Page 39 of The Sheikh's Fake Bride Scheme

She had hoped for it.

Not only was it not going to happen, it was also abundantly clear now that he had never felt the same way. He had never envisioned any sort of future with her. He’d only been biding his time until they went their separate ways. To know that his father was sending her away and that Kareem hadn’t even tried to prevent it was a worse blow than Keira could have imagined, and it weighed heavily on her heart as she packed her things.

How could he not even try? Did she mean nothing to him at all?

The tears she had been holding back finally spilled over as she zipped up her suitcase. In the end, it had taken such a short time to get all her things together, and it felt like a sign of just how little she had mattered. When she got on the flight tonight, she would disappear from Qalmar and from Kareem’s life as if she had never been here at all.

That was probably the most difficult thing to face — how little she would matter, in the end. How easily she would fade away and cease to be a part of Kareem’s story. He had indicated that he wanted her to come back and help with next year’s race, but she knew now that when that time came, he probably wouldn’t think about her at all.

She picked up her suitcase and left the room, forcing herself not to look back at what she was leaving behind. She didn’t want to think about it. She would miss this place too much — it had truly begun to feel like home.

But this wasn’t home. This had never been home.

And Kareem had never been anything real to her.

All Keira wanted now was to get back to the US and forget that any of this had ever happened.

CHAPTER 18

KAREEM

“Imust say, this is a splendid venue,” Hugo Devereux said, looking around at the arena. “I’m glad that I signed on for this. It’s going to be good to be part of the first annual Qalmar Cup — and even better when I take the win home for France!”

Kareem forced a laugh. Lately, it felt as though all his laughs were forced. He didn’t want to tell Devereux that this might be thelastQalmar Cup as well as the first — he didn’t want to admit that, or even speak it into being. But the odds were not good that his father would allow this event to take place again next year, and Kareem knew it. The stakes were incredibly high — he needed everything to go perfectly and for the event to be an unmitigated success if he was even to have a chance at making it happen again. He would have to offer a compelling argument that the Cup had been the right thing, not just for himself and the participants, but for all of Qalmar.

If only Keira were here.

It was a thought that came to him several times a day in the weeks since she had gone. He missed her terribly, and everytime he ran into any sort of difficulty, he couldn’t help thinking that things would be easier if he had her by his side. She would come with ideas for things he could do to make sure the event was successful. She would know exactly how to explain things to Kareem’s father, so that he would see the benefit to an event like this.

But she’s gone. I have to stop wishing she was here, because she’s not and she never will be again. That part of my life is over.

“Come with me,” he told Devereux, anxious to put his worries out of mind. “I’ll show you to the ready room. I’m sure you’ll be spending plenty of time there in between races.”

“I’d like that,” Hugo said. “I’d also like to know which other drivers you’ve booked for the event, so I’ll know who I’m going to be racing against.”

“You’re the first to arrive in town,” Kareem said. “That’s really all I’m at liberty to say right now. We’re not releasing the list of names until the day before the race, in order to make sure no one has an advantage over anyone else.”

“How would that provide an advantage?”

“We haven’t finished recruiting, and don’t expect to finalize the list until the eleventh hour,” Kareem explained. “Anyone who’s added to the roster at the last minute will have less time to size up their competition if the list is released early. That’s why we made the decision not to do that.”

“I see,” Devereux said. “You say we — is that you and your wife? I must admit, I’ve been disappointed not to see her here today. She was such fun when we met in Monaco, and I had been looking forward to conversing with her at greater length.”

“Keira won’t be joining us, I’m afraid.” Kareem heard his voice tighten and knew that Devereux had likely heard it too and would suspect that something wasn’t right. But he didn’t want to discuss Keira with anyone else. He didn’t want to explain that they were no longer married and have to receive Devereux’s sympathies. Lately, it felt like the only thing that kept him feeling steady and able to function was focusing on work, so that was what he wanted to do.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Devereux said. “I liked her a lot. She did seem genuinely interested in racing, and as if she knew a lot about the sport.”

“She does. And yes, her interest is genuine,” Kareem said. “She’s loved racing all her life — as I’m sure you know. You recognized her family name, didn’t you?”

“I did. I just wasn’t sure how she fit into the picture. I know there are many drivers in her family, and she doesn’t seem to have followed that path.”

“It’s not for everyone.” Kareem felt oddly defensive of Keira, knowing that if she was here she wouldn’t appreciate being compared to people who had chosen to get behind the wheel. “She decided to get involved in another capacity — much like myself.”

“I can see why the two of you decided to get married,” Devereux said. “You make such a good match. I thought that when I first met you, and I still believe it today.”

He was only trying to be polite, Kareem thought. He could have no idea how painful those words were. “Thank you for saying so,” he said. “If you don’t mind, I need to go and check on something. Feel free to explore at your leisure.”

He hurried away before the conversation could go any further, unwilling to spend a moment longer discussing Keira. It was just too painful to talk about her.

---