Mills & Boon New Voices: Foreword by Katie Fforde

“Is she here yet?”

“They are bringing her now, Majesty.”

A moment later the door burst open and Genie rushed in. He was no longer surprised at the kick in the gut he felt when he saw her, but he pushed it down deep and put a lid on it. She was pale and her cheeks were tear-streaked. He took in her puffy eyes, her red nose, and felt a pang of guilt.

He had to let her go. For her safety. Until the moment he’d been attacked he hadn’t stopped to think how his people might react to a Western woman as their queen. There were those who would never accept it. Though it made him want to howl in frustration to be forced to give up happiness just when he’d thought he might have found it, he had to do so.

For her. What he wanted didn’t matter when contrasted with the risk to her life.

Because who was to say that she would not be the target of an assassination attempt at some point? She would be resented by those who didn’t want change, and she might draw the wrath of extremist groups.

He could not allow that. Not ever.

“Zafir,” she gasped, rushing over to him. She stopped short when she saw the bloody wound on his arm. Then her gaze lifted to his. Her voice wavered. “They said you’d been hurt.”

Not as hurt as the assassin he’d disarmed. “I am fine, Genie. It’s not serious.”

He wanted to hold her, reassure her. But he would not. Keeping his arms at his sides was one of the toughest things he’d ever had to do.

“Do you know who did it?” Her eyes were huge pools of rainwater gray and tears trembled on the brink of her lashes.

“Oh, yes. The conspirators will be dealt with, I assure you.” Once the would-be assassin had realized he’d failed, he’d spilled his guts to the police.

Zafir said a quiet word to the bodyguard. The man went to stand outside the door.

Once he was gone, Genie reached for Zafir’s hand. “I couldn’t bear the thought of losing you—”

“Genie,” he cut in before she could say more. He must have spoken sharply because she fell quiet instantly. He squeezed her hand before letting it go. How could he do this? How could he send away the only bit of happiness he’d ever known? He drew in a painful breath. “I am sending you back to your camp.”

She bit her lip, confusion playing across her expressive face. Her guard was down and every emotion she felt was there to read in detail. It pained him to look at her, but he would not look away.

“Now? Today?”

He nodded. “You have fulfilled your end of the bargain, and I will fulfill mine. You are free to go. Yusuf will give you all you need for contacting the proper authorities for the excavation. They will be told to cooperate fully.”

She looked stunned. “I…I…Why, Zafir? Why now?”

His heart was a lead ball in his chest. “It is time.”

“Does this mean you’ve concluded your negotiations with the Sheikhs?”

“Yes,” he said. “It is done.” Done because one of their number had tried to kill him in order to frame the other group for murder. The leaders were so horrified they would now do anything to demonstrate their loyalty. And he meant to take advantage of it.

“That’s good. Congratulations.”

“There is much work yet to be done, and you have served your purpose.” She winced when he said that, and he mentally kicked himself for it. “I can ask no more of you.”

“Is this your revenge?” she asked. “Making me care for you again and then sending me away?”

The words pierced him. For a brief moment he thought it might be easier to let her believe that, but he couldn’t do it.

“No, Genie, this is not revenge. We are two different people now, from two different worlds, and it’s time we got back to them.”

She took a deep breath. “Yes, I suppose you’re right. I—” She swallowed “It was great to see you again.”

“I enjoyed our time together.” A hard lump had formed in his throat and made it difficult to speak. He ignored it. Letting her go was right. For her, for him. She didn’t belong here, and he needed to get back to the business of governing his kingdom.

He thought of her swollen with his child. It nearly overwhelmed his will to release her. “I trust you, Genie. You will tell me if there is a child?”

“Of course,” she said, all business. “I would never keep that information a secret from you.”

“Yusuf will give you my private number. Call me when you know.”

She nodded. “Absolutely. If that’s all, then? The sooner I get back to camp, the sooner I can get to work again.”

She stood stiffly, like a soldier. Even her hands had disappeared behind her back. He imagined her clasping them together with military precision. She was already leaving him in her mind. How easily she returned to the life she’d led before.

Perhaps his had been the only heart affected after all.

“Goodbye, Genie.”

“Goodbye, Zafir.” And then she was gone.

First came numbness. Then shock. Then anger. Then resignation.

When Zafir decided to get rid of her, he certainly did it in style. A helicopter waited on the pad at the palace. Genie took one last look behind her before she climbed in, her heart aching. Did she really think he would suddenly appear and ask her to stay?

She shook her head, wondering how a few days with him had so thoroughly undermined the foundations of her life. She was a respected archaeologist and researcher, and the sooner she got back to that life, the better.

As the craft lifted off, she kept her eyes on the glittering domes of the palace. It was like something out of a fairytale—from a thousand and one Arabian nights. Unlike Scheherazade, however, she’d failed to please her king for more than a few nights.

She still couldn’t believe that he’d dismissed her from his life so easily. That everything that had happened between them meant nothing. Or maybe she’d let it mean more than it should.

But he’d touched her so tenderly, made love to her so fiercely. Claimed to want her desperately.

Had it all been a lie?

She watched the cloudless sky slide by and wished she’d never come to the desert.

Another lesson learned, Genie.

She supposed she should be thankful he’d ended it now, before she’d made a fool of herself and babbled her love. Before she’d mentally set up house with him and let her career fall by the wayside.

Her mother had been right, in her own way. A man would take your love and then set you adrift to pick up the pieces of your shattered life when he was finished with you.

She should be grateful the only pieces she had to pick up were the pieces of her heart.

When she reached the camp, she threw herself into work. Her colleagues were glad to see her, and they’d done much to repair the damage the last few days had wrought. The dig was well under control when Genie finally decided she’d had enough.

Al-Shahar was two hours away by car, and she couldn’t stop looking for Zafir. She kept thinking he would arrive in a convoy of black vehicles, that he would climb out of a stretch Hummer, looking magnificent and exotic in his desert robes, and that he would tell her he’d made a mistake. That he wanted her to come back and be with him—that he loved her.

Any lingering hope she’d harbored that she might see him once more if she were with child was dashed early one morning when she got her period as usual. That was the final matter that settled it for her. She made the call to his private line, left a message—had she really expected Zafir to pick up?—and told her team she was flying home to begin preparations for their next dig.

It would be some weeks before they were ready to fly to Al-Shahar and begin work on the temples. But on the long flight across the Atlantic Genie came to another decision.

She would not be returning to Bah’shar.

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