“Is there an Englishwoman, Khaled?”
He gave a short, sharp laugh. “No, no Englishwoman.” Which was true enough as it went. His Scottish rose wouldn’t let anyone brand her a Sassenach.
“But there is someone?”
Khaled drew in a deep breath. “No one whom I could, in honor, ask to be my wife.”
It wasn’t as if they were in love. In the end, they had only spent one night together. One foolish night, as it turned out. You weren’t supposed to start thinking about marriage after one night. It wasn’t enough to start building hopes for a lifetime. Perhaps if they had had more time together in Scotland or in London, they might have been able to find a way to make it work. But here in Saqat, more nights together weren’t possible. There shouldn’t even have been an afternoon walking around the city together.
His father would be horrified if he knew Khaled was considering taking a foreigner and a kafir for his wife, and Olivia would be equally horrified, surely. The only life he could offer her in Saqat would be a poor return for giving up her home, her job, her ambitions. She wasn’t a woman who would be content to swim and sunbathe all day. She was capable of so much, and she needed a place where she could shine. Olivia deserved her dreams, and Khaled couldn’t give them to her.
And there was the rub.
Even if, by some miracle, she were prepared to consider it, he could not ask Olivia to be his wife because she deserved so much more than he was able to offer her. She deserved her own dream. She deserved to be made CEO of MCI Oil. She’d worked for it all her life, she was more than good enough to do the job, and the deal with Saqat would secure it for her. How could Khaled ask her to give it all up? How could he say to her, just at the point when she had finally earned everything she had ever wanted, that she should marry him and leave it all behind for a shallow and unfulfilling life as a decorative wife? It would be the worst insult he could offer her.
“I see. I am sorry, my son.”
“Yes. Yes, so am I.”
…
“Ms. McInnes?”
Olivia looked up from her desk. A young smartly dressed woman waited by the door. “Please, come in.”
“Thank you. I am Jemimah Saoud. I work here in the palace, and Sheikh Khaled asked me to ensure that you have everything you need during your stay with us.”
The office she had been allocated was well equipped with fast Internet access and a sleek modern fax and printer. There was nothing else she needed. “I do, thank you.”
“And is there anything else you would like? I am at your service during your visit.”
Olivia chewed her lip. There was something she would like, and Jemimah might be the person to help her.
“I’d like to meet some Saqati people. Not the council members, just ordinary people. Women who would be willing to tell me about their lives. I would like to understand more of the culture and society here if my company is going to do business with Saqat.”
Jemimah’s face lit up. “I can arrange that. Let me make some calls and see what I can do.”
“I’ll need an interpreter,” Olivia said. “I’m afraid I don’t speak any Arabic.” She made a mental note to change that. It wasn’t good enough to rely on other people’s willingness to learn English or to translate for her.
“I can do that, if it is necessary,” Jemimah assured her. “But I was thinking of taking you to meet my cousin, Sadiah, and her English is very good.”
“That will make it easier, thank you. What does Sadiah do?”
Jemimah beamed proudly. “She is a radio producer and she also presents her own show. Everyone listens to Sadiah’s show.”
“What does she talk about in the show?”
“Everything!” Jemimah said with a grin. “Everything that women would be interested in.”
“Clothes? Makeup? Men?”
Jemimah laughed. “No. Well, sometimes, I suppose, but more important things than that. She talks to them about contraception and infertility, and other health problems that women have. She tells them where they can get education. She explains how to set up a business. She discusses books and suggests what people should be reading.”
“That sounds amazing. You say all the women listen to this?”
“Yes. Many men also. The radio is the best way for them to hear news and information.”
“Aren’t there newspapers? TV channels?”
“Both, but the newspapers are expensive and not everyone can read,” Jemimah said. “The television channels are good, but only available in the cities. Radio is the most effective communication at the moment. The emir plans to expand the network so that everyone is able to receive both television and Internet, but it will take a while before it will happen.”