Page 57 of Hired Husband

My blood pressure spiked so high that it jumped into low orbit and my stomach rolled again as I thought about Jasmine and how animated she’d been when she’d told me about what she wanted for her future. I thought about how adamant she was about marrying for love and how her mother had spoken about someone blowing out her spark.

The very idea of it suddenly sent red hot rage tearing through my veins, because David would absolutely do that to her. He would take everything that made her who she was and squash it until she fit into a little, money-lined mold.

And I am in so far over my head that it’s not even funny.

Because somehow, it had taken finding out that she might be married off to make me realize that all my inspiration recently hadn’t been coming from Egypt. The allure of this country wasn’t just the history, or the architecture, or the fact that I’d been in the presence of certain objects and buildings that were thousands of years old.

As it turned out, my biggest muse was my client’s daughter. Oh no. Oh fuck. No. This absolutely cannot be happening to me.

And yet, as I stared across that table at Joseph, I knew that it wasn’t just happening to me. It had actually already completely happened.

CHAPTER 22

JASMINE

Amakeup artist dusted another layer of powder across my cheek while the photographers barked at their assistants about the lighting. One of Deja’s people kept butting in, arguing about the emotions they wanted to invoke with this new line of fragrances and how the campaign needed to convey that.

I sat in the middle of it all, quiet as I stared at my phone lying face down on the vanity. Every so often, someone would glance in my direction, obviously waiting for me to offer an opinion, but I just didn’t care enough right now to give it.

My sister’s fragrances were popular because they smelled better than any other scent on the planet. People would buy them no matter what color the lights were or how I stood, sat, or lay underneath them.

The makeup artist picked up some eye shadow. A long, soft sigh worked itself out of me as I closed my eyes. Usually, I was very vocal at these shoots. I’d certainly never waited for someone to look for an opinion before I’d offered one, but today, they could wait until I was damn well ready.

If it meant having to reset everything all over again before we got started, then so be it. I wasn’t in the mood to be accommodating. I glanced at my phone again, my heart urging me to pick it up and see if there was anything new from Isaac, but my head absolutely refused to let my body follow through.

In the few days since I’d returned to Cairo, I hadn’t spoken to him at all. In fact, I hadn’t said or written a single word to him since we’d gotten back from the Sinai. I knew it was mean, but I’d been screening his calls and texts whenever he reached out.

It made me feel like an awful person every single time my phone lit up with his name, but I could live with that. What I couldn’t live with was doing anything at all that might encourage my father’s plans.

Another sigh slipped out of me and the makeup artist’s hand finally stilled before she pulled it away from my face. “Are you okay, Ms. Saad?”

“How is that any of your business?” I snapped, then glanced at myself in the mirror and scoffed. “Why am I so shiny? It looks like a pot of glitter exploded on my face.”

Her brow furrowed. “My instructions were to think ethereal. I⁠—”

“You what? You thought ethereal just meant you have to make me look like a fish’s tail? No.”

She blinked a few times, tears welling on her lids before she started reaching for a bottle of makeup remover with a trembling hand. Guilt immediately slammed into me and I reached out, taking her wrist in a gentle grip to stop her.

“I’m sorry,” I said, letting out yet another sigh. “Ignore me. My diva side is showing today and I don’t quite know how to put this genie back in the bottle. Just carry on, okay? I’m sure you’re doing a great job.”

She nodded, but I closed my eyes again, silently trying to let her know that our conversation was over. The truth was I didn’t know how to put my inner bitch back in the bottle because I didn’t know how to handle the situation I was in.

That morning after we’d arrived home from the desert, my father had sat me down and told me he was considering marrying me off. The words had been a blow I hadn’t expected, despite how many times in the past they’d introduced me to possible suitors and even all the warnings my sister had been giving me these last few months.

In the run-up to her wedding, she’d told me time and again I was likely to be next, but I hadn’t wanted to believe her. Two of my brothers were older than me, for God’s sake. Tarek, my twin, by only a few minutes, sure, but he was older nonetheless.

Then there was Rami, who was two years older. Surely, that meant my father’s sights should’ve been set on him, but nope. Apparently, immaturity was a disqualifying factor in the marriage race. If only I’d known…

When I sighed again, Sasha, my assistant, gently touched my shoulder. “They’re almost ready for you, Jasmine. Would you like to take five before we get started?”

“No, but if I wanted to take twenty, I would.” I lifted my chin, brushing away the makeup artist’s hand as I arched an eyebrow at Sasha. “Did you approve that dress?”

“Yes. Why?”

I shook my head. “Because I’m going to look like a wannabe mermaid. The glitter on my face already makes me look like a fish, but apparently, the correct word for it is ethereal.”

Sasha sighed, jerking her chin at the makeup artist to show her we needed a minute before she pulled up a chair. “What’s going on? You’re really not yourself today.”