Bella and the Merciless Sheikh (19 page)

‘Then we have a problem,
habibiti
,' he said softly, ‘because I cannot marry without you there.'

Tears blurred her vision. ‘Why?'

‘Because you are the woman I will be marrying.'

Bella heard the words from far away. She opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out, and Amira threw up her head and gave a whinny, sensing the change in the atmosphere.

‘Get out of the water, Bella!' His voice roughened by exasperation, Zafiq paced to the edge of the pool. ‘Say something!'

He looked sensational with the sun turning his hair blue-black, the intensity of his gaze demanding that she look at him.

Shock turned to happiness and then faded away into the most agonising misery.

How could she?

‘That's a heck of a sacrifice to make for sex, Zafiq.'

‘You think I'm asking you to marry me so that I can have sex?'

‘You haven't actually asked me to marry you—' Bella felt something brush against her ankle and gave a squeal. ‘Zafiq, there's something in this pool. Ugh!'

He lifted an eyebrow. ‘I thought desert creatures didn't bother you?'

‘I like lizards but this was slimy.' She was hopping around on one leg, whimpering, and Zafiq gave a masculine smile, stripped off his clothes and joined her in the water in a smooth dive.

He surfaced right next to her and lifted her into his arms. ‘It is a piece of weed.'

‘What?'

‘Around your ankle.' Casually he flipped it away. ‘Not a creature. Not slimy.'

‘It felt slimy. Put me down, Zafiq—I don't have any clothes on.'

‘That's the way I prefer you,' he drawled softly, his eyes
on her mouth as he lowered her into the water and drew her against him.

Bella gasped as she felt the heat of his body against hers. ‘What are you doing?'

‘I'm proposing.' He murmured the words against her mouth. ‘Could you say yes quickly so that we can cut straight to the exciting part?'

Mesmerised by the wicked look in his eyes and by the explosive reaction of her own body, Bella moaned. ‘No…I can't— No.' She had to be strong about this. She had to remember what she'd learned—how she was determined to live her life. ‘No, Zafiq.'

Zafiq sighed. ‘Now what?'

‘I said no.'

‘I heard you—what I want to know is why. I know you love me, so don't try and deny it.'

‘Yes, I do love you. But
you
don't love
me
. And that isn't good enough for me. I don't want to marry for money or status. I don't even want to marry because I'm in love. I'll only marry when it's an equal partnership. When love is given and returned. When we both want the same things. When we're a team because we have an emotional bond, not a paper one.'

‘Bella—'

‘Whatever anyone says, I'm not like my mother,' Bella whispered. ‘I won't marry without love. You taught me how it's possible to feel, and I don't want to feel less than that. And I want a man who feels the same way about me, otherwise what chance will we have? I won't settle for less than a love match because I've seen what happens when you do.'

His dark eyes were locked on hers. ‘What makes you think I don't love you?'

‘Er, possibly the fact that you've never said those words to me?'

‘You have never said those words to me either.'

‘I have,' she said hotly. ‘When I fell off Batal into your
arms, I said, “I love you.” And you never mentioned it. You never reacted.'

Zafiq let out a long, exasperated breath. ‘I assumed you were talking to the horse.'

‘You thought I was declaring my love for your
horse
?'

‘You are always saying things like that to the horses. The staff tell me you chat to them all the time, telling them how much you love them and how good they are.'

Bella blushed. ‘Well, that's true, I guess.'

‘So you admit that I wasn't likely to realise you were declaring your love for me when you landed in my arms.'

Bella pressed her hand against his chest, her fingers feeling the contours of smooth, hard muscle. ‘Are you saying—' She cleared her throat, almost afraid to say the words in case she jinxed it. ‘Do you mean that—'

‘I love you,' he said quietly ‘That's what I'm saying, and yes, I mean it.'

Suddenly she felt light-headed. ‘You think love is a weakness.'

‘I think the relationship my father had with my stepmother was unbalanced, and yes, that made him weak.' Zafiq frowned. ‘I was appalled that he seemed unable to resist her. Watching him succumb to the seductive temptations of that woman was the hardest thing I had ever done. I vowed that I would not make the same mistake.'

‘And that's why you were so angry with me when I flirted with you?'

‘I was determined not to fall into the same trap.'

‘I thought you were arrogant and high-handed.'

He gave a faint smile. ‘And now?'

‘I still think you're arrogant and high-handed,' Bella whispered, ‘but you're pretty cute too, and if you get too bossy I'll just argue back.'

‘I'm sure you will.' He groaned, sliding his arms around
her hair and hauling her against him. ‘I love you, Bella Balfour.'

Bella winced and a stab of insecurity sliced through her happiness. ‘That's the difficult part, isn't it? My sister Olivia would be better for you. She's practical and sensible. I called her, by the way…'

‘Good. And?'

‘She'd been worrying too. She felt guilty about the things she said. We had a good conversation. And I spoke to Zoe in New York—she'd been trying to get hold of me.'

‘So all your worries are finished.'

‘Not really. How are your people ever going to accept you marrying Bad Bella?'

‘My people think you are Brave Bella.' He cupped her face in his hands and kissed her gently on the mouth, his voice vibrating with sincerity. ‘To them you are Bold Bella and Beautiful Bella. You are a role model and an inspiration to all who meet you. There is not a bad bone in your body.'

The lump back in her throat, Bella stood still. ‘I say the wrong thing—I lose it quite often.'

‘I love the fact that you are passionate and honest about your feelings.'

‘I've never been anyone's role model before,' she croaked, and he gave a slow smile.

‘It's always good to have new experiences in life. All the young girls of Al-Rafid will be watching you, copying you.'

‘They'll read awful stuff about me,' Bella mumbled, and he gave a sigh and his mouth tightened.

‘We do not censor the press, but nor do we allow the degree of intrusive reporting you have in your country. There will be no journalists climbing the walls of my palace or hiding in the stables.'

‘But the past—'

‘The past is called the past for a reason. My people care only about what they know and what they see, not about what
has been rumoured. They saw a girl willing to put her life on the line for something that mattered to our country.'

‘Those stories about me—most of them weren't true,' Bella blurted out, desperate to defend herself for the first time in her life. ‘Half the stuff they wrote about me—more than half actually—was all lies. I never had those affairs, but they were determined to write what they wanted so I just let them get on with it. Every time I said hello to a man, it was supposedly a new affair!' Her cheeks burned. ‘If I told you there was only ever one man, and that was ages ago, what would you say?'

Zafiq stroked her face with gentle fingers. ‘I'd say that he was clearly a fool,' he drawled softly, ‘for letting a woman as special as you slip through his fingers.'

‘He was the reason I was dropped from the eventing team as a teenager,' Bella confessed. ‘I realised that he was just using me and I dumped him, so he spread horrible rumours and the selectors decided I wasn't a good example.'

‘I believe you.'

Bella's eyes filled. ‘Really? You have no idea how that feels. And being here—' she turned her head, looking at the red-gold sand rising majestically around them ‘—I feel as if I'm home.'

‘You
are
home.'

‘I found my way through the desert,' she mumbled. ‘You're right that it doesn't all look the same. It isn't just sand. I feel as though this is where I'm meant to be. I want to keep coming here every year. I want to look at the stars and ride through the dunes. I want to make a difference to the people of Al-Rafid—they treat me as if I belong. I feel as though this is the most special place on earth. Just like you do.'

‘For me, the most special place on earth is where you are,
habibiti
,' Zafiq said quietly, pulling her into his arms. ‘And this is undoubtedly where you are supposed to be. With my people, with my horses, but most of all, with me.'

Her eyes glistening, Bella lifted her face to his, bathing
in the truly amazing feeling of being loved for who she was. ‘Dignity,' she said, sliding her arms round his neck. ‘That's my Balfour rule and I'm going to live up to it, I promise.'

‘Dignity has its place, just as long as you don't let it change who you are.' Zafiq lowered his head and Bella smiled.

‘I'm yours,' she whispered, and closed her eyes as he kissed her. ‘Yours, for ever.'