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He e like he stepped off the pages of a azine; all tailored suit and slicked-back hair
“Let’s grab soet down to business,” he said, adjusting his cufflinks “Do you have a nicknaeline?”
“A what?” I asked
“A nicknairlfriend, it would estions?”
“Oh, uh…” Unprepared for the question,for an answer “Sometimes people call me Evie”
“Evie, that’s perfect,” he said with a sweet smile “Shall we, Evie?”
Following his lead, we left the penthouse and loaded into his divine-s town car After a few minutes’ drive, we arrived at a bistro with a line of people waiting out the door, and were i area
Judging by the way the tables were fewer and more spaced out, not to ry, waiting patrons, this was clearly an area for guests of Rafiq’s stature He told e on an indulgent seafood lunch I ith sweet tea to drink, but Rafiq ordered whiskey without any self-consciousness or hesitation
As aited for our et down to business
“I suppose the best way to begin this is to lay out whathis napkin over his lap “And then you can ask any question I haven’t answered”
“Sounds reasonable,” I said
Rafiq sighed “You’ll have to forgivelike this before, so I truly don’t kno oing toand short of it is that my father has a very different idea of what path my future should take than I do”
“Wouldn’t be the first time,” I said “What does he want you to be?”
“A business a hand I couldn’t properly see his eyes behind his sunglasses, but his anger was clear regardless “Or rather, like he’s pretended he is”
“Pretended? He seems pretty successful to me”
“He’s obscenely successful,” said Rafiq “And that’s the probleive ht him and my entire extended family out of the desert dust and into the world’s most powerful circles He’s convinced that business is the only way to build a foundation in today’s world I don’t share his views, but he won’t accept that It’s been a point of contention between us for a long time”
“I’, sipping my water “Doesn’t every father want his child to prosper?”
“Of course It’s not his impulse to want me to be successful that bothers me; it’s that he won’t let me find my successme blaze my own trail”
“Your success?” I asked Layers of Rafiq’s personality were starting to peel back, and I was interested to see what lay beneath the rough, playboy ie he had cultivated “What would you rather do with your life, if not carry on your faacy?”
He stared atClearly, there was an answer to my question on his mind, but he didn’t tell me what it was Instead, he shook his head “It’s not i that he does, and he isn’t willing to let me have room for that So this is my only option”