She knew it made it harder for him to understand when he only knew part of the story. He knew about her position in the government, as a diplomat, but he didn’t know the rest, the part that drove her to strive for justice and to further the purpose of peace wherever she went. And she couldn’t tell him all of her secrets. Some things just needed to stay buried for everyone’s safety, hers, Zaid’s and especially Calum’s.
“I didn’t want to drag you down in what I’ve had to deal with,” she finished.
The Sheikh stared at her with a strange look in his eyes. “You do understand I am one of the most powerful members of one of the most influential families in the world, right?”
“Which is more reason to have left you alone,” she argued. “Your family’s wealth and power didn’t need to get caught up in what was going on with my family any more than you did.”
“I’m afraid I don’t understand,” he said. “What was going on with your family that I couldn’t have helped you with?”
She couldn’t tell him everything. That her parents had been dissidents and she’d spent almost every summer camping in some war-torn part of the world as they worked to help the local populace rebuild. That her parents had eventually pulled her and her sister out of school with the intent to homeschool but simply never got around to it.
She could never tell him that this wasn’t her first visit to Sharjah or the enemies her parents made. Or the fear she had lived in when they went into hiding, as a result. The number of favors her parents had tried to call in to find a safe haven for her and her sister and the aging aunt who had agreed to take them in, changing their last name to match hers and insisting that the sisters have no further contact with her parents.
If it weren’t for her upbringing and her education, Rebecca would never have obtained the job she has now, advising governments on how best to remedy the poorer areas in their locales. However, she still had nightmares of that fateful night. She had just turned eleven and she had clutched tightly to her then seven-year-old sister, not wanting her to see the horror of their parents held at gunpoint. How many nights did she relive that moment as she held Amy to her, waiting for the madmen to murder their parents right in front of them?
From the moment she had found out she was pregnant, she vowed that she would never intentionally place Calum in harm’s way and that meant keeping him away from the Middle East until he was old enough to understand.
And while Zaid might be able to accept her family, she knew that it would be completely unacceptable to his father who ruled Sharjah much like a monarchy.
“Just understand it’s political, and sometimes the world we live in won’t see us for the individuals we are versus who our family is,” she explained, telling him as much as she was able to.
“Do you think I don’t know that?” he questioned.
Straightening her shoulders, she looked at him, “It isn’t the same but I don’t expect you to understand that.”
“I want to meet him,” Zaid said, switching back to Calum, turning the picture over in his hand.
She pulled her hand back from him. “Don’t you think, after tonight, that this place is too dangerous for our son?” she asked. “I mean, you try to hide the problems, and that just makes them worse. That breeds more of what we saw today. It’s only going to get worse until something is done to fix it.”
Zaid gave her a sly little smile. “You spooked yourself a little bit today didn’t you? And, of course, that means that this place is suddenly oh-so-dangerous, huh? If you had listened to me, you wouldn’t have been in any danger.”
“You don’t understand, Zaid,” she argued. “Listen to me. This is the kind of thing I’ve spent my life around. When you have problems like you see in Rajak, when you have that kind of poverty, if you ignore it instead of trying to help those people, things only get worse. Much worse. I don’t mean any offense, Zaid, but you don’t see it from in here. You can’t possibly see it.”
He sighed. “You don’t see what we’ve accomplished to try to help, and part of what we hope to achieve with further investments is providing more relief to those troubled areas. I know there’s a lot of work left. We have to get jobs in place for the people in Rajak and Timina, so that they can start contributing. I know this, but don’t let one isolated event make you think the sky is falling. The sky is not falling over the Emirate of Sharjah and our son will be safe here.”
Rebecca shook her head. He talked a good game, but she wasn’t prepared to take any chances with her son. “But, no, back to your original statement, I don’t think bringing him here is a good idea,” she finally said.
Life had been so much simpler when they’d worked together in America, when she’d escorted him on a private visit to the States. Their relationship had been more than just professional, and their connection sitting together now was proof of that. The locked door, the privacy, Zaid’s bossy version of tenderness; those things were all proof that they were more to each other than mere acquaintances who happened to have a child together.
She reached for him again, wanting to run her hands over his shoulder and down his strong arm. “I should be getting back to the hotel,” she murmured.
“No,” he said flatly. “You’re not going back to the hotel. You’re going to stay here. I will see to it that you are protected and that all your needs are tended to, but here at the palace.”
“Zaid, I really appreciate the offer and the concern. Really, I do, but all of my things are at the hotel, and the rest of my group is there,” she explained. She stood up to signal to him that it really was time for her to go.
“No,” he argued. “I insist. Stay here and let the Sultan’s staff take care of you. You will reunite with the delegates each day; you’ve no need to stay at the same hotel as well.”
There were so many reasons for her to say no; even though her heart was screaming at her to say, yes. Fighting her immediate impulse to acquiesce, she shook her head.
“Zaid, no. And please, let’s leave it at that,” she pleaded.
Zaid stood from the couch, towering over her all of a sudden. “I’ll have your things brought over from the hotel this afternoon. Right now, I have a meeting to attend. I’ll see you tonight at dinner.” He moved to the door and started to unlock it.
“Dammit, Zaid, listen to me,” Rebecca demanded. “I’ve made it just fine without you for the last five years. I made it fine on my own before I ever knew you. I don’t suddenly need your charity now,” she argued. “I’m going back to the hotel.”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t around for the two of you,” Zaid said without looking back at her. “I’m having your things brought over. I’ll see you at dinner after my meeting.”
He walked out of the room and she heard the click of the door lock as she fumed. She’d known he could be controlling, but she’d never seen him quite like that. He had intentionally ignored her comments. She wasn’t going to stand for it, she told herself, but she didn’t know what to do to make it right. At least not while she was locked in his quarters.