The Sheik's Baby Surprise (3 page)

Still under the small protection of the overhead canopy, she looked out at the torrential rains with resignation. This was going to be a mess. The subway was still five blocks away. She’d have to make a dash for it or she’d be drenched no matter what. The shoes were the least of her worries now that she realized how hard it really was raining.

“May I offer you a ride?” a deep voice said from her left.

No!  She’d left him behind at the party!  She absolutely refused to believe that he was standing behind her right now!  The shiver of awareness that raced down her spine as the chocolatey, deep voice reverberated through her body caused her anger to increase tenfold.

Turning to her left she glared at the man. Well, she tried to glare at him! Her glare missed the mark by about a foot. In reality, she was only glaring at his chest.  Again.

Tilting her head up a bit higher, she increased the intensity of the fury coming through her gaze. But she had to remind herself that she was a professional, this could be a potential client. Not that she would actually accept any work from this man. No way! He was too arrogant and conceited for her to be able to stand working with someone like him. But she didn’t want to burn bridges. She had a reputation that she needed to maintain in the political world and making an enemy of a man as powerful as this one would be a bad career move.

Smoothing out the anger and banking her rising temper, she took a deep breath and forced her lips to smile. “Thank you so much for the offer, sir. But I’m perfectly fine. I do need to rush, though.”

She started to leave but a hand reached out to stop her. Normally, she would simply offer another smile and move around the hindrance. But at this man’s first touch, the heat from his hand burned through the thick layer of her raincoat as well as the sleeve of her dress. She imagined that the skin underneath his long, strong fingers would have red burn marks where his fingers were now lying.

She opened her mouth to say something to him, wanting to give him a very polite sat down. She should firmly tell him that she was not for sale and needed to be on her way. But something in his dark eyes stopped her. Her mouth opened, her blue eyes widened ever so slightly, and she was struck dumb by the intense heat that permeated through her body as he stepped closer to her.

She wasn’t used to that kind of height in the men that she dated nor in the men that she worked with in a professional capacity. Normally the men that she worked with were either shorter than she was or just about the same height. She even had to wear flat shoes occasionally so that she didn’t tower over some of the men. But this man was extremely tall! Even in her heels, the top of her head didn’t even reach his chin. That realization was a bit disconcerting. It gave him additional power over her, a power that she didn’t like to relinquish.

Jina shivered as the man continued to look down at her.  “Thank you for the offer, but I’ll be fine.”

“It is raining hard and it is a long walk to the parking lot.  You had a traumatic walk here earlier today.  Please, let me drive you to your car.”

Jina shook her head and took a step back, feeling crowded by his height and his heat.  “I sincerely appreciate your offer,” she lied, “but I can get home on my own steam.”

She started to walk around him once again but he shook his head.  “It is raining harder than earlier.  Let me help you.  I owe you that much at least because of my chauffer’s splash on you before you arrived.”

Jina couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up inside of her.  For some reason, this just struck her as funny.  “You’re not really going to step in front of me every time I try to go around you, are you?” she asked, looking up into his dark eyes, trying to ignore that crazy, fluttering sensation in her tummy. 

And then he smiled.  His white teeth were startling against his tanned skin.  And even those dark, devilish eyes lit up with humor.  “I think I am.”  He crossed his arms over his massive chest.  “What are you going to do about it?”

Jina giggled.  Good grief, she never giggled.  Smothering her humor, she stepped back.  “I think we’re going to stand out here in the rain for a quite a while.  Because there is no way you’re going to get me into that limousine.  If you’re just as stubborn as I am, then we’re playing a game that might never end.”

He chuckled as well.  “I can be much more stubborn.”  His eyes narrowed.  “And I think I’m probably more diabolical.”

She laughed again.  What was it about this man?  She hated his attitude, didn’t she?  “I’m sure that you probably got away with a lot of things in your youth that you think can happen again.  But I promise you, I won’t stand for it.  And even worse, I’ll make a scene.”  She grinned.  “I wanted to major in theatre in college.  So I’m pretty good.”

Malik laughed again, enchanted by this woman and her not-so-dire threats.  “So we are at an impasse.  How can we resolve this situation?”

Jina lifted her purse higher onto her shoulder and crossed her arms over her chest, imitating his stance.  “Well, here’s the deal.  I believe you’re trying to ask me out on a date, correct?”

He was actually trying to get her into his bed, but he could go along with a “date”.  To start.  “Yes.” 

“The problem here is that I don’t date wealthy men.”

His eyes widened in surprise.  “You have a problem with money?”

She shook her head.  “Not money.  No.  I have a problem with the personalities that excess wealth creates in people.”  Her eyes sharpened as she said, “It creates an arrogance that is unattractive.”

Malik leaned forward slightly. “You are attracted to me.”

Jina opened her mouth to deny that claim, but the words wouldn’t come out.  “Regardless, your arrogance overwhelms whatever other aspects of you I might, or might not,” she added in quickly when she saw the triumphant look in his eyes, “feel towards you.  And there’s the problem of your arrogance letting you think you can do things with impunity.  That really bothers me.”

All humor left his features with her claim.  “Who has created this fear in you?” he demanded.

Jina was stunned by the instantaneous change in his demeanor.  “No one has done anything to me personally.”  One shoulder went up and down.  “We hear stories in this profession.  While mingling with the powerful and elite, there are stories when women are hurt or attacked.  Because of the man’s position, she is not believed when she reports the abuse.”  She looked down.  “I’m not putting myself into that kind of a position,” she said firmly. 

His arms dropped and he eliminated the space between them.  “When we make love, my beauty, I promise that you will not be hurt.  It will only be pleasure.”

Jina swallowed.  She heard the finality in his tone and his words but rejected his assertion that it was only a matter of “when”, not “if” she made love with this man.  “That’s not going to happen.”

He lifted his hand, running a finger down her cheek.  “I believe that it is inevitable,” he contradicted.  “Something this intense cannot be ignored.”

Under other circumstances, Jina would roll her eyes and slap his hand away from her skin.  But right now, this moment, the fire on her skin from his touch was sending crazy thoughts ricocheting around her body and she almost swayed closer, wanting more contact with this man than just his fingers. 

When she realized what she’d almost done, she shook her head and stepped back again.  “No.  Nothing is inevitable.  We control our actions with…” she had trouble remembering how her actions were controlled.  “We control our actions through conscious thought and intentional communications with another person.  There is no force that is inevitable besides gravity.”

The deep chuckle that emanated from this man sent unexpected and unwanted desire spiraling through her once again. 

“You are young and, I’m guessing, haven’t had many lovers.  But we will be together, my beauty.” 

Jina lifted her hand to pull his away, but her fingers stopped when they wrapped round his wrist.  They stood like that for a long moment, just staring at each other.  Jina could barely breathe as the heat from his eyes warmed her. 

When he finally pulled away, Jina actually opened her mouth, prepared to demand that he put his hand right back against her cheek.  She felt…bereft…without his touch.  She wanted the heat back! 

She shook her head when she realized what she was thinking and snapped her mouth closed.  Good grief!  Was she losing her mind?

“I have to go,” she whispered, wishing her voice was stronger, more assertive.  But all she could manage was a whisper even after she cleared her throat. 

He didn’t stop her this time and she ran across the pavement towards the street, ignoring the cold splatters of rain as they hit her legs.  Her shoes would be ruined, but that was a small price to pay for peace of mind. 

When she descended the stairs to the subway, she took a deep breath as she folded her umbrella and sat down on the metal bench to wait for the subway to arrive.  The whole time she sat there, her eyes didn’t see her surroundings.  Nor did she realize that the trains were coming to the station, then departing after letting off people and taking on new passengers.  She was simply too stunned by her encounter with the man to let anything into her head other than replaying their conversation over and over again.

It took about three trains coming and going from the station before she realized what she was doing.  Just sitting here?  Was she crazy?  She was in New York City!  People were hurt or killed when they didn’t pay attention to their surroundings! 

She stood up, ignoring the squishy feeling every time she took a step in her cheap shoes.  When the train arrived, she stepped into the closest car and took a seat, grateful that it was the early afternoon and she didn’t have to stand as the commuters filled up all the available spaces in their rush to get home. 

When she emerged from the subway in her neighborhood, she trudged along the street to her building, her mind still going over their conversation again and again.  She had to push him out of her mind.  There wouldn’t be another encounter with the tall, dark devil so she should just stop thinking about him, push those dangerous eyes out of her mind.  He was gone.  He was in the past.  Her dark stranger was history! 

Finally reaching her building, she pulled the old, wooden door open and trudged up the stairway to her apartment.  Her mind was thinking about warm sweatpants and a hot cup of tea.  Yes, tea would solve all of her problems and warm her up from the inside out.  Tea fixed everything, she told herself. 

Jina stood in front of her doorway, staring at the elaborately decorated bag.  It was from him.  She had no idea how she knew it, but she was positive that, whatever was in that bag, was from THAT MAN. 

With keys dangling from her cold fingers, she continued to stare at the package, wondering what she should do.  She couldn’t accept a gift from him.  She wasn’t a government worker and the man wasn’t a client, so it wasn’t a question of professional ethics.  It was just…a gift!  From him! 

A door slammed on one of the other floors, snapping her out of her focus on the bag.  It was just a bag.  She could return it to him with a firm explanation that she did not accept gifts under any circumstances. 

Yes, that was what she would do! 

Taking her keys in her hand, she unlocked her apartment door and grabbed the package.  Setting it on the countertop, she ignored it for all of fifteen minutes.  Just long enough to toss her cheap shoes into the garbage and hang her wet coat up on a hook to dry.  She’d need her coat for tonight’s assignment and didn’t relish the idea of wearing a wet coat over her black cocktail dress.  Of course, the cocktail dress she normally wore was almost exactly like her black sheath dress, just with a better fabric.  Both dresses were demure, allowing her to blend into the background.  She didn’t want to stand out when she was working.  It was bad for business because the ladies at these high-powered functions didn’t want to be out-done by the hired help. 

She made herself a cup of tea, staring at the colorful package while she waited for the water to warm up.  When she was leaning a hip against the countertop, a steaming cup of blackberry tea in her hands, she sighed, resigned to opening the package.  She’d never been able to resist a secret.  It simply wasn’t in her power to not look inside that bag.

When she pulled out the tissue paper, her heart was beating frantically.  The box inside the beautiful bag looked suspiciously like…oh no!  He hadn’t! 

Jina’s fingers shook as she pulled the box out of the bag.  A shoebox!  A Christian Louboutin shoebox! 

“Please please…” she chanted to herself as she slowly, reverently, opened the box.  At the last moment, she closed her eyes, actually afraid to see what decadent luxury was inside that box. 

When she opened her eyes and looked down, the breath whooshed out of her.  Sitting in the box, looking innocuous and perfect, were black suede pumps with the trademark red sole. 

Jina’s fingers shook as she lifted one perfect shoe out of the box.  They were stunningly beautiful.  They were also about two inches higher than the heels she normally wore but that didn’t matter.  They were still perfect. 

She lifted the other shoe out of the box, staring at the pair.  She shouldn’t touch them, she thought, even as she carried them over to her small den.  Slipping the shoes onto her feet, she was stunned to realize that they actually fit!  How had the man guessed her shoes size?  Impossible!  The man was the devil, she thought.  That was the only answer.  He was Satan sent here to tempt her with a beautiful, and surprisingly comfortable, pair of perfect, black heels!