Sold To The Sheikh Bidder

Lauren barely rolled her eyes at his weak joke. “I’m serious, Hakim. How do we make a relationship work? You and my mother can’t stand each other. How can we even start a relationship knowing that there’s all this bad blood between the two of you?”

“That’s business. It’s completely separate from you and me.”

Lauren pushed back from him. “It’s not separate. You bought me at an auction, at my own party, simply to spite my mother. You’re right about one thing—when she finds out about that, she will flip. And I don’t know how we come back from that beginning.”

Hakim cast about for the right thing to say. He did see the feud with Patricia as business, but Lauren’s point was valid. He was the one who had furthered a business rivalry with a personal insult. Maybe if he’d met Lauren under different circumstances—at a bar, at a work event—they might have hit it off.

No, they would have hit it off, he was sure. Once he’d gotten to know Lauren the tiniest bit, he’d liked her, and that would have been the same no matter how or when he’d met her.

Hakim took a breath and thought about what he wanted to convey to Lauren. He felt like this might be the most important argument he’d ever make.

“I’m over the rivalry with Patricia,” was how he started off. “It was petty in the first place—I could have ignored it and just kept on doing things my way—but it was easier to rise to the bait. I still think some of the things she pulled were underhanded and unnecessary, but I take responsibility for my role in our feud and in doing so, I want to end it.

“I don’t think we’ll ever be friends. At best, we’ll be friendly competitors. And I’m fine if that’s where we end up. I can’t control what she does, but I can promise not to retaliate to any of her actions toward me. I’ll protect my company, but I can do that without it devolving into these trivial fights.

“This isn’t just about you and me, either. I’m tired of trying to one-up Patricia when I could use that time to build my business. Move it in a different direction if I have to. I’ve been tired of the artifice for some time now; being with you has made me realize how much I hate it. I’m ready to move past focusing only on my work.

“I’d like for you to be part of that, Lauren. I think we have something special and I want to see where it goes. If that means giving up a stupid feud I never should have kept going, I’m comfortable with that path forward.”

Lauren reached out and put her hand on his cheek. Hakim leaned into it, loving her touch. Then she dropped her hand and sighed again.

“I wish my mother could hear you say that.”

Hakim shrugged. “I’ll tell her. You’ll probably have to set up the meeting, but I have no problem telling her that I’m done with this fight.”

“The only thing is, I’m not sure it would matter. Even if you’re willing to stop fighting, she will never accept me dating you.”

“Why not?” Hakim could guess, but he wanted to know for certain.

“She doesn’t approve of you, not only because you’re a competitor, but because of your dating life. Which is stupid, yes, because you have the right to date who and how you want.”

“So do you.” Hakim said the words mildly, but gave Lauren a meaningful look to show that a relationship between was more her decision than her mother’s.

“Yes, I do. But once she finds out how we met, can you blame her for not wanting us to date? That’s not business either; that’s personal and she won’t see it any other way.”

“Surely the fact that you’re happy would encourage her to change her mind?”

“You have met my mother, right?” Lauren said sarcastically.

“I know it’s not going to be easy.”

“Hakim, she’s my mother. If she doesn’t approve, she’ll make both our lives miserable. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

Lauren stood abruptly and paced around the cabin of the plane. Hakim could see how upset she was, and he hated that he was the cause.

“Why would she blame you? This is my fault,” Hakim said.

“She wouldn’t blame me for how we met. She’d blame me for falling for you. Business comes first, and dating your mother’s main competitor is not good for business.”

Hakim wasn’t sure what to do. He didn’t want to lose Lauren, but she was right. Her mother would never accept them dating. And while Patricia might primarily blame Hakim, it was Lauren who would bear the brunt of Patricia’s wrath. He couldn’t let that happen. He wouldn’t be the cause of Lauren’s hurt, making her choose between him and her mother, even if it meant breaking his own heart to save hers.