Blood of the Nile (7 page)

“I promise. I’ll
keep my hands to myself,” Ramses said, holding up his palms in surrender as his
eyes shifted back to their original deep obsidian shade. His anger had no doubt
been reined in.

“I’m not necessarily
worried about your hands.” Husani shook his head fervently, then shoved open
the door of Maliyah’s hospital room and left without a second glance.

Salma rolled her
eyes in dramatic fashion as if she were annoyed. “Pay no mind to Husani,” she
said, waving her hand dismissively through the air. “I don’t think he’s had
female companionship in quite some time. He’s a bit testy.”

The three of them
shared a laugh then, in what appeared to be a casual gesture, Ramses wrapped
his arm around Maliyah’s shoulder and nudged her to the door. “Come on, let’s
go. Salma packed a bag with everything you could possibly need. Our train
departs in a little over an hour.”

As they left the
hospital, the brutal desert sand whirled past her still fragile frame, nearly
causing her to topple over under the strength of the Sahara winds. Lucky for
Maliyah, Ramses’ firm grip held her upright, nestled against his rock-hard abs.
Once she’d gotten her bearings, he helped her into the limousine,
then
instructed the driver to head in the direction of the
train station.

Following an emotional
farewell, Maliyah released Salma from her embrace. However, a sudden reluctance
to board the bullet train with Ramses nagged at her. Was she nervous about
being alone with him? She thought about turning around and hailing a cab back
to her father’s house. But that would solve nothing. It wouldn’t help unravel
the mystery of Anwar’s death. And it sure as hell wouldn’t ease the ache
between her legs that she suspected only Ramses could satisfy. With that
realization, Maliyah shook off any lingering insecurities and hoisted her Louis
Vuitton duffle bag over her shoulder, then accompanied Ramses into the second
to last rail car. Once inside, he took out a plastic key card and inserted it into
the slot at the entrance to a private berth.

Ramses glanced at
her over his shoulder. “I tried to get us a room close to the end of the train
in case we need to make an unexpected escape. It’s a single sleeper, but we’ll
have to make do.”

“Fine by me,”
Maliyah said, shrugging her shoulders as he opened the door and ushered her
inside. Everything in the cramped train compartment was cast in shades of grey.
A full-size bed and a small, round table with a single chair were the only
furnishings. Luckily, the view from the large picture window made up for the
lack of luxury.

After two attempts
on her life in the past twenty-four hours, extravagance didn’t seem necessary.
All Maliyah wanted was to let her hair down and relax. It had been a hectic couple
of days to say the least, and she needed to tend to a few personal hygiene
matters. She grabbed some items out of her overnight bag and set them on the
small table, then shoved the tote underneath the bunk. She watched Ramses
remove the cloth that covered his head, then peel the sweat-soaked dress shirt
from his shoulders, leaving him in nothing more than a pair of snug jeans and a
plain white t-shirt.

Maliyah couldn’t
resist. She had to take a peek. After all, the man was built like a machine, sculpted
muscle draped over impenetrable steel. His hulking frame, visible in the sleeveless
tank top, made Maliyah’s mouth go dry. She licked her lips to keep them moist,
inadvertently garnering Ramses’ lustful scrutiny. He groaned deep in his
throat, then looked away, careful to avoid her gaze. He laid his belongings
over the back of the chair. Casually, he took hold of his man parts and adjusted
his expanding girth.

There was no use
denying the truth. Maliyah wanted Ramses. No question about it. By the evidence
in his pants, Ramses felt the attraction too. The fact that her cousin had
forbid him from touching her made her yearn for him even more. Ramses must have
sensed her desire because he stalked forward and reached for her.

“Careful
Ramses,
remember your promise,” she said, flattening her
hand against his chest. “Besides, I need to go freshen up. I’ll be right back.”

***

Ramses dragged his
fingers through his damp hair as perspiration gathered at the base of his
skull. That day, the temperature in the Sahara surpassed one hundred degrees and
Maliyah wasn’t doing him any favors by turning up the heat. The wanton tease made
him want to yank off the flowing, floral print dress she wore and fuck her
silly. Visions of her sweet ass plastered against the windows of the train car danced
in his head. He wanted her naked and it didn’t matter if a whole caravan of
desert nomads stopped to catch a glimpse. Their coupling was bound to happen.
Why not sooner than later?

Nonetheless,
Maliyah made a good point. Ramses had promised her cousin Husani that he’d keep
his hands to himself. A man of honor, he intended to stay true to his word. He
wouldn’t touch Maliyah.
At least, not with his hands.
His mouth and cock, on the other hand, were both fair game.

Before Maliyah
returned from the powder room, he reached into the small rolling suitcase he’d
brought along for the trip. He pulled out a red paisley necktie and placed it
next to the other articles of clothing he’d dangled over the chair. There was a
good chance he’d need to be tied up in order to keep his paws off Maliyah. The
necktie would come in handy if that turned out to be the case.

The door swung
open and Maliyah sauntered in. Her hair was now loose, its shiny, brown
tentacles hung haphazardly in front of her face. She’d removed most of her
make-up and traded in her three-inch heels for a pair of simple strappy
sandals. She looked up at Ramses. Her green-gold gaze locked with his. At the
same time, her lower lip jutted out to entice him with its sultry pout.

Maliyah stepped
closer and spoke into his chest. He could feel the heat from her skin tickle
his nerve endings.
“So now what?
We’ve got eleven
hours to kill and I’m saving the fashion magazines Salma shoved in the side of
my bag until I get desperate?”

“You?
Desperate?” Ramses repeated. His raspy tone came out as sensual and
breathy, with a hint of sarcasm mixed in to keep Maliyah on her toes. “It’d be
a pity if we let that happen. I think we can find something to keep us
occupied. Maybe there’s a deck of cards in my carry on.”

Maliyah put her
hand to her lips as if to giggle, but instead a loud snort came out through her
nose.

Is she mocking me?
Ramses thought to
himself. She hadn’t uttered a single word, yet he knew her snicker was meant in
protest.

Only Maliyah, a
siren who embodied the perfect combination of subtle innocence and feisty femme
fatale, could dish out corrosive rancor just as well as she could take it. That
time, she’d done so without even opening her mouth. Although Ramses had great
reverence for the Egyptian culture in which he was reared, he found himself
drawn to Maliyah’s freethinking, American tendencies. He respected her desire
for independence and the rebellious streak she wielded at every turn.

Before he could
think of a saucy comeback, Maliyah had already placed both hands on Ramses’
bare shoulders. She massaged his biceps and let the pads of her fingers caress
their way up and down his arm. Soon, they became tangled in the shaggy, black
hair that gathered at his neck.

“How could a game
of cards possibly keep me amused? Not when I have all this tempting, well-toned
flesh at my disposal.”

“Wait,” Ramses
said, pulling back slightly. He hadn’t anticipated Maliyah’s aggressive
pursuit. His need for her bordered on the absurd, but he knew he’d have to take
things slow. Otherwise, his vampire persona might make an unexpected
appearance. He shoved his hands in his pockets to keep from touching her. “What
about the pledge we made to Husani?”

Maliyah leaned in,
and her heated breath skated across his tanned skin, sending a direct signal to
his cock. It was time to come out and play. Whatever sport Maliyah wanted to
tackle, Ramses would step up to the plate.

“I made no such
promise. Just keep your hands to yourself, lover boy. Let me do all the work,”
she said, darting her tongue out to taste him. God damn, Maliyah was a woman
after his own heart. Her succulent lips blazed a path from his neck, passed the
sparse patch of hair that peeked out from the top of his shirt.

 
Maliyah hiked the shirt up past his navel. Her
eyes followed the line of dark curls downward until she once again spotted the
thick erection through his jeans. She sank to her knees, and then used her
hands to remove his belt. One by one, she undid the buttons of his 501’s, as a
flush of red spread across her face. She must have realized that he wore
nothing underneath.

Ramses’ shaft was
as hard as stone. It sprang eagerly from his jeans. Maliyah lowered them to the
floor and without hesitation licked the head of his cock into her mouth.

“To
hell with restraint!”
Ramses groaned. He fisted
his hands at his sides as she sucked him between her lips. She went so deep that
he felt the tip hit the back of her throat. Once his shaft brushed against her
tonsils, she moaned out loud. The vibration shot a torrent of sensation up from
his balls. Ramses jerked forward,
then
thrust back,
seizing control of the situation. Unable to keep from touching Maliyah, Ramses
grabbed the back of her head, forcing her to accept the entire length of his
shaft over and over again until his seed threatened to explode.

All of a sudden,
Ramses wrenched her away. His hand took hold of his cock and squeezed it at the
base to keep from ejaculating on the front of her dress.

“My
turn.
Take off your clothes, Maliyah,” Ramses
said,
his voice gruff and demanding. “Then lie down on the
bed.”

Chapter Nine

The Inevitable

Ramses advanced on
Maliyah, his intimidating frame forcing her back until her knees met the edge
of the bunk. The kit gloves had come off. He’d already broken his promise once,
but who could blame him? She knew her attempt at seduction would be impossible
to resist. Careful not to touch her skin-to-skin, his hands reached for the hem
of her dress. He lifted it over her curves, and tossed it to the floor. Then,
he placed his palms flat against the wall panel above her head, and moved in
for the kill. His lips descended on Maliyah’s. Their tongues collided like two
freight trains. The resulting explosion kindled a burning flame that consumed
Maliyah, and shot a fireball of desire coursing through her veins.

Ramses kissed his
way down the slender column of her throat and over the hills and valleys of her
breasts. Through Maliyah’s lacy bra, he sucked one nipple into his mouth,
soaking the scant material with moist heat. His rigid shaft pressed against her
thigh, and nudged her toward the mattress.

“Maliyah, you’re
killing me here. Get naked. Now,” Ramses ground out through clenched jaw. Then,
he opened his mouth and bit down hard on the other nipple. She arched her back
and shifted her weight, resting her throbbing clitoris against her lover’s
enormous erection. Maliyah moaned,
then
unlatched the hook
of her bra. Afterwards, she rolled her panties to her ankles and stepped out of
them.

Maliyah crawled
onto the bed on all fours, spying Ramses’ hungry stare out of the corner of her
eye. His gaze remained focused on her feminine folds. Her sex glistened as her
body readied itself for what was to come. Of course “come” was the preeminent
word. A moment later, Ramses used his knee to nudge her onto her back, trapping
Maliyah against the mattress.

“Spread your
thighs wider,” Ramses commanded as he knelt between her legs, his hot breath
tickling the thin strip of curls at the apex of her sex. She shivered as a
series of tremors wreaked havoc on her prickly flesh. Ramses’ eyes shot up, making
sure Maliyah caught him in her sights as he licked his lips provocatively.
Still, his mouth refused to make contact with her pussy.

The son of a bitch has the nerve to tease me?

Maliyah was tired
of waiting. The blistering ache in her womb wouldn’t be denied any longer. She
reared up, grinding her clitoris against his mouth. Ramses
groaned,
eager to sample her femininity. He lapped at the nub and spread her folds with
his talented tongue. His fingernails dug into the grey cotton duvet cover,
never once letting his hands brush against her skin. But his lips and tongue picked
up the slack. They nipped and sucked until Maliyah’s ass bucked off the bed and
she screamed his name.

“Oh
God, Ramses.
I’m coming,” she shouted, drenching
his face with her climax.

By the time
Maliyah caught her
breath,
her lover had wiped his
mouth clean and slithered up her sweat-soaked body. He turned on his side and
propped himself up on his left elbow, a smile as wide as a Cheshire cat’s
spread across his face. His eyes roamed over her curves as if committing them to
memory.