Page 29 of Prince of Her Heart
“You almost laughed at your fiancé cheating on you?”
She nodded.“In my defense, the visual was… absurd.”
Ramzi studied her face, then asked, “So why do your mother’s friends think you were devastated?”
She clapped her hands lightly to brush away the grit and dirt.“Because I left town as fast as I could.Got a paid internship with RAS Industries, and… well, I haven’t been back since.”
“That doesn’t answer the question,habibi.”His voice had softened, but the question remained firm.“I knew you’d worked for my company for five years.And I’ve known you personally for several of those years.I thought it was two years since you’d been home.Now I find out it’s been since the breakup.”He gave her a slow, knowing look.“Even I might assume you were still heartbroken over the one that got away.”
She groaned and rolled her eyes, then stood and extended a hand.Ramzi eyed her hand for a moment, his amusement obvious, before taking it.She leaned back slightly to help him up, but when he rose so easily under his own strength, she overbalanced and tumbled forward—right into his arms.
“Why haven’t you come back before now?”
Tabitha didn’t answer.Her gaze landed on his chest, and for a moment, she forgot how to move.His hands rested lightly on her hips, anchoring her.Everything felt still—her breath, the wind, the birds above.
“Ramzi, we should…” she began, but the thought vanished.She licked her lips, her eyes locking on his mouth.The memory of that kiss by the SUV slammed into her, overwhelming everything else.
She didn’t step back.
And she didn’t want to.
“We should kiss,” he said, his voice low and rough.“Just in case there are other people out here.”
Tabitha hadn’t been thinking about possible witnesses, but if that was the excuse he needed to kiss her again, she wasn’t about to argue.“Yeah,” she said with a small nod, her gaze locked on his.
He leaned in and kissed her—soft at first, just the lightest brush of his mouth on hers.It was sweet and tentative, but it left her wanting more.
She remembered how she’d pulled him down earlier, remembered the way he’d responded.
This time, she didn’t hold back.
Her hands slid up his chest, slow and deliberate, before curling around the back of his neck.And then—!
Chapter 11
Ramzi didn’t wait for her to pull him closer this time.
The second her fingers brushed the back of his neck, a jolt of need surged through him like a spark to dry kindling.His arms tightened around her, crushing her against his chest as his mouth descended on hers in a kiss that left no room for doubt.There were no playful brushes, no tentative pressure.Just heat.Hunger.Possession.
And release.
He’d held back for so long—too long.Years, not hours.Years of wanting her and forcing himself to look away.To stay quiet.To pretend that she wasn’t exactly what he craved every time she walked into his office with that guarded expression and clipped tone.She’d always been polite.Distant.Tempting.
But never his.
Until now.
Now, there was no hesitation in her kiss.No subtle evasion in her eyes.Her hands weren’t resting gently on his arms like before—they were wrapped around his neck, her fingers curling into his hair, anchoring him to her like she never wanted to let go.
And he wasn’t about to let her go either.
His hand slid up her back, then into the fall of her hair, greedy for more of the silky strands.He tilted her head, deepening the kiss, angling it until she gasped softly against his lips—and then kissed her again, swallowing that sound, savoring it.She tasted like cinnamon and coffee, and something else.Something that made him forget where they were.
Sunlight filtered through the trees, dappling her hair with gold.Her sweater was soft beneath his palms, but not as soft as her curves.And good God, those curves.He wanted to peel that sweater away, bare every inch of her and finally—finally—know what it was like to feel her under him.Around him.His.
Ramzi wasn’t a man who lost control.But Tabitha had always been his one exception.
A sharp whistle cut through the air.
