‘And I’m taking you out for dinner,’ he found himself saying. ‘There’s a dance troupe in the city showcasing some of Bakaan’s tribal dances. They’re performing tonight.’ He was sure he’d seen it on the list of possible excursions for the emirs because he’d immediately thought of her. ‘There might be some other leaders present but I booked a private table.’ Another white lie that would only be so until he got onto Staph.
CHAPTER TWELVE
NADIR WAITED FOR Imogen to return from the restaurant bathroom and thought that if one more person stopped at their table to suck up to him he’d have them locked up for making a nuisance of themselves.
Of course it wasn’t just him they were interested in. With her blonde hair and natural grace, Imogen would no doubt become the Jackie Kennedy of Bakaan if he were to become King. Something everyone assumed was already the case.
He sighed and was thankfully distracted from heading down that line of thought as Imogen wove her way through the crowd, Bjorn keeping a discreet but alert distance. She’d chosen to wear a traditional abaya for their night out and the thoughtfulness of the gesture wasn’t lost on him. She could just as easily have worn something shockingly skimpy to embarrass him but it wasn’t in her nature. He didn’t know why he hadn’t seen from the start that she wasn’t manipulative or two-faced, as many of the other women he had dated in the past had turned out to be. Women who would simper and preen and bend any which way he asked them to. He smiled as his memories of the other night came back on a rush. He was already looking forward to the end of this evening and bending Imogen to his will again.
‘Wow—this looks delicious.’
Nadir followed her gaze to the table. He’d forgotten all about the food.
‘I hope you didn’t wait for me to start.’
‘Of course I did.’
‘Oh, thanks.’ She leant forward and sniffed appreciatively. Her eyes closed and a look of total bliss swept across her face and he very nearly called for his car.
‘Is that cardamom and cinnamon I can smell?’
‘And vanilla and honey,’ he said roughly. Like her skin.
‘What’s this dish?’
Shelving his sexual appetites for now, Nadir turned his attention to the food. For the next hour they ate and talked and when it was time for the music to start the tables were cleared to make room for the dancers to take the floor. Of course he and Imogen were given a central position and moments later a lute started playing. Then a flute joined in along with a riqq. Imogen started swaying in time with the music.
She leant closer to him so that she could be heard above the music and revelry of the excited audience, her lips so close to his ear he could feel her warm breath. ‘What’s that instrument?’
Nadir turned his head, his gaze snagging with hers, their mouths inches apart. He thought about kissing her but knew he couldn’t. Public displays of affection were currently considered a crime in Bakaan. Instead he inhaled her fragrance and reminded himself that he was a man reputed to have wonderful self-control. ‘Which one?’
She swivelled her head and pointed towards a group of musicians and he breathed in her tantalising scent.
‘The one across that man’s lap that looks like a harp.’
‘A qanun.’
She smiled up at him. ‘It’s beautiful.’
No, she was beautiful and he wondered how it was possible for his heart to feel so light when Zach’s continued lack of contact was starting to worry him and insurgents were right now threatening to disrupt industry in the north.
She tapped her feet in time with the music and the lead dancer noticed. With a smile on her face she headed their way and Nadir knew what was coming.
‘Would the new Sheikha like to join in the line-up?’
Imogen’s face lit up and she said, ‘Shukran,’ which impressed everyone within earshot, and joined them.
The audience cheered when they realised what was going on and the female dancers surrounded Imogen, much to Bjorn’s consternation, and wound shimmering skeins of fabric around her to match their own costumes.
She stood with her feet together, toes turned out and he grinned as he remembered the time he had teased her about looking like a duck. She’d quacked and told him that after years of dancing she couldn’t help it. He’d kissed her and told her he loved it. He still did.
Missing a step, she laughed and delighted the other dancers with her unaffected nature and he tensed as he wondered how any man looking at her could fail to want her as much as he did. Immediately following that thought was the one that said he should bundle her up right now and take her back to the palace. Back to his bed.