by Leslie North
“Hello, what would you like?” the truck owner asked her when she approached.
“Ben and Jerry’s Cookie Dough, please.” Claire loved her ice cream. She turned to Taleb, “Would you like some?”
“Does it taste good?”
Claire's eyes flew open. “Have you never tasted it before?”
Taleb shook his head, “No.”
“Oh no, no, no, that is unacceptable.” Claire looked at the ice cream seller. “Make that two please?”
“Sure thing,” he said with a smile. He handed the small tubs of Ben and Jerry’s to Claire. She smiled and gave one to Taleb before happily opening her tub. Dipping her spoon in, she scooped some out and placed it in her mouth. Closing her eyes, she smiled as the richness of the ice cream melted in her mouth before she swallowed it. Opening her eyes, she watched Taleb take a bite.
“How does it taste?”
“Not bad. How many calories are in each tub?” he asked, as he tilted the ice cream container to read the side. Claire narrowed her gaze at him. Did he seriously care about calories?
Shrugging her shoulders. “Does it really matter? It’s a hot day and this is a tasty treat,” she replied as she continued to eat hers. Finding what he was looking for, Taleb raised his eyebrows.
“This is way too many calories,” he stated before tossing his container in the trash.
Clare rolled her eyes. “Seriously, you are that bothered about calories? It isn’t as if you have to eat it all the time. This was meant to be a treat.” He looked at her with a blank facial expression.
“Maybe you should be more concerned.” he replied. Claire's jaw hung open.
“I am not even fat!” she protested. She knew that she needed to lose some inches off her waist and maybe tone up but that was none of Taleb's business.
“You are not fat but you are not slim, either.”
“So, what! It isn’t as if I’m tall, blonde or from a well to do family either,” Claire shot back.
“Which is a good thing since you have no appreciation of art.”
“What does that have to do with anything? I like other things. I’m not one of your groupies, Taleb, I don’t have to like what you do.”
“Groupies?”
“Yes, groupies. Look around. Every woman that walks past checks you out or tries to get your attention in some way and you are oblivious to all of it.”
“Everyone except for you.”
“Of course not, the Dean asked me to show you around. Look, I’m late for work and this conversation has gotten way out of hand. Next time someone decides to be nice and buy you something, try saying thank you.”
No longer wanting her ice cream, Claire tossed it in the trash and headed to the law library. She needed to put as much distance between him as possible before she did something stupid. Taleb was just another man in a growing list of men who wanted nothing to do with her. First her father, then Daniel and now this.
Okay, I get it. I’m not any-type-of-relationship material, she told herself.
Chapter 6
The next morning, Claire paced outside the Dean’s office waiting for him to arrive.
“Miss Anderson!” the Dean called out in surprise when he saw her. “What can I do for you?” he asked as he ushered her into his office to sit down. He drew open the blinds and slats of golden sunlight spilled across his mahogany desk.
“Dean Parker, I know I agreed to do this, but I don’t think I can keep it up. Taleb Sharqi is an insufferable, arrogant, impossible…man,” Claire finished as she sagged into a chair.
Masking his smile, “Well, you’ve been doing a great job. I am very impressed.”
Claire furrowed her brow, “Wait. Why are you impressed?”
“The previous guides I got for Taleb were fired within hours. The fact that he has not gotten rid of you is a good sign. Very good.”
Claire was surprised that Taleb had kept her around. They had nothing in common and barely got along.
“Really? He got rid of them within hours?” Then Claire remembered how obsessed he was with time and calories, not to mention his criteria. “He is picky.”
“That’s an understatement. Fortunately he has kept you around.”
“For now,” Claire sighed. If he got rid of the others so easily, there was a high chance that he would get rid of her too. There was nothing special about her. “There is something I must tell you though.”
“What is it?” the Dean asked, cocking his head to the side.
“He’s not at Harvard for an education. He’s here for a wife.”
The Dean’s mouth fell open, “What do you mean he’s here for a wife?”
“I mean that he has no intention of spending any time here. He is searching for a wife and will leave as soon as he finds one.”
Sitting back in his chair, “Somehow that doesn’t surprise me. But we still need to keep him around until at least the fundraising dinner,” he stated.
“I am sure the dinner will go well with or without his presence.”
The Dean shook his head and turned his gaze to the window. “With the different building renovations, the University is in need of funds. If he is present at the dinner, then there is a good chance that he will donate a lot of money. And if others see him doing so, they may as well.”
Claire frowned. The Dean was nothing but an opportunist. He was holding Claire hostage so he could get a hefty donation from Taleb.
“So that's the only reason you want to keep him around?”
“Of course. We need these donations.” The Dean was clearly not embarrassed by his motivations.
“Well, he seems to have some sort of timeline that he’s keeping to. He’s made it clear that as soon as he finds a wife, he is gone.” She frowned at the realization that Taleb would soon leave her. Leave her? She shook her head to clear her thoughts.
The Dean brought his attention back to Claire as he leaned forward in his chair, “This is where you come in.”
“Excuse me?” Claire straightened suddenly.
“Yes. You’re going to sabotage his dates.”
Claire raised an eyebrow. That was something she was not capable of doing and even if she was, she did not feel comfortable doing it.
“No. That is ludicrous,” she said, shaking her head.
“Now, listen,” the Dean fixed his eyes on her and paused for a second. “I am presuming that you still want that transfer, right?”
“I do, but not like this.”
The Dean sighed. “It’ll be hard. He is a handsome, rich, young man. He is the most eligible bachelor around.”
No, he is not! Claire's subconscious screamed out. Yes, Taleb Sharqi was handsome but he was not the most eligible bachelor around. Surely, there were others. She just had to find them.
“He’s okay.” Claire replied with a half shrug.
“He is more than okay. He is very popular with the ladies.”
As much as Claire wanted to deny it, she couldn’t. Taleb was very popular with the women. His fan club was obvious along with all the stares they received when they were together.
“So, are you going to give me a transfer or not?” Claire asked, changing the subject. She was not about to discuss Taleb's looks with the Dean.
“I will definitely give you a transfer but first you have to do what we discussed.” Claire felt herself withdrawing. She wasn’t sure she was up to the task.
“That is if he doesn’t get rid of me first.”
“He’s kept you around longer than any of the others, Miss Anderson. I have every faith in you that he will continue to do so.”
“How?”
“Taleb is a very decisive man. He knows what he wants from the start. He would not stick with something that he did not want.”
The Dean's words made sense to Claire. Taleb had thrown the ice cream in the bin within seconds of finding out its calorie content. She thought it was a bit dramatic, but it showed how quick he was to get rid of something that he disliked. H
e had not even taken a second taste.
“I suppose you are right,” Claire said slowly.
“Brilliant!” the Dean replied, clapping his hands together. “Now, what’s on the agenda today? The library?” he asked, but it sounded more like a request.
“I guess so.”
“Good.” The Dean nodded and smiled. Claire sighed as she rose from her chair. “I shall wait for an update,” he added.
“So will I.” Claire really wanted that transfer. Now, more than ever.
“Until next time, Miss Anderson.”
“Goodbye.” She needed to sort herself out before meeting Taleb for another tour around campus. It was times like this that she wished Kim was nearby. Looking at her watch, she realized that it was still early; maybe some girl talk would put her in a better mood.
Chapter 7
Claire met Taleb outside the law library for their tour. She loved the library and spent most of her time there as an undergrad. It was her home away from home, as Kim called it. While Taleb may be passionate about museums and art, for Kim it was old libraries with heavy wood desks, row upon row of books, and the marvelous smell of musty antique paper.
They barely exchanged greetings as he had his head buried in his phone. Looking at him, he was again dressed in tailored slacks and a fitted polo shirt.
Since it was a warm day, instead of her usual baggy pants, she was wearing an old pair of jeans that she had cut off to make shorts and a long t-shirt. As she was running out the door, her hair had tumbled loose from her ponytail, so she decided to leave it down.
“At least you are punctual this time,” he said to her as she rolled her eyes at him.
“What is your obsession with time?”
“My time is precious and I cannot afford to have it wasted.”
“Time is to be enjoyed, not counted,” Claire countered.
Taleb looked at her for a second before ushering her into the large library. Walking into Langdell Hall, Claire began giving him the scripted tour that they give to all incoming students. As she walked him around, she talked about the history, the architecture and many of the university’s illustrious alumni. Walking past a series of Greek columns, Taleb looked up toward the ceiling.
“NON SVB HOMINE SED SVB DEO ET LEGE,” he read aloud as he puzzled over it.
“Not under man but God and Law,” Claire translated. “It’s attributed to the conference of James the First and the Judges of England. The outcome was that cases were to be decided by the courts and not by the King in person.”
“Did you learn that when you came to work here?” he asked.
“No, actually, in college. Here to be exact. Where I received dual bachelor degrees in legal studies and library science and graduated cum laude. I also had almost enough units to receive a minor in Latin, but I didn’t pursue it.”
“I’m impressed,” Taleb told her.
“You should be. If I didn’t have to work while I was in school, I might have made summa cum laude. There’s much more to Harvard than finding a wife, Taleb. You should stick around and find out.”
As the two walked past students, the women were obviously staring at Taleb. Some even greeted him, but he seemed lost in thought and ignored them. Claire shook her head.
“I am still not over the fact that you threw out your ice cream – perfectly good ice cream!”
“I already told you that there were too many calories in it,” he replied to her as she laughed. She had never met a guy who counted calories.
“Taleb, I am sure you could stand to have ice cream once in a while.”
“I have a strict diet. That is why my body is like this,” he responded as he gestured to his body and struck a pose.
Claire stopped and looked him up and down, seeming to scrutinize him from head to toe as he preened in front of her. While he was indeed impressive and seemingly every woman’s fantasy, including her own, she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of finding out how much she wanted to run her hands over his body or that he had already served as the leading man in some of her naughtier fantasies.
Shrugging her shoulders, “Eh, you look all right,” she told him before she quickly turned to continue their tour. She had to keep from laughing when she heard his sputter.
“Woman!” he began.
Unable to keep it inside her, Claire turned to face him as she continued to walk backwards. Grinning at him, her giggle turned into soft laughter as Taleb wagged his finger at her before chuckling.
“Okay, I admit it, you look good. But how is it that you’ve never had Ben and Jerry’s?”
“I had an… unusual childhood,” he said slowly. Claire raised her eyebrows. His vague answer made her more curious.
“How so?”
“My mother was only twenty-five when she died, leaving three young boys to be raised by my father, who was a strict disciplinarian,” Taleb ventured.
Claire gasped. “I am so sorry. Did he ever remarry?”
Shaking his head, “Oh no. He was…angry that she left us. We were expected to be men before we were ever boys. Life was about education, hard work and success.”
Claire tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, “My parents divorced when I was eight and I was raised by my father.”
“So, then you understand.”
Shrugging her shoulders, “Not really. I mean things were great in the beginning. I couldn’t understand why my mom…why my mom didn’t want me,” Claire paused. “But my dad was good to me. Great in fact,” she rushed on.
“Is that where you developed your love for this Ben and Jerry’s ice cream?”
“No, that came later. My dad remarried and instead of it being the three of us, my stepmom had me sent off to boarding school. I thought that when I got accepted to Harvard that my dad, you know, would be proud of me, but they didn’t even come to my graduation.” Claire hung her head.
Talib hooked a finger under her chin and tilted her head up, “We are much alike in many ways,” Taleb told her, his gaze intense.
“And we are also very different. For you, you want to control…everything. I’ve had to learn the hard way that when other people are involved, things rarely go my way.”
Narrowing his gaze, “Some things should be controlled,” he told her. “I cannot leave everything to chance.”
“Like finding a wife?”
Taleb ran his hand through his hair, “Life is too short and uncertain not to achieve all that you want.”
“And you want a western wife?”
“Yes, I do.”
“One that meets your ridiculously strict criteria.”
Taleb looked down at Claire. “Enough. As you have stated, while we may have both grown up without a mother, we are different people with different expectations. I want a wife by my twenty-fifth birthday and you want…ice cream.”
Fury began to simmer deep inside her as she stared at him open-mouthed. “You didn’t need to be insulting. And for the record, Kim spoke so highly of you, I just have to say that you are nothing like she described. In fact, you seem like an entirely different person. Good luck with the wife hunt.” Turning, Claire began to walk away.
Grabbing her arm, Taleb stopped her before she took two steps. “I apologize. I have much on my mind and I agree, I should not have insulted you. You have accomplished much with your life despite the lack of a mother.”
“I had Kim,” Claire said quietly warning herself not to sniffle in front of him.
Smiling at her, “And she is a wonderful influence on both of my brothers,” he told her, as she returned his smile. “Which is why I need to find a wife.”
“Before your twenty-fifth birthday.”
“Yes.”
“Which I’m presuming is soon.”
“Yes.”
“Well, it sounds like you have your work cut out for you.”
Chapter 8
That was the most real conversation they had ever had. Claire was surprised that he had opened up to her and ot
her than Kim; she had never shared her feelings about her father with anyone else until now. It was odd but she was enjoying talking to him.
As they stood at the top of the stairs on the mezzanine level looking out onto the main floor, Claire watched Malil jog up the steps toward them carrying some files.