She’d already been thinking about staying for the auction, but she hadn’t made any final plans yet. She wanted to see how this event went first and to see if Khalid was really able to trust her.
“I’ll see you in a little bit, Khalid. Thank you, again, for the opportunity.”
As she walked past him, he reached out and brushed his fingers along her back. The touch followed her all the way home.
Mila had already sent over a few dresses for her to choose from, but she knew instantly that the one laid across her bed wasn’t from Mila.
Slim. Sleek. Black. As she slipped it over her head and hooked the halter strap behind the back of her neck, the fabric clung to her curves. It dipped low down her back, and a slit rose high up on her right thigh.
Sexy. Sophisticated. It had Khalid written all over it.
In addition to the dress, there was also a vase of roses on the desk with a card.
I made so many mistakes, Kadija. The least that I could do was make sure that you believed in yourself again. You are an incredible woman. You’ve made me a better man.
Fingers trembling, she picked up the card and pressed it to her chest.
Khalid believed in her.
Knowing that he would be handling the final preparations, Katie took her time getting ready.
By the time she got back to the museum, a few guests were already trickling in. Khalid appraised her openly as he held out his arm. “You look beautiful,” he murmured.
She accepted his arm and nodded her head as a donor passed them. “It’s the dress. It’s an excellent fit, although that should not surprise me. Thank you.”
“It’s not the dress. It’s the woman.” His voice was still low, but she could detect the hesitation. “Did you get my flowers?”
“Flowers? Was that you? I didn’t have a chance to really pay much attention to them. They were gorgeous, as well. Thank you,” she teased him gently.
His jaw clenched, and she smiled to herself. She didn’t feel all that bad about lying to him. She wanted to watch him squirm a bit.
The venomous older woman she’d seen around the museum stopped in front of them. Her eyes were practically shooting daggers into Katie. “Khalid. I see that you ignored my advice.”
“Ziva.” Khalid looked completely at ease, and he didn’t let go of Katie’s arm. “I had already informed you that I would be ignoring your advice.”
She was obviously furious, but Katie could see the woman’s wheels turning in her calculating mind. There was something else happening here, something that had nothing to do with the gallery. “Well, in any case. I suppose that this is okay. It will add some color to the auction.”
“Ziva, this is Katie. She’s the curator for this collection. Katie, this is Ziva. She’s one of our generous donors.”
Katie immediately put on a warm, professional smile, but Ziva completely ignored her. She just shot Katie an angry look and swept away.
“I don’t think that she likes me very much.”
“Don’t mind her. She’s angry that I’m not marrying her niece.”
“Oh.” Katie wasn’t sure how she was supposed to respond to that. “Is there something wrong with her niece?”
“Not at all. She’s beautiful and smart, but she’s just not for me.” He gave her a mysterious smile. “Now that you’re here,
I must take my leave. I’m not here as the gallery owner, tonight.”
Katie gave him a confused look. “You’re leaving?”
“I’m leaving your side, but not the event. I have another role to play.”
“What’s that?”
“An artist.”