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Rehana POV

I was excited and nervous.

"What are you thinking? Just go ahead for it," Nandani said, and I stopped in my marching steps and looked at the women—all of them.

"No, no, no, that's too risky. What if he does not like it?" I asked, analyzing all the possibilities, and Ruhani scoffed.

"Bhabhijaan, you are thinking too much. Bhaijaan will surely not be able to stop himself after seeing you in this," Her words made me look at the dress again.

I did not know why, but Jaan-e-Jahan did not seem to be a very romantic type of man. He seemed much of a serious and workaholic type, and wearing something that was revealing was to heat, tease, and give nothing seemed too much.

"Aapi," Ghazal's sweet voice caught my attention as she stood up from the couch, held my hand, and made me sit beside her. Placing her hand on my shoulder, she said, looking into my eyes.

"Are you comfortable?" she asked. I did not know, but I inhaled deeply, hearing her.

Was I comfortable?

I was comfortable with anything with Jaan-e-Jahan. But, I did not know if he would be comfortable with the extremes of me.

I could do anything for him.

"Of course. I am comfortable. I am worried for him," I said, and they all laughed suddenly.

"What? Are you worried for him? You should be worried for yourself. These Kings and their attitude is too much," Suman said, and I knit my brows.

"Why should I be worried for myself? I am not going to let him touch me. He would only see me and go insane," I clarified with a winning smile, and Ghazal shook her head.

"Aapi, it's not necessary that whatever you have thought would happen only," She said, and I shook my head in response.

"No, I know. I know how to handle him," I assured her, and they all agreed.

"Then, you should go with this dress. And how about you tease him after keeping him tied? In case he loses his calm," Aishwarya said, and I nodded.

"I love this idea," I said, and they both rose from their couches.

We all had dinner together. I wanted to talk to them as they would leave tomorrow.

"It's settled then, also, all the best," Ruhani said with a tense smile, and I smiled confidently.

"Nothing will happen. Trust me, Jaan-e-Jahan never loses his calm. He is the stoniest person I have ever met," I stated, and they all hugged me one by one.

I did not know why they were being so much emotional.

"All the best," Nandani said, smiling and looking at me.

"Trust me, the stoniest person turns into the most romantic one once he falls in love," she said, and I nodded, inhaling deeply.

She would not know how Jaan-e-Jahan was different.

"Take care," they said and left the meeting area of our chamber.

Once, they went away. I asked Shefali to take the dress to my changing area.

"By the way, where have you been?" I asked Shefali as we walked through the galleries to reach the bed chamber.

"Me? Nowhere. I have only been here," she replied, and my brows frowned with confusion. I had not seen her lately.

"Oh, I did not see you," I said, and the way her face stressed up before she chuckled, shaking her head, my suspicion grew stronger.

"Well, I was busy with the chamber's setting. I was looking into the... Umm, the placements of trunks and all," she said, and I nodded slowly.

"Oh," her words were unsure. "Okay," though I did not push her forward.

Turning around, I noticed the dim lighting in the chamber, its warmth, and how beautiful and silent it looked.

After a few moments of silence, she said, "By the way," and I looked back at her. "There was a man who wanted to meet you," Her words immediately brought my mind back to my father.

"What, man?" I asked, knitting my brows, and she looked away and placed her index finger on her chin. She was recalling something.

"He was a man in his sixties with dark eyes. He was tall and wore a black blanket around his neck," she replied, and my eyes widened as I recognized him.

"What did he say?" I asked, and she shook her head.

"Nothing. He just said that you would need him," her expression told me. She did not know him, and I did not want anyone to recognize him until I ensured his safety.

"Oh, he must be... a villager," I said with a smile, and she smiled back.

"Yes, he must be. By the way, your bath is ready," she said. I looked in the direction of the bathing room and nodded.

"Okay," I said, taking Shefali's help getting bathed. For some reason, she seemed too silent. 

This was not her.

Suddenly, the faded noise of the door's opening caught our attention. We both looked at each other.

"Jaan-e-Jahan,"

"Sultan,"

We spoke to each other, and I straightened my back on the pool, and she immediately started washing my hair quickly.

"Raat me sir nahi dhona chahiye tha Rehana,"

"You should not have washed your hair at night, Rehana," she said, and I shook my head.

"You should leave; I will manage the rest," I said, looking at her.

I could not tell her about the plan. She would take me as a stupid girl.

"Are you sure?" she asked, and I nodded.

"Yes, good night," I said, and she smiled confusedly before leaving me alone in the bathing room.

Once she left, I inhaled deeply to calm my racing heartbeats. Then, I heard the faded noise of the door closing. That meant that Jaan-e-Jahan was inside the chamber, and Shefali had left.

And it was Jaan-e-Jahan's routine to bathe first once he stepped inside the chamber at night. That meant he would be coming here any moment.

"Rehana," he suddenly called me from the bathroom door.

"Ji," I replied loudly, trying to penetrate my voice through the thick walls.

"What are you doing?" He asked, and I knit my brows.

"Bathing," I replied, wondering if he knew that people take baths in the morning, and the silence followed for a while.

I returned to my hair wash, and once I had finished my bath with fresh water and wrapped myself in a long, fresh cloth, he called again.

"Shall I step in?" His words trembled my fingers as I tightened my fist over my chest, keeping it glued there.

"What?" I questioned in a loud voice.

Why did he want to step in?

Did he know about my plan already?

No, no, no.

"No," I replied.

I had to keep him away. He would bathe right in front of me, and I would sit in his lap, kissing all the dirt off his lips.

Urghhhh.

What the hell was I thinking?

"What?" He asked from outside.

Shaking my head, I immediately ran towards the changing area. My steps were small as I did not want to slip with the wet feet. The noise of my anklets echoed in the gallery, and before I could enter the changing area, I crashed into him.

My eyes widened with shock.

"How did you come inside?" I immediately asked as I stepped back from him.

No, no, no. This was not the plan. The plan was to wear the revealing dress that would invite him seductively towards him. It was not to stand before him half naked, only wrapped in a towel, to actually invite him.

"What happened?" He asked, catching my attention, and my fingers clutched tighter against my chest, keeping the cloth in place. His brows were knit.

And, the moment he stepped a little closer.

"What happened? Bache," he asked, and I shook my head.

And, before he could say anything else or I could look at his beautiful, handsome, and inviting face, I ran from there to the changing area.

I closed the door from behind and panted hard.

"Rehana," he called, and I shook my head.

"Are you okay?" He asked, and I nodded.

He could not see me.

"Yes... Yes, I am okay," I answered, looking at myself in the mirror. The dim lighting from the distant fire torches illuminated me, and a wide smile appeared on my face.

I looked beautiful. He would not be able to control.

But, he had to control.

"Are you sure?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Yes, yes," I replied.

His reply did not come. And, when, after a few moments, I heard the noise of the running water in the bathing room, I began working on my plan.

The first thing was to keep my hair open. Ruhani said that my hair was beautiful and he would definitely like it to be open.

So, I ran my fingers through my wet hair, and it began to dry with the warmth of the chamber and air.

Leaving them, I unwrapped the cloth off me, and the moment I noticed my absolutely naked self in the mirror, I gasped.

Turning around a little, I noticed the tiny puff in my belly with my small waist. Was I eating too much?

What if Jaan-e-Jahan did not like the fat in my stomach?

I should eat less.

Well, the food here was delicious, and I could not stop myself.

Urghhh.

What the hell was I thinking?

I had to get ready.

Focusing on myself again, I immediately unfolded the dress I had to wear.

It was a thigh-length white colored loose dress. The fabric was thin. It was as soft as a cotton ball.

A tiny smile appeared on my face as I slipped it down. Since it was loose and had no arms. I had to tie the fasteners on my shoulders.

I made beautiful bows on my shoulders, and my arms looked beautiful. But the marks of wounds made my heart tighten.

What if he did not like it?

Shaking my head, I focused on turning around and noticing my bare legs.

Was I too thin? Or too fat for him?

My brows knit with confusion.

"Rehana," suddenly, Jaan-e-Jahan's voice caught my attention, and I immediately turned around to look at the door.

"Ji," I asked and noticed the door opening.

I panicked.

What the hell should I do?

And these stupid nipples. Arghh. Why were they giving him a standing ovation?

But suddenly, I remembered that I did not have to be scared of him; I only had to scare him off.

Closing my eyes, I tried to calm my racing heartbeats as the noise of his faded footsteps intensified.

I planted a smile on my face. But, the moment my sight fell on him, approaching closer in clothes wrapped around his waist, my heart began to fasten.

My throat ran dry as my gaze fixated on his lower abdomen. He had it wrapped way too low. I could see too much—the cuts of his muscles, the veins, and the gliding water droplets.

I looked up at his hand running through his hair.

"What happened?" he asked. I noticed the droplets falling on his shoulders, rolling down his puffy chest, reaching his slim waist, and disappearing in the towel.

My throat ran drier, and I could not help but feel hot in my cheeks.

"What happened?" He asked again, stepping closer to me. And the moment I felt a knot in my stomach, I stepped back to run.

What was happening to me?

I had to seduce him. Not to get seduced by him.

"I just remembered a work," I said, but before I could walk past him, he held my forearm and pulled me slowly before him.

"Are you okay?" he asked again, this time with an intense and serious gaze. When he left my hand and placed his hand on my cheek and chin, I felt something in my body.

I immediately laughed.

"Me? Okay? Of course, what's wrong with me?" I asked, and a slight weak smile appeared on his face as he asked.

"Then, why are you running away from me?" He asked, and I immediately stepped back, laughing more.

"Why would I stay away from you? You are my Jaan-e-Jahan," I declared, and he knitted his brows.

"Are you sure?" He asked, and I nodded.

"Yes, yes, yes," I said and immediately ran away from him.

This was not the plan. I had to punish him for his earlier actions, not the other way around.

Inhaling a few deep breaths, I lay on the bed and covered myself with the comforters.

I had to focus.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay.

I needed a book.

So, I grabbed one from his side of the table and opened it to read it.

It was politics.

How the hell could this man read political stories to bed?

I need romantic ones for good dreams and better sleep.

These were the signals that God never stayed happy with me.

I tried to understand the words. The language seemed advanced and difficult, and I could hardly understand it, but I tried.

And, figured out that it was not political stories but the war stories. Not stories, the realities.

It was a history book.

Was he reading about war?

Was he planning a war?

I immediately sat up, and suddenly, my ears nodded to the faded voice of his footsteps. Then I looked at the book again. There was no title; only chapters had titles.

Knitting my brows, I read them.

1. Opposing Parties

2. Planning the drought

3. Securing the Queen

4. Alliances

5. Canons

6. Victory

What was it?

"Rehana," his voice caught my attention as he parted the bed's curtains and looked at me.

He was wearing nothing but his lower and rubbing his hair dry with a towel.

"What happened? You are reading today?" he asked, and I lowered my gaze to the book and shook my head.

"Why do you read it?" I asked as he circled the bed and climbed over it from his side.

"This is good for knowledge seekers," he replied, adjusting the lamp closer to him so that the light would fall over the book, not him.

"What do you want to know about wars?" I asked, wondering if he was preparing to fight my father.

"Everything there has to know. Sultans and Wars go side by side," he replied, and I shook my head.

"What about happiness and calm?" I asked, and he chuckled.

"Come here," he said, gently holding my arm and pulling me towards him. Pressing my back against his chest while he pushed my hair, he placed the book in my lap and covered our entangling legs under the comforters.

"Wars are to protect us from evil," he said, and I looked up at him over his shoulders.

"Wars are to protect us from others, not from evil. The wars happen due to different opinions, not because of good or evil. No one would have died in them if it were for good or evil. Wars result in mass killings, abductions, rapes, torture, and things no one can count on. It is just to make ourselves superior to others," I said, and he blinked silently, listening to me before smiling beautifully and nodding.

"That is definitely a way to look at it," he said, gently caressing my midriff and adding.

"But, as a Sultan, you are the caretaker of thousands of people. They choose you, trust you, and believe in you for their safety. In exchange, they pay taxes, donate, and keep us wealthy. And if someone outsider tries to hurt them, it is our responsibility to keep them safe," His words made sense.

It makes total sense, but still.

"Killing is brutal," I said, and he nodded.

"It is, but there is no way to stop someone's wild thinking and motives without making them unalive," he explained, and I lowered my gaze to the book again.

His hand kept caressing my midriff, and I tried to think of a reply.

"Keeping them alive in the cells?" I asked, and he smiled, nodding.

"But, Rehana, some people do deserve to die. Like the people who kidnapped you right in front of my eyes," he said, and the way his voice turned deep and scary, I felt a shiver down my spine.

"You kill so often?" I asked, turning around a little. He gulped and lowered his gaze.

"What does often mean in your terms?" he asked, raising his brow at me. The way the tip of his lip glided up in a teasy smile made a flutter in my chest.

"I mean, one in a day?" I asked, and he immediately scoffed.

"Well, that is too much. But, yes, when we go to war, there is no counting," he said, and I inhaled deeply, feeling scared of him suddenly.

"By the way, I am thinking of you visiting the Darmiyan Sultanate," he said, and I immediately stared into his eyes.

"What?" I questioned with shock.

He lowered his gaze, clicking his tongue softly.

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