The group of four spent most of their day off in the living room sprawled out over the couches, each couple sitting opposite each other. Hannah took meticulous notes, jotting down everything. In the end they decided to have two weddings.

"Two weddings?" Mikayla protested.

"Yes, woman two! And don't even start complaining, you aren't required to do anything but show up and look gorgeous," Hannah replied.

The first wedding would take place four months from now at the end of August. It would be a small beach wedding on the island of Tobago so that all of Mikayla's Caribbean family could easily attend.

Damien had suggested it, seeing as Mikayla was from the islands, and it was only fitting that a beach wedding be done. It would be a more intimate wedding, with Damien's immediate family as well as his closest friends.

While back in London, a month after returning from Tobago, there would be a second ceremony. This would include whomever from Mikayla's family that were available to fly to London to attend, as well as all of Damien's business associates and the rest of his family and friends.

Hannah excitedly said, "I'll liaise with Aunty Cynthia so that she can get me all the contacts for your family members."

"Oh God's!" Mikayla interjected, "You better keep an eye on her, she'll end up inviting the whole damn island!

Butting in Damien said with a smile, "She's your mother love. Allow her, it's not like we can't afford it."

"Exactly!" Hannah pipped in as she went onto say, "Anyway, as I was saying, your mother will send me a list with the best Tobago venues for us to go over. While Mrs. Clemons has been helping me with some of the vendors in London so it's just to finalise which we're going to choose from."

Mikayla grumbled and lay her head on Damien's chest, "Can't we just elope?"

"Over my rotting corpse!" Hannah exclaimed before Damien could get to answer, pointing her pen at Tariq she stated, "And you, Mr. Oil Tycoon. You will help me with the contact list for D-Man's side as well as whatever I see fit to give you to do."

Tariq saluted and replied, "Yes boss!"

She squinted her eyes as she looked at him, the way he said boss caused her body to react and Hannah had to take a deep breath to calm herself.

"It all seems like so much, I don't know if I can handle all of this insanity," Mikayla said.

With a big smile Hannah stated proudly, "It'll be fine, I come from a long line of lunatics, so I will handle it for you."

Damien and Tariq could not help but laugh out at Hannah's statement before her swift side eye silenced them.

Continuing, Hannah said, "Besides, I know that you'd love to have all your Caribbean family and friend present. Plus, we both know that you're not overly fond of very large crowds. Which is why splitting the ceremonies into two would be easier. Can you imagine if we had everyone in one venue? Now that would be intense."

"Well, when you put it like that, I guess you're right." Mikayla said giving into the idea, "Fine! Two weddings it is! But I just want to say one thing."

"What's that Miks?" Hannah asked.

Mikayla gave both her and Damien a pointed stare, "Don't think that I don't know about the secret credit card between you two!"

"Oops, I just remembered that Tariq and I have something to do!" Damien got up with a grin.

He quickly dragged his friend out of the room with him before Mikayla could rip him a new one. The two men went out onto the balcony to start the grill. They had planned on preparing lunch, while leaving the women to continue to chat about dresses and decorations.

Mikayla grumbled as her fiancé retreated and moved over to sat next to Hannah. She cuddled into her while resting her head on her shoulder.

After a few minutes of silence, Mikayla finally spoke, "Tariq likes you."

Hannah's hand jerk, causing her to make a jiggered line through the list she was making, "W-what?" Quickly composing herself she added, "You mean he likes my vagina."

Mikayla snickered as she teased, "What's the difference?"

"Oi! Hush!" Hannah poked her with the pen.

"Seriously though, he couldn't take his eyes off of you and from what Damien told me earlier this morning, Tariq is smitten," Mikayla replied.

Running a hand through her hair to release her ponytail, Hannah said, "Poor guy."

"You're so mean Hannah!" she said with a smile while shaking her head, "Poor guy indeed."

"How? It's not like I'm leading him on. You know my stance on these things," she replied.

Nodding Mikayla said as she wiggled her eyebrows, "Yes, yes I do. I also know that," she began counting with her fingers, "you don't sleep with strangers anymore, or do repeat performances and oh most importantly, you always remember to use a condom. Did I forget anything else?"

"I hate you," she mumbled then said, "Okay fine, I'm not saying that I like him, but I can admit that I'm open to fooling around a bit more. However, your wedding is my top priority right now, not some penis, no matter how amazing it is."

"If anyone can juggle planning two weddings and getting some penis it would be you Hannah. Besides, Tariq is staying in London to help us, so you both will be spending a lot more time together," Mikayla said hopefully.

Rolling her yes Hannah scoffed, "I suppose me dating Tariq would be the ultimate wedding present for you wouldn't it."

"Oh my god, yes it would be!" she yelled excitedly.

"Too bad," Hannah's grin was short lived before she felt a cushion hit her squarely in the face.

————— ▲ —————

Later that night, Tariq offered to drive Hannah home instead of allowing Damien's driver to drop her off. He had argued that it was not a problem and since they'd be spending a lot of time together due to the wedding planning, it would be handy to know where each other lived.

While getting into the car Hannah asked, "Why did you give me the name Mael in the club as opposed to your first name?"

Chuckling he replied, "I could ask you why you didn't give me a name at all," he teased before continuing, "but if you must know, I usually use my middle name with people I just met. It was just something that Damien and I used to do when we were younger and it sort of stuck with us.

"You two are weird," she said while shaking her head.

As they drove towards Hannah's apartment in Camberwell, they idly chatted during the short twenty-five-minute drive. Occasionally Tariq would steal glances at her and he did not care that he was caught on more than one instance. The fact that she stopped complaining after the first three times was progress in his book.

"I'm hungry, do you want to go get dinner?" Tariq suddenly asked as they passed a few restaurants.

Hannah shrugged a bit, "I could eat, but I just figured that I would order in."

"Can I join you?" he dared to ask.

Tariq figured that he had nothing to lose by enquiring, he really wanted to spend more alone time with her. As they entered into the parking area of Hannah's apartment complex, she looked at him for a bit as though thinking over her reply.

After a few seconds she suddenly spoke, "Let's go inside quickly, before I change my mind."

The pair took the elevator in relative silence. Tariq noticed that the apartment complex was an old Victorian building that had been renovated. There were six floors in total and Hannah's place was located on the fourth. There were three apartments per floor.

Upon entering Hannah's apartment Tariq commented, "Nice flat."

"Thanks, I moved out here a few months ago. It's a nice two bedroom, before I was living in a one bedroom flat in Peckham," she replied.

The entrance room gave way to hallway that housed a small powder room. The hallway led to a large area with a cosy kitchen just off to the right. The rest of space in front of the kitchen doubled as a living and dining room.

Beech coloured wood floors complimented the entire space which held an eclectic mix of furniture that showed off Hannah's unique style. The living room had two large silver framed windows gave a lovely view of the courtyard below. There was also a glass door that led to a small balcony.

One side of the wall had green wallpaper and the rest were painted white in colour. There was a green two-seater couch as well as two separate beige coloured arm chairs and a black four-seater round dining room table.

The kitchen was galley style with light-coloured cupboards and an assortment of stainless-steel appliances. Tariq watched as Hannah went to one of the open shelves and pulled out a few menu options.

"What would you like to eat?" she asked.

"Anything, I'm not fussy," he said.

Scoffing a bit Hannah replied, "Uh huh, somehow I have trouble believing that." After a few moments she said, "Chinese it is then."

While waiting for their food they talked a bit about themselves. Hannah learned that Tariq was an only child and that he was born in Qatar, spending his early years there before moving to France. He had met Damien while in boarding school and the pair had been inseparable ever since.

She also discovered that he was very close to his parents and valued their opinions greatly. It did not come as a surprise to her that he had worked all over the world having remembered what Mikayla had told her about his consultations. Hannah found it interesting that he spent a lot of time working in Dubai. He told her that he had fallen in love with the city while on a training program. She also learned that besides having a PhD in geology he also held an MBA.

"Wow, an oil tycoon with multiple degrees? I guess you don't just sit on your ass all day doing nothing then," she chuckled.

Smiling he replied, "I told you there's a lot about me you don't know."

In turn, Tariq learned that Hannah was also an only child. That she was not close to her parents at all and did not accept their financial support. It was yet another thing that he respected her for as he could relate to wanting to carve a reputation for oneself without relying on the family name.

He discovered that her father had a separate account with her name on it and deposited large sums monthly. However, Hannah never used the account for personal reasons. She never touched the money unless she was using it to donate to various charities.

From their talks, Tariq got a better understanding of her views where sex and relationships were concerned. He realised the impact that her parent's dysfunctional marriage had on her young impressionable mind. Coupled with the betrayal of Oscar, Tariq understood why Hannah indulged in one-night stands.

While he may not have agreed with the way she chose to cope with things, it did not change how he felt about her. To him, he felt that her previous lovers did not appreciate who Hannah truly was. Coupled with the fact that Hannah herself may have been unconsciously looking for some form of emotional connection from them.

Though, he believed that she never found it, as those men did not have what it took to capture her attention. After all, with one short encounter, she had broken her rule for him. Even if they both did not understand why.

Tariq also learnt that she loved her marketing job and was very good at it. Having recently gotten promoted to Marketing Communications Manager.

"Well with such a work portfolio, planning a wedding should be a walk in the park for you," Tariq commented.

"Indeed, I don't know why Damien insisted that you help," Hannah teased as she added, "If I can't decide on which rocks to use, I'll definitely be sure to call you."

Tariq laughed, "Ouch! I'll have you know that many people use rock and mineral decorations at their weddings."

Her hearty giggles were interrupted by the doorbell and Tariq beat her in standing and going to the door where he paid for their food and brought the bags into the kitchen. Going to his side, she showed him where the plates were as they dished out their dinner and moved back to the couch.

"I would also like to add that I'm very good with choosing colours and patterns. I'm sure you're well aware that my mother Chloe turned her passion for modelling into a fashion empire," he said.

"Don't worry, I'll be exploiting all your skills." she said before continuing, "Speaking of your mother. I wanted to ask, how did your parent's relationship work. Mikayla told me that your father is Muslim and your mother is Roman Catholic. What was it like growing up, did you have to choose a side?"

Tariq smiled, very happy at her question. Usually, people just assumed that he was Muslim based on his name and often times judged him for it. That was until they found out how rich his family was, then his religion did not matter, only how deep his pockets were.

"I grew up in an inter-faith household, much to the disdain of my grandparents on both sides. My father's parents wanted him to marry a nice Muslim girl. You could imagine their shock when he fell in love with a model who graced the covers of numerous magazines, sometimes in nothing but a swimsuit," he chuckled towards the end as though remembering a private joke. "but that's my father. Qasim always did what he wanted, to hell with what others thought."

Nodding in understanding she said, "I like your father already. And well, being a Catholic myself, I'm pretty sure that your mother's parents weren't too fond of her marrying a Muslim. I mean back when your parents met it wasn't as in your face as it is now. But, it's common knowledge that to grow up Muslim nowadays means to grow up to be feared."

"Indeed, there were ideas of stereotypes and judgements from both sides. However, my parents made it work. They didn't see the need to convert to keep their love alive. I grew up in a home where there was a Quran next to the Bible," he said.

They continued chatting as they finished their dinner. Hannah took their plates to the kitchen and plopped back down onto the couch. She found herself fascinated by his background and wanted to know more.

"So, where did that lead in your upbringing? Are you a Muslim or a Catholic?" she asked.

"I'd like to think that I am both, you'd be surprised at some of the similarities each faith has. I go to Masjid with my father as well as I go to Mass with my mother. I am well versed in the two religions and at the end of the day I believe in God. After all, baptizing a child as Catholic will not make them a Catholic. Just as it's the same with if they were to be called a Muslim, it doesn't make them a Muslim," Tariq said as he took a sip of his water.

Hannah cocked her head to the side and teased, "So you don't have the short beard because you're Muslim?"

Tariq's head tilted back as he laughed loudly, "You can't imagine how many times I've been asked that question. But no, I have a short beard simply because I hate the hassle of shaving clean. That and well, I think it makes me look more handsome."

Unconsciously her right hand came up to caress his cheek, enjoying the feel of his facial hair against her palm. Their eyes locked and Hannah immediately climbed onto his lap. Tariq's hands came to rest on her hips, his fingers grazing the material of her jeggings.

"This is so strange for me," she sighed as leaned forward and nuzzled their cheeks together.

With a throaty sigh he replied, "What is?"

"You being here, I have never brought a man that I've been intimate with back to my apartment. I'm trying to figure out what it means," Hannah's hands moved to run through the hair on his head.

"Hopefully that you don't see me as family," he joked, trying to ease the tension he felt in her.

She spluttered softly, "God's no."

"How about you don't think, just feel and let everything flow as it should," Tariq suggested.

Pulling back her face so that she could look at him, "I told you that I don't do relationships."

With a slow smile he countered simply, "You also told me that you don't sleep with the same man more than once. Yet here we are. I'm not asking for a relationship Hannah, at least not yet," he paused for a second then stated, "I'm just asking you not to push me away."