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She couldn’t believe this was happening—and neither could she remove her awed gaze from the glossy carrier bags as Ali served them the meal Drax had mentioned. Then, while Sadie ate food that wouldn’t have been out of place in a Michelin-starred restaurant, Ali started to remove the bags to the bedroom.
‘I’ve bought you a couple of cases to hold everything,’ Drax told her. ‘I appreciate that you won’t want the embarrassment of arriving clutching an untidy array of carrier bags. My brother is an extremely fastidious man who prizes efficiency and neatness above all things.’
‘I’ll remember that,’ Sadie answered dutifully, even as her mind went into overdrive. A designer-brand suit? She had never so much as possessed a designer lipstick, never mind a suit.
If any other man but this one had been offering her a designer wardrobe her suspicions would have been immediately aroused. But not only had Drax shown her that even if he wanted to have a physically intimate relationship with her he was ignoring it, she also knew from Monika that wealthy men here thought nothing of spending obscene amounts of money in ways that were not experienced at home. She had heard of employers handing out solid gold watches to employees for no better reason than that they felt like doing so, or ordering uniforms for their staff and then changing them on a whim because they had seen something else they liked better.
Even so…Sadie looked at the logos on the few remaining bags and swallowed. A cream suit wasn’t going to be the only designer item in her new wardrobe. She just hoped that her new clothes were going to fit her.
As Sadie waited to descend the stairs from the now stationary jet, she smoothed the delicate silk skirt of the cream suit. It fitted her perfectly. And, from what she had seen of the rest of the new wardrobe she had been supplied with, the clothes were all in colours that were perfect for her—subtle creams and taupes, cool white linens, gorgeous chocolate-brown silks, and thankfully none of the prissy fussy pinks or patterns she had dreaded.
This suit, highlighted with gold thread and trimmed with antique lace, was simply cut, and yet had such a stunning elegance that it had her walking tall. She was glad she had taken the time to apply a little of the make-up she had found stacked with meticulous neatness into its own leather travelling case.
Her new luggage alone must have cost a small fortune, Sadie recognised. It was certainly far more exclusive than anything she could ever have afforded. She looked down at her strappy high-heeled shoes and wondered apprehensively if Drax’s brother was going to approve of her being employed by him. She looked hes
itantly at Drax, who was standing a few yards away from her, talking to the Captain of the jet.
So far he hadn’t said a word about her transformed appearance, or the suit—though he had flicked an assessing glance over her when she’d stepped uncertainly into the main cabin, having changed into her new clothes. Did that mean that he was satisfied with her appearance or that he wasn’t? She wasn’t going to admit to herself that his lack of response had disappointed her. He was her employer, nothing more, and there was no reason why he should comment and no reason why she should wish him to do so.
‘Ready?’
She had been so busy refusing to admit to wanting his approval that she hadn’t noticed that he had stopped talking to the Captain and was now coming over to her.
‘Yes. I…I put on the cream suit, as you suggested. I hope your brother…’
‘It looks fine.’
She was wearing her hair up, and several fine tendrils had escaped from the knot at the nape of her neck and were starting to curl softly round her face. The silk stroked lovingly against her body, hinting sensuously at what it concealed as though it were a lover. The fabric itself possessed a quality that made him want to reach out and touch it—and her. He had been aware of that need from the moment she had stepped into the cabin, looking at him with eyes that held both uncertainty and a shy appeal. For what? For him to tell her that she was a highly desirable woman? He couldn’t do that. But he wanted to do it. He wanted to tell her to show her just how sexy he found her.
No! He had chosen her for Vere. But that suit was perhaps not the best choice for his brother to see her for the first time. Its soft sensuality underlined her own equally soft sensuality, and would not appeal to Vere. He should have chosen something more tailored, more conservative, Drax told himself as he waited for Ali to open the cabin door.
‘When you said you’d bought some luggage for the clothes, I didn’t realise…that is…’
They were in the back of a leather-upholstered Bentley, being driven to the palace down a wide straight road, with the sea on one side and the lights of Dhurahn city on the other. The road was lined with palm trees, their trunks decorated with tiny fairy lights, and the overhead street lighting revealed immaculate flowerbeds set into green verges. Theirs wasn’t the only car on the road, but the Royal pennant fluttering from the bonnet ensured that other traffic gave way so their progress was speedy and stately.
Drax had hardly spoken to her since they had landed, and she still wasn’t over the shock of seeing over half a dozen brand-new cream leather suitcases being loaded into the car and realising they contained her new clothes.
‘I’ve already explained the situation with regard to my decision to provide you with a new wardrobe. The matter is now closed.’
Drax didn’t even look at her as he spoke, and it was obvious to Sadie that he did not wish to engage in conversation with her, but nevertheless there were questions she needed to ask him.
‘We haven’t discussed where I am to stay while I am working for you. If it is to be a government-owned apartment, will the rent—?’
‘You will be staying in the palace and there will be no rent.’
‘In the palace? You mean with you?’ The moment the words had left her lips Sadie realised how gauche they sounded, and wished she could recall them, but it was too late. Drax was turning to look at her. In the dark interior of the car his face was highlighted by the streetlights so that she could see its aquiline arrogance. Sadie felt a fierce need to reach out and trace the harshly etched strength. His skin would feel warm beneath her fingertips, the savagely sensual shape of his mouth smooth to her touch…
‘I mean that you will be accommodated in the women’s quarters within the palace complex.’
‘The women’s quarters? You mean I’ll be staying in a harem?’
Was she imagining that the green gaze had ignited with dark fire?
‘The men of my family have for many generations been monogamous and faithful to their single chosen wife. It might excite your imagination to believe otherwise, but that is not the case. There is no harem as such within the walls of the palace. Nevertheless, we are a free society here in Dhurahn. Our people can worship as they please, and we are bound to respect their religious beliefs. Thus we adhere to the tradition of maintaining a separate women’s quarter within the palace complex. Our visiting female guests feel more comfortable knowing that their traditions will be respected.’
‘But I am not a guest. I am an employee—’
‘You have worked in Zuran, so you will be aware that the Ruler there conducts administrative business from within the palace, which is also his private residence and that of his extended family. It is the same for us here in Dhurahn. The palace is our home, but it is also the centre from which our country is run. Members of our extended family as well as some senior officials and their families live and work in the palace. There will be nothing untoward in you residing within the complex. In fact it might be considered rather unusual if you did not. Here, there is normally only one reason a man sets a woman up in her own apartment—and, though it might be a business arrangement, I do not think it is one you would wish to be associated with.’
