Anam Cara | Ian Kabra

BONUS NO 1

Bonus Chapter No1 - Ian's proposal

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The weather was nice. There was sun, no breeze disturbing the serene atmosphere, allowing the few people laying around the pool on the chairs to enjoy their sunbathing. In one of those chairs laid a young woman, the seat beside her own unoccupied.

She couldn't have been more than twenty five years old, her skin, naturally having a golden hue that had nothing to do with the sun, flawless - with the exception of her thigh where a scar was formed, not glaringly obvious - sticking out against her white bikini that elegantly hugged parts of her body. Her blonde hair spilled around her head on the chair, some strands falling below, so long it almost grazed the tiles of the pool. She was wearing a pair of fancy sunglasses that covered her eyes, her face evidently void of any make-up. A pair of gold earrings were placed on her ears and on her hand a golden ring shaped like a serpent was worn.

She had been sitting at that chair for a while now, all on her own. She had attracted the looks of her companions ever since she had left the hotel and had headed to the pool and from the moment she had taken off her clothes, she had only gathered more attention on herself. Even with her eyes closed, she wasn't oblivious to the pairs of eyes trained on her figure. After all, it was part of her job to be alert at all times. But then again, she wasn't working right now.

Someone cleared their throat from close by and then they proceeded to speak up in a deep tone, in a language she didn't understand. The woman opened her eyes, an eyebrow rising almost on its own accord as she looked at the figure of the young man standing beside her chair through her sunglasses. "I beg your pardon?"

The man's expression turned sheepish for a moment before he smiled and for a second, she took a look at him - dark skin, dark hair, eyes almost black, sharp features - he was probably considered handsome. She wasn't swayed by his looks.

"An English woman," he noted, his accent somewhat off.

"Indeed," she nodded, her face carefully blank. "Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Perhaps," he smirked, his gaze trailing down her body quickly but not discreetly before he looked her in her eyes again. Both of her eyebrows shot up. "My friends and I couldn't help but notice you are on your own. I thought I should invite you over, such a pretty lady shouldn't be left alone."

She let her lips curl into a smirk that was born out of disbelief before she pushed her torso up, her hair following her movement and coming to rest against her, slipping in between her arms to partly cover her chest and she tilted her head down slightly, the sunglasses pushed down the bridge of her nose so she could meet his eyes without the barrier. Her gaze was intense, no amusement evident. Cold.

"I'd rather not."

He seemed surprised for a moment at her obvious rejection and as he searched for words to say, her eyes caught sight of another shadow heading their way. A quick look had her lips forming a genuine smile as the person got closer and with absolutely no hesitation sank down in the seat next to her own.

"Is there an issue, love?"

"Not at all, darling," she turned to send him a smile before she looked over at the stranger who was watching with wide eyes. "He was just leaving."

His surprise morphed into irritation almost at once and he rolled his eyes before he started talking at that same language from before she couldn't understand while he left. She let out a low chuckle as she turned to her companion, her gaze softening. "You took forever."