Unconditionally

| Prologue

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*

Rehan Tariq

I put my sunglasses on and stepped out into the chilly morning, buttoning up my grey coat. The autumn sun was not powerful enough to fight off the cool temperatures of early October, yet it remained determined to shine through the thick grey clouds.

The concrete footpaths of the London streets were wet due to the overnight rain, and puddles were formed all over, with the occasional pedestrian being splashed as the result of a passing car. I narrowly avoided being soaked myself as I slid into the black of the black Audi waiting for me.

The door opened on the opposite side, and shaking off her umbrella outside, Josephine Fernandes slid in next to me. Known as 'Josie', she was my personal assistant, and in the time we had worked together, she was one of the people who knew me the best. 

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow at her purple umbrella with white stars all over it.

"It's cute." She shrugged. "Don't throw a fit over my umbrella now. And get that grumpy look off your face. You are meeting fans for a book signing. Look more enthusiastic."

"Am I your boss, or are you mine?" 

"It seems like I'm yours, considering that I basically have to tell you everything." She set the umbrella to the side and reached into her brown tote bag to pull out her thick schedule diary. "Faisal will meet us there. In fact, he messaged me, and he is already there." 

Faisal Akhtar was my agent, and although he was brilliant at his job, he was a bit of nagger, which got on my nerves at times.

"Have you considered selling the rights of Blood Crimes to any film producers?" Josie asked me. With black hair that was almost always in a braid, dark chocolate smooth skin and large black eyes, she had initially chosen modelling as a career, but had given up after the constant pressure had started to cause her health to decline.

"No." 

"Why not? It's such a brilliant masterpiece! It's made it to the New York Times bestsellers, and you have won awards for it!" 

"Josie, we have already discussed this. I'm not selling the rights to this book." 

She sat back in her seat, pursing her lips. A few seconds later, she broke the silence as she read something on her phone. "Faisal says that it's like the Pakistani Independence Day at Westfield. Pakistanis have gathered there, proud of the success of a Pakistani origin author. Media from Pakistan is also present." 

I didn't reply and continued staring out of the window.

*

Flashes of camera lights and the chatter of a loud crowd greeted me as I stepped through the crowds, with Josie by my side. 

Faisal appeared from God-knows-where, and holding out an arm towards the cheering crowd, he led me inside like a bodyguard.

"REHAN, YOUR BOOKS ARE LIFE!" A young girl screamed from the crowd.

My books were dark, serious, about thought-provoking subjects. And yet, Josie always claimed that my book signings usually seemed like it was the first day released of a new Twilight novel.

The bookstore, which was one of the newest shops in Westfield, was filled to the brim, and there were guards placed to stop more people from entering. The manager of the store personally escorted me through, along with the regional manager of the franchise.