The sound of the alarm drew Salim from a deep sleep. He shot up, groaning softly and fumbling to turn it off, the blaring noise causing his head to begin pounding in irritation. Silence returned to blanket the room once more, and Salim found his eyes growing heavy under its calming spell. He gave a deep sigh and relaxed against his pillow again, tightening his arm around the person beside him, craving their warmth.
Wait.
What?
His eyes jolted open in surprise and he looked down at the small body pressed against his. Involuntarily, a smile formed on his lips as he gazed at his sleeping wife. Her beautiful face was the picture of peace, with her long lashes and thick hair brushing across her cheeks. He couldn't bear to disturb such a sight. Slowly, he reached out to brush the strands away, allowing him to appreciate her lovely face in its entirety.
"God," he breathed, his chest constricting at how stunning she was, even fast asleep. He couldn't help but marvel at how he could have possibly been gifted such a beauty. She was beyond anything he could have imagined and simply staring at her for long enough made him ache with a desperate need to touch her, kiss her, be with her in every way.
Swallowing, he moved away from her slightly, and then climbed from the bed, shocked at his overwhelming thoughts and needing to put space between them. He had never been one to feel so strongly about the opposite gender. Yes, he enjoyed women, but once he had fulfilled himself of the pleasures they offered, he forgot about them almost as quickly as he became attracted to them in the first place.
With Sabah however, it was completely different. He felt like he was being pulled to her by some magnetic force he couldn't explain and it scared him, especially because he knew how apprehensive she was when it came to his affections.
Though, glancing at her, the curve of her body beneath the sheets, he didn't know how much longer he could hold them off.
Deciding what he needed quite badly, for more than one reason, was a nice cold shower, he made his way towards the bathroom, intent on taming his wild thoughts. Fifteen minutes later, when he felt sufficiently refreshed, he decided to finally wake his lovely wife. Toweling his hair dry with one hand, he sauntered to the bed and leaned over her petite frame.
"Hey," he whispered, shaking her gently. "Wake up."
Sabah's eyebrows came together in faint annoyance and she turned her face away from him, making a irritated sound in the back of her throat. Salim rolled his eyes and shook her again, a little more firmly this time.
"Come on," he said, "let's go. Up and at 'em."
"Five more minutes," she whined, rolling onto her other side. Salim sighed and stood to his full height, changing hands with the towel. "We're going to miss the boat," he said, watching with hardly restrained amusement as Sabah jolted up in bed, her hair flying wildly around her face.
"Oh my god! I nearly forgot! We're leaving tod--" She stopped mid-sentence as her gaze settled on him, her face flushing bright red at the sight of nothing but the towel tied low around his hips.
Salim looked down at himself, failing to hide the smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "What's wrong?" he asked, feigning innocence. Sabah shook her head and looked away quickly, her blush deepening as he grew closer.
"No, really," he continued, relishing in her coy behavior. "What is it? Do I have something on my face?"
He draped the towel he had been drying his hair with around his neck, plopping down on the edge of the bed. She immediately scurried to the opposite end, about to climb off when he leaned across the mattress and grabbed her wrist, pulling her back.
"W-what are you doing?" she asked, staring down at their hands anxiously, refusing to look anywhere else. Salim smirked, realizing this and deciding to tease her further.
"What do you mean what am I doing?" he asked, pulling her closer to him. By now, they were both leaning across the mattress towards each other, and although it was an uncomfortable position for both of them no doubt, he remained as he was, savoring the way her hair brushed across his shoulder ever so lightly. "I just want to know why you seem so nervous."
"I...I'm not nervous," Sabah whispered, gulping. "I'm...I was just, I don't want to be late, that's all. So, if you would excuse me, I'd like to--"
Before she could even begin to break free from his grasp, Salim pulled her completely onto the bed and trapped her beneath him, his arms on either side of her head, making it impossible to escape. She gasped loudly at his action, finally meeting his eyes, and Salim couldn't help but grin at the surprise he saw in them.
"W-w-what are you doing?" she stammered, pushing against his chest.
"How about you stop asking me what I'm doing and answer my question. Why are you so nervous, hmm?"
"I...I'm not. You were the one who said we would miss the boat if we didn't hurry and now you're keeping me here when I should be--"
"Stop changing the subject," Salim said, bringing his face closer to hers and lowering his voice until it was just above a whisper. "Does seeing me fresh out of the shower in nothing but a towel make you nervous, Mrs. Meer?"
Sabah stared up at him, her expression one of surprise at his blunt question and obvious teasing, which he knew she would doubtlessly deem "inappropriate." Then she swallowed visibly and tore her gaze from his, her eyes darting in panic around the room.
"I...I...I...I don't know what y-you're talking about," she whispered, gulping uneasily.
Salim chuckled, unable to help it. She was adorable, the way her eyes were flitting about and the blush that rose to her cheeks. And yet, the awareness of her hands on his chest and her body underneath his, so soft in comparison to the hard edges of his, didn't let him forget even for an instant how much he wanted her in a way that definitely went beyond adorable.
"You're a horrible liar, Sabah," he whispered, laughing softly and kissing just below her jaw. She gasped at the touch and moved her face away, causing him to lean back with a frown.
"Oh come on," he whined. "I thought we were past this."
Sabah shook her head, causing a few strands of hair to get into her eyes with the force of the head shake. Despite his disappointment, Salim smiled and moved the strands away, tucking them behind her ear.
"Too much all at once," she said, looking up at him with a look that, to him, seemed as if it said, "Sorry buddy, can't help ya."
He huffed in annoyance and rolled his eyes. "Let me guess, it's the abs, right?"
Sabah groaned. "You're ridiculous," she said, rolling her eyes in return at his remark. "Now will you please get off of me so I can get ready? We're going to be late if you keep me here any longer!"
"Not so fast," Salim said, blocking her attempts to roll out from under him. "I need at least one kiss." When she shook her head firmly, he held back the urge to whine like a child. "Come on, Sabah. Just one. Please?"
Sabah sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat. "Fine," she muttered. "But, just one. And since this goes against the rules of our deal, since you didn't earn it in any way, you owe me a favor after."
"Seriously? For one measly kiss?"
"Yes! Because you're shirtless right now, therefore, it's different and a higher stake situation!"
"Really? Really? Just because I don't have a shirt on, it's different and I owe you a favor? I'm starting to wonder if I even want this anymore, since it seems it's doing me more harm than good, anyway."
"Good! Then I revoke the kiss! All the better anyway!" she cried, pushing against his chest again. He gave a loud laugh and pressed her back against the bed, overcome by how cute she was trying to out-strengthen him.
"Okay, okay," he ceded, "I owe you a favor after. Now hurry up, you're wasting time."
"I...I'm wasting time!? Me!? You're the one who's--"
Before she could finish, Salim pressed his lips to hers, silencing her complaints completely. God, he could do this forever. She was an addiction, plain and simple and damn him if he would ever give her up.
When he finally moved away from her, they were both breathless, though Salim was grinning widely, the smile growing larger as he took in his wife's annoyed expression. Although, he could tell that she had secretly enjoyed herself as well, if the blush tainting her cheeks was any indication.
"Happy now?" she asked after a moment.
"Very," he whispered, kissing her nose tenderly.
Just like that, her expression transformed into one of shyness again as she looked away from him, her face flushing. At the sound of his chuckle, she began to move away, and he didn't stop her this time. He collapsed onto the mattress loudly as she moved off of it and padded quickly towards the bathroom, her hair curtaining her face.
He watched her, half his face buried in the pillow, until she closed the door behind herself, her eyes fleetingly catching his before nervously darting away as the door shut completely and she disappeared, though the grin still dancing on his lips refused to.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They caught the boat minutes before it was set to leave and although Salim could tell Sabah was sad upon leaving the Maldives, he knew after seeing their suite she would forget any such thoughts. He had requested an upgrade on their prior rooms, deciding that if they were going to enjoy their time on vacation, they should do it in style and the utmost of luxury. It wasn't, after all, like he couldn't afford it.
"Wow!" Sabah breathed, gasping and breaking into a large grin as she walked into their new and improved room. It was much larger and grander than their other one, with a glittering chandelier, gold and cream accents, and a massive balcony overlooking the sparkling water below.
There was even a set of spiraling marble staircases leading onto a small platform above the room, somewhat like a loft. It held a walk in closet and large mirror. Of course, knowing Sabah, it was the thing that drew her attention the most. She squealed in excitement and practically hopped towards the stairs, gripping the ledge with barely contained glee.
"This is amazing!" she cried, bouncing up and down. Salim chuckled at her childlike elation and walked towards her, leaving their luggage in the corner of the room.
"I'm glad you like it," he said softly, crossing his arms over his chest as he neared her. "I was hoping you would."
Her smile grew gentler and she cast her eyes down. "Of course I do," she whispered. "But, you didn't have to do all this. I was happy in the old room, too."
Salim smiled back at her. "I know. But, I wanted to make you even happier," he said, his voice low as he drew her closer to him. She gazed up at him with a look of surprise, before turning her face away shyly.
He kissed her forehead before stepping away from her and running a hand through his hair. "How about we rest a little and then we can go explore the ship? I know you wanted to before but..." he stopped, not wanting to relive the horrible experience they had shared the last time they had been on the boat.
Sabah seemed to realize this and frowned. "Okay," she muttered, clearly uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was taking. She went to walk towards the bathroom, but at the last moment, turned back and rushed towards him.
He looked down at her in surprise, but before he could ask what was wrong, she leaned up on her tiptoes and placed a soft, but all too brief kiss on his lips. Too stunned to move, he simply continued to stand there, staring down at her with wide eyes as she moved back, a smile coming to grace her beautiful face.
"Thank you," she whispered before turning and darting into the bathroom and shutting the door behind her.
Salim stared at it for a few moments before breaking into a grin. It seemed he had been smiling a lot more in the past few days. But, he couldn't help it. Around Sabah, he felt like a completely different person. And he wasn't sure he minded the change.