She held him between them as she came, and he felt the rip of tension and the stilling of her tongue, the slight squeal that he swallowed as she gripped him hard.

And it was still just one kiss as he silvered her palm and fingers and Adele felt him hot on her stomach as they pressed into each other.

Then he kissed her back but not to reality, for that was lost to her now.

And then he was gone.

CHAPTER EIGHT

ADELE SHOWERED AND put on the little muslin robe and, quite simply, she crashed.

She fell into a deep, dreamless sleep and yet woke with instant and absolute recall and with a curious absence of guilt.

She just lay listening to the hum of the plane and tried to understand how she was feeling.

It was disorientating.

Not just that she was on the way to a strange land but the might of his want and the rage of her desire.

There was no compass, no goalpost, no promises made, other than that he would ask the desert for solution.

Adele got out of bed and looked out of the window and there below her were the golden orange sands that Zahir would be communing with soon.

‘I’d like the solution too,’ she said, not quite tongue in cheek, because it was so vast and so endless that she first glimpsed its power.

She dressed in the pretty coral robe and put on her jewelled slippers and then looked at her reflection in the mirror on the door.

Adele barely recognised herself—not just her clothes, she should surely be on her knees in guilt and shame.

Yet she smiled.

Her intercom buzzed and she was informed that the Queen was awake and would like some assistance.

Adele knocked and went in and then blinked in surprise when she saw that Leila was in the bathroom, relaxing in a deep bath with taps made of gold.

There were bubbles up to her neck and she smiled as Adele came in.

‘I didn’t know you could have baths on a plane,’ Adele admitted.

‘You can have anything,’ Leila said. ‘The maid ran it for me, though I do need your help to get out.’

Adele helped her to step out and once Leila was dry Adele checked her wounds. There were three small ones from the laparoscopic procedure and all looked dry and healthy.

‘I still have trouble with the stairs,’ Leila admitted.

‘It’s quite a big operation,’ Adele said. ‘I think you’re doing very well.’

‘I am a bit nervous to go home,’ Leila admitted as Adele helped her to dress. ‘My husband has been so concerned. We’ve never been apart for so long and of course he is cross that I never told him I was having surgery. My husband is such a...’ She stopped herself from saying anything more.

‘You can talk to me,’ Adele said. ‘I would never break your confidence.’

‘Even with Zahir?’

‘Especially with Zahir,’ Adele said. ‘You’re my patient and he’s not your doctor, he’s your son. If I have any concerns I would speak with Mr Oman.’

‘My husband is very stubborn and Zahir wants to make changes,’ Leila said. ‘Maybe I am worrying over nothing. I am a bit weepy. It says in the leaflet to expect to be.’

She handed the leaflet to Adele and she read it as the Queen spoke.

‘I don’t have to worry about not doing housework or heavy lifting,’ Leila said.

‘And no intercourse for six weeks,’ Adele added.

She would not avoid subjects just because Leila was a queen.

‘Poor Fatiq.’ Leila smiled and then she surprised Adele. ‘Poor me. I do think six weeks is a bit excessive.’

Adele remembered her time in training and often the women would joke that they’d consider it a little holiday, or ask if the doctor could change it to ten weeks instead.

No wonder the Al Rahal brothers came with reputations. It would seem that the whole family was highly sexed.

‘I hate sleeping alone.’ Leila pouted.

‘You can still share a bed.’ Adele smiled but Leila shook her head.

‘We have to sleep separately till I am healed. It was the same when I had my babies.’

Oh, no, Adele thought. At the time they must have needed each other most they had been apart.

‘Once I am home I shall meet with the healer,’ Leila told Adele. ‘I’m sure I will feel brighter then.’

The Queen had selected a gown in a very deep shade of fuchsia and for someone who had just had surgery she looked stunning.

‘I am going to do my make-up,’ Leila told Adele, ‘and then I’ll be out.’

Adele sat in her seat and breakfast was served. She watched as Leila came out and took a seat at the gleaming table and then she turned her head and smiled.

And Adele fought not to.

It was Zahir.

As he walked past she quickly averted her eyes and looked out at the ocean.

He was wearing black robes and a keffiyeh that was tied with a rope of silver.

She looked again and saw that his feet were strapped in leather and that he was holding a scabbard that contained a long sword, which he put down on the sofa with the same ease Adele might put down her bag.

She had only ever seen him in a suit or scrubs, sometimes in jeans if he came in at night...

Adele had known the day they had met that he was a crown prince, but she had never really given it proper thought.

He had always been Zahir, Emergency Consultant, and the man she’d had a serious crush on.

Not any more.

Before her eyes he had become Crown Prince Sheikh Zahir Al Rahal, of Mamlakat Almas.

And that was scary at best.

Breakfast was cleared and they all took their seats.

Now the jet descended and to the right she could see a glittering ocean and then a palace. As beautiful as it was, Adele knew that soon, if they were discovered, she might not be welcome here.

As they landed she watched as he picked up the leather scabbard from the sofa and put it on.

The hilt of his sword was jewelled and for a brief second he looked up and their eyes met.

She was used to him flicking his gaze away.

Now she knew why.

Adele stood by Leila’s side to help her down the steps as the cockpit door opened.

The Queen had wrapped a scarf around her head and over her mouth and Adele attempted to do the same with hers.

The wind gave her the first taste of the desert.

Her scarf slid straight down and the hot air burnt in her lungs and she thought of the traditions and legends that Zahir had touched upon.

She doubted the desert was welcoming her.

CHAPTER NINE

THEY WERE DRIVEN the short distance from the runway to the palace.

As the car slowed to a halt Adele was pleasantly surprised when the door opened and she realised that it was Fatiq who had rushed to help his wife out of the car.

Leila gave a small cry of delight when she saw him and he was clearly pleased to see his wife and greeted her warmly.

For a moment Adele relaxed and she almost forgot he was a king.

But then she saw the look he shot at Zahir and she would never forget again.

They came into the entrance and Leila smiled at Adele. ‘I am going to go up to my suite. You will be taken care of.’

‘Thank you. Would you like me to help you up the stairs?’ Adele offered.

‘I will be fine.’

As Fatiq helped Leila up the steps she paused and held onto her stomach midway and bent over a little and he looked down at Zahir again.

Zahir stared back and Adele could feel the stand-off between the two men and it gave her goosebumps.

‘Samina will take care of you from now,’ Zahir informed her, and he walked off. She watched as guards opened two large engraved doors, which he went through.

The palace was splendid, and Adele had only seen the entrance.

There was a gentle, cool breeze and tiny hummingbirds were taking nectar from flowers even though they were inside. She looked at the dark staircase and ancient walls and heard the delicate sound of fountains.

She was shown to her suite and, as Leila had said, there was a stunning array of gowns for her to choose from.

Samina gave her some lessons, such as how to tie a scarf so it did not slide down and how to greet the King or Queen if they passed in the corridor.

‘We have a system,’ Samina explained. ‘If Queen Leila needs you, she will summon you with this...’ There was a small tablet by the bed. ‘If you are not in your suite the message will go directly to your phone.’

It was a surprisingly modern system, yet there was nothing modern about her suite which was beautiful.

There was a velvet rope above her bed, which Adele was told she was to use to summon meals. There was a carved stone stairway that led down to her own beach and, as she walked through the large lounge, Samina opened some shutters and Adele looked down at a stunning mosaic pool below that was hers to enjoy.

‘It is very private,’ Samina explained. ‘You can swim and if you want refreshments brought out to you, just pull the bell on the wall there.’ She pointed down to it. ‘Would you like supper here in your suite or down by the pool?’

Adele chose the pool.

It was so tranquil.

Even here tiny hummingbirds hovered and sipped nectar from the flowers, yet despite the gorgeous surroundings Leila couldn’t quite relax.

She had seen the look Fatiq had given his son. He blamed Zahir for his wife having surgery.

Adele was starting to understand just how resistant the King was to change.

And that left her and Zahir nowhere.

She called the nursing home and was told that her mother appeared comfortable and that there was no change.

There never was.

Later, Leila paged her and said that the palace healer would like to meet with her.

Samina took Adele through to the King and Queen’s wing and showed her to Leila’s room.

Outside was a robed man, who followed Leila inside.

He was introduced to her as the palace healer. Adele gave him the letter that Mr Oman had written and he read it and then spoke a little with Leila.

After he had gone she and Leila enjoyed a gentle stroll around the gardens. The sun was starting to set and there was the lovely sweet fragrance of jasmine.

‘Is it good to be home?’ Adele asked.

‘So good,’ Leila said. ‘I will enjoy the peace for now. Things are going to get very busy soon now that Zahir is back. My husband wants to move ahead with a selection ceremony so that Zahir can choose his bride, but I have said I am too weak for that just now. In a month’s time perhaps.’

And, yes, as much as it had hurt to hear it from Zahir, she was glad he had warned her so that she did not hear it first from his mother.

* * *

In the first few days, while Adele had worried she might be unnecessary, blissful as it was to mainly relax, she realised that Leila had been right to request a nurse to care for her in her home.

The Queen had some minor post-operative problems, which Adele was pleased to reassure her often happened.

‘I shall call Mr Oman and see if you need antibiotics.’

‘I want to speak with the palace healer also.’

Leila had seen him on the day she had arrived home but it had been a brief visit.

This was a more comprehensive consultation. He came to the Queen’s chambers and they spoke at length. Leila translated what was said.

‘He suggests that, starting tomorrow, I walk barefoot on the sand and that shall help my genitals and get me grounded.’

Adele blinked.

‘He wants me to take a course in the healing baths. I have to have another woman come with me. That will be you. He is also going to speak with the attar and have him prepare a remedy.’ Leila spoke with him again but they both were looking at Adele. ‘He says you carry too much tension in your solar plexus.’ Leila gave her a smile. ‘I agree.’

Adele nodded yet she was troubled, especially when a maid came to her room the following morning with a muslin bathing dress that she was to wear under her robe and also a slender vial from the attar.

‘This is for the Queen?’ Adele checked, deciding that she would call Mr Oman before she administered it.

‘No,’ the maid said. ‘The Queen already has her remedy. This has been prepared for you. You are to keep it at body temperature and carry it in your robe, and take a sip morning and night.’

‘For me? But what’s in it?’

The maid didn’t answer and, troubled about what the Queen had been given, Adele decided to call Mr Oman. She was surprised to find he had already had a long conversation with the healer.

‘Yes, he discussed it with me,’ Mr Oman said. ‘I agree that Leila should be out in the sun and the herbs he recommends are an excellent choice. Make sure she completes the antibiotics.’

They had a gorgeous morning, walking barefoot on the beach, and then Adele helped Leila down some stones steps. The healing baths were cut into rocks and filled by the ocean, and they took off their robes and got in.

It was bliss.

Unlike the ocean, here the water was calm and there was just the occasional gentle lulling wave.

‘I needed this.’ Leila closed her eyes and lay on her back and Adele found she was soon doing the same. ‘The nurse at the hospital put salt in my bath, but of course it cannot match the magic of the ocean.’

Colour was returning to Leila’s face and as the days passed, Adele realised just how tense she herself had been because she was starting to unwind.

Maybe she should try the remedy.

Adele didn’t know why, all she knew was that she felt relaxed here.

That afternoon, when Leila had gone for a rest, instead of walking towards the beach, as she did most afternoons, Adele headed to the desert-facing side of the palace.

And it was there, for the first time since arriving, that she saw him.

Zahir was driving out through his own private exit when he saw Adele.

* * *

Her hair was blonder from swimming in the ocean and her cheeks were pinker. She looked very beautiful in a lilac robe and silver scarf.

He slowed the car to a stop and got out and she walked towards him.

‘Am I not supposed to be here?’ Adele checked.

‘You can walk anywhere,’ he said, ‘unless it is gated. Don’t worry, you cannot accidentally access the royal beach or gardens, they are all guarded. Just wander as you please.’

‘I shall, then.’

He looked amazing in his robes and the keffiyeh brought out the silver in his eyes. He no longer had stubble on his jaw, it was way more than that, and he was simply beautiful.

‘How has your time here been?’ he asked her.

‘Amazing,’ Adele said. ‘I can’t say I’ve really been working...’

‘My mother is very pleased that you are here. She said you have been liaising with Mr Oman.’

Adele nodded.

‘And she says that the healer prescribed you a remedy.’

‘He did,’ Adele said. ‘I don’t know whether I should take it. I don’t know what’s in it.’

Zahir smiled and when he did, her stomach turned into a gymnast, because it didn’t just somersault, it felt as it was tumbling over and over.

‘Do you have it with you?’ he asked, for he knew how things worked and that a potion should be carried by the recipient and kept at body temperature.

She nodded and went into her robe and handed over the vial.

He read the intricate writing that she could not understand.

‘It’s fine to drink, though just a sip morning and night,’ Zahir told her. ‘Do you know, my father and I were just talking and he pointed out that both Dakan and I have never been ill? He is right. I remember when I was studying medicine and I joined the rugby team. I strained my shoulder. I was new in London and I was surprised that they strapped it and suggested pain and anti-inflammatory medication. I ended up at a Chinese herbalist.’

‘Did it help?’

‘Yes,’ Zahir said. ‘It did.’

He had returned to Mamlakat Almas so gung-ho and demanding yet he could see the rapid improvement in his mother and he was quietly pleased that the healer had taken some time for Adele also.

She carried pain.

Emotional pain.

It was something he could both see and feel and something modern medicine had little room for.

He had seen it when he had shone the torch into her eyes, but he had expected to see it then. She had been hit after all. But the pain he had seen wasn’t acute.

It was chronic.

Layer upon layer of pain.

He could only imagine his colleagues’ reactions if he had written that in his notes.

‘I am just going to look at the site for the new hospital.’

‘Are the plans going well?’

‘No,’ Zahir admitted. ‘Would you like to join me?’

‘Is it allowed?’

‘Of course,’ he said. ‘If the hospital goes ahead we would need nurses. Why wouldn’t I seek your opinion?’

He was giving her the same explanation he would give his father. The truth was, he wanted some time with her.

It had been a long week, knowing that she was here and wondering how she was doing but being unable to enquire.

* * *

It was lovely to be out with Zahir.

He drove the car through ancient, dusty streets and then through a very modern city, at least in part.

There was an eclectic mix of ancient and modern. The most fashionable boutiques were housed in ancient buildings and there were locals and tourists, bikes and old cars along with sports cars and stretch limousines. Then there were towering modern hotels.

‘We have everything but a workable health system,’ Zahir told her. ‘We have a good education system yet our best brains travel overseas to study medicine and few want to work back here once they have.’

They drove a little further and came to a small, rundown-looking building.

‘This is the medical centre,’ he explained.

They walked in and he spoke with a nervous receptionist who quickly summoned someone, a young woman, who showed them through the facility.

There was some very basic equipment and an occasional gleaming piece of machinery.

‘Dakan and I bought these defibrillators last year. The trouble is, we need to train people in their use. It is a multi-faceted problem. This is the theatre...’

They stepped in and Adele could see why the Queen would seek treatment elsewhere.

‘What do you see happening?’ Adele asked. ‘Tear it down and start again?’

‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘This building should be the gateway to the new, though that is not my idea...’ He led her through and they walked outside. The heat hit them like an open oven door and, in contrast to the busy street at the front, to the rear there was a vast expanse of nothing and they looked out to the desert.

‘Like most cities, it is overcrowded and there is a clamour for space, yet this land had been held back for generations. The architects and advisors of the time knew that the city would one day need more room. I cannot build anything, though, without the King’s approval. I want a facility that incorporates both traditional and modern medicine. I want them combined.’

‘It would be amazing,’ Adele said. ‘What about the healers? Would they agree?’

‘We are all healers,’ Zahir said. ‘It is time to put ego aside and to exchange knowledge and respect each other’s ways. It was the palace healer who suggested my mother seek treatment elsewhere.’

They walked through the building and out to the car.

‘I should get you back,’ Zahir said.

He made absolutely no reference to the two of them and she looked out of the car window at a large sun in a pink sky. ‘I’d love to see the desert.’

‘I will see that it is arranged,’ Zahir said.

They both knew that it wasn’t what she had meant.

She’d wanted to know if he had sought solutions about them, but more than that she wanted to go to the desert with him.