Not that it was cold in the air-conditioned vehicle, yet her skin prickled as if from the dawn chill.
‘You’re warm enough?’
Salim didn’t take his eyes off the road but he was attuned to her. Rosanna didn’t know whether to be pleased or disturbed by that.
‘I’m fine. Besides, it will be warm when the sun’s up.’
‘True, but not as warm where we’re going as in the city.’
She nodded, hoping the casual clothes she’d packed would be suitable.
Who was she fooling? The way Salim had looked at her as he invited her into the vehicle made her wonder how often she’d get to wear clothes at all. His dark eyes had been as black as ebony. Just as when he’d made love to her. Despite the morning chill she’d felt distinctly overdressed. And delighted.
Rosanna focused on the road rather than the man beside her. For the first time since they’d met she felt close to being tongue-tied. That worried her. He might be a king but she was her own woman. She couldn’t afford to be cowed by Salim. He already dazzled her too much.
‘It’s glorious here.’ She swallowed, her throat dry. ‘The mountains look wonderful in this light.’
The dawn light painted the peaks in a wash of gold turning to apricot, the deep clefts a dark indigo that made her think of the beautiful ceiling above his bed.
Her mouth lifted in a crooked smile. Clearly she had a one-track mind around Salim.
‘I’m glad you think so. Dawn and dusk are my favourite times in the desert.’
‘You come here often?’ There was a moment’s silence then they both laughed. ‘That sounded so stilted. I’m not sure why when I’m interested in the answer.’
Salim lifted one hand from the wheel and placed it briefly on her denim-covered thigh. Instantly heat radiated from his touch and she shivered at the delicious sensations.
‘I know why. You’re nervous.’ Rosanna frowned, about to deny it, when he added, ‘So am I.’
‘You are?’ She forgot her determination not to watch him and twisted in her seat, taking in his proud profile as he put his hand back on the steering wheel. ‘What have you got to be nervous about?’
He was the one with all the experience. She was the novice when it came to an affair.
He knew the place they were going. They were in his territory. She was the outsider.
More, he looked the epitome of calm control. Just as he did whenever they met in his office or at some function.
Salim shrugged and for the first time she registered that the movement didn’t have its usual fluid ease. As if his shoulders were stiff.
‘That you’ll change your mind about this. Why do you think I’m breaking the speed limit to get there?’
His voice was light yet there was something about it that sounded like truth.
She glanced at the speedometer. ‘You’re not speeding.’
He shot her a smile that undid her and left her glad she was sitting down. She knew her legs wouldn’t support her after that loaded grin.
‘Not now because we’re turning off the tarmac.’
On the words, he slowed and took a fork onto a gravel road that wound around a low hill. There was no evidence of a town ahead, not even a signpost marking the road.
‘Where, exactly, are we going?’ She’d imagined everything from a nomad tent to a vast, modern home. ‘Wherever it is,’ she said as the vehicle bumped over a dry gully, ‘it doesn’t look like they encourage visitors.’
‘We don’t.’
He sounded smug.
‘We?’