Page 86 of Stand Fast

“Here I am,” she whispered, bending to kiss him softly before sitting up again. It was the middle of the afternoon and she was itching to go out and explore the Cotswolds with him. It had been years since she’d been here with her family on summer vacation, and she’d been dying to come back. “I went down and got us some tea. Well, scones and biscuits and tea, plus coffee for you.” She wrinkled her nose. Vile stuff.

“You’re an angel,” he said, reclining on one elbow. “What time is it?”

“It’s nearly four.”

His eyes flew wide as he jerked upright. “What?”

At his panicked expression, she blinked. “Three forty-two, to be precise. Why, what’s the matter?”

“No,” he breathed, and jumped off the bed like it was made of hot coals, shooting past her to the bathroom.

“Zaid, what’s wrong?” she called, trailing after him, totally confused. “We don’t have reservations or anything.”

“I made us an appointment.”

Huh? She frowned. “An appointment for what?”

“You’ll see. Just give me five minutes to shower. Go put a dress on and do your hair.”

The order made her scowl. “What? Why?”

“Trust me. You’ll thank me later.”

“Yeah, I’m not so sure about that,” she muttered, annoyed, but did as he said. She’d planned for them to wander around the village of Upper Slaughter and then Bourton-on-the-Water for a leisurely dinner and a romantic stroll afterward. The weather was still chilly, but it was crazy gorgeous here, and not packed with tourists at this time of year.

By the time he came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and changed into a dress shirt and slacks, she was ready too. “Where are we going?” she demanded as he took her hand and towed her toward the door.

“Patience,” he chided, pausing to check his hair in the mirror.

Heneverdid that. Was he nervous or something? Where was he taking her?

She’d half made up her mind that she was going to hate whatever he had planned when they reached the lobby. “I wanted to take you to a couple of my favorite villages,” she protested.

“Yeah, sure, in a bit. Hey, what’s that over there?” he asked, pointing.

She followed his finger toward the front doors of the posh hotel and gasped, both hands flying up to her mouth at the sight of her parents and sisters smiling at her. “Oh my God,” she cried, and ran over.

Four pairs of arms engulfed her amidst the familiar and delighted ring of her family’s laughter. Jaliya hugged them all, gobsmacked by the sight of them. “What are you all doing here?” she demanded, stepping back to wipe her cheeks.

Her father smiled down at her, his short beard impeccably trimmed as always, and nodded over her shoulder. “We got an invitation from him.”

Jaliya turned to stare at Zaid. “I don’t believe it. How did you…”

Smiling, he crossed over to wrap an arm around her shoulders. “Even though you told me otherwise, I was pretty sure it bothered you on some level not to have your family here for this. So I asked them to fly here and meet us the day after the deed was done. Hope that’s okay,” he added in a whisper.

She shook her head at him. “Just when I thought I couldn’t love you more,” she said, her voice catching on the last word. He was so sweet to her.

His arm tightened, his eyes gleaming with mischief. “Even though I wear the pants in this relationship?”

She leaned her head back to narrow her eyes at him in mock warning. “Watch it, mister.”

“Don’t make her cry,” one of her sisters laughed, and stepped in front of Zaid. “Hi. I’m Shayda. Nice to meet you finally.”

Zaid shook her hand. “Likewise.”

Jaliya’s heart was full to overflowing as she introduced him to the others, ending with her father. She held her breath as she watched them shake hands, aware of the way her father was scrutinizing Zaid. But then he gave a warm smile and clapped Zaid on the shoulder once. “Welcome to the family, son.”

“Thank you, sir.”

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