Chapter 28/175: Fake Smiles

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Read+Vote+Comment+Enjoy an intense chappie!!!

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I woke up the next day to the slight thudding heard in the room. 

Fluttering my lashes open, I straightened as I uncovered myself from the blanket, rubbing my eyes sleepily.

And what a scene it was. 

Or should I say, he was.

He was in reverse, hands on the ground, legs up in the air, as straight as a pointed arrow. 

And he was shirtless, his back muscles glowed seductively in the sunlight entering the room, especially due to the thin layer of sweat forming there. Goddamn and that bum in those dark jersey pants.

My mouth went dry at the scene. What the hell! Why am I never gonna get used to seeing him half-naked?!

And he was going up and down in headstand push ups. 

I watched him silently, and he continued his workout in silence as well. 

Every ten push ups, he'd take a ten seconds break where he would do a one-hand headstand, then go back to his air push ups.

Around a minute or two passed, before he finally lowered his long muscular legs into the ground, straightening up.

A blink escaped him, as I came right before his sight, sitting in bed gaping at his Godly scene.

I jumped slightly, flushing as I fidgeted.

He reached out for a towel he'd apparently placed at the edge of the bed, running it over his perfectly sculpted face. 

His gaze was as cold as ever, yet it was ten times more arrogant and proud, especially with his awareness of how hot and tempting he looked. The devil!!!! 

"How long had you been observing?" His voice came composed and unfazed, as he checked his phone. 

I bit my lips, as I descended from the bed, "Uh, I just woke up!" I tried shrugging the topic off, "And what are you doing so early in the morning?!" 

He shot me a cold gaze meant to scold me for attempting to lie, or possibly freeze me for questioning him, "If by early, you mean nine am, Signorina, then I have to disappoint you that I've been up since six. I had some work to complete, and then I completed my morning training routine." He spoke smoothly, as he turned on the electric water thermos.

I pouted, "How can someone be this efficient since six?" I eyed as he headed to the bathroom. "Ah, I need to use it to brush my–" 

"My shower needs five minutes, exactly the time needed by the thermos to heat my coffee water." He shut the door behind him. 

Seriously! Who plans his day this precisely!!!!

I headed towards the closet, pulling out another swimsuit pair and a sundress to attire above it. 

Eyeing my green swimsuit, my thoughts headed to Sarah. 

And her attitude yesterday. 

Specifically, that cold look in her eyes. 

What the hell was that... 

After we came back last night, both Mr. Ellington and I seemed in a very stunned state. Although the almighty him preserved his unfazed expression and cold look, I could tell he was thinking the incident through, twisting it and viewing it from different perspectives in his mind. 

My heart suddenly clenched softly. 

Yes, he was so deeply thinking of the incident to the point that... we didn't pick up our 'chat' off where we left it after receiving Alba's call. Although we were in the same bed... He was distant... 

The bathroom door swung open at that, and I gasped as the thermos pinged at the very same moment. What the hell!?

He stepped out, hot steam blowing from behind him like some planned visual effect.

His hair was damp, and he was only dressed in his dark black trousers. Okay so here's two questions: does this man not wear shorts? And why am I suddenly seeing more half-naked scenes of him?!!!

He fixed me with his enticing long-lashed beads at that, as he headed towards the closet.

I flushed, knowing he clearly saw me staring. Snatching my eyes away from him, I headed to the bathroom to get dressed and bathed.

.

.

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I stumbled outside the bathroom some time after that, fully showered and dressed, only to find him seated on the kitchen stool, drinking his coffee composedly while checking out some newspaper. 

He had his vision-relaxing glasses on, in addition to a tight black shirt today as well. I eyed how hot he still looked, especially that it was a V-neck, emphasizing his hard collar bones and sculpted chest.

Arcing a brow at him, I prepared some tea for myself. "Aren't you coming to the pool?" 

He didn't look at me, as he eyed the newspaper arrogantly. 

"Sarah informed me that she met the shareholder yesterday. We also agreed that I will accompany them to the folk souvenir souks, where the Sheikh apparently enjoys donating money to the public." He muttered, unfazed. "Although I am not a percent interested in such a waste of time, it seems like a fair idea to provoke his interest in possibly becoming a partner." 

**Souk: Market** 

I bit my lips, "But when did Sarah tell you..." 

I mean, was Sarah even open for communication when she came back?!

He moved to another page as he took a sip from his coffee, "When we were coming from the bar yesterday after you two came back from the pool." He spoke, "I know what you're thinking, and no. It was not after she'd come back from that... call." He went silent, his eyes turning into ice, as he closed the newspaper and stood up. 

I bit my lips, my curiosity sparkling. "Do you really think there was something about the call?"  

He put on his right hand wristwatch. "I don't think so. I am certain." 

I frowned, "But, it might be a mood swi—" 

He turned to fix his orbs into mine, devouring them with his dangerous blues, "No. In all the rare times Sarah has snapped in my direction the way she'd done yesterday, it was a case where she was in a desperate situation. Whatever happened when she went out, it was not ordinary." His voice froze, "In all cases, change your attire, you are not headed to the pool."

I blinked, "Oh! I'm going to the souks as well?!"

.

.

.

In around an hour after having breakfast at the lounge, a car awaited the five of us: Mr. Ellington, Sheikh Khaled, Sarah, Alba, and I. And we were all headed to the Jumeirah City Souk. 

It took us exactly five minutes to reach the market, as we all descended from the car, and entered into it on feet.

So the market was basically a long tunnel of lights, with local shops to the left and right. The shops were a variety of local and folk clothes, hand-knit bags, jewelry, homemade food, in addition to other souvenir shops. 

We entered it as a group, and awkward silence ate the air. Alba and I walked behind, and I eyed as his majesty marched in the front as though he were leading some military team. 

Khaled and Sarah walked behind him, and I eyed how delighted the young Sheikh seemed by the market. It was as though he harbored such deep love to the humble public, to the people whom he felt he shared a connection of being discriminated against by the rich, if anything.

He literally stopped at every shop, either to buy something or to simply donate money.

Half way through the souks, Sarah had already been bought a new cardigan, an oriental straw hat with her name knit on it, as well as a number of handmade bracelets by the Sheikh —All of which... she seemed not to mind at all.

She was barely looking at the guy.

From time to time, I eyed how his majesty Ellington would glance at them, while he himself received looks from Khaled.

Soon enough, as the plan started playing itself smoothly, Alba and I found ourselves separated along with Sarah from the two men, who wandered alone in the market.

We walked in silence, and I eyed how distant Sarah's looks were as she marched beside me.

I tried opening several conversations with her, all of which were unresponsive. 

We stopped by several shops, and while Alba and I tried several things on for fun, Sarah Dowell touched nothing. She barely glanced.

I bit my lips... Sarah... the person who was most excited about shopping... my heart sank. 

We stopped at a shop, meant to sell souvenirs, as we checked out his collection. 

The merchant approached me first, as he held a key chain between his fingers.

It was a tiger, a golden one.

"Very sentimental but fancy key chain!" He spoke in very weak English, "Dubai is the city of Gold and the Tiger of the Gulf Region!" He announced, "See how smart it is? Only for 1200 AED!" 

Wow. Must've been dipped with real gold am assuming.

I smiled softly at him, shaking my head. Well, I didn't really get what the naming for the city stood for, so getting a tiger key chain was a bit of a no. 

Before the merchant could continue his merchandising, Sarah Dowell's voice came from behind him.

"Real knives or just a souvenir?" She asked coldly, and glancing in her direction, I eyed as she held a mini knife with a golden handle that had several carvings on it.

Weird, why would she even ask about this...

The merchant seemed to rejoice, "Very sharp! Serves as both real and a souvenir, ya amar! Only for 365 AED!" He smiled.

**Ya amar: literally means 'you moon', yet used to indicate extreme beauty or handsomeness in Arabic** 

She smiled back not, as she frowned at him, and placed some money on the table. "Aye, here you go." She placed the knife in her bag at that, and started walking off. 

I blinked, and simply eyed Alba who seemed to be suspicious of the action as well.

We started heading back towards the entrance of the market at that, where we were supposed to meet the other two men with us.

Sarah was walking in the front, as Alba and I followed silently. 

I gasped softly, as Mr. Ellington and Khaled joined us from beside, and Khaled gestured at me with a 'shush' as he approached Sarah from behind.

She didn't seem to notice the two men who joined, as she was clearly in her own world.

As he approached her from behind, the young Sheikh placed either his hands on her eyes, and chuckled from behind, "Guess who—" 

He didn't get to continue his sentence, as she shifted.

A loud roar-like scream escaped her, as she turned, anger searing through her wide, sharp, and mad green eyes.

And she had the knife she'd just gotten pointed right beneath his neck, as he'd moved his head higher the last moment.

I gasped in wide eyes, and tried believing what I was seeing.

Sarah... just now... was ready to kill him.

Her eyes widened, as she directly lowered the knife, "Kh-Khaled..." she whispered. 

The young Sheikh had disbelief in every single feature of his, as his expression slowly darkened at that, and he stepped back. "Excuse me, Miss Dowell. I maybe should have not invaded your personal space." He turned towards us, nodding curtly at Mr. Ellington. "President Ellington, we'll discuss the possibility of a collaboration later, excuse me for now." And he paced away. 

His majesty was first to break the deadly silence which fell on us, as he approached Sarah, who was in a stunned state by her own reaction.

Unfazed, he took the sheath of the knife from her left hand, as he covered the knife held by her right hand, grabbing her attention back to him. "Wielding out a knife amid a touristic market is not very smart move, don't you think so?" He murmured haughtily, as she took a step back from him. 

I shuddered at how dangerous yet calm his tone seemed, especially considering the scene Sarah just caused.

He walked beside her, and we simply followed them, enough to be able to hear their conversation.

Surprisingly enough, it was his majesty who broke the silence again, as he kept his conceited gaze on the way before them.

"Do you wish to go drinking when we arrive back at the hotel?" He spoke, his voice wavering not as it dripped of coldness, yet at the same time... it lacked that factor of... mercilessness? The hell?!!

Sarah's pace faltered for a second, her eyes widening as she looked at him, clearly having not expected what my employer just offered. She quickly brought her expression back to normal, as her gaze turned cold and she grinned at him. "Uh, yeah sure! Just like the old days huh?!" 

From beside her, my employer nodded, not turning to eye her.

I only blinked at their scene, as there was something weird about it.

For a second... it seemed like they both were hiding a lot... as though the entire scene was him acting on her and her doing the same.

Weird...

.

.

.

Reaching the hotel, we had a quick lunch, as I headed along with my employer and Sarah to the bar, while Alba headed for their room to rest.

I was actually surprised when my employer called me to come along, especially that I'm not a drinker and he knew that, nevertheless, we'd agreed I'd trust his decisions, no?!

We reached the bar, and Sarah sat in the middle, between Mr. Ellington and I.

Surprisingly enough, Sarah seemed way more cheerful than earlier. 

Her lips were widely spread with a shiny smile, and she was as loud as she was yesterday, causing relief to wash over my heart. Wow, could it all have been just a phase... 

My eyes snapped to Mr. Ellington to her right for a second, and I eyed how dark his look at her was. Hey... aren't you supposed to be relieved?

Sarah got our drinks at that, as she placed mine before me. Before I could protest, she'd turned towards me with her wide smile, "I know you don't drink! So I ordered carrot juice for you, Char!" 

I smiled at her. Wow... she's really back!!!! 

Turning at Mr. Ellington, she grinned as she placed two identical drinks for her and him, "Our Gin and Tonic mix! Sure brings back the memories!" She giggled, and took a sip from her glass
I drank from my carrot juice with a smile, and eyed as his majesty chugged down his glass. Wow, the whole glass in one... 

Sarah eyed him as well, her expression surprised, yet she kept her wide smile."My, my! Still that bitchy tolerance of yours! Damn you!" She giggled, "Another round?" 

From before her, his majesty fixed her with an unfazed expression, as he descended from his chair, "Certainly." His lips twitched at that, and my and Sarah's eyes widened as we were sure of what we saw... An almost-smile... Woah! 

His eyes glowed in ultimate entice and... grey coldness. "We're bringing back the old university days, no?" 

He moved at that, starting to walk away, "Order me another drink, I will be using the bathroom for five minutes." He ordered, frostily.

Sarah eyed him distantly, taking another sip from her Gin. "He even schedules his bathroom times. What an ass!" 

I giggled, as I took another sip from my glass, eyeing her warmly. "You remembered I liked carrot juice. That's actually adorable and very thoughtful of you, Sarah." I smiled at her. 

From before me, the most unexpected expression of hers showed...

No like seriously, I'd expected her to smile, to laugh, to mock me then hug me, to... possibly snap at me like she did at Mr. Ellington earlier.

Yet what I did not expect...

Was for her to have wide eyes, and a tear or two streaming down her face. 

I gasped, "S-Sarah?! I'm sorry, did I say something–" 

She cut me off, as she hugged me tightly, "I'm so so sorry, Charlotte... I'm so sorry..." She murmured as she tightened her hug. 

I hugged her back, stunned, "Sarah, what's wron–" 

And the world spun around me. At once.

"Ugh!" I groaned, attempting to straighten from her, "Um, wh-what the... hell..." 

She straightened, and I couldn't see her expression very clearly. 

At that, my employer was back, as he took his seat back to her right side.

I struggled to clarify my vision as much as possible, as I took some sips of my carrot juice.

Hey, carrot was supposed to be helpful for vision, no?

Eyeing the duo before me, I saw how Sarah had her smile back at his majesty, as she handed him his second glass. "Here you go!" 

Mr. Ellington took the glass from her, placing it before him. As my vision snapped up to his face, my eyes went wide, and for a second, I really thought it must've been the effect of this dizziness hitting me.

His handsome face... His handsome face that consisted of his full lips, his sculpted nose, hard jaw, symmetric eyebrows, and two pairs of devilishly drugging orbs... had a smile on it!!!!

A... A display of his wide, perfectly aligned and shiny... teeth!!! 

And those beauteous and drugging dimples were... showing!!!

And he was fixing Sarah with this smile. 

Holy moly... 

I gulped, as I focused on them, and my vision blurred further. 

"It's quite nostalgic, hm?" His majesty's voice came, cold, haughty, yet clearly...reaching out? I might say... 

And he kept that smile...

Though there was something about it...

Some similarity with another smile... 

Despite my unclear vision, I managed to collect my consciousness enough to focus on his handsome face, as I noticed what was it about this miracle happening there.

And it was impossible to mistake it.

Especially that I'd seen his legitimate... teeth-display miracle days ago... and it was so deeply engraved in my memory. Unalterable. 

So now comparing this smile to that in Berlin...

This one was... fake.

I always say it, no?

Those pair of beads he owns... they always, always spoke the truth.

And so did they now. As they reflected nothing but ultimate coldness and... mercilessness. 

They were clearly... that man's eyes.

And he was clearly... very displeased. Yet acting out perfectly... happy? –for some reason I could not fathom.

Squeezing the last bit of analysis I had, I managed to match his smile to that which I found resemblance with....

And I eyed the woman next to me... 

Particularly... her cold, numb, cat-like green orbs... which lacked their spark.

Good God, those two...

My brain started thumping at that, as I felt my head getting heavy. 

What... is happening with them?!!!

And... what the hell is going on with me?!! Why do I feel so... sleepy?!!

A thud was heard at that, as I eyed his majesty Ellington slightly rely on the bar, as he placed his left hand against his forehead, and continued eyeing Sarah with what seemed like a dazed, carefree smile... 

If only for not those frozen orbs... 

"Is it me or has this Gin gotten our heads high, hm?" He murmured, fixing the woman before him enticingly. 

Sarah's smile widened at that, as she shifted excitedly at that, "Yes! I feel so dizzy here too!" 

He took another sip of his Gin, and let out a... yawn?

Wait... since I first got employed under him... Mr. Ellington never let out a... yawn... at... seven pm...?

"Are you sleepy, Ricky?" Dowell smiled in his direction, "If that's the case, it seems like the roles are reversed this time, and I'll be the one taking care of sleepy you!"

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