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“I mean you.”
“But you don’t want me.”
His lips curved, his expression dark and dangerous. “Oh, but I do,” he said, closing the distance between them and drawing her toward him.
She stiffened as she came into contact with the hard heat of his body, and she flashed to the kiss in the garden in Raha. The kiss had been lovely and yet overwhelming—hot, intense, beautiful, but it had made her want and need. She couldn’t let herself go there again. Couldn’t risk letting her heart hope again. “No,” she choked, trying to twist free.
His head dipped, his mouth slanting across hers, silencing her protest.
It wasn’t a light kiss or a tentative kiss. Makin kissed her hard, his lips parting hers with ruthless intent. She shuddered as his tongue plundered her mouth, taking and tasting her as if she already belonged to him.
But she didn’t. She belonged to no one and she struggled to free herself, but he was too strong. She couldn’t escape. Panic flooded her. She wouldn’t be bought and sold. Wouldn’t be handed over from one man to another. She wouldn’t go through life spineless and powerless.
Furious, she bit Makin in the lower lip.
He cursed and lifted his head, arms loosening around her. His eyes glowed like molten silver. “What was that for?”
She punched him in the arm. “You don’t own me!”
“Of course I don’t. You’re a woman, not a piece of property.”
“Then why make a deal with my father before you come to me?”
“Because I was trying to help you—”
“You’re just like him. Just like all of them. You don’t respect me. You don’t respect women—”
“Absolutely not true,” he snapped, cutting her short. “I admired my mother immensely. She handled complex, difficult situations with dignity and grace, and I respect her more than anyone else I’ve ever met.”
“What did she do that made her so admirable?”
“What didn’t she do? She was a modern European woman married to a sheikh in the Middle East. She had to cope with my father’s illness. She modeled strength and courage for me. And most of all, she was loving. She loved my father.” He hesitated, shrugged. “She loved me.”
“And that makes her remarkable.”
“Yes.”
He said it with such conviction and authority that she immediately believed it. And the fight suddenly left her.
Emmeline exhaled in a hard whoosh of air. “But you work so hard to accomplish things …”
“I do. But that’s because there isn’t a lot I need for me. I’m financially solvent. I’m blessed with good health. I’ve always felt loved and wanted. And so I can afford to focus on others, which allows me to give back.”
“And so there’s nothing you want? Nothing you need?”
“I didn’t say that. Because I do want something. I want you.”
His deep voice sent a thrill through her. I want you. There was such authority and purpose in his voice. Such firm conviction that she felt another ripple of shock and pleasure.
Alejandro had said he’d wanted her, but he’d always been the charming playboy, handsome but flirty and playful. Makin Al-Koury was far from flirty and playful. Makin was fierce and powerful and supremely focused. When he said he wanted her, she felt it in her bones.
“But why me?”
He was silent a long moment, his features hard, lashes lowered over his intense gaze. “You have no idea of your worth, do you?”
“I’m an expensive headache, Sheikh Al-Koury. A constant problem requiring attention.” She smiled and yet her eyes burned.
“Everyone needs attention. And princesses—particularly beautiful princesses—are notoriously expensive.”
She laughed, and his gaze dropped to her mouth as if he found it absolutely fascinating.
“I did some research on your riding career last night after you’d gone to bed,” he added.
“Did you?”
He nodded. “Even watched several videos of you competing. You were extraordinary, Emmeline. Does your family have any idea of how gifted you are?”
She shifted uncomfortably. “I’m not that gifted. When I finally made the Olympic team I fell—”
“Listen to yourself. You made the Olympic team.” His voice dropped, deepened. “You made the Olympic team. And I repeated that for your benefit because your family seems to have done nothing but break you down when they should have built you up and given you confidence and support and unconditional love.”
Emmeline had to look away, absolutely overwhelmed by the fierceness in Makin’s voice. She knew him well enough to know he meant every word he was saying. He truly believed she deserved support and love … unconditional love … and it staggered her. Made her ache for all the things she’d never known and made her hope for all the things she still wanted.
