“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.