Zaid's POV
'Yes, Zaid?' She whispers, her eyes dark and heated.
"You know how much I love you, right?" I ask, staring into her eyes. I don't know how I'm managing to control myself tonight. I know that she's still sore, that I'll just end up hurting her again if we do anything tonight. I want her to heal fully, before doing anything again. Although it kills me to stay in control of myself.
She forces a smile, nodding. 'Yeah, of course I know.'
I lean forward to kiss her on her forehead, letting my lips linger for a few seconds. I breathe in her delicious, fruity scent, closing my eyes. "I'm sorry, baby. I'm so sorry. I can't hurt you again. Not yet. Not until you're fully better."
She again forces a smile. 'I'll be back in a few minutes, I need to use the bathroom. Go to sleep.'
Before I can say anything, she gets out of bed and rushes into the bathroom, locking the door behind her.
I close my eyes, rubbing my temples with my fingers. I messed up, again. I know she's mad at me, but she's trying to hide her feelings. She has no idea, though, that I want her more than she wants me. She makes me crazy. She lights my entire body on fire.
Whenever she looks at me like that, with lust-filled eyes, I forget everything else. Whenever she touches me, my whole body burns with passion.
I'm not at all tired anymore, knowing that I've hurt her again. But I'm doing it for her better. It's best to lay off for a few days, until she's feeling better. I know she's still sore, I can tell by the way she walks. She tries to hide her pain from me, but I can see right through her.
She returns from the bathroom a few minutes later and crawls into bed, turning off the small lamp on her bedside table. She faces away from me. 'Goodnight, Zaid.'
"Goodnight, Zara. I love you," I say softly, not daring to touch her. She doesn't reply.
********
Zara's POV
We have lots of fun in Istanbul. We visit several historical places and beautiful mosques. Istanbul has some of the most beautiful mosques in the world.
Our days in Turkey fly by, much to our dismay. Before we know it, it's our last day in Istanbul. We're going back home tomorrow. I feel very emotional, because these last one and a half weeks have been the best and most beautiful of my life. I know that Zaid feels sad, too, because of how he keeps asking me if I want to lengthen our trip. I refuse, though, because as much as I'll miss Turkey and our honeymoon, I miss both of our families. I can't wait to go back home and see our parents, Maryam and Hafsa. Ayesha and Layla, too. They've been teasing me constantly, whenever they call or text me, and they miss me too.
We spend our last day roaming the beautiful city and visiting the Topkapi Palace. We learn that the palace was built in the fifteenth century, and it's absolutely beautiful. It's filled with Islamic art, intricate tilework and has huge towers and walls. It's very interesting, walking through all the rooms of the palace, including the kitchens, the private rooms, and the imperial council chamber.
We're at the palace for most of the day, as it's so huge and interesting. It's 6pm by the time we leave the palace, hand-in-hand. I glance over at Zaid and smile. He looks so hot today, wearing a black t-shirt with light blue denim jeans and white sneakers. He's wearing dark sunglasses, and his hair is messily styled. He looks like a model, as always.
I'm wearing a mint green maxi dress which is fitted from the top, and flowy from the bottom. I love this dress, I bought this one myself and it's one of my favourites.
We take lots of pictures outside the palace, smiling. In one of the pictures, Zaid kisses my cheek, causing my heartbeat to quicken. In another, he hugs me, resting his chin at the top of my head. We're both laughing in this picture, and I really love it.
It's our fifth day in Turkey, and we're going back tomorrow. Whenever I remember that we're going back tomorrow afternoon, my heart clenches. I'm going to miss it, so much. I've loved all the time I've spent with Zaid on our honeymoon. It's been so beautiful and memorable.
In case you're wondering, no. We still haven't done anything. We still haven't made love again, after that night in Paris. I'm growing more and more frustrated, and I'm going to burst really soon. Of course, I'm very happy with Zaid, roaming the beautiful city and visiting all the magnificent places.
But I know Zaid's strategy. These last few days have been super busy. We've been out all day long, for the past five days. By the time we reach back at the hotel, we're both super exhausted, and we fall asleep. He's purposely been trying to tire me out, so that I don't...
'Zara? Love? Where do you want to go now? Are you hungry?' Zaid's voice pulls me out of my thoughts. My mind was flowing back to that night in Paris. The night Zaid made love to me.
I turn to him and give him a small smile. "I don't mind, anywhere. And nope, I'm not hungry. Are you?" I ask him.
He shakes his head. 'Not yet. I was wondering, do you want to go to the cinema tonight? To watch a Turkish movie? They have subtitles.'
Oh, now he wants to take me to the cinema tonight. He's probably wishing that I fall asleep watching the movie and he carries me back to the hotel, making sure not to wake me up. I know him very well.
I stare into his beautiful chocolate brown eyes, shaking my head. "We'll visit the cinema back in England. Let's do something else."
His eyebrow perks slightly. 'Okay, what do you want to do?'
I shrug. "Whatever you want. I don't mind."
We go to a fancy Turkish restaurant an hour later, and then for dessert. Then, we go to the mall. And then for ice cream.
It's 10pm by the time we get back into the car. Zaid's car, by the way. He has a car, and a home, in Turkey, too.
'Did you have fun today?' Zaid asks me softly, glancing over at me shortly.
I look over at him, smiling. "Yes, I did. What about you?"
'I had lots of fun. Anything's fun with you, love.'
I rest my head back into the seat, closing my eyes with a smile on my lips.
Zaid is the sweetest guy in the world, and the most romantic. He's so amazing, so sweet, so caring. Everything about him is perfect. Except for the fact that he won't touch me. Not in that way, anyway.
It's the last night of our honeymoon, and still, he hasn't done anything. I glance over at him. He looks thoughtful, lost in his own thoughts. God knows what he's thinking about. He's probably tired.
I'm not as crazy as I may seem. You're probably thinking that I just always want Zaid, and that's true. I always want him, but I'm not only...always thinking about that. It's been over a week. Over a week, since he made love to me. Since that beautiful night. He hasn't even kissed me properly after that.
I'm frustrated.
And I'm feeling super emotional.
Because we're going back home tomorrow, and also because of Zaid. How stupid is he? Does he really think that I'm still feeling sore? I'm not sore at all now. I'm feeling perfectly fine.
Doesn't he want me anymore?
We reach the hotel twenty minutes later. Zaid tells me that he's going downstairs, to the ground floor, to the shops to buy a few gifts. I nod, telling him that I will just start our packing.
Packing our clothes back into our suitcases is emotional. I cry. I cry quite a bit, thinking of all our beautiful memories of our honeymoon. Zaid is so thoughtful, so amazing. He gave me the best honeymoon, one I will never forget. I will definitely return to Paris and Istanbul with Zaid, and we will visit all the same places again.
I wipe away my tears, zipping up our bags. Then, I grab my change of clothes and head into the bathroom. I take a long shower, loving the feel of the warm water relax my muscles. I use my favourite strawberry scented shampoo and body wash, and brush my teeth.
Hopping out of the shower, I dry myself with a huge, fluffy white towel and glance into the mirror. I dry my hair as best as I can with another towel, before I change into my nightgown. This one is red, and it reaches a few inches above my ankles. It's quite modest, compared to my other ones. There's no point in wearing the other ones which Hafsa had packed for me. I laugh humourlessly, thinking of my untouched nightgowns which didn't come to any use.
This nightgown has a low-cut neck, but I pull it back, trying to cover myself. It has short sleeves, but I don't care about those. It's pretty warm, anyway.
I leave the bathroom and see Zaid sitting on the edge of the bed, taking off his Armani watch. He places it onto his bedside table, before glancing over at me. I see him examine me from head to toe, and his eyes darken slightly. He smiles at me.
'You took a while showering,' he says, smiling.
I shrug. "Yeah, the warm water felt amazing. I didn't want to come out."
He chuckles, standing up. 'Perhaps I should take a shower too, then?'
I nod, giving him a small smile. "Yeah, sure. I'm going to bed."
He walks over to me and kisses me on my forehead. 'You're going to sleep already? Are you sure you don't want to watch a movie or something?'
I swallow, shaking my head. "I'm gonna try to sleep. We won't be able to sleep in too late tomorrow. You go and take a shower, and then sleep."
He nods. 'Okay.'
He heads to the bathroom, while I get into bed. I pull the covers over myself, grabbing my phone from the table beside me.
I check my Instagram, smiling when I see a picture of Maryam and Ayesha, which Maryam has posted. They went out to the mall today, and they took a selfie. They both look really cute. I press the small heart icon, before scrolling down my feed.
I've just placed my phone back down onto my bedside table, when I hear the bathroom door click. Zaid walks out of the bathroom, wearing only a pair of black tracksuit bottoms. My mouth dries as I travel my gaze over his hard, muscular body. He dries his hair roughly with a towel, and then looks over at me.
'You're awake?' He asks, smiling.
I return my gaze to his face, and I nod. "Yeah, I was just about to sleep."
A couple of minutes later, he gets into bed beside me. We're not touching, but I can feel the heat from his body. He turns to face me. I do the same.
He's decided to sleep without a top on today?
'I'm going to miss all this. It's been amazing these last few days, being alone with you,' he whispers.
I nod. "I'm gonna miss it, too."
He runs a hand through his wet hair, and my mouth dries up at the flex of the muscles of his arm. He has huge biceps.
'We can return whenever you like, I promise,' he says softly, wetting his lips with his tongue. My eyes fall to his soft, full pink lips and I feel the heat pooling at the pit of my stomach.
"Yeah. Sleep now, it's getting late. Goodnight, Zaid," I whisper, turning the other way and trying to control my racing heart. It doesn't work, though.
'Goodnight, beautiful,' he says quietly.
I close my eyes, trying to sleep, trying to feel tired, but it doesn't work. I feel too wide awake to fall asleep. I want only one thing right now, and it's not sleep.
Zaid shifts slightly closer to me, but not close enough. I sigh quietly, clutching the duvet tight in my right hand. I've never felt so frustrated before, or so upset.
Why can't Zaid understand? Why can't he see how much I need him? Yes, our first time hurt a lot, but he's hurt me a lot more in this last week. I feel so upset, I just want to cry.
I want to jump into his arms, but I won't. Not again.
He doesn't want me anymore.
I don't know how I manage to fall asleep half an hour or so later, but I wake up quickly after that. I wake up crying, frustrated, unable to fall back to sleep.
********
Zaid's POV
I'm woken up by the sound of Zara sniffling quietly. Is she okay? My heart starts to race at the sound of her crying. It's just like that other night in Paris.
'Zara? What's wrong, baby?' I ask, my voice husky from sleep.
She quietens down for a few seconds, and pretends to be asleep. I lay closer to her, wrapping an arm around her waist. I move my other arm under her neck, so she's lying on my arm.
She says nothing, and pretends to be asleep. I kiss the back of her head gently, holding her close.
God, I've missed the feeling of Zara in my arms. Of her closeness. I hold her close, my heart racing.
Just then, she again starts to whimper, leaning back into me.
I think she's half asleep.
Yes, she's definitely half asleep. She's crying in her sleep.
'Jaan? Zara, love?' I whisper into her ear.
She holds onto my hand, tight. She leans further back into me, as if wanting to mould our bodies together as one. I hold her closer to me, whispering soothing words into her ear. Is she having a nightmare?
She holds onto my hand tighter, pulling my arm up. I tense when I feel my arm brush against her. She holds my hand near her face, before placing a gentle kiss on the back of it.
It breaks my heart. I hold her closer in my arms, kissing her head and her shoulder.
When I feel her tears soak my hand, I gently turn her around to face me.
She leans into me, our chests pressed together.
'Zaid,' she whispers, her voice broken and emotional.
She entangles our legs together and pulls me even closer, her hand clutching my bare back.
Her lips are near the hollow of my neck. I close my eyes, loving the feel of her perfect form pressed against me. I can feel every curve of her body as I kiss her gently on her forehead.
'No,' she whispers, trying to pull me into her body.
"What's wrong, baby?" I murmur, worried.
'Zaid, it hurts. It hurts so much,' she whispers, her eyes still closed.
"What hurts, love?" I reply gently. She's in pain.
Her hand trails down my back, feeling every hard ridge and muscle. Her lips touch the sensitive spot of my neck and I groan, holding her close.
Her perfect form feels damn amazing pressed up against me. Every part of our bodies is pressed together. And she's trying to pull me even closer still. She whimpers again, shifting so her legs are wrapped around me. I know exactly what she wants, what she needs right now.
I tense, closing my eyes in pain and groaning. "Zara," I murmur, my voice sounding deep and husky to my own ears.
'Zaid, please.' These two words are enough to fully undo me. I lean back slightly to stare at her beautiful face, her tear and lust-filled eyes, and I lose all the control that I have.
I hold her face in my hands gently and kiss her, pouring all my love and want into the kiss. Her hands automatically travel into my hair, and she kisses me back urgently.
'Zaid,' she whispers against my lips, moulding her body against mine. I kiss her passionately, so passionately that I feel her legs give way from on top of mine. I hold her against my body, not breaking the kiss. Our lips are definitely going to be bruised by tomorrow morning, but neither of us care.
We stay awake for most of that night, it's almost 5am when we both fall asleep, exhausted.
********
Zara's POV
'No, let me sleep Zaid. Five more minutes,' I murmur, pulling the duvet tighter around me and covering my face with it.
I hear my husband chuckle. "You've been saying that for the past hour, darling. If you let us both sleep on time last night, you'd be awake by now," he replies, his voice humorous and husky. Even while I'm asleep, his words seem to have a crazy effect on me. I can feel the heat returning to the pit of my stomach.
How is that even possible, after last night?
I'm definitely awake now.
Last night... it was perfect. I open my eyes slowly, my face still covered with the warm duvet. It had hurt slightly, as it was only our second time. And third. And fourth.
But yeah, it had hurt slightly at the start, but only ever so slightly. The pain soon vanished, and I felt nothing but pleasure. I feel nothing except happiness and fulfilment this morning. And I'm not tired anymore.
I slowly sit up in bed, closing the top two buttons of Zaid's shirt which I'm wearing. A pink blush is covering my cheeks, and my hair is all tussled up. I run my fingers through my hair, smiling to myself.
'Hi, beautiful. How did you sleep?' Zaid asks, smirking at me.
I look towards him. He's sitting on one of the large, beige sofas a few metres away from the bed, setting out breakfast for us on the table. His eyes are glinting with mischief and excitement.
I blush harder, closing the rest of the buttons quickly before stepping out of bed. I wince slightly at the small amount of pain I feel between my legs, but I ignore it. It's not half as much pain as what I felt the first time.
"I slept well, thanks. What about you?" I ask him.
His eyes trail over my body. I'm wearing my underwear and his shirt, which falls mid-thigh. My cheeks heat up at his blatant gaze over my body.
'I slept very well,' he says, smirking again.
He stands up and walks towards me, giving me a short but hard kiss.
When I don't let go of my grasp on his arms, he chuckles. "You need to have breakfast. And take a bath."
I nod. 'Have you..taken a bath already?'
He nods. "Just now, before ordering breakfast."
'Okay, I'll go and quickly take a bath, and then I'll have breakfast. I don't feel particularly hungry right now, anyway.'
He raises an eyebrow. "Really? Even after using up so much energy, you're not hungry?"
I smack him on the chest, my cheeks burning. 'Zaid! I'm not the only one who... go and have breakfast. I'll join you shortly. And don't stare at me like that.'
"Yes, you're right. You shouldn't stare at me like that either, otherwise we'll end up missing our flight," he whispers, kissing me again on my lips.
I kiss him back for a few seconds, before slapping him playfully on the arm to break the kiss. He's right. We'll end up missing our flight if we don't...stop.
********
"Zara! Babe, you're glowing! You look stunning!" Ayesha says, winking at me.
Layla nods. 'Ayesha's right, Zara! You're glowing with happiness and love! It's so adorable! How was your honeymoon?! We want to know everything!' She says, grinning.
Me, Hafsa, Maryam, Layla and Ayesha are currently sitting in mine and Zaid's bedroom, on the bed. Zaid's downstairs with our parents and a couple of his friends.
I smile. "It was perfect, Layla. It was so much fun! I miss it so much already!" I answer, not being able to keep the smile off my face.
'Aww! Bhai has the hugest smile on his face too, you're both glowing with happiness. I'm so happy for you guys. And I missed you like crazy!' Hafsa says, smiling.
"I missed you too, Hafsa! All of you!" I say, leaning back against the pillows.
'Don't lie! You didn't miss me. You and bhai, I'm sure, kept extremely busy the entire time. I mean, you guys didn't even call me everyday! You must have stayed in your hotel the entire time-'
And that's when Zaid decides to walk into the room. Did he hear Hafsa?
Hafsa and the girls burst out laughing, their cheeks reddening with embarrassment. Except Hafsa's. Because she has no shame at all.
'Yes, bhai? Why are you here?' Hafsa asks her brother, raising an eyebrow at him.
"Can I borrow Zara for a second, Hafsa?" Zaid asks, raising an eyebrow. His eyes are glinting.
I blush as the girls start teasing me. 'You guys just got back two hours ago! Can't you stay without her for a single minute? Gosh, bhai! Why do you need her?!' Hafsa asks, glaring at Zaid.
Zaid looks towards me for help, and I chuckle, shrugging.
'See, she doesn't want to...talk to you right now. She's busy with her girls,' Hafsa argues.
"I only need her for one minute, Hafsa. Then you girls can stay with her for the rest of the evening," Zaid says, smiling.
Hafsa raises an eyebrow at him. 'For the rest of the evening? Bhai, we're staying with Zara tonight,' Hafsa jokes, but manages to keep a straight face.
Zaid looks towards me in shock, his face falling. I don't know how I manage to keep in my laughter, but I jump out of bed and to go Zaid.
'Hafsa, I'll be back in a minute. Two minutes tops,' I say, smiling at my best friend.
She steps towards me and whispers into my ear. "Go give him what he wants."
I blush hard, pushing her playfully and shaking my head. Both the siblings are as bad as each other.
'Come on, Zaid,' I say, grabbing his arm and pulling him out of the room.
We walk into the spare guest room which is next to our room, and I close the door behind us. As soon as I close the door, Zaid surprises me by pressing me up against it, kissing me hungrily. I kiss him back with the same amount of passion, smiling into the kiss. When he deepens the kiss, I feel my legs turn weak. Zaid holds me up against his body, one hand in my hair at the back of my head, and the other at my waist.
'Zaid,' I whisper, laughing into the kiss as he doesn't break it after a few minutes.
He groans, breaking the kiss and staring into my eyes, his dark and filled with lust.
I caress his cheek gently, smiling. "That's why you needed me?" I ask, laughing.
He nods, kissing me again. I kiss him back for a few seconds, before breaking the kiss. I place another chaste kiss on his soft, full lips before I glance up at him, smiling.
He grabs me by the waist, pulling me against his hard body. Then he smirks at me.
'Let go of me, the girls must be wondering what we're doing,' I say, chuckling.
"Let them wonder," he says, his eyes darkening even more.
I smack him on his chest, shaking my head. 'Later,' I say, giving him a last kiss.
He pouts at me playfully, hugging me. I hug him back, breathing in his musky, manly scent which always turns me on. Before I do anything crazy at this time, I break the hug and open the door, running out before he can grab me again.
The girls all look at me with smirks on their faces and raised eyebrows as I go back into our bedroom. They're still sitting on our bed, waiting for me.
'I'm back,' I say, my cheeks heating up.
"Well, are your two minutes over? You took ten minutes!" Hafsa says, winking at me.
I blush harder, trying to think of an excuse but unable to find one. 'Yeah... sorry, guys. So, what were we talking about? My honeymoon. It was absolutely perfect!'
********
Hey, guys! How are you all? I hope you're all well and doing amazing! So, how did you find this chapter?
Zara finally manages to get her own way, lol! And...what did you think of Zaid's playfulness in this chapter? He's changed a lot since the start of this book, hasn't he?
What was your favourite moment in this chapter? Let me know!
Don't forget to vote and leave lots of comments on the chapter, they always make my day guys! It would mean the world to me if you did!
Zara and Zaid are back from their honeymoon! What do you think will happen in the upcoming chapters?
Many of you have been asking me how many chapters are left. So, the answer is, I'm not completely sure! Anywhere between 5-10 chapters are left. Probably closer to 5, though, seeing what I have planned for the remainder of the book.
Thanks guys, for all your love and support! You know who you are! Your support honestly means the world to me. I've written this book through some of the best times of my life, and also through some of the moments when I'm feeling most down. It's your love and support which has made me continue to write.
Bye, my beautiful readers! Stay tuned for the next chapter! And vote and comment!! x