‘So you admit that I wasn’t likely to realise you were declaring your love for me when you landed in my arms.’
Bella pressed her hand against his chest, her fingers feeling the contours of smooth, hard muscle. ‘Are you saying—’ She cleared her throat, almost afraid to say the words in case she jinxed it. ‘Do you mean that—’
‘I love you,’ he said quietly ‘That’s what I’m saying, and yes, I mean it.’
Suddenly she felt light-headed. ‘You think love is a weakness.’
‘I think the relationship my father had with my stepmother was unbalanced, and yes, that made him weak.’ Zafiq frowned. ‘I was appalled that he seemed unable to resist her. Watching him succumb to the seductive temptations of that woman was the hardest thing I had ever done. I vowed that I would not make the same mistake.’
‘And that’s why you were so angry with me when I flirted with you?’
‘I was determined not to fall into the same trap.’
‘I thought you were arrogant and high-handed.’
He gave a faint smile. ‘And now?’
‘I still think you’re arrogant and high-handed,’ Bella whispered, ‘but you’re pretty cute too, and if you get too bossy I’ll just argue back.’
‘I’m sure you will.’ He groaned, sliding his arms around her hair and hauling her against him. ‘I love you, Bella Balfour.’
Bella winced and a stab of insecurity sliced through her happiness. ‘That’s the difficult part, isn’t it? My sister Olivia would be better for you. She’s practical and sensible. I called her, by the way…’
‘Good. And?’
‘She’d been worrying too. She felt guilty about the things she said. We had a good conversation. And I spoke to Zoe in New York—she’d been trying to get hold of me.’
‘So all your worries are finished.’
‘Not really. How are your people ever going to accept you marrying Bad Bella?’
‘My people think you are Brave Bella.’ He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her gently on the mouth, his voice vibrating with sincerity. ‘To them you are Bold Bella and Beautiful Bella. You are a role model and an inspiration to all who meet you. There is not a bad bone in your body.’
The lump back in her throat, Bella stood still. ‘I say the wrong thing—I lose it quite often.’
‘I love the fact that you are passionate and honest about your feelings.’
‘I’ve never been anyone’s role model before,’ she croaked, and he gave a slow smile.
‘It’s always good to have new experiences in life. All the young girls of Al-Rafid will be watching you, copying you.’
‘They’ll read awful stuff about me,’ Bella mumbled, and he gave a sigh and his mouth tightened.
‘We do not censor the press, but nor do we allow the degree of intrusive reporting you have in your country. There will be no journalists climbing the walls of my palace or hiding in the stables.’
‘But the past—’
‘The past is called the past for a reason. My people care only about what they know and what they see, not about what has been rumoured. They saw a girl willing to put her life on the line for something that mattered to our country.’
‘Those stories about me—most of them weren’t true,’ Bella blurted out, desperate to defend herself for the first time in her life. ‘Half the stuff they wrote about me—more than half actually—was all lies. I never had those affairs, but they were determined to write what they wanted so I just let them get on with it. Every time I said hello to a man, it was supposedly a new affair!’ Her cheeks burned. ‘If I told you there was only ever one man, and that was ages ago, what would you say?’