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Her cheeks burned red. “I’ve only had two boyfriends in my whole life. The first was in high school. I didn’t understand why he never tried to kiss me, until at graduation he announced he was gay. And my second boyfriend...” She looked away. “I had a mad crush on him, but he was never really that into me, I guess. He broke up with me last year because...he said there was nothing special about me. I was too boring, he said. Too ordinary.”
Her voice was husky with unshed tears.
“Ordinary?” Staring down at her, Omar felt a flood of emotion. He said hoarsely, “That’s the last thing you are.”
Beth looked at him, blinking fast, as if afraid to believe his words. Taking her into his arms, he felt her body tremble against his.
> Then he realized that he was the one trembling.
He’d been wrong when he’d thought nothing could make him want her more.
She was a virgin. A virgin.
“But I have something more to tell you.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “Something I...wish I didn’t have to say.”
Somewhere in the back of Omar’s mind came the thought that, now he knew she was a virgin, he had no choice but to wait for marriage before he could bed her. That was the only honorable path. That was the way of the old days.
But how could he wait?
“You have to understand how expensive cancer research is,” she was saying. “And how desperate my sister was.” She shook her head, running her hand over her forehead. “No, that’s not fair to blame her. I also wanted to see Paris.”
Omar was bewildered. What did Beth’s sister have to do with anything?
He didn’t want to talk about their families, or the past. What did anyone else matter, except the two of them, now? Their life was just beginning...
“Later,” he said huskily. He lowered his head to kiss her. His caress was gentle at first. But as he tasted the sweet softness of her lips, his need intensified. His grip on her tightened as he plundered her mouth, teasing her tongue with his own, until she abruptly ripped away.
“Please,” she cried, her eyes wild. “Please. You don’t understand. I’m not who you think!”
Omar couldn’t understand. How could such an accomplished woman judge herself so harshly for what could only be some tiny, unimportant flaw?
But he saw in the wildness of her eyes that whatever it was, she was torturing herself over it.
“So tell me,” he said huskily. “I want to know every bit of you. Or better yet,” he whispered, lowering his head for another kiss, “show me...”
As they kissed, he thought he tasted the salt of her tears. Whatever her imaginary flaw was, he had to show her it didn’t matter. He reached around her, loosening the ties of her shift, and the thin fabric fell to the antique rug beneath their feet. Beth stood naked before him, except for white lace panties.
His breath stopped as, still fully dressed in his regal sheikh’s robes, he looked down at her full, naked breasts, tiny waist and long hair tumbling down over her creamy virgin skin. Her light brown hair seemed a multitude of colors, tangled strawberry and gold and chestnut. Her big hazel eyes were a swirl of blue sea, green fields, brown earth. The whole world.
He could almost hear the pounding of her heart. Hear the soft pant of her breath as she stood utterly still, her pink nipples tight with arousal. As she looked up at him, her eyes pulled him with their desperate, innocent desire. She was everything in this moment.
Need pounded through Omar so great he knew he could not wait for their wedding next month, any more than a starving man could stand beside a feast without reaching for the food that might save him. Resist? Impossible.
He had to have her. Now.
But Beth was a virgin. Only a selfish bastard would violate that, just weeks before they would wed. Her innocence was a precious, unexpected gift. He had to respect that—and her.
So he’d marry her, Omar thought suddenly. Right now.
CHAPTER SIX
WHAT WAS SHE DOING? Standing here in front of him so brazenly, nearly naked? Did she have no shame? Had she lost her mind?
Yes. Beth had. Her lips were swollen from his kisses. Her body was aching with longing. She wanted more. She wanted—him.
But she had to put a stop to this. Now. Before the impact of her deception became even worse, and he couldn’t undo the choice he’d made.
She’d tried to force herself to tell him, to explain. Why was it so hard? All she had to do was say five simple words. I’m not Dr. Edith Farraday.
