Rina didn’t expect it. When her expectant gaze flicked through his face, she knew then that he had something planned. Perhaps, it was the fact that she had spent some of the worst days of her life with him, and had grown to recognize the light in his eyes when he mulled over something mischievous. But it was there, etched into his features, unwavering. Zayn regarded her from his seat, amidst all the congratulatory remarks flying in the air, and the scent of the meal mingling with it. Was it strange that the only persons whose good wishes she looked forward to right then were Zayn’s?
He got up slowly, like time had gradually come to a halt and the whole world barely realized it. For some reason, she stilled herself for what was to come, her anxiousness and thrumming heart making it difficult for her to hear anything else on the table. The rest of the guests had faded into nothingness, leaving Zayn and Rina alone in the world. She looked into his dark eyes, then thought it was probably a bad idea. What she saw in there made her bite her lips, made her want to surrender to his dominance and charms. Zayn was making her lose control of the one thing she held tight in her grip and Rina wasn’t sure it was such a good thing.
Zayn smiled when he towered easily above her, then tilted her face up with a finger under her chin. “Congratulations, Rina,” he murmured, with all the sincerity Rina knew existed in the world. It was like a bag of goodness and tender spirit being handed over to her with such tenderness, that it made her heart melt. Rina’s lips fell open but no words came out. She tried to grasp what was left of her scrambled thoughts, to say something to make the situation less awkward, less centered on her.
But he leaned in even closer and suddenly pulled her into his arms, his hands wrapping around the small of her back. Rina closed her eyes when his scent wafted over to her, not realizing how much she’d missed it until that moment. Since the night after the fashion show where they’d shared a glass of mocktail at her cottage, Zayn had kept his distance from her, hovering around but never coming too close to cause a repeat of that night. Rina hadn’t had the liberty to think about it because of how much she had to do, but right now, it felt like the one thing in the world she had been missing. The scent of his aftershave mixed with his earthy tones, making Rina heady. Perhaps, if Zayn wasn’t holding on to her so strongly, she feared her legs might have given way under her.
“I’m proud of you,” Zayn continued, feeling every bit the way Rina felt at that moment. “I don’t know how you do it, how you manage to wow every single person in your path, how you shine so bright that even those who don’t like you have no choice but to behold your light. I…I want you to know that I’m here, still here, whenever you need me. I know you can handle things on your own, but I want to do something for you.”
Rina swallowed. She wanted to say something funny in that moment to lighten it about how he wanted to do something for her because he didn’t know how to stay on the sidelines. But the words were hitched in her throat, refusing to come forth. But then, he let go, pulling his touch away. A sudden chill hit Rina, and she wrapped her arms around her frame as Zayn returned to his seat and grabbed his glass of wine like nothing had happened. He had a mischievous glint in his eyes as he regarded her, winking before bringing the glass to his lips.
She nodded curtly at him, but it was barely enough to salvage the situation, especially where George and Isaiah were concerned. They looked at her with so much happiness as she took her seat, grinning and exchanging silent words with their eyes. Rina knew what they saw a couple so in love that it showed no matter how hard they tried to hide it. And it didn’t help that she was two shades redder, and her eyes darted around like she had just been kissed in public.
Coughing loudly, Rina muttered, “Yeah, thank you for all your wishes. This is the reason I wanted to celebrate with you all. I know that no matter what happens, you’ve all got my back.”
Everyone nodded and raised their glasses in a toast, before returning to their meals. But Rina was done for the night. As the chatter continued, she got up scrumptiously and walked out through the kitchen door and into the night. The stars had seemed to come out to celebrate her win, and Rina relaxed under their gaze as her feet walked through the lawn, leading her to the river she’d seen from Zayn’s window in his study. It wasn’t hard to find it, the moon’s glow making it an arresting sight.
It seemed like the bank had just been cleared out for easier access, and a boat was hooked to the edge. She never fancied Zayn as someone who went fishing, but Rina had yet to discover a lot of things about him. She watched the still water with her arms around her and her hair dancing to the tunes of the wind.
“You left your guests in the house,” Zayn said suddenly, approaching. She gasped at the sudden intrusion, then let it go when he got closer. There was just something about his presence that made her forget her reasons for getting her walls up in the first place.
“I should have told you George and Isaiah were coming over,” she murmured. “It’s your villa, so I shouldn’t have sprung something on you like that. Next time, I’ll…”
“It’s your villa as well, Rina.”
“What?”