“But you must eat, yes?”
“Yes, but—”
“But what? You must eat, as must I. And who does not want to show off their homeland? What one place must I not miss while I am here? Some place with New York pizza or a street hot dog or some delicacy I could never obtain anywhere else.”
She shook her head and waved back to the glass doors. “There’s not enough to tempt you—lobster straight from Maine, Creole sausage rolls, chicken a la—?”
“A la la—I am speaking of real food.”
Crossing her arms, she stared at him. “Now I’m starting to feel insulted.”
Ahmed couldn’t help laughing. “No disrespect meant. The food is wonderful—delicious. But who can live on tiny bites of this or that? I am speaking of real food—the food of the people. Now that is an experience everyone wishes.”
She gave a soft hum and lifted a hand to tap a finger against her chin. He found the gesture charming. She seemed to realize what she was doing for she dropped her hand, her cheeks warming slightly. Smiling at him, she said, “That’s an idea. I’ll have to think about that. Right now, duty calls. I have to head back inside.” She straightened and smoothed a hand down her blouse, tugging it straight.
Giving in, Ahmed caught her hand again. “Two minutes more. Let the others deal with everything for just two minutes. Let me show you something.”
He turned and pulled on her hand, but she hung back. “I can’t leave the work for everyone else.”
“So serious.” With a grin, he tugged on her hand again. The wind came up and again the stray strand of hair came loose and brushed her cheek. He reached to tuck it back again, wanting to see if it was as silky as it looked. She beat him to it, pushing the wayward strands behind her ear. “Come—the world will not fall apart in two minutes.”
“You’d be surprised just how fast disaster happens.”
He glanced back at her, eyebrows lifted, wondering why she sounded so serious. But this time when he tugged on her hand, she came with him. He led her around the patio to the other side of the surrounding terrace. The sun was just setting, a ball of orange in the west, its rays filtered by other buildings, turning the metal and glass into reflections of golden light.
Next to him, Melanie caught her breath. Ahmed smiled. “See—was it not worth the two minutes?”
She gave his hand a squeeze and then slipped from his grip again. “Okay, so it was. Thank you—this is a sight you don’t forget.”
Leaning on the railing, he asked, “You can’t always work. What do you do for fun?”
She shrugged and grinned. “I work—what else? I’m a driven New Yorker.” A sparkle lit her green eyes, bringing out hints of gold in the depths.
He straightened and stepped closer, leaning down to put his mouth close to hers as he spoke. “Have dinner with me. Save me from a horrible, boring evening. I want to get to know you better.”
She stood her ground, not turning away, not stepping back. Instead, she lifted her chin, her lips curving and parting slightly. He could see her chest rise a little faster as her breaths quickened. His pulse did the same. She leaned even closer and for an instant he thought she would put her mouth on his. Her scent wrapped around him—and he caught a hint of musky arousal. But instead of kissing him, she pressed her hand against his chest. “I have to go back to work, and your brothers must be wondering where you are by now. You don’t want to disappoint Daddy, do you?”
Turning, she dropped her hands and started to walk away. Reaching out, Ahmed touched her arm. She stopped and glanced back. “I live with the idea that what my father does not know does not hurt anyone close to him. Please—take pity on a stranger in your land. One dinner. I’ll buy. Your favorite place.”
She licked her lips. His hear
t gave a hard thud. With that teasing smile curving her lips, she said, “It’s going to take about an hour to clean up after the party ends.”
“I’ll wait for you.”
Her smile grew. The world had darkened around them. Lights were fluttering on below them and around them on other buildings. Ahmed stood still, his breath held. He could no longer see Melanie clearly now, but when she spoke again, her voice had thickened with what he thought was the same hunger in his veins. “I’d like that.” She turned and strolled back to the party.
Ahmed smiled. The evening was suddenly interesting.
Back inside the suite, the noise from too many voices talking was like walking into a wall. He hesitated and then dove in, determined to get through this ordeal. At least he had something to look forward to. He grabbed a bottle of San Pellegrino from the bar and glanced around, looking for his brothers.
Zaid was the only one really engaging the suits gathered—Zaid had always been the most dutiful of them. Ahmed headed over to where Khalid sat on a couch, thumbing through his phone, checking messages, no doubt—his eldest brother had always been the responsible one. Sitting down, Ahmed draped one arm over the back of the couch and asked, “What vital conversation did I miss?” Khalid opened his mouth to answer, but Ahmed waved a hand. “That was a sarcastic, rhetorical question, brother. I wasn’t paying attention to any of them to begin with.”
Staring at him, eyes slightly narrowed, Khalid said, “You really don’t like all of this, do you?”
Ahmed shrugged. “Business is always there, is it not? So why not take the opportunity here for a little fun?”
Khalid shook his head. “It is time to start taking some of this seriously. Someday soon, Father will lose patience with you. You’re no longer the baby of the family, Ahmed. Father expects you to become a man.”