Chapter 6: Reflection

An hour later, after her mother finally left the estate, Salma went upstairs to draw a long warm bath. The bathroom filled with thick, scented steam as she sank into the deep bubble bathtub, the hot water doing nothing to ease the sudden ache in her chest. She stared at her phone for a long time before finally dialing Aria’s number. Aria’s hopeful, sweet voice came through the speaker instantly.

"Honey, How did the meeting go? How was it?"

Salma leaned her head back against the edge of the tub, watching the bubbles pop. She didn't prepare for the twist in her father's will so she didn't know what to tell Aria. She desperately considered telling her the truth right then and there, she wanted to tell her about the three unbelievably attractive men currently sleeping under her roof, and exactly how her father's feral wives had completely lost their minds over the will. She wanted to share the entire burden. But before she could speak, Aria’s excited voice cut back in.

"I can't wait for you to officially step up as the CEO, babe. I've already started contacting top designers for my own wedding dress and the planning? I will bring it up to speed once I come home. Sammy can't wait to start the fittings with me!" Aria giggled, referencing her best friend. Salma couldn't help but remember how Sammy threatened her when she first started dating Aria, the four-foot-five petite girl told her she’d break her legs if she ever hurt Aria and she had laughed it off because she genuinely believed then that she would never hurt Aria.

"She's already acting like the maid of honor." Aria continues, Salma’s swallowed hard, the words of truth dying right in her mouth. She couldn't break Aria's heart, not today. Not when Aria had been meticulously planning their dream wedding from the moment Salma had proposed to her last year over that fancy, candlelit dinner.

"Everything went fine Baby" Salma said instead, her voice straining to sound normal as she chose the safety of a lie.

"Did it?" Aria asked, leaning into the phone.

"Yes. My stepmothers only got standard stipends..." Salma lied smoothly omitting her own part of the story deliberately, her heart cracking a little further. "But my actual inheritance... I... uhmm...it won't be fully effective until a year's time. Uhm..."

"Baby, what’s the matter?" Aria’s voice shifted instantly, sounding deeply worried through the line. Salma let out a silent, ragged sigh into the empty bathroom.

"I’m just missing you, babe. It’s been a really long couple of days. I will find some time to visit the sanctuary when I can, my love... But can you do me a favor? Can you hold off on the whole wedding planning thing for just a little bit? I mean... my father just died, and the company is a mess."

A soft, disappointed gasp came from Aria’s side of the line.

"Oh. I understand, Salma. Just that... never mind." her tone suddenly becoming distant and clipped. "Uhm, Sammy actually just got here to pick me up. I think I'm going to head out for lunch with her. Can I talk to you later?"

Salma closed her eyes, she knew these exact excuses. Aria never wanted to discuss the bitter, tough topics; the moment things got uncomfortable or heavy, she suddenly always had something urgent to do with Sammy.

"Okay, Arry," Salma whispered, the old nickname tasting like ash on her tongue. "I need to get out of this bathtub anyway. Talk later, babe."

The call went completely silent, Salma dropped her phone onto the bath mat. She pulled her knees tightly against her chest, letting the hot tears finally fall freely into the water as the raw, gaping wound of her father's death, and the massive web of lies she had just spun tore through her entire soul.