The Sheikh's Secret

by Knight, Kylie

  He wasn’t used to anyone turning down his money. Most everyone in his life knew he had plenty of it so he ended up paying for anything and everything when he was out. It was an odd, unsettling feeling that she was turning down his money. But in a way, he kind of liked it.

  “Well, that is very kind of you. Thank you. Do you have a minute to sit down with me?” he asked her. He knew it was a risk, she probably had more important things to be doing, but he didn’t want to part with her just yet.

  He watched as Emily exchanged a glance with Kara and then she unhooked her apron. “I was actually just about to leave for the night,” she answered him. He couldn’t help that he felt disappointed. “But, I’d love to sit and talk for a few minutes.”

  After grabbing herself a cupcake, she made her way around the counter and led them to a table on the far side of her tiny bakery. He watched as the other girl slipped to the back in the kitchen and then they were alone again, just like the other day.

  “You’re food is so fantastic,” he said to her, taking bites of his scone. “But why don’t you open in the morning like many bakeries? I’d love to be having some of your food for breakfast.” He didn’t mean to be so blunt and he worried that she might take offense. But she smiled instead and licked her fingers of the chocolate frosting that was on them.

  “I have to work in the morning at an office. Early afternoon is the earliest I can get here,” she explained.

  “What about your assistant? Couldn’t she open for you?” Abdul took another bite of his scone. The hard cookie had such a burst of citrus with the perfect crunchy texture on the outside but was warm and inviting inside.

  Emily was finishing chewing her bite of cupcake, and he loved watching her eat. He could see how much pleasure she took from every bite that she ate and it was nice to see someone else feel the way he did about divine food.

  “My assistant is still in college. She’s sort of training under me to open her own business so she is only here when her schedule allows which is mostly at night and on the weekends. I’d love to hire someone to open, it’s just not in the budget for me.”

  “Is that why you have to work another job?” He could kick himself for how rude he felt he was being. This girl didn’t even know him and he was asking all sorts of questions that were inappropriate. Most people start off with normal questions, where they are from, and what they like to do. He was basically asking why her business wasn’t doing better.

  “Yea, basically.” She took another bite of cupcake and chewed it thoughtfully. “One day thought, one day I think that I can really make this what I want it to be.” She looked around her little bakery with wishes in her eyes and he could practically see her dreams.

  Chapter 5

  It became a daily tradition between the two of them. Abdul would either call in an order if he was busy or stop in on his lunch if he wasn’t, then the two would sit at a table together after both of their shifts and talk. Sometimes it was important things, like dreams and careers, sometimes it was trivial things like what was on TV that night or the rainstorm that had hit that afternoon. Emily looked forward to his daily visits and even got herself to the point where she didn’t feel like a total mess when he was around. In the beginning she had felt awkward and clumsy, but now she felt comfortable around him, at ease when they talked.

  Kara couldn’t help but notice the way Emily lit up when Abdul was about to come into the bakery, or the way that she made sure she was clean and presentable when he was arriving.

  “You’ve got it bad for this guy,” she said to her one day as they were rolling out pie dough.

  “What are you talking about?” Emily responded.

  “Abdul. You are really into him.” It was not a question, but a definitive statement. One that Emily tried to deny but did a very poor job of.

  “He’s just a…friend,” she said and shrugged her shoulders.

  Kara looked hard at her friend, studying her to read what was really going on.

  “Nope. Sorry. I don’t buy it. You like him. And if that blushing is any indication, you like him a lot.”

  Emily sighed and put down her rolling pin. It was true and there was no point in denying it. She did have a crush on him, a big one. He made her feel like a teenager all over again, giving her butterflies when it was time for him to show up and feeling disappointed on days when he could only call in his order instead of stop in in person. It wasn’t even as if they had done anything special together really, only spent time together in the little corner table that she couldn’t help but consider “theirs.” But even those little bits of time were exciting to her.

  “Fine,” she finally admitted. “Yes. I have a crush on him. But that’s it. There’s nothing more to it than that.”

  Yea, she knew that was a lie too. The feelings she had were quickly becoming more than just a crush.

  “Well, don’t you think that’s a little dangerous? I mean you’re making this guy’s wedding cake.”

  Somewhere inside Emily knew that she shouldn’t be having this kind of friendship, since that’s all it was at the moment, with someone who was getting married. Especially when she was making the wedding cake herself. But she did find it odd that in all of the weeks they had this little tradition, he had very rarely spoken of Nora. She found that odd that someone who was supposed to be in love never spoke of the woman he loved. She knew that even just as a crush she thought of Abdul a lot, so she naturally assumed that when someone was in love the thoughts would be on that person all the time. So why didn’t he talk about her?

  “I can’t see how it would be dangerous. It’s not like I’m going to ruin the wedding.”

  Kara sighed in frustration and put down the rolling pin. “It’s not dangerous for him. It’s dangerous for you.”

  “Me? Why me?” Emily had no idea how being friends with someone could be dangerous at all.

  “You’ve got a couple of months until the wedding. You’re already falling hard for this guy, don’t you think if you continue to stay friends it’s going to make things even harder for you? More painful when he actually does get married and you have to say goodbye to him?”

  Emily hadn’t considered that, hadn’t even really thought about what would happen once he got married. Of course he wouldn’t be able to stay friends with her. Honestly if Nora were around, she doubted they would even be friends the way they were. It was inappropriate. She shouldn’t stay friends with him, if not for the sake of his marriage, then for her own sake. Kara was right, it was going to crush her once they actually got married if she continued to spend time with him the way that she was. She was going to have to break the cycle.

  She resolved that when he was supposed to stop in to pick up his order, she would make some excuse and let him know that she had to leave. It would definitely not be fun but Kara was right, she couldn’t get any more attached. When the bell ran overhead of the door at his usual time, Emily took a deep breath and smoothed out her apron.

  “Hey there,” he said to her.

  “Hi,” she answered shyly. Immediately she felt like that nervous girl that had met him weeks before. He really was a gorgeous guy which certainly didn’t make it any easier to spend time with or, or to not spend time with him anymore either.

  “Listen, I’ve got something to tell you. I’m really sorry to spring this on you but Nora just called me today. She’s coming here tomorrow for the weekend to set some things up for the wedding. She specifically told me to come in here and would like to see how you’re coming along on perfecting the sugar work. Apparently she’s had some nightmares lately about it not going well.”

  To be fair, Emily hadn’t really thought about the sugar work at all. She was far from an expert but she also wasn’t brand new to it all and had figured that she would practice much closer to their wedding. She still had quite a bit of time and many other orders and clients to take care of. There was no way she’d have the type of perfection that Nora undoubtedly would be expecting.

>   “Can you tell her this is not a good time? I have a very big cupcake order that I have to fill for this weekend. Can she stop in next time she is in town?”

  Abdul shook his head no. “She’s flying out from here back home after this weekend and trust me when I say this, it will be much worse working with her if she doesn’t get her way. I’ll pay you for any of the extra work.”

  His offer almost irritated her. It wasn’t about the money and she was tired of feeling like he just expected he could buy her when it came to Nora. Maybe that’s the lifestyle he was used to, but it wasn’t anything that she wanted. It was the respect that irritated her, or lack thereof, that Nora gave her, and apparently Abdul as well when it came to keeping her happy. But she didn’t say any of that to him.

  “It’s fine. I’ll take care of it. Who needs to go home on a Friday night anyway?” She tried to laugh and make it sound like a joke but she knew it came out more bitter than she had intended. “I’m sorry,” she offered. “I’ll get a few roses made up tonight so she can take a look tomorrow. You’ve been a very generous client so I’m happy to help. They won’t be perfect but they will be as good as I can do for right now and I’ll continue to perfect them.”

  Abdul thanked her profusely and she waved him off, giving him his order for the day. “I’m sorry but I won’t have time to sit with you tonight, I’ve got some work to do.”

  She hated that she was going to miss her nightly conversation with him, but that was the original plan wasn’t it? To separate herself from him and the situation? Well, she figured, what better way to do that than to make sugar roses for his fiancé instead of sitting at their table talking. Without much more conversation, Abdul took his package and paid for his food. Emily watched him walk out of the door and down the walk towards his car.

  She couldn’t help the sadness that settled into her core. She hadn’t realized how much she enjoyed their time together, but there was nothing she could do. She headed back into her kitchen and started pulling ingredients off the shelf. She let Kara go early for the night while she stayed to work. Emily rubbed her weary eyes, it was going to be a long night.

  Chapter 6

  When Nora had called and told Abdul that she was coming in for wedding appointments, he felt a feeling of dread come over him. It wasn’t as if he didn’t want to see Nora, she may not be someone he was in love with, but she still had been a friend for his entire life and he did enjoy being around her, when she was acting like the sweet girl he had grown up with. Abdul had a harder time when she was being the difficult and hard woman that she could easily slip into. Sometimes he wondered if the girl that he had known was now only a costume she would slip into when she wanted something from him. Not that there was anything wrong with a tough woman, but when it became more of a problem then it did a positive, then it wasn’t something he wanted to be around.

  But when she called, she sounded sweet and like her old self so when she said she was flying in, he had a small spark of excitement in him. He enjoyed spending time with her when she was sweet and happy like that. But almost immediately she dropped the bomb of why she was really coming in.

  “I’ve been thinking and I don’t believe that this Emily girl can really make those roses. When I come in I want to see her progress on them. If she can’t make them to my satisfaction then I am going to cancel our contract and hire someone a little more…professional,” she told him.

  “I’m sure she will do just fine and I don’t think we need to bother her with the roses right now. We have a few months before the wedding.” Abdul knew that Emily had a big weekend of baking ahead of her and he didn’t want to overwhelm her with unnecessary details at the moment. Of course he couldn’t tell that to Nora. It wasn’t as if he was doing anything wrong by being friends with Emily, he enjoyed her company and found her very interesting and fun. But he knew Nora wouldn’t see things that way. He knew that she would blow things up out of proportion and he didn’t need a call from his parents lecturing him on his life.

  Nora paused, almost sounding as if she was considering his point, but then quickly disagreed. “No, I want to see the roses. Call her and tell her that I will be in tomorrow and I want to see how she’s coming along. I have to go darling, I will see you tomorrow.” With a click she hung up the phone and left Abdul hanging, unable to even argue with her.

  Often he couldn’t help but wonder why exactly his parents found her so perfect for him. She certainly had changed and wasn’t exactly who they thought she was anymore. Yes, their families had known each other for a very long time, and yes she could make a good wife for a sheikh, but what about love? What about happiness? Did he need to spend the rest of his life seeking out other women looking for one that makes him smile yet can never be with her? The thought just didn’t seem fair but he knew it was a point he couldn’t argue with his parents. They had married the exact same way he was about to and they seemed happy enough. But maybe some marriages worked that way and some didn’t, just because it worked for them didn’t mean it would work for him.

  These were the thoughts he tossed through his mind the entire drive to Emily’s Kitchen that night. It wasn’t as if he was in love with Emily or anything he argued to himself, but he couldn’t deny that seeing her made him happier everyday than talking to Nora did. And he looked forward to it every day too. She made him smile easily and he admired how hard she worked to pursue her dreams. Life wasn’t handed to her as it had been for Nora and himself, she had to work for everything she got, and that impressed him more than anything.

  Telling her about Nora’s visit wasn’t easy either. He had already been able to tell something had been off with her and now here he was demanding more work out of her, and she wouldn’t even accept his payment. At times her stubborn way of turning down his money frustrated him. He wanted to help her and she was earning the money he was offering, it wasn’t as if he was trying to give her charity. She didn’t want anything that even seemed like she needed the extra help and he enjoyed that. But he made a plan anyway, if she wouldn’t accept his money, then he would find another way to make it up to her.

  The lights were off in the front of the bakery when he arrived, two brown bags filled his hands. Peering through the glass door he spotted her through the window in the kitchen. He watched her for a moment as she worked in the dim lighting. Her hands moved methodically and gracefully, stretching the materials and rolling them in her palms. It was the movements of a ballet dancer on stage performing when she doesn’t realize anyone is watching. It was mesmerizing and beautiful. Suddenly she looked up and saw him standing at her door. For a moment he felt embarrassed that he’d been caught watching, but he pushed that feeling aside, happy that he did get to watch her for just a moment in time.

  Emily’s face betrayed her stoic nature. She lit up when she first saw him standing there, then quickly wiped her face clean and put on a blank, if not confused mask. Walking through the bakery to the door, he saw her take a deep breath before she unlocked it.

  “Hi,” she greeted him timidly. “Did you come to check on the roses before tomorrow? I haven’t quite got it right but I’ll keep working until I do.”

  “Actually, I thought you might be a little hungry and would want to take a break.” Abdul held up the bags he’d been holding. Take-out spaghetti from his favorite Italian restaurant.

  “Wow!” Her eyes widened in a pleasant surprise. “That was really thoughtful of you, thank you.” She stepped aside and let Abdul into her closed bakery.

  “The only catch is I bought some for myself, so how about we eat together?”

  A flash of uncertainty clouded her eyes and for a moment she looked as if she might tell him no. But before she did she looked into his eyes and he stared back into hers. Something passed between them, something he wasn’t exactly sure of, but it changed the air between them. A smile came across her lips and she nodded her agreement. It was as if both of them knew that things would be different after that night.

  Wit
hout even thinking about it they walked over to their table in the corner.

  This is the absolute best Italian food around, have you ever had it from Linguine?” He asked her.

  She shook her head no as she took a bite of the spaghetti and meatballs he had bought her. Once the food hit her tongue he saw her eyes close in delight as she appreciated the savory garlic and herb sauce tossed with perfectly al dente noodles. Part of the reason he’d brought her this dinner was to watch her reaction, to see if she really appreciated food the way he did like he thought she might. Her reaction told him everything.

  “I used to want to be a chef,” he admitted to her. He was surprised the confession came out, Nora didn’t even know that about him.

  “Why didn’t you do it?” She asked him while her mouth was still of noodles. That could have been a very gross turn off but instead he found it adorable that she was not only enjoying the food that much, but also because she was completely comfortable around him. He loved that.

  “Well, my parents are very traditional and they didn’t really believe a chef was a high enough….status.” He had to choose his words carefully. It wasn’t as if he was ashamed of who he was and the status he held, he just never liked to seem like he was bragging or that he believed that he was better than anyone else. In his opinion being a chef was a very excellent profession, but his parents had strongly disagreed.

  Emily chewed as she thought over what he had just said.