The Sheik's Beautiful Intruder (The Friendship Series) (14 page)

Nikki refused to think of him as her hero.  And after being with him two nights ago, she had to learn to ride perfectly as fast as possible.  She couldn’t stay here.  This wasn’t just about finding Brianna any longer.  This was about saving herself.  She’d spent too many hours in Nazar’s company, laughing with him, arguing with him and just generally finding him a fascinating person. 

But he wasn’t the man for her!  And every time he touched her, she lost a bit more of herself to him.  She was going to be hurt enough as it was by this ill-advised adventure.  She had to get away, not lose any more of herself. 

Which was why she was riding two or three times each day, trying to learn how to trot perfectly.  If that was her ticket out of the palace, she’d get there as fast as possible.  Every night, she had dinner with Nazar.  And every night, he charmed her into talking with him, laughing and sharing with him and feeling special in his company.  She knew she was in trouble.

Her heart was now involved.

When she finally reached the end of the stables, she leaned against the structure and sighed as she gave her legs a bit of relief.  She never would have believed that putting one foot in front of the other would be a difficult task but after hours on a horse, she could honestly say that she was beyond sore.  She ached deep down inside and felt like her muscles had simply been pushed beyond too far. 

“Yep, I’m in big trouble,” she whispered.  Pushing away from the wall, she forced her feet to carry her to her room, shuffling her feet whenever possible.  If anyone looked at her, she would straighten up and pretend to be studying the mosaics in the ceiling or a piece of work on the wall.  When she was once again out of sight, her body would crumble under the strain and she would continue hobbling down the hallway. 

When she reached her doors, she glanced backwards and sure enough, the guards who had been assigned to “protect” her were standing at attention.  She never understood why they didn’t follow her to the stables, but she didn’t care, as long as she got her time alone with Yousef to train without Nazar’s knowledge.  She suspected he would prohibit her multiple daily lessons.  And he might be right, she thought as the pain stabbed up her inner thighs once again. 

Thankfully, her efforts were paying off.  She figured that, by the end of this week, she might be ready to show Nazar what she’d done, how much she’d accomplished on her riding skills. 

If she survived, she thought with a groan as she leaned against the doorway.  Looking towards the luxurious bathroom, she gauged the number of steps that would be needed to reach that deep, wonderful bath tub. 

Unfortunately, she wasn’t able to make it that far.  She’d barely even pushed herself away from the doorway when it was pushed open behind her, shoving her forward so quickly that she actually stumbled.  She was closing her eyes in pain as well as in anticipation of falling on her face when strong hands grabbed her arms, straightening her up once again. 

Nikki didn’t even need to open her eyes to know that the hands belonged to Nazar.  She not only recognized those strong, amazing hands, but her nose instantly recognized his scent.  That wonderful, masculine, spicy scent had kept her up at night, causing her to think about how much she wanted to bury her nose in his neck, to inhale his scent deeply into her lungs and enjoy being surrounded by that spiciness. 

“What are you doing here?” she demanded, bringing up all of her defenses against that erotic smell as well as the wonderful feel of the strength in his hands. 

“You’re hurt!” he said, his dark eyes accusing her angrily.  “Where are you hurt?” he demanded. 

Nikki quickly shook her head.  “I’m not hurt,” she lied.  “I’m perfectly fine.  Why in the world would you think I’m hurt?”

“Because you were walking down the hallway as if you’d broken something or strained…” he stopped, his eyes narrowing.  “You’ve been riding without me, haven’t you?” he demanded, instantly latching onto the truth.  “What have you been doing?”

She pulled back, trying to get out of his arms, but he wouldn’t release her, keeping her close so he could study her.

“Why would you think I’ve been to the stables?”

He chuckled and shook his head.  “Nicole, do you honestly believe that I wouldn’t smell Nella on your skin?” he asked with amusement lurking below the anger.  “I know what you smell like and it’s definitely not like a horse.”  He moved closer, his hands shifting from an almost painful grip to something much more…enticing.  “No, my little love, you smell like peaches most of the time.”

She almost laughed at that.  “Peaches?” she asked.  “I smell like peaches?”

He nodded his head, his hands moving from her arms to slip around her waist.  “Peaches.  And cream,” he continued.  His mouth moved lower and Nikki saw the intent in his eyes, tried to fight the pull of her need that instantly surged to life in her tired, sore body.  But nothing could stop him, definitely not her!  “Peaches and cream and woman.”  With that, his mouth covered hers, his hands pulling her so that she was flush against his hard, male body, all of her parts fitting perfectly against all of his male parts and she loved it.  She thrilled to the way they fit together. 

And she shivered, wanting more, deepening the kiss even though she knew she should push him away.  This was such a dangerous game, one she had no idea how to play.  She wanted him, but knew it would be bad for her in the long term. 

He lifted his mouth from hers and she took a deep breath, trying to replenish the oxygen to her lungs.  “You’re doing it again,” she whispered when his mouth moved against her neck, nibbling and sucking, making her knees go even weaker than before. 

But then his legs moved between hers and the muscles that had so recently been abused protested angrily, causing her to cry out with the pain of any sort of movement. 

Nazar instantly pulled back.  “What’s wrong?” he demanded, looking down at her as his hands once again gripped her upper arms.  “You are hurt!  Where are you hurt?” 

Nikki almost laughed at all the possible answers.  “I’m not really hurt so much as just sore.”  She put a hand to his arm and turned, wanting to just sit down.  It had been fine when he’d been kissing her but now that that powerful distraction was gone, the pain in her legs was back in full force.  And she couldn’t hide it!

“What have you been doing?”

She sighed, putting a hand on his arm to hold herself upright.  “I’ve been learning to ride.  Just like you wanted.  And my fear of horses is gone.”

He saw her eyes cringe and he said something under his breath that she suspected was a curse.  “You’ve been riding without me, haven’t you?” he demanded. 

Nikki was just about to open her mouth to argue, or at least defend herself, when he shook his head and simply stormed over to her, lifting her into his arms. 

She tried to hold herself still, painfully self-conscious of him holding her so close and how heavy she must feel to him.  But his stride barely faltered with her additional weight as he carried her into the bathroom where he gently set her down by the enormous, black marble bathtub.  “You’re going to soak in here for at least a half hour,” he commanded. 

She stared at his back, watching the muscles ripple underneath his shirt, fascinated by his movements.  The steaming water quickly filled up the bath and he even poured something that smelled like roses into the water.  Nikki’s aching body wanted to slide into that heat so badly, she could almost cry.  So when he finished and came to stand in front of her, she was too focused on getting into that water to initially understand what he was silently telling her. 

“What?” she asked, intimidated by his anger despite her efforts to pretend otherwise. 

“Get in the water, Nicole,” he firmly ordered, his hands fisted on his hips as he continued to stare down at her. 

Her mouth fell open and her eyes widened as she realized he expected her to strip down right in front of him.  “I can’t get undressed with you here.”

“I’m not leaving until you are soaking in that water.  You obviously haven’t been taking care of yourself and you’ve been going behind my back to get extra lessons, something I’ll be dealing with as soon as you get into the water.”

That got her blood boiling.  “Don’t you dare go back and do anything to Yousef!  He was kind enough to help me out over the past few days.  I’m just doing what you challenged me to do; learn to ride.  And I’m doing it better than I ever thought I would, simply because Yousef is a nice guy who has patience.”  She looked him up and down, crossing her arms over her chest.  “Unlike some people we both know!” she continued.

His eyebrows shot upwards with her derision.  “Are you implying that I don’t have enough patience?” he growled.

Nikki didn’t bother to reply, simply imitated his raised eyebrows and let him come to his own conclusion. 

Nazar took a deep breath, trying to regain some of the patience she claims he didn’t have.  “Get into the tub, Nicole.”

Her shoulders squared off and she glared right back at him.  “Get out of this bathroom, and I would be happy to get into the tub.”

He sucked air into his lungs, the air hissing through his gritted teeth.  “Why should I trust you in this instance?”

She wasn’t going to budge, and if she were completely honest with herself, she was actually enjoying this latest battle of wills with Nazar.  She rarely won any argument, but she was honest enough to admit that she enjoyed the battles.  “Because there’s no alternative.  I’m not getting undressed in front of you.”  She continued to glare at him, wondering what his next move would be. 

As soon as she said those words, she knew it was the wrong thing to say.  He moved closer, his hand moving up to caress her cheek.  “I’m going to see it all very soon anyway.  Why don’t we just give in to the desires that are constantly lurking between us?”

She stepped back, her eyes changing from angry to confused and wary.  “I can resist you.”

He smiled with anticipation.  “We can’t resist each other.  What we have between us is too powerful.”  To prove his point, he leaned closer, his mouth barely brushing hers.  “Why would you pull back, Nicole?  What are you so afraid of?”

She sighed, wishing he would just take her into his arms.  The battle was being lost.  Very quickly.  But he wasn’t playing fair!  She closed her eyes, almost defeated.  “Please Nazar.  Don’t do this to me again.”

He couldn’t stop and she wouldn’t let him move forward.  For days they had been at a stalemate.  “Tell me what you’re afraid of.”  He suspected that he knew, or at least had an idea, but he couldn’t win her trust if she couldn’t even tell him what the issues were. 

She looked up into his dark eyes, her own filling with tears.  The softness in his eyes was her undoing.  She might love the battle, but here and now, with her body fighting her mind to just give in, she took one last shot at self-preservation.  “I’m afraid of being hurt by you.  Of not being enough.  I don’t want to be just another notch in the long line of women that go through your bedroom.  What happens when you tire of me?  What happens if my feelings are involved?”  There!  It was out there.  She’d finally told him the truth and he could make if it what he wanted. 

Turning her back on him, she wiped the tears from her eyes and took a deep breath, not daring to look back for fear of the victorious expression she’d see in his eyes.  “Can I please have some privacy?  I really am sore and that bath looks wonderful.”

She felt him move closer to her and pictured his hands about to touch her back.  Cringing away from him, she shook her head.  “Please, Nazar.  I can’t fight you any longer. I’m so sore I can barely move.”

Nazar ran a hand through his black hair and looked down at her defeated shoulders.  This wasn’t what he’d wanted to happen.  He didn’t want her to simply submit to him.  He wanted her heart and soul.  He wanted her feistiness and her daring.  He wanted…her love.

“Are you going to be able to get into the water without falling?” he asked gently. 

She laughed, but it was more of a hiccup.  “I think I can manage,” she said with a forced smile.  She wasn’t so sure she wanted the hot water more now or if she just wanted privacy to lick her wounds and recover from her admission.  She was trembling with the need to just throw herself into his arms and beg him to make love to her.  But he didn’t want her heart.  And that was the part she was afraid of, being hurt if she gave him her body.  Because that body definitely came with the heart.  And her mind.  And everything she had. 

With a shiver of relief, she heard him walk to the door.  “I’ll be right outside if you need help,” he cautioned.

And then the door clicked shut and she almost fell into the water as the tension evaporated from her. 

Looking at the steaming water, she sighed with relief.  Nikki pulled her riding pants and shirt off, laying them to the side of the tub with her pretty, lace underwear hiding underneath.  She blushed every time she thought about her underwear, wondering who had picked it out.  Surely Nazar didn’t have the time to be choosing her clothes.  But she could just picture him going through a magazine and putting a mark by each item that he thought would be appropriate. 

When she was finally under the warm water, she thought about the past few days.  Nazar had been the ultimate gentleman, but what could he possibly want from her?  And what was going on with Brianna?  Nikki let the steam work its magic on her muscles while her mind and heart worried about her current predicament.  She actually felt guilty about not worrying about Brianna more.  She’d traveled halfway across the world to try and help her friend but all she’d done was get into a mess herself.  One she had absolutely no clue how to get out of. 

She leaned her head against the back of the tub, amazed at how good the water felt but still feeling guilty for her lack of success to date.  And why was he even keeping her here?  Oh, he said that things were happening, things that could get her hurt.  But did she believe him?  Not really, she admitted.  She wasn’t sure what his plan was, but she definitely didn’t believe that there was some sort of master plot that was going to change the world markets somehow, which was what he’d been implying.