"I'm glad you're impressed," he said. "Do you travel much?"

"Oh, not too much," she said without thinking. "I've been pretty busy with..." Her voice trailed off, as if she remembered who she was supposed to be. "That is to say I do travel a lot. I adore being in different places at different times of the year.Paris,London,Los Angeles." She offered a quick smile, then dived for her glass of soda and clutched it as if it were a lifeline.

Jamal nodded. "I see. Your family must miss you when you're gone."

"Some," she agreed. "But my brothers are home."

"Are they married?"

She swallowed. "Do you really want to talk about my family?" sheasked, her voice low and sultry. She often forgot she was supposed to keep it that way, so the tone varied from seductive to normal and back. "Wouldn't you rather talk about...us?"

"There'san us ?" he asked before he could stop himself.

She sat on the sofa across from his. Now she set her drink back on the table and shifted forward until her knees were pressed against the glass coffee table. "Wouldn't you like there to be?"

"Actually I would," he said sincerely. "Although I think we need to get to know each other a little better first. Perhaps if you told me about the kind of man you prefer."

She blinked several times."Kind of man?"

"Yes. Do you have a physical preference?Height, coloring, that sort of thing?" He stretched out his arms along the back of the sofa. "Tell me, Honey, what do you look for in a lover?"

"What do I look for?" She bit her lower lip, then slipped back on the sofa and folded her arms over her

chest. "Gee, I don't think there's any one thing that matters more than another.Someone nice, of course."

He raised his eyebrows. "Nice?"

"Is that bad?"

"I don't know. They're your lovers."

"Okay. Nice and well-" She made a vague gesture with her hand. "You know."

"Actually, I don't." He paused. "Maybe the question is too general. Why don't you tell me about your lastlover. Or do you have one now?"

"No, I'm really sorta between men," she said, her voice a little strained.

Jamal didn't want to push her too far, but he couldn't help teasing her.

Besides, he wouldn't mind knowing what she liked in a man.

"Good," he said meaningfully. "I'm very pleased you're unattached."

"Oh, yeah, me, too," she muttered,then sighed. "Okay, my last lover. He was Italian. His name is Jacque."

"Jacque? Isn't that French?"

"Yes." She paused. "Did I say he was Italian?"

He nodded.

"Oh. Imean, good. I meant that. His mother is French, though, and he's named after her side of the family. An uncle, I believe."

"Where did you meet?"

She paused again."Skiing. Jacque is a ski instructor." She shrugged. "It was one of those vacation flings."

"Ah, Gstaad?"

"Who?"

"The skiing town.Did you meet in Gstaad?"

"Oh, sure.Where else?"

She bounced to her feet and motioned to the bottle of wine sitting in an ice bucket by the set table.

"Room service sure is slow," she said brightly. "Should I open the wine, or maybe call them and see what's taking so long?"

This time Jamal didn't hide his smile. "They're not taking too long. I asked them to delay serving us our lunch so that we could have a chance to...talk."

"Ah. I see." She blinked again. "So your family can drink liquor, huh?

That's nice."

He nodded. "El Bahar is a country of many faiths, and all of those religions are respected."

"Great."

She shifted her weight from foot to foot, which was a mistake because she was wearing high heels again, and her balance was pretty shaky. She swayed,then caught herself, obviously unsure if she should sit down or remain standing to simply run out of the room.

He decided to help her out. He leaned over and patted the cushion next to himself. "Come and sit here, Honey," he said.

Her eyes widened,then she blinked frantically, as if one of her contacts had slipped out of place.

"There?"

"Right next to me."

"Oh.Um, sure. I was going to do that anyway." She laughed nervously and started around the coffee table.

If she had been anyone else, he would have assumed what happened next was planned. But this was Heidi, and she was as innocent in the ways of the world as she had been when she'd been born. So he assumed that when her heel caught on the throw rug that it was a genuine accident. Her subsequent tumble had her falling across his lap, her curvy behind nestling perfectly against his thighs.

"Oops," she whispered as her gaze met his. "I didn't mean to do that."

"I know. It was a most fortuitous accident."

"Fortuitous? Why?"

Rather than answering, he decided to show her. He drew her up in his arms and gently lowered his mouth to hers.

Chapter 9.

Heidi had been thinking of scrambling out of Jamal's lap...right up until he started to kiss her. But the moment he lowered his head to hers and brushed his firm lips against her suddenly trembling mouth, she never wanted to move again.

Odd how in a matter of seconds what had felt so awkward, suddenly felt so right. Without thinking, she put her arms around his neck and drew herself up against him. He wrapped his arms around her until they were locked in a passionate embrace.

This kiss was even better than the first one, which she hadn't thought possible. And she'd been reliving it enough times to remember it in exquisite detail. This time she knew enough not to be so nervous. When his lips brushed back and forth against hers, she softened her mouth to accommodate him. Tiny shivers began low in her stomach and moved outward until her toes curled in her teal-colored pumps. She felt both hot and cold at the same time.

There was too much to take in, she thought, not sure if she should concentrate on the way his strong hands held her so close and so tenderly or if she should focus on the incredibly erotic movement of his lips.

Before she could make up her mind, she felt his tongue brush against the seam of her mouth. She parted instantly to admit him, nearly whimpering in anticipation of the pleasure that was to come.

His tongue slipped into her mouth. It was as if the contact between their tongues had a direct line to her breasts and that secret place between her legs. Both began to tingle in a way she'd never experienced before. She pressed her thighs tightly together but that didn't help alleviate the sensation. If anything, it made the feeling more intense. She had the strong sense of wanting something, but didn't know what that was.

Even as his tongue continued to dance with her, lighting tiny fires all through her, he began to move his hands up and down her back. Suddenly the cropped shirt and low-slung pants, which she'd felt so awkward about wearing just a couple of hours before, offered all kinds of possibilities.

When his fingers trailed below her top to brush against bare skin, she exhaled suddenly and gave a small cry of pleasure.

He stroked her skin slowly and gently, rubbing along her spine. With his other hand he circled around to her front and teased her belly button.

Heidi jumped,then laughed. "What are you doing?" she asked.