Wrapped In Pleasure - Brenda Jackson [29]
Reggie chuckled. “Laney, no one can keep your brothers under control. I merely refused to let them intimidate me. For now your secret is safe. However, if I figure they will really carry out their vicious threats, then I’ll have to rethink my position.”
Delaney grinned. “They won’t. Just avoid them for the next three weeks and you’ll be fine. Take care, Reggie.”
“And you do the same.”
After hanging up the phone, Delaney poured a cup of coffee, then took a sip. She wondered if Jamal, who was an early riser, was outside practicing his kickboxing as he normally did each morning.
Glancing out the window, she arched her brow when she noted another car parked not far from hers, a shiny black Mercedes. And not far from the vehicle stood Jamal and another man. The two were engaged in what appeared to be intense conversation. She immediately knew the man with Jamal was Asalum. However, with his height and weight, the older man resembled more of a bodyguard than the personal secretary Jamal claimed he was.
Her gaze moved back to Jamal. There was such an inherent sensuality to him that it took her breath away. In her mind everything about him was perfect. His bone structure. His nose. His ebony eyes. His dark skin. And especially his seductive mouth that had kissed her so provocatively last night.
He was dressed in his Eastern attire, which reminded her that he was indeed a sheikh, something she tended to forget at times; especially when he dressed so American, the way he had last night. He’d been casually dressed in a pair of khakis and a designer polo shirt. Today he was wearing a long, straight white tunic beneath a loosely flowing top robe of royal blue. He also wore a white kaffiyeh on his head.
Delaney thought about the decision she had made. Feeling somewhat shaky, she took another sip of her coffee. She knew exactly what would happen once she told him that she had decided to take what he offered. There was no way he would ever know that she loved him, since she had no intention of ever admitting that to him. His knowing wouldn’t change a thing, anyway.
She sighed deeply. She had to make him believe she no longer had any reservations about their future and she had accepted the way things would be.
No longer satisfied with watching him through the kitchen window, she decided to finish her coffee out on the porch the way she normally did each morning. She wanted him to see her. She wanted to feel the warmth of his eyes when they came in contact with hers. And she needed to look into them and know his desire for her was still there.
At the sound of the door opening, Jamal and Asalum turned. Delaney became the object of both men’s intense stares but for entirely different reasons. Asalum was studying her as the woman who had his prince so agitated. Having been with His Highness all of his life, he read the signs. Jamal wanted this woman sexually, and in a very bad way. No other woman would do, so there was no need for him to suggest a substitute. He could only pray to Allah that Jamal didn’t take drastic measures. He had never seen his prince crave any woman with such intensity.
Jamal’s gaze locked with Delaney’s the moment she stepped outside of the door. The first thing he thought was that she was simply beautiful. The next thing he thought was that she looked different today. Gone were the shorts and tops she normally wore, instead she was wearing a sundress that had thin straps at the shoulders. Her curly hair was no longer flowing freely around her face but was up and contained by a clip.
“I must be going, Your Highness,” Asalum said, reclaiming Jamal’s attention, or at least trying to. Jamal kept his gaze on Delaney as he nodded to Asalum’s statement.
As far as Asalum was concerned that in itself spoke volumes. Shaking his head, he inwardly prayed for Allah’s intervention as he got into the car and drove away.
Inhaling deeply, Delaney released the doorknob and walked to the center of the porch. Her gaze never left Jamal’s and she read in his what she