Forbidden Read online

  Forbidden

  Book 0.5 of the FORBIDDEN series (Prequel)

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Forbidden © 2020 by Zee Shine Storm

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  December 2020 Edition.

  Contents

  Copyright

  Blurb

  Playlist

  The Wounded Lioness and the Playboy Prince

  Deep Blue Eyes, Mouth Full of Lies

  The Jerk in Shining Armour

  Black Sheep from Her Past

  The Good

  The Bad

  The Ugly

  The Sweet-talker

  Careful What You Wish For

  Playing With Fire

  Submission

  Temptation

  Utterly Enslaved

  Nothing Like She Imagined

  Reunion (Part I)

  Reunion (Part II)

  Master Manipulator

  Always Second

  Truth Hurts

  Newly-weds

  And So It Begins

  Bonus Scene

  Book 1 Teaser (Three’s A Crowd)

  FORBIDDEN series books!

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Blurb

  Sometimes the journey towards true love can be dark and twisted.

  This story contains an illicit affair, erotic romance, true sexual awakening and some very flawed human beings.

  An orphaned Jasmine Khan finds herself falling for and indulging in an affair with her best friend's married brother, Hamza Qureshi, who she believes is her one true love and who showers upon her the kind of care and attention she desperately needs after she loses her family.

  But life has other plans for her and throws Armaan in her path who makes her discover a sexual aspect of her nature which she had never explored.

  Torn between love and lust, Jasmine must decide who she really wants to be. The heartbroken yet devoted girl who has sworn her heart to someone else's husband or the bold and brazen woman that she finds herself becoming in Armaan's charming company. He is sexy, sweet and incapable of taking no for an answer.

  Jasmine must recognise the difference between love and lust before it is too late and she loses the man who would be willing to do anything to ensure her happiness.

  ~~~

  *Mature themes meant for 18+ readers.

  *Trigger Warning: Contains cheating and a few disturbing sexual encounters

  (Disclaimer: Amira is a fictional nation and not based on any specific place in the Middle East therefore all religious practices described in the book are only loosely related to Arab or Islamic culture.)

  Playlist

  *T-pain ft Baby Bash: Cyclone.

  *Christina Aguilera: Genie In A Bottle.

  *Two Feet: Think I'm Crazy.

  *Maroon 5: Lips on You.

  *Rita Ora: Let You Love Me.

  *Shawn Mendez: Treat You Better.

  *Meg Myers: Adelaide.

  *Maroon 5: One More Night.

  ****

  Full playlist on my YouTube channel:

  Zee Shine Storm

  To Amatullah Tyba for being Jas&Aaru’s biggest fan

  The Wounded Lioness and the Playboy Prince

  1

  Portofino, a fishing village on the Italian coastline in the province of Genoa, was out of the way but convenient for a girl who had wanted nothing more than to escape the real world and lick her wounds in private. It had been over a year since she had arrived there and now, she was the proud owner of a little cottage on the terrace with a wild garden and a view of the azure ocean. Beautiful. Her safe haven. Here, she had made a few choice friends and had managed to remain emotionally unattached.

  The weather suited her too. Hot and sultry as it was in towns that existed near the Gulf of Genoa during the summer. Italy had always been at the top of her list of places to visit but when she had made that list, she had had no idea that it would one day become her country of refuge. She breathed in the air coming in from the Ligurian Sea and shook away the familiar homesickness that threatened to engulf her.

  This was home now. This small town with its cheerful faces and the promise of a fresh start had drawn her in inextricably. She was happy here. As happy as she could be. Her name was Jasmine Khan and a year ago, she had made an oath to never allow anybody to get close enough to hurt her again.

  So far, things were going exactly according to her tastes. But there was restlessness pervading her soul now. Finally, she was ready to go out in the world and do something that she had always wanted to do. She was going to make money. Lots and lots of money. Money meant power and a person like Jasmine needed power more than anything else. If Allah was willing, that seat of power was going to be hers very soon.

  She grabbed her iPad and checked her reflection in the hallway mirror before heading over to the trattoria where the agent she had contacted was waiting for her. The walk down to the restaurant took about three minutes and she inhaled deeply when she reached there, reminding herself to have faith and success would kiss her feet soon. This was it. She was going to go global. Not as Jasmine Khan but under the pseudonym of Crystal Reynolds. The Reynolds was from Ryan Reynolds who was one of her favourite actors.

  The trattoria was not very large but it was designed beautifully and served amazing food so there was never a lack of customers. Her gaze skimmed over all the people and dismissed the familiar faces before landing on a guy seated at the far end. He was using a tablet and was dressed casually in jeans and a pale purple shirt. The table he had chosen overlooked the bright, blue ocean. Jasmine relaxed and made her way over to him.

  Her agent, Alexander Tory, was someone she had never seen or spoken to over the phone but had only communicated with via emails. His emails had always been warm and void of the impersonal tone she usually encountered from literary agents and she wondered whether he was also like that in person.

  Alex looked up from the tablet, giving the girl who had come to stand at his table a once-over. Then he smiled and it reached his grey eyes. He stood up and extended a hand. "Jasmine Khan? Pleasure to finally meet you. I'm Alex."

  She shook his hand, smiled slightly and took her seat opposite him.

  "I didn't order anything,' Alex said as he settled back in his wooden chair.”Thought I'd wait."

  She studied him for a few seconds, noting how handsome and tall he was. "How did you know who I was?" she asked him and waved at a waitress. The waitress held up a finger, indicating the customer she was serving and Jasmine nodded and turned back to Alex.

  Alex was caught staring at her and he averted his eyes quickly, feeling his face flush a little. "Don't take this the wrong way but you look Middle Eastern, not at all Italian," he said, attempting an unaffected smile.

  "I suppose I do," she replied. "Are you familiar with the Middle Eastern culture, Alex?"

  He nodded. "Sort of," he said, looking at the waitress now as she approached their table with a friendly expression. "My best friend is Middle Eastern."

  Jasmine nodded, making a mental note to ask more about the friendship and smiled at the red-haired waitress. "Hi, Kim. I'll take my usual, okay. What would you like, Alex?" She looked at him expectantly and he frowned a little.

  "Er...I'll take your usual as well because I haven't had time to look at the menu yet," he said and Kim laughed
. So did Jasmine. He looked adorable again.

  "Well, I'll make it two serves then and I'm sure this handsome gentleman would absolutely love it." Kim smiled at Jasmine in amusement and waggled her eyebrows, probably thinking that Alex was her date or something.

  Jasmine shook her head. "Kim, this is Alexander. He's someone I hope to work with and Alex, meet Kim."

  They both said hello and shook hands and then Kim left them alone to get their breakfast.

  "She's British." Alex was looking in the direction that Kim had gone.

  "Yeah. She's only here for six months as a casual worker. I find it easier to talk to her because my Italian sucks." Actually, she understood Italian but made it a point not to let on. It was so much easier to remain aloof that way.

  A curious light entered Alex's eyes. "You're nothing like I imagined."

  "Really? And just how did you imagine me?"

  He dimpled and Jasmine found that really cute. "You're even hotter," was his bold reply and Jasmine closed up immediately at that first sign of flirting. She did not have a problem with flirting but she did have a problem with flirting with a guy whom she would be working with very closely.

  "Let's discuss business now, shall we?" Jasmine raised an eyebrow and he straightened.

  "Of course." He reached in the briefcase that was propped against the leg of his chair and pulled out a sheaf of papers. "Here's the contract. I can go over it with you," he offered but Jasmine shook her head to indicate no and held out a hand.

  Kim brought them two cups of coffee, winked at Alex and left quietly. Alex stared at the cup of coffee in front of him and his companion lowered the pages which she had been scrutinizing to smirk at him. "I only have a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast here," she told him, her eyes glowing with humor. "I hope you weren't very hungry."

  Alex thought her glowing, dark eyes were the most beautiful things in the world. He decided to be a good sport. "Nope. Not hungry at all, actually." He sipped his coffee and savored the flavor and Jasmine resumed her perusal of the contract with an amused expression.

  They stayed in the trattoria for nearly one hour and then, Jasmine felt sorry for him and ordered a risotto. He ate quickly and hungrily and when he saw her watching, they both laughed. Alex told her about Pyramid Publishing, the firm that she was signing up with and what she should expect once her books hit the stores. He also told her about his friendship with Armaan, the Muslim guy. They had met in Milan when they had both been nineteen and had remained friends ever since, thereby enhancing Alex's knowledge of the Islamic culture.

  Jasmine decided that she liked Alex. He was the kind of person who could be familiar with people but still respect their boundaries. She knew because they shared quite a few laughs while getting to know each other better and at one point, he requested to snap a picture of her with his phone because he kept a photo of all his clients in his portfolio. But he never once attempted to flirt with her again.

  ~~~~

  Milan (Same Day)

  Armaan Qureshi scowled at his watch, barely stifling the curse that wanted to escape from his mouth. The music seemed to pound inside his body as he reclined in a leather seat in the V.I.P lounge of his club and tossed back a shot of tequila, not bothering with either lemon or salt. He was feeling more than a little pissed off. He hated it when people were not punctual. Patience was not one of his strong qualities. A sexy brunette sidled close to him on the leather and placed her hand on his thigh.

  "Not now, Olivia," he growled and she pouted and moved away.

  Closing his eyes, Armaan exhaled a rough breath. He was not enjoying himself tonight. The popular Milan club was alive and pumping but he did not know why he was not in the mood to just grab a hot body and grind against it on the dance floor. He had never failed to enjoy himself in a club before.

  "My man! How's it going?"

  Armaan's eyes flew open upon hearing his best friend's voice. "Fuck off, Alex."

  The other guy simply grinned and lowered himself into the seat opposite Armaan's. "Hey, look, I know you hate waiting and stuff but I have a really good explanation." Alex waited for the other guy to ask what it was but when Armaan did not, Alex continued anyway. "Traffic was hell, okay, and my battery was low so I didn't call." He held up his phone and grimaced.

  Shrugging, Armaan poured Alex a drink and a relaxing of the tautness around his handsome mouth was the only indication that he was not as angry as he had been.

  "Oh and wait till you hear about my latest client. She's hot and talented and she is going to make me very rich." Alex stopped when the other guy held up a hand.

  "Alex, I'm not interested in hearing about your clients, alright? You know I have a flight to catch at two so let's talk about when you will be joining me in Amira. Ammi is eager to see you again."

  Alex sighed and downed the bourbon. "Bro, this new deal is going to take up a lot of my time. I have so much to do-"

  "Si, I get it." Alex's career sounded boring to Armaan. He did not have anything against books. In fact, he was a voracious reader in private but he was just not interested in knowing how the books happened to make it to the stores.

  Picking up a package with blue and silver wrapping, he handed it to Alex. "This is what I wanted to give you. A birthday present from Ammi." He made a face. "She made me promise to hand it to you personally and now, it's almost midnight. I still need to pack and get to the goddamned airport. One more drink and I'm off."

  Alex had been smiling at the present and then his expression grew serious. He placed the package carefully on the small chrome table in front of him and helped himself to some more bourbon from the bottle that had been provided. "Before you leave, I need to talk to you about Jasmine."

  His tone was urgent and Armaan paused in the act of tossing back another shot of tequila to frown at him. "Who?"

  "Jasmine Khan. She's the new writer my company signed up. I think I'm in love with her," Alex confessed in a rush.

  Armaan snorted and downed the tequila. "You just met her this morning, dumb ass." This time, he sucked on a piece of lemon.

  "She's something else. Sexy but innocent."

  Laughter escaped from his best friend's mouth. "Really?" His tone was cynical and he nodded his head in time to the music, looking over at Olivia who was busy showing off her moves on the dance floor. Maybe she would still want to mess around a little before he boarded that plane.

  An exasperated sigh left Alex and he turned on his phone, scrolled for a few seconds and shoved the screen in Armaan's face. "Really."

  Whoa. Armaan stared at the dark-haired beauty on the screen. She was not smiling but he found the intense look in her eyes incredibly hot. It felt as if she was warning him off and yet, inviting him to unravel her secrets at the same time.

  He swallowed. No. Not him. Alex was on the other side of the camera. She was probably giving that impression to Alex. He observed the stubborn set of her rosy mouth and the tip of his tongue came out to touch his upper lip. Sexy but innocent.

  He frowned, thrown off balance because of his body's lightning-fast reaction and then he shoved Alex's phone back. "Thought you said your battery was dead." He raised his eyebrows in question.

  "Low. I said my battery was low." Alex grinned. "Hot, isn't she? I'm going to marry her one day."

  The third shot of tequila went down the wrong way for Armaan and he spluttered. Alex leaned forward to thump him on the back. It took a while for Armaan to recover from his shock. He wiped his watery eyes, sniffed and cleared his throat.

  "You're going to need circumcision," was the first thing he said when he could speak.

  "Hell, I'd do anything. Which is why you have to fill me in on all things Islamic. I think it'll be the way to her heart."

  Armaan gazed at him steadily. "She must be one hell of a girl."

  "She is," Alex insisted. "What have I been saying all this time? It was love at first sight. As soon as I left her, I felt like going back again." He sighed and his drink was forgotten.
"But I'll go back after I've finalized everything here with the publishers."

  Armaan was quiet for a while. He picked up another shot of tequila and then decided against it. "You'll have to ask Ammi for the all things Islamic part," he mumbled and picked up his jacket. "And I'll see you in Amira when?"

  Alex thought about it and replied, "Not anytime soon, I'm afraid. I'll be really busy with work for a while. But you'll be back in Milan in a month or so, right? Then you can meet my future wife."

  A grin slashed across Armaan's face. "You sure, bro? You remember what happens every time I meet one of your girlfriends?"

  Alex remembered. Every single one of them ended up sleeping with Armaan. He grimaced. "I wasn't serious about any of them and that was the only reason that I didn't break your neck. But I am serious about this one. Armaan, she is going to be like a sister-in-law to you from now-"

  "She hasn't agreed to marry you yet."

  "All you need to know is that she is off limits." There was a warning note in Alex's voice and Armaan stood up, shrugging into his jacket.

  "I make no promises, brother," he joked and laughed at the worried expression on Alex's face. The guy was actually biting his lip. Armaan held up both hands in mock surrender. "Okay. She's off limits. Got it."

  After a minute, Alex smiled and got up to give him a hug. "Have a safe flight."

  Armaan glanced at his watch. "Happy birthday, idiot." He hugged Alex back tightly in a display of affection and refused to let go because this was the first time since they had met when Armaan would not be celebrating Alex's birthday with him. The urgent 'summons' from Armaan's family back home had gotten in the way of that.

  Alex disentangled himself after a while and shook his head in amusement. "Hope you have a designated driver for tonight, drama queen. Would have dropped you off myself but I'm so fucking exhausted."

  "Oh, don't you worry," Armaan drawled smoothly, eyeing the brunette who had sidled up to him earlier. "She's going to be driving everything that I have tonight. Anyway, see you in a month. And keep me posted about my new sister-in-law." He winked and strolled away towards the brunette who was smiling at him seductively.