Page 33 of Hired Husband

“It was tiny,” I interjected. “A sand snake. Really. It was nothing. It definitely wasn’t terrifying.”

Basel’s gaze swept down to the bandage, his eyes widening seconds before they shot back up to mine. “It bit you?”

“Yeah, but only a little and I’m fine.”

“Did you see a doctor?” he asked, clearly alarmed. “Snake bites are no joke, Isaac.”

“There was blood,” Jasmine supplied helpfully. “Yet our hero refused to let Hassan call the doctor. Apparently, he read about our local wildlife and decided this particular snake bite didn’t require seeking medical advice.”

Basel started muttering in Arabic before bringing one hand up to massage his temple. Jasmine glanced back at me, pumping her eyebrows as she smiled. “See? I told you we should’ve called the doctor.”

I blew out a breath through my nostrils. “I’ve had paper cuts that were more serious than that bite. Can we just drop it, please?”

“You were bleeding all over my apartment!” she exclaimed, arms flying out to her sides. “That much blood is always a reason to see a doctor.”

“I bled very considerately,” I said as the engines hummed beneath us. “I managed to keep most it on my own arm and that’s because there wasn’t much of it at all.”

The plane sped up and we lifted off the ground smoothly. Even the takeoff felt luxurious.

Basel leaned back in his seat, his jaw suddenly tightening as if he’d reached a conclusion. “That’s it. You should both move back into the house. The Saad estate is the safest place for you to be.”

Jasmine groaned. “There’s no way. It’s like he said, the snake was tiny.”

“Scorpions can be tiny but deadly. Snakes. Spiders.” He pointed decisively between the two of us. “There are no snakes in my home. That’s where you should be.”

“It really wasn’t that big a deal,” I said quickly. Colin had told me what it’d been like living in that house, how loud, busy, and constant life was with the Saads. As much as I’d enjoyed dinner with them, I had no desire to move in. “I promise you, Basel, it was a completely harmless little snake who must’ve just lost his way.”

“The compound has security and much nicer gardens,” he argued, his gaze drifting back to his daughter’s. “There’s home-cooked food and no nosy neighbors.”

“Sure, but there are nosy brothers,” she said without skipping a beat. “Thanks, Dad, but I’m happy where I am.”

“The compound offers more space, more safety, and more support,” he insisted. “What if it had been a venomous snake? What would you have done then, all alone in your apartment?”

“Hassan was there and so was Isaac. It took them only minutes after I called to get to me. Honestly, they were there so fast.”

“Because you could get to your phone,” he said pointedly. “If it had been a venomous snake lying between your clothes and you’d reached in there, you almost certainly wouldn’t have had time to call for help.”

“It’s Heliopolis, Dad. It’s not like I’m living in a tent in the middle of the desert. I’m sure it won’t happen again.”

“It won’t,” he said. “If you move back home.”

I watched them bicker but decided to stay out of it. Despite having been included in the invitation to move into the Saad family home, it didn’t look like this really involved me at all. In fact, I had a feeling it was an old argument that was simply resurfacing because of the snake.

“I’ll have a panic button installed in the closet,” she was saying. “Just in case, but I don’t need twenty-four-hour security and the gardens we’ve got are perfectly fine.”

He let out a long-suffering sigh before finally glancing back at me. “My daughters are my biggest blessing but also the sharpest pain in my ass.”

“What?” Jasmine turned to stare at him with incredulity shining in her eyes. “We are delightful.”

“You are stubborn,” he returned effortlessly. “First Deja moves to the United States and now you’re insisting on staying in that snake-infested apartment. It boggles my mind.”

“Deja didn’t choose to move to Chicago.” Jasmine pursed her lips. “You married her off to an American and decided it was time for White Water Lily to expand. That’s why she’s there.”

“She would’ve married him anyway.”

While I agreed with him on that front, I didn’t bother saying so. They enjoyed sparring, and it was ridiculously entertaining. I got such a kick out of watching them that I could do it all day and not get bored. But then the pilot’s voice crackled over the cabin speakers.

“Mr. Saad, we will be landing in approximately fifteen minutes.”