Page 31 of Modern Romance November 2024 5-8

‘You mean Grace?’

Violet nodded. ‘The flatmate I had before Grace used to cook fish for breakfast...the one before that had this awful boyfriend... There’s quite a list.’

‘Do you have to share your flat?’ He winced. ‘Sorry, that’s thoughtless.’

‘Believe me, it’s the same question I’m asking myself. But, yes...’ She took a sip of icy champagne. ‘There aren’t many jobs near me, though. Well, not that I’ve seen.’

‘Could you take the part-time job for now? Move closer...?’

‘I don’t want to move.’

‘Because you don’t want to be away from your family?’

‘No.’ For the first time she gave a frustrated shake of her head. ‘Nothing like that.’

Violet had been open with him—more open than with anyone—but she chose not to answer that one. She just gave him a shrug, brushed the question off.

‘It’s just been a bad week.’ She rolled her eyes. ‘Oh, and I had a dreadful date on Saturday, just to kick things off...’

‘Haircut day?’

‘That’s the one.’ She smiled, appreciative that he’d been listening. ‘He seemed nice, but when we met he was all about himself—how he went to the gym, how he took care of his body... Do you know? I felt judged when I ordered dessert!’

‘In my country you are judged if youdon’teat dessert.’

Violet smiled for the first time since entering the garden, and for Sahir there was a surge of triumph at watching her lighten, seeing the return of her gorgeous smile.

He gave a shake of his head, as if to clear it. He’d been right when he’d said there were a lot of moving parts to Violet—a lot of life, a lot of personality, and dots he would rather like to join up.

‘Had you been dating long?’ he asked, disliking no-dessert guy immensely—or rather, the thoughts he conjured.

‘No. Just chatting online.’

‘Online?’

‘Yes. He described himself as “laid-back and easy-going”.’

‘Doesn’t that mean you’d have to do all the arranging and he’d have no problem with you getting the bill?’ Her little laugh made him smile and he was curious. ‘So, how would you describe yourself?’

‘Laid-back, easy-going...’

‘Violet!’ He chided her for her fib, calling her out, and was gifted another smile.

‘I don’t really,’ she admitted. ‘My bio describes me as “outgoing and friendly”, and I guess I am. I just...’

She was more than that, he thought, but she didn’t know how to reveal her fears and wants or insecurities.

‘I’d be dreadful online,’ Sahir admitted, and watched her put her elbows on her knees and look up as he spoke. ‘I’d have skipped straight past the “outgoing and friendly” Violet, and look at what I’d have missed...’

‘That’s nice of you to say.’ She smiled again as she gazed up at him. ‘It’s hard out there—not that you’d know. I can’t imagine you’d have to resort to going online.’

Sahir said nothing at first, just looked at her sitting there, a little pensive and doleful, yet still but a second away from a smile. That much he knew about Violet. A thought came then—one he’d never so much as briefly entertained before. He had wealth, stature and dates aplenty, but when it came to the future Violet Lewis had something he’d never know—choices.

She also had the prospect of love.

It wasn’t something he wanted.

Sahir had grown up knowing he could never be too close to another person, and that it was forbidden to love your wife. After the death of his mother, he had better understood the reason for that law—for how did you run a country on the edge of war, as his had been then, while dealing with the loss of the love of your life?

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