Chapter 25
COLIN
Iset my suitcase on the luggage rack at the foot of the massive carved bed and then just stood there for a minute, wondering how the hell I was going to survive my time in Cairo. Whatever I’d been expecting, so far, I’d been dead wrong.
For starters, the Saad family home was a palace, not a house.
The ceilings in my room stretched at least another story higher, detailed with intricate patterns in the plaster and framed by golden cornices.
My windows were huge, overlooking immaculate gardens that were complete with fountains and footpaths, and the bedroom itself was at least half the size of my entire condo.
I’d grown up around money, but this place still managed to impress me. I rubbed my hands over my face before loosening my tie, genuinely not sure what to expect from here on out. My arrival had been an event in its own right, and apparently, my day wasn’t even over yet.
The worst part was I hadn’t been able to see Deja.
Before Khaled had shown me to my room, he’d made it sound like they had a lot more planned.
At least they’d given me a few minutes to settle in—and wash off the long day of travel.
Every muscle in my back protested as I rolled my shoulders, my skin slathered in airplane grime that even private jets couldn’t eliminate from an international flight.
All I wanted was a shower and sleep, but I doubted the latter was on my agenda for several more hours—and that was at the very least. I was starting to suspect that despite all the hours I’d spent researching the Egyptian culture surrounding engagements, I was still very much unprepared for what was waiting for me.
Finally feeling strong enough to face my luggage, I hoisted a suitcase onto my bed and unzipped it, but a quiet knock interrupted my internal musings about whether jeans were acceptable attire in this house. I sighed, turning toward the door and doing my best to paste on some sort of game face.
“Come in,” I called, but I would be lying to say I wasn’t disappointed that my time to breathe was already over.
As I watched, the door eased open just wide enough for someone to slip through.
My disappointment immediately vanished when I realized that the visitor wasn’t another random Saad.
Deja rushed in, rested her back against the door to close it, then reached behind herself to lock it as her eyes lifted to mine.
An actual zing shot through me when I looked back at her, instantly transported back to that moment in Jane’s kitchen when seeing her had made me forget why I’d even gone in there in the first place.
Somehow, despite twelve thousand miles, at least a dozen handwritten letters, and a month of aching to see her again, now that she was here, I couldn’t seem to remember how to form words.
She didn’t say anything for a long moment either, but then she tucked a strand of dark hair behind her ear and offered me a sheepish smile. “I’m really sorry.”
I frowned. “For what?”
“Uh, let’s see.” She finally pushed off the door and tapped an index finger against her cheek, her eyes lighting up with amusement. “How about the parade that was waiting for you when you got here?”
I laughed. “They were excited to see me. I get it. I’m a big deal.”
She chuckled, taking a few more steps closer to me before she stopped, suddenly looking a little uncomfortable.
“For the record, I had nothing to do with any of that. My mom is enthusiastic. I think she invited everyone she knows.” Her hands came up to cover her face as she shook her head. “I’m so embarrassed.”
“You shouldn’t be.” I moved a step forward myself, itching to finally slide my hands onto the curves of her hips and pull her into me, but I was also itching to keep living, and if her father caught wind of it, he would not be happy. “I thought it was sweet that everyone out there was so excited.”
“Sweet? They were circling you like sharks.”
“True. Are all those women your actual aunts? There are so many of them that it seemed unlikely.”
She burst out laughing. “I honestly don’t know.”
“You don’t know?” My eyebrows hiked up. “Are you serious?”
“I recognized most of them, but I also met half a dozen people today for the first time.” She shrugged a shoulder, then averted her gaze from mine to look around the room, pausing when she saw the collection of suitcases standing against the wall. “Wow. Did you pack your whole condo?”
“It feels like it, but I wanted to be prepared.” I raked a hand through my hair, desperately relieved that I hadn’t sneezed yet. “I’m still not sure how long I’m going to be here and I didn’t want to have to go shopping within the first twelve hours.”
“Good call,” she said after a long beat, then looked back at me. “Do you need any help unpacking? I’m not bad at organizing stuff.”
“I would’ve loved it, but I’ve been informed that you’re not supposed to see some of what I brought. I thought it was just the groom who wasn’t supposed to see the bride in her dress before the wedding, but apparently, you’re not supposed to see my clothes for some of the engagement events either.”
Understanding spread across her features and she smiled. “My father already warned you, huh?”
I made my eyes comically wide as I nodded. “He was extremely thorough. I’m under strict instructions to comply with every custom and to let myself be guided by your family.”
Still smiling, she shook her head but didn’t counter her father’s instructions or offer to help again. We fell back into a comfortable silence for a minute, both of us just standing there, staring at each other while we tried to adapt to being in the same room again.
It was weird, but I’d spent an entire month imagining what it would feel like to see her again, and now that I was here, I was more certain than ever that I’d made the right decision.
I still didn’t have a solid answer from her, though, and at this point, I needed to know if I was putting myself through all this for a reason—or if I should start preparing Basel for the merger to happen another way.
Lifting a hand to squeeze the muscles at my back of my neck, I finally just decided to take the leap. “So, we’re doing this?”
“Yeah.” She paused for only a fraction of a heartbeat before she nodded. “We are.”
“And you’re okay with it?” I asked quietly, not really sure if I would like her answer, but I needed to hear it anyway.
A slow smile appeared on her face, which wasn’t a verbal answer, but a rush of relief spread through me anyway. All the knots that had been tying me up for the entire month released all at once.
Before I could say anything, voices drifted down the hallway and Deja’s eyes widened.
“Oh no.”
I frowned. “What?”
“My aunts.” She hurried to the door, cracked it open, and immediately shut it again. “No. No, no, no, no, no.”
“Deja? What’s happening right now?”
“They’re coming this way.”
“Is that bad? You make them sound like a pack of velociraptors.” I’d read online that engaged couples weren’t supposed to spend time alone together, but I hadn’t really thought that meant we couldn’t be alone at all. Especially in this day and age.
But the look on Deja’s face made it seem like I’d just asked her if water was wet. “Colin.”
“What?”
“If they find me alone in your room, I’m dead.” Her eyes darted around until they landed on the French doors leading to the patio. They were open, letting in a warm breeze—and apparently, letting my fiancée out before we’d even had any real chance to talk. “I’ll see you later, okay?”
As she raced to the door, I sort of drifted along behind her, trying to understand but also just trying to get even a few more seconds with her. “Would it really be that bad if they found you here? It’s not like we’re doing anything inappropriate.”
She turned to shoot me a smile over her shoulder. “The very fact that we’re in the same room, unsupervised, is inappropriate. Think of it as the equivalent to your mom walking in on you naked with a girl in your room when you were about fifteen.”
I arched an eyebrow. “My mom was rarely at home when I was fifteen, but I get the point. It would be bad.”
“Yep. I’m sorry.” She paused for a moment at the doors, turning to look at me properly now. “My family is a lot. I know, but they’re just traditional.”
“How traditional?”
She shrugged and smiled again. “Not so traditional that we can’t go out to dinner like we planned.”
“Are you sure about that?”
She flinched. “No, but I’ll make it happen. Somehow.”
With one last smile, she stepped off the patio into a flowering shrub, but she didn’t get very far before her dress snagged on a branch.
“Crap.” She tugged at it a few times, blowing out a heavy, frustrated breath as she bent over. “Oh, come on.”
I bit the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing. “Need any help with your graceful exit?”
“No.” She tugged again, but as she moved her foot to bend over far enough to extricate herself, her sleeve snagged on the branch behind her. “Why have the plants turned on me?”
A second later, she yanked her shoulder free and ripped at the fabric at her knee, freeing herself with brute force, but I liked it. She always seemed so composed that it was nice to see this slightly more frazzled side.
As she straightened up, she glanced over at me again. “We’re pretending that didn’t happen.”
“I fully support your decision.”
She smiled. “I’ll come find you later, okay?”
“Watch out for bushes.”
She pushed through the shrub with another curse and disappeared down a winding garden path. A couple seconds later, she was swallowed by palms, flowering plants, and lush greenery, vanishing into the gardens.
One part of my brain was still struggling to wrap itself around the fact that her family was this serious about us not being alone together. She was almost thirty years old and about to get married, yet she’d sneaked out of my room like a teenager afraid of getting caught.
The mere thought of it was slightly ridiculous.
Even before my father’s arrest, my parents hadn’t really been the hands-on type.
From a very early age, they’d left us to fend for ourselves at home, in the care of nannies until Jane and I had been old enough to keep the house from burning down by ourselves.
It became our job to watch the younger brothers.
I couldn’t remember a time when any of us had had to sneak friends or significant others into or out of the house. We’d simply used the front door.
The other part of my brain, however, was completely obsessed with the fact that the gorgeous woman who’d just disappeared out of my room was going to be my wife. I was still in serious danger of actually falling for her and I hadn’t been back in her company for a full twenty-four hours yet.
Before I could even begin to process the fact that somehow, Alex had managed to arrange my marriage to the only woman I’d ever met who could make me laugh in less than five minutes, three sharp knocks echoed through the room.
I nearly jumped out of my skin but spun toward the door. “Come in!”
Khaled opened strode into the room. “Are you settling in okay?”
“I’ve been in my room for like five minutes, but yeah, everything’s great so far.”
He nodded slowly, glancing toward the open patio doors, but then looking back at me. “Do you need anything?”
“Just a few minutes to catch my breath. Take a shower.”
A smile that was a little too knowing for comfort appeared on his lips as he glanced at the patio again. “Alright, well, when you’re ready, it’s time for lunch.” He paused for a beat. “After that, my father would like to speak with you.”
“Can’t he just talk to me at lunch?” I asked, started to get annoyed with the old man’s theatrics.
“I’m just the messenger,” he said.
I took a deep breath to steady myself. “I know. Just give me a few minutes and I’ll be ready in no time.”
Khaled disappeared after arching an eyebrow at me, and I shut my eyes when I realized that this was what my time in Cairo was going to be like. I’d come here to earn Basel Saad’s daughter and he really wasn’t going to make it easy on me, the old bastard.
The thought of seeing Deja’s pretty smile again made it all worthwhile.