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“It’stime,”Isaidto Nina, three days later, as we sat in the private lounge airport terminal and waited for our flight. She was wearing a lovely black dress I had picked out for her, and the diamond ring on her left hand sat right on her finger.
“I still think this is a terrible idea,” she said to me, as I got on my feet and then extended a framed arm for her to slide hers into. We started walking towards the boarding area together, and I inhaled a little because I loved the scent of lilies that clung to her. “We can barely stand each other, and pretending isn’t your strongest suit.”
“I’m a very good actor,” I told her. “You’d be shocked.”
She glanced at me, and I smiled. “Jack I’m being serious right now … I don’t think this is a good—”
“Relax,” I cut in, then covered her hand with mine. “The first rule of acting is to never give away your fear. That way, your rivals get to fear you more.”
Her brows glued together, and a deep frown marred her face. “So, you’re an actor now?” she asked.
“Nope, but I’m a billionaire businessman. Acting is part of it … do you think I enjoy sitting in long-ass meetings for hours every day? No, I don’t, but I act like I do because that makes people think I’m efficient and serious indeed.”
“That is nothing like this,” Nina pointed out. We had reached the entrance of the flight now, and once we were settled in the private cabin minutes later, I turned to her again, and she said, “You might need to pay me more than fifty thousand.”
“Oh, come on,” I said, dragging my words out. “You’re not even in Jeddah yet, and neither are you my real wife, but you’re this cranky?”
She was about to speak again, but I laughed. “It’s a joke, Nina, relax.”
I put my hand over hers again before I could stop myself, then began massaging the front of her palm. “If anything goes wrong, I’m here to protect you. You have nothing to worry about, okay?”
It took a while, but she finally nodded. “That is strangely comforting,” Nina said to me, and I smiled again, satisfied that I had been able to calm her down before I settled into my seat and put on my belt.
It was a fourteen-hour plus flight to the most populous city in the international hub of the Emirates, and I couldn’t wait to have a feel of the city. Famously known for its turbulent history and vibrant culture, there was a lot to do whenever I was in the famous city. I wasn’t sure if Nina had been there before, and I knew it would be fun taking her on a desert safari ride, or driving in an ultra-fast car with her.
Nina would definitely fit into the classic life of the rich housewives of the politicians and the royal sheikhs in the city. She gave off their vibe already, even though she was simply dressed, in a black dress and red heels that I already loved.
Her blonde hair had more bouncy waves than usual. That was courtesy of the hair stylist I took her to, and her nails were painted her favorite red shade, too.
She was breathtaking, but still off-limits, I had to remind myself as I tore my gaze away from her and pretended to listen to the cabin member making the announcements.
Nina dragged in a deep breath after some time, then leaned close to me and whispered. “What if he sees right through us?” she asked. “I mean, our hatred for one another is pretty hard to miss. We always argue, and I can’t even stand you.”
I chuckled for a bit and closed my eyes. “But we’ve known each other for a long time, and that makes this perfect. That, makes you perfect for this … think about it, what other woman knows personal details about me?” I shook my head to buttress my point and continued. “I don’t keep any woman that close.”
“That’s because you have too many women; you’ve practically lost count.”
I paused, thought about her words for a second, and then agreed. “True. But the sheikh doesn’t know that, thank goodness. Besides, couples are supposed to drive each other crazy, and you’re good at doing that.”
Nina’s eyes widened for a bit, and I saw the crimson color that crept up from her neck to her cheeks. “It’s you who drives me insane and mad with anger; you know that, right?”
“You’re driving me insane right now,” I answered her as my lids dropped close, and my gaze stayed on her lips. Nina had to know that I wasn’t talking about our constant disagreement.
She definitely feels this palpable chemistry too, right?I could never get her out of my head. Not in the last six years and somehow since her, no other woman could be enough.
“Excuse me,” Nina said, and her voice broke the moment, so I dragged my gaze from her lips to her eyes, and found them on me. “I need to get to the bathroom.”
I let her through, since the flight had taken off a while back, and she hurried away from me like she was being chased.
Anotherhourintotheflight, Nina was busy with a magazine, and she hadn’t said a word to me since, even though I kept looking in her direction. I always wanted to see her expressions. I wanted to know if she was smiling or uncomfortable. Those little things mattered to me for reasons I couldn’t understand.
When she looked away from reading and found me looking, she questioned, “What?”
“Nothing,” I answered. “Just practicing for how I’ll smother you when we arrive at the sheikh’s palace. I did some digging and found out that he loves playing golf and likes to fight in jujitsu. You happen to be good at both, so I think you two will bond quite well.”
“What’s your business project about?” she asked, instead of replying to me. “I’ll need to know some details, right? So, I can tell what needs to be said and what not?”
“I’m dealing arms,” I said to her, then paused to gauge her reaction.
