Rina walked down the stairs after having a bath, intent on asking Igor to take her to the cottage so she could get her car. She saw no need to put off using it every time she needed to go out since the whole country already knew she worked for O. S. N fashion house. At the base of the stairs, Rina heard the unmistakable clatter of plates. Her steps faltered and her eyes darted around cautiously.
“Zayn?” she called softly, the heel of her shoes making a clack sound on the wooden ground as she took a step forward. The dining room came into view, yet Rina could see no one. Still, she tried again, craning. “Is that you, Zayn?”
It was practically impossible for him to be back already when he had only just left the previous night for an important meeting. But Rina had learned to include the impossible when Zayn was involved. She heard the clatter again, and then the sound of water hitting metal, like a faucet had been turned on. Was Igor making something in the kitchen?
Knowing the house was fully secure, Rina shrugged off her concern and padded over in the direction of the sound. Just by the turning that led to the kitchen, Susan suddenly appeared carrying a bowl with steam coming out of it. She smiled at Rina unfazed and moved to the side, continuing her task of getting the bowl to the center of the dinning table, before turning back to her.
“I didn’t want to get you up for breakfast since Zayn mentioned you had a long night,” Susan said, a motherly concern in her tone. She stood on her toes to touch Rina’s forehead, then relaxed her stance. “You seem great for someone who just lost her cottage.”
“I didn’t lose it,” Rina replied, following Susan’s lead as she pulled out a chair and made her seat in it. “It was just a little attack, but I should only be here for a while. Zayn said it is going to get fixed soon.”
“I was so perturbed when Zayn called.” She sat on the chair beside Rina and grabbed a plate, helping Rina to a healthy size of lasagna. “And he was worried as well, even though he tried so hard not to let it show in his tone. But I’ve known him since he was a child. I don’t think there’s anything he can hide from me.”
Rina couldn’t help but think about the irony of the situation. Although Susan might be right, she definitely did not know about the agreement between her and Zayn.
“How was he as a child?” Rina couldn’t help but ask, leaning forward with curiosity.
Susan looked at Rina, her eyes lighting up with a faraway look. “He was such a smart lad but rarely spoke. But when he did, he commanded attention and made everyone do his bidding. Power had always been ingrained in him, but at the same time, people were scared of him. Zayn built a thick wall around himself so no one would be able to hurt him, and he grew with it, not letting anyone into that space. That is how I figured that this was real.”
“What?” Rina paused, her fork hanging mid-air.
“I see the way he looks at you, Rina,” Susan said with a soft smile. “He hasn’t looked at anyone like that ever. And he cares for you. Zayn wouldn’t have made that trip back into the country for anyone, not even his brother. But he did it for you without batting an eyelid. He likes you, Rina. He just wouldn’t admit it.”
Rina stared at the plate before her, clueless as to how to take that revelation. She allowed herself to think it was one of those things Susan didn’t know about, that there was enough evidence to the contrary especially the bedroom she slept in, filled with the property of a woman, or perhaps, women. Rina toyed with the idea of asking Susan about the identity of Zayn’s other women, but she decided against it after a split moment, shaking her head as if trying to get rid of the thought.
She chuckled awkwardly. “Zayn is just being nice. I’m sure he doesn’t like me that way.”
“I’m sure he does,” Susan insisted. “And I think that for the first time, he has met his match. You have built a wall around yourself too, and refuse to let anyone in. But for some reason, Zayn has managed to breach that wall. And that scares you.”
Rina shook her head, and grabbed her plate, deciding she was done eating. She sauntered into the kitchen to do the dishes herself, because she needed to keep her hands moving. “I’m not scared of anything,” she said in a strong tone that she almost believed it herself. “And Zayn doesn’t like me that way.”
She turned to give Susan a sweet smile. “But I’m curious. Who did he say I was to him?”
“A friend he was helping, but I think it is more than that. Now that I’m done pushing it as far as it would go, why don’t I let you start your day already?”
“What?” Rina had forgotten she had plans for the day. “Oh! Yeah!” Thanking Susan for the meal, she walked out of the kitchen in the red bottoms she found in the closet, paired with a stylish white dress. Her wine-colored hair was left to fall all around her in rich curls and she donned a pair of sunglasses she had found amongst over twenty of them. It seemed the woman had moved here for a while.
When Rina got to the entrance, she found Igor waiting with a box in his hands.
“The dress from the fashion show, ma’am,” he said when she stared at it with the question in her eyes. “Zayn asked me to get it from your cottage since you would be going to the fashion house today.”
“Oh!” Rina wondered when he had the time to think about all of that when he was so busy over there. “Thank you.”
“And he asked to get your car over as well.”
That saved Rina a lot of stress.