The music started and the anchor of the show stepped onto the stage. Rina could hear her voice from where she stood backstage, trying to get the models ready for the last time. Even though they were already clothed, with the process of the walk embedded in their heads, Rina ran it through with them one last time. They were supposed to launch three collections, so that meant each model was walking the stage three times.They were going to open the event and close it. That meant Rina was only going to appear towards the end of the show. She was content with the plan as it gave her time to get her nerves back in place. Joel rushed to the back to tell them it was time, and the models filed up in the order they’d been taught. Rina watched them with so much pride in her eyes as they stepped onto the runway.The show was being aired to the world in the present time, so everyone had access to it. Rina watched it from the screen backstage, biting her lips as each model stepped onto the runway,
The gasps that echoed backstage the moment Rina’s name was announced were loud enough to disrupt a medical operation. Eyes flashed her way as she walked out of the dressing room, and passed through the pathway that had instantly been created for her as the team backstage parted out of the way for her. Rina didn’t look sideways. She didn’t want to know what their opinions were right then, but hard as it were, it was hard not to hear the whispers.Although Rina braced herself for the worst, she was surprised when she made out the contents of the words that had traveled over to her. While some of them backstage thought she was the most stunning model they’d ever worked with, others had this tinge in their voice as they muttered in hushed whispers, “Oh my God! We misunderstood her. What if we were wrong all this time?”Armed with the doubts permeating people’s minds, Rina took a deep breath and stepped onto the runway, the dress swishing around her as she took one foot after the other, ta
She turned to Joel with a calm demeanor, not needing the look of panic mixed with a tinge of understanding he flashed her way. Still, he put out his hands to block the first scrunched-up paper that made its way from the crowd, skittering around the runway. Joel looked at Rina with concern in his eyes. When they had made plans for the revelation of the identity of the anonymous model, he hadn’t factored in the reaction of the crowd, even though he’d known Rina was a tad worried about it.The next paper came, hitting Joel’s arm that he had put out protectively in front of Rina, but the third wasn’t that unlucky. It hit her square in the chest, and she took a step backward, propelled more by the situation than the sheet of paper.“I didn’t think about this,” Joel muttered to her, as more items got tossed to the runway, from broken pens to books. When an egg got tossed in from nowhere, Zayn got up on his feet at once, his eyes roaming the crowd, searching for where that had come from. But
Rina stared at the crowd wide-eyed, yet to process her emotions. She knew this was going to happen. It was the reason she had been so skeptical about coming out during the fashion show. But now that it was in the hands of the public, it was impossible to take it away. Joel held her hands in his and pulled her along with him, going backstage where all the models were gathered and waiting. Rina could see the divided looks on the faces of the designers of O.S.N. While some of them were pleasantly stunned at the identity of the anonymous model, the unasked questions visible in their gazes, the others didn’t bother to hide the disgust they felt from the situation.She could see it in the way they stood, defensive and angry. It wasn’t hard for Rina to guess what was going through their minds in those minutes. They probably felt bad for Joel, thinking he was one of her victims, and would never have let her into the fashion house if she hadn’t held something against him. And even if Joel bare
“Where is Zayn?” Rina couldn’t stop the question from falling from her lips as William led the group of men, taking the underground entrance out of the building. She was kept in the middle, surrounded by heavily built men, totally obscured from the view of prying eyes. It hadn’t been difficult to make the decision to go with them, because Rina knew she sure as hell couldn’t get herself out of the building without risking getting attacked.And going with Joel wasn’t even in the plan.William shrugged, back to his quiet self. He hadn’t given Rina any response to all her questions since they left the dressing room, and it was beginning to irk her. But she knew William. He never spoke until it was totally necessary.“Where are we headed?” She tried again, hoping that this time, a response would be met with her question.“In a bit, ma’am,” was William’s only response as he suddenly took a sharp turn. The car came into view, and the men all stepped out of the way with William walking around
Her mind failed to think of just one particular thing at that moment. Hell! It thought of nothing. Rina couldn’t bear to do any other thing than remain in that moment, scared that if she blinked, it would all be gone, but at the same time, uncertain if Zayn’s heady scent slowly intoxicating her, wouldn’t leave her in puddles at his feet, knowing fully well where he stood.All of this was mere paper to him, on whose pages Rina was yet to append her signature, or even go through the terms he had so boldly announced. Yet, no matter how hard her rationality screamed at her to bring an end to that moment, to step away from Zayn and his all too alluring self, Rina found that hard to do.She opened her eyes as his whispers tingled the skin on her ear, sending shocks to her brain. Their eyes met through the mirror before them, and Rina was stuck in the moment. She swallowed, but her gaze didn’t waver, soft, reflecting a need that has spanned through months, a tinge of uncertainty wrapped in t
When Zayn returned a moment later, armed with two cocktail glasses. He met no one in the room but could see the white lights coming from the bathroom. Going out to the balcony of the room, he slid the glasses gingerly onto the table and returned to the room. Zayn was still his usual calm demeanor, with a hand in his pocket, even if the whole of his body trembled with need. Still, he had always had such great control, and no matter how hard this was, he knew he didn’t want to cross that line with Rina. When he had asked her to be his wife, the intention was to use that to get the subsidiary firm from his father, and then divorce her in five years. Any other thing that Zayn termed unnecessary could complicate the arrangement, and he had seen enough complications with Nathan that he had come to detest the mere appearance of it. Knocking on the door, he pushed it open slightly and leaned on the doorframe. Her body was covered with the suds in the water, but Zayn had memorized every inch
Zayn didn’t spend the night. When they’d exhausted the cocktail, he realized with a start that there was nothing keeping him back there. As much as he tried to stall for time, to ensure Rina was okay, beyond the smile etched on her features, he knew he had to leave since his flight was to depart that night. It was almost 9 pm already, yet, they were still on her balcony, comfortable in each other’s silence, staring into the dark.Or at least, Rina stared into the dark.But for Zayn, his eyes never went off her, even when he reached for his glass on the table. He wished he could do something about how she felt, take away a part of the burden he could see on her shoulders. But he knew what she would say before he even managed to get the question out, and Zayn didn’t think tonight was best for that type of conversation.He sighed and glanced at his watch. “Rina, I have to be at the airport in thirty minutes, and I have to go with William because I’m not used to traveling without him. But
Zayn sauntered through the high gates he had grown behind, steeling himself for what was going to happen in there. He hadn't been careful enough when it came to this, only discovering mere minutes ago before his father's call came in. This was the reason he always said feelings never ceased to complicate things, and yet, he had fallen victim to it. Zayn should have known better. If he hadn't been so occupied with trying to make sure Rina was fine, even though he knew that was an excuse to be around her, perhaps, he would have noticed this development before it got out of hand. Now, he was left with the task of salvaging it, but his brain wasn't working in that direction. Zayn was worried about Rina, despite everything. He had whipped out his phone on his way to his father's house to call her, but changed his mind mid-way, deciding to call Susan instead when he was done with this little issue. He tried to think about a way out of this, his mind reeling and his eyes darting around the
The moment the call dropped dead, Rina pulled herself off her bed, wincing slightly as she moved to the bathroom. She had a quick bath, and part of her was grateful that Zayn had decided to leave for his mansion. If he had remained in the villa, she wouldn't have been able to do what she had in mind. Zayn's clear instruction rang in her head, but Rina shrugged it off as soon as it occurred to her. She used her anger as her ammunition – anger that she had fallen in love with Zayn when she shouldn't have, anger that she had given herself a false hope that he would come around and admit his feelings knowing fully well that the great Zayn Graham doesn't give two fucks about love and whatever it came with. Walking out of the bathroom, Rina sauntered into her walk-in closet and pulled off something simple from the hanger – a pair of black wide-legged pants and a matching button-down shirt. Pairing it with white heels and a black tote bag, Rina applied light make-up on her face, almost unno
Confusion set in Rina at once, wounding its arms around her so tightly that she didn’t think there was any route of escape. She sat up at once, pulling herself until her back pressed against the headboard, with her head reeling from what she had just heard. “I think you got the wrong person,” she said finally. “My parents are well and alive, and I know their lawyer as well, because it is the same lawyer I use. And his name definitely isn’t Marco.”“Pardon me,” the voice returned, sounding solemn and sad. “What I am about to do is probably not right since it is the first time we are speaking and it isn’t exactly a conversation to have on the phone. But at the same time, I know you wouldn’t meet up with me, unless you are entirely sure about what this is. You are a public figure here, so that means you are really particular about your security.”“You sure did your research,” Rina murmured. “No. Not exactly. I was just so surprised that all this time, you were right within reach while I
Her door cracked open slowly, but it sounded so far off, like someone was making a scratching noise somewhere in the distance. She hissed and thrashed on the bed, willing whoever it was would leave her to her sleep. Just when she thought the source of the noise had gone, she heard it again, nearer this time. It echoed in her ears, pulling her out of an abyss she’d had no idea she had settled in. The space beside her on the bed dipped, and her eyes fell open slowly.“Hey.” His eyes appeared bothered, but at the same time, guarded, like he was trying so hard to be there with her, and at the same time, keeping something away from her. “How do you feel? Does your ankle hurt?”Rina shook her head, but the sudden sharp pain there gave her lie away as she winced. “You should stay in bed for as long as you want, until the pain subsides. Susan will ensure you have everything you will be needing for the three weeks the doctor advised that you remain in bed.”“But…”“Rina,” Zayn breathed. “List
“What happened to her?” Susan asked later that evening after they’d put her to bed. The drugs she was given at the hospital for the pain were bound to make her drowsy, and despite how hard she fought to remain awake, because George had come to see her, she still had to succumb to the pressure of sleep. It was important for the healing of her ankles and Zayn was finally relieved when he closed the door behind her. “She tripped.”“But that isn’t all. Something made her trip.” Susan read it easily from his eyes, tilting her head and waiting for a response. “I’m not sure,” he sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I know you might think I am chasing shadows because of how much I have been trying to protect Rina.”“I don’t think so,” Susan replied. “If somebody was trying to hurt her, you would be the best person to know. Nothing I say is valid if you believe in your guts that what happened earlier wasn’t an accident. And you shouldn’t give it a rest until you get to the end of this.”
All of Rina stilled with those words hanging in the air. She had thought about it a million times, about how it would feel when she finally told him. But no amount of mental preparation would have ever prepared her for that moment. She searched his face intently, even though she wanted to hide away from him at the same time. Rina waited for him to scold her, to tell her that their contract had fallen through because of her errant feelings, and that he was no longer interested in getting married to her. But the only thing that circulated round the small space was silence, loud enough to pierce through eardrums. “I am not saying this so you have to say anything in response, or feel a particular way towards me. I just wanted to have it out there. We have been through so much together already, or rather, I have been through so much with you standing by me all the way, showing nothing more than understanding. If this isn’t what you want, I think it would be unfair to keep it away from you
Zayn was at Rina’s first run on set, at one corner of the stage, watching closely as Rina acted a scene for the third time. For some reason, the director had decided to start with the middle of the script, running it up to the beginning, and then down tlo the end. It opened with the scene where Zico and Rina found that they were in love with each other, finally giving their love a chance, much to the hatred of Mandy, who was now the second female lead. The scene played out in a cozy bedroom setting, with Rina walking in with Zico at the end of a long stroll. The plan was to get a bottle of water from his house and then move to hers. But their emotions got the best of them, the sexual tension in the room heightening. The director had asked that the scene be re-acted a thousand times because there wasn’t enough chemistry, and Zayn was beginning to lose his patience. His hands folded into fists by his side, as he glared at Zico’s hands wrapped around Rina’s waist. He could see the reso
Kayla watched Rina speaking to Regina from the top floor and crossed her arms across her chest, wondering what their conversation was about. It couldn’t be anything related to acting, as the submissive look in Regina’s eyes and the haughty look in Rina’s didn’t exactly depict that. Angling her head, Kayla remembered she had seen Regina with her right-hand man just the previous night before he had taken her home from Scottsdale. They’d been out in the garage, talking about something, with their eyes hiding the beginning of a budding romance. Perhaps, that wasn’t all it was. She should have paid more attention, maybe even listened in on their conversation before interrupting them in that manner.Her right-hand man would never divulge any information about Kayla. Or at least, that was what she thought. But just to be safe, Kayla made the decision right there to play her last card. She had been holding on to it for as long as she could remember, but maybe it was time to let go. Smiling cr
Rina got the news of her playing the lead in the new part of the movie, and excitement coursed through her as she made her way down to Scottsdale to sign some papers and get her script. George couldn’t go with her as he had a meeting outside town with a new client, so she went with Igor instead, sitting at the passenger’s side of the car while he skillfully navigated the traffic to get her there on time. Things had gone back to normal since Finn got arrested, and it was like the drama had finally come to a halt. Although, the one thing Rina wanted, which was for Zayn to tell her how he felt about her, was yet to happen. He was still measured and controlled in how he related to her, barely even grazing her skin each time they were in the same room. He'd stopped coming into her bathroom like he usually did each time she was having a bath but now stayed away from the villa as a whole, returning only when entirely necessary. Rina could feel him running away from something. She had notic