The Sheik

She lifted her head for the first time and looked at the magnificent

sky. The sun had almost set, going down in a ball of molten fire, and

the heavens on either side were a riot of gold and crimson and palest

green, shading off into vivid blue that grew blacker and blacker as the

glory of the sunset died away. The scattered palm trees and the far-off

hills stood out in strong relief. It was a country of marvellous

beauty, and Diana's heart gave a sudden throb as she realised that she

was going back to it all. She was drooping wearily, unable to sit

upright any longer, and once or twice she jolted heavily against the

man who rode behind her. His nearness had ceased to revolt her; she

thought of it with a dull feeling of wonder. She had even a sense of

relief at the thought of the strength so close to her. Her eyes rested

on his hands, showing brown and muscular under the folds of his white

robes.

She knew the power of the long, lean fingers that could, when he

liked, be gentle enough. Her eyes filled with sudden tears, but she

blinked them back before they fell. She wanted desperately to cry. A

wave of terrible loneliness went over her, a feeling of desolation, and

a strange, incomprehensible yearning for what she did not know. As the

sunset faded and it grew rapidly dusk a chill wind sprang up and she

shivered from time to time, drooping more and more with fatigue, at

times only half conscious. She had drifted into complete oblivion, when

she was awakened with a jerk that threw her back violently against the

Sheik, but she was too tired to more than barely understand that they

had stopped for something, and that there were palm trees near her. She

felt herself lifted down and a cloak wrapped round her, and then she

remembered nothing more. She awoke slowly, shaking off a persistent

drowsiness by degrees. She was still tired, but the desperate weariness

was gone, and she was conscious of a feeling of well-being and

security. The cool, night air blew in her face, dissipating her

sleepiness. She became aware that night had fallen, and that they were

still steadily galloping southward. In a few moments she was wide

awake, and found that she was lying across the saddle in front of the

Sheik, and that he was holding her in the crook of his arm. Her head

was resting just over his heart, and she could feel the regular beat

beneath her cheek. Wrapped warmly in the cloak and held securely by his

strong arm at first she was content to give way only to the sensation

of bodily rest.