Malik turned back towards the palace as he heard a stampede of feet and saw all three children bursting through the doors and out into the sunlight. Walking calmly behind them, seeming cool and in control, was the unshakeable Miss Talbot.
Malik watched her for a few seconds. The half-dozen Englishmen who had visited Huria at one time or another always seemed red in the face and sweaty. They spent half their time mopping their brows or exclaiming about the heat of the sun and the other half fanning themselves with whatever they could lay their hands on. Miss Talbot was different, she seemed to enjoy the heat, as she seemed to enjoy everything, and take pleasure from the sun. She never appeared flustered or hot and her crisp cotton dresses remained a brilliant white in colour, unstained by sweat or the sands of the desert. Malik didn’t know how she did it.
His gaze was drawn away from the governess by the sight of all three of his children stopping suddenly, mouths gaping open.
‘Father?’ Aahil said, as if he didn’t quite believe what he was seeing.
Malik wasn’t quite sure what the question was, but smiled encouragingly at his children.
‘Come on and find your horses, we’ve got a busy day planned.’
None of the children moved.
‘You’re really coming with us?’ Ameera asked.
Malik nodded.
‘Really?’ Ameera persisted. ‘Miss Talbot said you were, but we didn’t believe her.’
Malik felt a stab of sadness at his daughter’s comment, but he understood his children’s incredulity. He loved Aahil, Ameera and Hakim, but he didn’t spend much time with them. Running the kingdom took so much of his time and energy and it wasn’t as if he had ever taken them on an excursion before.
‘Really. Now, who needs a hand mounting their horse?’
Malik knew in the year since his wife had died his children had most likely craved attention, but he had been too busy working through his own issues to even realise it. His children needed him, they needed him to give them the attention their mother once had and they needed him to help them understand her death, even if he didn’t quite understand it himself. Throughout their young lives Malik knew he had kept his distance from his children and, looking at their beautiful faces assembled in front of him, he felt a pang of regret. As a boy it had been drummed into him that his place was running the kingdom and his wife would bring up any children, but now his children needed him to do both. Malik wondered whether he was capable of shouldering the responsibility for both Huria and the children and felt the weight of responsibility pressing heavily on him.
Malik watched as Aahil expertly mounted his large grey horse and a stab of regret coursed through him. He didn’t know who had taught his son to ride, but it wasn’t he.
Ameera was next. She placed a foot in Malik’s hand and swung herself up on to the small mare that nuzzled her hand and preened under her touch.
All the while Hakim was standing with his hand firmly gripping Miss Talbot’s, looking more than a little terrified.
‘Hakim,’ Malik said softly.
His youngest son looked at him with tears in his eyes.
‘What’s the matter?’
Hakim looked down at his feet.
Malik took a step towards him uncertainly. He glanced up to see Miss Talbot smiling encouragingly and all of a sudden he knew what to do. Malik knelt down in the sand in front of his son’s feet and took the boy’s hands in his own. Carefully he reached up and brushed the tears from his son’s cheeks.
‘Do you know I was seven when I first learnt to ride?’ Malik said quietly.
Hakim’s eyes flicked to his for just a second before returning to his feet.
‘Before that I was rather scared of horses.’
Malik felt his heart soar as his son looked up again with an expression of doubtful hope on his face.
‘I never thought I would ever be able to ride like my father or my uncles.’
Malik watched as his son glanced at Miss Talbot. She smiled at him encouragingly and gently let go of his hand.
‘Maybe you’d like to ride with me today?’ Malik suggested. ‘And then next week we can choose a horse for you from the stables and I can teach you to ride.’
Malik surprised himself with the suggestion; he had never considered anything like it before. For a moment he felt a wave of panic and uncertainty, unsure whether his son might reject his offer, but before the feelings could take hold Hakim had launched himself into Malik’s arms and was already chattering about what horse he might like.
As he led the boy towards his huge black stallion, Malik caught Miss Talbot’s eye and saw the gleam of happiness there. He was inordinately pleased she cared so much for his children already and for a second wondered what it might be like to have her care for him in the same way.
Malik knew he had been blessed in life. He was Sheikh of this wonderful kingdom, he didn’t want for any of life’s necessities and he had three healthy children to carry on his line. He had once been married to one of the most beautiful women in Huria and time and time again other men had told him how lucky he was to have Aliyyah for his wife. But one thing he had never had was love. In childhood his father had cared for him in a distant kind of way, but never demonstrated any love, and his mother had died in childbirth. When he had married, Malik had done so to carry out his duty, not for love. Aliyyah had made her feelings on the matter quite clear and throughout their marriage he had never received a single look or touch laden with anything more than tolerance. Up until now Malik hadn’t ever really thought too much of love, or having someone else’s affections, but witnessing the way Miss Talbot looked at his children he wondered whether he was missing out.
Malik mounted his horse, bent down and pulled his son up in front of him. He could feel the small boy trembling slightly and Malik gently wrapped his arms around his son.
‘Here’s your first lesson,’ he said, knowing that encouraging Hakim to concentrate on learning how to ride would take away at least some of the fear. Malik reached around, picked up the reins and positioned them in his son’s hands. ‘You hold the reins loosely, like this, allowing the horse to feel like they have some freedom. When you want to direct them one way or another, a gentle movement is all it takes.’
He demonstrated how to guide the horse, then let Hakim have a go.
The last person to mount a horse was Miss Talbot, and for a moment Malik wondered whether she knew how to ride. The idea of having her up on his horse, nestled between his thighs, was rather too appealing and he felt a surge of disappointment as she expertly settled on to the back of a headstrong mare. Malik watched as she rearranged her skirts, managing to look as composed as always, and felt the first stirrings of desire as he glimpsed a flash of her smooth calf before her dress settled into position.
Pushing such inappropriate thoughts away, Malik did a quick check that everyone was safe and comfortable, then they moved away from the palace. He’d decided to take only Wahid with them, not a formal full bodyguard, so they could move at their own pace and enjoy the outing. Most people in the surrounding villages would probably recognise him and the royal children, but there was a slight hope of a little more freedom if they travelled without a full escort. Sometimes Malik craved anonymity; he wanted to wander this kingdom he was so proud of incognito and enjoy some of the delights of the common man.
‘This oasis is the largest in all of Huria,’ Malik said to Miss Talbot as she drew her horse alongside his. Already Ameera and Aahil were out in front of their little group, talking animatedly to Wahid, leaving Malik with his youngest son and the pretty, young Englishwoman for company. ‘When my ancestors became rulers of Huria they understood the most important resource