Page 11 of A is for Ahool

Muram held my entire weight with one arm as he spread his wings and dropped. In a matter of seconds, my feet touched the ground, but I had to pry myself away. For the first time, I understood why such closeness was haram. My thoughts were not as innocent as they should be. For the first time, I felt the urge to break the rules.

∞∞∞

Muram

She was killing me. Walking beside her, it was impossible to miss the scent of her arousal. I tried to focus on the path ahead, but my mind kept drifting back to Anissa's intoxicating fragrance. It took all my focus and willpower to retain my control.

I had never experienced such a strong reaction to anything. My body felt tingly and overheated and a strange heaviness had settled between my thighs. My wings trembled against my back, aching to spread wide in a mating display. It was all I could do to keep from reaching out and pulling her close to me.

We walked in silence for a while, as I tried to focus on the ground beneath my feet and the sounds around us. Anything but the evidence of her desire for me. I reminded myself she was likely chaste, like the women in the village. Their beliefs forbid intimacy outside of marriage.

Anissa cleared her throat, breaking the silence. I glanced at her from the corner of my eye to see her adjusting the scarf around her head again. It seemed to be a nervous gesture.

"Is everything alright, Anissa?" I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

She glanced over at me, her cheeks flushed. "Yes, I'm just...it's nothing."

I grasped for something to say. Anything but the words on the tip of my tongue. As much as I wanted to confess my feelings, beg her to let me touch her just once before the end, I could not. Whatever forces had chosen this beautiful creature as my mate had not taken reality into account. How could a human and an Ahool ever be together?

Annisa suddenly gasped and my body acted before I formed a thought. I snatched her out of the air before she hit the ground. I was still scowling at the offending tree root when she said my name. My gaze snapped to hers and I carefully set her back on her feet.

I watched Anissa brush imaginary dirt off her clothes and adjust her head scarf. I mentally shook myself. Focus! I scanned the trees around us. We were closer than I had realized.

The trees thinned up ahead, allowing sunlight to dapple the path. It was only through sheer will that I gestured for us to keep walking. Once we stepped into that clearing, Anissa would see the carpet of crimson flowers. She would mark their position on her map and take photographs. And then she would be gone.

We quickly reached the clearing and after a quick scan of our surroundings, I let her rush forward. Foreign words spilled from her mouth, as she excitedly shrugged her bag off her shoulders and began to dig through it. I watched with a faint smile. Her happiness would always bring me joy. Even now.

She tipped her head back to look up at the blue sky and smiled in the sunlight. I stared, trying to memorize the moment. The way her pale scarf glowed against her bronze skin. The petal pink of her lips. The way her eyes sparkled when she glanced over at me.

My chest ached. Anissa pulled a folded map from her bag and after marking the location, stuffed it back into her bag to extract her camera. I watched her carefully walk between the flowers snapping picture after picture, still talking to me in that language I did not understand. I smiled. Despite the consequences of loving her, I would never regret a single moment.

Suddenly, I felt it again. The need to display. I scanned the clearing. What better moment than now when my beloved was so happy? I stepped fully into the sunlight and Anissa smiled over at me.

I gazed at her, drinking her in, and let my wings unfurl. I so rarely used them to their full extent, that I had forgotten how large they truly were. Easily three times my arm span, they slowly spread above my head and out to my sides.

They were as crimson as the flowers around her, made of an intricate web of deceivingly slender bones and thin membrane. They were a weapon, a tool, and a means of travel. To my kind, impressive wings were everything. My beloved was not of my kind, but I stood tall and proud to display for her. She would not understand the significance of it, but I did.

Chapter Six

Anissa

As I stared at Muram, my camera hanging around my neck forgotten, the strangest feeling washed over me. The desire I was growing used to, but the demanding pull toward him was new. My eyes moved over the breadth of his magnificent wings and his strong body, slowly taking in every detail. The way his black fur shone in the light, the blood red of his wings, and the intensity in his dark eyes as we looked at each other.

The air felt charged, as the pull increased. I took a step forward and Muram echoed it. A pleasant shiver went down my spine. The heat that had been building low in my belly burst into flames. I gasped and stumbled forward another step. My gaze wandered over Muram’s body hungrily.

His large hands flexed at his sides, as the rest of his body vibrated with tension. Was he feeling the same urges as me? I thought I was alone in this forbidden need, but did he feel the same way? What if…what if I touched him?

There were no witnesses here. No eyes to see the way I looked at him. Or touched him. But it would be a sin in the eyes of Allah. The thought made me pause only steps away.

Muram stopped with one hand outstretched toward me. Both of us stood frozen as I considered the ramifications. If anyone ever knew… I met Muram’s eyes. He looked at me the way another man would gaze at a beautiful sunrise.

I took the last step to close the space between us. I reached up to touch his wings and Muram shuddered.

“Is this okay?” I whispered.

“Yes,” he gasped. “Don’t stop.”

I lightly ran my fingertips over the silky flesh, curiously following each visible vein. Muram trembled under my hands, but he did not tell me to stop. When I finished one wing, I repeated the actions on the other before returning to stand in front of him. He looked down at me with such softness, that I felt an ache in my chest. I hovered my hands above his chest.