Page 27 of The Sheikh's Desert Captive

Nicole peered at him and pouted. "You do know I was only joking, right?"

He nodded. "Of course I do."

His eyes looked at her with a sudden appreciation. Nicole felt her face flush slightly. There was that look again. He knew how to make a woman feel important with just a look. Where had he learned how to do that?

"So, Hakim isn't going to do anything really stupid?" she asked eager to change the subject.

Rashid's eyes widened. "More stupid than what he tried to do back at the camp?"

Nicole nodded. "I guess that was about as dumb as you get," she said.

"Wanting to marry a beautiful woman isn't necessarily a stupid thing," Rashid said evenly.

Nicole felt something flutter in her middle. Had Rashid just described her as beautiful? Why would he do that? They'd only just met and she'd been here in his palace barely a few hours. And already he was paying her compliments? She brushed the not-so-subtle compliment to one side.

Nicole gave Rashid a blank stare for a moment. He looked like he was waiting for a response from Nicole, but she wasn't going to give him even the slightest hint that she'd noticed what he'd just said.

"I got the impression he wasn't too pleased that you have me holed up here," Nicole said.

Rashid shook his head. "He wasn't."

"So, what did he say he's going to do about it?"

"Nothing."

Nicole squinted at Rashid. "Nothing? He's just going to leave it at that?"

"Not exactly," Rashid replied slowly.

There was that feeling again, Nicole said to herself. The same feeling she'd had earlier when Rashid hadn't told her the whole truth. What was he hiding from her now?

"What's he planning to do?" Nicole asked.

Rashid thought for a few moments. She could see that whatever he wanted to tell her wasn't going to come easily.

Finally Rashid looked at Nicole. "I have to explain something to you. Something about what happened tonight."

"Not another quaint custom, I hope," Nicole said lightly. But she could see he was serious now. The good humor of a few moments before had been placed firmly to one side.

Rashid shook his head. "When I took you from that camp, the intention was to stop the marriage from happening."

She snorted. "I'm grateful you did," Nicole said. "You don't know just how grateful I am."

Rashid still wasn't smiling. Whatever he was about to say wasn't going to be trivial. "And, for the moment, we've succeeded in stopping it from going ahead."

"For the moment?" Nicole asked.

Rashid nodded. "My bringing you to my palace has made something else come into play."

"You make it sound like some kind of boy's game."

Rashid frowned. "It is certainly not a game. Lives are at stake." Rashid leaned forward. "Your future is at stake."

Nicole stared at Rashid. "What are you talking about? My future is back in Qazhar. And I hope I don't have to wait too long to get back there. Speaking of which. How exactly am I getting back there?"

Rashid ran a hand through his dark hair. He looked worried now. "I'm afraid your return will have to wait."

"Why? Can't you get transport."

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