by Holly Rayner
It was not his most endearing quality.
She washed up and slid into her dress, eating a protein bar as she headed out the door, purse on her shoulder, ready for adventure. She felt lighthearted and giddy, trying to take in the fact that she might have very little work to do over the next eight hours. What a concept!
As she stepped into the lobby and out the door, she was surprised to see a long, black limo parked by the curb. The driver stood at the door waiting for her, and he pulled it open as she approached. Bahir was grinning at her from the inside.
“I thought you said you’d pick me up in the car,” she said, staring pointedly at the elaborately stretched limousine.
Bahir shrugged, his grin infectious.
Nicole crossed her arms and tried to look annoyed, but by his expression she could tell it wasn’t working.
“This is a car, it’s just a little longer. If we’re going to take time off, we might as well do it in style!”
Nicole sighed. “You are nothing if not subtle, Mr. Al-Jabbar,” she said, sliding into the limo and sitting across from Bahir, who was already pouring two glasses of champagne. She was surprised to see him looking casual in slacks and a T-shirt, when she had never seen him without an immaculately tailored suit on. It suited him, she thought.
He handed her a glass flute as the limo pulled away, and she took it, purposely avoiding his fingers.
He held up his own glass to her. “Cheers, to a day off!” he said, and Nicole clinked her glass against his, unsure of how to handle this version of Bahir. She had never seen him like this. He was so involved in his work that she had never even considered that he might know how to enjoy himself.
“Cheers,” she agreed, taking a sip of the bubbly drink, and feeling excited.
She gazed out the windows as the city passed them by, before looking back at Bahir, whose gaze darted away from her. “How much are you thinking about work right now?” she asked with a teasing gleam in her eye.
Bahir cleared his throat. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, his glance darting left and right, then finally down at his pocket, where his smartphone was tucked away.
Nicole peered at him over the rim of her glass as she sipped on the drink. “You’re wondering how many emails you have this morning, aren’t you?” she asked.
Bahir huffed, though the sound was playful. “I’ll have you know I woke up early and checked my email already, so today’s business has already been dealt with.”
“But now you’re wondering what they’ve said back. Has that task been completed? Is the next contract ready? What other slave work can I get Nicole to perform?”
“Slave work!” Bahir laughed, setting his drink on one knee. “Finally, she speaks the truth! I knew you couldn’t keep your silence about the stresses of this job forever. You, Nicole, are a gem,” he said, taking another sip.
With a fairly empty stomach, Nicole could already feel the alcohol taking effect, and she set her glass down. There was no way she would ruin her only day off by getting too drunk to enjoy it. Her mind drifted to her other potential job offer, but she brushed the thought aside. No need to think about that on a day like today.
“So, are you going to check it?” Nicole asked.
“Check what?” Bahir said.
“Your email.”
“Oh. No…” he said, his gaze darting back down to his pocket, the expression of longing evident on his face.
“I won’t judge you, you know.”
“But then no one can say that I can have fun, too,” he said.
“I won’t tell,” Nicole replied.
A look of relief washed over Bahir’s face as he pulled out his phone, unlocking the screen.
“It’ll only be a moment,” he said, his expression apologetic.
Nicole wondered why he would even feel the need to apologize. After all, she was in his employee. Doing some work on the way there was in no way untoward. She watched him as he scanned through emails, opening them up and typing lengthy answers with his thumbs.
His face had relaxed as he focused on the many projects he was juggling at once, and Nicole smiled to herself as she gazed out the window once again.
The crystal-clear waters of the Persian Gulf sparkled in the sunlight as they drove down a long stretch of highway along the coast. Buildings became sparser, in favor of desert countryside dotted with palm trees. Bahir continued to work in silence for a while longer before he finally put down his phone and took another sip of champagne. When he glanced over at Nicole, she wore a bemused expression as she stared at her own phone.
“What is it?” he said, and she looked up at him.
“You wouldn’t happen to know a woman named Cassandra, would you?” she asked, and Bahir frowned.
“Maybe. Why?” he asked, cautious.
Nicole smirked. “For some reason she thinks that she can schedule an appointment with you at your office this afternoon. It says, and I quote, ‘Bahir is expecting me for a very important business meeting, and it is imperative that you schedule me in this afternoon. Please advise as soon as this is scheduled.’”
Nicole looked up at Bahir, waiting for him to answer, and he squirmed under her stare.
“All right, all right, so we kind of dated. I don’t think we’re dating anymore, but apparently she disagrees.”
“Bahir,” Nicole said, her voice admonishing. “Not another one.”
“Another one! I haven’t dated that many women, Nicole,” he said, defensive.
Nicole held up a hand and started counting them on her fingers. “There was that Australian woman, the one who you asked me to send flowers to, and write the break up card for, if I remember correctly. Ah yes, she threw a rock at my window after tracing the address back to our building. That was fun. Then there was the woman from Hong Kong. She was a real treat. Now it would seem dear Cassandra is not taking the boot very well either. I wonder what she’ll decide to throw at my window when I tell her there will be no meeting today?”
Bahir smirked, his expression guilty. “I do find it a bit of a struggle to hold down a healthy relationship,” he admitted, and Nicole grinned.
“Maybe stop dating crazy people, and then you might find a good match.”
“I don’t think I have a good match,” he said, his expression suddenly serious.
Nicole’s eyebrows furrowed. “What are you talking about? You’re a rich, handsome businessman. You’re everyone’s type.”
“Maybe…but no one is my type. You more than anyone should know that love involves more than money and good looks. It requires someone you can confide in. Someone that accepts your lifestyle. No woman is willing to accept this part of me,” he said, waving at his phone.
It was true that Bahir probably spent fourteen to sixteen hours of every day working, rather than sleeping or going out with friends or living a life. He spent his life in the office, and Nicole could see how that would get in the way of romance.
“Maybe you should consider giving some of it up,” she said, and Bahir looked aghast.
“I beg your pardon?” he said.
Nicole shrugged her shoulders. “Something’s gotta give, right? If you want someone willing to give you their time, to love you as you deserve to be loved, then you should be willing to provide the same. If your business is your biggest love, then you shouldn’t bother wasting these girls’ time. It’s an empty promise.”
Bahir stared at her then, until she had to look away. When she glanced back at him, he said, “You’re very annoying. Do you know that?”
“I’ve been told so by my brother from time to time,” she said, excited that she’d just created a reason to talk about her brother.
“No, but really, when did you get so honest? And how do you know so much about relationships? I’ve never once seen you with a man, or known you taking time off to go on a date.”
This time it was Nicole’s turn to squirm.
She held her phone back up and clicked Reply. “I
guess I’ll just tell Cassandra that you’ll be unable to meet with her for an indefinite amount of time then, shall I?”
“You’re deflecting.”
“Yep,” she said, her fingers tapping out the message that would continue to break Cassandra’s heart, wherever she was. Nicole hated being the bearer of bad news, at least in this realm. At least in law there were reasons to back up one’s case. Just because my boss doesn’t feel like it anymore didn’t ring as true as something she could look up in a book to use for leverage.
She finished typing out her email and tapped Send, looking out the window to avoid talking about relationships anymore.
Nicole had dated in the past, of course. She’d had a wonderful college boyfriend who had landed a job in New York just as she was offered hers in Seattle. The break up was amicable, if sad. It was one of the reasons she deeply abhorred silence. There were too many things to think about, and taking a break allowed for that to happen. Even now, as they drove through the beautiful countryside, she was already allowing those thoughts to invade.
She glanced over to Bahir, who had taken her cue and hopped back onto his phone to follow up on more emails. What did he think about in his own free time? Probably just work, she thought wryly, gazing back out the window as a small fishing village appeared ahead. The waters were crystal clear, little boats dancing along the waves as fishermen made their daily catches. It was so peaceful compared to the hustle and bustle of the city.
The limo squeezed between cars on winding country roads until it pulled over by the docks and Bahir looked up from his phone.
“Ah, we’re here!” he exclaimed, his eyes lighting up.
It was a whole other side to Bahir that Nicole had only ever caught glimpses of. This was going to be one interesting day.
The driver opened the door, and Nicole slid out, breathing in the scent of sea air and fresh fish. It was a salty combination, but one she found she enjoyed. It reminded her of the pier back home.
Bahir slid out after her and stretched his arms high into the air, some of his tanned, flat stomach peeking out from his raised shirt.
Nicole looked away, not wanting to gawk.
“Let’s go check out the sights!” Bahir said, striding off down the dock without waiting for Nicole to catch up. She was used to this, of course. He did it every time he left a meeting or decided he had something more important to do than whatever he was working on at the moment. She caught up to him easily, falling in stride by his side.
The bay was bustling with fishermen and townsfolk buying their wares. Most of the people seemed not to notice them, but they had only been walking for a few minutes when an older woman bustled up to Bahir and grasped his hand, speaking to him in rapid Arabic.
Nicole watched as he smiled warmly at the woman, placing his other hand around hers, and speaking to her in his native language. It was fascinating to watch. Nicole had heard Bahir speak Arabic a few times before, but generally he tended to conduct business only in English.
He turned to Nicole and in English, he said, “This is my associate, Nicole Calvert. Nicole, this fine woman is Akilah. She owns a little restaurant not far from here that my family and I used to frequent when I was a child.”
Nicole waved, and the woman smiled.
“Hello,” Nicole said.
“It is a pleasure to meet anyone who is a friend of the Sheikh. Please, you would honor me by coming to the restaurant and having a bite. The food is just as delicious as you will remember, I am certain! My husband is still the chef,” she said with a wide grin. She was missing a few teeth, and her skin was deeply wrinkled with old age, but her youthful exuberance shone through.
As if on cue, Nicole’s stomach rumbled at the thought of food. Her face turned bright red, and there was a pause as she glanced from Bahir to Akilah, then the two of them burst out laughing.
The woman gestured for them to follow her. “You have already answered my question. Come, follow me. Don’t get lost in the crowd!”
Bahir turned back to look at Nicole with a glint of humor shining in his eyes. He was way more handsome like this, she thought, when he was relaxed and having fun.
Nicole found herself seeing Bahir in a totally different light, and tried to remember that he was her boss, and that this was only a snapshot in time. The next day he would likely be right back to business as usual.
He held out his hand for her to take. “No getting lost,” he said, his gaze full of challenge.
Was it appropriate to hold the hand of her employer? Glancing down at his outstretched hand, Nicole found that in that moment she really didn’t care. Let tomorrow come when it came, and today would be a fond memory she could hold onto when the work got overwhelming once again.
She placed her hand in his, and felt a small shock of electricity shoot straight to her heart.
Bahir didn’t seem to notice. He grasped her hand and led her through the busy streets, trying to keep an eye on Akilah as she pressed on toward a small white building off the main road.
The restaurant was filled with locals, though it didn’t feel crowded; just comfortable. Akilah led them to a table near a corner and gestured for them to sit down.
“Sit, sit! I will bring you some bread and oil while Abdul cooks you up some of our best delicacies!”
A young woman in a purple hijab approached the table with some glasses of water.
“Bahir, this is my daughter, Farah. She is very pretty, yes?” Akilah said.
The girl blushed as she peered at Bahir from beneath lowered lashes, and he gave her his most debonair smile.
“It’s nice to meet you, Farah,” he said, accepting a glass from her.
The girl set down Nicole’s glass with a curious stare before returning all her attention back to Bahir.
This was another thing Nicole had gotten used to. One didn’t spend time in the company of an eligible bachelor and not get accustomed to being completely ignored at every turn. That was just part of the job description.
Akilah spent another minute praising her daughter before they both left the table. Farah returned shortly after with a basket of bread and a shy smile for Bahir.
“Do you ever get used to it?” Nicole asked, tearing off a piece of warm flatbread and dipping it in oil before taking a bite.
Akilah was right. The food was delicious. Of course, the fact that Nicole was starving and rarely ate an actual meal could have also contributed to that fact.
Bahir looked at her, taking his own piece of bread. “Used to what?” he asked, tucking in.
Nicole blinked, trying not to get lost as she gazed at him. “The adoring public. Being treated like a god everywhere you go.”
Bahir scoffed, taking another bite and swallowing. “I am not treated like a god. People are simply nice to me. They always have been.”
“Are you really so naïve as to think that it’s because people are inherently kind?”
“What, you think people are inherently evil?” he countered.
Nicole frowned. “I think people are born with the capacity to be good or evil, and each person makes that choice over and over again as they age. Saying that, I don’t think you see how much better you are treated than the general public.”
Bahir shrugged. “Well, I’m not the general public, am I? I was born into privilege and with that comes a certain level of treatment. That is not my fault, and I think that in turn I am kind to those around me, wouldn’t you agree?”
Nicole thought about that for a moment. It was true that while Bahir was generally treated better because of his good looks and status, he had never really taken advantage of the fact. He hadn’t let it get to his head so much that he treated others poorly, knowing that they had to be nice to him either way. In spite of being born into wealth and building an empire, Bahir wasn’t a snob.
“How did you manage it?” she asked, unable to resist prying a little.
“What, being kind? Not everyone who comes from money is a jerk, Nicole. Now who’s th
e snob?”
“Just speaking from my own experience,” she said, tearing off another mouthful of bread.
It was nice getting to know Bahir—the real Bahir, behind the businessman—and she found herself greedy to know more. Before she could ask another question, however, Farah and Akilah were back with plates full of hot, fragrant food.
“You will love this, I assure you,” Akilah said with a big smile. She patted her daughter on the shoulder before they left Bahir and Nicole to eat again, and Nicole tried her best to be as delicate as possible as she scarfed down the best meal she’d had in months.