Bab 3: A Man's Word
"That looks horrible, sir."
"The other vehicle had it worse, trust me." Zaki Omidyar circled his Porsche, inspecting the damage done to his rear bumper with two of his menservants. "Fix it." He commanded.
"Right away, sir." they took a bow as he turned on his heels, and headed for the entrance door to his grandfather's LA home.
Before he could arrive at the door, his grandfather's nurse, swung it open.
"Good evening, sir." Young, courteous, and unassuming, she was the complete opposite of his secretary.
"How are you?" He dropped his keys on the small Queen Anne entry table.
"I'm fine."
The dark circles under her blue eyes called her a liar.
"Are you sure? I know he can be demanding."
She shrugged. "I've had worse."
She was his grandfather's third nurse in five weeks. Zaki didn't want her to quit. He couldn't leave the family's multi-billion dollar company to tend to the old man himself. "I thought the staffing agency rotated you with two other nurses so you'd have days off. I've seen you every day this past week."
She flushed pink then bowed her head to inspect her Crocs.
He put two slender fingers under her chin and lifted her face gently. "What? What is it?"
"None of the other nurses will work with your grandfather," she whispered. "Word has gotten out that—"
"--that he's insufferable?"
She didn't respond, which gave him the answer.
He rubbed the back of his neck. Irritation ran like a live wire through his body. Everything chafed under his skin today. "I'll speak with him. Is he awake?"
"Yes. He has a guest. I was just on the way to the kitchen to get them coffee."
"What guest?" He arched a brow.
"Mr. Alfonso Rodriguez."
Zaki frowned. "Take your time. Alfonso won't be long, and I'll be with your patient for a while."
Her lips lifted, but the corners of her mouth quivered, and the smile was lost. "Thanks." She moved off in the direction of the kitchen.
Jeez, Baba. Zaki climbed the stairs to the old man's bedroom. He eased open the door and peered in. There was no one in the room. He shut the door, making his way to the home office when he heard laughter from the sitting area farther down the hall. And then his grandfather's voice.
Zaki traced the voices to a small alcove with two high-backed chairs upholstered in black and white fabric. Alfonso and his grandfather were still laughing over a joke Alfonso had started when he walked in on them.
"I would ask how's it going but my answer appears to be in the happy smile you're sporting, Baba." Zaki interrupted them. "I take it that Alfonso is the reason for this sudden improvement?"
Alfonso Rodriguez got to his feet and took a slight bow for Zaki. Although much older, Alfonso knew better than to disrespect the most powerful man in Asia by remaining seated. "It's good to see you again, Zaki. Your grandfather and I were just saying how wonderful it would be to finally bound our families together by marriage."
Wide, sensual mouth compressed, Zaki moved to the whiskey decanter at the other side of the alcove and poured himself a glass. "Your daughter,"
The man took a step closer to him and bowed his head again. "Yes, Zaki?"
Zaki pushed himself away from the desk and allowed the lengthening silence to fill in the blanks of what he wanted to say. "Forgive my language, when I say I don't know who the fuck she is. And so I have to ask, what gives you the impression that I wouldn't mind marrying a total stranger?"
"Err..." Alfonso's huge green eyes looked back at his grandfather briefly--Malik Omidyar looked bored. Alfonso glanced back at Zaki who followed his nervous gesture as he suddenly appeared flustered.
Zaki might have his hands tied, but that didn't mean that he was going to make this process easy for this man and his money mongering family.
Alfonso looked away from the cool dark eyes resting on him. Under Zaki's unflinching, assessing gaze, he was finding it impossible to put words together.
"Don't bother answering that." Zaki moved towards him and Alfonso stepped aside quickly, allowing him access to the chair he'd just vacated. "Thanks for the visit, Alfonso." He was dismissed.
"Yes," the man smiled at him, took a bow, and left the alcove quietly.
"Nice of you to visit." The twist of his grandfather's lips and the bite to his words spoke of his frustration. He was a man who played golf, smoked expensive cigars, and headed a multi-billion-dollar empire once, but now he was sidelined by a massive heart attack and reduced almost to a state of helplessness. Malik couldn't do so much by himself, without risking another heart attack. It annoyed him to no end.
"I came as soon as I could, Baba." He sipped his whiskey. "You, more than anyone, know how cumbersome walking the corridors of powers could be."
Malik snorted but didn't address that issue further. Instead, he moved on to something that had Zaki cursing in fluent Arabic. "I arranged dinner next Thursday night at the Rodriguez's mansion. You'll have dinner with your bride-to-be, and her family. Your uncle would sit in on my behalf."
"I already have a woman, Baba. We've discussed this already."
"The daughter of nobody, Zaki!" Malik raged, his bright blue eyes full of indignation. "An unworthy match."
"Alfonso Rodriguez is on the verge of bankruptcy." Zaki pointed out impatiently.
"True," Malik acknowledged sourly. "He always did have a gambling problem. It eventually led to the breakdown of his empire by cooperative raiders and currently threatens to destroy his family's rather extravagant lifestyle but I gave my word to his late father. My old friend, Maximilian. He helped my late father and I when we newly arrived in LA. All we had was half a bottle of water, and a week's old bread, Zaki. His father was a good man. Alfonso is also a good man, nothing like Freya's father! That man was a thief. He was paraded around Elahiyeh for breaking and entry. You will not soil our family's name by making his daughter your bride!"
Zaki chuckled softly. "Should I be interested in the fathers or their daughters, Babu?"
"The family name! The family history!" Heat rose to Malik's face like the blast from a welding gun. He was hyperventilating. "You gave me your word, Zaki, we'll say no more about this."
Zaki rose from his seat and proceeded to crouch down beside him. He lifted one of his grandfather's large, bony hands from the arm of the chair and covered it in his. "Rest easy, Babu. I'm a man of my word."
Malik's features softened. He relaxed into his chair and focused on his breathing. "I understand that you recently engaged Freya," He muttered about ten minutes later. He was calmer but exhausted. His voice came with a slight wheeze. "I know you're in love with the girl too. But you'll have to let her go, Zaki. Our word is our bond. Omidyar men, never marry for love."
Not if he could help it, Zaki thought. He had to figure out a way to keep everything he wanted. His woman. His grandfather. He glanced up at the old man and sighed. His precious grandfather.
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Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone