I remember everything. Every moment, every touch.’
‘So do I,’ Malik whispered, and kissed her again. ‘I remember how soft your skin felt,’ he said as he slid the straps of her nightgown from her shoulders. ‘I remember how perfect your breasts were. And still are,’ he added as he slid the nightgown to her waist, and kissed each rosy tip. Gracie let out a shudder of longing. ‘I remember how you liked this,’ Malik murmured, taking his time, lavishing attention on her body in a way that made Gracie writhe in need. ‘I remember how you responded. You were so untouched.’ He lifted his head to look at her with glittering eyes. ‘And so was I. You were my first, Gracie. My first everything.’ He pressed a kiss to her stomach and then moved lower. ‘My first and my last,’ he said, and Gracie gasped both from his words and the touch of his mouth at her centre.
Her hips arched up helplessly as she pressed her head back against the pillow, awash in sensation, drowning in pleasure.
Her fingernails dug into his shoulders as the intense pleasure she was feeling tightened into an aching, ascending point that peaked as she let out a cry, her body relaxing as the waves rippled through her.
‘And that’s just the beginning,’ Malik promised. Gracie laughed shakily.
‘I’m not sure I can take much more.’
‘Oh, trust me, you can. I’ll make sure of it.’ He lay braced on his forearms, his gaze fastened on her. ‘Touch me, Gracie.’
The plea reached right inside her and with a shy smile she skimmed her hands down the hard planes of his chest, her fingers exploring the ridge of the scar on his torso.
‘Where did you get this?’
‘An assassination attempted by a member of a hostile tribe.’
‘Assassination...’ Gracie withdrew her hand as she stared at him in appalled surprise. ‘I didn’t realise it was that dangerous.’
‘It isn’t any more. And that man wasn’t in his right mind.’ Malik reached for her hand and drew it back to him. ‘And I’m not in my right mind, not until you start touching me again.’
Laughing softly, Gracie glided her hand down his chest and thigh before she wrapped her fingers around his arousal, amazed at the sheer power and strength of him. He was so beautiful, so male, and he was hers. She stroked him gently, her fingers playing with the hot, silky length of him, as Malik’s breath hissed between his teeth.
‘That feels very good.’
‘It’s been so long,’ Gracie whispered. She found it hard to believe that she could affect him so powerfully. ‘And I have so little experience...’
‘Your touch lights me up like no other, Gracie. I promise you that.’
The idea that she affected him more than anyone else was heady. Gracie’s strokes became bolder and more daring until Malik rolled her over onto her back, poised above her, his erection nudging her thighs.
‘What about protection?’ she whispered, and his mouth twisted.
‘We don’t need any.’
Realisation slammed into her. ‘I’m sorry...’
‘Don’t be.’ He kissed her hard on the mouth. ‘You are all I want, Gracie. All I need.’
‘You’re all I need, Malik,’ she returned on a gasp as he slid inside her, filling her up, making her shudder with both the strangeness and rightness of it.
She wrapped her legs around his waist as they began to move in rhythm, finding it instinctively, reaching for that release yet again, their bodies straining and searching.
‘Malik...’ Gracie gasped, and then she couldn’t manage any more for she was climbing, climbing, and then it felt as if fireworks went off inside her as they reached the peak together, Malik burying his head in her neck as his body shuddered.
Afterwards Gracie was conscious of the sudden quiet, her thudding heart. Malik was still inside her as he kissed her collarbone and then her lips, and then gently rolled off her. Gracie felt the loss, but that momentary pang was quelled when Malik turned to smile at her, reaching for her hand.
They lay there quietly, fingers interlaced and resting on top of Gracie’s belly. The only sound was their own breathing.
As her heart rate slowed and her heated skin cooled, Gracie wondered what had just happened. What it meant. How much it meant. She was aware, more than ever, that Malik had made no promises. Maybe he’d just stick her in the harem and visit her when he felt like it. Maybe that was what marriage looked like in Alazar, even in the twenty-first century.
‘Stop.’ Malik squeezed her hand and Gracie glanced over at him, startled.
‘What?’
‘I can see that your mind is already starting to race. You don’t need to fear, Gracie. I told you that before.’
She blushed, embarrassed that her thoughts had been so easy for him to read. Malik smiled and kissed her before putting his arm around her and pulling her against him.
‘So you’ve promised me this every night?’ she dared to tease, and Malik laughed softly.
‘Absolutely.’
‘And what about the days? What will those look like?’
‘How do you want them to look?’
Gracie considered. ‘I don’t want to be stuck in the palace all day, or treated like some ornament.’
‘Of course not.’
‘I’d like to work, or at least devote myself to good causes. Help with education for girls and those with special needs...’
‘That all sounds wonderful to me. You can be an amazing asset to this country, Gracie. You can join with me to bring it into a new and modern age.’
‘Partners,’ Gracie suggested, and Malik nodded.
‘Yes. Partners.’
She snuggled against him, breathing a sigh of both contentment and relief. It wasn’t love, but maybe it would be one day. And for now she would choose to be happy.
DAZZLING SUNLIGHT WOKE Gracie the next morning. The bed next to her was empty, and she felt a pang of loss. It didn’t last long, though, for the day was too fresh and beautiful to spend a moment moping. She felt energised and excited for what lay ahead, more than she could ever remember feeling before. Partners, Malik had said. The anxiety she’d been wrestling with for weeks was finally falling away.
She rose from the bed and went to the window, kneeling on the window seat of ancient, weathered stone as she gazed out at the breathtaking view, rugged peaks and undulating desert underneath a brilliant blue sky.
‘What are you smiling about?’
