The refinement of her manners, coupled with her gentle nature and the mellow look in her eyes, captivated him. All this he explained as the proper behavior of a secretary toward her boss, especially when the boss was as old as her father. But why was he thinking of her more than he should? His whole being was suffused through and through with the scent of her. He told himself that there were moments in life when those who took life seriously and those who made a joke of it were equal.

“Lord, have mercy!” he prayed.

He watched her work with interest and one day he asked her, “Do you find work in my office demanding?”

“Not at all. I love work,” came the warm answer.

“So do I. Indeed, I’ve always done so since the day I first took up a job. And I can assure you, hard work is never wasted effort.”

“But they say…”

“I know what they say,” he interrupted her, “and I don’t deny it. Favoritism…nepotism…party politics…preference for members of the ruling party…and even worse things. But efficiency is also a factor that cannot be ignored. Even incompetent people in high positions find themselves in need of someone with real talent to cover up their own inadequacy.” He smiled, secretly overcome by her charm, and went on: “I have forced my way up relying on Almighty God and my work alone.”

“So I’ve heard everywhere.”

Had she? And what else had she heard? The thing that stopped Omm Zaynab, the marriage broker, from ever coming back? But that didn’t matter any longer.

“I ought to tell you that I’m very pleased with your work,” he said to her.

“It’s all due to your kind encouragement,” she said with a delighted smile.

Such purity of atmosphere was unmatchable. A purity pregnant with promise, distilling into the heart a holy joy. From such a starting point as this the lover sets out on the road that leads to happy marriage and true friendship. In this way, a man in his perplexity may stumble on situations rich with the prospect of happiness in unpropitious circumstances. The place, for instance, may be right but the time wrong: or vice versa. All this confirmed that happiness exists, but that tracks leading to it may not always be smooth. And from the interplay of time and place came either good fortune or absurdity. But you shouldn’t forget mistakes either. Mistakes? Sayyida, Asila, and Onsiyya.

As days went by he would tell his heart to beware. As usual, he started to fear Radiya as much as he liked her. And as usual too, he surrendered himself to the current and waited for life’s course to be determined by an unknown destiny.

THIRTY-FIVE