She rested on the backrest of the back seat, bawling her eyes out while she dished out the address of the house a street before hers to the driver. But after a few minutes, when she tried placing her purse beside her, her hands touched the leather of the seat, and at once, her eyes sprang open.
The first thing that came to her mind was that she was getting kidnapped. Rina had heard stories about other actors and actresses getting kidnapped on the way from the set, and not released until the ransom had been sent over. But for her, that would mean death.
Rina was penniless. The only thing she had to her name was her cottage. She could imagine the kidnapper asking Finn for money and the response he would give him. Finn would probably even personally ask for her to be killed. It was one less problem he would have to deal with.
Flight instinct settled in, and Rina placed her hands on the buttons on the door next to her. She swallowed slowly and tried to move the lock, realizing with dread that it was controlled by the central lock. She was trapped inside. The only way she would be let out was by the driver himself and Rina doubted he had any plans of doing that.
She risked a glance at the driver, her eyes acting as casual as they could possibly portray, hiding her fear. But the eyes that fell on hers were familiar, and for the first time since she opened her eyes, Rina took in a deep breath. Her eyes stung from the intensity of the moment and she didn’t know why, but suddenly, started bawling out her eyes again.
Zayn, in the driver’s seat, said nothing, not even taking another look at her. He kept his focus on the road, maneuvering the traffic and heading down to her cottage. He would have opted to take her to his home instead, but after their conversation that morning, he realized that Rina wasn’t ready for that yet.
There was no rush, if he was going to spend the next five years of his life with her. That sounded too long when he thought about it. Perhaps, he needed to reduce the duration of the contract. Three years was more than enough to get his father convinced, wasn’t it?
Rina continued crying until he pulled out next to her bushy lawn. Zayn, in silence, got out from behind the wheel and walked around to the other side of the car, helping Rina out. She leaned against him, telling herself it was the last time she was going to allow herself to be that vulnerable around him.
She watched as he retrieved a key from his pocket and inserted it into the keyhole before pushing the door open. Rina felt a sense of triumph knowing she’d been right about Zayn having a master key. That was the only explanation for him gaining access to her home.
But Rina didn’t complain as he dropped her carefully on the couch, sauntering away into the kitchen. He returned a minute later with the half bottle of vodka he’d been drinking the last time, and two glasses. Setting them before her, he sat on the couch adjacent to Rina, pouring the drink into the empty glasses.
“Drink,” he commanded, then picked up his glass, leaving the living room into the hallway. Rina wouldn’t let anyone into her home that way, even when she was living with Finn. But she was too exhausted after everything Kayla had thrown onto her lap that day.
Following his instruction because there was nothing else to do, Rina brought the glass to her lips, allowing the liquor to burn her throat. It numbed her senses, but only for a few seconds. The sadness crept back again, almost forcing tears out of her puffy and bloodshot eyes.
Zayn returned to the living area and settled on the couch again. His glass was empty and there were visible cracks on it, like someone had gripped it with so much force but stopped when he heard the unmistakable crack.
“I know you told me not to do anything,” he sighed, sliding the glass onto the center of the table. “But Rina, I can’t stay on the sidelines after this. What stupid deal did they drag you out of your house for? They need to pay for making you cry today.”
Rina’s eyes searched Zayn’s face slowly. “How did you find out?”
“That’s not important, Rina. You’re not listening to me.”
“That’s because there’s nothing to listen to,” she answered weakly. “I just want to finish this bottle of vodka and cry myself to bed. Tomorrow, I’ll be better. This was all my fault.”
“Are you really blaming yourself?” Zayn said in disbelief. He expected her to be upset and threatening to rain down the heavens on everyone who had caused her pain that day. Anyone else who had his powers at their disposal would be asking him to use them on their behalf, and Zayn would not have hesitated one bit.
“Rina, you need to think this through,” he persuaded, scooting to the edge of the couch so that their knees touched. “Kayla has just crossed a line she shouldn’t have even imagined going through. And I am going to be your husband. I shouldn’t accept this, and neither should you.”
“Let it be, Zayn! I don’t want to fight Kayla. At least, not like this. She comes from a very powerful family, and they wouldn’t hesitate to snuff the life out of me if I hurt their precious baby.”
“Don’t you get it?” Zayn raised his hands in exasperation. “I’m the most powerful person in the country and I’m asking you to let me protect you.”
“But what happens when you decide to leave me like they all did?”
Zayn was about blurting too fast that he would never leave her, that it would never happen. But he halted suddenly, the gravity of what he had been about to hit him.
Where had that even come from?