Page 53 of Hired Husband

When the lanterns came back into view, I reluctantly set her back down on her feet. “Sorry, but you’re on your own from here. I don’t want to accidentally offend anyone and I don’t know the customs of these people when it comes to stuff like that.”

“Good point.” She slid to her feet and took my hand before we wandered back up to the fire like we were simply returning from a scenic stroll.

Most of our group was still sitting at the fire, talking and drinking tea while some of the locals had started playing music. Low drums echoed through the night, accompanied by a reed flute and a guitar-type instrument of some kind.

One of the older Bedouin men beckoned us over with a grin when we reached the group, insisting we join the circle gathering to dance. As a woman started showing us traditional steps, Jasmine joined in like she’d done this a dozen times before—which she may well have—and I tried my best, but I was spectacularly bad at it.

Even so, we had a blast, drinking sweet tea, dancing, and talking until we were both exhausted. By the time we finally headed back to our tent and crawled beneath the blankets, I was so utterly worn out that I didn’t even think. I just reached for her and pulled her closer, promptly falling into a comfortable, dreamless sleep with Jasmine Saad in my arms, and somehow, it wasn’t even a little bit weird.

CHAPTER 20

JASMINE

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was sand. It had somehow found its way into every nook and cranny of the bed, the blankets, my clothes, and even all the way up to under my arms. I wrinkled my nose and rubbed some grains off my cheek before opening my eyes.

Morning sunlight filtered through the canvas, the desert sand outside glowing in patches like gold. I smiled but then slowly realized I wasn’t alone when the mattress shifted ever so slightly. Last night came tumbling back into my head all at once, the upgrade, the kiss, and everything that had happened after.

My heart suddenly catapulted itself into a higher gear as I slowly turned my head to find Isaac already awake. He’d pushed himself up to sit with his back against the headboard, one knee bent with his phone resting on it while his fingers moved quickly across the screen.

His brow was furrowed, his jaw tight with concentration. The soft, early rays of sunshine highlighted the lighter strands of blond in his messy hair, some grains of sand still plastered to his temple and below his ear.

Somehow, despite the sand and the concentration, he was even more attractive than usual. His light blue shirt was back on but the top few buttons were open. His head tilted every so often before he’d make another note.

“What are you staring at?” he asked suddenly, a slight curve appearing on his lips a fraction of a second before those eyes cut to mine. “It’s been at least thirty seconds.”

“I wasn’t staring. I was just waking up, but I’ll try to do it a little less disruptively from now on.”

“Nah, you’re okay.” He flashed me a warm smile and my stomach flipped in response. “How’d you sleep?”

“Like a log. You?” I pushed myself up to sit next to him and peered over at his screen. “Are you looking at girls in bikinis?”

“No, I woke up with an idea and I couldn’t risk losing it.” He grinned and angled the phone a little more toward me, revealing sketches, calculations, and digital plans for something, but it made no sense to me beyond broad shapes and elegant lines.

“What is it?”

“That big project I’m working on for your dad.”

“Right.” I leaned in a little closer, but unless I was missing something, that didn’t look like any industrial complex I’d ever seen. “There’s a courtyard.”

He pressed his fingers to the screen and zoomed in a bit. “That’s the central courtyard, but there are few more.”

“That’s sounds surprisingly pleasant for a place where heavy machinery is supposed to be operated.” I scratched absently at my forearm, chuckling when I saw him frown at me. “What?”

“You’re itchy too?”

“It’s the sand,” I said. “We brought half the desert in here with us last night.”

“Yeah.” He locked his phone and set it down on the little wooden box next to the bed doubling as a nightstand. “It feels like we slept right there on that dune.”

“In a way, I think we did.” I lifted the blanket and pointed at a little line of sand along a ridge in the sheets. “Look, I found it. Our own personal dune.”

He laughed. “That’s just one of them. I found another one in my hair.”

As I slid my legs to the side to get up, I suddenly realized that waking up with him hadn’t been awkward at all. There was no lingering weirdness after those kisses, we weren’t avoiding each other’s eyes, and somehow, things were as easy between us as always.

Imagine that, just us, waking up itchy and laughing about it. I wasn’t sure I’d ever had such a drama-free, morning-after experience.

“Do you mind if I use the washroom first?” I asked as I stood up from the bed.