Читать книгу Crowned For The Sheikh's Baby: Crowned for the Sheikh's Baby - Melanie Milburne, Melanie Milburne - Страница 17

CHAPTER FIVE

FROM BEHIND THE tinted windows of his heavily bullet-proofed car, Kulal watched the plane land and he felt a wave of anger as the passengers began to disembark.

He saw her immediately—instantly recognisable, and not just because she was the only woman travelling solo.

Did she really think she could sneak into his homeland without him getting wind of it?

Her head was uncovered, but at least her shoulders were not bare. She was wearing a pale dress which hung almost to her ankles. It was a modest dress, even by Zahristan standards, but it failed to disguise the generous curve of her breasts or the womanly swell of her buttocks, and Kulal’s jaw tightened. It would be easier all round if he simply had her brought to his car for the short drive to the city but that might amount to something resembling an official welcome and he would not countenance that. He watched as another black limousine edged onto the tarmac and one of his most trusted aides got out of the car.

Kulal spoke rapidly to his driver. ‘Wait until Najib gets her into the limousine,’ he bit out. ‘And then tail them.’

‘Yes, sire.’

He didn’t say another word during the journey which followed, his eyes fixed resolutely on the car in front of them as they drove at speed through the wide roads which led into the city. When the first limousine drew to a halt, he could see the look of consternation on Hannah’s face as she gazed up at the impressive gilded façade of the famous building and for a moment, he wondered if she might refuse to go inside and then what would they do? But Najib was a master at getting people to carry out his master’s wishes and within minutes, she was walking up the marble steps, while yet another aide carried her single suitcase.

He waited for several minutes before discreetly entering the building, two of his bodyguards tailing him like shadows. But as the elevator ascended, Kulal found his thoughts drifting back to another similar ride—when he had been obsessed by the rise and fall of Hannah’s magnificent breasts, covered in the delicate silk of the dress he had ordered for her to wear to the party. Had he been completely insane? Carried away by what he’d convinced himself was nothing but an altruistic action to give the little chambermaid a well-deserved treat, without bothering to examine the real motive of desire which was bubbling beneath the surface of his intentions? Probably. His mouth hardened into a grim mockery of a smile. Didn’t they say that men were architects of their own destruction?

The elevator doors opened and as he strode along the corridor he saw Najib standing sentry outside a door, his face inscrutable.

‘What did she say?’ questioned Kulal as he grew close, and Najib gave a brief bow before shrugging.

‘She was a little militant at first, sire—but then she seemed to grow resigned to her fate and offered no resistance.’

‘Good. Let us hope that state of affairs continues. Stand back, Najib.’

‘Should I not accompany you inside, sire?’

Briefly, Kulal’s lips curved. ‘You think the little Englishwoman will attack me?’

‘I thought I saw fire in her eyes, sire.’

Kulal’s lips hardened. ‘The fire will soon be doused, Najib. Make no mistake about that.’

He pushed open the door and saw Hannah. She was standing by the window, as if she had been staring out onto the magnificent mixture of ancient and new to be found in the city streets outside. At the sound of the door closing, she whirled round and his first thought was that Najib had been right. That was definitely fire he could see in her eyes—something he had not witnessed in all the time she had serviced his penthouse suite. The blaze of aquamarine as she glared at him almost dazzled him and she must have been shaking her head because gleaming strands of mahogany hair had broken free from the confinement of their elastic band and were tumbling in glorious disarray around her shoulders. For a few distracting seconds, he felt the instant flare of lust before instinctively subduing it. Because wasn’t it lust which had got him into this predicament?

‘Would you mind telling me what is going on?’ she demanded, her voice rising. ‘Why I was bundled off the plane and into a waiting car as if I was some sort of criminal? And why I’ve been brought here—to this fancy hotel—when I have a room reservation at the Souk Vista Hostel?’

Kulal had been anticipating many reactions, but such a feisty question from a woman of her stature only confirmed his suspicions about the reason for her journey. His eyes narrowed, for although he had encountered determination from ex-lovers many times in the past—nobody had ever been quite as audacious as Hannah Wilson. Well, she would soon discover that coming here had been a big mistake. A very big mistake.

‘I assume you wanted to see me,’ he said coolly. ‘So I thought I would curtail any unnecessary time-wasting by bringing you straight here.’

‘When your aide said...’ For a moment her confidence appeared to waver. ‘When he said he was taking me to the palace...’

Kulal’s lips curved into a smile he fully intended to be cruel because now he was dealing with something he’d encountered ever since he first became aware that his blood was blue, and he was in possession of connections most people could only dream of. Was that what Hannah ultimately wanted? he wondered cynically. A share of his unimaginable riches and access to his privileged life? In which case, perhaps it was necessary to teach her a small lesson—just to set the matter straight before she let her imagination run away with itself. ‘And you thought they meant they were bringing you to my palace?’ he queried, his gaze deliberately lingering on the golden logo of a crown which was embroidered onto one of the napkins which adorned a gleaming table. ‘Rather than the Royal Palace Hotel?’

The dull flush of her cheeks told Kulal his guess had been accurate and, mockingly, he raised his eyebrows. ‘I hope you aren’t too disappointed, Hannah. Did you think our one night together would entitle you to enjoy some of the perks of having a royal lover? And that I would be taking you on a sightseeing tour of the fabled gardens of my palace, or dipping into the Al Diya jewellery collection to present you with a precious bauble?’

‘Of course not,’ she said stiffly.

‘I thought you would feel more at home in a hotel,’ he added carelessly. ‘And of course, it carries the extra benefit of not compromising me in any way.’

It was the most patronising thing she’d ever heard and Hannah had to suck in a deep breath to stop herself from shaking, telling herself that nothing would be achieved by giving into the rage which was smouldering inside her, like a fire which refused to die. Because showing your feelings made you vulnerable—and she had the scars to prove it. Letting emotion get the better of you was a bad idea. Remaining cool and calm was the first law of survival—she knew that. But although she’d spent most of her life following that creed, she wasn’t finding it so easy right now. Were her fluctuating hormones once again to blame—making her react in a way which was alien to her? Or did none of the usual rules apply now that she had an unborn child to protect?

Because things were different now and she needed to recognise that. When she’d been looking after Tamsyn, she’d been nothing but a child herself and her options had been limited. But she was an adult now. She might not have Kulal’s material wealth or power, but she was resourceful as only someone in a dilemma could be and would not be treated like some docile little prisoner.

So stick to the facts.

‘You don’t even know why I’m here,’ she said.

‘Of course I do.’

She blinked at him and gulped. ‘You do?’

‘Oh, Hannah.’ He gave a short laugh before his hawk-like features hardened into a cynical expression. ‘You wouldn’t need to be a genius to work it out. You’ve decided that you’re in love with me, haven’t you?’

For one stomach-churning second, Hannah actually thought she might be sick. But it wasn’t just the Sheikh’s swaggering arrogance which she found so nauseating—it was the way he had said the word love. As if it were some unspeakable type of illness. As if it were something beneath his contempt... Clenching and unclenching her fingers, she looked up at him, trying to keep her voice steady. ‘What makes you say that?’

‘You have been pining for me, I guess,’ he said softly, before shrugging his broad shoulders. ‘That in itself is not unusual—but the fact that I took your virginity has probably given our night together more significance than it warrants. Am I right, Hannah?’

Hannah flinched, wondering how she could ever have fallen into the arms of someone so unspeakably arrogant.

You know how, whispered the voice of her conscience. Because he’s so irresistible—even now, when he’s looking down his haughty nose at you.

Because despite the insulting reception he’d given her, she was far from immune to the attraction which had got her into all this trouble in the first place.

In Sardinia, she had only ever seen Kulal dressed in western clothes. Faded jeans and T-shirts, impeccably cut business suits or, on that fateful night, a dark dinner suit, just like those worn by all the other men at the party. But today, he was looking emphatically sheikh-like in a robe of white silk which flowed down over his muscular body. A matching headdress, held in place by a circlet of knotted gold, emphasised the stark outlines of his hawk-like features. He looked exotic and powerful. He looked like a stranger. He was a stranger, she reminded herself bitterly. A stranger whose child was now living beneath her breast.

‘I hate to disillusion you,’ she said, concentrating on trying to match his own emotionless tone. ‘But I am definitely not pining for you.’

‘No? So why come here?’ he drawled. ‘Why bother flying out here in secret?’

But it hadn’t been a secret, had it? His words reminded Hannah that this whole set-up seemed premeditated and that a car had been waiting for her when the plane had touched down. She lifted her chin, the pulsing of a nerve above her jaw the only outward sign of her growing anxiety—because if Kulal knew she was here, then who else did? How would such an action appear to the outside world—and, more importantly, to her employers? A lowly chambermaid flying out to confront a desert king! She reflected on her many years of service at the Granchester and a ripple of fear whispered down her spine at the thought of being sacked for such unprofessional behaviour. ‘How...how did you know I’d be on that flight?’ she questioned croakily.

‘Are you really that naïve?’ He spat out the question impatiently. ‘My security people run automatic checks over all the flight lists and flag up anyone of particular interest and naturally you fell into that category. A woman who needs an urgent visa to visit my country—didn’t you consider that might have alerted the suspicions of the authorities?’ He gave an impatient sigh. ‘Especially since you were asking so many questions about access to the royal palace—and a further check threw up the fact that you work for the Granchester Group and I’d recently been staying in one of their hotels.’

Hannah stared down at her fingernails she’d spent the past few weeks forcing herself not to chew, and suddenly she knew she couldn’t put it off any longer. She had to tell him. But it was with an instinctively sinking heart that she met the ebony coldness of his eyes. ‘I’m pregnant, Kulal,’ she said quietly.

There was a pin-drop silence as he looked at her, the expression on his hawk-like features inscrutable as he shook his head.

‘You can’t be. I used protection.’ His voice was cold. ‘I always do.’

Had he added that last bit just to hurt her? To remind her that she was nothing special? Just another women who had succumbed to all that arrogant alpha appeal...? Hannah chewed her bottom lip. Probably. But she wasn’t here to protect her own feelings—she was here to do the best for her baby and reacting with anger to his inflammatory comments would serve no useful purpose. ‘I’m afraid I can,’ she contradicted. ‘I’m carrying your baby, Kulal,’ she added for extra emphasis and saw his body tense.

Kulal felt the sudden rush of blood to his head as adrenalin flooded through his system and disbelief warred with the evidence right in front of his eyes—because she was here, wasn’t she? A place where she had no right to be. He observed her stillness and the unnatural calmness of her expression—as if he was waiting for her to relax and tell him she’d made the whole thing up—but he knew he was waiting in vain. Of course she was pregnant—why else would she have flown out here in a dramatic way he suspected was completely out of character? His heart began to pound loudly in his chest and he recognised the sensation instantly because he used to feel that way when he was about to go into battle. But war had never filled him with the uncertainty which now assailed him and which instantly put him on the offensive.

‘So have you come here to bargain with me, Hannah?’ he demanded. ‘To see how much money you can get out of me?’

Hannah flinched. If she had been in London—if her baby’s father had been a normal man—she would have risen from the chair, no matter how shaky her legs, and walked out of the room, telling him she would speak to him when he was prepared to be reasonable. Because surely a display of emotion would be justified in those circumstances.

But she wasn’t in London and Kulal was not a normal man, no matter how much she wished he were. She was stuck in a fancy hotel room in his country, miles away from home and everything she knew. The air felt icy from the over-efficient pump of the air-conditioning and outside the huge windows she could see the golden gleam of a beautiful dome. It couldn’t have been more unlike the view from her own humble little bedsit, but she mustn’t let the undeniable glamour of the location stop her from dealing with practicalities.

‘No, I haven’t come here to bargain with you,’ she said quietly. ‘Nor to be spoken to as if I were someone motivated by nothing other than greed.’

‘Really? Then what do you want?’

Wasn’t it obvious? Wouldn’t anyone with a shred of decency in their soul have done the same—or was Hannah just hypersensitive about the subject of paternity because her own start in life had been less than ideal? She looked into his eyes, but they were cold and hard. As hard as the dagger she’d suddenly noticed was hanging at his hip... ‘Because I wanted to give you the opportunity to be a part of your baby’s life,’ she said quietly.

‘In what capacity?’

He was so cold. So unfeeling. Hannah wanted to pick up a tiny golden box which sat on one of the polished tables. She wanted to hurl it against the wall or the chandelier. To make a noise and to break something—as a gesture of defiance as well as one of protest. But she wasn’t going to act like a wronged woman—causing a scene and wringing her hands together as she begged him for help. She was going to act with a dignity which would surround her and the baby with a calm and protective aura.

‘I hadn’t thought that far ahead,’ she said. ‘I didn’t get much further than figuring that you deserved to hear it from me, before anyone else. It’s why I came.’ She tried and failed to suppress the sudden shiver which made her skin grow all goosebumpy. ‘I would have phoned if I could—but, as we both know, you didn’t leave a number.’

Kulal nodded, the sudden blanching of her cheeks plucking at his conscience and making him walk towards an inlaid table on which reposed a selection of bottles and glasses. He poured her a long glass of fire-berry cordial and handed it to her, and as their skin touched, the sheer enormity of the life-changing fact once again hit him like a sledgehammer.

She was pregnant.

Pregnant with his baby.

Didn’t matter that he’d never wanted a child of his own. That he sometimes thought he would prefer his paternal cousin to inherit the kingdom, rather than condemning himself to family life—a way of life he had always carefully avoided because of the chaos and pain of his own childhood. Even his natural love of independence now took second place, because this changed everything. And he needed to think carefully about what to do next.

Very carefully.

He stared at Hannah, at the fatigue which was creasing the corners of her mouth and the untidy tumble of her hair. ‘It’s been a long day and you look exhausted, so why don’t you go and freshen up?’ he suggested.

She put down the half-drunk cordial and as the pink liquid sloshed against the sides of the glass, she regarded him with suspicious eyes. ‘What exactly are you suggesting?’

He felt a flicker of irritation. Did she think he was making a pass at her? That he wanted her to go and bathe and prepare herself for him? That he would actually want to be intimate with her at a moment like this, when his whole life was about to change and she was the instrument of that change? But that wasn’t all he felt, was it? There was something else. Something he couldn’t quite put his finger on. He felt a steely clench around his heart.

Was it fear?

Yet he was known for his fearlessness—even as a teenager, when he’d run away to join the Zahristan forces during the fierce border war with Quzabar. His late father had hit the roof when Kulal returned, with the livid blade mark which travelled from nipple to navel. He had been lucky not to die, the old King had raged—but Kulal hadn’t cared about his brush with death. Even before he’d left the palace to fight, he had been given hints of the frailty of human existence. He had learnt lessons which had stayed darkly in his heart. And now it seemed there was another lesson to be learnt.

He stared at her, his lips curling. ‘I am merely suggesting you might wish to change—perhaps to rest—before we have dinner.’

She gave a hollow laugh. ‘You really think I want to have dinner with you, Kulal?’

‘Actually, no. I don’t. I think we’ve been forced into a position where we’re going to have to do things which neither of us will find particularly palatable—’

‘I’m keeping my baby!’ she defended instantly.

Kulal stiffened, his nostrils narrowing as he inhaled an unsteady breath. ‘How dare you imply that I should wish otherwise?’ he flared. But although his anger would have filled any of his subjects with fear, it was having no effect on Hannah, for she was tilting her chin in a way which was positively defiant.

‘I’m just letting you know the ground rules from the start, so there can be no misunderstanding,’ she said. ‘And I can’t see the point of us having dinner.’

‘Can’t you?’ He raised his eyebrows. ‘You need to eat and we need to talk. Why not kill two birds with one stone?’

Her gaze became hooded, thick lashes shuttering her aquamarine eyes like dark feathers. ‘I feel it’s my duty to tell you,’ she flared, ‘just in case you’re getting any autocratic ideas of whisking me away so I’m never heard of again—that my sister knows exactly where I am and she has the number of the police on speed-dial.’

It was such an outrageous remark that Kulal almost smiled until the gravity of the situation hit him and all levity vanished. Because humble Hannah Wilson was not as compliant as he had initially thought, was she?

‘Let’s say eight o’clock, shall we?’ he questioned, eager to reassert his authority. ‘And please don’t keep me waiting.’