Bound

Ruler and rules

Chapter Twenty - Six

Aaron's POV

I gazed in awe at a slumbering Zainab as I laid beside her, twisting one of her many curls about my finger, enjoying the feel as they bounced when I let go. She grinned, I furrowed my brows, wondering what she was dreaming about that caused her to smile in her sleep — I hope it was me.

"If you love playing with my hair so much, why don't you try brushing it", she spoke, her eyes pealing open.

"I'd love to", I answered. "Were you not asleep"?

"I was awake before you", she stretched from out of my arms and I already missed her soft embrace. Zainab swung her feet off the side of the bed, and slipped on my sweater over her T-shirt. "Mind if I borrow this"? She said, hiding her grin with pursed lips. She stood at the foot of the bed, a knee on the soft mattress as she held the hem of the sweater.

"Not at all", I smirked artfully, aware of how much she loved and hated the sly gesture. Zainab scoffed with a roll of her brilliant eyes as she opened the bedroom door.

"Isn't it too early"? I whined, wanting her to curl up beside me again, heck I don't think I'll ever want to sleep alone again.

"It's just the right time to wake up for school", She answered, closing the bedroom door behind her.

I got up myself, sulking, then I realised I was shirtless and Zainab had worn my sweater. I let out a hearty guffaw. Was this her plan all along, to have me retreat to my own bedroom half naked. I shook my head as I slipped out, just as Sabrina came out of her room. She glanced at me with a mischievous glint in her eyes before skipping down the hallway. I couldn't have waited a second till she came out, now I looked like a complete doofus.

As I closed my room door, a message popped up on my phone screen, lying abandoned on my bed; when I reached for it another several text messages followed, and all from my dear friend, Jose.

'You better get your ass moving before your dad comes bursting through your doors, man'.

'Hurry he's leaving for the office now'!

I quickly read the texts, sending my phone flying across the bed as I got ready and out of the house before dad could actually have the chance in bursting through the front doors. No doubt he would. I made haste and ten minutes later, I was parking my car in the private lot underground. Luckily for me the company building wasn't too far from home, we lived in downtown after all.

I pressed for the elevator button going up from the lowest of grounds to where my dad did all his legal business on the highest floor. Thankfully, the lift only stopped once so I reached the top floor with almost no delay. I just hope he wasn't already making his way to the house and scaring off Zainab and Sabrina. I greeted the weary young secretary who sat at the desk, picking up calls from three different receivers, she nodded and pointed her thumb over her shoulder, indicating that my dad was in fact in his office. Once I opened the glass door, the bitter stench of coffee and tobacco instantly wafted my nose. Now that I recalled, it has been a while since I've smoked a cigarette.

'It's probably for the best', I thought.

"Come sit down, we have a lot to discuss", he called, gesturing to the seat in front of his work desk.