Angel in the Courtyard [Book 2]

Chapter 102 - Arisa

I couldn't call my mom and lie to her about Khaleel's situation. And that seemed to be true enough, because according to her, his cousins had stopped by our house again. Mom told me that arresting them was her only option after they tried to threaten her for information about Khaleel. Mom was easy going most of the time but when it came to my safety, all bets were off. I knew that, which was why I wanted to make sure she understood my situation with Khaleel. I couldn't abandon him. I couldn't leave him here when he was feeling vulnerable and scared.

I somehow convinced her that we weren't in any sort of real danger. I gave her permission to track my phone if she was curious about my location but I asked her to not share it with anyone else.

"And what about school?" she asked.

"My grades are fine," I said. "Missing a couple days isn't going to scar me."

Mom exhaled sharply. "You were just appointed the Vice President. Is that really how you want to handle this?"

My stomach churned. I glanced back to look at my oblivious boyfriend stuffing his face. He ended up ordering us room service after his day-nap, and spent a good chunk of the evening digging into chicken sliders, frites, and other appetizers.

I quickly took the conversation into the sparkly clean bathroom to avoid worrying him. "I'm sorry mom," I apologized.

"I'm giving you until tomorrow," she said. "I appreciate your honesty about everything that has been going on, Arisa, I do. But, I don't like the idea of my daughter dating someone whose father sends thugs to her house."

"It's not his fault his dad sent thugs," I said, getting defensive. "Khaleel's a good guy. And he's had it really rough lately and I think right now, I'm the only sense of normality he has."

"Okay," mom replied. "We can talk more about his situation later. I want you take care of yourself, and remember, don't let him pressure you into doing anything you don't want to. Text me when you wake up, I'll come pick you up myself."

My cheeks flushed. "Okay."

Khaleel peered into the bathroom just as I hung up on my mom. "Is she super pissed?" he asked.

I held my head in an attempt to control my upcoming stress. Khaleel moved to wrap me in his arms. "I'll talk to her after this whole thing blows over and beg for forgiveness," he said.

"She said she's going to come pick me up first thing tomorrow morning," I sighed, leaning my head against his chest. "But you said it's going to take your dad a few days to back off. I don't want to leave you alone. I don't want to be apart from you, but I also don't want to hurt my mom with lies."

Khaleel took a hold of my face and made me look up at him. "If she's giving us at least one night together then that means she really trusts us, Arisa. Let's not be greedy and violate that trust."

"But—"

He pecked my nose. "I'll tag along if it will put your heart at ease, even if it means I have to go up against Wassem, Taheer, and Riyadh again. I think my trauma from Pakistan makes me fear them more than my old man. When we fight in the ring together, Papa always holds back. He always wins without really trying because he acknowledges the difference in our strength. That's why he prefers to put me up against my cousins. He knows they won't go easy on me, and because they're closer to me in age, he uses that as justification."

"They're in jail."

Khaleel's soft expression broke. "Say what?"

"My mom had them arrested because they tried to get information out of her," I conveyed.

My boyfriend gulped. "H-How did she arrest them?"

"By detaining them, I suspect."

"By herself?"

"Probably."

"What?" Khaleel pulled back and held me by my shoulders. "Hoffman! How strong is your mom?"

I smiled. "Really strong."

Khaleel walked out the bathroom looking completely distraught. I followed him to the couches by the window and sat beside him. "Does that scare you?" I said, patting his back. "Don't worry, babe. I'm here to protect you."

"Shit," Khaleel cursed, turning red. "What the hell did I sign up for when I agreed to be your boyfriend?"

I showed teeth before dropping on my knees and squeezing my way between his knees. I pulled his head down and kissed him happily. "When you found out she was a criminal lawyer you weren't bothered by it at all," I reminded him. "But finding out she handled your cousins intimidates you?"

"Yes!" he complained.

I couldn't help but laugh. I got a hold of his palm and kissed it. "You're the cutest, Khaleel," I said.

"Stop," he pouted, trying to cover his face.

I pulled his fingers apart and beamed at him. "I'm so happy you're mine. Thank you for being my boyfriend."