The Sheikh's American Daughter (15 page)

***

Joseph’s car parked right outside Sheikh Solomon’s house later that day. Olivia looked outside and sighed. It was time for her to return to the house. “I have to go,” she said reluctantly.

“You sound sad to be leaving me,” Joseph said with a smirk on his face.

Olivia smiled and rolled her eyes at him.

“It’s not always about you,” she said.

“It should be.” Joseph took Olivia’s hand into his and kissed it. Olivia smiled.

“I think you are sadder to let me go,” she said playfully.

“Of course I am.” Joseph caressed Olivia’s face with the back of his hand. He leaned closer to her and kissed her forehead. “I can’t wait to make you my wife and have you live with me,” he added. The thought of being his wife made her smile.

“Be patient,” she said. Joseph pressed his face against hers. Olivia closed her eyes and breathed in his manly scent.

“It’s hard. I want you. I want every bit of you.” He kissed her lips. Olivia placed her hands on his face. Even the stubble of his beard felt good in her hands.

“Your face feels nice.” Olivia giggled and pressed a kiss against his cheek. Joseph pulled Olivia closer to him and kissed her lips. It always felt so good when Joseph kissed her. He smelled so nice and his lips were just amazing. He was amazing.

Finally, Olivia and Joseph stopped kissing. “I’ll see you soon,” she said and opened the door.

“Okay, habibi,” he said. Olivia smiled as she got out of the car. She had learned that habibi meant darling. It was the first time Joseph had called her that and it made her heart melt.

***

Olivia’s bubble of happiness burst when she walked into the house. Everyone was in the drawing room, including Sheikh Solomon’s mother. Olivia attempted to walk past the drawing room but Daaliyah called her in.

“Why did you think it was a good idea to just go and see nana Solomon?” she asked Olivia.

“It was my idea,” said Jacob.

“Why would you encourage such a thing?” 

“What is wrong with them going to see their grandmother?” Sheikh Solomon asked. He genuinely looked confused.

“It’s the disrespect that I received,” said grandma Solomon. Jacob and Olivia looked at each other in disbelief.

“Disrespect?” Jacob asked. 

“Yes, I felt disrespected in my own home.”

“What exactly happened?” Sheikh Solomon asked. Olivia just stood in the doorway of the drawing room.

“Olivia and I found out that mother and nana were the ones who chased Elizabeth back to America when they found out that she was with child,” said Jacob. Sheikh Solomon’s face went pale. He stood there in shock. Olivia felt bad for him. No one wanted to hear that their mother had betrayed them.

“That is not true!” Daaliyah protested. Her face turned red. She looked at her husband and shook her head.

“We did what we felt was necessary,” said grandma Solomon. Olivia shook her head. The old woman was unapologetic.

“Mother!” Daaliyah breathed.

“Jacob, what did you just say?” Sheikh Solomon asked his son.

“Olivia and I overheard mother speaking to Esther about it,” said Jacob. Rania and Marina were just staring at their mother in shock.

“I did what was necessary to keep my family’s dignity,” said grandma Solomon. “She was a nice girl but she was not right for you.”

“Right for me? As a result of your actions, my daughter grew up without a father,” said Sheikh Solomon.

“You’ve been married to Daaliyah for all these years. There is no use regretting it now.”

“You could have at least told me that I had a daughter out there.” Sheikh Solomon looked so disappointed and upset. He turned on his heel and left the room. Olivia felt very awkward, and she did not know what to do. She felt bad for the sheikh. He had been separated from the woman he loved. Olivia also felt bad for Jacob. It must be hard to know that your mother was second best, that she had to get rid of another woman in order to secure her position as your father’s wife.

Olivia left the room also. She just did not want to be part of any more drama.

Joseph sighed as he walked into his parents’ house on the following Sunday afternoon. Sunday lunches were starting to be awkward for him to attend. He did not want to get into a dispute over his marriage. He was not going to change his mind and his mother needed to accept that.

“Good afternoon, sheikh,” one of the maids greeted him as he walked through the front door.

“Hello,” he replied. He headed towards the dining room. His parents were already seated at the table.

“Hello Joseph,” his father greeted him.

“Good afternoon, Father,” said Joseph. He approached his mother and kissed her on the cheek. “I trust that you have been well.” he said to her as he sat down.

“I haven’t been well,” she replied. Joseph wanted to tell her to stop being petty but he could not do that. Instead he just looked at her and touched her hand.

“Why haven’t you been well? What is the matter?” he asked, even though he knew that it was because of Olivia.

“I am not happy about your poor choice in women,” she replied.

“Father met her, and he liked her. Why don’t you do the same?” Joseph had to bring his father into the conversation. He needed his father to be on his side. Esther looked at her husband.

“You did not tell me that you liked her,” she said to him.

“I never said that I liked her,” Joseph’s father replied.

“I thought you approved of her,” said Joseph as he started eating. His father crossed his eyebrows.

“You approve?” Esther was really not happy.

“I said she is an intelligent girl,” said Joseph’s father.

“She is an opportunistic jezebel!” 

“I do not think she is interested in his wealth.”

“Everyone is.”

“I got a different vibe from her.” The older sheikh sighed. “Although she is not full Arabic and is an illegitimate child, she has integrity and intelligence,” he added.

“And?”

“And Joseph is not willing to let her go. So we might as well approve of the marriage.”

Esther dropped her fork onto her plate. “Over my dead body!” she spat out.

“Esther, don’t be so dramatic. It will not be the end of the world,” said her husband. Joseph just ate and let them argue with each other.

“How am I being dramatic? You want my son to marry that woman?”

“He wants to marry her. We don’t have to like it but at least he is finally growing up.”

“No, I do not like it,” said Esther.

“At least give Olivia a chance. You know nothing of her and yet you loathe her with passion,” said Joseph.

“I have heard enough from Daaliyah,” said Esther.

“Did you not hear that Daaliyah was the one who seduced Sheikh Solomon just so he would leave Olivia’s mother?”

“Watch your mouth! You cannot be saying things like that about Daaliyah,” said Joseph’s father. Esther barely reacted.

“But it’s the truth and mother knows it.”

Joseph’s father looked at his wife. “It’s true?” he asked when he saw her reaction. He surprised Joseph when he started laughing.

“Why is that funny?” Joseph asked.

“This entire situation is very twisted,” he said. He laughed even harder. Esther looked at her son.

“He’s gone mad,” she said to him.

“I am sick of all of this. Olivia and Joseph will wed next month. That is my final say on the matter.”

Joseph almost leaped out of his chair in excitement. Whenever his father said it was his final say on the matter, it really was. No one dared to challenge him. They just nodded and did as told.

“Fine, but you will regret this,” said Esther. 

“Thank you, Father; you will not regret this,” said Joseph.

“I better not,” his father replied.

For a few minutes, there was silence and peace. They all ate their food quietly. Joseph was just on cloud nine. He was so happy about being able to marry Olivia; soon. He wanted her out of that house, away from Daaliyah and her evil daughters.

The past week had been good for Joseph. He had enjoyed being able to see Olivia every day and spending time with her. She was fun to be around, she made him forget all the stress of work. She put him in a better mood. She was kind-hearted. When they had gone to the orphanage, he had learned that she was good at basketball and she was good with the children.

One of the maids walked into the room and announced that there was a visitor that wanted an audience with Joseph urgently. “Are you allowing just anyone here these days?” Joseph asked.

“It’s someone from your past. She has been before, so we thought it was okay to let her in,” said the maid.

“Her?”

“Hudah,” said the maid. Joseph stopped eating. He wiped his mouth with his napkin and rose to his feet at once.

Hudah was a woman he once had a relationship with. That was the longest relationship he ever had. She wanted marriage and he did not. And so they broke up. He wondered why she was back in his life.

“I remember Hudah,” said Esther. “Why is she here?”

“I don’t know but I must find out,” Joseph replied. He quickly headed to the drawing room.

Hudah was standing in the drawing room. She was tall and slim but curvy. She was still as beautiful as before. She had long, silky dark hair. She had an amazing olive skin tone. She always looked after herself. She made sure to keep her body in shape and always looked after her skin.

“Hudah,” Joseph said as he approached her.

“Joseph,” she breathed. “I needed to see you.” She reached out to touch Joseph’s face but he moved away.

“How did you even know that I was here?” he asked.

“I remember that you have your family Sunday lunches here,” she said with a smile.

“Why did you need to see me?” he asked. Why was it urgent? Joseph was curious. Hudah took a deep breath and straightened out her coral-colored dress.

“There is no easy way to say this,” she said.

“Then just say it.”

“I have a son.”

“Okay?” Joseph wondered why that had anything to do with him. He slid his hands in his pockets and waited for her to elaborate.

“He is two and a half years old.”

“Congratulations,” Joseph said sarcastically.

“He is yours.”

“Excuse me?”

“Luke; he is your son,” she said.

Joseph crossed his eyebrows. Maybe he was not hearing her correctly.

“My son?” he asked.

“Yes. He is your son.”

“Then why would you only tell me now?”

“I couldn’t bring myself to tell you before. You did not want marriage and I did,” she said.

Joseph frowned at her.

“That is not even a plausible excuse,” he said to her.

Hudah shrugged her shoulders. “Well, Luke is your son,” she said. “There is nothing either one of us can do about it.”

“Joseph, what did she just say?” Esther asked her son as she walked into the room. Joseph cussed under his breath. He had just ended the drama about Olivia with his mother, and now there was Hudah. His mother was not going to swallow that pill easily.

“Hello, Mrs. Boutros,” said Hudah. “Joseph and I have a son.”

Esther’s eyes widened. She looked at Joseph and then back at Hudah.

“That is not possible,” she said.

“It is very possible, it happened.”

“I don’t believe you.”

“Maybe I should I have come with him,” said Hudah.

“That would have made sense,” said Joseph.

Hudah pulled out her phone and swiped it to unlock the screen. She showed it to Joseph. There was a picture of a little boy. “That proves nothing to me,” he said.

“I need to sit down,” said Esther. She stumbled over to the sofa and plunked herself down.

“I did not mean to surprise you like this,” said Hudah.

“And yet you did.”

“I kept him away for selfish reasons and it wasn’t right. A child should not grow up without their father, and so here I am.”

“How do we even know that it really is his child?” Esther asked.

“I am happy to have him take a DNA test.”

Joseph closed his eyes and tilted his head back. How was he going to tell Olivia?