UNCONDITIONAL

XVI

Prem. A thousand butterflies took flight in her stomach as she knew none of her staff would dare to enter without knocking first. The door opened and there he was, as majestic as ever, at her door, for the first time in two years. He eyed her and then Karan, who was now standing unsure of what was happening.

Noor got up as Prem made his way over to her. "Tell him to leave," he said as he put a hand on her throat and gently pushed her jawline upwards with his thumb to get her face where he wanted it.

Noor's heart thundered inside her as she managed the words "Why would I do that?"

"Tell him...to leave." Prem said one more time as his other arm circled around her waist.

"Why would I..." Noor was in the middle of her dazed words when he tilted his face and lowered it to let their lips meet in a kiss. Shocked, Noor's rumbling heart skipped a beat, her breathing grew uneven, and she lost her balance as her legs seemed to have given away. He held her securely in place against himself as he knew her body would respond this way. She closed her tear filled eyes and felt his lips pressing against hers as every cell within her body came alive. She had craved, and wished, and desired, and dreamed of this moment every single day in the past two years. The kiss lasted only a few seconds, but Noor seemed to have spent the equivalent of several lifetimes in it.

"Tell him to leave." Prem repeated one more time as he withdrew to look at her again.

"Leave." Noor barely formed the word as she moved her face forward and let her nose delicately rub against his. They stood still as Karan made his way out of the room and shut the door behind him. Time froze for a few moments as their restless bodies, hungry lips, and passionate desires all begged to be unleashed tonight.

Prem moved his face backwards one more time to look at her. "I fucking hate you." He whispered slowly as his thumb caressed her jawline.

"You wish." Noor replied as she put her arms around his neck and shot forward to cover the distance between their lips leading them into the rest of their night.

Noor woke up that morning to find herself perfectly wrapped in his divine body. The night was over, but his warmth was intoxicating. Scenes highlighting the heights of their passion from the night before flashed through her mind. Prem silently observed her smile at first, and then blush as she bit her lip. He could read her like an open book and knew exactly what memory was triggering what expression on her perfect face. He watched her plant a soft kiss on his shoulder and then shift her face upwards to get a look at his face. He managed to close his eyes just in time. Noor could never get enough of his stunning face, so she laid there absolutely mesmerized. She must have looked at him for a few minutes before ultimately digging her face back into his neck. She smiled when she felt his hold tighten around her. She could tell he was awake from the pace of his breathing but desperately wanted to this moment to last so she closed her eyes and let the leftover sleep consume her.

The next time Noor woke up, there was sunlight outside her window, she had slept in at least 2 hours later than her regular time. Prem was still holding her in the same position, close and tight, as if she were his most priced possession, as if he would never let go. Noor tilted her head to face him once again, and this time, she saw him already staring at her. His blank expression said a thousand words and she looked back at him the same way. None them knew what it meant. None of them knew what this moment meant, what they were doing, or what was next. They just stared at each other, without a single word. Several minutes passed in the silence so satiating that they didn't feel the need to open their mouths to communicate. Finally, lifting the arm that laid on top of Noor's waist, Prem brought up his hand and moved away a strand of hair that sat next to her eye. He tucked it behind her ear and let his hand rest on the side of her face. Noor, unable to help herself, came forward and planted a small kiss on his lips. A kiss she immediately regretted because by the time she made it back to the pillow, Prem's expression had switched. It was still some form of blank because she couldn't tell what he was thinking but she could sense she had snapped him out of his daze, and he believed he owed it to himself to leave at this point.

Once dressed, Prem reached for his phone on the side table when he found his eyes drifting towards his wife still in bed. He knew her eyes had been on him the entire time. He glimpsed over at her, she was looking at him in her usual longing expression. He let her hold his eyes for a moment before instantly shaking himself out of it and heading out of her room.