Free The Sheik and the Slave by Nicola Italia Page B

away
from him.
    "I will tell Bashasha. You will attend me at the
Banquet."
    She lowered her head.
    "And tonight you will come to me," he told her
harshly.
    She began to protest.
    "Yes. I will have you with me tonight, if for nothing
more than to read me to sleep and be beside me when I wake up," he said
calmly. Even as he said the words, he knew it was a farce. It was a dangerous
game.
    Katharine ’ s
voice rang through the room when she asked, "Read? Sleep?"
    "Yes. If you want more from me, I am sorry. All I
require tonight is a good book."
    Katharine shuddered. To sleep beside his warm body and not
feel his touch would be torture.
    Mohammed strode out of the bathhouse. Why play this
dangerous game ? he asked himself. With the hot and cold falcon, he would
get no sleep, just an unsatisfied cock.
    Katharine watched him leave the harem and knew her resolve
was breaking. I must find a way to escape the palace and escape him , she
thought. Before it is too late .

    Chapter
5
    Bashasha lowered her head quietly and waited for the great
sheik to speak. She had been summoned before him and prayed to Allah that
neither she nor any of the harem girls had angered him.
    “ Praise
be to Allah, great sheik. I am yours to command, ” she spoke, head lowered, waiting for the young man ’ s reply.
    Mohammed watched the older woman in a compliant position and
smiled fondly. She had always been a figure in the household. As a young girl,
she had been a lowly servant in the kitchens. As she gained experience and
showed competence in her work, she had become supervisor of the palace
kitchens. As she aged, her pleasing manner and relationships with other
servants caused the sheik to place her as chief of the harem. Often, this role
was given to the mother of the sheik or a Chief Eunuch, but because of her
service and his regard for her, Bashasha ruled over the harem. It was a great
honor that required skill in keeping the women happy, free from bickering, and
pleasuring the sheik above all else.
    “ Dear
Bashasha. You served my father before me. ”
    “ Yes,
sire. ”
    “ You
have done your duty well. ”
    “ Thank
you, sire. Inshallah. ”
    “ The
harem women will attend the men after the banquet tonight. I know that they are
readying themselves, but I require a special addition tonight. ”
    Bashasha waited patiently for him to continue.
    Mohammed stood and his long white robes flowed about him.
His height was impressive, and Bashasha had always considered him a handsome
man. His father had been known for his good looks, but Mohammed ’ s mother had been a great
Egyptian beauty. He had inherited her dark bronzed skin and flashing liquid
eyes.
    “ This
banquet tonight is for the palace, but it is for business. These gentlemen have
come from far away to deal with me and to discuss the Arabian horses and coffee
to export to their lands. I require a different service tonight, ” he said. He walked
across the floor in front of Bashasha, pacing.
    “ These
men know our ways, but some things are foreign to them. Someone who knows their
language and ways would put them at ease and make the business transactions go
smoother. Someone who is indeed one of them. ”
    Bashasha nodded. He was a wise man indeed.
    “ Therefore, ” he said, stopping before
the older woman and meeting her eyes, “ I
would like Lady Katharine to attend the banquet tonight. ”
    “ I
will ready her myself, ” Bashasha said.
    “ I
would like her attired in the traditional abaya but with no veil. That would be
suitable if only Arabs were attending, but these foreign men would find it
uncomfortable and strange. ”
    The abaya was a traditional dress worn by Muslim women to
cover their clothing. It had long sleeves and was floor-length. Abayas were
usually black, but other colors could be used. For the gathering, he wanted
Katharine to wear something bright and lively.
    “ Yes, ” Bashasha said, and she
nodded.
    “ I
would like her attired in a silver fabric and