Free Warrior of the Nile (The Gods of Egypt) by Veronica Scott

kept his eyes on the sky as he gestured vaguely toward the stairs.
    “Of course.” Half running, she went to her awning to retrieve her things, Khenet on her heels. The wind intensified, gritty sand swirling across the river, reducing their visibility. He helped her below to her cabin. The ship’s cat scooted into the room just as Khenet shut the door behind them. Rocking alarmingly, the ship climbed the crests of the unusual river waves, then fell into the troughs behind.
    Tiya half fell onto the narrow bed, putting one hand to her head and the other on her stomach, her face suddenly white. “This motion is making me dizzy.” She swallowed convulsively. “And nauseous.”
    At the door, Khenet paused. “I should go see if the crew needs any help. I’ll only be a moment. You’ll be fine if you stay in the bunk.”
    Hanging onto the bedside for dear life, she nodded. Yowling, the cat retreated to the farthest corner of the bed.
    Khenet struggled out into the passageway. The winds howled and he could hardly breathe for all the grit in the air, even here below decks. The ship bucked and plunged into the trough of a wave, nearly throwing him off his feet. Sand swirled down the stairway, stinging his skin. Retreating, he fought his way back into her cabin. The wind was too loud now for him to say anything to Tiya. Probably better if she doesn’t know the ship is being driven by the storm.
    The River Horse was clearly out of the control of Taneb and his crew now. Our fate is in the hands of the Great Ones. I only hope Nephthys is paying attention.
    Khenet staggered across the heaving deck to the bed, falling next to her. As the ship took a stomach-turning lunge, she clutched at him and burrowed into his arms. Automatically, he held her close, trying not to think about the softness of her skin, the curves of her body pressed to him.
    As the storm wore on, he allowed himself to stroke her hair, whispering soothing comments directly in her ear. Listening to the ship’s timbers creak and groan, he tried to assess how the River Horse was doing as she ran before the wind. He made and discarded plans for how to save Tiya if the ship sank. His frustration grew as it became increasingly clear to him that he wouldn’t be able to save her—or himself—if the ship sank in such a fierce storm.
    After one spectacular free fall into the trough of a wave, followed by a jarring crash, Tiya shouted. “I’m sorry to be such a scared rabbit! I’ve never been in a sandstorm before, let alone one on a ship!”
    Keeping his body braced around hers, trying to take the bruising impacts for them both, he lowered his head until his lips were next to her ear. “We’ll be fine. You’ll see. This is a well-built ship.”
    Eventually the plunging motion diminished. Maybe we’re sailing out the other side of the storm. He prepared to say as much to Tiya when the vessel halted, colliding with some obstacle in the river. They were thrown onto the deck and, unprepared for the impact, Khenet was unable to cushion their fall. He landed on top of Tiya.
    Hastily, he rolled off her small frame and stood, reaching to help her regain her feet. Refusing to let go of his waist, she clung to him. He tried to tilt her chin with one hand. “Are you all right? Are you hurt?”
    Apparently unable to speak, she shook her head. Alarmed, Khenet set her on the edge of the bunk and ran his hands over her arms, then down the length of her body. Trying to be all business, even in the seriousness of the moment he couldn’t entirely ignore the satiny smoothness of her skin. A pulse of pure desire ran through him, sending blood rushing to his cock. Hastily he stepped back, keeping one hand on her shoulder. “No broken bones. I think you had the wind knocked out of you. Try slow, shallow breaths for a moment or two.”
    Tiya appeared to take no notice of his semi-aroused state. Pressing one hand to the center of her chest, she nodded. “What—what happened?”
    “I