“I have it right here.” Mulazim lifted a paper from the desk in front of him, then turned to one of his aides. “Pen? Come on. I don’t have much time.”
He scribbled his signature onto the paper, and Mackenzie let out a sigh of relief. The women’s shelter would be protected. Now she only had to protect herself by getting out of Al-Dashalid.
Still, sitting across from Issam made it difficult. She could smell his scent on the air and wanted badly to straddle him where he sat.
The two men wished each other well, and Mulazim promised to have the signed agreement sent by courier that day.
Then the screen flicked off. Activity hummed around them as the secure link was dismantled, and Mackenzie stood.
“Wait.”
One word from Issam brought all the activity to a halt. Everyone turned to look at him. Mackenzie couldn’t tear her eyes from his face.
“Leave us. Mackenzie, you stay.”
Within fifteen seconds, the room had cleared.
Mackenzie cleared her throat. “Thank you for supporting me,” she said with a rueful little laugh. “I hadn’t realized you’d been listening.” Her throat tightened again, aching, as if she might cry.
“I wasn’t.”
“What?”
“I wasn’t listening.” Hurt wrote itself across Issam’s face. “I was trying so hard to win this battle on my own that I didn’t realize what I was losing.”
Her breath caught.
“I’ve spent the last few days devouring your research.” He stepped around the table, and all of Mackenzie’s body ached to touch him. “I made a mistake. I made terrible errors, Mackenzie. This could have been done and over with two weeks ago if I’d listened to you.”
“But you didn’t.”
“No.” Issam shook his head. “It took your absence to make me see that. But I have seen that, and—” His jaw tightened. “I’ll do anything.”
“You should hire someone smarter than me to join your team, then,” Mackenzie said. “If you want to prevent this from happening in the future.”
“I’ll do anything for you.” Issam’s voice was raw. “I’ll do anything to keep you here. My heart—” He put a hand to his chest. “My heart was a mess without you, and my head was worse. You’re the light in my life, Mackenzie. I thought it could be a business arrangement between us, but I was wrong. I was so, so wrong.”
He knelt down in front of her, the way he would have if he’d actually proposed, and held his hands up. “I love you,” he said, and she could tell it was real, it was true, just by the feeling in his voice. “You made me a better man. And I’ll work every day to prove that to you. Just…stay.”
Mackenzie’s eyes filled with tears of relief and joy. “What if I don’t want to stay in Al-Dashalid?” It sounded a little petulant, but she couldn’t keep the grin off her face. “What if I’d rather go somewhere else?”
“Then I’ll take you.”
“You can’t take me anywhere on your knees.”
Issam was on his feet in an instant, towering above her, and she stepped into his arms. He swept her up into them without hesitation and crushed his mouth to hers, exploring her with such heat that it was like the first time, all over again.
When she came up for air, Mackenzie only had three words on her lips. “I love you.”
“I thought you’d never say it.”
“I love you,” she said again, and then another thought occurred to her. “Issam…oh, no—”
“What is it? What could possibly be wrong?” He laughed out loud, and she felt it through his grip.
“Are we still getting married?” All those wedding plans. All those invitations.
His eyes shone. “I didn’t call it off,” he said. “I held out hope that you’d come back. But this time—”