**Rasul had been up for a few hours already and had shut himself away in his office; working away at an impossibly complicated document – he'd always had a head for numbers and, although he never would let his wife know it, he made a lot of income from sorting out the financial accounts of other wealthy families. It was quite unbelievable how dreadful others' finances were. True, many men were very protective of their affairs and so only called on his assistance when they were already in a good deal of trouble.**
**Still, untangling the assets of other Lords could end up being lucrative – a good deal of his work involved persuading stubborn aristocrats to give up some of the luxuries they had become used to and inflicting a strict budget on them until their debts were paid. Of course, he rarely did this for free – and always factored in a healthy payment to himself. Obviously, this head for numbers did do him some favours – he was meticulous in his own finances...**
**His wife, though? Ugh. She seemed utterly useless with such things. She was raised like most young noble ladies – with a mentality that money was limitless and that their rich husband would buy whatever they desired for them and cater to their every whimsy. Flavia was in for a shock if she thought that he would cater to her flights of fancy...**
**Rasul knew nothing of the new guests in his home. It was very doubtful he would have been too pleased to have heard of them either... especially given the experiences they had with Flavia so far. Of course, he already had his suspicions of his wife's infidelity... the instant he had proof of it, he would likely advise her father of her treachery. It would be a quick way of receiving compensation and of leaving their marriage with all the shame and disgrace landing on Flavia instead.**
**Well-manicured fingers brushed through unruly spikes of black hair and his handsome face kept a thoughtful frown as he studied the document in front of him. As footsteps approached his office, he lifted his intelligent chocolate-brown eyes, tilting his head very slightly. It was unusual for the servants to disturb him... so he could only imagine that someone had visited unexpectedly...**
"Ugh."