He stepped into the boat and held out his hand to her. She jumped into his arms and he brought her softly towards his body, his hands slipping gently around her waist. His white shirt gleamed in the darkened boathouse. She dropped her head and drew in a deep breath, infused with the warm notes of leather and ambergris. There was no sound except their quickened breathing and the gentle lap of the water against the rear of the shed.
Her gaze dropped to his lips, which parted in response. She swayed, suddenly disoriented and he tightened his grip on her, as if aware of her slightest movement. He held her for a moment before running his hand down the side of her body from her ribs to her hips, sending a rush of sensation down the length of her body.
“I’m glad you are not wearing an abaya tonight.”
“As you’d mentioned a bikini, I imagined we weren’t going anywhere formal.”
“You’re right. We’re less formal within the private quarters of the palace and where we’re going. I think you will find us less savage, more sophisticated than you can imagine.”
“I have a vivid imagination.”
He eyes narrowed as if he were trying to contain a secret thought. “Good. I’ll make sure we put it to good use.”
Lucy could feel the flush rising from deep within. His hot gaze stripped her of the clothing as if it weren’t there. She felt as naked as if she’d worn only the bikini. She wanted to pull away—he was too dangerous—but she needed him; she needed him to let down his guard and tell her where her sister was. She swallowed.
“In what way?”
He drew closer to her again so that she could feel the heat from his body, the subtle friction of his shirt against her body, his breath against her skin. She couldn’t keep her eyes off his lips. They were almost stern lips, but she knew the effect they could have on her. He dipped his head, his nose brushing her cheek; his lips tantalizingly close to hers. All thoughts of distance fled and instinctively she shifted her head in a soft angle so that he could kiss her. But the kiss didn’t come and, instead, she watched the mouth she wanted so much to touch hers, curve into a delicious smile and withdraw from her.
“I can think of many ways. However,” he smiled and pulled away suddenly, “there’s no hurry. We are alone here, with the sea and the stars. We have all the time in the world.”
She pulled away in confusion as the needs of her body clashed with the thoughts that whirled in her brain. She sat at the front of the boat, as Razeen turned on the engine.Within minutes they’d slid out into the inky sea. The deep-throated roar of the boat broke the silence. As they sped out of the secluded bay into the darkening ocean, she was once more overwhelmed by the beauty of the place. Behind them the palace gardens sprawled over the ridge, only a string of gleaming lights penetrated the leafy darkness to indicate the path they’d followed. To her right the city suddenly came into sight. No neon lights screaming commercialism, only pale twinkling lights emerged from the dun-colored houses. Nor was there a halo of bright light crowning the city to obscure the stars that were beginning to emerge in the dense, dark purple. The darkness of the city allowed the stars to reveal their full glory.
They sped past the city, skirting the harbor with its tangle of white sails that gleamed dully in the dusk. Sitting in the bow of the boat, Lucy welcomed the opportunity to hide behind her wind-whipped hair. The soft spray fell upon her skin and she breathed deeply of the warm, damp air. She always felt most relaxed when she was at sea but tonight—caught between her attraction to Razeen and her fears for Maia—she felt emotional. She rarely cried but now tears pricked her eyes and she shivered. Must be the quickened wind, she thought as she surreptitiously swiped her fingers under her eyes.
As the boat turned its back to the wind and began to return to shore, she closed her eyes for a few moments willing the confusion of emotions to subside. She was here to find her sister; instead she’d found a man whose very touch made her forget everything that was important to her. She had to pull herself together, forget the things that threatened her purpose. She couldn’t go to pieces now; she’d come too far.
Razeen slowed the boat as a jetty came into view. There appeared nothing beyond it. She couldn’t see anything but flat sand dunes. But as they came closer a dark shape loomed to the right of them, only slightly higher than the surrounding land. Razeen carefully maneuvered the boat until it was alongside the jetty, cut the engine, expertly threw out a rope around a post and jumped out. He offered his hand but she didn’t take it immediately. She turned back a moment to gaze out at the inky sea, almost loathe to leave its anonymity behind, scared, for the first time in a long time, to face what lay on shore.