The Sheik’s Embrace (The Billionaire’s Club #12)

Chapter 20

Tara trembled as she watched Zayed take the card that had been laid face up next to the stack of cards. She wanted another kiss! Her lips still throbbed from that brief brush of his mouth against hers. Somehow, this silly game between them had morphed into an almost life or death struggle for her. For another kiss! She felt her whole body shaking with anticipation. Never before had she even contemplated kissing another man. No other male had ever tempted her like Zayed did.

Oh, she’d looked at other men and thought, “Hmm…I bet he’d be a good kisser.” Or “Hey, why not just take this guy up on his obvious interest and find out what all the fuss is about.” However, her life hadn’t allowed her to follow up on those thoughts. Her life had been a constant, desperate attempt to keep one step ahead of a maniacal bastard.

Every time she and Kaia had started to feel safe, Ethan had shown up. Maybe he’d been knocking on a neighbor’s door. Or perhaps they’d see him sitting in a coffee shop near where they’d been working.

It didn’t matter how or where they’d seen him, she and Kaia had packed up and left, leaving everything behind that didn’t fit into a small backpack, which was always kept packed so that they were ready to leave in moment’s notice.

So yes, Zayed was the first man who truly, sincerely, interested her on a level that was more than just vague curiosity. Until now, she’d always considered the man to be forbidden. He was her employer. He was a royal. He was the freaking leader of the country!

But he’d introduced this game. And now, it felt imperative for her to win another kiss from him.

“Your turn,” he announced, laying down a four of diamonds.

Tara glanced at her hand and mentally calculated the risks. The challenge of the game was to get two sets of three of a kind and one set of four of a kind. Or a run up of cards all in the same suit.

Obviously, Zayed wasn’t collecting fours; she had one in her hand. She could grab the four, but she had two nines, two kings and two jacks. She hadn’t planned on collecting fours. She picked up the four and slid it next to the other four, then discarded an eight.

He grabbed the eight! Darn it! She’d just given him a card that he needed.

Heart pounding in her chest, she waited, breath held, until he discarded the jack of clubs!

Bonus!

Tara grabbed the card and slid it in beside the other two in her hand, then discarded a three of spades.

Back and forth, they picked up one card, then discarded another. Usually, Tara could eventually figure out her opponent’s strategy. When they picked up one card or discarded another, it was easy to figure out what the other person was collecting. Then she could hold those cards until she didn’t have any spare “discard” options any longer.

But Zayed’s strategy was a mystery. And perhaps because of her confusion, it was harder for her to focus on her own cards. She completely missed one of the cards she needed, mentally chiding herself for watching his hands too closely. Not because she was trying to see what he might discard, but because his hands were incredibly appealing!

Distraction wasn’t an option, she told herself firmly. She wanted that kiss!

Finally, he picked up from the deck, then discarded another four. That was the last card she needed and she picked it up, added the card to the appropriate place, then fanned out her cards. “Gin,” she whispered, nearly out of her mind with the need to kiss him again.

The first time, she’d been too startled to truly concentrate on the man’s kiss. This time, she was going to savor the moment! She was going to analyze why his kiss made her feel so jittery. She was going to…!

He leaned forward, bracing one hand on the table and reaching out with his other hand to curl his fingers around her neck, gently pulling her towards his mouth.

And then he kissed her! This time, it wasn’t just a soft kiss. This was…sublime! His mouth lingered over her lips, teasing and brushing against hers as if trying to tempt her to open her mouth. She did and…!

Tara was lost in the shockingly erotic moment. His tongue brushed against her lips, then against her tongue. She was so shocked by the touch that she pulled back, their eyes clashing. But a moment later, with the gentle urging of his hand on her neck, she kissed him again. This time, she left her mouth open, gasping when he angled his head and deepened the kiss.

Tara had no idea what to do, so she just followed his lead, copying anything he did to her, assuming that he would like the same. She reached out, clutching at his shoulders. She knew that touching wasn’t part of the deal. This was supposed to be just a kiss. But her fingers were itching to touch him, to explore the strong muscles in his shoulders and neck. Tara was mindless with desire now, her fingers inching towards the warm skin, exploring, needing more but not sure what that “more” might be.

When he pulled back this time, Tara felt as if her whole body were tingling, sparkling. There was a hot throbbing low in her belly that she didn’t quite understand, but was certain that Zayed could fix.

“Another game?” he asked softly, his voice low and husky.

“Yes!” she whispered back, licking her lips as if she could still taste his kiss.

Slowly, they separated, her fingers releasing his shoulders reluctantly. It took monumental effort to sit back in her chair.

Thankfully, it wasn’t Tara’s turn to shuffle the cards, because her hands were shaking so hard, she knew she’d drop them.

Apparently, Zayed wasn’t as affected as she was because the cards flew from his nimble fingers, each of them landing in a messy, but small, pile in front of her.

Frustrated now, Tara wanted to kiss him in a way that would make him just as flustered as she felt. Of course, she wasn’t exactly sure how to do that. She sifted her cards, arranging them in…well, not in order, she realized and started over. When she looked at her hand again, she realized that she had a very good hand.

“You go first this time,” he announced.

Tara glanced down at the card on the table, then at her hand. Yep, she needed that card. She tossed out another card, relieved when he chose from the deck. Over and over, she tossed out a card, then waited, breathlessly to see if he would take it.

How could he make her feel this anxious, this desperate for another kiss? What was it about Zayed? He was driving her wild!

Thankfully, none of the cards she discarded were things he could use.

It seemed that everything he discarded was helpful to her and it took her only ten minutes to win this hand.

“Gin!” she announced with pride as she fanned her cards out on the table.

“Excellent,” he growled, then stood up. Instead of leaning over the low table to kiss her this time, he came around the table. Tara was shocked by this unexpected change, but she didn’t have time to resist before he took her hands and pulled her to her feet in front of him. But Zayed didn’t stop there. He pulled her into his arms, carefully placing her hands on his shoulders.

In this position, she felt small and vulnerable. But when he lowered his head to kiss her, those sensations changed. As soon as their lips touched, she felt powerful! Her hands automatically moved to his neck, needing to feel his bare skin. At her touch, he deepened the kiss even further, his mouth moving back and forth over hers, kissing her again and again as if he were starving and she was his only sustenance.

He groaned and pulled her closer, his strong hands pressing her more firmly against his body. That’s when she felt his erection throbbing against her stomach. She’d always been warned that a man’s reaction was dangerous, but this didn’t feel wrong. It felt so completely right! So right that she shifted her hips against his, needing to understand more, to feel more.

A knock on the doorway stopped the kiss. She stared up at him as they both caught their breath. Tara was relieved that she wasn’t the only person in this embrace that felt it this time.

Slowly, she released his neck, letting her fingers slide down his chest, still staring into his eyes.

“You won,” he muttered, his voice deeper than usual.

Carefully, he stepped out of her arms and Tara felt cold and…abruptly angry! Why was she angry?

“Come in!” he bellowed, still staring into Tara’s eyes.

The door opened and she stepped back, wrapping her arms around her waist and turning away from Zayed. She’d just…kissed a man that wasn’t her husband! That was…?

No! She wasn’t going to slip back into that old way of thinking. Ethan and her father had no control over her life now! She was free! And kissing wasn’t wrong. In fact, the way she felt at the moment, she would swear on her life that it was very, very right!

Tara was just about to leave the room when she turned back to the table. The cards were still splayed out at his place at the table. Out of curiosity, she picked up Zayed’s cards and turned them over. She nearly gasped out loud when she noticed that none of the cards matched! The man had lost on purpose?

She set the cards back down, then hurried from the room, her head spinning.