The Sheikh's Green Card Bride by Holly Rayner, Lara Hunter

lose her family’s trust, as well.

 
     
    NINE

The next morning Nicole’s eyes were slightly puffy, but she was none the worse for wear. Bahir had put on his professional hat once again, and the two of them went about business as usual, as though nothing had happened the night before. Nicole worked on her ability to shut off her emotions in the face of business, and somehow managed to succeed. The week passed uneventfully as the two of them waited for the deafening silence from the Embassy to clear, granting them passage back to the states and everything that was home to Nicole.
     
    When Friday arrived, Bahir stood in Nicole’s doorway again.
     
    “All packed?” he asked, his expression nervous. Of course, no one else would be able to tell that about him. Nicole knew his facial expressions well, because they determined just how heavy her workload would be. To any outside observer, Bahir was his usual calm and collected self, just discussing weekend plans with a subordinate. To Nicole, however, he looked every bit the nervous suitor that he was. It was a little comforting that he could feel nerves about something like this. Nicole certainly did.
     
    “Not yet. I haven’t really had the time, but I will be ready. When does our flight take off?”
     
    “Eight AM. We should get there around ten, then have a few hours to prepare and perform the ceremony, then we can be back in Dubai before the day is done. No need to pack more than a day’s worth of clothes, I’d imagine.”
     
    “All right,” she said. It felt entirely wrong to be discussing their wedding day with so much formality.
     
    “All right,” Bahir agreed, absentmindedly picking at his fingernails. It was the one tell he didn’t realize he had. Bahir only picked at his nails when he was really nervous. For some reason, Nicole felt a sense of pride about this. She had managed to make one of the most powerful men in the world nervous.
     
    Not too shabby.
     
    “I’ll see you tomorrow, then,” Nicole said dismissively. It was the first time she’d ever been dismissive of him, and not the other way around.
     
    Bahir didn’t seem to notice the power shift. Rather, he smiled and said, “Until then. Have a good night, Nicole.”
     
    “And you,” she said, watching his back as he turned from her office and left the building. The man who she would soon come to call her husband.
     
    “Nicole Al-Jabbar,” she whispered to her empty office. Pulling out a blank notepad, she wrote the name out on it. For some reason, it didn’t feel strange at all. Of course, there was no reason to change her name if she didn’t want to. After all, she would just have to go through all the trouble of changing it back when they got divorced in a few years anyway, right?
     
    Still, Nicole gazed in wonder at the ink on the paper. What would it be like to change her name, and share it with Bahir? What would it be like if they could have a future together as man and wife, truly? The way he had it planned out, they wouldn’t even get a wedding night. Clearly it was all business. She just had to keep slapping down that corner of her heart that kept hoping for more.
     
    That night, Nicole packed a small carry-on bag with her white dress from their previous excursion (the only one she had—at least it was white) and her toiletries. It took all of ten minutes to complete, and when she was done, she stared at the bag with wide eyes. In just a few hours’ time there would be no going back. They would be man and wife, and whatever happened would happen.
     
    Nicole wiped her tired eyes and slid beneath her fluffy comforter, hoping to catch a little sleep before they headed for the airport.
     
    Her head had barely touched the pillow before she was unconscious. She dreamed of falling and flying, her heart racing in elation and terror.
     
     
    ***

Nicole woke up with a start as her alarm beeped violently, penetrating her brain and forcing her to face the day, and