The course of true love never did run smooth." —
William Shakespeare
Chapter 40
I woke up the next morning with a song on my lips and joy in my heart. From the moment I got out of bed, it felt like I was being carried by butterflies; my heart, body, mind, and soul were floating, basking in the euphoria of my newfound feelings for the young doctor. Not even for Jason nor yusuf had I felt this kind of overwhelming, all-consuming love.
I couldn't help but replay every single detail of the day before, remembering every feature of his handsome face down to the small birthmark on his left earlobe, the smooth baritone that enveloped his impeccable diction, and his smell that was a potpourri of mint, lemon, and musk. Everything about him was intoxicating, and I was ready to do anything it would take to be with him. Ya Allah, was this love or madness? I had heard of Qadr, divine destiny, and if love was written for me in this way, how could I fight it?
As I dressed up that morning, I took very special care to look my very best. I stuck to the nude and brown makeup palette I knew complimented my face best and wore a knee-length jersey dress that accentuated my figure in all the right places. My hair was released from its typical bun and, instead, left to flow freely down my back. Taking a step back, I stood before my full-length mirror and was satisfied with what I saw. There was no way he would be able to resist me.
"Wow! All for this your work. I should have gotten you a job a long time ago if that would have made you dress up like the Zeynep that attracted me twenty years ago," the zeynep remarked as I walked downstairs. "You look beautiful, my wife."
"Jazakallahu Khairan," I mumbled, unwilling to make eye contact. The last thing I wanted was to rouse his suspicion. "I wanted to wear something more casual today, just in case I have to do any heavy lifting."
The minister nodded and smiled. "Of course."
I noticed the butler carrying bags to the car. "Are you traveling?" I asked.
"Oh, sorry. I forgot to tell you. I have a few meetings in France and Germany, after which I have to sort out some things in London," he answered casually. "So, I might be gone for a while. I hope you won't miss me too much."
Alhamdulillah! I thought but quickly suppressed my excitement. ". How can you say that? Of course, I will," I added, trying not to smile as broadly as my heart wanted to. How fortuitous was it for him to be going away at the very time I wanted more time with my newfound love!
"Here is some money for you, even though you are now a salary earner," he chuckled, pressing a fat envelope into my hand. "By the way, how much did you and the doctor agree on?"
"We didn't agree on anything," I answered truthfully. "Maybe today."
"And when did he say his family is arriving again?"
"Ermmm, before the end of the year," was my brazen lie. It was in everyone's best interest for the minister to remain under the impression that Naeto was still happily married.
"Alright,take care of yourself," the minister said, patting me on the shoulder. "The driver can take you to the clinic every day, but if I were you I would walk. The exercise will do you good."
I nodded, wishing he would just leave already.
"And you can see that it's already working. I was told you didn't sleepwalk last night," he remarked, taking plenty of pride in his role in that small victory.
And it was true. For the first time in a long while, I hadn't ventured out of my room the night before, thus confirming my suspicion that happiness, true happiness, was the only antidote to my sleepwalking.
I stood at the door, waving until the car disappeared down the driveway, before I too started making my way out. I was already later than I wanted to be.
"Zeynep! Where are you going this morning? Ị" madam maria called out.
"I'm not hungry. I need to go now. I got a job at Doctor waverson's hospital," I answered, trying to mask my impatience. "His son has returned to manage it."
"You got a job?" she exclaimed as if I'd spoken a foreign language. "And the minister is aware of it?"
"Very aware. It was even his idea," was my confident answer.
"And you are sure?" she gave me a cautious look. "And is that what you're wearing to go? Isn't it too tight? And you want to leave your hair flying all over the place? Won't it disturb? Where is your hijab?"
"I have to go now. I'm already late," I said, waving at her as I continued walking, not wanting to give her any further room to postulate.
Walking to the hospital, I found myself wishing I'd asked one of the drivers to drop me there. The sandals I wore, though cute and dainty, did nothing to protect my feet from dust, so I arrived at the clinic looking like I'd been trekking through the Sahara.
SubhanAllah! Thankfully, the door was open, so I made a detour to the toilet and painstakingly cleaned my feet with toilet paper, not wanting all my work to beautify myself outdone by dust, of all things.
When I was sure I looked perfect, I made my way to his office, where he was typing away on his laptop.
"As-Salamu Alaikum, jacobi," I said, my voice a seductive purr.
"Wa Alaikumus Salam, zeynep," he answered, not even looking up from his device. "You're quite late. It's almost 9 am."
Trying not to be dissuaded by the fact that he hadn't even cared to look at me, I walked closer to him, my heady fragrance of honey and vanilla following me like an entourage. "I'm so sorry. The minister traveled this morning, so I had to attend to him."
"No problem. You can sit at the front desk for now," he said, still not taking his eyes off his machine. "Quite a lot of people have come here asking questions, so it will be a good idea for a familiar face to give them the answers they want."
"You…you don't want me to finish with the folders?"
He finally looked up. "Oh, I finished them last night. There weren't even as many as I'd initially thought."
I don't know what irked me more. The fact that he had decided to finish the task he'd given me, or the fact that he looked away without even acknowledging how beautiful I looked.
"So…you want me to sit at the front desk?" I echoed, still in disbelief.
He looked up again and smiled. "If that won't be too much trouble. I actually think it would be a perfect fit for you for now. That way, you're not out of your comfort zone too much"
Walking to the front desk, I was so enraged I could have screamed. Ya Rabb! I had been top of my class and would probably have ended up either a doctor like him or a NASA astronaut if I'd only been able to make it to the university. Comfort zone indeed!
I took a seat behind the large oak desk, seething as I stared at the mint and lavender walls. Who was I even kidding? I was nothing but a local village Indian woman to him. I might have considered myself beautiful, but I was clearly nothing close to the other beauties he had seen in his lifetime, a classic example being his former wife. Compared to her, I was nothing but a local indian.
"I hope you're not too bored," he said, walking out of his office after what had to have been the longest two hours of my life. "I heard you speaking with one or two people."
It took everything in me not to let out a long hiss, demanding if he had really engaged me to be answering such banal questions as . I'd been tempted to retort: "What do we do here? We sell cars, that's what!"; "Are the owners of this place white people? No, they're from the moon!"; "Is this place still a hospital? No, it's actually a mosque. Walk right in, so we can use you as a show case!"
But instead, I'd shrugged. "Just people asking basic questions."
"I'm off to a restaurant to interview a doctor I desperately want to hire," he said as he made his way to the door. "If I'm not back by the time you have to leave, please help me lock the door and put the key behind the flower pot. Thanks again for coming."
And just like that, he was gone. All my makeup, all my grand plans of seduction for the day washed down the drain.
He didn't come back before I left that evening, but as I walked home that day, I was more than determined to win him at all costs.
"hey pretty" came catcalls from the same group of young men drinking under a tree nearby. "Who is allowing this beautiful woman to walk under the hot sun like this?"
Even though I ignored them and continued my walk to the ranch, I couldn't help but feel emboldened. I might not have been educated or exposed much, but I knew I could stand my own with whatever high standard Jacobi was used to.
I hadn't been dreaming when I'd seen the look of desire in his eyes, the day he came by the house, or even the previous day when he'd been telling me about his past.
He wanted me just as much as I wanted him. delulu😭)
I tried to silence the little voice in my head, reminding me of what happened the last time I'd nursed this type of desire.
It had led to the death of an innocent boy and his family. If anything happened between Jacobi and I, and if the minister found out about it, there was no telling what the evil man would do to him.
But I quickly shook it off, convincing myself it would be different this time.
We wouldn't make the same mistakes Jason and I had made.
We would run away quicker this time, maybe he would even take me to the UK. He would sell his father's hospital, and we would live happily ever after, far away from this politician's evil clutches.
Yes, that was what was going to happen.
As I walked home that evening, I was more determined than ever. Qadr or not, I would make Jacobi mine.
[Please drop comments on what you think
I am running out of ideas😩]