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In a flash of movement, the man was lying on the floor unconscious, and she was speaking with the local 911 dispatcher. Talib was also on the phone, no doubt speaking to Kam and informing him of the situation.
By the time the police had taken her statement as well as Talib’s, she was so exhausted she headed straight home. Her phone rang repeatedly, but Erin didn’t want to speak with anyone at the moment. Especially Kam.
The feelings of exhaustion had been getting worse all week long, but she chalked it up to her stressful workload. And the excitement of the afternoon had only increased the tiredness she was feeling.
Hearing the phone ring once again, she turned it off and headed to bed. Things would look better in the morning. They sure couldn’t get much worse.
10
ERIN
Erin immersed herself in work, ignoring the increasing exhaustion she felt. When Shira had been gone for three weeks, Erin awoke in the morning and rushed to the bathroom, where she promptly emptied her stomach of its meager contents.
Her appetite had been sadly missing for the previous few days, and now that she was throwing up, she decided that she must have caught the stomach flu. She called in to work, then wrapped a robe around herself and stepped out to inform the driver she was staying home for the day.
She returned to the house and had a cup of tea and a piece of dry toast. When her stomach didn’t immediately rebel, she decided to take a bath and hoped the achiness she had been feeling in her chest would lessen.
Erin had just finished dressing when someone knocked on her front door. Wandering over, she didn’t check to see who was on the other side; it was the middle of the morning and daylight outside.
She was surprised to see Talib standing there, holding out the phone for her. Giving him a narrowed look, she took the phone. “Kam?”
“What is wrong? Why did you not go to work today?” Kam demanded from the other side of the world.
“I’m just a little under the weather, is all. Some kind of stomach flu. I’m sure I’ll feel much better tomorrow.”
“You need to see a doctor. Hand the phone back to Talib.”
“I don’t need to see a doctor. I’ll be fine.” Erin hadn’t spoken to him for more than a month, and yet he still thought he could order her around.
“Habibti, you are not fine. “
“Quit calling me that,” Erin said, feeling her anger rise at his highhandedness.
“Habibti? Why?”
“Because it doesn’t apply to our relationship—if we even have one.”
“Make no mistake. We have a relationship, and the endearment most definitely applies to you.”
“Kam, you’ve been gone a month. I’ve only spoken to you twice now, and each time it’s because you want to tell me what to do. That’s not a relationship.”
“Erin, I am only trying to ensure your safety. If you are ill, a doctor must be summoned.”
Erin laughed. “This is America. We don’t summon doctors here. We go to the doctor’s office or the hospital. The days of doctors making house calls in this country ended decades ago.”
“Talib will retrieve a doctor, if you need one,” Kamal said with no hesitation.
“I don’t need one. Have you seen Shira?”
“Shira is a wonderful girl. She will make Khalil a perfect wife.”
“What? Wife? And who is Khalil?” Erin was astonished. She had just spoken to her cousin the night before last, and she hadn’t been able to talk about anyone other than Kale.
“Khalil and Shira are perfect for each other. I have given my blessing to their union.”
Erin was speechless.He had given his blessing to their union? What was this, the Middle Ages?“Kam, is Shira aware of this?”
“Why would she need to be consulted? She is comfortable with Khalil and he with her. They will make a good union. She is lucky to be marrying so well.”
