence that had settled between them. She watched as he slowly pushed the robe from his shoulders, then stood before her proud, all male, intensely enlarged and naked for her. The glow from the candles reflected off his brown skin.

“I want you, Delaney.” His whispered plea penetrated the room. “I want to take you in all the ways a man can take a woman. And I promise to give you pleasure of the richest, purest and most profound kind. Will you let me do that? Will you accept me as I am, accept the things that cannot be and accept that this is all we can have together?”

Delaney stared at him, knowing what her answer would be. This wasn't a cold day in July, and he wasn't coming to her exclusively. Yet she would go to him willingly, without shame and with no regrets. She lifted her head proudly as she fought back the burning in her eyes, inwardly conceding yet again that she loved him. And because she loved him, for whatever time they had left to spend together she would be his, the sheikh's woman, and he would be hers, Delaney's desert sheikh.

She met his gaze, knowing he waited for her response. As much as he wanted her, if she denied him he would accept her decision. But she had no intention of denying him. “Yes, Jamal, I want to experience the pleasure you offer, knowing that is all I can and will ever get from you.”

For a moment Delaney could have sworn she saw regret, deep and profound, flash in his eyes just before he reached out and gathered her in his arms, sealing his lips with hers.

An insurmountable degree of passion flared quickly between them the moment his tongue touched hers, and the only thing she could do was revel in the fiery sensations bombarding her. His skin felt hot pressed against hers, and when his hand began caressing her backside, instinctively she got closer, feeling him large and hot, intimately pressing against her.

The kiss seemed to go on and on, neither wanting to break it, both wanting to savor every moment they spent together and not rush toward what they knew awaited them. The more they kissed the more fire ignited between them. They began devouring each other's mouths with a hunger that bordered on obsession. His tongue was familiar with every inch of her mouth, every nook and cranny, and it tasted and stroked her to oblivion.

When breathing became a necessity that neither could any longer deny, Jamal broke off the kiss but immediately leaned her back over his arms and went to her breasts. Delaney didn't think her mind or senses could take anything more, with the way his mouth and tongue felt locked on her breasts.

Displaying an expertise that had her weak in the knees, he paid sensual homage to her breasts, lavishing them with gentle bites and passionate licks. The scalding touch of his tongue on her nipples flooded her insides with heat so intense she thought she would burn to a crisp right there in his arms.

“Jamal…”

He didn't answer. Instead he picked her up in his arms and carried her to the area she had prepared for them on the floor. He quickly glanced around the room and saw what she had tried to do. She had attempted to turn a section of her bedroom into an exotic, romantic haven.

Whispering something in Arabic, then Berber, he eased down on the floor with her in his arms, suddenly feeling a deep tightening in his chest when full understanding hit him. She was giving herself to him on a level that was deeply passionate, erotically exotic and painstakingly touching.

Quickly forcing the foreign emotions he felt to the back of his mind, he took her lips once again. While holding her mouth captive to his, his fingers sought out every area of her body, flicking light touches over her dark skin, trailing from the tip of her breasts, down to her waist and naval and along her inner thigh before claiming the area between her legs.

Delaney broke off their kiss, closed her eyes and shuddered a moan when she felt Jamal's fingers touch her intimately, stroking, probing, caressing. She struggled to breathe, to maintain control and to not drown in the sensations he enveloped her in.

She opened her eyes and looked at him. His gaze was locked on hers, and she could tell from the taut expression covering his dark face that he was one step from sexual madness. The erection she felt against her hip was big and hard, and she didn't think it could possibly get much bigger or harder. Nor did she think she could take much more of what he was doing to her.