The President of Leila Amari's Firm Asked Her, as VP

The president of Leila Amari's firm asked her, as VP of the marketing division, and her staff (three males younger than she) to set up and close an important contract with a Saudi firm. He thought that his choice was especially good since Leila (a Jordanian American from California) knew the industry well and could also speak Arabic….As she and her staff were being introduced, Leila noticed a quizzical look on Mr. Al-Masri's face and heard him repeat "VP of Marketing" to his assistant in an unsure manner. After Leila had presented the merits of the strategy in Arabic, referring to notes provided by her staff, she asked Mr. Al-Masri what he thought….He responded by saying that he needed to discuss some things further with the head of her department. Leila explained that was why she was there….Mr. Al-Masri smiled politely and replied that she had done an especially good job of explaining, but that he wanted to talk things over with the person in charge. Beginning to be frustrated, Leila stated that she had authority for her company. Mr. Al-Masri glanced at his assistant, still smiling, and he asked the assistant to arrange for him to meet with Leila at another time. Why did Mr. Al-Masri hesitate to close the deal?

A) He did not really believe that she was actually telling the truth about who she was - how could a woman be in charge?
B) He did not like her presentation and did not want to deal with her firm - he was just saving face and pretending to be pleased.
C) He was attracted to her and wanted to meet her later.
D) He had never personally dealt with a woman in Leila's position, and her language ability caused him to think that she was the translator because usually the person in charge doesn't speak the language - usually it is the lower-ranking person who translates for the director.