The Hidden Heir

10. Promise

The dark house lit, once Emir turned on the lights to the living room, decorated with minimal furnitures, with an open kitchen and one door, leading to his bedroom.
"It's not much. I never planned to bring anyone here, So.....", he trailed off, looking around his house.
"I like it. It's nice ", Eda smiled as she looked up at him.
It was past midnight when they both reached Emir's house. And all the adrenaline had drained the energy out of Eda. She just wanted to tuck herself into a warm, cozy blanket and drift off.
But she highly doubted if she could find any sleep tonight.
Emir went into the room and placed her bag, as Eda slowly walked around the house.
Only then did she notice that the long windows at the end of the hall were actually doors, leading out to a balcony. She gently pushed the doors open, and stepped outside, instantly being greeted with the cold wind of the night. She inhaled deeply and sighed.
Her thoughts constantly drifting to the break-in at her house. She shuddered at the thought of what would have happened if she had been home.
She held herself tight and tried to calm down the slowly building panic in her chest.
"Eda, What are you doing out here in the cold?", Eda turned to see Emir standing in the doorway, looking at her worriedly. She simply smiled and shrugged.
"Come on", Emir extended his hand for her and she more than gladly took in his warm hands, and it surprised herself as to how quickly she gave in to him.
Emir pulled her to sit on the couch and crouched down beside her on the floor. He could clearly see the distress in her beautiful emerald orbs, and he wanted to do everything in his power to help her over it.
"Are you ok?", Emir asked softly, his thumb gently drawing circles over her hands. Eda took a moment to answer, as she stared into his eyes.
The dark brown of his eyes were filled with worry and care, and they brought a sense of comfort and trust.
She slowly felt herself relax under his gaze and soothing touch.
"I was just wondering what would have happened if I was inside the house when it was broken in. I m--might have been-", she couldn't finish her sentence, as Emir put his finger on her lips to stop her from speaking any further.
There were countless of horrible possibilities of what could have happened if she was indeed inside the house. And it scared him to even think about it.
"No one can hurt you", he assured her and slowly raised himself up to her face and cupped her cheeks.
Eda held her breath as his face was mere inches from her's. And shut her eyes tight as she felt his warm breath across her lips.
Her heart was thudding dangerously high. But what she thought Emir was about to do, never came. Instead, she felt his soft and tender lips on her forehead.
With his fingers gently holding her cheeks, he whispered, "I promise".
Eda let out a shaky breath and felt overwhelmed as Emir's lips still lingered between her eyebrows.
Only when he pulled away a little, Eda opened her eyes to look at him. His eyes held the promise which he just made.
A promise that he made, not just to her, but to himself as well.
Too lost for words, Eda kept looking at his warm eyes.
Emir was the first to break their silence. "You must be exhausted. Why don't you go get ready for bed? I'll get something to drink ", he said as he brushed some of her hair from her face.
Eda nodded in agreement, Emir smiled and got up to show her to the bedroom and went to the kitchen to make a cup of hot chocolate for the two of them.
He figured she should need the comfort of it, after what happened tonight.
Eda let out a small gasp when she looked at herself in the bathroom mirror. Her cheeks were flushed pink and her ears were a more darker shade. Was it from all the anxiety or because of a certain dark haired man?

She washed her face and changed into her soft pajamas. When she came out, that's when she realized that there was only one bed in the house, and that Emir would be taking the couch. She immediately felt guilty for making things uncomfortable for him.
She wondered why she didn't go to Layla's house. They both could have snuggled up to each other, and Eda would also have been able to sleep without all these worries eating her away.
Either way, a small knock on the door, followed by Emir's permission to come in, made her smile. Two cups of hot chocolate and a fond smile from Emir, made Eda's smile even wider.
Eda thanked him for the drink as she took the cup from him and sat on the bed. Emir sat on the lounge chair near the window, facing the bed.
"Do you think we should go back to the house in the morning first, before we go and file a complaint?", Eda asked as she took a sip of her warm drink.
"Yes, we can do that", Emir answered, but his eyes were focused out the window, mind far away in thought.
"Layla's house is on the way, maybe I can ask her to come along"
"Anything that would make you comfortable", Emir spoke, still looking out the window.
Eda frowned a little, "Is something wrong?"
That's when Emir turned to find Eda looking at him questioningly. "I'm sorry, I was just lost in thought", he said as he turned his focus back to her.
Eda sighed as she looked at his eyes, "I'm sorry for causing you all the trouble"
Emir's lips tugged to a small smile, "If trouble is what I have to go through, to be with you, I'm ready for it, to thunder down on me."
Shocked to hear him flirt like this, She blushed really hard. She bit her lips to stop her smile, but eventually failed as she let out small giggles.
Emir raised his brow in question.
"That was Cheesy", Eda replied as she had a fit of laughter. Emir joined along with her.
But the way Eda smiled and laughed.... Oh, Lord help him !
Emir's heart squeezed in delight with every crinkle in her eyes and every shake in her shoulders.
And he knew then and there that if anyone dared to take them away, he would make sure to burn them alive.

Emir knew it was getting late, and he needed to leave, to let her get some rest. So once she was done with her drink, Emir got up to take the cup away from her, "Good night Eda. Get some sleep ok? Call me... If you need anything."
Eda hesitated when he turned to leave. But she couldn't help herself when she called out to him, "Emir...... c-can you please stay a bit longer? J-Just maybe until I fall asleep?", Eda bit her lips as Emir kept looking back into her eyes, "I don't think I want to be alone tonight", Eda managed to breathe out.
Eda looked so fragile when she asked him to stay, and he wanted to embrace her and tell her to not worry anymore, "Let me just keep the cups and come back, ok?", he assured her, as she nodded and moved to lie down more comfortably on the bed.
The moment her head hit the pillows, she was engulfed with the scent of musk and a little bit of leather. The scent instantly warmed her soul as she leaned more into the pillows.
This was so wrong, yet felt so right.
The sound of the door being opened made her jump and her face flushed with embarrassment. But she quickly managed to compose herself and smiled at Emir innocently.
However, only when Emir came back inside the room, the gravity of her request for him to stay by her side, settled in.
Blood rushed to her neck and soon, her face. Her heart bombarded in her chest, with the presence of the handsome man in the room and her eyes refused to move away from him as he walked further inside the room, all the way to the lounge chair he was sitting before.
Slowly, he pulled the chair towards her bed, close enough to hold her hand, and sat down.
Eda let out the breath that she didn't even realize she was holding.
Grateful for respecting her boundaries and for accepting to stay, until she fell asleep, she whispered a small thank you.
Emir's heart-warming smile brought her the peace that was well needed for her, after her frightening night.
"Are you going to ask me to sing for you?", Emir teased, when Eda kept quiet, as her eyes were locked with his.
Eda blushed for the ninth time and shook her head with a smile.
However, She did ask him for something else. "Earlier during our dinner, you told me you would tell me about your tattoos?"
With his jacket gone, and his sleeves folded up, she could see them pretty well. Emir smiled as he looked down to his dark inks.
"So curious!", he stated at her question as Eda smiled, biting her lips, sheepishly.
Emir thought for a while as to how to best describe it, "I got them when I turned twenty-one. My entire life, I have never been given a chance to choose. I have always been given orders to obey, rules to follow. These thick strips of lines...", he said, pointing to the lines in his tattoos, "those represent the rules and commands that I have to obey and follow. The flowers and leaves intertwining between the strips", his fingers moving to point to the flower tatoos, "they represent my own passion. For life, for art, for love ... ", he trailed off, looking into the dark emerald orbs.
Eda brushed the tip of her fingers, over the lines of his tattoos, ever so gently.
The story behind those intriguing tattoos was finally laid down in front of her. And the thought of Emir having someone, ordering him around, asking him to obey them, did not sit well with her.
But the way he wished to live his life, like the flowers and leaves and vines, intertwining through the harsh reality of his fate, did things to her heart.
Her fingers slowly trailed along his arm, over the dark lines, "They are beautiful", her voice was a mere whisper as she looked into his dark eyes.
Emir was lost for words as he looked back at her. His gaze flickering between her eyes and her lips. If it was any other time, he would have held those flushed pink cheeks and--

"Tell me about these..", Eda asked as her fingers brushed over his other tattoos.
Emir huffed, amused by his own thoughts and smiled at her request, yet he proceeded to tell her about some of his favorite ones.
Somewhere along his deep baritone voice and his engulfing scent, wafting between the pillows, Eda's eyes fluttered close, lulling her to sleep, while her elegant and soft fingers still lingered on top of his hand.