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was erotic torture.
    The only thing that matched the arousal racing through his system was the growing disgust that had settled in his gut. She was his brother’s woman. She was forbidden. He should not want her, should not touch her, should not look at her as a man looked at a woman. And yet he found himself looking. Wanting. But he would never touch her.
Not again.
That time in the alley, when his lips had met hers, it had been necessary. It was a moment that would never be repeated.
    He would not betray his brother in such a manner.The loyalty that existed between them was not something that could be thrown aside for a mere woman. The bond between himself and his brother had always been strong, but after the death of their parents that link between them had been strengthened. Hassan had devoted his life to ruling Umarah, guiding their people, forging diplomatic alliances and handling the delicate matters of state. Adham’s life was devoted to protecting Hassan, to guarding their people. They were a right and a left hand. Hassan had been the public ruler from the time their parents had died, but they functioned as a team, working with their strengths for the betterment of their people.
    There would be no compromising that.
    “This place is amazing. Like a fantasy.”
    She inhaled deeply, and his eyes were drawn to the shape of her rounded breasts pushing against her top.
    Clearly her fantasies were different from his. But then, that was to be expected. Another reminder of why she was not the sort of woman who should arouse his libido. Even if his brother weren’t a factor. She was an innocent. A virgin. He had never touched a virgin and never would as he didn’t ever intend to take a wife.
    “Paris can hardly be beaten for atmosphere, although I’m partial to the desert. I like the heat, the open space, the solitude.”
    Her smooth forehead creased. “I’ve never been to the desert. I can’t really imagine it being beautiful. Whenever I envision the desert I see cactuses and bleached bones.”
    “It’s not an easy beauty to see. Not like the architecture here in Paris, and not like the green mountains in Turan. It’s fierce and barren—just the sand and the sky. It asks a lot of a man, but if the man can rise to the challenge,if he can learn to exist in such a place, he can’t help but love it.”
    Her blue eyes glittered, the sudden humor there unexpected. “And you’ve risen to the challenge and defeated the desert?”
    Her mischievous smile pulled a reluctant laugh from him. “I haven’t beaten it. It’s impossible to tame the desert. There are fierce sandstorms, unforgiving temperatures, and poisonous reptiles. The best you can hope is that she’ll allow you a peaceful existence.”
    She offered him a sweet half-smile that just barely curved the edges of her full lips. “And the desert is a woman?”
    “Of course she is. Only a woman could be such a fierce mistress.”
    “I can’t imagine the kind of freedom the desert must offer,” she said, after a long moment of silence.
    “It’s a freedom that demands responsibility. You have to respect where you are at all times. You have to keep the rules and mind the boundaries.”
    “And uphold duty and honor?”
    “What is there in life without those things, Isabella? If men discard such notions, what keeps the world moving?”
    Isabella hated how right he was. Hated that what he said made so much sense. She understood the importance of her alliance with Hassan, High Sheikh of Umarah. It was good for the economy, good for building a strong bond between nations in case of any sort of crisis. And if it weren’t her life, if she were only a casual observer like Adham, who wasn’t the one being forced to marry a stranger, she would have felt as he did.
    But it was her life. Not some vague idea of honor and duty. She was the sacrificial lamb for the masses. Easyfor him to speak that way when in the end he got to ride off into the sunset and be with