Chapter 7

The afternoon repeated the morning's ride, with the warriors resting the horses every so often and then continuing on. They galloped on into the evening and finally stopped to make camp for the night. This time, they built a small fire and cooked a hot meal. It was strange for Elizabeth to watch these strong warriors actually cooking, and she smiled to herself. Of course, they wouldn't know anything about having servants to cater to their every whim like she'd had all her life. Thinking about servants reminded her of the family she left behind. She missed her Nana terribly, who was more like a mother to her than her natural mother. If she could only talk to Nana about this terrible marriage ordeal. She would know what to do. She picked at her stew as she thought about home, her mind a thousand miles away.

"Eat."

The deep voice made Elizabeth jump and she looked over to find Ardeth sitting down next to her with his food. "Sorry?" she said.

He pointed to her bowl. "You do not eat enough food. Your future husband will think I mistreated you if you do not eat."

Elizabeth looked at her stew as she stirred it purposefully. "The women of my country are viewed differently than the women here. It is stylish to have a narrow waist, to fit into all the latest fashions. Of course, it would be much better if I had my corset on..." she frowned as she looked down at her robe, thinking of the clothing left behind.

Ardeth's voice dropped to a low rumble. "There is not enough flesh on your body for a man to hold. How can this be pleasing to the men of your country?"

Elizabeth looked at him, her mouth hanging open, for she had no response to his question. She looked back to the fire in confusion, and then quickly changed the subject. "And Clive is not my future husband. I told him our engagement was off, and I meant it."

Ardeth took a bite of bread as he thought for a moment. "I told him I would return you to him in Cairo."

Elizabeth gave him a pointed look. "No. Your exact words were 'We will return her to Cairo', not to him." She took a bite of her stew as she let her words sink into the dark warrior.

Ardeth looked at her shrewdly, inwardly praising her cunning, and realized she was right. He had not told Clive that he would return Elizabeth to him. It had merely been assumed that that's what he had meant. He didn't want to return her to Clive anyway. But he could not leave her in a foreign country alone. He would think of some options but right now, he had to get her to eat. "We will talk about Cairo later. Now, it is time to eat." He broke off a chunk of his bread and handed it to her.

She took it tentatively in her hand and brought it to her mouth. "Thank you," she said and she began to nibble on it.

They ate in silence, each dwelling on their own thoughts. Elizabeth stole a sideways glance at Ardeth, but he seemed to know she was going to look, for he looked right back at her. She blushed and turned back to her food in embarrassment, listening to Ardeth's deep chuckle next to her. She was not amused and kept a disdainful look on her face through the rest of the meal. She finished, and one of the warriors came and took her bowl and spoon from her, to clean and pack them away. She stared into the fire for a while, thinking Ardeth would get up and go to his men. But he seemed content to stay beside her and finally, curiosity got the better of her. She slowly turned to look at him and found him leaning back on his elbows in the sand, watching her.

"Why are you watching me?" she asked testily. "Do you think a piece of bread and a bowl of stew are going to start putting more flesh on my bones in front of your eyes?"

He laughed outright at her. "No," he grinned. Then his expression turned more sensuous. "I like watching you. Is it a crime?"

It is when you look at me like that, thought Elizabeth. "No," she said aloud.

Ardeth sat up and leaned in to her. "Good", he whispered. His eyes traveled over her face and came to rest on her mouth. He brought his hand up and gently traced her lips with a long finger. Elizabeth's lips parted of their own accord and Ardeth drew a quick intake of breath as he stared at them. He leaned away from her suddenly, then quickly stood up and walked over to his men. Elizabeth sighed, wondering why she was so attracted to him. She should be afraid of him, for she really had no way of knowing of his true intentions. She knew he desired her, and that he was having a difficult time controlling that desire. How long would it be before he gave in to animal instinct? And would she fight it when he did? She hugged her arms around herself, partly from the cold, partly from something else.

She watched as the men spread out their bedrolls around the fire. One of the warriors stoked down the fire as the rest settled into their blankets. Elizabeth looked over at Ardeth as he finished setting out his blankets. He stood up and turned his dark gaze on Elizabeth. His eyes were the only part of him that moved as he glanced down at his bedroll and back to Elizabeth. She knew what that look meant. She got up and walked around the fire to where he was at and settled herself down on the blanket. She removed her makeshift turban, unpinned her hair, letting it fall loose, and lay down on the blanket. She waited to feel him next to her and was surprised as she felt the blanket being drawn up over her. She turned to look at him and noticed he was still standing.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing. It is my turn to keep the first watch. I will retire after a few hours." He walked a short distance up to the top of the dune and began his watch.

Elizabeth sighed heavily, bringing the blanket up around her shoulders for warmth. The desert never ceased to amaze her with its drastic changes in temperature. Today she had almost passed out from heat exhaustion and now that night had fallen, she could barely keep herself warm. She looked at the stars, twinkling in their diaphanous multitude, and it seemed like they were trying to tell her something. Then she remembered. The night before she had made a wish on one of those stars, and then her life had changed. She had discovered that Clive was ruthless and only wanted her for her family's wealth, then he had almost taken her against her will, then she had been kidnapped by bandits, only to find out later they are an ancient tribe of honour, and now here she was, traveling with six strange men and her heart was pining for their leader after only knowing him for one day. She thought about his village they were going to. Would they be a ragtag bunch of wanderers, or would they actually be a community, with elders and chiefs? She had a feeling it would be the latter. These warriors were too organized to be wanderers. She frowned as she thought about it. She trusted Ardeth and his men, but she was unsure of his tribe. What if Ardeth took her to his village and his chief decided to keep her there forever as a slave? She knew the English weren't well liked in this country. Would Ardeth have any say in the matter? She sighed again. Too much to worry about right now. She would know everything in another day or so. She rolled over, trying to find a comfortable position to sleep, but she couldn't seem to relax. She finally turned on her side and crooked her arm under her head. She tried to will herself to sleep, but her eyelids would not obey. So she contented herself with watching the flames of fire dance against the blackness of the night.

Ardeth sat on top of the dune, staring over the sands. The night was peaceful and calm, much more so than he was. He looked down at their little camp and saw Elizabeth tossing and turning. A lopsided grin graced his face, as he understood what she was going through, or at least, he thought he did. He turned away from her to look out over the desolate plains, trying to rationalize his feelings for her. He wanted her, but he wanted more than her body. He was fascinated by her personality and her indomitable will. She was a challenge to him, a challenge that he didn't want to end. And she surprised him, too. He had merely looked down at the bedroll and she had come to him, whereas, all the other times he had commanded her to do something, she had questioned him. She was...unpredictable. All of this blended together to heighten his desire of her. He wanted to possess her body and soul. He shook his head at himself as he tried to put her from his mind and concentrate on his duty.

A couple of hours into the night and another warrior came to relieve Ardeth of his watch. Ardeth walked down to the campsite and over to his bedroll, quietly removing his scimitars before sitting down to take off his boots. After removing his second boot he looked over to Elizabeth and found her flat on her back, watching him with her dark eyes. Neither one said a word, but they didn't have to. Their eyes spoke where words would have not been enough. Ardeth lay down next to her on his side, propping himself up on one elbow. She stared at his face, her eyes drifting up to his forehead where his turban was. She lifted a hand up and gently began pushing the edge of the turban off of his forehead. He reached up with his free hand and unwound his turban completely, letting his hair fall free. Elizabeth gazed at it in wonder as she ran her hand through the dark locks, admiring it as it brushed his shoulders. She had never seen a man with hair this long before, and for some reason, it seemed right on Ardeth.

He had pushed the turban away from him and now his hand rested lightly on her belly, the thin material of the robe the only thing separating skin from skin. Her hand ceased its motion as he stared at her partly open lips and he knew this time, he wouldn't be able to stop himself. His hand moved from her belly to her waist and he brought her slowly into him, knowing he shouldn't be doing this, but unable to help himself. He finally lowered his head and kissed her lightly, but briefly, on the lips. He raised his head to look in her eyes and found no fear there, only eagerness. He lowered his head to kiss her again, this time lingering on the softness of her lips. He broke off, lifting his head slightly, not looking at her, but listening to the heavy breathing and realized it wasn't his alone. He was trembling as he tried to check the fire building within him, but when Elizabeth snaked her arms around his neck, he could hold back no longer, and gave in to his desire.

The third time Ardeth brought his lips down on hers, Elizabeth knew she was lost to him. He kissed her hard and started moving his mouth against hers, as he tasted her lips fully, nipping and sucking on them alternately. She mimicked his actions, giving him the same, and his low moan met her ears. He pushed her back on the blanket, covering her body with his, making her gasp in surprise. He took advantage of her shock and thrust his tongue in-between her lips as he deepened the kiss. Elizabeth let him explore her mouth, eventually twining tongues with him and reveling in the sensations she was experiencing. Never had she been kissed with such warmth and passion! He tasted sweet to her, and his scent was that of sweat, musk, and the very desert, all mixed together to make up a pleasing, masculine smell. His hair was silky under her fingers and, as she slowly slid her hands down his neck and across his shoulder blades, she could feel the taut muscles of his back through the material of his robe. She was barely aware of his leg sliding between hers as she fought to get her hands under his robe. He suddenly grabbed her hands in his and lifted his head away from hers. "No," he growled. He rolled off of her and sat up, looking out to the desert as he attempted to get himself under control.

Elizabeth sat up. "Ardeth...what's wrong?"

He didn't look at her as he replied. "This is wrong," he replied gruffly.

She could see him breathing hard and knew he was struggling to keep his emotions in check, but she pushed him anyway. "Why is it wrong?" she asked, confused.

"We are of different cultures and you are promised to another man."

Elizabeth got angry. "I told you, I broke off our engagement! And I don't care about differences in cultures."

Ardeth breathed in the cool night air, his heartbeat returning to normal as he spoke. "Your family cares, my tribe cares. It is not easy to disregard these things."

"But Ardeth..."

He turned to her, breaking off her protestation. "Do not argue. Lie down and go to sleep."

She didn't say anything but neither did she obey him. She merely stared at him, letting her eyes do the pleading, but Ardeth was not to be swayed.

"You are my captive. Do as I say." The words were harsh, but the haunted look in his eyes softened their impact.

Elizabeth broke away from his intense stare and finally lay down, rolling over on her side, with her back to him. She was frustrated at the kiss ending so abruptly and knew he was also. Then she realized how wantonly she had acted and wondered if it had embarrassed him. Certainly women of his culture would never act that way. No wonder he had broken off the kiss, she thought glumly.

She felt no movement next to her for a few minutes, and then Ardeth covered both of them with the blanket as he lie down, and put his arm around her waist once more. This surprised Elizabeth and she questioned him about it.

"I thought you didn't want to kiss me anymore." She held her breath in hope as she awaited his response.

Ardeth gave a small sigh. "Do not make this more difficult than it already is. I keep you close to me so that you will not be cold during the night."

"Well, if you had let me bring some decent clothes along..." quipped Elizabeth, trying to lighten the mood.

He moved his hand from her waist up to her mouth, covering it to keep her quiet. "Sh. Sleep now. We have a hard ride tomorrow."

Ardeth removed his hand from her mouth but kept his arm against her chest, clasping her to him. Elizabeth smiled and wrapped her arm around his, then stared into the fire. The night was peaceful, except for the whispering wind and the occasional crackle of the dying fire, but it was a long time before either of them could get to sleep.

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