Instead, I looked up at him with a pout. “You should also say I’ve been a very good girl, for waiting so patiently.”
The sheikh didn’t answer right away, and a quick glance told me why. I knew I was being reckless again, but ever since realizing how much the sheikh, um, enjoyed seeing me pout, I just couldn’t help myself.
I pouted as often as I could get away with it, and every time I did...
This happened.
His body responding to me in ways that were impossible to hide. The tension that crept into his shoulders. The way his jaw would tighten, as if he was fighting some invisible battle with himself.
I found myself taking a step towards the sheikh, and warmth pooled low in my belly when I saw his nostrils flare. I knew I should back away before I ended up exposing my own need for him. I knew I should be a little more cautious, but...
I can’t.
I was just so frustrated these days, just aching for him so badly that I ended up teasing and teasing him. I wanted to keep pushing him to his limits in hopes that maybe...just maybe...
His resolve would one day break, and then he would finally touch me, like we both knew he wanted—
“You’re a good girl.” The sheikh had finally answered, and the roughness of his voice was yet another sign of how hard he was struggling to keep himself in check.
Stubborn, stubborn man...
The sheikh strode off right after speaking, and I bit back an aching sigh when I heard him curse under his breath. I watched him take the stairs faster than usual...
Ah.
By now, I knew full well why he was in a hurry, and when the sheikh, now dressed in a white shirt and slacks, joined me in the dining hall, his smiling and relaxed countenance confirmed my suspicions.
The tension from earlier had been...dealt with, and as soon as the thought formed in my mind, I found myself squirming in my seat.
“Aurora?” The sheikh slid into his chair at the head of the table. “Is everything alright?”
“Just super hungry.” *For you,* I wished I could add, but now just wasn’t the right time.
“I’m sorry, brat,” the sheikh apologized with a wince. “I’ll be sure not to make you wait next time.”
We ate dinner fairly quickly, and it was only half past ten by the time we made our way to the palace’s private theater, which boasted of the most comfortable leather seats and couches as well as its own popcorn machine and soda dispenser.
Although the theater could comfortably accommodate fifty viewers per screening, most of the time it was just us, and I hoped it always stayed that way. This was one of the few times I could pretend the sheikh and I were on a date, and well...
So many things could happen once the lights went off, and a girl could hope, couldn’t she?
“What are we going to watch tonight?” the sheikh asked as we settled into our seats.
I grinned. “Horror, of course.”
Mik’hail groaned. “Not again.” He threw me an exasperated glance. “You know you’ll just have nightmares after.”
It was true, but I loved the thrill that horror movies gave me, and so I kept torturing myself with it. “We’re still going to watch this, akh,” I said stubbornly, “so stop being a spoilsport.”
“Just don’t say I didn’t warn you.” The sheikh raised his hand, and the technician with us immediately shut off all lights in the cinema. A moment later, the huge screen in front of us lit up, and the technician bowed to us before leaving.
At the end of the film’s opening credits, thunder boomed out from the speakers, just as a shadow of a ghost dashed across the screen.
I screamed.
Mik’hail chuckled, and I made a face at him. “Not one word, akh.”
Another scary scene followed a couple of minutes later, and I screamed again, which of course made the sheikh chuckle once more.
