Page 54 of Hired Husband

“Go for it,” he said absently. Those blue eyes were warm when he finally lifted them to mine. “I’ll head in when you’re done.”

I nodded, quickly taking my turn in the tiny, very rudimentary bathroom attached to the tent. After basically only changing and brushing my teeth, I splashed some water on my face and smiled at him when I walked out.

“It’s all yours.”

He was still sitting exactly where I’d left him, focused on his phone again, but he blinked hard a couple times when he looked back up. “Already? I figured you for one of those people who take two hours just to floss.”

“Well, you figured wrong,” I said, then sighed. “Okay, not that wrong, but I know how to be quick when I have to, and besides, it’s not like there’s a spa tub or a fancy shower in there.”

“Fair enough.” He chuckled, slowly setting his phone aside before rising.

Approximately ninety seconds later, he emerged from the washroom too. Our shoulders brushed as we packed the few things we’d taken out back into our bags. “You really did have a point about it not having anything fancy, but still. It’s pretty cool that we had an en-suite in the middle of the desert.”

“My thoughts exactly.” I lifted my arms and tied my hair up with the elastic band I’d snapped around my wrist in the washroom, feeling my cheeks heat slightly when Isaac stared at me like he was fascinated by what I was doing. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

A slight smile crept onto his lips as he held my gaze. “I could ask you the same thing, but before we fall into an endless loop, let’s just remember that we need to get to breakfast. The bus will be leaving soon.”

He stood with his back toward the desert, framed by the open canvas flap of our tent, wearing navy shorts and a button shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. With sandals on his feet and sunglasses hooked into his collar, he looked like any other tourist I’d seen over the years, but he also seemed comfortable here.

I inclined my chin, allowing him to take my overnight bag instead of carrying it myself. We left our little tent together, joining the group for one last meal together. The ride that had brought us out here was long gone, so Isaac and I headed back with the others on the rickety bus, bouncing our way down the dusty road and nearly ending up on each other’s laps whenever there was a bump, which was constantly.

“I’m pretty sure its suspension is held together by nothing but optimism,” Isaac said, looking ridiculously happy about it. “It’s got some real character.”

Once again, he turned to stare out the window as the Sinai slowly gave way to the outskirts of Sharm El-Sheikh. The sea shimmered in the distance. Meanwhile, I just stared at him.

“Tell me about the project you’re working on,” I said finally. “You’re designing an industrial complex with Joseph, but that’s about all I know about it. I definitely wasn’t expecting courtyards, but I’m curious now.”

He chuckled, resting an elbow against the window as he finally turned back toward me. “I wasn’t expecting courtyards either, but as soon as I got here, I realized we couldn’t not have them.”

“Why not?”

“Courtyards belong here.” He shrugged, his gaze far away for a beat. “With this project, I have the opportunity to be creative in a way I never did back home. I can really just let my mind go and see what I can come up with, and that’s…”

“The dream?” I smiled. “My father is letting you do whatever you think is best, isn’t he?”

“Yeah.” He glanced at me with amusement dancing in his eyes. “As long as I don’t blow his budget to kingdom come, remember?”

I chuckled. “I’m glad he’s so supportive, but I’m not surprised. For a businessman, he really does admire innovation and creativity, especially when it’s backed by talent.”

“I’m starting to see that,” he said, that same passionate light I’d seen before igniting in his eyes. “It’s just hard to believe sometimes that I could be here for years, managing the construction of the complex from the engineering side.”

My heart jerked. “Years? What happened to it being only one year?”

“That was my deal with my sister,” he said. “I asked her to give me a year to decide if I wanted to stay, but I do want to. I wasn’t sure before I got here, but now, I honestly don’t think I ever want to leave. I mean, I know Basel is your father, so you know him in a whole different way, but so far, working for him has been everything I’ve ever wanted.”

“Are you serious?” I had so, so many questions, but that seemed to be a good place to start. “You want to stay in Egypt?”

“Well, yeah,” he said confidently. “If your dad approves those plans Joseph and I have been drawing up, I don’t see myself going anywhere at least until that complex is done, but Basel has already mentioned a few others too.”

Years I could have of this. With him. I glanced down at my hands as the realization settled in. All this time, I’d thought it was a sure thing that he’d be leaving after one year at most, but now, the opposite seemed true. Isaac and I would have time to connect and to grow. We might even have enough time to talk about a future together.

The mere thought of it almost made me squeal out loud. Last night, that had been the first thing I’d thought with the sand under my feet and my heart racing in my ears. That I can’t afford to put myself in a situation where I’m at risk of falling in love with him. Because he’d be leaving soon.

But now?

Could it really be possible? A life with a man like him?

I thought about my sister and how she’d managed it, to fall in love with an American and to build a life she’d never expected with him. Could both Saad daughters really end up married to a Thayer?