Claiming His Desert Princess

Which admission could not but capture her interest, though she tried not to let it show. ‘I would not claim to be an expert, but the study of Nessarah’s history is a passion of mine,’ Tahira said cautiously. ‘I did not lie about my reason for being here.’

‘I promise you, I didn’t lie either. I too came here in search of an ancient settlement, because it would bring me one step closer to solving an ancient mystery.’

‘By the stars, what mystery?’ she asked, abandoning any attempt to disguise her interest.

But Christopher, having come tantalisingly close to confiding in her, now seemed to be having second thoughts. ‘How do I know I can trust you? How do I know that you won’t head back to wherever it is you came from and tell your husband, who will report me to the authorities?’

‘Firstly, because I have no husband. Secondly, and more importantly, the very last thing I would do is inform anyone of our encounter. As you must already have surmised, I’m not supposed to be here. And if it were discovered that I was, and not where I should be—’ Tahira broke off, suppressing a shudder. ‘Be assured, I would not be so foolish as to betray you, when to do so would be to betray myself.’

‘Do you mean that you have run away?’

‘Escaped, in a manner of speaking, but only temporarily.’

‘Escaped from what?’

‘My life. My home,’ she amended, not wishing to sound over-dramatic, even if it was the truth.

Christopher’s brows rose. ‘So you’re supposed to be tucked up in bed safe and sound, but you’ve escaped into the night in order to pursue your interest in Nessarah’s ancient heritage?’

‘Is that so hard to believe?’

‘Tahira.’ Christopher touched her arm lightly. ‘I’m not mocking you. I’m simply—I’m impressed. To take such a risk shows a true love of the past which certainly equals if not exceeds mine.’

‘Oh.’ She was absurdly pleased by the compliment. ‘I am only—it is something I do only for myself. No one else—well, they can’t know. Do you understand now why I would not betray you?’

‘You assume that I am not going to betray you either.’

She had done exactly that. Was she being utterly naïve? ‘Why would you, when you have just described me, in rather melodramatic terms, as a precious find? Unless of course that was a crude attempt at flattery. More tellingly, your presence here in the dead of night proves that, for whatever reason, you have no more desire to be discovered than I.’

‘You are, of course, quite correct,’ Christopher said, visibly relaxing. ‘But I was not flattering you. Your knowledge of Nessarah’s history could well prove to be of great assistance to me. If you are not in a hurry to melt back into the night, perhaps I can explain why I am here?’

This man was a foreigner as well as a complete stranger. She really ought to get on her camel and head home. But she knew she would regret it. An ancient mystery. A quest which was solemn but not noble. She had to know more. Besides, she had never before felt so drawn to a man. Hardly surprising, since her circumstances meant she met very few, but this man was different. He shared her fascination for the past. And, yes, he was handsome too, but it was his eyes which set him apart. And that smile, which seemed to connect directly with her insides, making her certain, despite her utter lack of experience, that the attraction was mutual.

‘I am in no great rush,’ Tahira said. ‘I do not promise that I can help you, but I would very much like to hear more.’

* * *

The masculine clothes this exotic female wore made Christopher acutely aware of the very feminine and extremely voluptuous body beneath. Following Tahira down the steep slope of the rock formation to where he could now see she had left her camel, he couldn’t drag his eyes away from the sensuous sway of her hips, the long, glossy sheath of hair that rippled down her back, the scarf which tied it fluttering like a pennant, urging him to follow. She moved with the careless grace of a dancer. That first glimpse of her perfect countenance had been like a punch in the stomach. No, he amended wryly, it was not his stomach which had reacted to those big almond-shaped eyes and that cherry-red mouth, and that heart-shaped face, and the sweet curves of the body beneath. He had never in his life met a woman so lovely and so innocently alluring. Who the devil was she? His curiosity was aroused, but what mattered even more was whether or not she could help him.

As they reached the softer sand, Tahira sat down gracefully and Christopher joined her, sitting cross-legged. ‘So tell me,’ he said, ‘do you think this is likely to prove an ancient site?’

She raised a delicately arched brow. ‘Is this a test of my expertise, before you confide in me?’ When he did not deny it, she gave a charming little shrug. ‘Understandable enough. I told you that I am by no means an expert. I am fortunate enough to have access to some manuscripts, histories, maps of Nessarah. Over the years, I have made a study of my kingdom’s ancient history and traced a number of the older mines—the diamonds and gold which we are famous for, but also some emerald, silver, of course, and semi-precious stones. My practical experience, however, is severely limited.’

‘Due to the fact that you have to confine any excavation to the hours of darkness, I presume?’

‘Yes. I know it sounds unlikely...’

‘Tahira, it’s so unlikely that I believe you. You would not make up such a preposterous lie.’

‘That is very true. In fact, it’s so preposterous that it is one of the reasons I think it unlikely my occasional absences will be discovered. Though of late...’ She sighed, averting her gaze momentarily, before giving herself a little shake. ‘There is no real method to my work. My process is not scientific, my notes and drawings rudimentary, as would be obvious to an experienced archaeologist like you.’

So he was not to ask what had been happening ‘of late’. Christopher accepted this grudgingly. Fascinating as she was, at this point in time, her knowledge mattered a great deal more to him than her circumstances. ‘I am actually a surveyor to trade, but my heart belongs to the ancient world.’

Which remark earned him a delightful smile. ‘It is so wonderful,’ Tahira said, ‘to meet someone who understands the thrill of standing in the remains of dwellings built thousands of years ago, of holding pots used for cooking, plates that food was eaten from, cups that wine was drunk from—it is the most thrilling—there is nothing quite like it, is there?’

Her eyes sparkled. Her lips were curved into a soft smile that made his groin tighten. ‘No,’ Christopher said, ‘there really is nothing like it.’

‘My sisters tease me when I say that I sense a—a connection of some sort with our ancestors. When I stand amid the ruins of an ancient mining village here in Arabia, one that existed deep in the mists of time, I feel the ghosts, the spirits of the people who lived there.’

‘How many sisters do you have?’

‘Three, all younger than I, and their only interest in ancient mines is the jewellery made from the precious stones unearthed there. Ish—my next sister says that our ancestors are unlikely to have been miners and she is probably right, but—oh, I don’t know. I like to think that there is something, some inherited fragment of memory, which connects me to the few settlements I have uncovered, the artefacts I have found there.’ Tahira looked away, embarrassed. ‘You probably think that’s fanciful.’

‘As a matter of fact,’ Christopher confessed, ‘I understand perfectly. I too, occasionally, feel a similar connection. A memory—though it can’t possibly be a memory. Or a ghost—though I’m not sure I believe in those either. But I do know what you mean.’

‘Really? I don’t know anyone else who thinks as I do.’

Her shy smile was dazzling. Dear heavens, but she had no business to be looking at him like that. Christopher tore his gaze away, focusing on the rocky outcrop over her shoulder. ‘I take it your sisters aid and abet you in your nocturnal excursions?’

‘Oh, goodness, no. They would be horrified if they ever found out, and frightened for me too. The stories I tell them—they think my only sources are books. I dare not show them any of my finds. Not that they would be interested, since none of them are valuable.’

‘So you keep all your work hidden away?’

‘It is not so very difficult, since my work is not so very extensive. One day perhaps hundreds of years from now, someone might find my little collection of papers and artefacts, and wonder how it came to exist. I would like to think of it as my own contribution to Nessarah’s history, but I doubt very much it’s of any real worth save to me.’ Tahira gave a bitter little laugh. ‘My life’s work. There is not much to show for it.’

‘As yet, perhaps. You are very young, you have many years of exploration ahead of you.’

She had a habit of turning her head to one side, of lowering her lids to mask her eyes and her emotions. ‘I’m twenty-four. My father and brother think that I am already past my prime. If they have their way, which they will imminently, I have very little time left in which to indulge my passion.’

‘What do you mean?’

But Tahira shook her head, forcing a smile. ‘I intend to make the most of what little time and freedom I have, that is all. Tell me, what is it that you survey?’

It was an obvious change of subject, but he followed her lead, for she was clearly upset and just as evidently determined not to be. ‘I specialise in the discovery of minerals and ores,’ Christopher said, ‘and by doing so, I fund my archaeological research.’

‘Including your trip to Arabia?’

‘It is not business that brings me to Arabia.’

‘No, indeed, you are here on a quest to solve an ancient mystery which I may be able to help you with.’

‘Precisely. I propose, if you are amenable, that we work together, pool our resources. Time is of the essence here. It’s likely that the evidence we’re looking for will be destroyed once mining gets underway.’

‘That is very true and also rather flattering,’ Tahira said, giving him a straight look, ‘but you still haven’t told me why you wish to explore the site in the first place?’

A simple question, and one he must answer if he was to enlist this fascinating woman’s help. Yet Christopher hesitated. Could he trust her? Clearly she had not been sent to spy on him, as he had somewhat ridiculously assumed. In the course of the last six months here in Arabia, the agents he had been so reluctantly given access to had been a diverse and frequently dubious group, but none had been a woman. Might she be a speculator? Equally ridiculous, surely. No, he was pretty certain that her claim to be an antiquarian was true. Whatever else she was...

Was not relevant, he decided. ‘It is the turquoise which matters,’ Christopher said. ‘I need to prove that it was mined here about fifteen hundred years ago, and I need somehow to obtain a sample of the mineral.’ Feeling slightly sick, he reached for the leather pouch, took out the amulet and handed it to Tahira. ‘In order to match it with this.’

Chapter Two

Tahira gazed at the artefact in astonishment, turning it over and over in her hands. The gold links of the chain were the intensely deep-yellow colour which indicated purity. The amulet itself was round, the rim studded with alternating diamonds and turquoise. An intricate design composed of narrow bands of vivid blue enamel on gold had been overlaid on to the main pendant, forming petal-like segments, into which were set much larger diamonds surrounded by more turquoise. But the centre of the amulet was empty.

‘There is something missing here,’ she said, tracing the oddly-shaped inset with her finger. ‘Another stone?’

‘Possibly. That is something I’d very much like to find out, though I doubt I ever will,’ Christopher replied. ‘What do you make of it?’

‘I think it is the most beautiful piece of jewellery I have ever seen.’ Tahira scrutinised the amulet more closely. ‘The design is very distinctive, and typical of this region. I have seen pictures of similar examples in ancient manuscripts. It almost certainly originates from southern Arabia and is clearly very old and very valuable. The light is too poor for me to make a proper examination, but the clarity of these diamonds looks to be peerless. And the turquoise—again, I cannot be certain, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen stones of this particular hue.’

‘They are indeed very rare. I have not found a single match anywhere. Yet.’

‘Oh!’ Realisation finally dawned on her. ‘Do you think that this mine...?’

‘I very much hope so.’

‘Mined on this very spot, fifteen hundred years ago,’ Tahira said dreamily, running her fingers over the turquoise. The amulet was warm in her hand. Her fingers traced the design compulsively. ‘How absolutely wonderful if you could prove that to be the case. I have never felt so drawn to anything as this. How on earth did you come by it?’

Christopher’s smile became rigid. ‘It came to me through my mother. Though not directly. I never knew her. She died giving birth to me.’

‘Oh, Christopher.’ Tears sprang to Tahira’s eyes. Even now, after all this time, her own loss could catch her unawares. ‘My mother too died in childbirth, but at least I had ten precious years with her. I am so very sorry.’

‘One cannot miss what one never knew, nor mourn what one never had.’

He spoke curtly, as if he would not have cared to know the woman who gave birth to him, but that could not be. He was a man, that was all, and as such did not care to show his pain. ‘Then this amulet must mean a great deal to you,’ Tahira said. ‘A very precious connection to your past.’ She reached inside the neckline of her tunic, pulling free her gold chain. ‘My mother gave me this. It is a Bedouin star. The traveller’s star. I wear it always. My most precious connection to my past. I would never wish to be parted from it.’

‘Be that as it may, I am determined to sever mine.’

Tahira’s jaw dropped. ‘Sever?’ she repeated, thinking she had misheard him, or that he had translated the word wrongly.

‘Sever,’ Christopher repeated. ‘By returning this object to its true owner.’

‘But surely you are its true owner?’ she said, utterly bewildered and a little intimidated by the turn in his mood.

Sensing her confusion, Christopher made an obvious effort to lighten his tone. ‘I’m sorry, I should not have spoken so vehemently. I have been six months in Arabia, attempting to match the stones set in the amulet, and am grown weary of the task.’

‘But why attempt such a task in the first place? I don’t understand, do you believe the amulet to be stolen?’

He laughed shortly. ‘Almost certainly, by tomb-robbers, centuries ago. But as to its recent provenance...’ His lip curled. ‘I have it on unimpeachable authority that I am the legal owner.’

‘Yet you wish to give it away? It must be very valuable. Why not sell it, if it pains you to own it?’

He shuddered. ‘To profit from such a thing—no, unthinkable. I could not square that with my conscience.’

Tahira furrowed her brow. ‘Because it is a sacred object? I can understand that, but why then don’t you put it on display in a museum?’

Another curled lip was his reply to what Tahira thought a perfectly reasonable suggestion. ‘A solution suggested to me by another. You cannot understand, though he most certainly should have, why that too is impossible. The amulet belongs here in Arabia, and nowhere else.’

‘Your sentiments do you great credit,’ Tahira said, which was true, though her instincts told her those sentiments were very far from the whole truth. ‘But to come all the way to Arabia on a—a quest, as you call it, which you may not be able to complete seems—honestly, quite an extraordinary thing to do. What if your quest proves futile?’

‘It cannot prove futile. Until I rid myself of this thing, I can’t—’ Christopher broke off, screwing his eyes tight shut, clearly struggling for control. ‘I must return it,’ he said with a finality that made it clear that the subject was closed, ‘there is nothing else to be done.’

Why? she longed to ask. Why do you gaze at this beautiful object as if you loathe it? Why must you rid yourself of an heirloom, a bequest from the mother you never knew? Why is it so important to you that you have spent six months of your life on a near impossible task? But he would answer none of those questions, that much was very clear. ‘How will you confirm the origin of the piece?’ Tahira queried instead. ‘And to whom will you return it?’

‘The stones hold the key,’ Christopher replied, his deep frown lightening at the change of subject. ‘The combination of this particular shade of turquoise and the clarity of these diamonds, along with the purity of gold, is unique. If I can locate the sources, link them closely geographically, prove that all were being mined at about the time this amulet was made, then I will know I am in the right place.’

‘How many wrong places have you visited?’

He shrugged, but she was pleased to see the faintest trace of a smile. ‘I have confined my wanderings to the southern region, concentrating on the kingdoms where I already knew diamonds and gold had been mined.’

‘How did you come by such information?’

‘Well, you said yourself that the amulet is distinctly southern Arabian in style, and I’m a surveyor to trade, as I told you. Ores and minerals are my business, and I have a—a talent for it. It was fairly straightforward once I’d narrowed down the general location.’

Proof—not that she needed it—of just how much this quest of his meant to Christopher. ‘You must have traversed any number of kingdoms,’ Tahira said, awed. ‘To travel so widely, you must have gone to a great deal of trouble. Papers, permissions...’

‘Oh, I can produce papers if I’m required to,’ he replied, waving his hand dismissively, ‘but I prefer to avoid getting entangled in red tape. Officials trying to be helpful can sometimes be—well, over-inquisitive. And over-suspicious at times too—let’s face it, you were suspicious of me yourself.’

Was he teasing her? No, that light in his eyes, it was more of a challenge. He could play by the rules, but he preferred not to. She didn’t know whether to be impressed or appalled. ‘But—but now I understand why you are here, and I am not an official, Christopher. If you were caught snooping about at this mine, you would be in serious trouble.’

‘Hence my decision to come here in the middle of the night. I have no time to jump through official hoops, Tahira. I must find a way to lay my hands on a piece of ore from this mine as soon as possible. While the turquoise on the amulet is the least valuable component, its rarity is the key to its provenance. And so, like you, I’ve no intentions either of curtailing my activities or of being caught in the act. We’ll make a good team, don’t you think?’

She thought she must be a little mad to be agreeing to this. She thought his recklessness must have infected her. There was no getting away from the fact that the more often she escaped, the more chance there was of her being discovered, but time was no more on her side than on Christopher’s. This man, this stranger who attracted and intimidated her by turn, wanted her help with his most improbable, most intriguing quest. She would never get such an opportunity again. There was no possibility of her refusing.

‘I think we will make an excellent team.’ Smiling, Tahira turned her attention back to the amulet, examining the stones in question more closely. ‘The turquoise is undoubtedly very distinctive, but it’s likely to be a few weeks before any samples are unearthed.’

‘How do you know that?’

She could have kicked herself. ‘An educated guess, nothing more,’ she said lightly.

Christopher looked sceptical, but he chose not to press her. ‘Then I have a few weeks’ grace in which to match the gold and diamonds.’

‘Ah, now I finally understand how I can be of assistance. And I’m pleased to say that I think I can, if what you want is confirmation that diamonds and gold were mined in Nessarah fifteen hundred years ago.’

‘That’s exactly what I need,’ he responded warmly. ‘It would save me a great deal of time and legwork. In return I can help you to explore this site, and by doing so, I very much hope, obtain the final proof I need. A mutually beneficial arrangement, I think you’ll agree?’

She would agree to almost anything when he looked at her like that, his smile teasing and wicked and reckless. ‘I do,’ Tahira said, handing him the amulet back and trying to prevent her own smile from betraying her pleasure. ‘That would be wonderful. Even more so if I can help you prove that this came originally from Nessarah. Though if you do mean to restore it to its owner, and if it is indeed fifteen hundred years old, then presumably you hope to track down a descendant?’

‘You’ve said yourself that it’s extremely valuable, which means it was almost certainly created for a member of the ruling family. In Nessarah’s case, that would be King Haydar.’

‘By the stars!’

‘It seems the obvious conclusion to reach,’ Christopher said. ‘I don’t know why you’re so surprised.’

‘I suppose so,’ Tahira said, trying desperately to contain her astonishment. ‘I am simply—it is all so strange, isn’t it? I came here tonight hoping to find a few shards of pottery or a crude flint. Instead I found you, a man who shares my passion for the past, seeking to resolve the provenance of a beautiful artefact which may have been fashioned right here, in the kingdom I call home. To think that I may even be able to play a part in proving this, that is the stuff of my dreams, Christopher. This encounter—surely it has been arranged by the fates?’

‘I would not go so far as to call it destiny, but I would agree it is serendipitous.’

His smile made her lose her train of thought. Her breathing quickened. He leaned towards her, and as if they were connected by some invisible force, she leaned towards him. He pushed a tendril of her hair back from her forehead, his fingers trailing down her cheek. ‘You smell delightful. What scent is it?’

Her heart was pounding. ‘Jasmine.’ Her voice had faded to a whisper.

‘I have the absurd conviction that your kisses would taste of peaches.’ His mouth hovered mere inches from hers. ‘It is absurd, isn’t it?’

Her mouth went dry. ‘I don’t know. I’ve never been kissed.’

Christopher groaned. ‘The ultimate temptation and the ultimate deterrent. Do you have any idea how utterly delectable you are?’ He shook his head, sitting back. ‘No, of course you don’t, and I should not have said so.’

‘Because you don’t mean it?’

He laughed. ‘I never pay empty compliments. Utterly delectable does not do you justice. I have never met a woman like you.’

‘Now that is a compliment I can very easily return, for I have never met a man like you—though no doubt you will have deduced I have met very few men, and may think it’s not that high a compliment. But I have a feeling it would make no difference if I had.’

‘Tahira, you should not say such things, and you ought not to look at a man with those big eyes when you do, and smile that way, and—you can have no idea of the effect you have when you smile at me like that.’

She felt as if her veins were full of sherbet. She was sparkling, alight. And she felt quite wicked. ‘When I first saw you tonight, I thought to myself, there is a man one would never forget. A dangerous man. With a very dangerous smile.’

‘When I first saw you tonight, and you smiled at me...’ Shaking his head, Christopher looked up at the stars and frowned. ‘Speaking of danger, delightful as your company is, I don’t want you to risk returning in the daylight to wherever it is you’ve sprung from.’

Reluctantly, Tahira too looked up at the sky, and gave a startled exclamation. ‘I had no idea it was so late—or rather, early. I will do everything in my power to help you, but I must go now. Will we meet again here, tomorrow night?’

Christopher jumped up, helping her to her feet. ‘Is it safe for you to do so?’