The Sheikh’s Instant Family (The Safar Sheikhs 2)

Marie tutted, receiving her drink from the bartender with a toothy smile.

“Honestly, all it would take is for the right person to get a designer’s ear about maternity clothing,” Vanessa said, some of the thoughts that had been swirling in her head during the fashion show finally making the leap to her lips. “Almost every woman has been in this boat, I’d imagine. Every woman deserves to look fashionable.”

Marie nodded. “The numbers must be staggering.”

“So why can’t we get the maternity lines going? You know, I see the maternity line of my dreams. I can see it so clearly.” Vanessa squinted as she prepared herself to launch into some of these unspoken ideas that had been percolating over the past few weeks. “All the designs are based on the current trends, the most popular color palettes. When taupe is in Paris, taupe is in the maternity line. And the changes are made with mothers in mind, so they can still participate. Especially when fashion and looking good is their life.”

Marie nodded, her sharp green gaze narrowed in on Vanessa.

“There’s no reason working, expectant mothers should have to give up on fashion if this has been their entire life.” Right there—that was the crux of her issue. The impending swelling belly made her hesitant to buy anything, much less a highly fashionable piece of clothing that would simply not fit in three weeks’ time, and maybe never again. But Vanessa was accustomed to participating in the trends. She prioritized looking good. Not necessarily at the level that Amad was accustomed to, but in her own way, she made fashion a priority.

“So what do you see for the timelines of these pieces?” Marie asked.

“They’d be concurrent with the Paris trends,” Vanessa said. “Modified to fit the consumer market, based on country as well. Because of course, this maternity line won’t be restricted to simply France. I’m seeing all of Europe, Amatbah, the United States…”

“Amatbah has excellent fashion right now,” Marie remarked before sipping at her drink.

Vanessa’s heart rate picked up. She felt like she was teetering on the precipice of something, but she didn’t know what.

“It does. And maternity fashion will be the next thing to come out of it,” Vanessa said, glancing at Marie, half suspecting the older woman would catch her fib. “This exact line that I’m talking about.”

Marie’s brow arched so high it practically flew off her face. “Really? Can you send me some samples?”

And there it was—the trickle of triumph, the unraveling of a future prospect. Vanessa’s heart raced. She didn’t know who Marie was or who she was affiliated with, but this could be a big win for Calla’s line. One tiny foot inside the door. Somewhere.

Vanessa licked her lips, furtively glancing around the room for Amad. He was nowhere to be seen. He might have followed a prospect out into the smoking lounge or headed to the bathroom. Whatever the reason, she was on her own now.

“Yeah,” Vanessa said, trying to sound casual, as if she wasn’t swimming way too deep. “I mean, I wouldn’t be able to right away, because…” She gestured around them, leaving Marie’s imagination to fill in the blanks. “But yes. I’d love to. And I really think you’ll love what we’ve come up with. I’m extremely passionate about fashionable clothing and even more so now that I’m a mother-to-be.”

Marie dug around in her handbag for a moment while Vanessa licked dry lips. Come on, Amad. Where are you? Even though she was just freeballing this, she was pretty sure her promise could be backed up. Based on her conversations with Calla, it only took a few days to take a design from conception to prototype, if there was a lot of focus. And the urgency of something like this should provide plenty of focus for Calla’s young line.

“Oh, lovely,” Vanessa murmured once Marie handed off her card.

“Email me once you have the samples ready,” Marie said, her lips quirking up in a smile. “I’m eager to see what a passionate fashionista like yourself has cooked up.”

Vanessa could only grin as Marie downed her drink and said her goodbye. She sat in a stunned cloud of anxiety and accomplishment for a few moments. Then Amad arrived.

“These people are harder to break than any business people I’ve met before,” he said with a huff. He slid onto the stool next to her. “Do you need another drink, babe?” He signaled for the bartender. “Cranberry, right?”

She fingered the business card in her lap, nodding. She should tell Amad about the conversation she just had.

“You know who I passed out in the lobby? Marie Frechard.” He tutted, shaking his head. “I’ve been trying to land an appointment with her for weeks. I swear, she’ll be the key to the fashion line.”

Marie Frechard. Vanessa’s heart rate picked up again. Could it be the same Marie as the one who had just requested her designs? Vanessa stuffed the business card into her handbag on her lap.

“Who’s Marie?”

“The CEO of the hugest chain of department stores in Europe,” Amad said. “Le Suiz. Total game changer. I’ve been trying to get a meeting with that place for weeks, but…” He trailed off, running his tongue over his bottom lip.

Vanessa gnawed on her bottom lip. It probably wasn’t the same Marie…but if it was? Then Vanessa had a huge surprise waiting for Amad.

Because that’s what she needed to do—wait until the details were in place before she told Amad. She could only imagine how much stress it would relieve for him to know that they had their in. But she wanted to be sure that the in was real. Because it would be an even bigger downer if her inroads turned out to be roadblocked.

So she’d wait. She’d talk with Calla first, get an idea about the designs, and reach out to Marie herself.

That way, she’d be sure of the size of the surprise she had waiting for Amad.

And if all went well, this would be the most incredible way to pay him back for everything. Excitement shivered through her, and she tipped her head up to Amad to receive his kiss.