A Desert Rose

Chapter 12 - The Dinner

Chapter 12

Zahir's eyes were instantly drawn to Aimee as she entered the dining room. She was wearing a dress the colour of red wine and it draped around her body to give her a perfect silhouette without being too tight or inappropriate. The sparkle at her throat caught his attention. He personally picked every piece of jewellery in the safe and that was not one of them. Someone else gave her the jewels and jealousy instantly gripped him but Zahir pushed it back. He was jumping to conclusions; it could've been a gift from Shiran.

Aimee's eyes sought his out and he expected to see rage in them. They had not parted on good terms, but she regarded him coolly from below her lashes. His gaze followed her as she made her way to her seat next to him and he felt ridiculous at the excitement of her close proximity.

"Marhaban your Highness," Aimee whispered as she was seated next to him. She did not look him in the eye and seemed shy. It reminded him of their first dinner together.

***

Zahir's entourage of three white vehicles had just stopped outside the small cluster of tents when Aimee pushed herself into a sitting position from where she had been lying on her stomach on a tarp at the dig site. She gently brushed the sand away before taking a picture of the tablet, then transferred it to the waiting packing crate.

She looked over to find Zahir observing her from a short distance away. "Salam!" he called to her.

"Hi!" she called back. Aimee got to her feet and fastened the lid onto the crate, then pushed the escaped strands of hair behind her ear. He was early, or was she late? She had hoped to at least clean up before he arrived. 'Too late now...' she muttered as she walked over to him while glancing at her watch.

He smiled as she approached. "My apologies, I am early, but with a good reason. I hope you don't mind, but I made some alternative arrangements for tonight. I figured you could use a hot shower and some..." he regarded her dusty appearance from her boot-clad feet to the white scarf she had around her neck "... clean clothing."

Aimee burst out laughing not sure if she should feel offended, but in light of his crisp appearance, she could not have dinner with him covered in sand. "Well, I didn't pack any fancy clothes, just a cleaner version of what I'm wearing." She said as she gestured down to her clothes.

"I suspected as much, don't worry, I have a plan," he motioned towards the vehicles, "shall we?"

Marc decided to pipe up from the back of the site; neither had noticed him there. "Go on, just be back at midnight and don't forget to bring me some dessert!"

They laughed as Aimee blushed and gave him a meaningful glance. "Fine Marc, try and not break anything while I'm gone."

With that Zahir led Aimee to one of the SUVs and within the hour they arrived at one of the most beautifully modern hotels in the heart of the city. A doorman opened the door for her as Zahir led her through the opulent lobby and straight to an elevator in the far right corner. His entourage followed a few feet behind them and eventually split up to take up their assigned positions.

Zahir seemed to be in a hurry to avoid all the curious glances and Aimee wondered if it was because of her appearance. A neatly clad man stepped closer to hand Zahir a key card which he used to open the elevator doors. They stepped inside and quickly ascended towards the top of the hotel. Sheer awe had kept her silent for most of it as she needed all her concentration to take in their beautiful surroundings. She had never been in a five star hotel before and tried not to feel intimidated.

The door opened directly to a huge suite and as the lights flickered on Aimee realized it was a private elevator that connected to one of the private suites. A living area opened onto a bedroom and en-suite bathroom and it was bigger than her flat at home minus the kitchen.