Marrying the Sheikh (4 page)

“Ella,” he said, leaning in close.

She felt his hot breath on her cheek and realized she longed for what Nadia had. The tears sprang from the corners of her eyes as he spoke.

“What is it, Ella?” Karim said softly. He reached out a finger to wipe her tears away, but stopped himself. He pulled his hand back just as she opened her mouth to speak.

“She’s just so lucky to have someone who loves her so much,” Ella said, almost wailing the words as she spoke. “I see that all the time. It’s not all bad, you know. Not all the clients I have are jerks. Many of them are really, truly in love. When I work with those people who are head over heels, that's when I get sad.”

The tears fell quicker now and Karim felt his heart ache for Ella’s pain. He wanted to tell her not to think like that. He wanted to tell her that there was someone out there for her. He wanted to tell her, but he couldn’t.

“Even though I don’t know you and Nadia, I can tell that you love her very much,” Ella said. She cried softly, unable to stop the tears falling. She didn’t know why she was sharing all of this with Karim. Maybe it was the alcohol, maybe her fear of the storm. Maybe it was just that he was so damned easy to talk to.

Karim got up off the bed and began pacing the room.

“What is it?” Ella asked, confused at his reaction.

“It’s nothing,” he said curtly, avoiding eye contact.

Karim was pacing like a wild animal. He wanted to tell Ella everything. He wanted to be honest with her. There was something about her that made him want to be true, to bare all his secrets. But he knew he couldn’t. He had made a promise and he had sworn to keep that promise, no matter what.

Feeling frustrated and trapped, he took another long sip of his drink, racking his mind for a way to come clean with Ella and assuage her pain, without betraying his promise. The wind blew branches against the siding and Ella jumped. Karim saw her reaction and instinctively ran over to her.

“Are you okay?” he asked. The shutters banged loudly against the window and Ella’s body stiffened.

“Yeah,” she said. “If only it would stop storming.”

Karim’s heart jumped in his chest. He was so drawn to Ella, to her vulnerability, to her kindness. Then it came to him. He
could
be honest with her. At least, sort of honest.

“Ella,” he said as he sat back on the bed next to her. He breathed in the smell of her perfume and felt his skin prickle with goosebumps. God, she smelled so good. “Ella, I have to be honest with you,” he said, reminding himself of his limits. “Nadia and I aren’t in love.”

Ella blinked several times and looked at Karim in shock. “What?” she asked, wanting to believe him but not sure if she should. “You’re not in love?”

Karim settled back in on the bed next to her. “Yep, that’s right,” he said, feeling more relaxed than he had in a long time. “In fact, we don’t even really like each other.” His face lit up in a broad smile as he revealed the truth, much to Ella's confusion.

Ella sat up and looked at him, the tears dry on her cheeks. “What do you mean you don’t even like each other? But you’re getting married? I don't understand.”

Karim just nodded, giddy with delight at finally telling someone about his secret. “Yeah,” he said, still smiling. “The marriage is a sham. The whole thing.”

Ella’s face contorted as she took in this new information. They didn’t love each other? They didn’t even like each other! Then why on earth would they go to all the trouble of getting married?

Ella’s head spun with questions. Then, suddenly and uncomfortably, she remembered that it didn’t matter. Their reasons for getting married were none of her business. She wasn’t their adviser or relationship counselor. She wasn’t their moral judge. She was their wedding planner. That was it.

“I don’t understand, Karim,” she said quietly. She looked to Karim for an answer and got none. He just sat up and smiled.

“You don’t have to,” he said in an offhanded way. He knew what he had said was hurtful, but was getting desperate to change the subject. He had already revealed too much.

The situation was getting complicated and Karim needed a way out. He was feeling things for Ella that he hadn’t felt for any woman in a long time, and he knew he was dangerously close to crossing a line that he couldn’t let himself cross. Even though he didn’t want to, he knew he had to push Ella away.

SIX

They sat for a while in silence, sipping on their drinks and watching the candlelight dance on the walls of the hotel room. After several minutes, Karim stood up and headed out into the living room. He looked out through the sliding glass doors and listened for the wind, which had died down considerably.

Ella sat on the bed and looked up at him when he returned. “What is it?” she asked, breaking the silence.

“The storm has broken,” Karim said, his voice dull and distant.

Ella stepped out into the living room to see for herself; the wind was still blowing hard and she could see palm fronds and tree branches scattered across the beach. The surf was angry and smashing against the shore.

“It still looks pretty bad to me,” she said, pointing to the rain gushing down the sliding glass doors.

Karim looked at her with distant eyes. “I have to go. I have important engagements that I must attend to.”

His words were not questioning or informative. They were commanding; words that he would speak to a servant.

“Karim,” Ella said, trying to reach the kind, funny man she had been speaking to just an hour before. “It’s still really bad out there. The pilot said he can’t fly in this weather. It’s too dangerous.”

Karim ignored her words and walked to the bathroom to splash some water on his face. “I’m going. I have to get back.” He placed the drinks on the dresser and walked back to Ella in the living room. “I have to get back to New York. I’ll take a cab to the airport if I have to and then take a commercial flight. One way or another, I’m getting out of here; with or without you, Ella.”

Ella stood still and bristled from the harshness of his tone. She looked at his dark eyes and saw nothing but coldness in them. This couldn’t be the same man she was just laughing with, could it? Could this mean-spirited bully be the same man that had made her heart melt with his smile? Ella didn’t know where that Karim had gone. But she knew he wasn’t here right now.

“Okay then,” Karim said, not waiting for Ella to respond. “If that's how you want to play it, I’ll ask the driver to stay here and you can take the jet when the storm breaks.”

Karim walked out of the room and down the hall, back to the main lobby. The glass had been cleaned up and a piece of plywood was nailed against the broken window. Karim breezed past the front desk and stepped out onto the patio under the portico.

Ella caught up with him and saw the trees blowing in the wind. Branches slapped against the building and shutters flew wildly. The rain was still coming down and the wind had begun to pick up again.

“Karim!” she yelled over the sound of the wind. “Don’t go! It’s too dangerous!”

He kept walking to the main road, thinking he'd be able to hail a cab, as Ella called out behind him.

“Karim! There won’t be any taxis! Please, come back!” She ran to catch up with him. She knew he would have heard her voice through the wind, but he kept walking.

She moved quickly through the rain, trying to reach him before he got to the main road. The rain was pouring down, obscuring her vision. Her heels jabbed into the loose gravel as she ran, and branches were scurrying along the ground, threatening to trip her. She made her way down the driveway and came to a stop just beneath a large palm tree when she heard the crack.

The lightning lit up the dark sky and the sound of it hitting the tree was louder than anything Ella had ever heard. She turned to run back to the hotel and tripped over some debris caused by the downpour. She fell to the ground and grabbed her ankle, screaming in pain.

Karim heard the commotion and turned to see Ella on the floor. He watched as the top of the tree caught fire and saw the trunk split in two. He turned and ran back to Ella, scooping her up in his strong arms just as the palm fell to the ground below, barely missing them both.

Ella looked up through the rain and saw unmistakable worry in Karim’s expression. She felt her heart swell as she stared deeply into his eyes. He looked back at her, his tears mingling with the fresh rain, his heart clenched with worry.

Another loud clap of thunder jolted them both back to reality and Karim turned in the direction of the hotel. He held her tightly in his arms and ran through the rain back through the doors of the lobby. His staffer grabbed a handful of towels and blankets as Karim entered and placed Ella gently on one of the chairs.

“Quick,” Karim said, motioning to another chair. “Bring that over here.”

Djaron scooted the other chair into position so that Ella could rest her swollen ankle on the cushion. Karim looked down and saw the ankle swell up and turn purple in a matter of seconds.

“Djaron, go get a first aid kit, and some ice!” he commanded.

Djaron nodded and ran out of the lobby, returning moments later with a bucket of ice and a first aid kit.

Karim and Djaron attended to Ella’s leg as she winced in pain. They wrapped it with an elastic bandage and then poured ice into a towel and held it firmly against her leg to minimize the swelling.

“How does that feel?” Karim asked gently.

“It hurts,” Ella said, laughing a little.

“Do you want some aspirin?” Karim said.

“Another drink might do the trick,” she said, laughing.

Karim didn’t laugh but nodded to Djaron who disappeared into the bar. He returned with a shot glass and bottle of vodka.

Karim poured Ella a shot and she downed it quickly, letting the liquor warm her and numb the pain. She took another and settled back into the chair, careful not to move her injured leg.

One of the few staff members that remained picked up the drinks and first aid kit and took them back into the bar. Karim looked at Djaron and dismissed him with a brief nod, and within seconds, Ella and Karim were alone again.

“Thank you, Karim,” Ella said, her eyes closed against the pain in her ankle.

Karim blinked in disbelief. “For what?” he asked, the wind howling as he spoke.

“For saving me,” she said slowly as she opened her eyes and locked them with his.

He felt his heart pound as he looked at her. “No,” he said, steeling his jaw. “It was my fault. I’m to blame.”

Ella shook her head. “Don’t be silly.”

Anger rose in Karim as he spoke. “No,” he went on with heat in his voice. “If it weren’t for me being so pigheaded, you never would have been out in that storm!”

Ella looked at him, her expression soft. “Karim,” she said, reaching out to touch his hand. “It’s not your fault.”

Karim snatched his hand away. He would hear none of it. “No,” he said again as he stood up. “I’m sorry, Ella. I’m the reason you got hurt because I’m the reason you came here at all. It’s all my fault.”

Karim turned and called for Djaron. “I'll get us some rooms because it looks like we won’t be going anywhere tonight. Please attend to Ella while I'm gone.” He paused for a second, before adding “Goodnight, Ella.”

He turned and walked out of the lobby. Ella watched him leave, unsure of what to do. She had heard the words he spoke, but she didn’t believe them. It wasn’t Karim’s fault that she got hurt. It was just a storm. It was an accident. As she was thinking about what to say to him, a wave of exhaustion came over her.

“Thank you, Djaron,” she said warmly. “I really appreciate your help.”

Djaron smiled at Ella and sat with her until her room was ready. He helped her to her room and got her settled in as the storm continued to rage outside.

After she was settled in, Djaron bid her goodnight and left her alone. Dinner had been brought up to the room, but Ella was too tired to eat. She looked at the food on the tray and then put the lid back on it. The pain in her ankle was fierce, but Djaron had assured her that it was only a sprain. She hoped that the swelling would go down by the morning.

Ella got undressed and hobbled over to the bed. She pulled back the luxurious bedding and slipped under the covers, letting her head sink into the deep pillows. She closed her eyes and listened as the rain and wind pummeled the side of the building. Thoughts of Karim filled her head.

It had been a long time since Ella had been seriously involved with a man. She had had one boyfriend in high school, but that only lasted a year. Then in college, Ella focused so much on her grades and classes that she found little time for dating. Even at Munford, she'd thought it unwise to get involved with any of her male colleagues, and she'd had little time outside of work to meet anybody.

It was only when she had started her own business that Ella felt she could afford to date. But meeting men in the wedding planning business was hard. Most of the guys she dealt with were either married, about to be married, or gay. And she knew better than to date a groomsman. She had tried that once, even waiting until after the wedding to do so. But it still ended terribly, and the last thing she needed was a previous client to spread rumors about her dating the wedding party. Those weren’t the kind of referrals Ella wanted.

She let her mind drift as the vodka worked on the throbbing pain in her ankle. She thought back to the time she had spent on the plane with Karim and how easy he was to be around. She played back in her head the moment when the two of them had walked into the grand ballroom, and the hours they had spent enjoying drinks in the bar. She let her thoughts take her back to their time on the bed with the candles glowing softly in the background. The flickering candles and the storm raging outside made it a perfectly romantic setting. She just wished it could have lasted a little longer.

No, thought Ella. She knew better than that. Even though Karim had told her that there was no love between him and Nadia, she was still responsible for planning their wedding.
Why?
she wondered. Why would they want to get married if they weren’t in love? Sometimes weddings were arranged to satisfy the financial interests of the families. But both Karim and Nadia were from incredibly wealthy backgrounds. There would be no need for such an arrangement.

Pregnant!
The thought jumped into Ella's mind and caused her to sit straight up in bed. Nadia must be pregnant! That was the only explanation. Why else would Karim, such a nice, kind and loving man want to be with someone who seemed so cold? There could be no other explanation.

Ella felt her heart sink as the realization of the situation hit her. Even though Karim didn’t love Nadia, she was having his baby, and the child would be a royal heir to the kingdom of Al-Ibran. There was no way Karim would abandon Nadia now. Even if they did get divorced at some point, if that was even allowed, Karim would forever be involved with Nadia.

The thought of Karim spending his time with Nadia and their unborn baby caused something to tighten around Ella’s heart.

“It figures,” she said out loud. “I finally meet someone who is nice, sweet, good-looking and he’s getting married!”

She fell back against the pillows and breathed slowly as the wind died down around the hotel. She fell asleep to thought of her and Karim in a custody battle with Nadia. She woke several times during the night, always returning back to a fitful sleep filled with dreams about Karim, Al-Ibran, and a future she would never get to experience.