"Salman!" Umaymah called as she made the finishing touches to the manuscript in front of her.

"I'll be down in a minute." He replied.

After what seemed like the longest hour ever, Salman finally descended the stairs.

"Look who showed up very early." The sarcasm could be heard between her words as she took a bite of the nut in her hand.

"Sorry for my lateness your highness," Salman's scent indicated his presence. "Your Arabian prince was polishing his armour to look presentable before you." He
pounced on the couch that held his wife's figure.

"Another cheesy line produced by you." Umaymah shook her head with her eyes still focused on the screen before her.

He recently started the habit of stirring up cheesy lines to Umaymah.

"The cheesier, the better, don't you think?" He nudged her before snuggling closer into her body.

"I'd rather pass." Her face held a smile as she looked at Salman for the first time since he entered the room.

Salman pursed his lower lip for a few seconds his eyes transforming into one of a cute innocent little boy.

"So what chapter are we reading today?" He rested his chin on his wife's shoulder, getting a better angle to view the open document on her laptop.

Salman had insisted on listening to his wife's manuscript even though he didn't fancy fiction novels.

He wasn't one to be called a fictional bookworm , but if the book in turn contained the biography of someone, geographical research, written documentaries, or historical findings and discoveries of the past, he sure wouldn't mind reading it.

But Umaymah was a professional book freak compared to him. They couldn't even be compared.

A schedule of how the reading on the manuscript would be and on what days, was conveniently drafted by both of them, which afterwards would be sent to beta readers.

Umaymah glanced at her husband who had his head on her shoulder.

"Yo calm down, I was just messing around," her dagger stares went through him like sharp, pointed, glimmering spears perfectly aimed at their target. "How could I forget we stopped at chapter eleven." He sniffed her shoulder in one long heavenly breath before,

"You've got to stop sniffing me like that sir." Umaymah moved her laptop to the mantelpiece in front of them and lowered herself to sit right on the plush carpet.

"It's your fault because you always smell so good Mrs." Salman took his position beside her after dipping his hand into the bowl by her side.

"Let's begin." Umaymah straightened her back as she clasped her hands together.

"Let's do this!" Salman huffed, getting his super attentive ears activated.

Nine decently long chapters, two refills of tea & coffee, and one large bowl of nuts later, she closed the Google Docs app, took her last gulp of tea then released one of the most exasperated sighs to ever exists.

She got up on her feet and went up the stairs to her room for the fourth time since they began the reading.

"Are you good?" One of Salman's thick brows jolted upwards like it would come off his face if he raised it an inch higher.

Umaymah returned to her former position with droplets of water splattered over her face.

"Yeah, I think."

Her answer didn't sound convincing enough to him.

"This is the," He counted his fingers and held four of his five fingers out in the air. "Fourth time you've gone up there with a dry face and returned down here with water everywhere." he gestured at his face in circular motions.

"I think I'm falling sick," she sat on the couch resting her head on the headrest. "Because I have a fever." She placed her palms over her eyes.

"Fever?"

"You'll have to take care of me if the fever worsen." she stuck a part of her tongue out at Salman who was now trying to feel her forehead with the back of his hand.

"How did you even get sick?"

"It's just a fever, Mr. Salman, I'll be okay." She caught his hand mid-air and dropped it to his side with a smile on her face.

"You look ugly, come here."He propped himself up on the couch enveloping Umaymah in his arms.