His Irresistible Darling - Sarah Randall Page 0,36

was still grateful. Jumal had even offered to find a reputable therapist for her to see before she went home to try to help her get over her fears, and she was pleased that he hadn’t tried to dismiss her fears as ridiculous or childish.

She felt a nervous sweat form on her brow as her mind once again raced off with thoughts of being trapped and how unnatural it was to be flying in this contraption. She took deep breaths as she lowered her eyes and popped on her sunglasses.

Her eyes were drawn to the lengths of their bodies, which were forcibly pushed up against each other: thighs, hips, arms. Pip squirmed in her seat at the sensation of heat and strength permeating from his body, his powerful thighs parted in that typical male-dominant fashion. Her heart was now racing for another reason entirely and she convinced herself that the prescription sunglasses she’d just popped on covered the fact that she’d naughtily stared down towards his groin and gawped at the unmistakeable bulge, barely contained in his suit trousers. Is that—?

“Something caught your eye?” he seemed to ask innocently, but she knew he knew exactly what she’d been looking at. Shit, caught red-handed…

As the metal deathtrap began its descent, she let out a soothing breath and risked her first glance out of the side window. She gasped, amazed by beauty of the scenery below.

“Feeling brave?” Jumal’s voice teased her intimately through the headset as her body reacted with a delightful shiver up her spine.

She closed her eyes briefly to the view. “Only with you,” she whispered honestly, grateful that she didn’t have to witness his reaction to her vulnerable yet honest confession.

She appreciated the long drive in the limo to the hotel, which gave her a chance to organise her thoughts, yet she missed the soothing touch of his hand and was itching to reach out for him again. But Jumal had latched onto his mobile, making calls and answering emails as soon as they had stepped from the helicopter.

Having initially gazed out the tinted window at the pretty views back across the Gulf towards Dubain, her eyes were now closed and her forehead rested against the cool glass. What was it he’d said? Something caught your eye?

She felt her face flush again and quietly blew her fringe away from her forehead. Had he been serious? A week or so ago, she was confident that teasing wasn’t in Jumal Aldabbagh’s nature, but after their extended stay in the lift she wasn’t sure. So what was the alternative? Was it just his attempt at a distraction, which had actually worked to perfection? All thoughts of them crashing to earth in a metal fireball had vanished, replaced by even scarier thoughts. Or, in what must be some parallel universe, was he seriously asking her?

She hadn’t been able to meet his eyes and had quickly turned her focus back to the view out the window, her embarrassment complete, but now she wondered what she’d have seen. Would she have been faced with a friendly, teasing glint or would she have seen eyes filled with promises of dark deeds? She sighed. The bigger question she should be asking herself was why the hell did it matter? The man was engaged. Not available. Off the radar.

Jumal ended his call and risked a quick look over at Pippa, pleased he’d finally managed to get his ridiculously eager loins under control. When he’d grown aware of their bodies being in such close contact in the helicopter, his body had hardened automatically again and he’d shifted around in his chair to try to alleviate the discomfort. Unfortunately his fidgeting had brought her attention lower on his body and he’d felt his body heat further as her gaze seemed to zero in. He still couldn’t believe what had come out of his mouth. He’d most certainly never spoken to Faridah that way. He rationalised it on the basis that she’d needed a distraction from her fear of flying. Yes, that must have been the reason all his common sense had disappeared. Something caught your eye? Still as he’d felt the helicopter start to descend, he’d been desperate to have her response to his uncharacteristically uncouth question. Did she like what she’d seen?

Jumal wondered if he had offended her and whether she was now ignoring him. He’d been so desperate to take hold of her hand again once they were safely in the limo that he had made needless calls