The Sheikh's Stolen Bride-To-Be(19)

Sadiq held out a hand for her to shake, which she did, vigorously. She  was about to ask him about the woman he loved when they heard the  elevator ding again and a loud voice coming from that general direction.



The voice belonged to none other than Steph's mother.





THIRTEEN



Steph





"Where is she? Where is my daughter?"



Steph winced at the anger in her mother's voice, and Sadiq lifted an eyebrow.



"I take it that's my ex future mother-in-law?"



Steph nodded, her throat bone dry. "You guessed it."



Without hesitating, Sadiq stood and stepped out of his office. Steph  waited in her seat a moment, working up her courage, taking strength  from the fact that Sadiq was not only with her, but also on her side.  She stood and joined him outside the office.



Elora was making her way across the large open room. Behind her, Steph  saw her father, his cheeks ruddy, his shoulders slumped. If he'd had a  tail, it would have been firmly between his legs.



Finally, Steph braved a real look at her mother, who practically had  flames shooting from her eyes. It didn't bode well for them. Seeing  Sadiq, Elora calmed her expression, though her shoulders remained stiff,  her posture aggressive.



"Sadiq. I can't apologize enough for all of this. I had thought we could  come to another agreement, that this might be salvageable, but now I  see my daughter has ruined everything by coming here to meet you."



"You are mistaken," Sadiq said, his tone calm and collected. "Steph's coming here has been quite the blessing."



That took Elora by surprise, and she stepped back, glancing at her  husband, whose eyes darted up to hers before quickly shooting back down  to the floor. Sometimes it was hard to remember that this man had once  been at the epicenter of global commerce. To his wife, he was a doting  husband-most especially when she was mad.



"I …  I'm not sure what you mean," Elora said.



She was watching them both carefully, no doubt evaluating their  positions in relation to one another, trying to find any kind of hint  that all might not be lost. She was about to be very disappointed.



Sadiq grinned, and his warm smile and soothing presence was everything Steph's family needed.



"The truth is, Mrs. O'Hanlon, I didn't want an arranged marriage either.  Steph and I are on the same page about that. I have feelings for  another woman, as it happens, and now I have the chance to be with her."



"But you agreed. You went through an arduous vetting process for us to  match you. Why would you do that if you were in love with another  woman?"



"Why do you think Steph went through with it, even though she was  afraid? I take it you, too, entered into an arranged marriage. Why did  you do it?"



Steph stepped forward then, finding her voice. "Because we love our  families," she said, her voice trembling ever so slightly. "And we would  do anything to make them happy."



Elora placed her fists on her hips, though her posture had softened a  bit. "If you loved your families, we wouldn't be standing here right  now. Your parents must be devastated! Do they even know that you didn't  want this?"



"They knew from the beginning, but my parents tend to believe I am  incapable of making my own decisions-in spite of my personal success. It  is something I plan on proving them wrong about, once I marry the woman  I am destined to be with."



"And that woman isn't me, Mom," Steph chimed in.



Elora's stare bounced between the two of them, her mind working  furiously. After a tense moment, her shoulders finally relaxed all the  way, her anger seeming to melt down into the floor.         

     



 



"Fair enough," she conceded.



Steph blinked. "What?"



Elora shrugged. "I should have known you would be too headstrong to go  through with this. I should have listened to you all the times you told  me you couldn't go through with it. I've pushed you away because of a  centuries-old sense of tradition and duty, but the truth is, we never  seem to question why we do the things we do. Perhaps allowing for more  than one way is the path toward the future."



Sadiq beamed. "You'll have to be careful, Mrs. O'Hanlon, or you might be joining the revolution with the rest of us."



"Don't be silly," she scolded, though there was a small gleam in her  eye. "Now if you'll excuse us, Sadiq, I think it's long past time we got  my daughter back to the hotel."



Steph wondered just how much trouble she would be in once they were  alone. Sadiq seemed to have the same thought, as he took a gentle step  forward.



"Please don't be too hard on Steph about this, Mrs. O'Hanlon. She's a  wonderful person, and she deserves to marry a man who will love her  entirely, with no strings attached. I think she may have already found  that man," he said, glancing back at Steph with a smile.



Steph's grin was thankful as she reached out a hand for Sadiq to shake, which he did, heartily.



"It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Sadiq. I hope you get what you're looking for."



"I think I will, thanks to you. Thanks for having the courage. You're a stronger person than I."



Steph laughed. "I sincerely doubt that."



Sadiq shook hands with Elora and Jerry before walking them to the  elevator and bidding them all farewell. When they stepped inside and the  doors closed, Steph held her breath, waiting to see if her mother would  change her tune.



After a pause, Elora turned to Steph and wrapped her firmly in her arms, holding her tight.



"Oh, Steph," she breathed.



Steph could feel her mother's relief, and she held her back just as tightly.



Finally, as the elevator made its way down to the first floor, Elora pulled away, stroking her daughter's face.



"Can you forgive me?"



Steph's eyes widened. "Forgive you? What for? You didn't do anything wrong."



"Didn't I?" Elora asked, looking entirely miserable. "It was my need to  stick to tradition that sent you running, and now I see that your fiancé  didn't want any part of it either. We could have just made a terrible  mistake, thinking we were doing what was best for you."



Before Steph had a chance to reply, the doors opened and they were met with compete chaos.



The security guard looked at the elevator with accusation in his eyes,  and he wasn't alone. Two police officers had arrived, and they were  rushing toward the elevator even as it opened.



"That's her! That's the woman who forced her way in!"



The guard was pointing directly at Steph's mother, who stepped out into the lobby as though nothing were wrong.



"There seems to have been some mistake, officers," Elora said, her voice  smooth as silk. "We were welcome here. Call Sadiq and ask him  yourselves."



The officers exchanged confused looks as they deliberated who to  believe. Finally, one of them told the security guard to make the call,  and he paused, glaring at Elora, before he stepped behind the desk and  dialed the number.



The officer took the phone once the guard had finished dialing. "Yes,  we're here on account of a disturbance in your building. We have  detained three individuals who just came down the elevator. They are  saying that you granted them permission to enter."



The officer listened to Sadiq speak at length before he hung up the  receiver and glared at the guard. "False alarm. Let's get out of here."



The two officers headed for the door, one of them tilting his hat to Elora.



"Apologies for the misunderstanding, ma'am."



"It's no trouble," Elora purred, casting a victorious stare at the guard, who pouted as he took his seat once again.         

     



 



The three of them stepped back out onto the street, quickly finding  their way back to the hotel. It was late, and Jerry was stifling yawn  after yawn as they took the elevator back to the luxury suite Sadiq had  paid for. Steph sent out a silent thank you to him, knowing he would  never know how truly grateful she was for how the whole situation had  played out.



"Well, my role in this is done. I'm going to bed," Jerry declared,  waving absently as he headed straight for his bedroom and closed the  door.



Elora and Steph locked stares for a moment. As late as it was, and as  tired as she should have been after a day in the sun with Mehdi, Steph's  heart was racing, and there was no way she would be able to get to  sleep anytime soon.



"Would you like some tea?" Elora asked.



It was an olive branch. Steph could see that, and she decided it would  be best to take it. A long, honest conversation with her mother was more  than a little overdue.



"I would. Thank you," she said.



"Sit down. I'll put the kettle on."



Steph sank into one of the large sofas as her mother filled a pot with  water and turned on a burner in their small kitchenette. She rattled  around for some cups and tea bags before joining Steph on the sofa.