Page 38 of The Sheikh's Secret Family

“All right. If you say so. But please do ask around and let me know if you find something.”

“I will.” Still, Tariq’s shoulders looked rather slumped, just like Owen’s had earlier. “Sorry I don’t have a better answer.”

“It’s okay.” Emelia decided it was time for another change of topic. “Any plans for the weekend?”

“On Saturday I have to go to a conference,” Tariq said, shoulders slumping further. Apparently, Emelia had picked the wrong topic. “Sunday I should be free, though.” He perked up a little. “Do you want to go back to the bowling alley with Owen?”

“That sounds good. Maybe afterwards, we can make some pizza.” She explained the Sunday tradition, which led into a conversation about their plans and their own favorite traditions. Apparently, Tariq always had a special Friday dinner with his parents growing up. Emelia had had a private childhood tradition of a candy bar every Monday afternoon at school.

By the time Tariq kissed Emelia goodnight and headed back to his rooms, she felt lighter again. She just needed to put her love for her son and Tariq ahead of her worries. That ought to be simple enough.

CHAPTER21

TARIQ

“Ican’t do the state dinner on Tuesday,” Tariq told Omar, his assistant. “Can we send someone else?”

Omar gave him a look sharp enough to melt diamonds. “Sheikh Ibrahim, dignitaries from several European countries are coming here to discuss economic cooperation with you. Are you really willing to dishonor them by sending someone in your stead?”

“You’re right.” Tariq shook his head. He didn’t want to cancel any more dinners with Emelia and Owen, especially not after hearing how sad his son was when he didn’t show up. But Omar was right. This was an important meeting and it had to be a priority. “What’s next?”

“A meeting with your advisors Wednesday morning,” Omar continued, running his finger across the agenda. “Followed by an appearance at a new university library that was built in your name. After that…”

Tariq tuned out as Omar kept talking. He felt like he was on a hamster wheel these days. He ran and ran but never got where he was going. Sunday had been an amazing day, with Owen winning three rounds of bowling. Afterwards, they’d made pizza in the shape of stars. Just after they’d finished eating, though, Tariq was called away to take a call with one of the dignitaries who would be coming on Tuesday. Tariq could see that even good-natured, patient Emelia was getting annoyed. The fact that he’d shut down her idea of finding a job had definitely made things worse.

It just wasn’t possible, though. There was too much risk of the press finding out about Tariq’s secret family. Which would lead to disaster, politically and for Emelia and Owen themselves. But not telling anyone was making Emelia sad and upset, even though she didn’t know that he was hiding them or why.

Meanwhile, Tariq’s advisors and employees were starting to get annoyed by his lack of focus on meetings and dinners. Worse was the fact that he kept running out early to check in on his family. He couldn’t explain himself, though. No one was happy with him. Round and round the hamster wheel in Tariq’s mind spun. There was no way off in sight.

“And that’s the week,” Omar finished with a flourish, handing the schedule over. “Any questions?”

“No, thank you. That’s all for now.”

Omar left and Tariq reached for his phone to cancel yet another dinner with the people he most wanted to spend time with. He got a reply almost right away from Emelia:

Please inform Owen.

Tariq slumped his head forward. He didn’t want to let Owen down. And he didn’t want to admit that this message was a clear sign that Emelia was done dealing with Tariq’s insane schedule. He remembered attending state dinners like this one with his mother and father when he was Owen’s age and wished that he could do that now. There would be so much more time as a family if Emelia and Owen could come along to some of Tariq’s appearances. He couldn’t risk the fallout of the traditional members of society finding out about his secret family, though, no matter the benefit. The hamster wheel kept turning.

With a sigh, Tariq got to his feet and made his way to Emelia and Owen’s quarters. He had a break in his work and wanted to rip off the Band-Aid of telling Owen that he’d be missing their family dinner. Tariq just wished that he didn’t have to see the sadness in his and Emelia’s eyes when he did.

In the living room, Owen was sitting on the rug with an array of toy planes. He was currently racing them through the air, complete with whooshing noises and crashing sounds. When Tariq walked in he looked up, eyes filling with excitement.

“You’re here!”

Tariq knelt down, ruffling the boy’s hair. “I sure am. What are you playing?”

“I’m playing airplane race,” Owen said. He went on to explain the game, which was very complicated and involved a lot of mid-air crashes and sound effects, but Tariq wasn’t able to focus. Emelia had just appeared in the living room, leaning against the doorframe. A few times, Tariq had caught her watching him and Owen together with an expression somewhere between pride and affection. Today, though, she just looked sad.

“You know, Owen, I have some unfortunate news,” Tariq said, fiddling with one of the planes before setting it gently down.

Owen’s face fell. “We have to go back to Boston?”

Tariq’s eyes widened and he shook his head, glancing up at Emelia. She gave her head a small shake too, her brown hair swishing around her face. Neither of them knew where this had come from.

“No, no, not at all. You and your mom can stay as long as you’d like.”Hopefully forever. “But I do have to miss our dinner tomorrow.”

“Oh.” Owen’s small shoulders slumped. “Okay.”

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