‘Are you warmer?’ he asked.
Did he care, or was he just being polite? ‘I’m very comfortable,’ she said honestly. She was looking forward to the adventure ahead.
They didn’t speak again until the golden carpet of the desert gave way to a rough dun scrubland. The foothills of the mountains where the mines were located, Lucy guessed. Tadj confirmed this when she asked him if they were getting close.
‘I have a project for you,’ he added to Lucy’s surprise.
‘A project?’ She followed his gaze through the floor to the rough terrain beneath them, and then flashed a questioning gaze across the flight deck.
‘Your final assessment at college just took on a new and exciting slant,’ he said, clearly loving the mystery he was causing.
‘Did it?’ Lucy frowned.
‘Combining business with pleasure should be a bonus for you.’
What did that statement mean?
‘Your stepfather’s activities have prompted me to take certain steps.’
‘Really?’ Ice shot through Lucy at Tadj’s mention of a man who could inspire terror inside her like no one else. Besides, what more could he do? He’d already arranged for her mother to stay in a safe house and there was no way her stepfather’s reach could extend to Qalala, was there?
Tadj’s profile was fierce. This was the Warrior King. She could accept that the Emir of Qalala must protect his country, but what was this project he’d mentioned?
‘Can I ask about the project?’
Her voice was tinny in his ear. Even so, he heard a quaver. ‘Not now.’ Preparations for landing took precedence.
Planning ahead was crucial. He was a forward-thinking man whose success drove the revival of Qalala. No one was allowed to disrupt his plans, not even the mother of his unborn child.
‘Who are all these people?’ Lucy asked with surprise, as the size of the crowd waiting to greet them became apparent.
‘My team at the mine and their families,’ he explained as he brought the aircraft down in a steady descent. ‘Any excuse for a party,’ he murmured dryly. His mood took an upturn as he spotted many familiar faces.
‘They’re very pleased to see you,’ Lucy commented as she stared down.
He had brought Lucy here to the sapphire mines in Qalala, not so she could gauge his popularity, but so she could see the scope of his work, and appreciate the heritage their child would one day enjoy. There was no question that his heir, boy or girl, would experience a childhood away from Qalala. He was excited at the prospect of sharing all his desert lore, and introducing his child to their people, and to the glories of his beautiful country. Of course, as his mistress Lucy could be part of that. He wanted to keep her close. On a professional front, she’d be a positive asset, and he was a respecter of talent, who nurtured it wherever he found it. With the best cutters and polishers and jewellery designers working for him, he was keen to encourage new ideas when it came to displaying the jeweller’s art. Lucy had recently won a prestigious prize at her college for work on the various exhibitions she’d arranged, making her an ideal candidate for him to draft into the team.
‘We’ll be staying here for the next few days,’ he informed her. ‘Roughing it,’ he explained, ‘so you’ll get a chance to know the business—and me,’ he added dryly. ‘That is what you want, isn’t it?’
‘Yes,’ she admitted, turning to stare at him.
Even allowing for the restrictions of the sound transmission on board, he detected tension in her voice, and by the time the aircraft had settled on its skids, silence was well established between them.
* * *
It was exciting to be here. There was a gritty reality about everything surrounding her, and, whatever project Tadj had in mind, she could only take things one step at a time. She had to make the most of this amazing opportunity to tour a sapphire mine with someone who could answer all her questions. That might not be Tadj, but, if nothing else, this trip would add gravitas to her CV. She had travelled to the source of the precious gems and was about to follow that journey through. With her baby’s future to think about, there was no better building block for her career.
And her heart? Would have to take a back seat for now.
Tadj had talked about roughing it, Lucy remembered, smiling ruefully as she looked around. If this was roughing it, she wasn’t the only one who needed to get real. Tadj could certainly do with a reality check. This particular shelter, situated on the fringe of a city of tents, was as well equipped as any hotel. There was even a screened-off area at the back, w
here she could swim in a rock-shielded part of the lagoon. The biggest natural bathroom in the world, Lucy concluded wryly as she pulled back the hanging dividing tent from lagoon to peer outside.
‘Do you like your new quarters?’
Her hand flew to her mouth as Tadj strode into the pavilion. ‘Don’t you knock?’
He almost smiled. ‘Fist on canvas is pretty useless.’
‘You gave me a shock,’ she admitted, straightening up as she turned to face him.
‘Don’t slip and fall into the water,’ he cautioned.
She could hear music in the distance, and its catchy rhythm only seemed to highlight the tension in the tent. ‘There’s feasting and dancing tonight,’ Tadj explained. ‘At the wish of my people, I’ll be attending, and I expect you to be there too.’
Expect, she thought. What else did the Emir of Qalala expect?
‘I’d love to come along,’ she said, determined not to be overwhelmed by Tadj’s majesty at any point.
He shrugged, stinging her with his careless attitude. She ached inside, missing the friendship that had sprung up so easily between them on that first night. She missed the camaraderie and banter they’d shared, but had no intention of grovelling to try to reclaim Tadj’s favour. He might be like a mountain, towering and inflexible, but he had to move too.
‘I’ll bathe first,’ she said, glancing in the direction of the lagoon. The chance to refresh her mind as well as her body was well overdue.
‘I’ll bathe with you,’ Tadj informed her. ‘You should have someone with you when you swim.’
‘I’m a strong swimmer,’ Lucy protested as her pulse began to race off the scale.
‘And pregnant,’ Tadj said flatly. ‘All open water holds risks.’
So much for solitude and time to think, but why antagonise him? She could shrug too, and, turning her back, she stripped down to her underwear. One good thing about growing up in gangland luxury was the unlimited use of a heated indoor pool at home, as well as a tennis court, and access to a string of ponies. When Lucy’s father had been alive, the same property had been a simple hill farm where Lucy’s parents had scratched a living. But they’d been such happy, uncomplicated times. When her father had died all that had changed. Lucy’s mother had thought it a dream come true when a handsome stranger had whisked her off her feet, but that fairy tale had soon turned into a nightmare, and the simple hill farm had been transformed into a fortress, guarded by grim-faced men with automatic weapons.