One of the many things that Fatima Sayyid liked, no, loved about her lover Raul James was his immunity to intimidation. A lot of young men from any racial or religious background would be intimidated by a sultry 57-year-old Muslim woman who was exploring her sexuality, but not Raul. The twenty-something Haitian stud walked around the City of Ottawa, Ontario, like he owned the place. And he didn't care if anyone disagreed with his way of doing things...
In this town full of Canadian government workers and private sector guys and gals, quietly smug bozos who defined themselves by their possessions and associations, Raul James is a man apart. A regular guy who seemed a bit more real than those around him. A hard-working and ambitious student at Algonquin College, a general contractor, a man who loves to work with his hands, and an urban princeling with a unique swagger. All rolled into one.
What does Canadian society see when it looks at a big and tall young black man like Raul James? That which makes it supremely uncomfortable. The embodiment of African masculinity and confidence, which has nothing to do with wealth, or social status. Something which males of other races would never understand. Raul is a man. He is comfortable being who and what he is, and doesn't care what the world thinks of him. Ever since they got together, months ago, Fatima's life hadn't been the same.
After the timely demise of her abusive husband Salman Sayyid, Fatima Sayyid gained a new lease on life. With her adult daughter living in Montreal with her husband and leading her own life, Fatima set out to do her own thing. As a Hijab-wearing Muslim woman from the heart of the Arab world, Fatima Sayyid followed the rules of faith, culture and tradition her entire life. And felt miserable as a result. In the Capital of Canada, on her own for the first time, the widowed and decidedly horny and experimental Fatima could do whatever, and indeed whoever she chose...
