Читать книгу Under A Desert Moon - Laura Martin, Laura Martin - Страница 13

Chapter Six

Seb whistled while he worked. He was in a good mood: he’d found a buyer for his latest acquisition, and today some scrolls he had been waiting for had been delivered to his office. Everything in life was going smoothly.

Well, almost everything. There was the small issue of Miss Emma Knight, the petite Englishwoman who seemed to have bewitched him during their first meeting. Sebastian was a man of the world; he’d flirted and kissed and shared intimate nights with a good number of women. The encounters had always been fun but fleeting. Many years ago he’d realised he would never marry, never have children. It was a choice he had made, and one he made sure the women in his life were well aware of before they became intimate.

Emma was not the sort of woman he should be dallying with. She was obviously from a respectable family, and was the sort a man ought to propose to if he compromised. There was nothing on earth that would convince Seb to get married; he wasn’t going to make the same mistakes his parents had.

Therefore the best solution would be to avoid the very alluring Miss Knight so he didn’t find himself seducing her on dark terraces and wishing for more.

An image of his mother flashed into his mind and he stopped what he was doing momentarily. He missed her. He missed her quiet voice and gentle smiles. Every day he wished he’d been able to persuade her to leave his father, to come away with him and start a new life, free from fear of violence in the one place she should feel safe. Sebastian knew he had failed her, knew her death would always sit heavily on his conscience. Silently he cursed his father, and the image of the man he hated most in the world reminded him why getting involved with anyone like Emma Knight was a bad idea.

There was a sharp rap on the door and Seb jumped a little as he was roused from his thoughts.

‘Come in,’ he called.

‘Colonel Fitzgerald is here to see you,’ Tariq, his assistant, announced.

Seb nodded and a couple of seconds later Colonel Fitzgerald entered the room followed by Emma Knight.

Seb tried to suppress a groan. Emma hadn’t seemed the type prone to hysterics, or likely to make a scene out of their kiss the night before, but he had only known the woman for one day.

‘Colonel, Miss Knight, what an unexpected pleasure.’

The colonel smiled. He didn’t look like a man who was about to demand Seb ‘do the right thing and marry the girl.’ Seb liked the colonel. They’d spent some time working together before the colonel had semi-retired from the army, been on missions that had bonded the two men together as only danger could.

‘Please have a seat.’ He gestured to the two leather chairs facing his desk and watched as his guests sat down. Once they were comfortable he sent Tariq to make some coffee then took a seat himself.

‘What can I do for you today?’

Emma wasn’t meeting his eye. In fact she looked more nervous than either of the previous occasions that he’d met her. One hand was twisting the material of her dress whilst the other was tapping out a silent beat on the side of her chair.

‘We need a favour,’ Colonel Fitzgerald said, getting straight to the point.

Seb raised an eyebrow and felt himself relax inside. So Emma hadn’t let the secret of their kiss slip out.

‘What sort of favour?’

Colonel Fitzgerald motioned for Emma to speak. Seb watched as she swallowed, straightened her spine then lifted her head to meet his eyes.

Her gaze was unwavering and Seb felt himself shift under her scrutiny.

‘Colonel Fitzgerald assures me you are the best,’ she said.

Seb couldn’t help himself, he grinned. Emma’s eyes immediately widened as she realised what she’d just said but she ploughed on.

‘The best guide. That you have the best knowledge of Egypt.’

Seb didn’t deny it. He had scoured almost every mile of the country at one point or another. The only places in Egypt he hadn’t been were the bottom of the Nile and a few of the desert villages.

Tariq knocked quietly at the door and set a tray of coffee down on the desk. Silently he poured three cups. Just as he was about to leave Colonel Fitzgerald caught his eye.

‘Might I have a quick word about the latest shipment?’ the colonel asked.

Tariq nodded and waited for Colonel Fitzgerald to follow him from the room.

‘Alone again,’ Seb murmured.

Emma cleared her throat and ignored his comment.

‘I need a good guide, the best, to take me into rural Egypt.’

Seb looked at her for almost a minute. It was a strange request. Certainly he’d acted as a guide for archaeological expeditions before, but never had he had a lone woman ask him to guide her through the wilds of Egypt.

‘There are sightseeing trips,’ he said. ‘Groups of like-minded people who see the main sights Egypt has to offer.’

Emma shook her head. ‘I don’t want to see the main sights.’ She paused and corrected herself. ‘At least, I do want to see the main sights, but that’s not why I’m here.’

Seb waited for her to continue.

‘I have a specific destination in mind.’

‘Where?’

‘I can’t tell you, at least not yet.’

‘So you want me to be your guide to a specific destination but you won’t tell me where?’

She nodded.

‘I would find it rather difficult to guide you if I didn’t know where we were going.’

‘I would tell you, but only when we had got underway.’

Miss Knight was becoming more and more intriguing.

‘Perhaps if you have a map I could indicate a general area,’ Emma suggested.

Seb got to his feet and crossed to a set of drawers. He opened one, pulled out a map of Egypt and set it on his desk.

He watched as Emma smoothed down the edges and started to trace the familiar places with her fingertips. Despite her only having arrived in Cairo the day before Seb could tell she loved Egypt. A feather-light smile graced her lips as she ran her finger over Luxor and Alexandria and the great empty space of the desert.

‘We would start by heading down towards Luxor,’ Emma said.

‘The best way to reach Luxor is by boat.’

She shook her head.

‘We would need to go via the desert.’

When she didn’t elaborate any further Seb placed a finger on Cairo and then traced a route through the desert.

‘The desert is harsh and unforgiving. It would take a week to travel from Cairo to Luxor, if you hire good quality horses and have the stamina to stay in the saddle all day.’

‘So you’ll do it?’ Emma asked, her face lighting up.

Seb shook his head. ‘I’m sorry, Miss Knight, but I don’t take on jobs like this.’

‘Jobs like what?’

‘Mystery jobs. I need to know what I’m getting myself into.’

Emma sighed and stood. ‘I’m sorry to waste your time,’ she said. ‘Could you recommend anyone else who might be interested?’

Seb felt the blood drain from his face. He knew plenty of reprobates who would jump at the chance of luring a pretty young woman out into the desert.

‘The people of Egypt are kind and welcoming,’ he said slowly, ‘but unfortunately here, as in the rest of the world, there are criminals. People who will agree to do something only to abandon you in the middle of the desert with no money and no means of transport.’

Emma’s eyes widened, but in indignation, not shock. ‘I might look inexperienced and naive, Mr Oakfield, but I can assure you I know what dark streaks can run through people.’

He hoped not. A sheltered young woman shouldn’t have to know of the underbelly of society.

‘I just urge you to be careful in selecting a guide.’

‘I was. I came to you.’

He couldn’t argue with her logic.

She stood and started to cross over to the door. Seb could just picture her paying some sleazy man to guide her into the desert, only for him to take advantage of her and leave her for dead.

He ran a hand through his hair. It was none of his business; he hardly knew her. It wasn’t his job to protect her. Surely the Fitzgeralds would screen out the most unsuitable of guides.

Cursing silently, he strode over to the door and placed a hand on the wood just as Emma was turning the handle. He hated not being in control, and right now Emma was forcing his hand.

‘Why don’t you tell me a little more about your proposed route?’ he asked through gritted teeth.

The smile she gave him was almost worth it in itself. Seb could feel the tendrils of desire start to creep from somewhere deep inside him and wanted nothing more than to reach out and brush his fingers across her silky cheeks.

Emma broke the spell by bounding back across the room and flopping down into her chair. With a grimace Seb followed.

‘I would like to travel down through the desert about twenty miles west of the Nile.’ She traced her fingers along the map. ‘There are a few landmarks we would need to pass before I could tell you the rest of the directions.’

Slowly Seb realised what this was all about. She had a map, or at least a description of a route. That was why she was playing things close to her chest.

He shifted, wondering how to break it to her that most of the maps and scrolls circulating were fakes or forgeries. They promised tombs filled with untold riches, undiscovered since ancient times. In reality the scrolls had been produced en masse by a wily entrepreneur with dubious morals, eager to con an unsuspecting customer.

‘Emma,’ he started, then quickly corrected himself, ‘Miss Knight, it would be extremely difficult to plan a trip without knowing the final destination you had in mind.’

She shook her head as if it were impossible to tell him any more.

‘I would at least need to know a few more details. Perhaps you are working off a map or something that you might wish to share with me?’

Again another shake of her head. She wasn’t as naive as all that.

‘Would you step outside for a minute, Mr Oakfield?’ Emma asked.

Trying not to show his amusement at being banished from his own office, Seb graciously stepped outside and closed the door. He’d give her a minute and no more. No doubt she was retrieving the scroll from wherever it was hidden on her person. He closed his eyes and leant his head back against the wall; he could almost picture her rolling up the hem of her skirt, exposing the creamy white skin of her legs.

He groaned softly. Spending two weeks in the desert with Emma would be the worst idea imaginable. Not only would they be going off on a wild goose chase, he would be subjected to two weeks in the company of a woman he found exquisitely alluring.

Rousing himself, Seb pushed open the door with no warning knock. Emma almost jumped from her seat. He heard the rustle of paper or papyrus and caught a glimpse of the scroll she was doing her best to hide away in her skirts.

Seb’s breath caught in his throat. He’d only seen one corner of the document, but that was enough to set his heart pounding. The royal seal of Rameses II was in the top left corner. The papyrus was old, almost falling apart and the ink that had been used was faded.

Seb had seen plenty of forgeries that looked this good, but something made him pause. There was a quality about the document, something he couldn’t quite put his finger on, that made him certain it was genuine. Miss Emma Knight had somehow got her hands on an authentic Ancient Egyptian scroll.

He tried not to let his excitement show. For years he had been searching for something like this, an opportunity to discover an important tomb for himself. Nonchalantly he strolled over to his desk and sat down.

‘Have you any more information for me?’ Seb asked, trying to keep the excitement from his voice.

What he really wanted was a good look at the document. He wondered if it was a map or a written passage, something that described a location.

‘From my calculations it would take about a week to reach the destination I have in mind.’

Seb mentally calculated where that would take them on the map. Close to Luxor, close to the tombs in the Valley of the Kings. Over a decade ago Belzoni had discovered a few new tombs in the area, but not much had been uncovered since. Maybe Emma had a map of the location of an undiscovered pharaoh’s tomb.

He frowned. If that was the case, he was unsure why they had to go by land. It would take them a few days to travel from Cairo to Luxor on the river, and from there the Valley of the Kings was easily accessible.

So maybe it was somewhere else altogether.

‘And who would be travelling?’ Seb asked.

‘Just myself and Ahmed.’

A small party, then. And notably no female chaperone.

Seb sighed and then nodded. ‘Very well, Miss Knight. I’ll do it. But you will have to trust me with more details once the trip is underway.’

Emma bounded from her seat and threw her arms around his neck. Seb was unprepared for her reaction. He felt her lithe body press up against his and instinctively his arms encircled her waist, pulling her in closer to him. She was warm and firm beneath his touch and Seb wanted nothing more than to lay her back on the desk and cover her with his body.

With great self-resolve Seb gently pulled away. He was going to be living in close proximity with Emma for the next couple of weeks, so he would have to learn to curb his urges.