by Leslie North
Shaking his head, he wondered at the petty behavior of the other students. What was it that seemed to upset them the most? Her actions did not affect anyone other than herself, what business was it of theirs who she slept with. Ignoring the whispers and stares, he briefly wondered if this was what Claire saw when they were out together.
Chapter 16
The night of the charity gala dinner had arrived and Taleb wished that Claire was there to join him, but she had yet to return his calls and no one would give him any information at the library. Dressed in a tailored grey Armani suit that matched his eyes and a crisp white shirt, Malil chose to dress all in black and the two were a formidable pair as they walked into the ballroom.
Looking around at all the finely dressed people, many of whom looked like they’d be more comfortable dressed the way Claire preferred, casual and comfortable, as opposed to the elegant dresses and formal suits. Taleb once again wished that Claire was on his arm.
“Will you bid on anyone?” Taleb asked Malil, as he watched several women parade past them, tilting their heads to look at the two men.
“No.” Malil shook his head.
“Why not?” His friend had a tendency to be stiff and unpredictable.
“I have not seen anyone I would like to bid on.”
“Fair enough.” Taleb patted Malil on the shoulder. He looked up and saw Dean Parker approaching him with a big smile on his face. Taleb narrowed his gaze slightly. He was never keen on speaking to him because the Dean always appeared too eager.
“Sheik Sharqi, what an honor it is to have you here,” the Dean told him a little too loudly, as he held out his hand to shake. “I can’t tell you how appreciative we are for your family’s sizable donation to our university. Those funds will be put to excellent use.” Taleb reluctantly shook his hand and resisted the urge to wipe his hand on his pants after.
“Thank you,” he replied.
“Are you enjoying yourself?”
“So far, yes.”
A server approached them with a tray of Champagne glasses as each man took a glass.
“This is our fifth charity auction and they’ve been highly successful in the past.” Holding his glass up, “Here’s to a great night,” he toasted as Malil and Taleb looked at each other.
“Cheers,” they both said reluctantly. The Dean started telling them about what he planned to do with the money from the current donation drives.
Taleb was glad that it was time for dinner as he had long since grown bored listening to the Dean. He sat at a large round table with Malil and several wealthy alumni who peppered him with questions about himself, his studies and his family. They were all fascinated by him, which had him wishing for Claire’s company. While she may talk too much at times, he was never bored around her.
“I have never met a sheik before,” one of the women said to him, breaking him from his thoughts of Claire, as she attempted to flirt with him.
Taleb never knew how best to respond as it often turned into a cultural lesson when he had to explain that only tourists rode camels, everyone else drove cars. Malil always got a kick out of the odd questions people would ask and enjoyed teasing Taleb for being so unfriendly, but he knew that he was the same. That was why they got along so well.
“Isn't this your lucky day?” Malil asked her as he winked. The woman laughed and placed her hand on her chest.
“It is indeed,” she said and blushed.
After the dinner, servers cleared all the dishes and passed out auction paddles with numbers on them. A woman in a long green evening gown introduced herself as Cindy Nichols, Harvard University’s Treasurer.
She spent a few moments explaining the process and thanking all the students who agreed to participate in such a worthy cause. Then, she started the auction and bidders eagerly raised their paddles as they bid.
Taleb could see the Dean out of the corner of his eye practically vibrating with excitement each time the auction hammer would go down signaling a final bid. Finally, Zoe Donahue came on stage. She was dressed in a silver halter neck dress that complemented her skin tone and figure. She had her blonde hair styled elegantly into a side braid that draped around her head reminding Taleb of a painting of Aphrodite he had seen at a gallery in Florence.
She was stunning as she stood there with such poise. No wonder the professor could not resist her. In fact, she was everything he was looking for in a future wife and Taleb did not know why he had not seen it when they were in class together. She was perfect.
“This is Miss Zoe Donahue. She is originally from Austin, Texas, she is twenty-two, and in her first year of law school. The winner will be treated to a picnic lunch made by Miss Donahue. Let’s start the bidding at one hundred dollars,” Cindy began.
No paddles were raised and the only sounds that could be heard were the sounds of shuffling as attendees shifted in their seats.
Looking around the room, Cindy’s smile faltered as she called out, “How about fifty dollars? Can we start the bidding at fifty dollars?” But no one responded.
Taleb watched Zoe's face drop. He remembered her talking about her fear of not being bid on. Looking around, he saw some of the female guests whispering about her. Some seemed to enjoy her humiliation.
“Going once, twice-” Before Cindy could end the auction on Zoe, Taleb raised his paddle.
“Ten thousand dollars,” he called out as a collective gasp swept through the room and Zoe looked up in surprise.
“Ten thousand dollars to bidder number forty-six. Going once, twice? That is ten thousand dollars for Miss Zoe Donahue.”
Taleb put his paddle down as Malil looked at him. “Well that was an interesting move,” he told him.
“I detest petty behavior,” Taleb responded.
The last girl came on stage and the bidding on her began. “Three hundred,” Malil called out. Taleb whipped his head in his direction. A bidding war ensued with the auction closing at five thousand dollars. Taleb was surprised that Malil was the highest bidder.
“Well that was an interesting move,” Taleb said to him.
Malil didn’t say a word, his eyes were fixed on the girl on the stage.
“I didn’t expect that from you,” he prodded when he did not answer the first time.
“There is something… captivating about her.”
Taleb raised his eyebrow at him but didn’t say another word as he rose to his feet to go speak with Zoe. Her face lit up when she saw him approaching her. “Taleb, hi,” she called out and extended her arms to him. He allowed her to hug him, as she whispered in his ear, “I can’t thank you enough for bidding on me. You saved me from even more humiliation.”
“Hello, Miss Donahue, you look lovely this evening,” he told her as he stepped back.
“Thank you.” Zoe smiled and rubbed his arm. “I did not expect you to bid on me, especially at such a high price,” she said in a louder voice as those nearby turned to listen to their conversation.
“The charity auction was for a good cause and you are most definitely worth the price.”
Zoe laughed as Taleb smiled at her. A server approached them with glasses of Champagne. “No, thank you,” Zoe told her, shaking her head.
“You do not like Champagne?” Taleb asked.
“I prefer red wine.”
“A glass of red wine for the lady then,” Taleb said to the server.
“Yes, sir.”
“You are such a gentleman.” Zoe rubbed Taleb's arm again.
“I try.” He smiled at her as they chatted about different things. He was surprised to find out that she spoke Arabic fluently and had visited his country as a child. He could not believe how much they had in common.
She really was the ideal candidate to become his wife, as he wondered why Malil did not bring her name up earlier. Perhaps it was the stigma associated with her affair; he would have to ask him about it later.
As they talked, while part of him kept trying to concentrate on the very beautiful Zoe, h
is mind kept wandering back to Claire. Why hadn’t she returned his calls? Why did she leave without saying anything? He had so much that he wanted to share with her, where was she?
Chapter 17
Claire was enjoying her new job in the research library at MIT. After sneaking away from Taleb that morning, she’d wandered aimlessly around campus too wrapped up in her thoughts to go home. She ended up at the Commons and overheard two staff members discussing an opening in a library at MIT.
Well, if the Dean wasn’t going to put a transfer through for her, maybe she could find a position on her own. Rushing home, she quickly showered, changed into something presentable and drove over to the university to speak to the head librarian who was pleased to take her on immediately.
Since the law library had yet to find a replacement for her, she agreed to work the night of the Gala, as she was sure that no one would show up that she didn’t want to see. While she felt guilty avoiding Taleb, she knew that it was for the best.
She had fallen for him and she needed to put as much distance between them as possible to avoid her heart breaking. She was glad that he intended to return home after securing a bride because she really wasn’t sure how much longer she could avoid him. Several of the staff members had told her that both he and Malil had been to the library looking for her.
Claire stood behind the reception desk processing book requests when two of her coworkers walked into the library.
“Claire, you cannot believe what just happened,” Tracy, another librarian, said excitedly as they approached her.
“What?” Claire asked, stacking books into a pile.
“The auction made a splash,” Martha, another librarian, told her
“What do you mean? What happened?” Claire was suddenly intrigued.
“Zoe Donahue was the talk of the event.”
Claire rolled her eyes. It was bad enough that Zoe was everything Claire wasn’t, she had to steal her boyfriend, Daniel, too.
“Must we discuss her?” Claire mumbled under her breath.
“Well, she was part of the auction,” Martha began.
“Was she now?” Claire asked sarcastically.
“Yes, and she received the highest bid.”
Claire turned to check out a student’s books so the women couldn’t see how much talking about Zoe affected her.
“Guess how high.” Tracy said to her.
“How high?”
“Ten thousand dollars.”
Claire raised her eyebrows. “That is a lot of money. Who was it?” she asked.
“The new hot guy; Taleb Sharqi,” Martha said. Claire shook her head. There was no way Martha had just said Taleb. No way, it couldn’t be.
“Who?” Claire wanted to hear it again to make sure.
“Sheik Taleb Sharqi, the cute Middle Eastern guy,” Tracy told her.
Claire was speechless. Of all the guys at the university, it had to be Taleb who bid on Zoe. She felt as though someone had stabbed her in the chest. The same woman that had slept with her boyfriend was the same one that Taleb bid on and won.
The fact that Zoe was a tall, blonde with blue eyes did not help the situation. She fit Taleb's damn criteria perfectly, and this time she was not there to change his mind. She was also from a rich family. She was exactly what Taleb wanted.
“She doesn't deserve him,” Martha stated, noticing the change in Claire’s mood.
No, she freaking does not! Claire wanted to yell but she had to keep her cool. Once again, she was on the sidelines while someone was chosen instead of her. Why was it that she was always the last one to be picked? First, her mother gave up custody of her to her father, then her father chose his new wife over her, then Daniel and now….
No no no no no, Claire repeated over and over in her head, feeling a knot rise in her stomach. She knew damn well that she was never going to be with Taleb but why did it have to be Zoe who got him?
“She is nothing but a whore,” Tracy commented smugly.
“He is still new, that's why he bid on her. He doesn't know what kind of woman she is but he will soon find out,” Martha added.
“Everyone deserves a clean slate,” Claire said as she ran her hand through her hair.
“Not this girl and not right now. What she did was despicable,” Tracy stated vehemently. Claire was lucky to have such nice coworkers. They had been there for her when she found out about Zoe and Daniel and even shunned her for Claire's sake.
“Are you going to be alright?” Martha asked her as she looked at her with concern. Claire nodded.
“I have to finish up here and then I’m done for the night.”
“Are you sure?” Tracy asked.
“Definitely.”
Martha and Tracy rubbed Claire's shoulder before they left. Claire couldn’t understand why she was so mad at Taleb. He had done nothing wrong and she knew that she wasn’t wife material when she slept with him. She just wished that he would find someone other than Zoe Donahue. Anyone else.
Chapter 18
It had been two days since the charity dinner and Taleb was getting ready for his picnic lunch date with Zoe. She was simply stunning. Even though she had slept with her professor and was the talk of the campus, Taleb did not mind being seen with her. She was easy to talk to and she was friendly. He was intrigued to find out more about her.
As Taleb finished dressing, he looked at his bed and remembered the night of passion he shared with Claire. She had shown him that there was more to a relationship than a list, but more importantly, he missed spending time with her. When she had disappeared on him, he wanted to call Kim to find out what happened, but he wasn’t ready to share his feelings about her with anyone.
Where was she? It was so strange that Claire had disappeared right after they had made love. Usually women did not want to leave; she was the first to sneak out in the morning like a thief. Having been raised by a father who tended to view women with disdain, Taleb was not one to chase the same woman, but he could not stop thinking about her.
“Taleb?” Malil knocked on the door causing him to snap out of his thoughts.
“Come in,” he called out. Malil opened the door and popped his head in.
“Your car is ready.”
“Okay.” Taleb nodded as he followed Malil out.
Taleb arrived at the location where he was meeting Zoe moments later. She was already there waiting for him and had laid out what looked to be an elaborate picnic lunch. She stood up when she saw him pull to the curb and waved. She was wearing a knee length white dress and platform heels.
Her long blonde hair was draped around her shoulders and hung down her back in waves. She looked lovely. Taleb couldn't help but notice that she was not only punctual but prepared. The first time he had met Claire, she was late and he was forced to wait for her.
“Hello, Zoe,” Taleb said as he joined her.
“Hi,” she replied cheerily. Taleb kissed both her cheeks before they both sat down on the blanket she had laid out.
“How are you?”
“I am fine, and you?”
“I am well.”
Looking out along the water, Taleb realized that they were picnicking near where he had been kayaking with Claire. He smiled when he remembered the look on her face when he splashed her back.
Turning his attention back to Zoe, he accepted the appetizers she offered him along with a glass of wine. As they chatted, he couldn't help but wonder why Zoe had an affair with her professor. The more he got to know her, the more it seemed very out of character. She seemed different from what people were saying about her.
“Zoe, if I may ask you something?” he asked.
“Sure.”
“Why did you have an affair with your professor?”
Zoe shrugged her shoulders as she lifted her head to look at him. “Because you cannot control who you love,” she said simply. Her words hit him hard. He felt like all the air has been sucked out of his lungs as the words repeated in his head. You cann
ot control who you love.
He had been trying so hard to control everything about his search for the perfect wife that he left out one important criterion -- love.
All this time, Claire was in his heart and he had not even noticed. She was different from all the other women that he had met. She was fun, carefree and loved to laugh. How had it taken him this long to realize that the perfect wife for him had been standing in front of him all that time?