He swept her a mock bow and now those tears were threatening again. But no way was she going to weaken. They should part as friends, not discontented lovers.
All well and good, she thought as they stood in the pearly light of dawn, staring out over the most incredible panorama of waking desert and limpid oasis. If this was the last time they swam together, she was going to make the most of it and the future would have to wait.
Khalid’s outstretched hand invited her to join him. They linked fingers again and walked to the water’s edge. One last time, she thought as they waded in together. The water was like a warm bath, but they were silent as they swam, as if both of them knew that the time for games and laughter was done. They returned to the tent to be greeted by the delicious scent of cooked food and good coffee. A stack of clean towels and fresh robes were waiting for them. Khalid’s people were discreet, and intuitive too, she thought.
‘The best staff in the world,’ he confirmed when she expressed her gratitude.
Removing the beautiful robe, she hung it up with care, regretting the fact, for the first time in her life, that it was back to oil-smeared overalls, and she would never wear a beautiful Khalifan robe again. She dressed quickly in travel clothes, just jeans and a top, and a sweater because it would be cold when she arrived in England. She took one last look around at the beautiful tent filled with exquisite artefacts. Even the sapphires in the gold bowls didn’t trouble her now. The past was the past, and it was time to face the future.
‘Do you mind if I take a picture?’ she asked.
‘Why?’ Khalid said, frowning.
‘To remember all this,’ she explained.
‘Will you forget so easily?’
There was hurt in his eyes. Goodness knew what he could see in hers. ‘No,’ she said. ‘I won’t forget. But when I’m an old lady, it will be nice to reminisce.’
‘To remind yourself that this actually happened?’
They stared at each other, both wanting to say more, but the sound of rotor blades intruded. Perhaps as well, Millie thought. ‘Is that our lift?’ she said, trying to sound casual.
‘Yes,’ Khalid confirmed.
That single word, and the way he said it, ripped the heart from her chest and made her wonder how much more she could take without breaking down. Everything, Millie thought. She’d take everything. She was strong and would remain so. It was the only way to be.
‘Are you tired of my company?’ Khalid teased.
Never. She would never tire of him, never forget him, never fall out of love with him, she thought as his hawk-like stare burned steadily into hers. But she was aching with tension and needed to leave. Why prolong the agony for either of them? Khalid was as tense as she was. She had never seen him so tightly wound.
‘This is torture,’ she admitted.
There was a moment when they stared at each other, and the next moment she was in his arms. ‘I’m not ready to part with you!’ he ground out in a voice hoarse with passion.
‘Then, you’re not being fair,’ she said. Removing herself from his arms, she stared up. ‘You can’t always have what you want, Your Majesty. A country depends on you.’
Khalid had to be strong for everyone, she thought as his hawk-like stare stabbed into hers. ‘I don’t want to hurt you, Millie. You’ve had too much trouble in your life, and I hold myself responsible for much of that.’
‘Then, don’t,’ she said. ‘I’m responsible for my actions. I chose to be here. I chose to listen to what you had to tell me about my mother, and it was my decision to stay. But I’ve always known we can’t have a life together. Don’t worry,’ she added brightly, dredging up resolve from the depth of her soul. ‘I won’t let history hold me back, or you, for that matter. What we had was good, but it’s done now. You have to let me go. I mean it, Khalid,’ she said when he looked shocked. ‘Let me go.’
‘Are you serious? That’s it? Done? Just like that?’
‘I am.’ She guessed he’d never been on the receiving end of a refusal before. She continued quickly before her heart overruled her head. ‘Did you think I wouldn’t be able to live without you? I won’t become your mistress. I have a good life back in England, and people who love me. I’m working towards a job I enjoy—’
‘So you don’t need me,’ he supplied.
‘Exactly,’ she confirmed with a thin smile.
‘Good,’ he said tonelessly. ‘I could ask for nothing more for you.’
Parting from him was the hardest thing she’d ever had to do. Killing off all hope of a future, or reconciliation was worse.
‘If that’s what you really want,’ he said.
He had to be sure, she thought. There could be no going back now. Her next words would end this. ‘It is what I want,’ she said. ‘We both know it’s the only way forward, and best for both of us.’
That might be right, but no one could steal her memories away. They would stay with her for ever.
IT WAS BACK to earth with a bump when Millie walked into Miss Francine’s laundry. She’d gone straight back to college from Khalifa, needing time alone to get her head straight, and had bunked in with a new student who asked no questions, not even when Millie had carelessly left packaging from several pregnancy tests in the bin. Bloating, feeling sick in the morning, suffering from a severe dose of emotional incontinence, as well as sore breasts, could not be ignored for ever and she’d taken her first test the week she got back. And the result was positive. All five had been positive.
Having scoured the news each day, she’d found no announcement of an engagement in Khalifa. But that meant nothing, Millie thought, as Lucy’s head shot up with surprise as she walked in. Everyone was staring at her, and trying not to. They must be wondering how she felt about her time in the desert with the ruler of Khalifa. Nothing travelled faster than bad news, but confirmation of her pregnancy was the very best of news, so no one at the laundry knew about that yet, not even Miss Francine. Millie couldn’t wait to tell the elderly woman who’d done so much for her that Miss Francine was about to become a grandmother. Now it was just a case of finding the right moment to inform the mighty ruler of Khalifa that he was about to become a father.
Millie and Lucy hugged warmly, and then Millie asked about Miss Francine.
‘In her office,’ Lucy said, adding worriedly, ‘with her lawyers.’
‘Lawyers?’ Millie echoed with concern.
‘Go and join them, and then you can tell me what’s happening,’ Lucy whispered so their colleagues couldn’t hear. ‘You’re like a daughter and she’s missed you. Here, let me take your things. It doesn’t look good,’ Lucy added with a glance at the firmly closed door to Miss Francine’s office.
‘Millie!’
Lucy was right. Miss Francine couldn’t have been more relieved, or happier to see her, but Millie was disturbed to see how frail she looked. She could feel her ribs through the thin cardigan and blouse as they embraced. When they parted, Miss Francine introduced Millie to the two lawyers sitting in front of the desk. ‘Mr Frostwick’s firm has worked in my best interest for years,’ she explained to Millie, ‘but I’ve given him a real problem this time.’
‘Can you tell me about it?’ Millie asked her old friend gently, with an enquiring look at the two men. What could have gone so badly wrong while she was away?
Miss Francine lost no time explaining. ‘I’ve been advised by my doctors to retire from the business with immediate effect.