“Um, yes, must be a bad connection. Listen, I have to take some time off. I have a … family situation.”
“I hope it’s nothing serious?”
The sound of her friend’s concern brought tears to Olivia’s eyes. She blinked them away furiously. “I’ll be fine. I just need some time.”
“Of course. You have months of leave owing in any event. I’ll let HR know.”
“Thank you.”
“Olivia? Keep me posted. Let me know you’re okay when you can.”
“I will. I’ll call you soon. Thanks, honey.” She handed the phone back to Tamir without meeting his eyes.
He pressed the hang up button but didn’t replace the phone. “Do you need to call your mother?”
“Yes.” She swallowed. “I don’t know what to say.”
“You seem to lie deftly. I’m sure you’ll think of something.”
Olivia could no longer keep the tears in check. One slid down her cheek and she wiped it away with her palm.
“What is her number?”
Olivia recited it by heart, and then took the receiver, careful not to touch Tamir’s fingers. Her mother was surprisingly easy to explain things to. Though she had spent the last few years slavishly devoted to Tabitha, from time to time, she’d had work requirements that had necessitated time away from the apartment. She made up a collection that needed her attention and disconnected the call.
Though Tabitha had taken the information well, Olivia felt uneasy.
One look at Tamir’s face though and she knew she couldn’t speak to him about her feelings. He was her captor, not her ally. He had been her lover, and would be again, but he would never be her friend. He was capable of giving her pleasure, but not kindness. Never kindness.
She returned to her vigil of the everlasting darkness beyond the aeroplane and tried not to think about what awaited her in Talidar.
Ironically, her time in Liya formed some of her most pleasant memories. Exploring the ancient and beautiful city, with its wide boulevards, expensive shopping precincts and historically rich culture, had provided endless hours of amusement. Though the values were conservative, she hadn’t been bothered by that at all. She hardly drank, didn’t smoke, had no interest in the night lift. And the city was safe. The police presence was strong, yet apparently unnecessary. She’d walked alone much of the time, stopping as she wished to take photographs and write down descriptions or thoughts.
Yes, Liya was beautiful. The Talidarian people were beautiful. Nothing about the country itself worried her.
It was the man opposite. Brooding, strong, harsh, unreasonable Tamir Al’ani. What had she been thinking? Getting involved with a man such as he had been a gross miscalculation. Introducing Jack into his orbit even more so.
For Jack was an unpredictable, loose canon. She’d seen him pilfer tomatoes from Tescos, and drive away from petrol stations without paying for fuel. But never something as brazen and idiotic as this. The irony was that Jack’s family was one of the wealthiest in the United Kingdom.
She groaned softly, unaware of the way Tamir looked at her sharply. She pulled her legs to her chin, flipping her toes over the edge of her seat. She looked like a small child, though she didn’t know it.
“It is a long flight. You should sleep.”
Olivia nodded, but didn’t look at him.
Tamir felt reassurances tripping over his tongue, but he would not dignify the situation by uttering them. He didn’t want to analyse his degree of fury. She’d lied to him. She’d intended to steal from him. And she’d been prepared to sleep with him in order to carry out her plan. It was degrading and disgusting.
Despite this, she was still an incredible lover. A match for him in every way, his body had responded to hers with a fervour he hadn’t known before. He could ignore his dislike of her so long as the pleasures of her body were at his disposal.
And they would be. He’d made sure of that.
As if his thoughts had conjured Kalil back, his security chief began stalking towards them, from the back of the plane where the staff remained during flight.
“The papers are filed. It is done.” Kalil remarked in their native language.
“You have my thanks,” Tamir responded, thinking he’d deal with the consequences of this hasty decision at a later date.
“She will need to sign this.”