Page 35 of What Happens in Dubai

‘You set to go?’ he asked.

‘Yeah, sure. What’s on Ashley’s itinerary tonight? I’m gutted she missed this, you know.’

‘I don’t know about the itinerary but we have kinda scheduled a dinner – with Tom?’ Raj sounded serious all of a sudden.

‘No, you scheduled it. I’m not going. I told you that. I’m not going anywhere near him or her. I thought you understood that.’ I could feel the anger slowly vibrate through my body, completely ruining my buzz.

‘Stop being so childish, Zara. Build a bridge. Come on.’ He shoved both hands on his hips, looking frustrated.

‘Childish? Says the man dressed like a fucking pirate with aweebit of sand in his eye.’

‘A wee bit? My eye is in torture here.’ He paused and took a deep breath. ‘Get your stuff, Zara. Everyone’s packing up. Please.’

I turned my back to him as I felt myself bubble up.Don’t ruin your make-up, Zara, don’t ruin your beautiful make-up.As I walked into the bedroom, the girls were standing at the mirror fixing themselves.

‘Zara, oh my god. Are you OK?’ Laureen rushed over to me while I flapped my hands in front of my face, trying to conceal the tears.

‘Yes. Raj is just so determined to go for dinner with Tom tonight, and I don’t want to. Ashley is still refusing to leave the apartment, and I’m going to have to go.’

‘No, you don’t! Come out with us. We have VIP to the Base nightclub. You have to come, it’s R&B night,’ Laureen said.

The other two girls were insisting too.

‘I don’t have anything to wear. I literally came in my beach clothes,’ I huffed sadly but thankful for the invite.

‘Take the dress. You look amazing. Once you wear it for a shoot, it’s practically yours anyway,’ Skylar called out from the mirror.

I weighed up my choices, and it became a no-brainer. If Raj was a true friend, he would respect my decision and cancel the dinner. This holiday was supposed to be fun and it was slowly turning into a nightmare. I’d had enough of people-pleasing and putting myself last. I wanted to let my hair down and finally experience Dubai!

‘OK. Yes, OK, girls, I’m totally up for this!’ I yelled. ‘How the hell am I going to tell Captain Birds Eye, though?’ I wondered.

‘We can all tell him.’ Laureen flicked her hair boldly and grabbed my arm. I leaned over, seized my beach bag, and headed to the entrance of the suite with her.

Raj was waiting outside, leaning against the wall and fiddling with his phone.

‘Raj, I’m going out with the girls tonight. I told you I didn’t want to spend any time with Tom, and the girls have invited me out instead.’

‘Seriously?’ He looked at me and shook his head, clearly disappointed.

‘Yeah, seriously,’ Laureen fired back. ‘Let’s go, Zara.’ She squeezed my hand tightly, and we headed out of the apartment together with the other girls just at our heels.

Outside, some of the workers were packing up the van, and when they saw us, they started to chuckle. The girls were sorting an Uber and planning our wild night ahead, while I was zoning out until I suddenly overheard one of the boys.

‘I swear, dude, the sand fell straight out that model’s pussy.’

My heart stopped.Shit, shit. I was busted.

The other erupted, almost choking in his cigarette smoke. ‘Which one?’

‘The one with the dark hair!’ the first one whispered back.

I smirked as I looked down. I was admiring my reflection on the freshly polished, shiny marble floor. That man may have known my secret, but that man also thought I was a fucking model! I felt my confidence rise as I stood tall, pulled back my shoulders and waltzed into the taxi like Naomi fucking Campbell.

Chapter Twelve

Base nightclub was insane. We marched straight past the queue and arrived through the VIP entrance. I watched the girls stroll in casually like it wasn’t a huge deal while I tried my best to remain calm. On the inside, my eyes were wide, my enthusiasm was high, and I couldn’t believe how fortunate I was. The interior was mainly white with a circular bar in the centre of the dancefloor. We were shown to a luxury booth with table service on a raised level overlooking the packed club.

‘Zara, what do you drink?’ Indie called over the table.

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