The Sheikh And The Cowgirl

by Holly Rayner

  She was trapped.

  She walked and walked, turning down winding streets without noticing what the street names were. At one point she looked up and saw a sign that was written in her mother’s native tongue as well as English, and she was reminded that El Farah had once been colonized by the English before gaining their independence many years before. Then she remembered that she would be marrying a stranger the next day and forgot all about the history of El Farah.

  After some time, Steph’s feet began to ache. When she bothered to look back up, she realized what a mistake she had just made. She’d taken off without any thought as to where she was or where she was headed, and as she gazed around, everything looked completely foreign. She was lost in a place she knew nothing about. How equitable to her own life was that?

  Slumping onto a fountain ledge, Steph stared into the gurgling waters and began to cry. A single tear dropped from her face, joining the pool of water below.

  “That must be some wish,” a voice said from behind her.

  Steph turned, craning her neck to meet the eyes of the gentleman who had spoken. He was tall, his clothing neatly pressed, his dark hair and eyes perfectly symmetrical. In a word, he was stunning.

  Steph stared with her mouth open for a beat before she realized what she was doing and closed it. “I wasn’t making a wish,” she replied, dabbing at her eyes.

  To her surprise, the man perched next to her, gazing into the waters himself.

  “Well, based on those tears, it appears you may want to. I’ve seen many people cast wishes into this well. I’m convinced most of them actually come true.”

  “How would you know if their wishes came true?” Steph asked, sniffing.

  The man procured a small white cloth from a pocket and handed it to her.

  Steph laughed, accepting it. “Thank you. I wasn’t aware there were men in the world who carried handkerchiefs anymore.”

  “You’re not from here,” he said, and Steph shook her head.

  “I’m not. Well, I kind of am. It’s complicated.”

  The man tilted his head. “You can explain it to me, if you like.”

  Steph wiped her nose as delicately as possible before telling him her backstory. “I grew up in America, but my mother is from here. This is my first trip to the country.”

  The man’s stare was intense, filled with deep intelligence and something else Steph couldn’t quite describe. He carried himself with a sense of stateliness, almost as if he were a diplomat or something similar.

  “We haven’t made a very good impression on you, it would seem,” he said, glancing down at the wrinkled handkerchief.

  Steph looked down at it, clenching it in her fist. This man was a stranger, but there was a steady sense of calm about him. It made her feel like pouring her heart out, which she hadn’t done to anyone, even her parents. Taking a gusty breath, she said the one thing she hadn’t been willing to admit out loud.

  “I’m arranged to be married tomorrow. Since you’re from here you know that I’ve never met the man, though I’m certain he is very kind. My parents insist that it will be a good thing—that he is wealthy and handsome and I will find nothing lacking in the match. I just don’t think I can go through with it. What if they’re wrong? What if I’m trapped in a situation I can’t get out of?”

  The man nodded his head. “I understand. While parents generally have our best interests at heart, they don’t always see past the veneer some people put up just to make a suitable match. You’re not wrong for feeling the way you do.”

  Steph stared at him. He had just said exactly what she needed to hear. This stranger, who she would likely never see again, had just validated her feelings better than anyone ever could.

  “I’m Steph,” she said, holding out her hand.

  “Mehdi,” he said, giving her hand a firm but gentle shake. His skin was smooth and warm, and Steph was reluctant to let him go.

  “So what are you going to do?” he asked.

  Steph stared into the fountain. “I honestly don’t know. The truth is, I’ve never really felt like I belonged in America, but it’s the only culture I know. How will I get on here, when I don’t know the customs and culture of everyday life? I don’t belong in either place, yet I come from both. Still, maybe if I go through with this, if I can give this mystery man a chance, maybe I could create a home for myself and find my own way.”

  “Maybe,” Mehdi said, pursing his lip in thought. “But you don’t have to make a decision about that tonight.”

  He stood up and held out a hand for her to take. Steph stared at it before looking up at him with confusion in her eyes.

  “Look, you’ve got a big decision to make in the morning, and no one can make it but you, but so far you have seen nothing of this country you’re about to be a part of. Allow me to give you an introductory tour. When we’re done, I can take you back to where you’re staying. So for now you can consider yourself officially not lost.”

  His smile was welcoming and genuine, and Steph’s lips curled up ever so slightly as she placed her hand in his. Mehdi gripped it and pulled her up, taking a step back once she was standing.

  “Do you like fish?” he asked.

  “What, like to eat?”

  Mehdi laughed. “No. Like to see. We have a massive aquatic population off the coast of El Farah. I think that will be the first thing I show you. Come, this way!”

  Mehdi began walking, and Steph hesitated before realizing that he was leaving her behind. She jogged to catch up with him, her short legs working a little harder to keep up with his long stride. He glanced down at her as they walked.

  “So you really didn’t know how into fish we are here?” he asked.

  Steph shrugged. “My mother has never really invested in my connection to this place outside my behavior. Now that you mention it, she did say the fish in America had nothing on El Farah, but I always assumed she was talking about it in a dietary way. We never ate fish at our house.”

  “That is a terrible shame. We have excellent fish farming practices here, and they are certainly in abundant supply. Still, we have many more beautiful creatures we have been able to preserve in the aquarium and our wildlife sanctuaries. At some point you will have to go see them.”

  A large building came into view ahead of them, and Steph realized it was the city aquarium. It was overlooking the ocean, and she could hear the waves lapping against the shore even as they walked toward the indoor facility.

  “Why would you house your fish in an aquarium instead of letting them free?” she asked.

  “We use the facility to breed and nurture them. They are far from cramped, as you will soon see.”

  Steph pulled out her phone to check the time. It was nearly ten o’clock at night. Mehdi opened the door for her to walk through, and she did, looking around at the displays in the main lobby.

  “Excuse me, but we are about to close,” a man said.

  He turned to the door and got a good look at who had walked in before his face completely changed, his expression almost reverent.

  “Of course, there are exceptions. The facility is yours to explore for as long as you wish, sir.”

  Mehdi gave the man a respectful nod before escorting Steph through a tunnel that led to the main body of the aquarium. She glanced back at the man, who was talking hurriedly into a receiver as he walked in the opposite direction. How curious that they would just let Mehdi in like that.

  As they stepped out of the tunnel, Steph gasped, her eyes wide as she looked around her. The entire room was one massive glass wall. There were glowing lights inside the water, making the room glitter, and hundreds of fish swam all around, above and below her. It was as though she had been placed in an air bubble underwater, able to walk around the ocean life that surrounded her.

  “This is amazing,” she breathed, taking a few more steps inside.

  A bright pink fish that was at least three feet long swam past her head, and Steph watched as it blinked at he
r curiously before paddling onward. She laughed in delight.

  “You weren’t kidding! This is the biggest sanctuary I’ve ever seen. How can you make sure the fish don’t kill each other, though, being in such a wide open space?”

  Mehdi shrugged. “I’m sure the keepers have their ways. Our university has an exceptional marine biology program, for obvious reasons, so they are very up to date on the proper treatment and care of these creatures.”

  A large, shark-looking fish swam beneath Steph’s feet, and she stepped aside and kneeled down to get a better look at it.

  “In all my life, I’ve never seen anything like this,” she said.

  Mehdi stood beside her, quietly watching the fish. The silence of the room, with the glowing lights and magnificent animals, was one of the most soothing things Steph could imagine, and she found herself calming down from her meltdown.

  She gazed up for some time, watching the fish as they swam gracefully through the water, some of them working symbiotically, others ignoring everything but their own search for food. Steph approached the glass wall and ran her fingers along the cold, smooth surface.

  “Isn’t it funny how much like the fish we are? Here I am getting ready to be put on display tomorrow, primped and primed to become someone’s wife. I’m trapped, just like these fish. It may be a decent prison, but it’s a cage nonetheless.”

  A wave of sadness washed over Steph at the thought. She felt a warmth next to her and turned to see Mehdi staring up into the tank, his expression thoughtful.

  “I think I know how you feel, at least to some extent. While my life is quite pleasant on many levels, the degree of display can be simply overwhelming sometimes.”

  “How are you on display?” Steph asked, curious about this handsome stranger.

  Mehdi’s gaze darted down to her before he looked back up. “My job makes it difficult for me to be the person I would like to be. It requires much of my time, and my behavior is always under scrutiny. It is not unlike how it is for these creatures in here. While they are beautiful, and they are safe, they will never get to see all the world has to offer. There are so many experiences I will never know because of what I do for a living.”

  Steph waited for him to elaborate on that. He was being wildly vague. When he didn’t, she decided to let it go. There was no reason to pry into Mehdi’s private life if he didn’t feel like sharing it with her. After all, it was very unlikely she would ever see him again. Instead, she let her mind wander to a happier place, where there were tropical fish dancing all around her in the peaceful silence of an aquarium at night.

  “Thanks for this,” she said.

  “For what?” Mehdi asked, his eyebrows raised in question.

  “For being kind enough to cheer up a sad woman when she’s down. I mean, I’m sure my parents are going to kill me by the time I get home, but it kind of feels worth it when we’re insulated like this.”

  “You’re a citizen of El Farah, right?”

  Steph nodded. “I am.”

  “Then consider this my civic duty. It falls to me to make sure you know that no matter what happens tomorrow, you’re going to be all right. Everything is going to turn out fine. It always does.”

  Steph looked up into his eyes, then, and realized that they weren’t actually brown. Little specks of emerald green dotted the dark landscape of his pupils, giving them an ethereal quality she had never seen before. For a moment, she found herself wishing Mehdi was the man she would meet the next day, but she dismissed that thought as soon as it arrived.

  There was no point in fanciful daydreaming.

  She realized they were staring at one another, which also wasn’t a good idea. Clearing her throat, she turned back toward the tunnel.

  “We should probably get going,” she said.

  Mehdi paused, as though he were going to tell her something, before nodding his head.

  “I suppose so. Far be it from me to get a young woman in even bigger trouble with her parents.”

  FIVE

  Steph

  Mehdi escorted Steph back through the tunnel, where they were met by the same man who had watched them enter. He gave a deep bow, and Mehdi thanked him for the privilege of seeing the aquarium after hours on such short notice.

  “It is no trouble at all, Your—”

  Mehdi shook his head firmly, glancing pointedly at Steph, who was oblivious.

  “Sir,” the man corrected. “You’re welcome back any time, of course.”

  Steph’s stomach was in knots as they stepped back out into the night. She was too scared to look at her phone to check the time, lest she see a slew of angry text messages from her parents.

  “What time is it?” she asked as Mehdi stepped out, joining her.

  He looked at an expensive-looking watch on his left wrist. “Close to midnight.”

  Steph swallowed. Still, she had come this far, and it was likely her parents had seen her note and opted to go to bed, knowing she was capable of taking care of herself. Did they know she could take care of herself? Thinking of where she had been before Mehdi arrived, the truth was she was in quite a bit of trouble.

  “Why don’t you head back to your hotel? It might take your mind off the anxiety,” Mehdi suggested.

  Steph nodded, falling into step with him as he headed in a direction she wouldn’t have chosen. She really was completely and utterly lost in El Farah. She had so much to learn.

  “So, being from here, what do you really think about arranged marriages? Do you think I’m being crazy?”

  Having the chance to speak plainly with someone about her predicament was too good an opportunity to pass up, and Steph decided to make the most of it with Mehdi. The fact that there was an obvious spark of attraction between them was a moot point, but at least she had a momentary friend to confide in.

  Mehdi ruminated on his answer for a moment.

  “I don’t think you’re being crazy. It’s perfectly rational to be afraid of the unknown. It’s your body’s response to the possibility of danger, and it’s trying to protect you. I’m not the biggest fan of arranged marriages, if I’m being totally honest.”

  “The chances of us meeting again are fairly slim, Mehdi. You can be nothing if not honest with me on our first and last walk together.”

  Mehdi’s eyebrows shot up at her blunt honesty. “You really don’t think we’ll ever see one another again?”

  Steph shrugged. “I’m going to be getting married tomorrow, and I can’t imagine my future husband would be thrilled to meet the man who took me on a midnight adventure the evening before our wedding.”

  “No, I suppose he wouldn’t be,” Mehdi agreed. “In that case, I find myself more of a progressive on a lot of issues facing our country. I have spent some time in the West, and I think they are doing many things right—by women, by minorities, with education. I would like to see more of that here. Arranged marriages aren’t really a thing out there, as you’ve said, so I think it’s fair to say that I’m not really supportive of that method of dating.”

  Steph smirked. “Method of dating? That’s one way to describe it.”

  “And how would you? That’s all arranged marriage is, isn’t it? A way for two people to meet and start a life together? The only difference is the dating happens in conjunction with the marriage.”

  “That’s a pretty big difference,” Steph said, though she wasn’t entirely certain of her own conviction on that point.

  “Perhaps,” Mehdi said with a shrug. “I wouldn’t do something like, say, outlaw the practice, but it certainly wasn’t for me.”

  “Wasn’t for you?” Steph said, and Mehdi hesitated before he laughed.

  “I misspoke. I mean it wouldn’t be for me, were that to ever happen.”

  Something in his tone made Steph feel like he was hiding something, but she let it drop. She could detect many secrets under Mehdi’s top layer, but she hardly had the time to delve into them.

  As they walked, a food cart came up on their
left, and Steph’s stomach began to rumble.

  “Are you hungry?” Mehdi asked.

  “I haven’t,” Steph admitted.

  Not missing a beat, Mehdi walked over to the cart and greeted the man, who watched him with wide eyes as he placed an order for two kebabs of meat and vegetables. He handed the man a wad of bills before thanking him and turning back to Steph, holding out a stick to her.