INSEPARABLE II

XVI

Noor was starting to feel the effect of the wine as the movement of the swing caused her to feel dizzy. "Stop." She grabbed Prem's arm at her side, blinking straight ahead.

"What happened?" He asked.

"I'm spinning." She replied forming a circle with her index finger in the air.

Laughing, Prem put his foot down on the floor and brought the swinging to a stop.

"Better." Noor inhaled as her vision cleared up. "So...you're telling me..." she debated whether to apply a filter to her thoughts, "you haven't had any action for five whole years?"

Surprise showed on Prem's face as a smile claimed his lips again and he looked at her. "Forget about me, let's talk about you. With that sex drive, how the hell did you manage to go on for five whole years?"

"What do you mean with that sex drive?" Noor countered, emphasizing the last three words. She knew exactly what he meant...the countless passionate nights they had spent with their bodies tangled flashed through her mind. A pulse became alive between her legs at the series of hot memories.

He searched her eyes, they'd had such obsessive sex in the past that he woke up in the middle of the night dreaming of it till that day. He surely couldn't be the only one. "I mean...you have an appetite for sex and...five years is an unbearably long time."

She eyed him in silence. How strange was it that every time they sat together now, it was with so much self-restraint, as if they hadn't explored and achieved unattainable heights of ecstasy together, as if they didn't know every inch of one another's body. As if they weren't still absolutely famished for each other. I have an appetite for sex with YOU, her eyes declared.

Reading her eyes, he blinked. His heart fluttered and he felt a twitch in his crotch. Fuck.

Knowing they would get carried away if she didn't immediately speak, Noor mentally shook herself out of it and spoke up, "appetites can...die away." She said slowly, staring ahead.

Prem's eyebrows lifted, "really? Isn't 31 a little too soon to be losing such appetites?"

"Maybe..." Noor shrugged, "but when you're in a position like mine, you stop minding it after a while..."

"What happened to you?" Prem couldn't help but ask, genuinely curious.

Noor took her time in replying. "Let's just say...I didn't come out of the war looking the same way I went in...Turns out when the stakes are life or death, your body can care less about how attractive you find it."

That rang a bell in Prem's mind. She was referring to her scars. He had gotten a glimpse on her arm of a scar nasty enough to frighten the most ruthless fighters away. The mere recollection of which caused his heart to drop. Did Noor perceive herself as less beautiful now? He felt a dull pain come alive in his chest. Noor, the spell-bindingly beautiful Noor, with features more striking, presence more commanding, and mind more intelligent than any other in the kingdom. The Noor of not just unmatched beauty but of the type of beauty that leaves one fascinated for days to come, with a face that was utterly unforgettable believed that...she...of all people is less beautiful now. It suddenly made sense why she seemed to have lost interest in sex. The ache in his chest grew. If it was up to him, he would rip apart the sky at once and bring down every last star just to prove to her that all their light combined dims in comparison to her shine.

Noor knew the man she had just voiced her insecurity to would find her divinely beautiful even if every inch of her body was filled with dreadful scars. She was also aware that it would take a single look from him at her naked body to make her self-doubt disappear into thin air. One full look from him and she would feel like the most desired woman in the world again. He would make her feel like a goddess, and he would worship her until she loses not just her uncertainties but also her sense of time and space. Until her body is brought to a trembling peak.

They hadn't realized but a few moment had ticked by in silence. Prem eventually cleared his throat. "I'm looking at you right now and you're not entirely repulsive."

Noor laughed. "Not entirely...huh?"

Prem shook his head in a gorgeous smile. When he did look at her, his eyes rebelled against his very agenda and spilled the contents of his heart right out to her. You take my breath away...

I know. Noor's heart jumped inside her chest and she quickly looked down into her lap.

"So where is the line of courtesans?" She inquired after a moment.

"What courtesans?" He asked in confusion.

"You know...the ones who were supposed to look like me. You said you would call them by my name. Take them to bed every night if we ever separated." Noor pretended to look around, "don't...see any."

"Please. Why would I ever let you see them? Don't I wish them well?" He instantly denied.

"So I'm guessing they're under layered protection right now because naturally their lives would in danger around me." She nodded feigning seriousness.

"Of course. You'd be far too jealous!" He remarked holding up his hands.

"Yeah...right." Noor nodded in a smile.

"But seriously...five years." Prem brought them right back to their original topic.

"It wasn't all that bad. When things got really tough, I just watched my Queen's guard. Some of the newer guys aren't too hard on the eyes." She stated naughtily.

"Is that right?!" Prem responded in surprise. "And watching them filled the void?"

"No...it did distract me though." She laughed.

"Shameless." Prem shook his head. "Utterly shameless!"