Marrying the Sheikh

“It’s a girl! And she’s perfect!”

“Oh my gosh!” Trent cried when he saw his daughter. He kissed Hannah and held onto her hand, tears forming in his eyes as he gazed at his new baby.

Ella stood perfectly still, shaking at the enormity of what had just taken place. “She’s, she’s amazing…” she said softly, unable to put words to the miracle that she saw in front of her.

“I want to hold her,” Hannah said, pulling her hand out of Trent’s and reaching for her baby. The doctor clamped the umbilical cord and the nurses cleaned and swaddled the little girl. A few seconds later, a clean and fresh baby was nestled snugly in her mother’s arms.

“She’s so beautiful,” Hannah said through her tears.

“She is, she's just perfect,” said Ella, unable to control her emotions as her own eyes filled with tears of joy for her friend. They sat in silence, just looking at the child as she wriggled in Hannah’s arms.

Trent reached down and picked her up, holding her close as he spoke. “Well hello, Jessica, my beautiful little girl!” He kissed her rosy skin and smiled down at her.

Ella wasn't sure how much time passed as she stood gazing at the new family, then Trent looked up at her.

“Do you want to hold her?” he asked.

Ella looked at Trent and then at Hannah. Of course she wanted to hold her! She nodded through her tears and held her arms out.

Trent placed the little bundle in Ella’s arms and she wrapped her hands around the child. Her heart filled with emotions she couldn’t describe as she stared down at Jessica, unable to take her eyes off of the beautiful little girl in her arms. Ella instinctively rocked back and forth and began cooing to the baby. A few moments later she handed Jessica back to her parents.

Ella hugged Trent and then leaned in and kissed Hannah on the cheek. “I’ll leave you guys alone,” she said, smiling. She walked over to the door and turned back for one more look. She saw Trent, sitting on the edge of the bed with his arm wrapped around Hannah. His eyes moved from Hannah to Jessica and were glistening with joy.

“I love you,” he said to Hannah, leaning down to kiss her on the lips.

She turned her tear stained face to meet his. “I love you so much,” she said, reaching up to take his face in her hands. They pressed their foreheads together and smiled, looking down at the new life they had created.

Ella felt her heart tumble over with joy. She walked out of the room, closed the door behind her and then leaned against it, letting the whole experience sink in. She felt her body shiver with happiness for her friends, gratitude that their baby had come out okay. She closed her eyes and felt so much joy for what they had. They had real, true love, the kind of love that fairy tales are made of, the kind of love in the old movies that she loved to watch. They had the love that she wanted, that she longed for with Karim.

NINETEEN

The early arrival of Jessica threw the plans for the baby shower into high gear. Not only did Ella need to move it up a week, she also needed to re-do everything in a baby girl theme. As soon as she got home from the hospital, Ella dove into the details of reorganizing the shower.

The next couple of weeks were a flurry of activity. When Ella wasn’t meeting with prospective clients or with Corinne, she was tending to the details of the baby shower or spending time with Hannah and Jessica. She left the house early every morning and didn’t return until late in the evening. The days flew by and Ella had all but forgotten about Karim until one morning when she got a frantic call from Nadia, just as she was heading to a prospective client’s home.

“Ella,” Nadia’s slurring voice panted through the phone. “Ella, you have to come here immediately!”

Ella didn’t recognize the voice at first. “Who is this?” she asked, trying to place the demanding tone with one of her many past clients.

“It’s Nadia! Who else would it be?!”

Ella felt the heat rise in her face. “Nadia?” What on earth could she want? And why was she so upset?

“Yes, you must come here right away!” Nadia commanded again.

“Whoa, Nadia, slow down. Where are you and what’s wrong?” Ella tried to remain calm and controlled as she pushed back the emotions that were rising up in her.

She could hear Nadia’s sigh through the phone. “I’m at the Plaza! There’s an emergency! I need you now!”

Ella racked her brain. The Plaza? Suddenly she remembered the date. It was Karim's wedding day. And here Nadia was, calling Ella. What could have happened? What type of emergency could there be? Ella quickly let her imagination get the best of her. Perhaps Karim had called off the wedding!