His Irresistible Darling - Sarah Randall Page 0,33
bench, pulling off the gloves and using his teeth to tear at the boxing gauze wrapped around his hands. Freed, he wiped at the sweat dripping from his brow into his eyes with his towel and hung his head. Once he’d forced enough oxygen into his lungs for communication, he replied, “Much. I owe you one. You want me to spot you whilst you do some bench work?”
“Nah,” Malik said, rubbing a towel over his own face. “I feel like I’ve just gone ten rounds with Mike Tyson; let’s hit the hammam,” he suggested, pulling himself to his feet and offering his hand to Jumal.
Jumal thought breathing in the thick humidity in the dimly lit traditional steam room was like trying to inhale soup, but it was a part and parcel of Middle Eastern culture and multimillion-pound deals were agreed on in here over a handshake between heads of families who were wearing little more than a hand towel. Jumal looked around at the candles burning in the small alcoves set into the sandstone walls. Perhaps that’s why they keep it so dark in here, he mused.
It wasn’t his idea of doing business, much to his father’s dismay.
“So my mother called me and told me to invite you over for dinner once you get back from Dubai, to celebrate. You know how she worries when she hasn’t seen you and fed you up for a couple of weeks. Can I tell her you’ll come?” Malik asked.
“Absolutely.”
“Great, I didn’t even have to tell you that she’s planning on making your favourite.”
Jumal rubbed at his rumbling stomach. “Barbequed lamb skewers with pitta, hummus and chickpeas?”
“You got it. So, did that investigator manage to come back to you with any more information?” Malik asked from beneath his own towel-covered head as he sat across from Jumal. He’d brought Malik up to speed with the events at the party and what happened afterwards when they were getting changed. Jumal had to explain the reason for his sour mood, which his friend had mistakenly assumed lay with the ending of his engagement to Faridah.
“I got a surname and an address for him here and back in the states. I know the MD over at Goldbergs and I’ve put in a call to him,” he explained, but he needed to get off topic before his aggressive side decided to reappear.
He re-secured the small towel around his hips. “So I’ve asked Pippa to accompany me over to Dubai.”
“And how did she take that?” Malik asked, walking over to ladle more water onto the white-hot rocks.
“In her usual gracious and unique style.”
“Well, no doubt you’ll have an interesting trip. So er, who exactly was that other guy who came to the party with Melina and Pippa? You know the over-friendly tall blond bastard?”
Jumal forced himself not to look up and raise a brow at his friend’s enquiry. “James. He’s a vet back in the village where Matt and Pippa live.”
“And, er, he’s leaving here soon then? I mean he’s not staying long term, right?” Malik checked.
“I don’t think so.”
“Hmm, good. I mean right. He’ll have sheep and erm, cows to see to, won’t he.”
Jumal took in a deep breath. “Why don’t you just tell her how you feel?” Jumal asked, not missing the hypocrisy of his advice.
“Who, what—er, what, ha—” Malik, let out a humourless short laugh and raked a hand through his hair. “I don’t er, know what you mean. I just don’t want Melina to get hurt again.”
“Mate, I’d have to be blind to miss the way you stare at her in meetings, how you come up to see me for absolutely no reason just so you can walk past her desk and say hello, sulking if she’s not there or she’s busy on the phone, how you rush to pour the coffee for her in the staffroom and serve it just the way she likes, how you save her a seat and offer her favourite biscuits, how you linger around the elevator at her home time just so you can ride down fifty floors with her and then wait until she’s left the car park so you can come back up, how I’ve seen you belly laugh at her jokes, which are appallingly bad. Need I go on?”
Malik took a deep breath and screwed his face up. “I don’t sulk.”
Jumal sat forward, propping his elbows on his knees, and allowed his head to fall forward into his cupped hands while pulling the towel over his