A scene after their wedding - updated on page 16 - Page 3

Over the next week or two, Zubia continued to maintain her distance from Asfand and tried to keep their interactions on a purely professional footing. It was not easy, in fact it was very very difficult. She could always sense his eyes on her, watching and waiting. No matter how aloof she tried to be, it did not deter him. He would offer to drop her if she found herself alone, every now and then keep checking if she was taking care of her health, discipline a ward boy for disrespecting her and so on.

She tried to pretend that she could walk away from all this, from him but she knew she was lying. Every day, upon entering the hospital, her eyes would first seek him out. One glimpse of his commanding presence or authoritative voice would make her feel so ...secure. The same presence that intimidated her earlier now made her feel so safe.

Not all the time though. Whenever they were alone, she was so aware of his nearness. His words would keep playing in her mind..."Zubia I adore you". She had to use all her inner strength to keep her breathing even and her face impassive. She was not sure it was working. She would look up at times to find him looking at her intently...was he also affected by her in the same way? Was that possible? The Dr. Asfandyar affected by Zubia Khalil? He did say that she was always on his mind...

No! She should stop thinking about such things, there was no point. It was becoming very difficult to be around him nowadays..

The temptation to share all her worries and fears with him was so strong. He had always guided her, supported her..she wanted to know if he would turn out to be small minded like her brother..No! she was sure he would not. She knew in her heart he was different..but was it fair to burden him and his family with the problems and complications of her life?

"Zubia, I respect you"..Isn't that what he said? Those words were more precious to her than anything else. She could not bear to see loss of respect for her in those eyes, she would rather live alone and away from him..being respected by someone she respected so much meant everything to her..

...

As he wound up for the day and locked his cabin, Asfand found himself thinking about his moments with Zubia during the day...did she not realize the effect she had on him when she looked up at him with those big big eyes? He had never seen such beautiful eyes...he could not decide if her eyes were her best feature or her long shiny hair that he could see tantalizing glimpses of. No, her small rosebud of a mouth was probably her best feature...If he was honest with himself, he knew that he had always noticed her that way and that was probably why he was harsher with her that he should have been in the begining.

Somehow he did not feel guilty about his thoughts. In his mind, she belonged to him. He was not sure what was holding her back, actually he had an idea but he sensed it was something deeper. What he was sure of was that the only person he wanted to marry was her and together they could work out whatever it is that was troubling her...

Maybe it was time to take this head on...but he was not sure. She looked so fragile these days, he did not want her to feel pressured. He sighed...

Part 4, updated on page 7