Nicole sighed. She hadn’t meant to hurt his feelings, but she didn’t want to be dishonest, either.
“It’s not just your busy schedule, Bahir. It’s my personality. I don’t allow myself to relax, because when I do there are consequences. If I let my guard down, if I let myself forget one little detail, that could be the one mistake that could lose me a case. You have to work hard if you want to succeed in life, and I want to succeed.”
“What would you be doing right now, if you could do anything?”
Nicole stared at him for a moment, not sure how much to give away.
She smirked. “What, is this a job interview now?”
“No, I’m just really curious. If you could do anything in the world, what would it be?”
Practice law, she thought.
Instead, she said, “Oh I don’t know. Something that involves helping others and making the world a better place. That old chestnut.”
Bahir’s gaze was penetrating. Instead of facing it, she focused on smothering a cracker with cheese and taking a bite while staring out at the crystal-clear waters. She took another sip of champagne and stood.
“It’s far too hot to keep sitting on this beach. I’m jumping in.”
“Not if I beat you to it,” Bahir countered, jumping up and sprinting toward the water.
For a moment Nicole was frozen in place as she watched her usually uptight employer run like a little boy towards the waves.
Realizing she was about to lose a race, she sprinted after him, catching up to him before his feet could touch the water. She grasped his arm, pulling him back so she could beat him to the ocean.
“I win!” she cried, triumphant.
Bahir looked shocked that she would do such a thing before his eyebrows narrowed and his expression turned impish.
“Not so fast,” he said, and she yelped as he dipped down, scooping his arms under her knees and lifting her in his strong arms. He continued plunging into the water, getting deeper and deeper until Nicole realized what he was about to do.
“Don’t you dare!” she called out, clinging to his neck for dear life as Bahir laughed. The cool water was up to his belly when he started swinging her from side to side.
“One,” he said, and Nicole met his gaze as he laughed.
“Two,” he continued, and she braced herself for what was next.
“Three!”
In that moment he released her on an outward swing, and Nicole went flying into the water. She landed bottom first, her head disappearing under the surface.
Opening her eyes, saw some colorful fish darting away from them before she broke the surface again and took a deep breath, laughing as she wiped water from her eyes.
“You, sir, are a jerk!” she laughed, and Bahir laughed with her.
It was a rich sound; one she didn’t really hear all that often. Usually when Bahir laughed it was a controlled sound, like even his laughter had been researched and constructed for better business dealings. This laugh rang out across the water, and it made Nicole feel a joy she didn’t want to forget.
“You asked for it. Thinking you could beat the most powerful man in the world at a footrace? That was simply foolish of you.”
“If you were the most powerful man in the world, I wouldn’t have won.”
“Ah, but you didn’t win in the end. That’s simply good business. You thought you had the upper hand, but in the end, I defeated you!”
Nicole floated over to him, her expression sultry. Bahir’s laugh died in his throat as he watched her approach, her hips swaying from side to side. She gazed up at him as she pushed out her bottom lip.
“You’re right. You did get the last laugh, didn’t you?” she pouted.
Bahir swallowed, trying not to look below her eyes.
Nicole reached an arm around his neck, pulling his face towards hers. Then, without warning she moved aside and plunged his head underwater.
Bahir jerked up, coughing, and Nicole laughed again.
“Lesson number one, Mr. Al-Jabbar. Don’t mess with a Calvert when it comes to water games. I will always, always win.”
He stared at her as he brushed water out of his hair, mussing it up so it stuck up in an incredibly sexy way. Nicole didn’t want to admit that she’d almost kissed him instead of committing to her little game. That would have been a bad idea.
“Lesson understood,” Bahir chuckled. “You are a worthy adversary, Madame Calvert. Let it be known far and wide that no man or woman should mess with you on the high seas.”
Nicole tilted her head in acknowledgement of his statement, but her little grin softened the blow.
They floated in the water together for some time, chatting about this and that. After a while they headed back to the shore to continue snacking on their impromptu wedding feast, Nicole leaning back on her palms as she watched the waves gently lap against the shore.
“This is so wild,” she said after a time.
Bahir lifted an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
She turned to look into those stunning brown eyes and nearly melted on the spot. She could see now why Bahir had broken so many hearts. When he wasn’t in a suit, in business mode, he was the most attractive man she’d ever seen.
Giving herself a mental shake, she returned to her train of thought. She waved a hand around them. “This. Marrying you. Being a green-card wife. If you’d have told me a year ago this is where I’d be I would have had you institutionalized,” she laughed.
Bahir’s expression was thoughtful. “Life is certainly full of strange twists and turns, isn’t it? If you’d have told me this is where I’d be, buying a wife, I probably would have accepted it and believed you fully. I’m an impossible man to love,” he said, gazing down at the sand.
Nicole frowned. “This again? Bahir, you’re a perfect catch. You’re rich and successful and handsome…” she gulped down that last word and blushed.
He glanced up at her and grinned. “So you think I’m handsome, huh?”
Nicole swatted his shoulder again. It was a conversation they hadn’t been able to finish back at the fishing village, which already seemed like a lifetime ago.
“Shut up. You know what I mean. You know what you look like. Why would you think you’re impossible to love?”
Bahir sighed. “The truth is I’ve tried in the past. Really, I have. I don’t like hurting people, as much as you may think I do with my cold-hearted business mindset. The truth is some people have to get hurt. There has never been a situation in the history of mankind where everyone wins. Someone has to lose. I guess in my mind, I just never wanted to be the person who lost my heart, so I kept it to myself. I enjoyed a woman’s company for a time, even tried to let myself open my heart once or twice, but it was no good.”
Bahir fiddled with specks of sand as he spoke. Nicole was all ears; this was the deepest he’d ever gone in a conversation about his love life.
“The truth is my business is my life. No matter who I’m with or what I’m doing, my job is with me at all times, knocking at my brain, ensuring I don’t forget what I need to do to continue to grow. I always figured if I met the right woman, she would quiet my mind enough to allow me to put her before my career, but that’s never happened. It might never happen.”
Nicole placed a gentle hand on top of his, stopping his busy fingers as they continued to toy with the sand. “It doesn’t always have to be that way, Bahir. You’ll find the right one, someday. Everyone finds balance in their life at some point. Maybe love can help you find yours.”
He stared at her for a long moment then. He didn’t want to say it out loud, but since they’d headed for the beach, he hadn’t thought about anything else but having fun with Nicole. It was certainly a first. Could she be the one, truly?
Leaning in, he pressed his lips against hers for the second time that day. She scooted a little closer, allowing him to wrap his arms around her and deepen the kiss.
With that, Bahir gently laid Nicole down, and the two of t
hem made love as the stars began to twinkle overhead and the waves caressed the shore.
Wrapped in the circle of his arms, Nicole tried not to think about how unreal all of this was. She wasn’t his wife, really. Or was she? It was all so confusing. Not wanting to spoil the moment, she nestled close to him as the sea breeze passed over them, falling into a deep, contented sleep.
TWELVE
Nicole shivered.
She was cold and stiff, and as she cracked open an eyelid, the first thing she noticed was a very particular absence.
Bahir was gone.
She sat up, raising a hand to her eyes as she stared out at the ocean. The sun had risen, but it wasn’t far above the horizon, and it was clearly early in the morning. Glancing around, she realized that the picnic basket and food had been cleaned up and taken away.
It wasn’t exactly the nicest way to wake up after a night of passion. She frowned as she tried not to compare herself to the other women Bahir had left behind, just like this. The ones she’d sent flowers to and tried her best to console while he went on about his business as though nothing had ever happened. Had she really been so foolish as to believe that she could be an exception?
Nicole took a breath, attempting to clear her head. She slipped back into her swimsuit and wrapped her towel around herself, rising and dusting sand off the blanket. She told herself not to come to any conclusions until she talked with Bahir, and made her way back to her bungalow, opening the door and setting her things down. Still no sign of him anywhere.
Fighting a rising wave of disappointment, Nicole took a hot shower before she dressed in her jeans and T-shirt once again. She pulled her hair back into a tight ponytail and slid her room key and cellphone into a back pocket before heading to the main lounge. Maybe Bahir was getting breakfast?
When she opened the door she found him instantly. He was seated at a table, ignoring a steaming cup of coffee and a muffin while perusing a newspaper. Nicole approached him slowly, and when he looked up, his eyes were oddly blank.
“Nicole. Good to see you. I trust you slept well?” his tone was conversational, but distant, like they were back at the office.
With a pang of disappointment, Nicole realized that she was exactly like all those other women to Bahir, and she had been foolish to think otherwise. The only difference was that she now had to stare at his stupid, perfect face every day. At least the others got to avoid him after he broke their hearts.
Nicole cleared her throat, not wanting Bahir to see that he had any power over her. “A little chilly, but I slept all right, thank you.”
Bahir nodded, putting down his paper and taking a sip of his coffee. “I got a call from our pilot this morning. We’re ready to take off as soon as you can pack your bags.”
“I’d like a bite of breakfast first, if it’s all right with you,” Nicole said, her tone clipped.
Bahir shrugged. “Sure, by all means. We have a few minutes before we should head out.”
Nicole’s heart sank as she walked over to a small buffet and spooned some fruit and eggs onto her plate. She made a cup of tea, and then reluctantly joined Bahir at his table. He had picked up the newspaper again and was reading it, completely ignoring her. As she took her last bite, he glanced up.
“Oh good, you’re finished. Before we go, can you open up your notes and type up this letter for me? Reading this story reminded me that I need to address…”