"I want you in a way I have never wanted another woman, Delaney," he murmured seductively as his fingers continued to stroke the very essence of her. "I want this," he said hot against her ear, pushing his fingers deeper inside of her so she would know just what "this" was.

Delaney could barely breathe. Her only response was a shuddering moan.

He slowly moved his fingers in and out, relishing the tiny purrs and moans she made, knowing he was giving her pleasure.

A sudden tremble pa.s.sed through his body, and he knew at that moment he couldn't last any longer. He had to get inside of her. Shifting his body to where she lay under him, he sat back on his haunches and looked down at her, glorying in the beautiful darkness of her skin, the magnificent curves of her hip, the flatness of her stomach and the rich sharp scent that was totally her.

Her gaze was holding his, and he saw desire so profound in her eyes he almost lost it. He had to connect with her and sample the very essence of the gift she was offering him. "Are you protected, Delaney?" he asked in a voice so low he wasn't sure she had heard him.

She shook her head. "No, I..."

Whatever it was she was going to say she decided not to finish it. But that was all right, he would protect her. Standing, he quickly crossed the room to gather his robe off the floor. He had placed packs of condoms in the pockets. After putting one on he returned to her and knelt back in place before her, pausing to admire her lying there, waiting for him. Unable to help himself he leaned down and captured her lips again, in a pa.s.sion that shook him to the core and made everything inside of him feel the need for her.

He tasted her richness as his tongue stroked hers to a hunger that matched his, tantalizing them into a feverish pitch. Breaking off the kiss he whispered something in Arabic as he slid her body beneath him, his gaze locked to hers. A part of him knew that he would always remember this moment as he fitted his body over her, parting her thighs.

His erection was like a radar and guided him unerringly to his destination, the part of her it desperately wanted, probing her entrance before slowly slipping inside, wanting to savor the feel of entering her body. Her heated muscles that encompa.s.sed him were tight, almost unbearably so, and held him as he inched his way forward.

He watched as she drew in a deep breath as her body's silkiness sheathed him, and he kept moving forward slowly, until he came to an unexpected resistance. He frowned, then stared at her, not believing what he had come up against, but knowing it was the truth.

"You're a virgin," he whispered softly. Amazed. Dazed. Confused.

She suddenly lifted her legs to wrap around his waist, holding him captive. Meeting his astonished gaze, she whispered sa.s.sily, "And your point is, Your Highness?" Your Highness?"

Jamal couldn't help but smile, although this was not one of those rare times he usually did so. He was always a very serious person when having s.e.x with a woman. He frowned when it suddenly occurred to him that he was doing more with Delaney than merely having s.e.x. With his full concentration on her he responded, "My point is that I don't do virgins."

She reached up and placed her arms around his neck, lifted her chin and met his stare. "You'll do this one, Prince."

He held her gaze, feeling angry because he knew she was right. There was no way he could retreat. "Why didn't you tell me, Delaney?"

She shrugged and whispered softly, "I didn't think it was such a big deal."

His face became hard as granite. "It is is a big deal. In my country I would be honor-bound to marry any woman I deflowered." a big deal. In my country I would be honor-bound to marry any woman I deflowered."

"Then it's a good thing we're not in your country, isn't it?" She could see the dark storm gathering in his eyes.

"But what about your family? They would expect me to do the right thing."

Delaney's eyes widened when she immediately thought of her brothers. They wouldn't give him a chance to do the right thing. They would take him apart piece by piece instead. "My family has nothing to do with this. I'm a grown woman and make my own decisions. Women in this country can do that, Jamal."

"But-"

Instead of letting him finish whatever he intended to say, she deliberately shifted her body, bringing him a little deeper inside of her. She smiled when she heard his sharp intake of breath. She had him just where she wanted him.

Almost.

"Stop that!" he said, frowning down at her. "I have to think about this."

"Wrong answer, Prince. There's no time to think," she said, as the feel of him throbbing inside of her sent her senses spinning and heat flaring in all parts of her body. She writhed beneath him and felt him place his hands on her hips to hold her still.

"Delaney, I'm warning you."

She stared at him, at the hardness of his face, the darkness of his eyes and the sweat that beaded his brow. He wanted her but was fighting it.

It was time to end his fight. She wanted her memories and she intended to get them.

She lifted her body to capture his mouth and before he could pull back, her tongue skated over his lips. When he let out a deep moan she slipped inside, stroking his tongue into sweet surrender, the way he had done her mouth several times. She knew that once she had his mouth under her control, the rest would be history. There was no way he would not concede.

He groaned deep in his throat and grabbed her wrists, but he didn't release her. Nor did he break their kiss. Instead he became a willing partic.i.p.ant, a prisoner of desire of the hottest kind. She knew he was still fighting her, trying to hold on to his last shred of will, his ingrained inclination to do the right thing. But she was beyond that and wanted him beyond it, too.

She felt his hands release her wrists and move to her hips, lifting her to him, and with one hard thrust, he had completely filled her.

Delaney gasped at the first sensation of pain, but it subsided when he slowly began moving inside of her. He broke off their kiss and held her gaze in the fiery darkness of his. "I brand you mine," he growled, nuzzling his nose against her neck as he rode her the way he had dreamed of since that first day, with an urgency that bordered on mania. His hands that were locked at her hips lifted her, held her in place to meet his every thrust.

Delaney closed her eyes, drowning in the pleasure he was giving her. Her fingers dug deeply into his shoulders, and her legs were wrapped tightly around his waist. She opened her eyes to see him looking at her, almost into her soul, and she whispered in a voice filled with quivering need, mind-stealing pleasure. "If you brand me, then I brand you, too, Jamal."

Her words sent Jamal's mind reeling and he knew she had had branded him. Closing his eyes, he reared his head back, feeling his body connect to her, becoming a part of her, lured to a place he didn't want to go but found himself going anyway. In the back of his mind he heard her whimpering sounds of pleasure as his body continued to pump repeatedly into hers, taking her on a journey he had never traveled before with any woman. And when he felt the tip of her tongue softly lick the side of his face, tracing a path down his neck, he knew then and there he would always remember this but the memories would never be enough. branded him. Closing his eyes, he reared his head back, feeling his body connect to her, becoming a part of her, lured to a place he didn't want to go but found himself going anyway. In the back of his mind he heard her whimpering sounds of pleasure as his body continued to pump repeatedly into hers, taking her on a journey he had never traveled before with any woman. And when he felt the tip of her tongue softly lick the side of his face, tracing a path down his neck, he knew then and there he would always remember this but the memories would never be enough.

"Jamal!"

He felt her draw in a shuddering breath. He felt her body quiver tightly around him, clenching him, milking him and elevating him to the same plane she was on. He inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring when the scent of her engulfed him, surrounded him. Sensations he had never experienced before took control, flooding him to the point where he couldn't think; he could only feel.

He released a huge, guttural groan when the world exploded around him and forged them tighter in each other's arms, as extreme s.e.xual gratification claimed their bodies, their mind and their senses.

And for the first time in his entire life, Jamal felt mind-boggling pleasure and body-satisfying peace. He knew then and there that he would never get enough of this woman.

Chapter 9.

Jamal stirred awake as the flickering candles cast shadows in the room. He glanced down at the woman he still held in his arms. She was getting much-deserved rest.

After making love that first time, they had both succ.u.mbed to s.e.xual oblivion, quickly falling asleep, only to wake up an hour or so later just as hungry for each other as they had been before. He had been concerned that it was too soon again for her, but Delaney took matters into her own hands, straddling him and seducing him to the point where he had finally flipped her underneath him and given her what they both wanted.

Once again he had experienced something with her he had never experienced before, and knew when they separated he would never find peace. She would always be a clinging memory for the rest of his days.

In the past after having slept with a woman, he would quickly send her away, then shower to remove the smell of lingering s.e.x. But the only place he wanted Delaney was just where she was, in his arms, and he didn't want to shower. In fact, he wanted to smother in the s.e.xual scent their bodies had created.

He looked down at the way they were still intimately locked together, their limbs tangled and their arms around each other as if each was holding the other captive, refusing to let go. He reached out and stroked a lock of hair back from her face thinking how peaceful she looked asleep. She had the same blissful expression on her face that she had the night she had pa.s.sed out from him kissing her.

He inhaled deeply. He had made love to other Western women, but nothing had prepared him for the likes of Delaney Westmoreland. She was a woman who could hold her own with him. She called him Your Highness with a haughtiness that was outright disrespectful for a man of his stature and distinction. She didn't hesitate to let him know she couldn't care less for those things, and that in his country he might be an Arabian prince but to her he was just a man. No more, no less. Other women gave in to him too easily and were quick to let him have his way. But that wasn't the case with the pa.s.sionate, provocative and smart-mouthed Delaney.

And then there was the fact that she had been a virgin. Never in a thousand years would he have considered such a possibility, not with the body she had and especially with her nonconservative views. The woman was definitely full of surprises.

He shifted when he began to harden inside of her. As much as he wanted her again, he needed to take care of her. The best thing for her body right now was a soak in a tub of hot water.

"Delaney?" He whispered her name and gently nudged her awake. She lifted sleep-drugged eyes up at him, and her lips, swollen from his kisses, eased into a smile. That smile pulled at something inside of him. It also made him become larger. He saw her startled expression when she felt her body automatically stretch to take him deeper.

He had to find a way to stop this madness. His body was becoming addicted to her. He moved to pull out, but she tightened the leg she had entangled with his. Frowning, he looked down at her. "You need to soak in a tub of hot water," he rasped softly, trying to reason with her and gain her cooperation.

She shook her head. "No. Not now, maybe later." The sound of her voice came out in a sultry purr.

He tried ignoring it. "No, now. Besides, I need to put on another condom before we do this again. If I don't, we run the risk of an accident happening."

He figured that explanation would work on her good sense.

It didn't.

He felt the muscles of her body holding him inside of her tighten. He closed his eyes to pull out of her, but the more he tried the more her muscles held him.

He glared down at her, despising himself for wanting her so much. She was torturing him, and she d.a.m.n well knew it. "Do you know what you're asking for?"

She met his gaze. "Yes," she murmured softly, while her body continued to milk him into a state of mindless pleasure. "I'm asking for you, you, Jamal." Jamal."

"Delaney..." Her words were like a torch, sending his body up in flames. He captured her mouth with his at the same time his body thrust deep inside of her, giving her just what she had asked for.

"Mmm, this feels good," Delaney said, leaning back in the hot tub.

After they had made love, he had gathered her naked body up in his arms and taken her outside and placed her in the hot tub then got in with her. "It will help relieve the soreness," Jamal said slowly, looking at her. He had decided to sit on the other side of the tub, at what he considered a safe distance away. He couldn't trust himself to keep his hands off her.

"I'll survive a little soreness, Jamal. I am not a weak woman."

He chuckled, thinking that was an understatement. "No, Delaney, you are definitely not a weak woman. You're as strong as they come."

Delaney quirked a brow, not knowing whether he meant it as a compliment or an insult. She knew he was used to docile women; women who were meek and mild. She doubted it was in her makeup to ever be that way.

She glanced around. The sun had gone down, and dusk was settling in around them. "Are you sure it's all right for us to be out here naked? What if someone sees us?"

"I don't have a problem being seen naked."

Delaney lifted eyes heavenward. "Well, I do."

Jamal leaned back and closed his eyes. "This is private property, you said so yourself. And besides, they can look at you all they want, but they'd better not touch."

Delaney stared at him. "Getting a little possessive, aren't we?"

Jamal slowly opened his eyes and met her stare. "Yes." His att.i.tude about that was something he couldn't quite understand. He had never been possessive of any woman, not even Najeen. That thought didn't sit too well with him. Deciding to change the subject, he said, "Tell me about this job of yours as a doctor."

Delaney spent the next half hour telling him about how she had to go through a period of residency where she would work at the hospital in a pediatric ward.

"Is this hospital a long way from your home in Atlanta?" he asked as he shifted his body below the water line some more.

"Far enough. It's in Bowling Green, Kentucky, so I'm leasing an apartment for the two years I'll be working there." She didn't add that she needed that distance away from her brothers.

When she had first left home for college she made the mistake of going to a school that was less than a two-hour drive from Atlanta. Her brothers nearly drove her crazy with their frequent impromptu visits. The only people who enjoyed seeing them had been the females living in her dorm who thought her brothers were to die for.

For medical school she had decided on Howard University in D.C. Although her brothers' trips to see her weren't as frequent, they still managed to check on her periodically just the same, claiming their parents' concern was the reason for their visits.

"After your residency do you plan to open up your own medical office?" Jamal asked.

"Yes, it's my dream to open up a medical office somewhere in the Atlanta area."

Jamal nodded. "And I hope your dream comes true, Delaney."

She knew he meant that with all sincerity and was deeply touched by it. "Thanks."

Later that evening they ate a light meal that the two of them prepared together. He noticed she had slid the table closer to the window and that it wasn't wobbling. She told him of her conversation with Reggie, who had told her that the problem had not been with the table but with the floor.

"So as you can see, Jamal, things aren't always as they seem to be."

He had lifted a brow at her comment but said nothing.

She smiled. He knew she had been trying to make a point about something, but from his expression it was quite obvious he didn't get it. Delaney felt confident that one day he would.

After dinner she sat in the living room watching television while he sat on the opposite end of the sofa sketching on something. It was the same papers that he had occasionally worked on since she had arrived.

"What are you doing?" she asked curiously when he had finally placed the doc.u.ments aside.

He reached out his arms to her and she covered the distance and went to him. He placed her in his lap while he showed her what he had been working on. "This is something I plan to build in my country. It will be a place my people can go for their necessities."

She studied the sketch, admiring the structural design. "It's sort of like an open market."

He smiled, glad she had recognized it for what it was. "Yes. It will be similar to the places you refer to in your country as a one-stop shop. Here they will be able to buy their food, clothing and any other miscellaneous items they might need. I also want it as a place for them to socialize while doing so, to come together. Although the majority of my people are like me, both Arab and Berber descent, and are in harmony for the most part, there are those who every once in a while try to cause friction between the two ethnic groups."

Delaney lifted her head. "What sort of friction?"

He smiled at her, feeling her genuine interest. "It's a feud that's dated back hundreds of years. The reason my mother and father married to begin with was to unite the Arabs and the Berbers, producing me, an heir of both heritages. The disagreement is about what should be recognized as the official language of our nation. Right now it's Arabic and has been for hundreds of years, but a group of African-born descendents believes it should be Berber."

Delaney nodded. "You mainly speak Arabic, right?"

"Yes, but I am fluent in both. When I become the king, my biggest challenge will be how to get everyone to embrace both languages, since both are a part of my country's heritage."

Delaney studied his features. "What are your views on the matter, Jamal?"

He smiled down at her. "I understand the need for both sides. There is a need to teach the Berber language and preserve and promote the Berber culture. However, since Arabic is the official language, everyone is duty bound to speak it. But I'm not for Arabization being imposed on the Berbers who reside in isolated regions and who want to keep their heritage intact, just as long as they remain loyal to Tahran and its leadership. The needs of all of my people are important to me."

Delaney nodded. A thought then struck her. "Speaking of needs, what about medical care? How do your people get the medical care they need?"