He knew.
He fucking saw the truth in her eyes.
Heard it in the way her breath would catch.
Felt it in the way her fingers suddenly tightened and clutched his robe.
It was the same for her.
She wanted him as much as he wanted her.
And when he saw her lips part in unconscious yearning—-
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
Ella and Aurora were startled when the sheikh suddenly spoke.
"Excuse us for a moment. Her Highness and I have a private matter to discuss."
Since the sheikh sounded rather abrupt, Aurora was about to ask if there was anything they could do to help when she saw the sheikh gently lift Safiya off his lap before rising to his feet—-
Safiya was bemused when she saw the way her friends suddenly turned red and simultaneously averted their gazes from her and the sheikh.
Altair, having seen the same thing, bit back a groan when his betrothed glanced up at him with a mixture of curiosity and trust. The way Safiya was looking up at him now, it was as if she believed he would always be able to answer any and all of her questions. Her faith in him was absolute, and damn if it didn't amuse and arouse him at the same time.
Bending his head, he felt Safiya's body jerk in awareness as he whispered straight to her ear.
"I want a taste of you again, hamira, and your friends know it."
Safiya's eyes went wide.
A moment later, her gaze flew down.
Oh.
Another moment, and her gaze flew to her friends.
"I'm sorry," she told them with grave sincerity. "Please do not be offended by the sheikh's reaction. It isn't his fault that he is wonderfully endowed—-mmph!"
Dark color stained the sheikh's high-boned cheeks as he swiftly clamped his hand over Safiya's mouth.
The princess' friends, in the meantime, were no longer embarrassed, and Altair could feel his flush deepening as the two girls burst into peals of laughter.
Ella was privately relieved to see the sheikh looking discomfited at hearing his fiancée compliment his, er, physical endowment. As much as Ella hated to admit this, Khal was so used to being showered with praises that he wouldn't have any problems taking such words in stride.
Sheikh Altair, however...
The man clearly did not believe himself attractive, and it probably had much to do with the scar that marred the left side of the sheikh's face. Ella herself had a hard time not staring at it the first time she had met the sheikh, but only because it was rather prominent at certain angles.
Just like Safiya thought herself more an ugly duckling than a swan, the sheikh appeared to see him more a frog than a prince, and well...
Altair was slightly puzzled when he noticed the way the Crown Princess of Kivr was suddenly smiling happily at him. He had no idea why she seemed to have changed her opinion of him out of the blue, but since he was not the kind of idiot that questioned a gift horse in the mouth, the sheikh simply smiled back, politely repeated his excuses to the two, and then finally...
THE SHEIKH TOOK SAFIYA all the way up to her suite in the students' residence building. The place was supposedly restricted to females only, but the resident manager was all smiles when the sheikh went through the front doors.
"Welcome, alshaykh."
"I require a private moment with my betrothed."
"Of course, alshaykh. Please let us know if there is any other way we can assist you."
And that was that.
Safiya's suite was in the fourth floor, and as soon as the doors of the elevator closed on them, the sheikh pulled her close, and Safiya didn't even hesitate, her arms wrapping around his neck just as his mouth took hers in a kiss so, so deep she felt it all the way to her toes.
His tongue stroked in, and she moaned. He lifted her up in his arms without breaking the kiss, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. A chiming sound played a moment later, and Safiya couldn't help sighing in yearning when the sheikh was forced to lift his head.
"Give me a moment, hamira."
"A moment seems too long."
And as always, the way the princess uttered the words so seriously had Altair wanting to smirk and kiss her senseless at the same time.
Once inside her suite, the sheikh kicked the door shut, and Safiya let out a startled laugh when he promptly threw her on the bed, and she laughed again as she ended up bouncing a few times. When she turned to see what he was doing—-
Oh.
Safiya quickly sat up at the sight of the sheikh, now completely naked, walking towards her.
Her body burned, her blood quickening with a rush of desire that now felt familiar and yet still oh-so-exciting.
She wanted him. She wanted him so, so much. But also—-
"May I take you in my mouth, Altair?"