The Sheikh's Desert Bride (Qazhar Sheikhs series Book 8) (11 page)

Once they'd reached the safety of the city, would he simply air-kiss Lucy and wish her well? As she chewed on another mouthful of food, she tried to make herself believe he would do that. But, remembering how things had been between them, she found it incomprehensible.

Once they'd finished their food they spent a short while chatting. It was idle talk about inconsequential things, but she could tell that he didn't really want this kind of conversation. The sun was finally almost dipping below the horizon when he surprised her by leaning forward and kissing her politely on the cheek.

"I'm sure you must be tired, Lucy. It's been a long day," he said in an even voice.

Lucy was sure she gazed at him with an expression of disbelief on her face. "I suppose you're right," she replied.

The light from the distant sunset made his skin appear warm, enticing, and she realized she wanted to reach up and run the back of her fingers down the edge of his jaw, feel the hard dark stubble against her skin. But she knew that if she did that there would no knowing where things would end up. She felt a curious, confusing relief when she saw him turn away from her and mutter. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Azim," she said to him and she watched him walk slowly back down the side of the dune to his own tent, open the flap and duck inside.

Lucy folded her arms around herself, feeling the welcome coolness in the air. Why had Azim just walked away from her like that? But, more importantly, why was she feeling like this after watching him disappear into his own tent for the night? Was this what it had all come down to? Lucy gazed westward across the desert. She suddenly wished she was already there, far away in Qazhar city, getting ready to leave again, putting all of this behind her once and for all. Instead, she was stuck out here, facing a long night with little sleep.

Lucy felt a sudden need to cleanse herself of these awful feelings, wash away the sand that was clinging to her, making her feel unclean. She peered down toward the oasis' pool, clear and cool and so very inviting. Dare she plunge into that pool, cleanse her body, scrub her mind of these tormenting thoughts? Of course. It was the only thing that would make her feel different, rid herself of these troubling sensations.

She raced down the dune and into her tent. She was stripped in minutes, wrapping her body in a towel she'd found in the sleeping alcove. She walked barefoot across the carpeted floor and opened the flap of her tent, gazing out. The sky was darkening, a deep shade of blue. There was still time.
 

Lucy stretched her head out for any sign of Azim. Finding the coast clear, she stepped out onto the sand, feeling the warm softness between her toes. She padded quickly across toward the pool a few yards distant.

Once at the water's edge she turned her head again, looking back. She could barely comprehend what Azim's reaction would be if he emerged from his tent and found her standing by the pool, getting ready to plunge into its welcoming coolness.
 

There was still no sign of him.
 

She gazed down into the water, still holding the towel tight around her body. She could see the sandy bottom of the pool. It didn't seem any deeper than her own petite height.
 

Lucy squatted down and traced the tips of her fingers into the water. It felt cool and inviting.

She stood and, with one last glance back toward the tents, she slipped off the towel. It dropped to the sand, piling around her bare feet.
 

Lucy felt utterly exposed and instinctively placed her hands across her breasts and middle. Feeling foolish because of the realization that there was no-one to see her, she took one step closer to the edge and dipped the toes of one foot into the water. She rested her foot into the sand beneath the surface. The sand shifted, obviously looser beneath the water than it was by the water's edge.

The angle of the incline beneath the water was sharper than she'd thought and, as she took a few steps into the water, she felt the sand move loosely beneath her feet. Her muscles tightened, maintaining her balance and she thrust her arms out, as she took a few more steps. The water was up to her knees now and Lucy started to get a sense of how cooling the pool would be. She felt the cold make its way up the length of her body. She drew in a sharp breath and smiled. It felt so good.

A few more steps and she was up to her waist in water. She gasped with the coldness and playfully scooped up some water with her hands. The sound of the splashing water, the loudness of it in this quiet place, reminded her that it would be wise to keep quiet. One more glance back toward the tents told her she was still alone.
 

Lucy smiled. She felt like she was winning some kind of secret victory and wondered if she should tell him about it in the morning. How would he react? She didn't care about that now. All she cared about was the wonderful cooling, cleansing water enveloping her body. She felt all the grime of the past few days ease off her skin.

Then, she took a few more tentative steps into the middle of the pool, stretching her legs, sinking deeper, testing with her toes, feeling the sand at the bottom of the pool. With a final push forward she was floating in a chilled ecstasy, her arms stretched out by her side, leaning her head back, feeling her hair float behind her head.

She drew in a deep breath and had to suppress a giggle as she gazed up through the branches of the trees at the darkening sky. Stretching out completely, floating on her back, Lucy felt the delicious weightlessness, buoyant and free. It was made even more intense by the sheer, welcoming softness in her muscles.
 

She kicked her legs, feeling like a child as she splashed her feet on the surface. She suppressed yet another giggle. She sighed, sensing the water around every part of her body.

Lucy closed her eyes and gave herself over completely to the sensations. Her mind emptied and it was as if every troubling thought had been washed away. She sighed loudly, letting all the tension ease out of her, emptying herself of all her doubts and worries. All she wanted was to be here now, in this moment. All thoughts of the future and past had vanished. There was only the purifying, icy welcome of the water.

For a while she just floated on her back. Then she turned and started to swim across the width of the oasis pool, glancing every now and then toward Azim's tent. She still saw no sign of him, taking that as encouragement to swim a little while longer. The truth was, she hadn't enjoyed anything as much as this in a long while. Her initial decision to take only a brief dip in the pool now seemed more than a little foolish. She could probably afford to stay a little longer, she told herself.

As she swam she found her mind drifting. Thoughts of Azim crept into her awareness and there seemed to be nothing she could do to stop them. They were wickedly tempting images of how Azim would look stretched out on his bed, every part of his body on full display, his smooth flesh, his muscled torso, his long legs, his tautly toned middle.

Lucy stopped swimming, feeling all her muscles tighten as she floated in the middle of the pool. A curious mixture of cold and warmth settled across her body. She started to move her limbs quickly, desperate to drive the sensations away, regain the calmness of moments before. She desperately wanted to regain that childish sense of fun she'd enjoyed moments before.
 

After a few moments she halted, taken aback by the noise of the splashing water in the quiet confines of the desert oasis. Maybe it might be time to get back to her tent, she told herself. Trying to calm herself, she closed her eyes one last time and drew in a long, deep breath, savoring the sensation of the cooling water one last time.

She was just about to turn and head back to the water's edge when the water by her side erupted with a noisy splash, and waves tumbled across her. She was almost knocked off balance, and she felt her body float suddenly backwards as the water swelled around her.
 
She twisted to face the swirling turmoil next to her, instinctively raising her hands to her face to protect herself from the sudden torrent of water. Even as she did so, she already knew what it was.
 

It could only be one person.
 

Azim.

She stretched her toes down to the sandy bed and stood upright, gazing straight ahead.

What she saw made her gasp. Her heart raced and her pulse started an insane, urgent pounding.
 

She watched as Azim's head emerged from the water, rivulets streaming down his dark hair and across his face. He looked like a figure out of dream as he rose up in front of her, water running of his skin. He seemed to force himself upwards, his wide shoulders pushing up from the depths, water running across his muscles. He raised his hands to his face to wipe the streaming water away from his features.
 

She saw him gaze at her, a wildness in his eyes. He grinned at her as if the sensation of plunging into the pool beside had awakened something primitive in him, an elemental energy. His gaze was locked upon Lucy, his eyes bright with good humor.
 

"Azim!" she exclaimed.

He blew water away from his mouth and gasped. "You didn't tell me you were going for a swim," he growled moving easily toward her.
 

She refused to float away from him and searched her mind for words to throw back at him. "I didn't realize I needed permission," she retorted. She felt herself float a couple of feet away from him as if trying to maintain the short distance between them.

Azim eased his hands through the water, still edging closer to Lucy. He narrowed his brows. "I didn't suggest you did." He ran his gaze across the water's surface. "It's just that I wonder how you knew this was clean," he said.

"What are you talking about?"

Azim quirked a brow. "An oasis like this is sometimes used for all manner of things," he said with a teasing tone.

"Like what?" she demanded.

Azim shrugged and leaned forward. "Things other than swimming."

"If that's the case, how come you just jumped in?" she objected.

He grinned at her and leaned away from her, floating on his back, ignoring what she'd just asked him.
 

Lucy scowled at him, panic rising suddenly. "What are you talking about?" she demanded.

Azim lifted his head and gazed at her, assessing her reaction for a moment and then laughed sharply. "I'm joking," he said with a gasp. "You won't find a cleaner pool for miles. The tribesmen treat these oases as a precious resource." He smiled at her. "Don't worry. It's perfectly clean and safe for swimming in."

Azim lifted his hand out the water quickly and scooped two curving lines of water straight at her. She twisted away from him and squinted as she was momentarily drenched. She wiped the water from her face and heard him laugh. "Just wanted to see how you'd react," he joked.

Lucy scowled at Azim. "You gave me a fright, diving in like that," she accused.

Azim's brows furrowed and she saw the corner of his mouth crease with the hint of a smile. "Really? I gave you a fright? Now, that must be a first," he added.

Azim lifted himself upright again. His skin was wet, his hair still dripping, his shoulders gleaming in the soft light. She felt a familiar warmth curl in her middle. Azim's gaze seemed to intensify, heat flickering in his darkly intent eyes.

A sudden thought drove itself into her mind.
 

Azim must be naked!

He must be, she told herself. Feeling her heart pounding, Lucy's gaze flickered downward and what she saw below the surface of the clear water confirmed her suspicion.
 

She saw every part of his body there.

They were both utterly naked, facing each other in the pool of an oasis.

She thought about his naked body diving recklessly into the cold water, plunging into the coolness beside her. What had caused him to react to decisively, so urgently?
 

She imagined him inside his tent hearing the sounds she'd made; saw him thrusting open the opening of his tent and gazing across at the oasis. She could see the hunger ignited on his features as he'd seen her in the pool. He must have acted quickly, almost impulsively as he'd raced barefoot across the sand and thrown himself into the water, desperate to be next to her.

How could she have not realized all of that, she chided herself. Heat flushed Lucy's face and she wrenched her gaze away from Azim. The mere thought of his bare, naked body beneath the water had triggered a riot of sensation in her.

When she looked back at him she could tell that he was probably reading her mind, sensing what she was thinking, just as she'd always suspected he could do. Especially when they were alone like this. But, they'd never been alone like this. Being here was a whole new level of intense, and she felt every nerve in her body alive, now that her naked sheikh was a mere few feet from her.

Azim floated inexorably toward her. He was close enough that he could have reached out and touched her, but he had still resisted the urge to that.

Lucy met his gaze with a challenging look of her own. She saw his brows narrow slightly in response to her defiant look. There were no words that could describe how she felt right now. She could have cut the silence with a knife.

Lucy knew that look. She'd seen it many times before, but she'd forgotten just how it could affect her, the sensation it could evoke in her body, the thoughts it could claw out of the darkest reaches of her memory.

Did she really want him to touch her? If he did reach out his hands and take hold of her, she wasn't sure how she'd react, whether she'd be able to contain the old, familiar need which she felt building inside her.

The silence around them, in the oasis, was like a protective cloak that had wrapped itself around them.
 

Azim came closer, the ripples of the water lapping against her shoulders.
 

Lucy gazed at Azim, seeing the urgency of his desire etched on his features. His nostrils flared as he drew in a deep breath. His lips were full and moist and she remembered how she used to run her thumb across that lower lip.