Part 4 (2/2)
When he didn't answer, she turned away from the refrigerator and looked at him curiously. ”Jamal?”
”Yes?”
”I asked if you wanted a sandwich?”
He nodded, deciding to take her up on her offer. He needed to eat something, since he would need all his strength later for something he would enjoy. At least that was what he was hoping. ”Yes, thank you. I would love to have a sandwich.” I would love to have you.
He continued to watch as she took items out of the refrigerator and a.s.sembled them on the counter. The enticing scent of her perfume was filling the kitchen and he found himself getting deeply affected by it. And it didn't help matters that he knew she wasn't wearing a bra under her top and that her b.r.e.a.s.t.s were the best kind to lick and suck. The moment his tongue had touched the taut nipple, the tip of it had hardened like a bud, tempting him to draw the whole thing in his mouth and gently suck and tease it with a pulling sensation. And the way she had moaned while squirming around on the hammock had let him know she enjoyed his actions.
He s.h.i.+fted his gaze from her chest to her bottom. Her backside had been what had caught his attention that very first day. It was also the main thing that had him hard now. She liked wearing shorts, the kind that showed just what a nice behind she had. Nice thighs, too. The shorts placed emphasis on the curve of her hips. He wondered what her behind looked like without clothes. He bet her b.u.t.tocks were as firm and as lush as her b.r.e.a.s.t.s.
”Do you want mayonnaise on your bread?”
Her questions made him return his gaze to her face when she tossed him a glance over her shoulder. ”No, mustard is fine,” he answered, briefly considering pinning her against the counter and taking her from behind. He could just imagine pumping into her while pressed solidly against her backside.
He took another sip of his herbal tea. Usually the sweet brew calmed him. But not today and certainly not now.
”Be prepared to enjoy my sandwich,” she was saying. ”My brothers think they're the bomb and would give anything for me to make them one. They have my special touch.”
He nodded. He could believe that and suddenly felt envious of a slice of bread and wished he could trade places with it. He would love to have her hands on him, spreading whatever she wanted over his body, preferably kisses. She wouldn't even have to toast him since her touch would burn him to a crisp, anyway.
She glanced over his shoulder and smiled again. ”You're quiet today. Are you okay?”
He was tempted to tell her that no, he wasn't okay, and if he were to stand up she would immediately see why he wasn't. But instead he said, ”Yes, I'm fine.”
Satisfied with his response, she turned back around to continue making their sandwiches. He leaned back in his chair. He watched her pat her foot on the hardwood floor while she worked. She was also humming. He wondered what had her in such a good mood. Unlike him, she must be sleeping at night and not experiencing s.e.xual torment.
”Did you finish your book?” he decided to ask. She had been reading it all morning. The only time he noticed her not reading was when she'd fallen asleep on the hammock.
”Oh, yes, and it was wonderful,” she said, reaching up in the cabinets to get two plates. ”And of course there was a happy ending.”
He lifted his brow. So she had been reading one of those kinds So she had been reading one of those kinds. ”A happy ending?”
She nodded, turning around. ”Yes. Marcus realized just how much Jamie meant to him and told her that he loved her before it was too late.”
Jamal nodded. ”He loved this woman?”
Delaney smiled dreamily. ”Yes, he loved her.”
Jamal frowned. ”Then what you read was pure fantasy. Why waste your time reading such nonsense and foolishness?”
Delaney's smile was replaced with a fierce frown. ”Nonsense? Foolishness?”
”Yes, nonsense and foolishness. Men don't love women that way.”
Delaney braced herself against the counter and folded her arms across her chest. Her legs, Jamal noted, were spread apart. Seeing her stand that way almost made him forget what they were discussing. Instead his gaze moved to the junction of those legs and wondered how it would feel fitting his hard body there.
”And just how do men love women?”
Jamal's gaze left her midsection and moved up to her face. She was still frowning. Evidently she was no longer in such a good mood. ”Usually they don't. At least not in my country.”
Delaney lifted a brow. ”People do get married in your country, don't they?”
”Of course.”
”Then why would a man and a woman marry if not for love?”
Jamal stared at her, suddenly feeling disoriented. She had a way of making him feel like that whenever he locked on her dark brown eyes and lush lips. ”They would marry for a number of reasons. Mainly for benefits,” he responded, not taking his gaze off her eyes and lips. Especially her lips.
”Benefits?”
He nodded. ”Yes. If it's a good union, the man brings to the table some kind of wealth and the woman brings strong family ties, allegiances and the ability to give him an heir. Those things are needed if a sheikhdom is to grow and prosper.”
Delaney stared into his eyes, amazed at what he had just said. ”So the marriages in your country are like business arrangements?”
He smiled. ”Basically, yes. That's why the most successful ones are arranged at least thirty years in advance.”
”Thirty years in advance!” she exclaimed, shaking her head in disbelief.
”Yes, at least that long, sometimes even longer. More often than not, the man and woman's family plans their union even before they are born. Such was the case with my father and mother. She was of Berber descent. The Berbers were and still are a proud North African tribe that inhabits the land in northwestern Libya. As a way to maintain peace between the Berbers and the Arabs, a marriage agreement between my mother, an African princess, and my father, an Arab prince, was made. Therefore, I am of Arab-Berber descent, just as the majority of the people of Tahran are. My parents were married a little more than a year when my mother died giving birth to me.”
Delaney leaned back against the counter. At the moment what he was telling her was more interesting than making a sandwich. ”What if your father, although pledged to your mother, had found someone else who he preferred to spend the rest of his life?”
”That would have been most unfortunate. And it wouldn't have meant a thing. He would still marry the woman he'd been pledged to marry. However, he could take the other woman he fancied as a mistress for the rest of his days.”
”A mistress? And what would his wife have to say about something like that?”
He shrugged. ”Nothing. It's common practice for a man to have both a wife and mistress. That sort of an arrangement is accepted.”
Delaney shook her head. American men knew better. ”That's such a waste, Jamal. Why would a man need both a wife and and a mistress? A smart man would seek out and fall in love with a woman who can play both roles. In our country wives are equipped to fulfill every desire her husband may have.” a mistress? A smart man would seek out and fall in love with a woman who can play both roles. In our country wives are equipped to fulfill every desire her husband may have.”
Jamal lifted a brow. He could see her fulfilling every man's desire since he saw her as a very sensual woman. She would probably make a good American American wife, if you liked the outspoken, sa.s.sy and rebellious type. She would keep a man on his toes and no doubt on his knees. But he had a feeling she would also keep him on his back-which would be well worth the trouble she would cause him. wife, if you liked the outspoken, sa.s.sy and rebellious type. She would keep a man on his toes and no doubt on his knees. But he had a feeling she would also keep him on his back-which would be well worth the trouble she would cause him.
He sighed, deciding he didn't want to talk about wives and mistresses any longer, especially when he knew how possessive American women were. ”Are the sandwiches ready?”
Evidently, she wasn't ready to bring the subject to an end and asked, ”The first day we met you indicated you were to marry next year.”
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