His Scandalous Viscountess by Mowbray Sorcha

Author:Mowbray, Sorcha
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Amour Press
Published: 2020-05-13T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

May, 1862

Julia sat in her front parlor, reading the sensational novel Lady Audley’s Secret by M.E. Braddon. She was so engrossed in the riveting tale of bigamy and murder she did not realize she had a visitor until Johnson interrupted her.

“My lady, Sheik Tariq Azzam Hassan requests a word with you.” He stood waiting for her reply without even raising a brow.

Surprised to hear that her former lover was in England for a visit, she set her book aside. “Please, show him in. And please have Mrs. Paulson prepare some tea.”

“Very well, my lady.” Her butler bowed and went to fetch her guest.

Nervous, both about seeing Tariq and about what he might wish to discuss, she stood and edged closer to the door. She had learned a great deal in her time with him, and though receiving him while sitting might have given her the upper hand, it would also be insulting, considering their former connection. Besides, she still considered him a friend.

Johnson appeared once more. “Sheik Tariq Azzam Hassan, my lady.”

Then he bowed and left the handsome man from her past standing in her parlor, looking every inch the desert sheik. From his flowing robes and gold gilded headdress to his beringed fingers, he radiated his power and status, though of course, he would know none of it mattered to her.

“Julia, you are still the most delicate English rose I have ever laid eyes on.” He stepped closer and bowed over her hand.

“Tariq, married life appears to suit you.”

She refused to lavish him with compliments. The man had always had far too healthy an ego for his own good. Extricating her hand from his grasp, she motioned to the seating arrangement behind her. “Please, come in and sit.”

He took a seat on the settee, and she returned to the nearby chair she had occupied. Disappointment flashed across his swarthy-yet-handsome features. “Come, sit here with me. We were once such close friends.”

No fool, she shook her head. “I think not. I imagine Fatima, your first wife—let alone the second wife you have since taken—would not welcome the knowledge of this visit. Should they hear of it, I have no intention of courting more of their ire than is strictly necessary.”

He chuckled. “Fatima is a jealous woman, though in fairness to her, she knows you have always held a special piece of my heart.”

Julia hated that he still harbored feelings for her. “I find that sad for her. No woman should have to know that she does not hold all her husband’s interest.”

“Yet you know this is the way of my people. We take more than one wife so that we may bear many children. It is also to protect the women. I, in particular, must do so to strengthen political alliances with other families. I am on wife number two now, but I love them both equally.”

His gaze stroked over her curves, and down the long length of her covered legs.

The man knew what she looked like naked, stretched out before him like a pleasurable feast.

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