Wrapped in Pleasure (4 page)

A silky moan escaped her lips, and she knew she had to leave the cabin for a while and take a walk. But the problem was that it was raining, and not just a little sprinkle but a full-fledged thunderstorm.

She touched a finger to her lips, thinking that it was too bad the thundershowers couldn’t wash away the memories of her kiss with Jamal.

A part of her wondered what Jamal was doing right now. Was his body being tormented like hers?

She sighed deeply. She had to stay determined. She had to stay strong. And most important, she had to continue to avoid Jamal Ari Yasir at all costs.

“G
oing someplace?”

Delaney stopped in her trek across the room to the door. She wished she had waited until she’d been absolutely sure Jamal was asleep before leaving to go to the store. After their encounter a few days ago, she had avoided him by staying in her room most of the time.

But she had been too keyed-up to hide out in her room any longer. Heated desire flowed like warm wine through all parts of her body, making her feel things she had never felt before. Restless. On edge. Horny.

The rain for the past two days had kept them both inside the cabin. And whenever she got too hungry to stay in her room, she would go into the kitchen to find him sitting at the wobbly table sketching something out on paper. His black gaze would pierce her, nearly taking her breath away, and although he didn’t say anything, she knew he watched
her the entire time she was in close range. Like a wolf watching his prey.

She sighed as her gaze moved slowly down the length of him. He was dressed in a pair of white silk pajamas. The first thought that entered her mind was that she had seen her brothers in pajamas many times, but none of them had looked like this. And then there was the white kaffiyeh that he wore on his head. Silhouetted in the moonlight that flowed through the window, he looked the epitome of the tall, dark and handsome prince that he was.

Inhaling deeply, she needed all of the strength she could muster to hold her own with him, especially after the kiss they had shared; a kiss that made her breathless just remembering it. And it didn’t help matters that she was noticing things she hadn’t noticed before; like his hands and how perfect they looked. The fingers of those hands were long, deft and strong. They were fingers that had once swallowed hers in a warm clasp while he had kissed her; fingers whose tips had touched her cheek, traced the outline of her lips, and fingers that had touched her intimately. Then there were his eyebrows. She had been so taken with his eyes that she had failed to notice his brows. Now she did. They were deep, dark, slanted, and together with his eyes were deadly combinations.

“Delaney, I asked if you were going somewhere,” Jamal said.

She swallowed as she gazed across the room at him and nearly came undone when he nailed her with his dark, penetrating eyes and those slanted brows.

“I’m going to the store,” she finally responded. “There are some items I need to pick up.”

“At this time of night?”

Even in the dim light Delaney could see the frown darkening his face. She met his frown with one of her own. “Yes, this time of night. Do you have a problem with it?”

For a long moment they stood there staring at each other—challenging. Delaney refused to back down, and so did he. To her way of thinking he reminded her of her brothers in their attempts to be overprotective. And that was the last thing she wanted or would tolerate.

“No, I don’t have a problem with it. I was just being concerned,” he finally said. “It’s not safe for a woman to be out at night alone.”

The quiet tone of his voice affected her more than she wanted it to. And the way he was looking at her didn’t help matters. Intentionally or not, he was igniting feelings she had been experiencing lately; feelings she had tried ridding herself of by staying in her room. But now she felt the slow pounding of blood as it rushed to her head and back down to her toes. She also heard the ragged pant of her breathing and wondered if he heard it.

“I’m used to living alone, Jamal,” she finally responded. “And I can take care of myself. Because of my study habits, I’m used to going shopping at night instead of in the daytime.”

He nodded. “Do you mind some company? There are some things I need to pick up, as well.”

Delaney narrowed dark eyes, wondering if he actually needed something or if he was using that as an excuse to tag along. If it was the latter, she wasn’t having any of it. “If I wasn’t here, how would you have managed to get those things?”

He shrugged. “I would have called Asalum. And although he would be more than happy to do my shopping for me, I prefer doing things for myself. Besides, it’s after midnight and he needs his rest.”

Delaney was glad to hear that he was considerate of the people who worked for him. Slowly nodding, she said, “Then I guess it will be all right if you come along.”

Jamal laughed. It was a deep, husky, rich sound that made
heat spread through the lower part of her body. She slanted him a look. “Something funny?”

“Yes. You make it seem such a hardship to spend time with me.”

Delaney sighed, looking away. He didn’t know the half of it. Moments later she returned her attention to him. “Mainly because I had thought I would be here alone for the next few weeks.”

He grinned at her suddenly. It was so unexpected that her anger lost some of its muster. “So had I,” he said huskily, slowly crossing the room to stand in front of her. “But since we’re not alone and it was your decision to stay, don’t you think we should stop avoiding each other and make the most of it and get along?”

Delaney fought her body’s reaction to his closeness. It wasn’t easy. “I suppose we can try.”

“What do we have to lose?”

Oh, I can think of a number of things I have to lose. My virginity for one, Delaney thought to herself. Instead of responding to his question, she turned and headed for the door. “I’ll wait in the car while you change clothes.”

“Did you get everything you need?” Delaney asked Jamal as they got back into her car to return to the cabin. Once they had gone inside the all-night supermarket he seemed to have disappeared.

“Yes, I got everything I need. What about you?”

“Yes. I even picked up a few things I hadn’t intended to get,” she said, thinking of the romance novel she had talked herself into buying. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d been able to read a book for pleasure.

They drove back to the cabin in silence. Delaney kept her eyes on the road but felt Jamal’s eyes on her all the while.

“What kind of doctor are you?” he asked after they had ridden a few miles.

His question got him a smile. She enjoyed talking about her profession and was proud of the fact that she was the only doctor in the Westmoreland family. “I will be a pediatrician, but first I have to complete my residency, which will take another two years.”

“You like working with children?”

Delaney’s response was immediate. “Not only do I enjoy working with kids, I love kids, period.”

“So do I.”

Delaney was surprised by his comment. “You do?” Most men, especially a single man, wouldn’t admit that fact.

“Yes. I’m looking forward to getting married one day and having a family.”

She nodded. “Me, too. I want a houseful.”

Jamal chuckled and gave her a curious look. “Define a houseful.”

The words leaped from Delaney’s mouth without thinking about it. “At least six.”

He smiled, finding it amazing that she wanted pretty close to the same number of children that he did. “You are asking for a lot, aren’t you?”

She grinned. That was what her brothers always told her. They were convinced it would be hard to find a man who’d want that many kids. “Not a whole lot, just a good even number to make me happy and content.”

When the car stopped at a traffic light, Jamal glanced over at Delaney. He thought she was too beautiful for words. Even with a face scrubbed clean of makeup and a fashionable scarf around her head to keep her hair in place, she was definitely one nice feminine package, a right sassy one at that.

His thoughts drifted to Najeen. She would remain his
mistress even after he took a wife. That was understood and it would also be accepted. He knew that Western women tended to be possessive after marriage. They would never tolerate a husband having a mistress. But then, most American women fancied themselves marrying for love. In his country you married for benefits—usually heirs. His marriage would be no different. Since he didn’t believe in love he didn’t plan on marrying for it. His would be an arranged marriage. Nothing more. Nothing less.

He could not see Delaney ever settling for that type of arrangement with any man. She would want it all: a man’s love, his devotion, and his soul if there was a way she could get it.

Jamal cringed inwardly. The thought of any woman having that much control over a man was oddly disconcerting. The possibility that a woman would demand such a relationship would be unheard of in his country.

“Think you can juggle a career and motherhood?” he asked moments later. He wondered how she would respond. Western women also tended to be less domesticated. They enjoyed working just as hard as a man. He smiled. The woman he married would have only one job—to give him children. She could walk around naked all day if she chose to do so. She would be naked and pregnant the majority of the time.

“Sure,” Delaney said smiling. “Just like you’ll be able to handle being a prince
and
a father, I’ll be able to handle being a doctor and a mom. I’m sure it will be a little hectic at times but you’ll be successful at it and so will I.”

Jamal frowned. “Don’t you think your child would need your absolute attention, especially in the early years?”

Delaney heard the subtle tone of disapproval in his voice. “No more than your child would need
yours
as his father.”

“But you are a woman.”

She smiled in triumph, pleased with that fact. “Yes, and
you are a man. So what’s your point? There’s nothing written that says a mother’s role in a child’s life is more important than a father’s. I tend to think both parents are needed to give the child love and structure. The man I marry will spend just as much time with our children as I do. We will divide our time equally in the raising of our child.”

Jamal thought about the amount of time his father had spent with him while he’d been growing up. Even when his father had been in residence in the palace, Jamal had been cared for by a highly regarded servant—specifically, Asalum’s wife, Rebakkah. And although his father had not spent a lot of time with him, he had always understood that he loved him. After all, he was his heir. Now that he was older, he knew their relationship was built on respect. He saw his father as a wise king who loved his people and who would do anything for them. Being his father’s successor one day would be a hard job and he hoped he was at least half the man his father was.

Delaney was fully aware that Jamal had become quiet. Evidently she had given him something to think about. The nerve of him thinking that a woman’s job was to stay barefoot and pregnant. He and her father, as well as her brother Storm, would get along perfectly.

It was a long-standing joke within the family that her youngest brother wanted a wife who he could keep in the bedroom, 24/7. The only time he would let her out of bed was when she needed to go to the bathroom. He wanted her in the bed when he left for work and in the bed when he came back home. His wife’s primary job would be to have his children and to keep him happy in the bedroom, so it wouldn’t matter to him if she were a lousy cook in the kitchen. He would hire a housekeeper to take care of any less important stuff.

Delaney shook her head. And all this time she’d thought that Storm was a rare breed. Evidently not. When they had made Storm, the mold hadn’t been broken after all.

She glanced quickly at Jamal and wondered how she had gotten herself in this predicament. When she hadn’t been able to sleep, going to the store in the middle of the night for some things she needed had seemed like a good idea. But she hadn’t counted on Jamal accompanying her.

She sighed as the car traveled farther and farther away from the city and back toward the cabin. She stole another glance at him and saw that he was watching her. She quickly returned her gaze to the road.

When they finally arrived back at the cabin, Delaney felt wired. Too keyed-up to sleep. She decided to start cutting back on the hours of sleep she was putting in during the day. At night, while the cabin was quiet, her mind had started to wander and she didn’t like the direction it was taking.

She quickly walked past Jamal when he opened the door, intending to make a path straight for her room. The last thing she could handle was another encounter like the one shared before. The man was definitely an experienced kisser.

What he had predicted was true. She hated admitting it but her body was hungry for him. A slow ache was beginning to form between her legs, and heat was settling there, as well.

“Would you like to share a cup of coffee with me, Delaney?”

The sound of his voice, husky and sexy, like always, did things to her insides. It also made that ache between her legs much more profound. Sharing a cup of coffee with him was the last thing she wanted to do. She would never make it through the first sip before jumping his bones. “No, thanks, I think I’ll go on to bed.”

“If you ever get tired of sleeping alone, just remember that my room is right across the hall.”

Delaney tightened her lips. “Thanks for the offer, but I
won’t
keep that in mind.”

He reached out and brought his hand to her face and caressed her cheek. The action was so quick she hadn’t had time to blink. His touch was soft, tender, gentle, and her breathing began a slow climb. He leaned toward her and whispered. “Won’t you?”

Delaney closed her eyes, drinking in the masculine scent of him. Desire for him was about to clog her lungs. Fighting for control, she took a step back as she opened her eyes. “Sorry,
Your Highness
, but no, I won’t.” She then turned and walked quickly to her room, thinking she had lied to him and that she
would
.

“Oh, my goodness.” Delaney shifted her body around in the hammock while keeping her eyes glued to the book, not believing what she was reading.

She hadn’t read a romance novel in nearly eight years and then the ones she’d read had been those sweet romances. But nothing was sweet about the book she had purchased last night. The love scenes didn’t leave you guessing about anything.

She had awakened that morning, and while Jamal had been outside doing his kickboxing routine, she’d sat at the wobbly table and had eaten a bagel and had drunk a cup of orange juice. Jamal was still outside by the time she had finished. She had passed him when she had left to find a good spot near the lake to read her book.