Unfinished Business (23 page)

Christy was fuming. This was not how she had always envisioned her wedding day would be. Yes, in her mind Alex had always been the groom, but she’d always dreamed of a big wedding, surrounded by those she loved and who loved her. Today the only people present beside the priest were Rasheed and his top adviser, named Terek. She shook her head and glanced down at herself. She wasn’t even wearing a dress. She hadn’t been given time to change out of the jeans and top she’d had on earlier, and Alex was still wearing all black and looking excruciatingly male.

She frowned as she watched that same male body make its way toward her. She tried to read Alex’s expression and found his features unreadable. It was evident that he didn’t like this any more than she did. She stood as he got closer.

“The priest is ready,” he said when he came to a stop in front of her.

“And there’s no way we can leave here without doing this?” she decided to ask one more time. After living in a free country all her life, hearing how women were treated in this third-world nation was too much to stomach.

A frown deepened Alex’s features. “Look, Christy, you heard what Rasheed said, just like I did.”

“I could always pretend to be a nun.”

His gaze roved over her from top to bottom. “Forget it. Nuns don’t look like you. This is the only way, and like I said, we can get the marriage annulled as soon as we get to the States.”

She looked away. She’d felt the intensity of his gaze as if it had been an intimate stroke. Sighing, she tried to take in everything the two of them were about to do. She had always wanted to marry Alex, but not this way.

“Let’s not think of ourselves for a moment, Christy.”

Alex’s words, spoken in a rather unusual soft and gentle tone, made her return her gaze to him. “Let’s think of all those helpless innocent teenage victims and what they have gone through, which makes our sacrifices appear as nothing,” he said. “The nightmare for them is about to come to an end. The FBI has done a good job by infiltrating the cartel. Now it’s time they close down shop and arrest every damn person involved. They need to put Senator Harris, Congressman Blair, and any others who are involved
under
the jail and not in jail. Hell, as far as I’m concerned, why waste a good cell? Just take the bastards out back somewhere and blow them away.”

The harshness of Alex’s words floated all around her. She understood his anger and bitterness. He was right; the world would definitely be a better place without those evil men in it. And what he’d said was true. What had been forced on those young teenagers was a lot more than what was being forced on her right now. She could get back her freedom with an annulment, but there was no way any of those teens could ever get back their innocence.

Sighing faintly, she said, “You’re right, Alex.”

“Then you’re ready?”

She slowly nodded. “Yes, I’m ready.”

Taking her hand in his, he walked her over to where the priest was waiting for the ceremony to begin.

“Is there a ring?” the priest asked when they got to that particular part of the ceremony.

Alex blinked. He had totally forgotten about a ring. But then when he glanced down at their joined hands he immediately knew the ring that would be perfect. “Yes, there is a ring,” he said quietly, then proceeded to remove the one off his pinkie, the one that had always been hers.

Christy stared at Alex. He was giving her back the ring. A part of her wanted to snatch her hand back and declare that, since their marriage wouldn’t last past the time it took them to reach the States, a ring wasn’t necessary. But the moment he slid the ring onto her finger and she lifted her head to meet his gaze, her breath caught. And suddenly their nuptials had special meaning.

“Now repeat after me, Mr. Maxwell. ‘With this ring I thee wed.’”

Alex’s face rigid, he continued to hold her gaze as he repeated the priest’s words in a somewhat trembling voice. “With this ring I thee wed.” Then he was holding her hands tight in his again.

“I now pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss your bride, Mr. Maxwell.”

The priest’s words, spoken in a heavily British-accented voice, made a knot form in Christy’s throat that extended all the way to her stomach. And when she glanced up and met Alex’s eyes, the knot tightened and she suddenly felt hot all over. Considering everything, she knew this kind of effect he was having on her was not good, but she was having it nonetheless.

And then she felt herself being gently pulled into his arms and engulfed by the manly scent of him. Her heartbeat increased as their gazes met. “No matter what happens tomorrow, Christy, this is now.” His low murmur as well as the deep intensity in his eyes sent a bank of shivers all the way through her body. And then he kissed her, eliciting a response with the first stroke of his tongue, and she gladly gave him more.

He tasted powerful and made her feel ravenous. The breasts pressed against his chest ached, and the need to deepen the kiss gripped her. But like him, she heard the sound of three male throats clearing and knew Alex had done more than just kiss the bride. He had literally devoured her.

He pulled back and she stepped out of his arms. She could barely acknowledge the customary words of congratulations Rasheed, Terek, and the priest were giving. She felt Alex’s tenseness. The eyes holding her steadily were ablaze, and the hard planes of his face looked unyielding. He took her hand in his and led her over to the desk to sign the papers that would legally bind them as man and wife.

“I will have this document sent to your country by overnight express so an official record can be made,” the priest was saying. “And I will give you the necessary papers to carry with you so the two of you can leave this place without any hassles.”

Alex looked down at Christy and then back at the priest and said, “Thank you.”

“And I’m going to have to leave,” Rasheed said in a thick mideastern accent. “I have business to take care of and probably won’t be here when the two of you leave tomorrow. Ishaq has been instructed to have the yacht ready for your departure.” Rasheed then smiled charmingly. “Terek will be coming with me, which means the two of you will have the villa to yourselves tonight.”

Alex nodded, then gave the man his hand. “Thanks for everything, Rasheed, and do whatever you have to do to stay safe.”

The light in the sheikh’s eyes faded somewhat. “I knew the risk involved when I decided on this venture, my friend, but it was something that I had to do for all other young women who were used against their will.”

He then turned to Christy and regally inclined his head. “And to you, Christina Madaris Maxwell, it has been a pleasure, and if it’s Allah’s will, I shall contact you soon for your exclusive story. But for now I bid you farewell.”

“Thank you for everything.” And because she felt, considering all he had done for her, that he was truly a special person, she added, “Your Highness,” and then curtsied as best she could in jeans.

She watched him grin before he turned and, with an arrogance that was definitely connected to royalty, left the room.

“The food is delicious, don’t you think?”

Alex glanced up. “Yes.” He then looked down and resumed eating.

Christy frowned. She personally didn’t like his attitude since the marriage ceremony. He’d barely said two words to her, and since all the servants—except for those such as Ishaq who lived in the villa but in the west wing—had left for their private quarters out back, the place had an eerie silence. Alex’s lack of conversation wasn’t helping matters.

“Using the yacht, how long will it take us to reach Kiribati?”

He lifted his head again and she saw the slight frown that agitated the arch of his dark brow. “Probably six to eight hours. According to Rasheed this mini-yacht we’ll be using is rather fast, with speeds that can get us there in a fairly good amount of time. Once we get to Kiribati we’ll use Rasheed’s private plane to fly to Honolulu.” He hadn’t told her, but he had spoken with her uncle Jake Madaris. Alex had told Jake everything and the older man had agreed to be in Honolulu when they got there.

Moments later, after Alex and Christy had finished eating, the servants removed the remnants of their meal. Alex stood, his expression distant, reserved, and unapproachable. “Ishaq has indicated if the weather cooperates, we can set sail first thing in the morning. I suggest you go to bed and get a good night’s sleep.”

Christy stared at him, her chin tilted. If he could be that way, then so could she. “I will.”

With nothing else left to be said, she watched as he walked out of the room.

 
Once Alex made it to the guest room that he’d been given, he shut the door, closed his eyes, and swore beneath his breath. Christy could push a man’s control to the limit. The fury he felt for her having placed her life in so much danger kept him from doing the one thing he wanted to do with a vengeance: lock his arms around her like unyielding steel, kiss her senseless, and drag her to the nearest bed, tell her how much he loved her, and make love to her, lose himself in passion—the kind that only she could ignite within him.

For the past thirty-four hours he had been in a state of sheer panic, not knowing if he would find her on this hell-hole of an island where lawlessness was a way of life. And then after he found her and discovered that she was safe, thanks to Rasheed, her having the nerve to declare she wasn’t ready to leave Vanuatu had been the last straw. It had taken every ounce of control Alex could muster to not throw her over his shoulder and play the role of a Neanderthal. To not lose control.

Twice now since finding her he had kissed her, momentarily losing grip on his fury: the time when he’d found her safe and then when the priest had pronounced that they were married.

Christina Madaris Maxwell
.

When Rasheed had called her by that name the sound had played on Alex’s senses, sent a possessive thrill shooting through him, and made him feel elementally male. It was as if the woman he loved and wanted as his mate had finally become his, and the sheer thought of her belonging to him had sent mind-whirling sensations through every part of his body.

He drew himself up and walked away from the door. He couldn’t continue to go on like this, he would lose his sanity. As much as he loved her, it was plain to see that she still didn’t love him, and he refused to hold her in a loveless marriage. As soon as they returned to the States, he would make sure they did whatever was needed to end their farce of a marriage. That shouldn’t be hard to do since they had no plans to consummate the damn thing. He still meant what he had told her. He would not make love to her until she loved him.

And from the way things looked, that would not happen.

Christy angrily paced the guest room she’d been given. How dare Alex ignore her! OK, so she
was
the reason they were in this mess, but that was beside the point. Nobody had asked him to make it his goal in life to keep her safe.

Yet he had
.

She stopped pacing when that realization mentally halted her steps. That night three years ago that was exactly what he’d been doing. She had actually expected him to walk out of her dreams and straight into her arms. But because of her inexperience he had done what he thought was the right thing, which was to discourage her by walking away.

Yet at the point when he had finally realized that the two of them were meant to be together, he had been man enough to seek out her forgiveness and ask for another chance to win her heart. And although she had continuously rebuffed his advances and had told him countless times it was a waste of his time, he hadn’t given up. On more than one occasion he had been there for her—keeping her safe and proving with his actions instead of with words that somewhere deep down in his heart he did love her.

But her Madaris pride had kept her from clearly seeing that love.

And now she was losing him. That thought sent fear worse than any she’d ever known slithering up her spine. She had done a lot of thinking when she’d assumed she was Rasheed’s hostage, and the one thing she could not deny was that she loved Alex, had always loved him, and would always love him. It was time to tell her pride to take a hike before she completely lost the most important person in her life.

The sensible thing to do would be to demand a talk with him first thing in the morning before they set sail. But a part of her didn’t want to wait that long. Nor did she want to be sensible. Tonight was her wedding night, and despite what she’d insinuated, she didn’t want to get their marriage annulled. She wanted to be with him for better or for worse, in sickness and in health, forever.

She glanced down at her hand and gazed at the ring he had placed there, and she felt tears spring into her eyes and reaffirmed in her heart that she loved him, had always loved him, and would always love him. And tonight more than anything she wanted to be held by him, loved by him; a part of her craved to be in his arms.

She remembered what Lorren, Caitlin, and Syneda had told her about how they were the ones to bring her brothers around. Men, her sisters-in-law had said, sometimes didn’t know what was good for them, and oftentimes it took a woman to show them.

It was time she showed Alex.

Christy glanced across the room to the bed. Before taking her leave for the night, Hajji had left several beautiful nightgowns for Christy. All of them were fit for a bride to wear when she presented herself to her husband on their wedding night. At first when she had entered the room and seen them she dismissed them from her mind. Now she was grateful for the older woman’s insight.

Just maybe, Christy thought, she had been given a second chance.