The Sheikh's Rescued Baby - Leslie North Page 0,32

little frustrated that he’d taken so much time, that he teased her like this—but then Nadim settled into a rhythm that seemed cosmic in its power. As relentless as waves on the shore. He was inside her, he was above her, he was everywhere, and she didn’t have to hold on anymore.

Aisha’s only job in this moment was to give in.

So she did, breaking apart under his hands. The last of her filter dissolved, and she clung to Nadim with everything she had, rocking her hips toward his, meeting him for every stroke. Her body clenched and shuddered, again and again. She couldn’t tell where one release ended and another began. There were so many. Too many.

He had to bring her gently back down when his own release came, because her hips still searched for him, wanting more. Nadim reached between them and rubbed her in slow circles until she’d spent all her energy. Every bit.

In the end he had to arrange her under the covers and pull them up around her shoulders. The cool of the sheets settled around her along with...relief. It would be all right in the end. They’d fix the park, eventually. She’d find a good family for the baby. It would all be well. Something was different about the way they’d been together, there was that—but she couldn’t put her finger on what it was.

Aisha fell asleep and into a deep peacefulness.

She woke in the gray before dawn with Nadim sleeping beside her.

For once, her shoulders didn’t ache. Her back didn’t throb from the tension of repairing the country after the storm. It had been so refreshing, what he’d done with her.

Nadim’s breathing was even and soft, and she hovered a hand above the line of his spine for a long moment before letting it fall to the bed.

He didn’t need to wake up now.

Aisha crept from under the covers and threw on her robe. She went silently out of his suite and to her own room. Was sex with Nadim the key to being this alert without coffee? She tried not to think too hard about it while she climbed into the shower, but the realization—the truth—had wedged itself into her mind. It wouldn’t leave. She couldn’t ignore it.

She loved him.

And just as important, she needed him.

But he was unavailable. He didn’t want to be needed like that. Aisha worked the shampoo into her hair, then conditioner. She’d gone to sleep with her hair in a wild tangle, and now it was time to straighten things out. Nadim didn’t want a relationship, and she had to focus on her duties.

The country mattered most.

Because no matter how much she wanted him, needed him, loved him, he didn’t want to change his life for her—and she didn’t have time to wait for him to come around. The storm sweeping over the country had proven that she belonged in her position. Jamad would be a disaster in every situation, but especially one like this.

Aisha turned the water off and stood on the wet tiles, following the droplets down to the drain.

She wanted him. She needed him.

But she’d have to find someone else.

14

Kendah settled into a routine around Nadim, and for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out how it had all gone so right while going so wrong.

Had he imagined the hours he’d spent with Aisha? He’d never felt so connected to her before. He’d gone to sleep that night feeling sure that they’d come to a silent understanding. Then the morning had come, and he’d been shocked to find her side of the bed empty. A few days rolled past, and she stayed distant. When they crossed paths, she gave him professional smiles and hardly met his eyes. It wasn’t right.

Yet everything about the situation outside the palace had begun to right itself. Cleanup crews put in long hours getting the capital city back into shape, and when they’d finished they moved on to the smaller communities. Delivery drivers got back on the roads, stocking grocery stores and dropping off packages. The country had come through the storm.

The restlessness that kept him awake at night didn’t make any sense.

Nadim had thrown himself right back into the business of being of service. He spent time with the cleaning crews and even went out on some delivery routes. He made sure the meeting room in the palace was always stocked with food and drinks, and if someone came to meet with Aisha while she was busy, he