Modern Romance July 2018 Books 5-8 Collection. Annie West

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СКАЧАТЬ cordial but aloof. There’d been nothing about his demeanour to hint he was interested in her personally apart from a momentary glint of speculation in those impenetrable eyes.

      All she could think was that for some reason he wanted a change from his usual leggy blondes. She’d seen the photos of him accompanied by stunning socialites at events outside Halarq. Maybe he was bored and decided a brunette was as good a change as any.

      Lina didn’t fool herself that his emotions were involved. Except perhaps curiosity. She hadn’t missed his surprise when she’d talked back to him this morning, demanding the freedom not to have a husband chosen for her.

      That was it. She was a novelty.

      She should be insulted, too proud to go to a man who made it clear all he wanted was short-term sex.

      Except even short-term sex with Sayid was far too tempting. She’d tried to be interested in the men she’d met overseas, but none had lived up to the impossible standards Sayid had set with his sex appeal, understanding and shining generosity.

      She’d told herself her passion would fade but instead it had grown, becoming something profound and troubling that she couldn’t shake off. It was more than the hero worship she’d experienced at seventeen. More than a first crush. If she wasn’t careful, this could turn into an abiding passion and that would destroy her. Already she couldn’t face the idea of being with any man other than Sayid. Which meant she needed, somehow, to cure herself of her feelings for him.

      Surely she could do no better than follow his example. He kept his affairs short and never pined for a woman he’d set aside. He focused on lust and pleasure and wasn’t bothered by troublesome yearnings for more.

      Lina knew her yearnings were doomed. There could never be more with Sayid. It was become his temporary lover or nothing.

      If she became his lover and eased this terrible yearning, surely the other feelings would fade? It had to be unrequited lust she felt, plus perhaps a shadow of her juvenile hero worship. Surely, after a week sharing his bed, she’d discover he had feet of clay. That he snored terribly or was a selfish lover or...

      A trickle of heat slid down her spine. Slowly she turned her head towards the head of the table and found his heated, dark gaze on her. Her train of thought disintegrated and her breath jammed in her lungs as her blood took up a desperate tattoo of want.

      She had to do something to end this. Sayid already had too much power over her. Now was the chance to make her own decision about her life.

      The choice was simple. Retain her dignity and her pride and work out her time doing community liaison until she was free to leave the palace and train as an interpreter. Or have a quick affair and walk away, hoping a week’s intimacy would burn up this savage yearning for a man who could never be hers long-term.

      Setting her jaw, she turned away from that glittering gaze and drew Senhora Neves into conversation.

      * * *

      She wasn’t coming.

      Disappointment lay heavy in his gut.

      Sayid strode through his chambers, tearing off his headscarf and tugging at his fine robes. Despite the climate-controlled comfort of the royal feasting hall, he’d been burning up all night, on tenterhooks for some sign from Lina.

      Never had he had to wait for a woman.

      Never had a woman said she needed time to consider becoming his lover!

      His teeth gritted as he hauled off his clothes and tossed them on a nearby chair. Even the scrape of fine cottons and silks against his flesh was like the rough graze of a blade. He was that aroused. And annoyed.

      He hated teetering on the edge of restraint. He made his own decisions, shaping events the way he thought best. He did not do patience well, not when it meant handing power to another.

      All evening he’d been aware of Lina, just a few seats down the dining table, wearing a sexy dress that covered her body yet clung to every curve. The purple had highlighted the colour of her eyes, and made the soft gold of her skin glow like fabled treasure.

      His fingers had itched with the desperate urge to reach for her, to stake his claim publicly in the face of so many admiring male glances.

      But she hadn’t given him the right.

      Damn it! How had he gone from ruler of all he surveyed to a man desperate for a woman’s nod of assent? As if he were a beggar awaiting her approval, not her lord and master.

      A shudder racked his frame at the thought of the mastery he’d like to impose on her ripe, willing body.

      Yet there was more than lust. There was admiration too, despite his frustration.

      Sayid had watched her closely tonight, pride rising. She’d proved an able interpreter, despite her doubts since Portuguese wasn’t her speciality. She’d also proved herself, again, adept at mixing with the wide range of people invited to these royal events.

      Lina fitted in as if born to it, a real asset to the success of the evening. She was sociable and light-hearted yet ready to listen or keep the conversation flowing when necessary. She was good with people in a way he’d had to work at. Sayid had trained as a soldier and leader. Social chit-chat had taken time.

      Rolling his shoulders against the stiffness there, he strode into the bathroom and wrenched on the shower. He didn’t bother with the hot tap, simply let the needles of stinging cold massage his overheated flesh. He tried to blank his mind, or turn it to that new mining project and the problems of ensuring sustainability and long-term profitability.

      It didn’t work. Images of Lina swam before him. The decorous yet tantalising plunge of her V-necked dress that made him recall the soft press of her breasts when they’d kissed. Those sexy shoes that accentuated her long legs. Her animation. Her smiles as she spoke to Senhora Neves and her dinner companions and, in short, everyone but him.

      With a growl he snapped off the water and stepped out, wrapping a towel around his waist and using another to wipe the water from his face.

      Sleep was impossible. He might as well work instead. He stalked out of the bathroom and slammed to a halt.

      He wasn’t alone.

      A figure stood poised in the open door from his bedroom into the courtyard.

      A jolt of something like lightning struck, spearing Sayid, sending shockwaves from his scalp to the soles of his feet, scorching every centimetre between. For an instant the world stood absolutely, eerily still, before his heart hammered against his ribs like a runaway train and he swallowed hard, ignoring the razored obstruction in his suddenly dry throat.

      ‘Lina.’ His voice was gravel and hot tar, rumbling half an octave lower than its usual pitch.

      Heat blasted his belly and after that moment’s rampant acceleration his heartbeat slowed to a hard, ponderous, aching beat.

      She stood on the threshold, neither in nor out of the room, hand braced on the window frame. Her face was composed but there was a tiny frown marring her smooth forehead and instinct screamed that she was torn between flight and entering.

      Every cell of his body demanded СКАЧАТЬ