Movie Star Prince - Completed.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Heather stepped out of the room, running shaky hands down the plain sky-blue summer dress that she had brought with her, hair braided, basic make-up, and no jewellery. Ziyad already dressed, back to her, on the phone, staring out the glass balcony door, immaculately dressed as usual.

A tailored suit, collar lose, tie-free.

Looking down at the dress, she turned and headed back into the room, only to sit down on the bed, flicking through her phone, finger hovering over her brother's number to shut down.

Standing, she crossed over to the built-in wardrobe, opened and removed the red dress and his sister's designer dress only to replace it. Something she had never worn in her life before, Ziyad, looked back down at the dress.

Something more than her mother was used to seeing her in. If she changed would be too radically, alarm bells would clang loudly in her mother's head. The girl next door to what? Shifting her mouth back and forth, back on the bed, glancing across as Ziyad entered without knocking. He didn't have to, also he didn't just barge in.

Standing, her legs gave a wobble as she turned towards him with a forced smile on her lips, hands twisting together, fighting the urge to bolt for the nearest exit.

Ziyad had organised everything to make this happen, when she had been dragging her feet, hoping they would head back before they could meet up. Ziyad wasn't having a bar of that, determined to meet her family.

Surely that meant something more substantial than just getting to know each other. Meeting her parents didn't that mean there was more than just a passing moment in time? How could it not? Her heart pumping that bit faster, hands clasped tighter.

He didn't return the smile as his golden gaze swept over her, features taut. "Are you seriously going to wear that?" he asked. Heather blanched, tossing the plait over her shoulder. Another thing she hadn't done since meeting Ziyad.

"Yes, well, this is what my parents expect me to wear." His brow shot up, shaking his head, stepped in further, passed her to the open wardrobe, and removed the two dresses she just place back before he entered. Dismayed, she shook her head. "No, far too dressy for where we would be going."

He glanced down at his clothes of the finest quality and tailored cut to his body. No tie and the top two buttons were undone, just the way she liked it. Yet tonight was different. Her fingers twitched to do up those dangerous buttons that exposed too much of his deliciousness that she didn't need.

Thrusting his sister's dress towards her. "I organised the restaurant. Do you really think I would skimp on such an important dinner, meeting your parents?" That was the problem. She had never brought a date before. Her mother's reaction hadn't helped her confidence.

The last thing she wanted to expose was her past. Or Dale. He had done nothing wrong, apart from breaking the rule not to have friends around while they had gone away for the weekend. No partying allowed. Not a party, just a gathering of friends that had gone wrong.

"Of course you did and only the best for you," she sank back on the bed, her stomach pitching in a downward spiral.

"For your parents," he corrected, placing the dress on the bed beside her. "Whatever you want to wear is your choice. I think it's a pity you don't want to show who you are now."

"The same," she mumbled under her breath, head hanging. He could never understand she had been hiding for far too long apart from him. Surely, this had to be a colossal mistake.

However, Ziyad was correct this wasn't good enough, reaching out to touch the dress at her side that she wanted to wear in the first place. She loved it and wouldn't have too many opportunities to wear it. Her eyes shot up. "I'm not wearing the necklace," she blurted out before he suggested it.