by Holly Rayner
Chapter 16
Joanna
They arrived in Al-Yara on a Tuesday morning. After so long on the boat, Joanna’s legs felt wobbly beneath her as she stepped onto dry land. She imagined she could feel the road pitching gently beneath her, as the sea had done.
“Ah,” Ahmad said. “Here. This is our car.”
He escorted her over to a wide black car. It looked like a luxury vehicle, although she didn’t recognize the make or model.
“Wait,” Joanna said. “What about my luggage?” She turned back toward the boat.
Ahmad took her by the arm and steered her gently toward the car.
“The porters are handling that,” he said. “You’re not to worry.”
She got into the car, and it immediately pulled away from the dock.
Joanna twisted around in her seat. “Wait a moment,” she protested. “The bags weren’t loaded.”
“They’re coming in the second car,” Ahmad said. “Are you really concerned about it?”
“I just would prefer to have my bags with me,” she said.
As a flight attendant, she only ever traveled with carry-on luggage. Her bags were always within reach, if she wanted to check on them or make sure everything was where it ought to be. Now, the idea of her suitcases following in a whole other car was a stressful one. What if something were to happen?
“Everything’s going to be fine,” Ahmad assured her, sensing her worry. “My staff are more than trustworthy, and they’ll get everything back to the penthouse in a timely manner, I promise you. They may even beat us there. There’s nothing for you to worry about.”
Joanna sighed. She knew he was probably right, but what could she say? The car was already moving.
“I just wish you had talked to me about this first,” she said.
“It never occurred to me that it would be a problem,” he said.
“It’s not a problem. Just… in the future, if you’re going to make arrangements for my things, will you please include me in the decision-making?”
He inclined his head. “Whatever would make you comfortable.”
Joanna sat back in her seat. She knew she should be satisfied. She had gotten what she had asked for. But she couldn’t help feeling that Ahmad was just humoring her, that he actually still felt that she was being unreasonable.
Am I being unreasonable?
She didn’t think she was. This was just something Ahmad couldn’t really understand. He had grown up with servants. He was used to the idea of people doing things for him. For Ahmad, the belief that the people in his employ could be counted upon was probably second nature.
But Joanna had never had anything like that. She had always done everything for herself. When she traveled, she hauled her own bags. When she had moved into her apartment, she had carried all of her possessions up the stairs by herself. And everything she had, she had gotten for herself, with no assistance from family money.
Her life couldn’t have been more different from Ahmad’s.
The penthouse was one of the most stunning things Joanna had ever seen. It was on the twelfth floor, and two of the walls were made of solid glass, looking out over the city in two directions. The third wall formed a long, narrow hallway, off of which were several doors. Ahmad opened one of these and ushered Joanna inside.
“This is where you’ll live,” he told her.
She had entered into a smallish sunken living area with the most comfortable-looking sectional sofa she had ever laid eyes on. Across from this was a television, and to the right, a door leading out onto a balcony. Joanna also had a full kitchen with an oven, dishwasher, and refrigerator. Off to one side, two doors led into two different bedrooms. One of these featured a king-size bed draped in mosquito netting. The other contained a crib and a changing table.
“I thought we could make this the nursery,” Ahmad said, showing her.
“That’s good,” she said.
She had imagined that the baby would stay in their own room. Now, it appeared as though she would have a choice.
Ahmad nodded. “I’ll have the staff get started on painting and decorating,” he said.
“No, wait a minute,” Joanna protested. “I want to help with that part.”
“But you’re supposed to be resting,” Ahmad said with a laugh. “Resting and enjoying the sights of the city. You’re certainly not supposed to be painting. The fumes would be horrible for you.”
“That isn’t true,” Joanna protested. “Lots of expectant mothers paint their nurseries. It’s a completely normal thing to do.”
“Well, maybe they do,” Ahmad said. “But here, we have staff in place to help with things like that. I’m not going to have you doing anything that isn’t in your best interests.”
“You’re not going to have me doing it?” Joanna asked. “You’re not in charge of me, Ahmad.”
“I know,” Ahmad said. “But let me take care of you, Joanna. Let my staff take care of you. What’s the point in having all the resources we have at our disposal if we’re not going to use them?”
“This whole thing makes me uncomfortable,” Joanna admitted.
“Why don’t I leave you alone to settle in?” Ahmad suggested. “I believe that’s the porter with your luggage now.”
Sure enough, a man stepped into the room with Joanna’s bags in tow.
“Okay,” Joanna agreed faintly.
Ahmad smiled and squeezed her shoulder lightly.
“Will you join me in the main area of the penthouse for dinner at eight?”
“I will,” she promised, feeling a wash of relief.
That was two hours from now. She would have plenty of time to collect her thoughts as she went about the business of putting away her clothes and settling into her new quarters.
Ahmad left.
But the porter stayed behind.
“Where would you like the bags, miss?” he asked.
“I can take them.” She reached out for the handle of the nearest suitcase.
But the porter maintained his grip.
“Begging your pardon, miss, but His Highness instructed us that we weren’t to let you lift these suitcases. Too heavy for a pregnant woman.”
“Well, that’s ridiculous.” She took hold of the handle and tried to pull the bag from his grasp. “I carried my bags out of my apartment, didn’t I? It’s not even that heavy.”
“Nevertheless, I have my orders,” the man said. “Can I put it on the bed for you?”
“Oh, very well,” Joanna said. She didn’t want to get the poor man into trouble with Ahmad. “Set them there, then.”
He bowed his head and did so. Then, he made his exit. Joanna lay back on her bed, exhaling with relief at finally finding herself alone.
“Miss Perkins?”
She sat bolt upright. A girl maybe four or five years younger than herself had entered the room. She was dressed in a plain white dress, and her thick black hair was coiled into a braid at the back of her head.
“My name is Najah,” she said, offering a little bow. “I’m here to serve as your chambermaid.”
“Excuse me, my what?”
“Your chambermaid,” Najah said. “His Highness hired me when he determined that you were coming to stay, so I’m the newest member of the household staff, and I’m here explicitly to cater to you.”
“That’s really not—” Joanna cut herself off.
Najah was saying that it was her job to take care of Joanna’s needs, and Joanna didn’t want to tell the girl that her services weren’t required.
Najah moved toward the suitcases the porter had placed on the bed. In a businesslike and unemotional way, she unzipped them and began to remove Joanna’s clothes.
“I can do that,” Joanna said, hurrying forward.
“Nonsense, it’s my job,” Najah said cheerily. “Perhaps you’d like to go out into the main room? His Highness is making a drink.”
Had Ahmad intended that she would join him? But he had been the one t
o suggest she take some time to herself. Frustrated, she left her quarters and went out into the main room.
Ahmad was standing at a cocktail cart mixing a drink.
“Ah, hello!” he said. “Can I make you something?”
“My room is full of people,” Joanna said sourly.
His eyebrows went up. “Full of people?”
“You didn’t tell me you were getting me a chambermaid.”
“Ah, you met Najah,” he said, smiling. “She’s a gem, isn’t she?”
“I was looking forward to having my own space, Ahmad.”
“Well, you’re certainly at your liberty to send her out,” he said.
“I tried,” she protested. “It’s so uncomfortable. She wants to be in there doing all my work for me. I don’t know what to make of it.”
“Just let the girl work,” Ahmad advised. “It’s her job to look after you, and I hired her because she’s good at it. She won’t make a nuisance of herself, and once she’s finished, she’ll be right out of your way.”
“Ahmad,” she said. “You should have talked to me before you hired someone.”
“I should have talked to you before I did anything, shouldn’t I,” he said with a wry smile.
“Yes!” she said. “I’m an independent person, Ahmad. I’m used to taking care of myself, and letting other people do things for me isn’t very comfortable for me. If you had asked me, I would have told you that it wasn’t what I wanted. I would have told you not to hire her.”
“I know it’s not what’s normal for you,” Ahmad said. “But just consider that our child is going to be raised with staff, as a part of the royal family.”
“Not when they’re living with me,” Joanna said. “At my home, our child will be a regular middle-class kid.”
“Are you sure?” Ahmad asked. “I could easily hire a servant to tend to the child at your house.”
“That’s not what I want,” Joanna said. “The last thing I want to have to worry about is a house full of servants. That’s not something I know how to live with, Ahmad.”
“Just let Najah attend to your needs,” Ahmad said. “You’re supposed to be relaxing while you’re here, remember? This is supposed to be your maternity leave, your vacation. It’s okay to allow yourself to be taken care of. And I promise, if you become dissatisfied with her service, I’ll send her away.”
“No, don’t do that,” Joanna said. “I don’t want her to lose her job.”
Ahmad nodded.
“That’s good to hear,” he agreed. “I would hate to take it from her, to be honest. I like to be able to hire staff. One of the best things I can do with my fortune is to create jobs.”
Joanna couldn’t help the smile that rose to her face.
“You’re always so kind,” she said. “From the moment I met you, Ahmad, you’ve always been so kind.”
“What do you mean?”
“You invited a perfect stranger onto your private beach and brought out a picnic for us. You sat and ate with me, and talked about Al-Yara and what you loved about it. A few months back, you flew out to Missouri to meet my mother. You’ve never acted as if you were above me at all. You never act as though you’re above anyone.”
“Why should I?” he asked. “Yes, I was born into royalty, but that was through a stroke of fortune, nothing more. To act as though I’m deserving of the life I lead when in truth, it came to me through chance… that would be foolish.”
“Well,” said Joanna, “I don’t think that’s something every wealthy person realizes.”
He nodded. “You’ve always been very kind too, you know,” he told her.
“Me? What did I ever do?”
“You’ve been very understanding about the constraints my position places upon us,” he said. “Being willing to come to Al-Yara to give birth, for example. Not every woman would consider giving birth so far from home.”
“Not every woman would have the baby of a complete stranger in the first place,” Joanna said with a grin.
“That’s true, too,” he said. “And if she did, knowing that I come from money, she might have tried to bargain for higher pay, or for more rewards. With you, it’s easy to see that motherhood itself is the most important reward. More than you want my money, you want to have this baby.”
“That’s true,” Joanna said quietly. She cradled her stomach. “If you walked away from me right now, if you took back every penny you’d given me, I would still want to keep this baby.”
“But I’d never do that,” Ahmad said. “I hope you know that. I hope you know I’ll never walk away from our child.”
She nodded. She knew. Of course he wouldn’t.
“And I’ll never walk away from you, either,” Ahmad went on, gazing into her eyes.
Joanna felt suddenly frozen in place, unable to move.
The way he was looking at her—it was as if he was reaching down deep into the core of her being, fishing for an answer to an unspoken question.
And, she realized, she yearned to give him that answer.
Ask me, she found herself thinking. Whatever it is, Ahmad, just ask me.
But he didn’t speak. He just continued to search her eyes.
“I care a great deal for you, Joanna,” he said at last. “I hope you know that. I hope you understand how much you mean to me, and how glad I am to have you here in Al-Yara.”
She nodded. “It’s good that the baby’s going to be born here,” she said. “It was the right choice.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “But I’m not talking about the baby. I would be glad to have you here, even if it weren’t for the baby.”
How long had it been since she had taken a breath? She sucked one in, and the air felt painful in her lungs.
“Thank you. I’m going to go take a shower,” she managed.
He nodded and stepped away, something she couldn’t quite fathom registering on his face.
“Very well,” he said. “I’ll see you in a few hours for dinner.”
Joanna turned and fled to her quarters, feeling as though her skin was about to burst into flames. Thankfully, Najah had finished unpacking and had discreetly withdrawn from the room. Joanna was alone.
She eased herself down on her bed, careful not to jar her belly.
What was happening here?
She had gone into the main room to voice a grievance to Ahmad. How had she ended up staring into his eyes like that?
For that matter, why did it feel as if, from the moment they had embarked on their voyage together, they had grown exponentially closer?
She had always known she liked him. She had always felt she could trust him. But now, she felt something deeper, something more powerful and altogether more frightening.
Was it possible that she was falling in love?
Chapter 17
Ahmad
Was it possible that he was falling in love?
It was a question Ahmad had asked himself again and again over the last three months of Joanna’s pregnancy. If he was honest with himself, it was a question he had known the answer to for a long time.
It was more than possible. It was certain.
Of course he loved her. It was clear to him, made even more so each day they spent together.
Of course, there was the allure of her body. That couldn’t be denied. But Ahmad knew by now that his feelings went far beyond that. How else could he account for the fact that his feelings had begun to bloom when she had been far away, living in America, when they had been communicating only by email and phone call?
It wasn’t seeing each other every day that had given rise to his emotions. He had begun to fall for her long before that.
That was the real reason he had wanted her to come to Al-Yara. He could admit that to himself now. Yes, he wanted to have an equal part in the raising of their child, and he did want to be able to watch his son or daughter grow up. But it was more than that.
This was his family.
Not just the baby, but Joa
nna too.
This was his family, and he wanted them all to be together.
It was strange to think of family as something to be desired. His family of origin had never been harmonious, and the idea of uniting them all in the same place would have been a cause for stress, not joy. But the thought of Joanna and the baby moving to Al-Yara permanently, not into their own home but into the penthouse with him… it felt like an unattainable fantasy.
And yet, she was here.
She had spent the last month of her pregnancy making her slow way around town, shopping in the markets, bringing her purchases home to show to Ahmad. A pregnant western woman in the Al-Yara marketplace stood out like a sore thumb, and Ahmad hadn’t yet managed to find the right way to tell his family of his impending fatherhood, but he knew he was going to have to contact them very soon.
Still, the day came when her contractions started, and he still hadn’t done it.
He sat with her throughout her labor, surprised at his own ability to keep calm.
Between contractions, Joanna laughed.
“Remember how upset you got the day of my IVF procedure?” she asked. “You’re like a different man now.”
“You’re fairly different yourself,” he said. “Not at all like the girl who burst into tears in the doctor’s office that day. Who would have known then that you had such a well of strength inside you?”
Deep down, though, he realized that he didn’t think of her as very different at all. She was still the beautiful woman he had seen that day on the beach. She was still the smart, confident person who had advocated for herself throughout every phase of this process.
There was no one else in the world he would have chosen to be the mother of his child.
Their son was born at one in the afternoon. He came into the world squalling loudly, making his presence known to everyone in the vicinity.
Joanna craned her neck, struggling to see. “Is he all right?”
Ahmad supported her, one arm wrapped behind her shoulders, the other holding her hand.
“He’s fine,” he said. “The doctor’s taking him to get cleaned up, and then he’ll be back.”
