Guard my Heart (gay) ✔️

3. Marwon.

Since their return from Paris, Tarek noticed that Nathan regularly challenged him. The scolding he had given him after that distasteful scene in the car had done nothing to put him in his place. On the contrary. Nathan didn't pass up an opportunity to tease him.
Repeated requests to stop this fell on deaf ears and Tarek was near despair.
Everywhere he went, he felt Nathan's eager gaze. It disrupted his own carefully constructed daily schedule, much of which was spent on admiring Nathan's muscular body from a distance. But how could you swoon over someone unnoticed when they constantly demanded your attention and pulled silly jokes?

His biggest challenge, however, lay in the many moments when he trained with Nathan. Physical contact fulfilled a deeper need to be closer to him and his growing skill forced Nathan to full concentration. Not that he ever won from him, but still. "What do you think of the new tracksuits?" gasped Nathan pinning him on the ground.
Tarek stubbornly stuck his chin forward.
Like he didn't already know this. He was sure Nathan had noticed his reaction. His mouth had spontaneously opened when Nathan made his entrance. With no possibility had he been able to hide his admiration for the clean lines of Nathan's muscular body.

"Perhaps you can get of me?" he replied curtly.
Nathan looked down on him grinning, shifted his weight, but made no attempt to release him.
"Why? I'm fine here," he teased, enjoying his supremacy.
Tarek closed his eyes. The position of Nathan's body left him anything but unbothered. It took extreme effort to control the whirlwind of emotions. The situation was too intimate and he had no experience to fall back on. In an ultimate attempt at body preservation, he tested Nathan's grip on his body. As expected, he found no weaknesses.

The rest of their little training group had long since left and so they were here alone.
"Nathan!" he cried frustrated.
"Tarek!" Nathan taunted him.
Black eyes flashed fire.
"Why are you doing this?" spat Tarek angrily. 
Nathan raised his eyebrows mockingly.
"You mean my work?"
Blue eyes full of vice looked down on him glistening. It filled him with all too familiar despair.

Nathan was enjoying the overt frustration Tarek showed him. Not for the gloating, but because of the growing number of dents in his armor. It filled him with pleasure that Tarek was no longer able to shut him out. His presence was sometimes enough to provoke a reaction.
A sound signal marked the end of the training session and an end to their stalemate.
"Saved by the bell," he grinned letting his grip slack.

Tarek immediately took action, struggled and disappeared without saying a word. Frowning, Nathan looked after him.
'Okay. That was, to put it mildly, unusual. Tarek never left him the last word.' Nibbling on his lower lip, he scrolled through his daily schedule. After lunch, he escorted the old man to a meeting. The pout transformed into a wolfish grin. It offered him the perfect opportunity to push Tarek a little further as he had no opportunity to flee.

Marwon observed his grandson with growing amusement. There was something that disrupted his usual cool efficiency and a quick look to the right gave him his answer. Nathan was subtle, he had to admit, but there was nothing that escaped his sharp senses. He thought it was a positive development that Tarek's normal routine seemed to falter. His favorite grandson (and this was a public secret) could use some turmoil in his life. Marwon was all too aware of the unspeakable feelings Tarek struggled with. In his view, Nathan was the perfect person to free him from his self-imposed loneliness.

Tarek came out with his papers. Just because he didn't contradict his grandfather didn't mean he agreed with his actions. It simply could not have escaped the man's attention  that Nathan was blatantly challenging him. He would have believed it from someone else, but not Marwon Al-Din. Except he didn't understand why his grandfather didn't reprimand Nathan for his brutality. Preferably as publicly as possible.
It had become painfully clear to him during the sparring session this morning that he was losing the fight. Nathan would never step back on his own. He took a look at Nathan who caught his gaze immediately.

Despite the seats in the conference room being mostly filled and Nathan was attentive to all those present, it felt like they were alone. Under different circumstances, he had been flattered. Reality, however, made him realize that this could no longer continue.
Confronting him was not an option. The underlying cause of his resistance was too sensitive. Discovery was equal to banishment. He had seen it happen to others and swore that this would not be his destiny!

He saw no other option but to quit his job as PA and accept a less prominent role within the company. 'Maybe his father was willing to include him on his staff?'
"Tarek!" he heard shouting in such a tone that he could infer that it wasn't the first time.
He nodded an apology to his grandfather and concentrated on his work.

Nathan bit a grimace. This was absolutely not his intention. The sharp rebuke was just a harbinger of the scolding that would undoubtedly follow. He wanted to spare Tarek the disappointment in those wise old eyes and take the blame. It seemed only fair to him since it was his fault. As soon as he saw the opportunity, he addressed the old man with his head bowed.

"With your approval, Mr. Al-Din. Tarek doesn't deserve your reprimand. If you want to punish someone for the situation during the meeting, choose me."
Marwon laughed in his fist. Exactly the reaction he had hoped for.
"And why would that be?" he thumped in heavy voice.
"I distracted him, sir," Nathan declared, bending a little deeper.
"Nonsense! I didn't notice anything about that," Marwon grumbled with glistening eyes.
"Understandable. It was very subtle, sir."
"Gotcha!" gloated Marwon triumphantly.

Too late, Nathan realized his mistake. He hastily fell to his knees.
"My deepest apo..."
An angry roar interrupted him.
"Apparently I have two sermons on my agenda," the man shouted loudly enough to be overheard.
Many listeners shuddered and were grateful that they escaped this fate. He saw it and smiled contentedly.

Half an hour later, two men stood in front of his desk. Both with head bowed, slightly spread legs and hands on the back.
"Declare yourself, Tarek," he demanded. 
Tarek raised his head, but made no eye contact.
"I have no explanation for my behavior, grandfather. Would you please accept my resignation as your Personal Assistant?"
Marwon frowned. This was an unexpected development. Totally unacceptable of course, but very interesting. His eyes slid to Nathan who visibly struggled not to respond.
"I can only assume you have a hand in this?" he barked at the man.

"Leave Nathan out of this," Tarek pleaded. "I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions."
Two heads turned to him with the same implausible expression.
"How can you say that when you just quit your job?" Nathan protested. "And I don't believe you when you say I have nothing to do with this."
"I agree with him," Marwon agreed.
He touted his lips.
"I have taught the blood from my blood not to give up when the battle proves difficult. Winning is a matter of the longest breath."

His decision was made.
"If you want me to take your transfer request seriously, Tarek, you have to beat Nathan."
He looked at Nathan sternly. "Listen to me, son. If Tarek beats you, you're fired."
Both men looked as if a bomb had exploded.
'Beautiful,' Marwon thought. 'Now they knew who pulled the strings around here.'