One Desert Night - By Maggie Cox Page 0,59

after my sister and my guest,' he said clearly.

As he swept towards the door, his handsome profile grimly resolute, Gina shot up from her seat and rushed round the table towards him. 'Zahir!' She stopped him in his tracks, and for a jittery moment wondered at her own audacity.

'What's wrong?' he asked, not without a hint of impatience.

'Let me go with you.'

'That is out of the question.'

'Please... I've heard in your voice how highly you regard Masoud, and I thought—I thought I might be able to be of some help.'

'Help? How? A medical doctor is what I need right now—not an expert in antiquities!'

Ignoring his barbed retort, Gina pressed on. 'I don't like the thought of you keeping a lonely vigil. At least if I was there you'd have someone to share your thoughts and concerns with. Please, won't you change your mind and let me go with you?'

'No. I want you to stay here with Farida. Like I said before, I will see you both later.' And with that he swept through the double doors and was gone.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

It had been a long night—a night during which his loyal secretary and friend Masoud had literally been fighting for his life.

The medical staff at the small exclusive hospital that Zahir had had him flown to by helicopter had worked like Trojans to keep him alive. Earlier that day another virus had taken hold of him, leaving him dangerously ill, but in the early hours of the morning the senior doctor in charge had at last given him the all-clear, and informed Zahir that the man was over the worst. Only the days to come would tell whether he had enough strength left in his compromised immune system to pull through completely.

Grey-faced and anxious, Zahir returned to the palace. In his room he collapsed on the bed, and stared up at the gently whirring blades of the ceiling fan. Like his friend Amir, Masoud had been to school with him. He, too, was like a brother. To see his gaunt face and black eyes staring blankly up at him from a hospital bed, his body wired up to countless tubes and drips, had left him in a state of mounting fear and despair. Was he to lose yet another person he cared about?

He had no doubt he was being tested by Allah—although it felt more as if he was being mocked. Just when he'd decided to give love a chance, he had again been shown how precarious his future with Gina might be if he should lose her. He was strong, but not that strong. If she should die young—either by some dreadful accident or through an illness of some kind—he honestly didn't think he could bear it. With his heart and mind in turmoil, Zahir shut his eyes and prayed harder than he had ever prayed before...

It seemed as though Zahir had retreated from her in every possible way. Gina had got over the abrupt way he'd told her that he needed a medical doctor, not an antiquities expert, telling herself it was because he'd been so distressed on hearing the news about Masoud. He had been so curt—and it had wounded her when he'd so brutally dismissed her offer of help.

More troubling behaviour was to come.

The morning after he'd rushed to Masoud, Gina saw him on the way to his rooms. His handsome, unlined face was haggard.

'Zahir.' She hurried after him. It appeared that he was reluctant to stop even for a moment to talk to her.

'What is it?' he asked wearily, rubbing his hand across his eyes.

Her heart knocked hard against her ribs. 'How is Masoud?'

'Right now it is touch and go, so I am told. To speak the truth, I don't really want to discuss it. All I will say is that the next few days are critical. If you need anything, talk to Farida or Jamal, will you?'

'I don't want to annoy you, Zahir, but perhaps the next time you go to the hospital I could go with you? I know I can't make your friend better, but I could be a support and someone to turn to for you, instead of you sitting there alone worrying about him.'

'To be frank, your presence would be an unnecessary distraction rather than a support. Right now I need to focus on what has to be done for my friend—not be fussed over by a woman like some needy child!'

Biting back a hurt retort, Gina felt her face burn