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Her head lowered, and she pressed his hand closer as her tears fell on his skin.
Didn’t you?
Her eyes squeezed shut as she waited for an answer she already knew.
So many things that once confused her –
The way the sheikh had so readily allowed her to rope him into her crazy plans...
They were all so painfully clear now –
The look on the other woman’s face when she heard the sheikh say every word Hyacinth had spoken was true...
She felt the sheikh slowly try to pull his hand away, and even knowing that she was better off letting him go, she just...couldn’t.
“Hyacinth—-”
Her fingers tightened over him. “Not just yet.”
But he was too strong for her, and the loss of his warmth over her heart was unbearable. Her head snapped up, and she whispered, “Why?” It was the question she always ended up asking him. “Why?”
“Because you mean too much for me to use you.”
“Bullshit.”
“Hyacinth—-”
“Bullshit.”
She found herself slapping his face as she screamed the word over and over.
Bullshit. Bullshit. Bullshit.
And he didn’t do a thing to stop her because they both heard what she was really saying.
Love me. Love me. Love me.
She crumpled into him, and his arms closed around her. I’m sorry. His arms tightened, and her heart broke all over again.
I’m sorry. So fucking sorry. So goddamn sorry.
Because it wasn’t just remorse she heard in his unspoken words.
More than anyone else in the world...I’d want it to be you.
And even now, he still meant it.
She pushed herself up to look into his eyes, throwing caution to the wind as she let him see what she had always been wearing on her sleeve. “Prove it,” Hyacinth heard herself whisper tremulously.
The way the sheikh’s jaw clenched told her he knew exactly what she was asking for. “If it doesn’t work out—-”
“I’ll probably have to move to Siberia, yes,” she interrupted him, “but what if it works? What if it w-works—-” Her voice broke. “Can you just imagine how wonderful it would be?”
He could, easily. A life without pain, but more than that, a life with her, knowing that all of him was hers – it was the easiest thing to imagine, and it was the precise reason why he could also imagine, just as easily, how much it would hurt if it didn’t come true.
And that was what he couldn’t bear.
“I don’t want to hurt you more than I’ve already had.”
“It’s not your choice to make.”
“Goddammit, Hyacinth—-”
“Please.”
“This could still pass.”
“It won’t.”
“You’re too young—-”
“So were the two of you,” she whispered, “and it didn’t make a difference, did it?”
Ah, fuck. “This is crazy.” But they both knew what the words really meant, and she threw her arms around him with a teary laugh.
“I’ll s-steal your heart from her,” she said between tears and hiccups, “I p-promise.”
“I’m counting on it.”
“I m-mean it,” she stammered, albeit fiercely.
“I know,” he said gently. “And like I said—-” He slowly raised her just enough for him to place a kiss over her heart. “I’m counting on it.”
Fifteen
Gadi came to the sheikh’s office the next morning with a fretful but determined look, and seeing it, Rayyan knew right away that only one person could be the culprit behind his assistant’s anxiety. “Go on,” he said dryly. “What she’s done now?”
“Your private calendar...”
“What about it?”
“The young lady still has access to it—-”
“Just spill it, Gadi.”
“She’s added things to your calendar,” the younger man blurted out.
Things?
After dismissing Gadi, he took his tablet out to take a look at his appointment calendar. Nothing about the rest of the week jumped out at him, and the sheikh frowned. What the hell was Gadi talking about –
And that was when he saw it.
On the day Hyacinth was slated to return to university, she had listed down several tasks for the day.
Text Hyacinth. Ask her how she is and say you can’t stop thinking about her.
As for the following weekend, she had listed down a dinner appointment for the two of them.
Find a way to get her alone and have your way with her.
And on the day he was supposed to fly out to Miami for a couple of business meetings –
Call her when you get to the hotel. Pretend you’ve forgiven her for forcing you to cut ties with the woman you love (for now).
Hyacinth was having breakfast with her sister when her phone started to ring, and her heart jumped to her throat.
Anisah raised a brow. “A Boy?” She couldn’t even understand what that code name was supposed to be. Subtle? Rebellious? Kids these days were just too complicated.
“Can I take this outside?”
“Not so fast.” The older girl’s violet eyes narrowed. “Why are you hiding his identity? Is he the kind of guy I’d disapprove of?”
“No, he’s not, but until I’m sure of him, I’d rather keep his identity a secret.” And then she quickly slipped out of the apartment, not wanting to risk having Anisah give her the third degree, which her sister was exceptionally good at.
