Married to the Sheikh by Katheryn Lane Page B

Akbar, she bowed her head and tried to focus on what the young man was saying. Various prayers were recited, by the imam as well as by everyone else, and long passages were read out in such a melodious way that she soon found her mind drifting off again. In particular, she found herself thinking about how Akbar had promised her a thousand nights of seduction. They were already part of the way through and Sarah was looking forward to being able to go to his tent openly instead of sneaking off when no one was looking. She couldn’t wait for the chance to spend an entire night with him, instead of creeping in and out of his tent like some naughty school girl.
    She was just thinking about what she was going to do with him that night, when suddenly, everybody stood and started shrieking and shouting. Hundreds of people began yelling and many of the men started firing guns.
    Sarah lifted herself to her feet, though she felt the weight of her clothes dragging her back down. She grabbed hold of Akbar’s arm. “What’s happening? What’s the matter?”
    “The bride is scared,” someone called out.
    “Of course she is scared. Sheikh Akbar is a mighty warrior and he will slay her tonight,” another voice shouted in the darkness behind her.
    “His dagger will pierce her many times until she begs for mercy,” an older man replied.
    “What’s going on?” Sarah asked again. She could feel the coins jingling across her face. She looked around. A large group of men that she didn’t recognise as being from the sheikh’s tribe were coming towards them. Somewhere nearby, several babies started crying.
     “I’m sorry. They are just making coarse jokes,” the sheikh reassured her. “It’s the custom at weddings for people to laugh about the wedding night.”
    Several more guns went off. “But why are they shooting?” she asked.
    “They’re celebrating! You’re now my wife. Aren’t you happy?”
     

Chapter 2
     
    “That was the most wonderful night of my life,” Sarah said and she rolled back on top of Akbar. “Every night you come up with new ways to seduce me. What happens when the thousand nights of seduction are over?”
    “They’ll never be over,” Sheikh Akbar replied. “When the first thousand nights finish, the next thousand will begin, forever into eternity.” He stroked her feet, tracing the pattern of the faded henna on them. They had been married for two weeks and the henna markings were slowly disappearing.
    “I wish I could stay here forever with you,” Sarah said, leaning over and caressing the taut muscles across his shoulders.
    “But you can and you will.”
    “No, I mean here, in this tent.”
    “You don’t like the tent I gave you?” Akbar asked. “What’s wrong with it? Tell me and I’ll have it changed.”
    “It’s not that. My tent is very beautiful. Thank you.”
    As a wedding present, the sheikh had given Sarah a large tent which was lavishly adorned with Oriental carpets and silk hangings. After the honeymoon period was over, she was expected to spend much of the day there with other women, while the sheikh consulted with his men in his own tent.
    “I love the tent,” Sarah continued. “It’s just that I have to get back to the hospital. I was only able to apply for two weeks’ leave from work and the last day was yesterday.” She got up and started washing herself from a large basin of water. The water felt cool against her hot skin. The sun was already coming up and she could feel that it was going to be another scorching day.
    Akbar came up behind her and began brushing her hair. “You should stay here with me.”
    Sarah turned around and kissed him. “I hate leaving, but I have to set off for the hospital before it gets too late.” She gave him another lingering kiss and then began to get herself ready for work.
    Thirty minutes later, she was driving across the desert on the way to the capital. After she’d become engaged to sheikh, she’d traded in her old