Three Wishes Chapter 3

After they ate, Christine showed Tariq around the house. She introduced him to the television, which he instantly became fascinated with and the stereo, which equally held his attention. She showed him the bathroom and how the indoor plumbing worked. By the time she was done, it was late. Tariq had asked so many questions, that Christine soon lost count.

“Listen Tariq, I am really tired, so I am going to bed. Your welcome to do whatever it is you do. There is a guestroom to the right of my room that you can use or you can return to your lamp. It makes no difference to me.” Christine yawned.

“I would like to watch the television for a while, if you don’t mind,” Tariq replied, looking over at the large screen TV up against the far wall.

“Great, he’s here less than 8 hours and he’s a couch potato already,” Christine joked. “Go ahead. Just keep the volume down, okay? Good night, Tariq.” She smiled.

Tariq turned his attention back to Christine. Reaching out his hand, he caressed her cheek with his long fingers. He moved them until they caught her chin, lifting her face to his. Before Christine could decipher what he was going to do, he leaned forward and kissed her. His lips brushed against hers again and again, nibbling on her bottom lip for a brief moment before ending the kiss.

“Good night, my sweet princess. May you rest well tonight,” he said softly.

Christine numbly turned and went up the staircase to her bedroom. As she got ready for bed, the kiss played over and over in her mind until she thought she’d go nuts. “May you rest well, he says. HA! He’s got some nerve to kiss me like that then tell me to rest well.” Christine climbed into bed and turned off the small lamp on her nightstand.

Neither Christine nor Tariq were aware of the private investigator sitting in his car parked across the street, watching.

The next morning Christine woke early. She got up as usual and slowly made her way into her bathroom. Turning on the showerhead, she got the water to the temperature she wanted, then stripped off her nightshirt and stepped into the shower. She let the hot water run over her and she began to wash up. When she was finished, she reached for her towel and dried off. Wrapping the towel around her body, she tucked it in front so that it would stay on. She grabbed her comb and began to comb the tangles out of her hair. She brushed her teeth and left the bathroom.

“Good morning, Christine.”

Christine shrieked and spun towards the voice. “Oh my god! You scared me to death!” She put her hand to her chest and leaned against the wall. “You are real! I thought maybe I dreamed yesterday.”

Tariq stared at her. His eyes traveled down her towel-wrapped body and back up again. Her legs were long and slender and the towel parted slightly against her upper thigh, revealing more creamy skin, his breathing quickened. Smiling, he replied, “I am still very much here.”

“Yes, I can see that.” Taking a deep breath, Christine suddenly realized she was standing in front of a complete stranger in only a towel. “Tariq, if your going to be here a while, we need to discuss the word ‘privacy.’”

Tariq nodded. “Forgive me, I only wanted to see if you were awake yet.”

“If you’ll just wait downstairs, I’ll join you in a minute, okay?”

Tariq nodded again and turned and left. Christine let out the breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. The man was too good looking for his own good, Christine thought to herself. She dressed quickly and went downstairs to join him.

Christine showed Tariq how the coffee maker worked. He stood and watched it drip coffee into the glass pot, fascinated. She showed him how the microwave worked and introduced him to the refrigerator. He watched her make breakfast at the stove, hovering over her shoulder to the point that she was beginning to get annoyed. But the expressions on his face amused her so she put up with it. After they ate, Christine took him outside into the back yard. Tariq stared in awe at the large grassy yard. He carefully examined the patio furniture and barbeque grill. Christine explained everything as they went along. But it wasn’t until she showed him her car that Christine realized how innocent Tariq was to this century. He was like a small child on Christmas morning, opening packages and making new discoveries.

“Would you like to go for a ride?” she asked him, smiling. His eyes wide, Tariq could only nod. Christine went back inside to get her purse. When she came back out she realized that Tariq was still only wearing those billowy black pants and black type slippers. “Ah Tariq?”

“Yes?” He turned to look at her, his eyes dancing with excitement.

“You’re going to need to put some more clothes on,” she said, wondering if he would understand.

Tariq thought a moment. “You mean like the men on the television?”

“Yes.” Christine smiled. He caught on quickly. Before she could blink, Tariq had clothes on. Blue jeans, a dark blue tee shirt and black boots. Christine gasped softly and the sudden change. She looked around quickly, but saw no one about.

“Tariq, you can’t do that outside.”

“Why not?” he asked curiously.

“Because of what you are. If people found out I had a real live Genie, it would cause all kinds of trouble. The media would be hounding me, scientists would be wanting to pick you apart and not to mention all the greedy people that would try to break in to my house to steal the Lamp,” Christine explained urgently.

Tariq didn’t understand the media or the scientists, but he did understand greedy people and what greed caused people to do. He did not wish any harm to come to Christine or her home. “I understand. I promise I will be more discreet in the future.”

Christine smiled. “Come on, let’s go.” She showed him how to open the car door and he slid into the passenger seat. Christine walked around and slid into the driver side and slipped the key into the ignition. But it was another hour before she was done explaining everything inside the car to Tariq before she could even start the engine.