Owen cut him off. "Or, you know, maybe just convert it to a Marriott hotel. Either that or just let Wal-Mart buy the whole thing; I'm sure their sign would look great on the 150th floor."
"Listen here..." the sheik started.
"No, you listen here," Owen said, his voice rising as he turned around. His finger shot out, pointing straight at the older man. "I've noticed your son flirting with Kaylee, and I've noticed the looks he gives her when he thinks she's not looking. You either get him under control, or these negotiations are over."
al Saffar jumped to his feet, his own voice roaring. "I think you've forgotten who you're talking to, Mr. Parker. I think you've forgotten that your name isn't Daniel Saunders."
Owen laughed. "Perhaps you haven't heard, but the owner's name is Jack now." He walked to the table and picked up his briefcase. "These negotiations are over. Either call me when you've come to your senses and have your son under control, or call Saunders and let him know that the deal is off." He walked toward the door.
"You have no right-" the sheik yelled after him, cut off by the sound of the door slamming behind Owen.
Chapter 23
"He really did that?" I asked, flabbergasted. I knew Owen had been angry, but I had no idea that he would go to those lengths.
"Yeah. The sheik was pissed. He woke Jack up at 3 in the morning to tell him what Owen did."
"What did Jack do?" I hoped that Owen wasn't going to get in too much trouble over this, but I had a feeling that this wasn't going to end well.
"Well, Jack was furious at first. This could ruin years of business negotiations. Billions of dollars lost. I've never seen Jack that angry." Emma paused for a moment before continuing. "But when he calmed down enough to think straight, he realized he would have done the same thing in Owen's position."
"What's going to happen to Owen?" I asked, breathless.
"I'm not sure. The sheik demanded Owen's immediate dismissal, but I don't know how Jack is going to take that. Owen and Jack have been locked in Jack's office for the past two days. I haven't even been able to bring Jack his hamburger today." I could practically hear Emma shrug her shoulders. "I wish I could tell you what's going to happen, but I don't have a clue myself."
"Will you let me know if anything happens?"
"Sure, but won't Owen tell you first?"
"Um, well, we haven't talked since I got back to Iowa," I said quietly.
"What? Not even a text?" Emma was shocked. I knew her eyes would be wide open and her mouth would hang open just a little.
"I told him we couldn't be together. I wish I would have known that he had confronted the sheik though." I leaned my head back and looked up at the ceiling, trying to figure out what I should do. I couldn't think of a good answer.
"Oh, KayKay," Emma said with a sigh. "I'll tell him to call you next time I see him. I've gotta go back to work now. Are you going to be okay?"
I grimaced and rubbed my eyes, emotions tumbling around inside of me. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Thanks for talking to me."
"Anytime. I'll give you a call tomorrow, okay? Love you!"
"Love you too, Emma." I hung up the phone and just stared at it in my hand.
Wave after wave of emotions washed through me, each one pummeling the one before it until I wasn't sure what I felt anymore. Awe that he had stood up for me like that. Love because he would risk so much. Anger that he hadn't told me. Fear for what would happen to him. Despair that he was gone. Hopelessness for what would never be.
I lay down on the couch, curling up into a tight ball. I didn't know what else to do, so I just closed my eyes and prayed for sleep.
Chapter 24
I awoke with a start, nearly falling off the couch as the front door buzzed. I hadn't meant to doze off and the afternoon crept up on me. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, glancing out the window. It was raining again, the room bathed in a gray light. The intercom buzzed again and I got up to answer it.
I hit 'answer' only to be met with static. Right, I remembered, the buzzer's broken. Have to go down and answer it in person. I pulled my hair up into a messy ponytail, not even bothering to put on shoes for the quick trip down the stairs.
I hurried down and pushed open the locked main entrance door, not expecting the wind to rush out of my body and my heart to jump in my chest.
Owen stood in the entrance. He was wearing just simple jeans and a white button-up short-sleeved shirt, but he looked like a knight in shining armor to me. He gave me a crooked smile as I opened the door.
"Hi, Kaylee," he greeted me, running a hand through his rain soaked hair. Little droplets of water went flying, sparkling like diamonds as they fell.