The Royal House Of Karedes Collection Books 1-12. Кейт Хьюит

fear made the words tumble out of their own accord. ‘I could not possibly wear such garments as those, Highness!’

      ‘No?’ He thought that the soft rose flush of her cheeks made her green eyes look even more magnificent. Would she be as good in bed as she was in the saddle? he wondered, and was punished with another sharp spear of desire. ‘Maybe not,’ he agreed, on a sultry murmur, and felt his throat dry with lust.

      Trying to dispel the image of how her bottom might look when hugged by a snug pair of jodhpurs, he forced his thoughts back to the present. ‘Now listen to me. I have matters which I wish to discuss with you,’ he said huskily. ‘You will be brought to me later this evening.’

      Brought to him? Eleni shifted from one foot to the other. ‘Could we not… discuss it now?’ she ventured, suddenly nervous.

      He slammed her a chilly look. ‘I said tonight, not now. You will follow my timetable,’ he clipped out. ‘Not your own. Do you understand?’

      ‘Yes, Highness.’

      ‘Good.’ And with that, he untied the black stallion and leapt up onto its back, his hand tangled in its mane as he urged it forward with a swift clench of his powerful thighs.

      In a daze, Eleni watched as he galloped off in a cloud of dust, but for once her mind was far too preoccupied to be able to appreciate his amazing riding technique. Why did he want her brought to him tonight? And why had he made his summons sound not only imperious—but also, vaguely… Eleni swallowed. Not threatening, no—that would be too strong a description. But unsettling, yes—definitely unsettling—and she wasn’t quite sure why.

      But she didn’t have the luxury of time spent in careless thought. There was too much to do and learn and so she set about discovering as much as she could about her new place of employment.

      She was gratified to discover that the stable staff were far more welcoming than she had expected—though they seemed a little bemused at having a female in their midst. But then she was used to working mainly in isolation—with nothing but the occasional interference from a cruel and harsh father—and it made a welcome change to have a little company.

      A day spent with horses always flew as fast as the hunting falcon—but here there was the added bonus of having the very finest facilities imaginable. Eleni felt as if she had died and gone to heaven.

      She took Nabat out onto the gallops—accompanied by an eager young stable lad who, rather flatteringly, copied everything she did!

      But even as the hours slipped away in a satisfying stream of tasks, Eleni was aware of a slow build up of dread and as she walked back to her rooms her heart was beating fast. As she ran the tip of her tongue over lips which had suddenly grown dry the thought she had spent most of the day trying to suppress came swimming to the forefront of her mind.

      Tonight, she was to be brought to the sheikh, and she knew not why.

      Amina had run a scented bath for her and afterwards, with Kaliq’s critical assessment of her clothes still ringing in her ears, Eleni selected a gown from the stack hanging in the cupboard. Opting for the most unobtrusive shade she could find—a sort of quiet, silvery-grey—she slipped into the silky robe and braided her hair with a matching ribbon. But when she opened the door to Amina’s gentle tap, it was disconcerting to see the servant bite back a small gasp of astonishment.

      ‘Something is wrong?’ questioned Eleni anxiously.

      ‘No. Not at all. You look… Oh, you look beautiful, Eleni,’ breathed Amina. ‘You will indeed please the sheikh with your appearance.’

      ‘But… but that’s not what I intended!’ Eleni blurted out. ‘I mean, obviously I want to please him with my care of his horses, but not for anything else.’

      Amina looked at first startled and then faintly disapproving. ‘Do you not know that your own wishes are like breath on the wind?’ she queried softly. ‘Invisible to the eye and gone in an instant. The wishes of the Prince Kaliq are paramount in his palace—and he likes to look upon lovely things. Now come with me and come quickly—for one thing he does not like is to be kept waiting.’

      What an all-powerful and controlling tyrant he sounded, thought Eleni, with a sinking heart. Why, he sounded no different from her own father—just royal and much richer! Her heart had begun to speed up and her palms were growing clammy as she followed Amina through a maze of cool, marble corridors which grew progressively grander with each passing step. Intricate woven metal lamps lit their way and cast flickering shadows, while the warm air was thick with blossom from the courtyard gardens.

      At last Amina halted outside an imposing set of carved doors where two guards stood and she turned to Eleni with a soft expression on her young face. ‘I must leave you now,’ she whispered as one of the guards began to open the doors with a certain amount of ceremony. ‘Good luck.’

      Eleni could see the glittering interior as the doors yawned open and at that moment she felt more like five years old than twenty-five. A terrible mixture of dread and fear mixed with hope and excitement began to tingle over her.

      And drawing in a deep breath, Eleni held her head high as she was summoned to the sheikh.

       CHAPTER FIVE

      IN THE vast royal dining chamber Kaliq lay back on a heap of embroidered cushions, wearing robes which shimmered like spun gold beneath the guttering light of tall candles. On a low table before him stood a heavy goblet which he looked as if he were about to lift, when he looked up and saw her.

      And in that split second Eleni forgot why she was there and why she found herself in such an extraordinary situation. Forgot everything—including her sanity—as her heart did a curious flip. Ebony eyes glittered as they stared at her and a mouth which must surely define sin itself quirked into a mocking kind of smile. For a moment she felt so faint, so weak, so utterly awed by his royal presence that she was grateful that protocol demanded she curtsey to him. But her cheeks were still flushed when she straightened up again.

      Kaliq hadn’t moved; he hadn’t dared to—for the arrow of desire had made a stiff rod to lie aching at his groin. One of his ancestors might well have snapped his fingers and called her over to pleasure him with her mouth, but such behaviour was no longer approved of within royal circles—even in Calista. He sighed. It had been a dark day when his stepmother Anya had first brought some sort of equality to the women of this island!

      ‘Well, well, well,’ he murmured. ‘Let me look at you.’

      ‘Highness?’

      ‘Stand there.’

      Kaliq’s mouth hardened as his gaze swept over her. In many ways it was not a promising appearance. She had tied back that magnificent mane of hair like a schoolgirl and her face remained scrubbed free of all artifice. Not only that, but she had chosen possibly the most neutral shade of all—when most women with colouring like hers would have opted for something vibrant. Something green and lush to echo the colour of her incredible eyes.

      And yet it really was extraordinary how she had emerged like a Venus from the waves now that all the desert dust had been washed away from her grimy little face. The rough clothes favoured by her people had been replaced by a fine silk which accentuated the fine curves of her fit and youthful body. Why, his little lizard looked almost beautiful!

      He shifted his position so that the ache at his groin grew slightly more bearable.

      ‘I believe that this is what they would call the “makeover”,’ he observed.

      Eleni blinked. ‘I do not understand what you mean, Highness.’

      ‘No. I don’t suppose you do.’ His eyes glittered with mischief. ‘In the west, women sometimes take their clothes off for the television cameras—have you ever seen television, lizard?’

      ‘Once,’