Only the hour before, he had spoken with David about joining Diana for her expedition into the largest pyramid.They had returned from a gold shop where he had found a chain on which she could wear her wedding ring when she was on expeditions.His cousin’s initial enthusiasm had soon turned to suspicion, though.
“Wait.Why aren’tyougoing in?”he had asked.
Randy flexed his broad shoulders.“I rather doubt I could fit.Diana claims the passageway is rather small.I shouldn’t wish to get stuck,” he explained.
Although David responded with a guffaw, the answer seemed to satisfy him, for he readily agreed.“It will be good to see something with a real archaeologist.”
If the comment had been made in jest, it didn’t seem that way as Diana’s eyes had widened in surprise—and appreciation.“You do realize you’re now my favorite cousin?”she had asked, a grin lighting her face.
Preening in a manner better suited to a dandy, David had bowed deeply and thanked her for her regard as the others in their party chuckled.
Reluctantly, Randy moved to mount his camel.Having watched the others, he merely mimicked their moves, his expression blank as the camel rose to all fours in a much smoother manner than David’s had done.
Apparently his cousin’s attempt to hypnotize his camel had not worked in his favor.
A trio of riders from another nearby herd approached, Lord Everly leading the way.From his relaxed stance atop his mount, it was apparent he had experience riding a camel.A lead rope was connected from the back of his saddle and attached to a ring strung through the nose of Lady Everly’s camel.Lady Helen’s mount was behind hers and attached in the same manner.
“You’ve done this before,” Will accused as the earl approached followed by his countess and Lady Helen.The babe, Bradley, was not with them.
“It’s been ages ago, but yes,” Harry replied.He glanced back to ensure Stella was all right.“They have the oddest gait.You simply have to roll with it,” he suggested.“Think of it like riding a ship, but instead of being on the water, you are in the desert.”
“Indeed,” Stella and Will replied in unison.
From where he sat atop his own mount, Tom couldn’t help but stare at Helen.Although he realized now he should have expected to see her with her parents, he hadn’t been entirely sure she was the one he had seen with the babe on the shore of the Nile.
Dressed in a bright yellow day gown and a straw hat adorned with daisies, Helen was the epitome of a fresh-faced young lady out for a morning ride.
For a moment, he imagined her riding him.Her long limbs straddling his hips, her kid-gloved hands pressed to his shoulders as he rolled his hips beneath hers.
He wondered if her blonde hair was long or merely shoulder-length.If it was long, it would brush over his bare chest, tickling his skin as she rode him.
From the fitted bodice of her gown, he knew she was blessed with breasts befitting her Greek namesake.Although the daughter of Zeus was a mortal, she had been worshipped as the tree goddess.
Leave it to Lord Everly to come up with the perfect name for his only daughter.
As for worshipping her, Tom imagined undoing the fastenings of her gown until he could remove the bodice and hold the soft white orbs in his hands.The thought of those breasts had him wondering what they would look like.How they would react to his touch.
Would her nipples harden if he simply rubbed his thumbs over the rosy tips?Or would he need to pull her down so he could use his tongue and mouth to coax them to readiness?The thought of suckling her nipples had the oddest sound coming from his throat, and he had to stifle further thoughts of Helen and her nipples when the front of his riding breeches suddenly tightened.
He glanced down to discover his camel had turned its head to the side, one eye pinning him as if in rebuke.
That’s when he realized the others had already set off in the direction of the pyramids.He nudged the T-bar, and the camel lazily moved forward.Immediately understanding Lord Everly’s comment about camels being the ships of the desert, he soon learned how to simply roll with the odd gait.
“They are closer than I thought,” Diana called out to Randy, her grin apparent in the morning sun.Only a few wispy white clouds interrupted the bright blue sky above.On the eastern horizon, a hazy band of red rested above the line where desert met the sky.
“There are more of them than I thought,” Randy replied, noticing smaller, stepped-style pyramids beyond the three larger buildings.
“For the queens and daughters,” she said.
His gaze went back to her, his pride in her swelling when he noticed how well she was riding.If she could handle a camel while holding on with only one hand, he could only imagine how well she would do on a horse once they returned to England.
“Even the surfaces of the larger pyramids look as if they are stepped.Like they have stairs,” he commented, his gaze on the closest pyramid.
“Now they do,” she agreed.“But they didn’t used to.Such a shame.”
“What do you mean?”he asked.Given how his uncle and cousin rode on the other side of Diana with Barbara’s camel attached to the back of Will’s, he knew they were listening intently to their conversation.He hadn’t expected to learn more until they reached the base of the largest pyramid, the Great Pyramid of Khufu, where Lord Everly said a dragoman was to meet them.
“The pyramids were never meant to be climbed,” Diana explained.“When they were built, they were sealed with an outer casing of polished stone held with mortar, and the edges were fitted so perfectly together, it was difficult to see the joints.When the sun shined on them, they gleamed like gold, especially at the very top.”
