Chapter 81: Chapter 81

ABUJA, NIGERIA.

"And you think I got married to you because I love you? Jokes on you, princess, you were naïve enough to fall into my trap. I married you to ruin your life!" Murad spit out those venomous words to Hanan who suddenly left the bed and stood in front of him. Her eyes are wide filled with concern, worry, disbelieve and a tinge bit of betrayal.

"Say what?" Her question is a bit shaky, wanting to wake up from this nightmare.

"You heard that alright, sweetheart. That is something you should've known from the beginning but sadly, you still fell right where I want you to." He nonchalantly meandered to the vanity table to remove his Baguette diamond pentagon cufflinks.

"You are joking with yourself, Murad. I've always been honest with you and there is no way what I felt, saw and still is seeing in your eyes be anything but love. I might've never been in love but I've seen love in reality enough for me to know that what you have in your eyes is also love! You can deceive yourself all you want, say everything you want to but it won't change the fact that we love each other." She moved to where he is and held his wide shoulders in her hands while staring wildly inside his intense eyes. True, there is hatred in his eyes mixed with rage but there is also love lying beneath, she could see it!

"Love you say? Oh, please. If you think I loved you, then you need to have your head checked, princess. You know from the scratch that you and I don't go the same lane, you knew it deep down we could never be one. You knew your family and mine won't ever get along but you still are delusional." He chuckled nastily looking like Lucifer himself coming down on them. She was almost afraid that that person isn't the Murad she's spent the last month with in a relationship.

Like he isn't the Murad that insist that they get married immediately because he can't wait to get married to her and that he loves her. She can't believe he is the man who hopelessly doted over the soil she planted her feet on. He was the one who couldn't wait to get the knot tied with her but he has the audacity to spat out those words to her now? He wants her to believe that cliché married couple that don't get along at the beginning because they were playing the revenge game, she won't believe that for she has seen the love time and time again.

What she's learnt from his sister is that, love can never be faked no matter how much you try doing that.

Yes, she's been friends with Bushra Amani, the woman with the heart of gold meant to be in heaven. She didn't hold any grudge against her after finding out she is together with Murad. She merely told her not to hurt her brother and love him forever like he loves her, if only she knows what he is saying to her now. Bushra didn't hold any grudge against her, she never talked about the past nor has she acted as if it affected her life now. In fact, she looks happier than she's ever seen her with that pretty glint in her eyes making her look younger than her age.

Though her other friends and sisters in-law didn't welcome her at first, they still manage to fit her in as they are all nicer than they want to look. Another thing she noticed, they are extremely possessive over Bushra Amani even if she doesn't noticed that. They make her look like a delicate dainty when the woman is also strong on her ground. She takes no nonsense from anyone and stands on what she believes even if the world is against her not that the world would ever be for she has a lot of them beside her.

First her husband, who just won't leave her be even for the duration of an eye blink. Their love is still young, beautiful and a dream to every girl out there. Amir might be younger than Bushra but it doesn't mean they act like that, he acts like a man his older brother's age and with a body like that, he could easily fit in as someone way older than Bushra. He cares about her to the bastard level, the level she would dream everyday about with Murad. And his love for her, that is unconditional! The most purest, rarest, prettiest love she has ever seen her entire life.

Amir is any woman's dream and she is happy Bushra got him, she deserves all the happiness that comes in her way! They both deserve each other which is why Allah planned them together, perfect match. They fit one another like a missing piece, way better than how she looked with Mika'il. Anybody with eyes would see that Amir loves Bushra much more than Mika'il has ever done, not debatable. The guy is literally worshipping the grounds she walks on, nothing better than such true love.

Bushra might deny it all she wants but she is falling for her husband hopelessly too. Her eyes always light up at the sound of him, a blinding smile will take over her face just by the sound of his voice, a blush coats her cheeks whenever he comes closer to her, her heart will race as soon as he touches her, her breathe hitches the moment his cologne hit her nostrils, her body react with goosebumps the second he touches her, no matter how gentle and mild that touch is. So what is it she needs to defined as love? She is just taking her time gathering her feeling in place.

It is not hard falling for someone who knows you like the back of their hands, who dots over you and most of all, your best friend.

She wants that kind of love but clearly, Murad is set on 'ruining' like he had said just minutes ago. He wants her to feel humiliated and give up just like those protagonists in books and movies, she is not like that though. If she dares to give up on the one person she decided to fall irrevocably in love with, then she will change her name from Hanan and that is a promise she shall keep. This man in front of her won't make her look like a fool for marrying him, she is not that naïve to be laid back as a doormat for agreeing to build a home together with him.

He might not see it coming since he doesn't know just how much more stubborn she is than him.

"Stop bringing our families into this! They have both accepted one another and acted like adults while we rot here in this room like some stupid teenagers. I don't understand why you have to bring up the past again, seriously. That is very immature of you, i expected more from someone like you. Yes, my sister made a mistake of marrying your sister's husband but it doesn't mean he isn't equally at fault here!" She is breathing hard, she didn't stop to take a breathe as she rambles on and on. It is getting under her skin, for real.

This is not how she pictured her first night with her husband, Murad. She's never liked talk less about love anyone and thought when she finally reach thirty, her father will have to arrange her marriage. Still, an arranged marriage wouldn't have turned out like this. The man will gingerly take his right and then they will start with getting to know each other but this man in front of her looked at her like she was a public nuisance he needs to get rid of. For real?!

When just moments ago in her home, he won't stop singing her praises.

She will never understand life and karma, she just couldn't. She hasn't been a nice person but Allah accepts the most sincere repentance which was what she did. She genuinely wanted to change her way, forget about what people think of her and changed from the scratch, Murad helped her with that life too. Certain things are better left undisclosed, especially not at times like this. A hefty migraine is about to visit her if she doesn't sit down and rest for awhile.

"Don't bring that up or you'll regret it. I am not against him getting married, I was only against women like her and you! You'd go to any extent for someone you love, an obsessive love that will leave their partners and people around them shattered but you guys won't care for you don't know how it feels. She ruined my sister's life and my niece's. If I can't get her to pay for what did, I can easily use you for that satisfaction. No one hurts my sister and goes scot free, that person hasn't been born yet!" He breathed, the veins around his forehead and neck popping. Even his fisted hands transferred the strength to his arms, making it look like tree with lots of branches.

She is starting to believe that this man really never loved her. The look in his eyes screams terror, rage, wrath and nothing as the tenderness she's seen there earlier. Her own eyes narrowed in annoyance because if he keeps bringing on the past like that, she won't be held responsible for what will happen. She's a changed person, didn't he say he was proud of her sometime ago? And now he loathed and detest her from a past they both have to pass through?

"Okay, I agree you got married to me for your satisfaction and you want to 'ruin' my life for ruining your sister's and niece's life. But did they ask you to do that? Would they be proud of what you did for them? Have you thought of how Amani would feel when she finds out about this? Or your family?" She inclined her head to the side, swallowing thickly so as to not cry like a for that is the last thing she wanted to do on her first night.

"You can't emotionally blackmail me, princess. I'm better than that! I'm not just some stupid person out there, I'm a soldier and a high ranked one at that. Don't think my daddy's money helped me achieve all these, it was my goddamn brain. So before thinking about doing that, think fucking twice!" He raise a mocking brow but his shell cracked a bit at the mention of his sister finding out.

He never used curse word with her but he did use two right now.

It is not news that Murad loves his sister like nobody else, he is extremely overprotective of her like everyone around her. If she will have to result to blackmailing him with Bushra, she will do that to save her heart and marriage from falling apart into fragments.

"I'm not doing that but I can tell her what you are doing right now, she will leave everything to come see for herself. Do you want that?" She took her phone from the bed and showed him Bushra's number where she is ready to tap on the call part and the woman will fire straight. She don't want to disturb the woman but he is leaving her with no choice.

"Don't you dare." He glared hotly at her phone then her face, she frisson and it wasn't the pleasant one she's always dreamt of. Ugh, the guy is ruining her idea of happy married life and marriage entirely.

"Then confess everything apart from your hatred or I leave this house right now and go to your sister's house for the night. I won't be able to face my father after everything that has happened." She crossed her arms over her chest in a protective stand so he won't understand the fact that her chest is heaving at the fastest rate.

She is really afraid of his decision, that will make or shatter their marriage, she is sure of that.

Her father wasn't sure about Murad's ulterior motive but she manage to convince him that there is nothing but their love for one another. He told her that he might be there to tamper with her life for what her sister did to his sister, she didn't agree with him and now she should go back home because what he thought was right? She won't be able to do that! Her self respect won't permit her to do this at all, she won't be able to face the world. Who would want the media lurking at their ass the day after her marriage? Not her!

"What do you think I have other than hatred for you in my life?" His words were mocking, slicing deep through her chest in the most twisted way. Hanan don't like that detest emotion in his eyes, it is messing with her head big time.

"You love me, Murad. If you don't tell me you love me right now, I'm going to do something we both will regret. Tell me you love me, Murad." She grasped his kaftan, he's removed the babban riga, around the chest, her hand tightened in a fist holding it in desperation.

Tears of despair are welling in her eyes, prickling it that it hurts. She swallowed thickly, feeling the tears gushing down from their sluice. Her throat is constricted, she is desperate and she doesn't care. She's never felt this helplessness!

"What are you going to do?" Though he didn't know, his eyes broke down their shells and confusion, hurt, guilt take over his emotions. She didn't see it though, her eyes are blurry to not see a thing.

"I don't know but I do know we are both going to end up losing it. Don't do this to me! You know I love you a lot, I really do. Please, tell me you didn't marry me solely because of this rage and hatred inside you. I'd be shattered, I swear." The tight grip around his chest started loosening and before you know it, she is sliding down the floor to her knees at his feet. Her hands touching his Louboutin Italian leather shoes.

What he's wished to see in every dream of his but it didn't give him the gratification he wanted!

He loves her, dammit, he does! This was just an excuse to enshroud his love because honestly, he still sees her as an enemy. Even his sister wasn't sure about his motives when he first talked about marrying in the Yakasai family. His mother didn't trust him too, no one did about his marriage because even he didn't trust himself. He feels like there is something wrong with their marriage. They love each other, that is not surprising but he still hates her whole family with every fibre of his being. Especially her and her sister!

It has changed with more time spent with her and how much she's changed from the person she was. He knew how toxic her dead older sister was, she didn't leave any stone unturned. He's seen her transmogrify into someone more beautiful and amazing, a total opposite of Hanan Muhammad Yakasai with the looks adjoined.

"Hanan, get up." His hands move to her shoulders attempting to bring her up when he felt her body's weight multiplying then she fell right on his leg. Her head on his knee, no more sobbing, her hands limp on the floor, unconscious!

His eyes widen as he made a frantic move to take her off the floor and onto the bed. His movement became erratic without any purpose because his fear is taking over. Thinking about calling a doctor but then stopped and poured some water in a cup from the bathroom then sprinkle it to her face, she awoke albeit sluggishly. He sighed in appreciation before dropping the cup on the bedside table and hasten to the bed with her lying on it.

"What were you thinking?" He scolded, sitting her head on his thigh while looking down at her, eyes filled with worry, guilt, concern, affection and the love he's been trying to hide. His hands cradled her slightly wet cheeks lovingly.

"Do you love me?" Her eyes are droopy as she asked, her henna covered right hand moving to touch his three days old stubble in a comforting cocoon. She has a slight smile across her lips because she knew the answer, it is right there in his eyes.

"I love you, damn it! Why did you just faint there? Why were you kneeling down?" He scolded again, his voice heightening with each word that he had to close his eyes tightly shut to keep himself from getting angry at himself again.

"Because you wouldn't admit to loving me and I can't take that. I also don't know why I fainted, maybe the exhaustion or just mental turmoil again. But look at the brighter side, you confessed!" She grinned widely, making a move to sit up but he didn't permit her and instead, glare at her to stay put.

"There is no brighter side here! Don't ever do that again, tell me first." He removed her head tie from her head, comb her tied hair out from it's band. She smiled again, moving close to him, wrapped her arms around his narrow waist. Her smile keep widening the more she smelled the expensive Arabian perfume she gifted him. And he said he doesn't love her, hmmp!

"Don't ever do that again too, hmm?" She moved back, setting her lips into a moue to show her utter displeasure to what happened earlier.

"I won't, I promise." He kissed her hair tenderly, cradling her closer to his body.

"Whatever helps you sleep at night, hubby. Are we going to pray and continue the night procedure or...?" She shyly bite her lip, her face reddening from shyness because honestly, she's been anxious and curious about this night like every other person.

"Whatever you want, wifey. Should we pray and continue to process or..." He chuckled when she pinched his back for teasing her. How can she not love this guy? How can he break her heart like this for something her dead sister did?

"Let's get this done and over with. I'm curious." Always honest, Murad shook his head then bent down to kiss her forehead tenderly, her eyes closed, chest fluttering with love.

"Let's pray then continue. Our chicken is waiting for us in the living room." He said cheekily, she sat up with the biggest smile he's ever seen.

"And you wanted to ruin my experience." She rolled her eyes then ran to the bathroom when he made his way to get to her. They ended up on the bathroom floor with him on the floor, slipped.

They laughed out loud to the night.