The Accountant's Affair
"Divorced accountant Nadia handles the finances for family businesses across Birmingham. When widower Rashid's shop needs saving, their spreadsheets become surprisingly romantic."
The Accountant's Affair
"Your books are a disaster."
Rashid winced. "That bad?"
"You've been operating at a loss for two years." Nadia closed her laptop. "How are you still open?"
"Stubbornness. My wife started this shop. I can't let it fail."
The mention of his late wife softened her. "I'll help. Let me see what we can save."
Saving his business took months of late nights—restructuring, renegotiating, the unglamorous work of making numbers balance.
But somewhere between balance sheets and takeaway dinners, something shifted.
"You're remarkable," Rashid said one evening.
"I'm good with numbers."
"You're good with people." He set down his chai. "You understood what this shop meant before I explained."
"I understood loss." She met his eyes. "Different kind, but still."
The kiss happened over profit margins—romantic in its own way.
"This is unprofessional," Nadia whispered.
"This is inevitable." Rashid cupped her face. "I've been falling for months."
"Same." She pulled him closer. "Finally."
They made love in his stockroom—surrounded by the business they'd saved together.
"I never expected this," Rashid admitted. "After Fatima, I thought I was done."
"We're never done. Just... paused." She kissed him. "Ready to unpause?"
He made love to her with the dedication of a man given a second chance.
"Meri jaan," he breathed. "You saved more than my shop."
"We saved each other." She pulled him deeper. "Fair exchange."
"My kids will have questions," Rashid said afterward.
"Mine too." She smiled. "We'll figure it out. We're both good at problem-solving."
"Is that what this is?"
"This is everything." She kissed him. "Now let's balance this particular book."
The shop thrived under their joint management.
The families merged as smoothly as their accounts.
Best investment either of them ever made.