Part 38
Arnav
looked at the time on his phone. It was late.
Where was
Khushi? Why hadn’t she come to bed? He had been so looking forward to teasing
her.
A small
smile on his lips, he sauntered down the steps to the living room.
He looked
around. There was absolutely no one anywhere. All had gone to bed.
He pulled
out the phone from his pocket and called her. He heard the faint sound of the
phone ringing, Chalo Maiyya ke bhavan, bhavan, bhavan.... in the kitchen before
it was cut off.
A frown
appeared on his face.
From the
kitchen? Her phone was in the kitchen? A kitchen that was locked from outside?
Or was
Khushi in the kitchen?
He smirked. Must be hiding from him, he
thought.
He made his
silent way to the kitchen door, unlocked it softly and stepped into the dark
room, shutting the door behind him, careful not to make a sound.
***
Khushi
glared at her phone in the darkness. “Can’t you remain silent?” she asked
crossly. “If Arnavji had heard your screech, then he would have barged in here
by now and would be standing here, staring at me with those...those eyes...”
The door of
the storeroom creaked.
Khushi drew
in a deep breath of fear and shock, her hazel eyes as wide as saucers.
An imposing
male figure moved to stand before her, looming over her in the darkness.
“Hey Devi
maiyya, raksha karna,” she whispered, the warm fragrance of his body hitting
her like a potent drug.
He smiled. “You
were hiding from me?” he asked softly.
“No...” she
stuttered.
He stood
silent.
She could
almost see one eyebrow arching in question.
“I—I was
just...” she began and paused. She tried again. “I didn’t feel sleepy...”
“So you
thought to chill in the storeroom?” he asked, biting back his mirth.
“No...yes...”
she fought her way through a tangle of thoughts clouding her poor, heated brain.
“No or yes?”
he insisted.
She could
hear the laughter in his voice. Miffed, she turned her head away.
He bent his
head and whispered in her ear, “Were you hiding from me?”
She said
nothing, just turned her head away so that her ear was away from his wicked
lips.
“Why should
you want to hide from me?” he mused. “What are you scared of?”
She said
nothing even as her heart raced in her chest.
“Shall I
guess?’ he murmured, his breath stirring the fine strands of hair near her ear.
“No, you
may not,” she blurted out, trying to lean away from him as far as she could.
After all, her sanity was at risk here.
He leaned in
closer and whispered, “I know. You are scared. You are scared of my touch, Khushi.”
‘How does
he know?’ ran through her head. ‘I never told him.’
“You are
scared of what my touch does to you,” he insisted, his hot breath scorching the
silky skin of her cheek.
“I am not,”
she breathed.
“You are
not?” he asked.
“I am not,”
she insisted even though she was woefully short of breath.
“Prove it,”
said the master negotiator in his husky voice.
Khushi had
a scary feeling of slipping into a deep pool of goo.
“Why..why
should I prove anything to you?” she managed to ask.
“Coward,”
he teased, his hot lips near her flushed cheek.
“I am not,”
she insisted even when she knew it was wiser to keep her mouth shut.
“Then prove
it,” he insisted.
Khushi
found herself nodding.
Slowly, one
finger touched her nose.
Khushi
jumped.
The finger
ran down to her lips and then her chin, leaving behind trails of fire.
Khushi shut
her eyes tight and held her breath.
The finger
trailed along her jaw and reached her ear to wreak havoc there.
Khushi fell
against the wall.
He crowded
her.
His finger
traced the shape of her ear, teased the lobe and moved down the side of her
neck to stop on her shoulder at the stitch of her blouse.
Khushi’s
knees gave way.
She would
have fallen to the floor in a puddle of mush if his hands hadn’t decided to
rescue her and hold her by her waist.
Khushi
gasped at the feel of his hot, hard, large hands on her bare waist.
He moved
her against the wall for support and moved closer till his body was flush
against hers. Then he cupped her face.
