Chapter Three

Third Person's POV:

Abdullah was anything but guilty about his attitude towards his new wife. No matter how unbothered Maryam tried to be, she still couldn't help but feel that her fantasies about getting married were all thrown down the well.

The morning was awkward as no one said a word and Maryam spent the whole day with Amna who looked very curious to know how things went the previous night.

"Did he give you a present?" Amna asked with twinkling eyes. Maryam nodded slowly remembering the jewelry box he had so rudely tossed at her. She didn't bother opening it or even asking about it from him as she wasn't interested in the jewel but the way he was supposed to hand it to her.

"Did you like it?" Amna asked, looking almost relieved that he did as he was told to. Maryam nodded again. "Yes, it was really beautiful. The erm... Colour... Was really attractive." she lied, wanting to make herself seem believable. It was easy since Amna wasn't the type to dive too deep into things which was a good thing.

Maryam smiled at her dark-skinned mother-in-law who was the literal definition of Eastern beauty.

"What did you two talk about? He wasn't rude or anything, right?" she questioned. Maryam gave her an assuring look. "He was nice." then she added, "He even told me that I looked pretty." she pretended to blush.

"That's... Sweet of him..." Amna fell into confusion. She wasn't expecting that quick of a change from her son. But, if Maryam said that it was like that, she decided to just thank Allah and felt satisfied that she didn't make a big mistake.

"Anway, what kind of hairstyle do you want for the Walima?"

Maryam thought about it for a while and then said, "I think open hair would look nice." Amna frowned at her, her smile still fixated on her face. "Really? That's very untraditional for a Pakistani bride. Are you sure about it?"

She nodded quickly. "Yes. I always wanted to do something different. And I think that I'll look a little older for my age if I make one of those big buns or complicated hairstyles." then she added, "But if you think that I shouldn't, then I'm fine with anything."

Amna shook her head and patted her daughter-in-law. "It won't look good if it's not according to your taste. If you want it, then I don't see why not." Maryam beamed at her and hugged her.

"Thank you so much, mom."

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Maryam was never good at goodbyes and especially not when she knew that she was going to be alone with a person that hated her guts once her parents-in-law left the country. Why hate, you ask? Well because the death glares Abdullah Saleh had been shooting at his wife all day was proof enough that he really didn't like her presence in the house.

"Stay blessed, beta." Mua'az Saleh ran a hand over her head out of love and respect as his servants took his luggage out to the waiting car. Maryam, wearing a beautiful black Kurti with white beads in the shape of flowers over black loose trousers that fell right above her ankles, exposing her beautiful feet with painted nails, moved from Mua'az to Amna to give her a last hug.

"My prayers are with you, Maryam. Always stay happy and cheerful and if this spoilt son of mine tried to be a jerk to you, you have my number, don't you?" she winked at her to which Maryam nodded with a smile.

"I'm sure that won't happen," Surprisingly, it was Abdullah who spoke. He walked forward to his mother and kissed her on her forehead. "You don't have to worry about us. We'll be fine here." then he turned to his father.

"And dad, the company is in good hands. I've already shown you how much it has improved ever since you left it under me. I promise I won't let you down." to his father, he just gave a knowing nod.

Maryam was surprised at his great acting skills. The way he talked to his parents would make any person fall for his facade. She inwardly rolled her eyes at him but quickly snapped out of it when they started walking towards the door. 

"Salam u Alaikum and fee Amanullah." Abdullah led them outside to the car that was waiting for them in front of the house. Maryam waved at them with a bright smile and watched as they pulled out of the main gate with servants standing at both sides to see them off as well. 

She walked back inside once they were enough that the car looked like a black spot in the dark night. She moved confidently through the mansion as she now knew the way by heart. It was hard to believe that it had been just three days since her marriage to Abdullah and he was as insignificant to her as a fork was to soup. 

The big house had fallen even more silent than before. It was like the brightness of the house had left with the Saleh couple leaving a moody and obnoxious CEO with her. 

She picked up the phone Mua'az had gifted her and started exploring it. The door opened and Abdullah entered, giving off a completely different aura than before. She looked at him once and turned back to her phone. 

"Finally, there's some peace and quiet in this house," he told no one in particular. That sentence didn't trigger a reaction from Maryam and she quietly continued what she was doing. At that moment, something hit her.

She remembered what she had decided and quickly got up. She walked over to her closet and pulled out the clothes from it and threw them inside the bag they had been previously in. 

"What are you doing?" he finally asked. 

"Going to another room." she simply replied. 

"Why?" he didn't sound like he was asking that because he cared and even if he did, Maryam didn't. 

"Obviously, I can't sleep on the bed. And I can't bear your rudeness towards me." she looked at him as she said that. He had his laptop pulled out in front of him, wearing greyish trousers and a tight cotton T-shirt that hugged his body, showing his strong build. 

He was twenty-four while Maryam was seventeen, almost eighteen. He looked older for his age but it suited him as it was strange to think such a young man was a CEO. After all, the post was literally handed over to him by his father. 

"I'm not rude. You're just annoying." That made Maryam look at him with widened eyes. She glared at him once she recovered from the shock. "Excuse me?" she tried to compress her harsh tone. "I don't even talk to you." 

"It's because of you my mother's always ordering me around to give you this or that or do this or that for you. You think that's easy?" he replied, not sparing her a glance. 

Maryam's blood boiled at his reply and she wanted to give him a piece of her mind.

"It's not like you do anything despite that. Be grateful, I'm keeping your secret or else, your stupid position would've already been snatched away from you." she fired back. "And it's not fun to pay the price for something you couldn't do because of your lack of ability to stand up for yourself." 

That hit him where it hurt and he stood up immediately, his eyes turning into balls of fire. "Say that again, I dare you." he sounded dangerous as he said that, and honestly, it scared her but she couldn't let him use her as a punching bag to exert all his tensions on. 

"I said; just because you weren't able to admit your feelings for a woman you liked and stand up for yourself, I'm paying the price for it. In other words, you're a cowa–" she was cut off by him as he clenched his fist and stepped towards her. 

"It's not because I couldn't stand up for myself, it was because you were so adamant about marrying me. Were you that desperate?" his voice was loud and it was like he was letting out all his anger that had been bottled up inside of him. 

Maryam knew that if she provoked him further, he could even do something as big as hit her so she just closed the zip of her bag and started moving towards the door to leave but she was stopped by him. His hands grabbed hers and he pulled her back. His grip tightened on her hand and she winced in pain which made him loosen it. 

"Where do you think you're going?" he demanded from her, staring at her with eyes that were enough to scare a lion away. She tried to wiggle free from his grip but he didn't let go. 

"I'm going to another room. I can't stand living here with you!" she was successful at freeing herself and as soon as she did that, she didn't stop to say a word and left immediately. Abdullah didn't follow her even though he wanted her to respond to the argument he gave her in return for her accusation of him being a coward. 

Tching, he turned back to his laptop and plopped down on the couch that was finally his again. The only thought that made him feel better was that he could finally meet his girlfriend the next day. It was really the only escape he had from his annoying and straightforward wife. 

Now that his parents had left for Turkey, he was free to do whatever he wanted, and making Maryam pay for accepting his marriage proposal was the first thing he was going to do after meeting Noor.

The few days that were to come would be fun.