Page 17 of The Sheikh's Secret Family

“Tariq, say something,” Emelia said. She stepped closer to him, though they were still separated by a few feet. “I know this must be a huge shock and I don’t blame you for that.”

“I have a son.” Tariq repeated her words, hoping that they would help him make sense of what was going on. There was no way that he had a son.

Except for that one night, years ago, when he and Emelia had finally let the barriers between them slip away. It had been the best night of his life, something that Tariq could never forget. Had that night led to something permanent? Had it really led to that little boy in the hallway?

“Yes.” Emelia nodded, raising her chin. “His name is Owen. He just turned six.”

“I have a son,” Tariq repeated. Then he blinked, looking again at Emelia, and felt his heart lift. “We have a son.”

She nodded.

“What’s he like?” Tariq asked. He tried to remember that little boy who’d appeared in the hallway. He had curly hair, just like Tariq’s.

“He’s amazing,” Emelia said softly. “Truly, the best of all kids. He loves airplanes and is learning to play basketball. He’s sweet, sensitive, but rough-and-tumble too. He has the best sense of humor.”

Tariq couldn’t hold himself back anymore. This news was too much. He crossed to Emelia with a few steps until they were standing only inches apart. Tariq raised a hand, running a thumb across her cheek. For a moment, he could have been back in college, holding her close as they talked about their dreams. Now, in a way that neither of them could have predicted, it seemed that a dream had come true.

“You’re amazing, you know that?” Tariq asked. He looked down into Emelia’s eyes. He hadn’t realized how much he’d missed her. It had been like living without an arm. “I’m so sorry that you’ve had to do this alone, but things will be different now. I promise. Oh, I missed you so much. And I’m so sorry.”

Tariq’s heart felt full, full of hope, full of love that he’d long ago buried. He had another chance with Emelia. And not just with her, but with their son. Owen. His heart ached, too, knowing how much time he’d missed with both of them, but he could change things now. He and Emelia could slip back into the love they’d shared before, like coming home after a long walk in the cold. And Tariq could get to know Owen, could do for him what his own father had done: teach him how to be a good man.

At the same time, Tariq felt a rush of worry. Emelia had clearly been living in little more than a dressed-up shoebox. The living room was tiny and Tariq had trouble imaging that the other rooms were much bigger. In fact, the glimpse Tariq got of the kitchen through an open door showed yellowing tiles and a miniature sink. The only thing that the room had going for it were Emelia’s decorations, mostly posters of deserts and mountains and forests and beaches.

Which reminded Tariq of everything that Emelia had given up. She’d had such big dreams of traveling and freedom, but she’d given them all up in an instant to raise their child. Now she was working as an administrator at their old college, living in a cramped apartment that had clearly seen better days.

Even without Owen in the picture, Tariq couldn’t bear the thought of Emelia struggling like this. It was no way for such an amazing, vivacious woman to live. And beyond that, it was no place to raise a child. Not when Tariq could do something about it. Ideas flashed through Tariq’s mind. He was going to make this better for them. He had to. He had to make it up to them.

The fact that he was the sheikh of Al Salyah, with a hundred and one responsibilities, was almost forgotten.

Tariq smiled down at Emelia, running his thumb across her cheek once more, then paused. Something was wrong. Instead of her usual gentle smile, her mouth was set in a straight, hard line. Her whole face seemed shuttered, an expression that Tariq had never seen on her before. Maybe she hadn’t missed Tariq like he’d missed her. Maybe his apologies and his promises were just too little, too late.

As if she was reading his mind, Emelia stepped away and Tariq’s hand fell to his side. He felt a sudden sense of loss. What if he’d found Emelia again, found Owen, only to lose them?

“Emelia?” he asked softly.

Emelia shook her head. “Listen, Tariq, I understand that you’re excited about Owen and that you missed me. I get that. But we can’t just erase the last six years. I can’t forget that you abandoned me when I needed you the most. I thought you might have died! And since then, I’ve been raising our child alone.”

Her eyes were shiny with unshed tears and Tariq had the urge to pull her close and whisper reassurances. She wouldn’t want that, though, so he didn’t. He just stood in the middle of the room as Emelia sat down on the couch, putting her head in her hands. She was the very picture of heartbreak. The worst part was that it was one hundred percent, entirely, inarguably, Tariq’s fault.

Slowly, he shrugged off his jacket, toed off his shoes, and sat down beside her, leaving a good foot of space between them. He was going to have to be honest with her about the worst time in his life. About his biggest regrets. But it was the only way that he could get a chance to make things better. Taking a deep breath, Tariq opened his mouth and the story poured out.

CHAPTER12

EMELIA

Emelia was angry. Angrier than she’d expected. Years ago, she’d pushed away any feelings about Tariq, leaving her heart closed. She’d turned all her attention to Owen and to making a life for both of them. She’d turned down offers of dates, not wanting to open up her heart again when it could so easily get broken.

But now, with Tariq actually here, all her feelings were rushing back. Earlier, at the reunion, she’d felt her memories of love resurfacing. At home, with Tariq looking around her living room like it was a hovel, it was anger that was the stronger emotion. Emelia had been angry years ago, when she’d found Tariq’s note and understood that he’d left without saying goodbye. But she was even more angry now. Now she knew that Tariq was a sheikh. Surely, he had the resources to find her again. And now, when he found out about Owen, it seemed that all he could think about was how happy he was to be with Emelia again.

Well, they could have had years together. He was the one who’d thrown that away.

Tariq was sitting beside Emelia now, his face crinkled with worry. He looked like he wanted to say something, but Emelia got there first. She didn’t want to hear any excuses. That would drive her anger too far over the top.

“Why didn’t you ever try to find me?” she asked. “Did you really not care?” Her even bigger worry, that Tariq had known about Owen and about what Emelia was doing but had decided not to contact them, remained unsaid. After all, Tariq really did seem surprised and excited about Owen.

“Of course I cared,” Tariq said, his voice full of unspoken emotion. “I loved you, Emelia. Leaving you was the hardest thing I ever did.”

“Then why did you do it?” she asked. It was a struggle to keep her voice low, but she didn’t want to disturb Owen now that he was finally asleep. Plus, she’d wanted to do this without bringing her personal feelings into it. It was too late, but she could still do her best to remain calm and polite.

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