Desert King, Pregnant Mistress(23)

'I'll  show you round so you know where everything is.' She looked very  small  and very young, clutching her child close to her, but he could   understand Beth's apprehension. She had made a brave decision, and could   sense that she was in Q'Adaran territory now. He led the way into a   comfortable lounge, as spacious as anything she might find in a luxury   hotel, hoping to reassure her. 'If you need anything, you only have to   ask.'

'Thank you,' she said politely, with a face that was carefully expressionless.

'No one will disturb you, but if you require anything you only have to ring this bell.'

Her eyes widened and then quickly became masked again. 'If you show me where everything is, I can help myself … '

As  she stopped speaking and looked at him, he saw she knew that he  didn't  know where anything was. He only had to ring a bell and whatever  he  wanted came to him. He had never had to go looking for a thing in  his  life. 'The staff will do that for you,' he said. 'You don't want to   insult them by refusing their help, do you?'

'That's different, then,' she agreed as he tried not to notice her delicate perfume.

He  showed her more rooms located off a long and luxuriously carpeted   corridor, conscious that this was the first time in his life he had ever   acted as a tour guide. She started talking to Hana, explaining things   to her, showing complete disregard for his instructions about holding   conversations with a royal baby. 'And just in case you need a doctor,'   he said, indicating another room, 'this is the medical centre.'

'I sincerely hope we won't need a doctor.'

'And  there are two bedrooms at this end of the plane, each with cots.  Feel  free to choose whichever you like. I have my own quarters at the  front  of the aircraft, so you won't disturb me.'

'I wouldn't dream of it.'

He  continued on as if he hadn't heard her. 'And my support staff will  be  at the rear of the plane in a completely different section, so they   won't disturb you.'

'That's reassuring, isn't it, Hana?'

'There are three bathrooms, all with a shower and whirlpool bath.'

'And a good stock of towels?'

'Of course.'

'Have you ever thought of going into real estate?' she said.

'And there's a cinema in here.'

'No swimming pool?'

He stopped, and turned to face her.

'Do you have a cot for Hana in the lounge?' she said innocently. 'Only I didn't see one.'

'I'll  have one brought in for you. And there's a professional nanny on  board.  I would have ordered two if I'd known Faith couldn't be here.'

'You'd have ordered one?-like pizza?'

He looked down at her.

'Not like pizza, like people you value, Khal, because they're part of our team.'

'Our team?'

She blushed. 'I don't need a nanny, thank you very much. No offence to the nanny.'

'And none taken … by the nanny.'



He  flew the plane too. Couldn't he delegate anything to other people?  Beth  wondered as Khal left her in a swirl of robes that cast up the  scent of  sandalwood and amber. That was how she would always think of  him, Beth  realised as her heart lurched, the rugged warrior sheikh with  his darkly  glittering glamour, and his dangerous, cold black eyes.

The  flight was smooth and uneventful, and when the landing gear went  down  Beth was surprised to find she was excited by the prospect of  returning  to Q'Adar. Gazing out of the window, she realised things were  starting  to change for the better under Khal's rule. In the time she  had been  away, and even taking into account the uprising, he had  managed to  transform large tracts of desert into a garden of crops. She  wanted to  congratulate him, but when they landed and the plane drew to  a halt on  the tarmac she was disappointed to see a limousine waiting  for her,  while a smaller, faster car sped away with Khal at the wheel.                       
       
           



       

This  was how it would be, Beth realised: the ruler of Q'Adar on a  faster and  more demanding track, while his illegitimate baby daughter  and her  mother slipped into the shadows behind tinted windows. But she  couldn't  help feeling a sense of anticipation at the thought of making  things  work out for the best for Hana in Q'Adar. At least until Khal  told them  it was safe to go home. She would never think of Q'Adar as  home, would  she? Beth reflected as the limousine slid past the soothing  sight of  orange groves, packed with ripe fruit glowing like tiny  Halloween  lanterns in the fast-fading sun.



Gunning the engine of  his Ferrari until it threatened to take flight,  Khal was still debating  how exactly Beth was going to fit into court  life in Q'Adar. Pure  instinct had made him bring her here without any  of his usual thought  and planning, but when there was a threat to those  he cared about he  acted fast and decisively. He had never brought a  woman to the palace  before, and yet here he was with a ready-made  family. He'd have to find  something to keep Beth busy and out of his  way …




'This  is our life for now,' Beth whispered to baby Hana as the  limousine  slowed in front of the grand entrance of the palace. She was  taking  comfort in the warm baby-scent, with her face buried in Hana's  downy  black curls, but when she saw the Dowager Sheikha waiting to  greet them  at the top of the steps her head snapped up. 'Oh, great,'  Beth breathed  with genuine pleasure, her face lighting with enthusiasm  as she  remembered how kind Khal's mother had been to her on her  previous visit.  All the plans Beth had been making on the way to the  palace-To achieve  any one of them she'd need an influential supporter.

Oh, great,  Beth thought, biting her lip as she began to lose  confidence. She  couldn't imagine Khal's mother would feel much like  playing fairy  godmother when the clumsy shop-girl from the ball  returned to the palace  with a royal baby in her arms …

Beth's stomach was performing  cartwheels by the time the Dowager  Sheikha, minus her usual entourage,  came purposefully down the steps.  But the driver was opening the door,  and there was nothing for it but  to get out with Hana and face the  music.

'Welcome to Q'Adar, my dear!'

Khal's mother swooped  on them, enveloping Beth and Hana in a flurry of  floating lavender  fabric, delicious scent and tinkling jewellery. Was  it possible she had  changed so much the Dowager Sheikha didn't  recognise her? Beth wondered.  'Well, hello again.' She dipped into a  curtsey, fully expecting the  bubble to have burst by the time she rose  to her feet.

'No need  for that, dear.' The Dowager Sheikha put her hand beneath  Beth's elbow  to support her as she rose again, and her perfume made  Hana sneeze. 'Oh,  she's adorable! May I hold her?'

'Of course … ' Beth was still trying to accustom herself to the warmth of her welcome.

'This is what we need in Q'Adar,' Khal's mother confided as they walked up the steps together.

'What's that, Your Majesty?'

'Young blood,' the Dowager Sheikha insisted. She paused at the top of the steps to give Beth a quick once-over.

And  how did she rate? Beth wondered, thinking back to all the glamorous   princesses Khal's mother had assembled at the ball for her son's   approval. It was hard to tell what the older woman was thinking behind   those penetrating, raisin-black eyes.

'Shall I hand Hana over to the nurses for you? My son has engaged an army of support staff.'

Beth recoiled. 'No.'

'No?'

The  last thing she wanted now was a disagreement with the nicest of  women,  but, like her son, the Dowager Sheikha wasn't used to hearing  the word  'no', unless it came from her own mouth. 'No.' Beth spoke more  gently  this time. 'Hana won't be needing an army of support staff, but  what she  does need is rest after such a long journey. We're not used  to being  separated, you see-'

'Not even at the store?' the Dowager Sheikha interrupted. 'I understood that when you're working Hana is in the crèche?'                       
       
           



       

Exactly  how much had Khal told his mother? Beth wondered. 'I'm on hand  all the  time, and a very good friend of mine-a school friend who lives  with  us-works at the crèche and is with Hana every moment.'

'I see.' Khal's mother considered this. 'You seem to have it all under control.'

Beth kept her thoughts on that to herself.

'I admire you, Beth Torrance.'

'You do?'

'Yes.'

Touching  Beth's cheek, the Dowager Sheikha smiled at her, and for the  first time  since leaving England Beth felt a little glow of confidence  blossom  inside her. Maybe she would achieve a few of the small things  she hoped  to, things she believed she could offer Q'Adar in the short  time she  would be have. With Khal's mother on-side, the future didn't  seem so  bleak. But she would never get used to this, Beth thought, as  servants  bowed and doors opened in front of them as if by magic.