Page 206 of Tall, Royal Hater
“Fine.”
He grinned. I grinned. And we both leaned in for a long second kiss.
But against my lips, in a raw voice, Shehryar whispered, “I’m sorry.”
I met his bottomless, solemn gaze and knew instantly why he’d apologised. “It’s okay, Sheri. It happened, I was pissed, but I’ve forgiven you.” I poked him in the sternum. “But I will punch you in the bloody face if you make wealth, money, or family an issue between us ever again.”
“I know, but I won’t. You have my word, Mariyah.” He tightened his arm around my shoulders, pressing me into him. “It’s something I’m working on, and it might take some time, but I’ll never again let it hurt you. I promise.”
“I know.” I kissed his collarbone. “And I know this whole public eye thing isn’t going to be comfortable for you on top of working on your relationship with your dad, but I’m here to talk or be a safe space for you, so don’t think that you have to deal with it all on your own until it becomes too much to handle and blows out of proportion all over again.”
“Thank you,” he said and laid three heavy kisses to my hairline. “And the same goes for you. Anything that causes you anxiety or discomfort, you tell me, and we’ll deal with it together. Okay?”
I nodded, my eyes feeling vaguely wet and prickly. “Okay.”
“Good.” He smiled and set his mouth to my forehead again. “Also, I know you’re not a fan of the idea of being long distance, but I won’t ever let you feel like it’s going to be a problem for us. I told you before, and I’ll tell you again—an ocean isn’t going to keep me from you.”
I bunny scrunched my nose in playful disgust but still wore a massive grin. “All right, all right, don’t get all soppy on me, Sheri.” He scoffed and glanced away with a shake of his head, and I continued. “But since we’re on the topic, when are you actually due back to work with Esmeralda? Because I know you were staying for me, but I also know you’re a workaholic who doesn’t trust anyone else to watch over her, so being away isprobably driving you up the wall already. And don’t try to give me the ‘I’ll tell you another time’crap again.”
Shehryar stilled around me before his lashes lowered to his mug and hesitantly lifted again. “I, uh…”
He wasn’t blushing, but if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve said he looked sheepish, like he’d done something he shouldn’t have and had gotten caught, which was so out of character.
I reared my face back, peering at him closely. “What?”
He set his mug on the bedside cabinet, then cleared his throat and shifted his shoulders against the pillow. “The morning you left Touma…Esmeralda fired me.”
Silence rang loudly as I stared unblinking, and he stared back.
His sentence was so odd that I was sure he was speaking an alien language.
“Sorry,” I said, frowning. “I don’t think I heard you correctly because it sounded like you said she fired you.”
Esmeralda would never. And neither would Shehryar ever accept such a decision.
He nodded his head to the side. “That’s what I said.”
My lips parted. “Is this a joke?”
“No. I—”
“What the fuck?” I shot upright. “Esmeralda fired you? Why?”
“She warned me not to make her pick between us by hurting you,” he started, placing the hand that had been around my shoulder in his lap. “But I did and—”
“What?”This fucking bitch!
“I understood her reasoning, Mariyah.” There wasn’t an ounce of upset in his eyes, but I was absolutely fucking outraged. “I broke her trust too with what I did. Not only when it came to you, but with my prejudice too. I could have jeopardised her safety or work in government when I was tasked with doing the opposite.”
“What the fuck?” I snapped, my upper lip curling in disbelief. “No, you wouldn’t have. You would never have done that to her, and she knows that. What the—this bitch—where’s my phone?” I quickly scanned the duvet and snatched up my mobile from where it had slipped off my lap. “How the fuck could she fire you?” I dialled Esmeralda’s number and smacked my phone to my ear as it rang.
Shehryar gazed at me with a blank look of surprise. “You’re angry?” he asked.
“Of course, I’m fucking angry. How could she pick me over you when you grew up with her?” I narrowed my eyes at him. “And you—why didn’t you tell me?”
Before he could reply, my call was answered, and I whipped my head away. “Bitch, you fired him? Are you okay in the bloody head? What is wrong with you?”
“Hello to you too,” Esmeralda chirped down the phone with bubbling amusement bouncing through her words. “I take it he finally told you?”
