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“Like it? I love it! My heart is full,” Anwar said. “It truly is a masterpiece. It’s not just a painting, is it?”
“What do you mean?”
“It is a profound expression of love and respect for Zephyr, the desert, and its inhabitants.”
Lucy nodded. “I wanted to embody everything special to you.”
“And you have. I will cherish it forever and hang it in a place of honor within my palace, where its presence will inspire all who see it.”
Her gaze drifted to the floor as heat flamed her cheeks. Anwar smiled inwardly, knowing she found compliments hard to believe. But he also knew that an essential part of healing from narcissistic abuse was to receive heart-felt compliments and acknowledgment of her talent. Her mother and siblings had endlessly criticized and shamed her. He had read it took seven positive words to counteract a negative comment. Words were more than just letters strung together. They are the building blocks of self-image, self-worth, self-talk, and sabotaging mindsets. He wanted to grow in her confidence and appreciate her incredible worth.
“Your unique style and creativity shine through in every brushstroke,” he added. “It’s so beautiful. I love it. Thank you for painting it. You are a wonderful woman and artist.”
The edges of her mouth flickered into a smile and then disappeared. “You’re allowed to bask in your achievements, Lucy.”
She lifted her head and gazed directly at him. “Thank you, Anwar.”
He was heartened that his sentiments had touched her profoundly. Her gift had no motive—only a desire to please him. It touched him more deeply than anything in his life. Was that what love for a woman felt like? The uncertainty unsettled him. Had he fallen head over toes in love with Lucy despite his fearful reluctance and fear of failure?
CHAPTEREIGHTEEN
“I’ve been thinking—” Anwar began. Were things between them destined always to be tense, he mused, registering Lucy’s wide-eyed apprehension? “I know things haven’t been easy.”
“Easy?You mean snatching me from my life in New York and depositing me here was meant to be easy?”
“No, not that. The thing with Hamad.”
“Thething!” She repeated. “The thing being Hamad’s false accusation?The thingyou so readily believed?The thingthat destroyed my career?”
“Yes, that thing,” he said, not wanting to dredge up the past and dignify the unfortunate chain of events with concrete details of the fraud of which Lucy had been accused. Instead, he wanted to put energy into healing the wounds that defined them both. “I want to put things right.”
“And just how do you plan to do that?”
“I want your continued expertise as my art advisor.”
The truth was they needed each other. He respected her skills, and appointing her to this critical role would show Lucy and her detractors that she deserved respect.
“You are joking!”
“I need you, and that’s not going to change.”
It never went away. Every time I see your face, the feeling is the same as the first day I saw you. My love of art, beauty, nature, it’s all because of you.
“I want us to start again,” Anwar said.
She looked at him. “What do you mean?”
“You have fueled my ambition.”
“I have?”
“Your passion and purpose. It’s how we met. It’s what unites us. You have always been captivated by the artistic expressions of women throughout history, and you have always believed that their voices deserve to be heard and celebrated on a grand scale. You were pioneering and brave. I always admired that. You held that vision long before we met. But now, after seeing your collection and feeling the intensity of your work, I can see an excellent way to integrate all our passions. I need your help to give birth to a dream flaming in my heart.
Her delicate brows furrowed. “I’m confused.”
“Maerid al'ahlam. The Gallery of Dreams,” he said. “I want to create a world-class contemporary art museum dedicated solely to women artists. Some of the world’s most iconic artworks aren’t displayed in museums or art galleries. They reside in the private art collections of a few billionaires across the globe—industrialists, celebrities, members of royal families, and others. I need your help procuring elusive, rare works so that they are no longer buried in private vaults but brought into the light so people of all classes may enjoy the painting.”
“That’s it? That’s how you plan on fixing things between us?”
