Beneath Guarded Hearts - 72

Previously…

3alya

I shut the door in his face, and with it I shut away what was probably my last opportunity to seduce him. I couldn’t do it, not like this, and certainly not in this state. How could my father abandon me like that? I fell on my bed and wept silently, and after a minute or two, I heard Sul6an’s footsteps descending away from the door.

Me: “Don’t pretend that you care!”

I hissed fiercely under my snuffle. I had no one left. My only family remaining had abandoned me.

_____________

Asma

            Apparently, 3bady had rented a whole lodge just for us. Our own instructor, our own chef, our own everything! He even bought me my own ski equipment when I was looking around the shops the other day as we went into town. I smiled at him and shook my head.

Me: “If you keep spoiling me like this, I might just get used to it.”

3bdulla: “Et3awiday 7bibty, because I'm going to spoil you for the rest of your life.”

            I blushed and giggled lightly. How I loved him dearly, how I wondered so many times how I could be so fortunate.

Switzerland was absolutely mesmerizing. 3bdulla stopped letting me go to Ski Dubai because – and in all fairness he had a point – the guys there were immature and complete flirts. Not that anyone paid me any attention, but you know how husbands are, those over-protective paranoid little beings. I missed Ski Dubai; I missed the speed, the adrenaline rush as I travelled down at full speed, and how my eyes watered from the cold breeze slapping my face.

But Switzerland was a different place entirely. It was real, and the best part about it was that we were alone, and we could goof around all we wanted without any public stares or judgmental whispers. How I loved the freedom! After a week of skiing, 3bdulla said he would take me to Geneva and then we would fly somewhere else. Yes, another surprise awaited me. I shook my head again.

Me: “So, what’s on today’s schedule?”

            His lips twitched into a deceiving smile.

3bdulla: “The instructor says you’re ready. We’re going on the black slope.”

            I broadened my eyes in absolute delight.

Me: “Liar! Are we really?!”

            He nodded, that arrogant smile still taped on his face.

3bdulla: “Now tell me, don’t you just love me?”

            I rolled my eyes at him. He approached me slowly, his expression ‘awanh’ serious. He looked right into my eyes and gently cupped my cheeks with his hands.

3bdulla: “Say it.”

            He whispered it so low that I almost didn’t hear him. My heart started to erupt, and my eyes glowed as I stared right back at him. There was something in his expression, something deep that drifted beneath the livid blueness of his stunning eyes.

            I smiled.

Me: “I love you.”

            His eyes illuminated right before he brushed his lips on mine with a fierce kiss, and he murmured something into my ears, his hot breath tickling my sensations.

3bdulla: “You have no idea how happy you make me, Asma.”

            I blushed violently as he wrapped an arm around me and lead me towards the boot room, enjoying the warmth of being in his embrace. My pulse quickened in anticipation as I remembered the adrenaline blast that awaited me…

My heartbeat sped a little too rapidly, and I swallowed down a nauseous lump in my throat and held in my breath, trying not to make any of it evident to 3bdulla. I was finally getting my chance to ski on the black slope, and I wasn’t going to let some nervous stomach get in my way. It’ll pass soon enough, as it always did. Yet this time felt a little different altogether… were these knots in my stomach merely a nervous reaction to my anticipation? Or could it be…

Sul6an

            It was stupid of me to invade her privacy like that, yet I couldn’t seem to help myself. I was absolutely infuriated at myself, even more so because she had basically spit in my face and told me to get lost when I was offering her an open shoulder. How stupid of me indeed. And that is what happens when a person tries to be nice. I’ll never make that mistake again. Ever.

            My phone started to blink and I went to check my messages. I stiffened when I saw her name.

From: 3alya (Mobile)

I’m sorry about yesterday, forget it ever happened

            I clenched my fingers into a fist around my phone. Forget it ever happened? After what she did? I let out a bitter laugh. I typed vigorously and sent my reply before I could change my mind. This was war.

3alya

            I took out my make up bag and emptied out all of its contents. Nothing had ever made me feel better more than dressing up did. Even as a little girl, I remember wearing my mom’s heels and trying on some of her make up without her knowledge. I remember how I had to tuck my nose up so that her massive sunglasses wouldn’t fall off of my elfin face, and I remember stumbling as I tried to walk the way she did with such poise. My mother was an extraordinary woman, so beautiful, so intelligent, and so elegant in many ways, especially in her manner of dealing with people. I could never even hope to be the kind of woman she was. I felt a lump rise up my throat as I remembered her, her arms safely surrounding me, telling me that no matter what happened, Allah was always with me and that I would not be afraid if I truly believed so.

            I shoved away my unpleasant memories; thinking about the possibility of having the chance to have a good life had she lived was unbearable. But life was cruel. I was left with the vampire who sucked the life out of me little by little after my mother had passed away. My father would never be the same.

            My phone vibrated, and I blinked, returning back to reality. It was probably him. My heart shook as I opened the message.

From: Sul6an (Mobile)

I’m not even close to being done with you

            I stared at his text for what seemed hours, questioning what he could possibly mean. What did he mean? Did he mean it in a good way or a bad way?

            I put my phone down and stared at my reflection in mirror. Did I just ask myself that question? But of course he meant it in a bad way. I was exasperated by how he was messing up my judgments. He wants a battle? Well he’ll get one. I fished out my bronzer and red lipstick, adding the final touches to my make-up, and not to merely cheer myself up anymore. It was time I took this unjust correlation to another level. It was time for payback.

To be continued…