ROMANCE: THE SHEIKH'S GAMES: A Sheikh Romance (4 page)

The entire time Jameela was there she just listened. And she was content with that too, but she knew herself too well to just sit there and listen to the prosecution bashing her client. Furthermore, her instinct told her he was not guilty. Not of this crime, at least.

“Okay, that’s enough Malinga,” she told the man. “So, the weapon was at the crime scene and it belongs to my client. Is that all you’ve got?”

“He has opportunity, motive and a murder weapon. I think I have a little more than you are willing to admit.”

“What you have is knowledge everyone else does. Sure he had a debt he owed; who didn’t? The man was a bookie and a gambler. I am sure he has plenty of people who are rejoicing now at his death. You have opportunity? Is that more or less opportunity than any other person who wanted to kill him? It was just circumstantial that his office is close to where the body was found, and even more so that his possession was found on the scene. Did it ever occur to you that my client is being framed for a murder that he didn’t commit simply because so many people want to see him pay because he is wealthy?” She leaned back in her chair and stared the man dead in the face after she had spoken.

“It is for you to prove Miss Harding, that he isn’t guilty of the crime he is accused of. I can only present the evidence.” Mr. Malinga smiled as he and Jameela continued their legal battle of will.

“Tell me something, do you have my client at the scene of the crime?” She waited for him to answer.

“Well, no, but…” he began to reply before she cut him off.

“Is it possible that the man who went to murder your client’s brother did so of his own volition?” she asked.

“If he was acting under the advice of Mr. Ramadan…”

“So that’s another no then, right?” Jameela interrupted. “You don’t have him at the scene. All you have is your client’s brother testifying that my client killed his brother when there is nothing, other than a stolen piece of cutlery connecting my client to the unfortunate death. I expect a little better from you Mr. Malinga, but until you have an actual charge for my client, I would suggest you get your story straight. Now, if there is nothing else, I would like to confer with my client. Excuse me,” she said as she rose, and Al-Hafeez did as well, and with such abruptness it was as if something had sprung him from the chair.

Jameela walked out with Al-Hafeez on her heels, and she never once stopped to look back at him or the accuser she had to pass on the way out. When she got to the car, she wasn’t expecting a conversation from the man, so she was surprised when she felt his hand on her elbow.

“Hold on,” he told her. She turned to face him and he sighed when she did. “I’m sorry I was such an idiot before. It’s just that I am not accustomed to being in a position such as this and…”

“Hold on a second,” Jameela said as she felt her phone vibrating. Her pulse quickened when she saw that it was Freya. She ignored the call and turned to Al-Hafeez with a smile. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” he told her, and his demeanor was the most docile she had ever seen him. “I was just thanking you for…for just now,” he said as he searched for words.

“It’s my job,” she told him and smiled. He smiled and nodded, and then stood back. “Aren’t you coming?”

“I will call my driver,” he told her.

“Okay, I will talk to you later then,” she replied and got into her car. She drove off and adjusted her rear view mirror as she did. When she looked back he was still standing at the bottom of the steps looking in her direction, and she felt her heart flutter. She quickly averted her eyes, as if he could catch her in the act, but she stole another glimpse just before the car turned the corner. She was undecided before, but now she was sure she would defend him against the vultures bearing down on him. She would just have to find another way to make him pay.

The sun streaked in through the blinds in Jameela’s apartment, and made delicate patterns on her face. Her eyes fluttered as she began to feel the warmth penetrating her skin and she subconsciously noticed the room getting brighter. Her eyes cracked, and then as if electrocuted, she sprang from bed and looked at the clock. It read half past nine. Half past nine! Alarm bells went off in her head as she dashed to the bathroom. She was going to be late for work. She still had her mouth filled with foam from the toothpaste when her phone began to ring. That must be Ahmad calling to ask about her noticeable lateness. She tossed some water into her mouth, wiped it with the towel hanging from the hook on the door and raced to retrieve the device.

“Hello?” she asked into the mouthpiece.

“Why are you out of breath this early in the morning?” her friend Mansi asked.

“Mansi?” she asked. “I thought you were Ahmad.” It was only then that she stopped to breathe.

“Why would he be calling you on a Saturday?” she asked.

Oh that’s right. It was Saturday. Jameela fell back on the bed in relief, and she smiled as she realized she had some more time to sleep. “I thought this was a work day.”

“Girl, you work too much. What time should I come by you?” Mansi asked.

Jameela dug around in her mind for an answer to that question; clearly she had something planned with Mansi that she couldn’t remember at the moment. “Time?”

“Don’t tell me you forgot,” Mansi wailed. “How do you ever defend anyone in court with a memory so poor as yours?”

“Maybe you should retain me, and then test my memory,” Jameela joked.

“Oh, so your memory only knows money. You should do well with that Sheikh Ramadan case then,” the girl said.

“Ugh, don’t remind me about that,” Jameela said and covered her face with the pillow to block some of the sunlight. “The man is truly detestable.”

“No matter,” Mansi replied. “It’s not like you were thinking about dating him.” There was a pause on the other end of the line, and it was hard not to notice that Jameela hadn’t responded. “Oh my,” Mansi laughed. “You have thought about it.”

“N-No!” Jameela stuttered. “Yes he is handsome, but…why are we talking about my client? What time do you get here? I need to freshen up.”

Mansi was still laughing on the other end of the line. “I will be there in a half an hour.”

Jameela hung up the phone before the woman could find anything else to say. She hadn’t actively given Sheikh Al-Hafeez any thought, and she didn’t want to now. But all the while she showered and dug around in her closet for something to wear, she couldn’t deny his overwhelming impact on her senses and her memory. She had never known any man like him, the way he commanded attention even from those who would refuse to give it—such as herself. He was hard not to notice, and she now thought it in her best interest to get the case over with as soon as possible. Except that meant seeing the man more often. By the time Mansi arrived she was more than ready to go.

“Where are we going again?” she asked the woman as she hopped into the car.

“We planned this day so that we could go to the spa and just relax. Right now I think you need it more than when we set it up,” Mansi said and sank her foot on the accelerator.

“I would like to get there alive,” Jameela said as she clung to the seat. Mansi only laughed; she was always the one with the wild and reckless side.

“Relax,” she told Jameela. “So,” she began and looked over at Jameela suspiciously, “when can I meet him?”

“Him, who?” Jameela asked and absent mindedly combed her hair back.

“What do you mean him, who? Al-Hafeez,” she exclaimed.

“Mansi, why do you think I want that man in my life beyond this case?” Jameela asked, her frustration ripe on her face now.

“I didn’t say you should date him. I’m saying introduce us and I’ll take it from there,” Mansi grinned. She was a beauty, with two rows of perfect white teeth, brown eyes and shoulder length black hair. She would probably make a great candidate for the Sheikh, if only he had a heart.

“In what world would he be in your life to not affect mine? All I would see or hear about would be him. Let’s just get through this day, and possibly the rest without Al-Hafeez.”

Mansi looked over at her, and creased her brow. “You do have a thing for him.”

“Just drive Mansi!” Jameela practically shouted. She didn’t want to talk or think about the man, but it seemed that was the only thing her friend was intent upon doing.

They got to the spa, and the women indulged in the various amenities that were available. Jameela was still clad in an off white fluffy robe, her hair wrapped in a matching towel, green goo still pasted to her face when she decided she would grab a bottle of water from the machine while she waited for her attendant to complete the final touches on her. She stepped out of the room and eased it shut behind her. She shook her head when she saw Mansi sitting up in the chair with her head leaning to the right, indicating she was asleep. The door clicked and she walked back to the lobby area, where she expected to find the section off the registry that bore the condiments. What she didn’t expect was the tall, handsome man that would walk into the establishment and catch her off guard. With green goo on her face.

Jameela froze, eyes peeled and adrenaline immobilizing her. Wait, maybe he wouldn’t recognize her, but the longer she stood there, the less likely it would be that he wouldn’t notice her. She slowly turned to haul her ass in the other direction when her eyes made contact with his.

She saw his face contort in recognition, even though she was partially hidden under algae, and he stepped in her direction. Too late! Jameela acted as if she didn’t see him walking towards her, and dashed off in the direction of the room. She barely managed to close the door behind her as she escaped inside. When she rested against the door, her hand on her chest as she tried to still her floundering heart, she noticed Mansi and the attendant looking at her oddly.

“What was that?” she asked as she sat upright from her former relaxed posture.

Jameela looked back thought the rectangular glass in the door and hurried over to Mansi. “You wouldn’t believe who I just saw out front? Al-Hafeez!” she continued before the woman had a chance to even guess.

Mansi looked excitedly at the door and then at Jameela. “He’s here?” she asked and perked up even further.

“Don’t get so excited. I just hope he is gone by the time we leave. I don’t want to be in his company any further than I have to. The man unnerves me.”

“I can see that,” Mansi replied and smiled.

Jameela settled back into her chair and allowed the woman to finish her treatment. The remainder of the time she was there was characterized by anxiety. She couldn’t control the rush of blood in her veins as she thought about him, and when it was time to leave she was nerve wrecked.

“What would be so bad about running into him?” Mansi asked. “Just say hi and keep walking. That wouldn’t kill you, right?”

“Right,” Jameela agreed. But as she rounded the bed and the exit sign came into view, so did Al-Hafeez. He stood then and walked directly to her.

“I thought that was you before,” he told her, and then smiled and nodded politely at Mansi.

“He doesn’t seem so bad,” Mansi whispered to Jameela from the corner of her mouth.

Jameela rolled her eyes and forced her attention to the man. She believed in looking people directly into the eyes when speaking, but she found it hard to do so with Al-Hafeez. “I come here from time to time,” she told him.

“May I have a word?” he asked her, implying Mansi should make herself scarce.

“I’ll wait in the car,” she told Jameela, taking the obvious hint.

Al-Hafeez waited until she was out of earshot and then turned to Jameela. “I’ve been meaning to talk with you but every time I’ve phoned the office you were out. I’m glad I ran into you now.”

“What is the matter? Has something else happened regarding the case I should know about?” She was now concerned for her legal reputation.

“No, there hasn’t been any new development. I just thought that I had you wrong. I have never been in this situation, nor am I accustomed to leaving my fate in the hands of someone I don’t know.”

“It would seem as if leaving it in your hands wasn’t such a good idea either,” she replied mockingly.

Al Hafeez laughed, and the sound of his laugher struck her hard and deep and reverberated inside her. A feeling came over her she was unfamiliar with, and she began to grow unsteady standing before him. “You may be right about that. I did mess up bad,” he told her. “I was uncomfortable being defended by a woman who seemed too fragile and weak to keep me out of jail…hold on…” he said and chuckled when he saw Jameela’s face coloring. “I was wrong. I saw how you handled the DA and I was impressed, so I thought maybe we should start over.”

“Thank you,” Jameela replied and blushed. “So how do we do that?”

“Well, I was wondering if you would give me the pleasure of going with me to dinner?”

His question took Jameela by surprise. “I don’t think that’s a good idea for me to fraternize with you,” she replied.

“It’s not fraternizing. Think of it as still being on the clock,” he told her. “If it makes you feel any better, we could just discuss the case.”

Jameela found he would not take no for an answer, so she eventually agreed. He would pick her up at her apartment at seven. She nodded and walked off to greet an overly excited Mansi.

“So? What was that about?” she asked.

“He asked me out to dinner,” Jameela reluctantly volunteered.

“See, I knew it,” Mansi replied and glued her eyes on Jameela for more to the story.

“You knew what exactly?” Jameela asked and pulled the seatbelt across her chest.

“That you were into him more than you were letting on,” she replied with a satisfactory grin.

“You make that sound as if I was the one who invited him out,” Jameela replied with incredulity.

“You weren’t the one to do it, but you could have said no,” Mansi replied and winked at her.

Jameela opened her mouth to reply, but no words came out. Mansi was right and she knew it. For all her talk that she couldn’t stand to be around Al-Hafeez, she had said yes to dinner, with almost zero hesitation. She closed her mouth and turned her attention to the window as she watched the buildings disappearing behind the fast moving car. She didn’t even care to comment on Mansi’s speeding this time, because her own mind was racing much faster, and she felt incapable of controlling what would happen next.