Yaadein - Part 39

 

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Chapter 39



The pool was big and warm.


“Do you swim here?” he asked staring at his wife’s beautiful dove-shaped eyes. In black Jeans and pink sleeveless top, she looked younger and even more gorgeous.

“Sometimes” she nodded.

“Why don’t you wear such outfits in Shantivan? They suit you”

Khushi bit her lip to hide her blush. At Shantivan she had chosen to wear simple Salwars and Sarees.

“Thanks for the compliment. I didn’t know western outfits impress you so much”

His gaze never left hers.

“Anything you wear, makes you look spectacular and impresses me”


Really? If he said such cheesy lines, she wouldn’t be able to leave for work.


“Why are you so stuck with the poolside? If you spend so much time here, when will I show you the other rooms?”


Arnav knew she was getting late.

“I will see them myself, after you leave for work, if you don’t mind me snooping around here”

“With pleasure” she smiled leaning closer, inhaling his aftershave. “I have nothing to hide from you anymore”

“Absolutely nothing” he repeated stroking her cheek with his thumb. She couldn’t breathe. She had missed this… him.. his touch.. his voice. Curbing that strong urge to snuggle into his arms, she withdrew herself and smiled.

“I will go change. The food is ready if you can just heat it up and serve yourself”

“You wont eat?”

“I can’t be late. I had some sandwiches an hour ago so, I will be fine”

“Okay”

He watched her painfully as she put distance between them and headed to her room. HER ROOM!! Despite being husband-wife, despite being so much attracted to each other, they didn’t share a room which pained Arnav but he knew that day wasn’t far when this would change and it will be a moment to remember.. He will ensure that happens soon.


******************


It had been an hour since Khushi left for work and Arnav was alone in the Villa. He missed her already but having no other choice than to wait for her, he strolled through the Villa. He had already seen the living room, Kitchen and poolside. So, he started with the Gym. It wasn’t a fully equipped personal gym but still had the basic machines for a normal workout. He liked how Khushi had ensured to keep this house well furnished with all the modern facilities and still keep it so cozy and private. After the Gym, Arnav made his way to her bedroom. He was little hesitant to step in there but Khushi was his wife and he had every right to see her room and imagine her daily routine in there. The room was even more cozy than he had thought. The thick pink curtains and light pink bedsheets were the highlights of that room. Her closet was full of western outfits and his body suddenly stiffened with desire to see his wife in each one of these clothes. She also had a collection of books, mainly romantic fictions, cookery books and some on diet and health tips. There was one book which picked his attention. It was at the top corner of the bookshelf and looked mainly like a personal diary. He removed it and flipped the pages. It was his wife’s personal diary where she wrote few lines of her daily routine, her feelings, her misery. He never knew she maintained something like this. Not willing to invade her private feelings, he decided to put it back on the rack but a thought of teasing his wife tickled his mind. He removed his phone, clicked a picture of the diary and sent a message to Khushi with a caption.


‘Found this’


Within a minute, he got her reply.


‘Don’t read it. Please’


He smiled innocently at her denial and typed back.


‘You said NO SECRETS’


He flopped on the small one-seater couch and waited for her reply. Curiosity of what she wrote inside kept getting high each second. When she didn’t reply even after a minute, he typed back.


‘I won’t read it if that’s what you want’


Her response was instant this time.


‘Go on.. Read it.. you have my permission’


Arnav didn’t debate. He had her permission and that’s all he needed to flip the pages and go through it. Khushi had expressed her feelings about her loneliness, her partial memory loss, her sudden desire to have a life partner and babies, her first cooking experience after coming to Auckland, her dreams, her first skiing story, etc. She had voiced everything briefly yet it touched his heart and he could imagine her state of mind while penning down these things in her diary. Khushi was such a changed woman now. He kept flipping the pages again and realized that Khushi didn’t carry this diary in India. It was here all the time and hence when she returned to this Villa a week ago, she continued writing it again. He started reading the last few pages.


‘I have a son… Aarav.. I am his mother. He is everything I want in my life. I will never abandon him again. He is my soul and had I knew he existed; I would fight the world to be with him’


Arnav’s chest burned reading those lines. He could easily relate how much she loved their son and what a grave mistake he did all these years by keeping her away from this truth. He turned the page and there was one whole paragraph she had written about him.


‘I dreamt of us tonight. Arnav and me.. Here in Auckland.. in this Villa.. In my room.. on my bed. Will that happen? I can’t tell him. I don’t have to tell him. He can read that in my eyes and I see the same in his when we talk over video calls. I wish he comes here and fulfils my dream. He is all I need to complete my life again. I like him more when he is jealous. Even when I was out with Tanmay for drinks in the pub the other night, I couldn’t focus on anything or any topic we talked. I wanted Arnav to know I am in my limits. I knew he will trust me and he did. Tanmay even told me I look like a love sick cat who wants to cuddle her partner for the rest of her life, doing nothing else. He is right. I feel the same. Arnav is all I want. If only, he was here.. Right now’


Arnav closed the diary and leaned back on the couch, shutting his eyes. Damn!! This woman.. his wife would be the end of him if she keeps penning her thoughts like this…


********************

Khushi unlocked the door and stepped in the house. It was well lit and she couldn’t wait to know what her husband was doing in there? Was he still reading her diary? It was two hours back when she gave him the permission to read and if he was that interested, he might have finished reading all of it by now. She heard some voices from the kitchen. It was Arnav and Aarav’s voice. They were on a video call probably. She quickly stepped out of her shoes and coat and tip toed there. Arnav had leaned on the kitchen slab, to talk to his son on his 10-inch tablet.


“Mom” Aarav shouted as she saw Khushi entering the kitchen. Arnav then turned and looked at her. His face held no hints of his thoughts. She was curious to know what he read, how much and what he felt about it?

“Hi Sweetheart” Khushi said to Aarav, reaching beside her husband to be in the same frame of the video call. “How was your test?”

“Good” he replied. “I lost my new pencil though. Daadu got me another one”


The next three minutes, Khushi and Aarav talked nonstop. He told her how Anjali made a cake last night and it was the best he had so far. Today both his grandfathers were taking him out for a night drive and he had asked them to take him to the same ice cream parlor which was his and Khushi’s favorite.


“I painted today Mom. Let me show you” he said before running out of the room, probably to get that painting work. Khushi finally met Arnav’s gaze again.

“How did you spend your day?” she asked indirectly.

“Strolled in the Villa. I loved your room. It’s cute. And the rest of the time, I read your diary”


Her cheeks turned pink at the mention of it.

“Very expressive Mrs. Raizada” he smirked.

There was no softness in his eyes or lips which could give her any clue of what he felt.

“Mom”

Aarav was back on the screen and they shifted their attention on him. The next two minutes passed as they both appreciated Aarav’s artwork. Arnav promised to get it framed once they are back. Ayush intruded their convo telling Aarav his friend had come to play. They quickly winded up the talk and Arnav disconnected the call, focusing back on his wife.

“How was your Office today?” 

“Good” she nodded. “We will never talk about that diary again”

“That’s not happening” Arnav pinned her to the kitchen counter. “I have so much to ask you..”

“Not happening” she placed her palms over his chest, to stop him from moving forward. “I allowed you to read, not cross question”

“I have doubts” he teased.

“Keep them to yourself”


She turned around and realized he had cooked something. It was better to change the topic.

“You cooked?”

“Pasta”


That was her favorite. Did Arnav read about Pasta in her diary? She might have mentioned her love for Pasta in it for sure.


“Go change” he murmured. “I will serve till then”


She didn’t argue as she was famished. She had skipped lunch so having Pasta which her husband cooked was like a dream come true for both Khushi and her stomach.

“I’ll be back in 15 minutes”


She quickly strode back to her room. When she came down again, Arnav was serving in the plates. She had forgot to appreciate his present look. In a maroon T-Shirt and black trackpants, he looked very.. handsome. Just this one look of his was enough to fill the emptiness she didn’t knew existed in her. It was her decision to take things slow but if he was capable of luring her just by his look, she knew how bad she was going to fail in her own resolve.


“Dinner’s ready” he mentioned to get her attention. She had practically stopped to admire him. Feeling flushed that he realized it, she made her way to the table. They talked about her day and also her plans to show him the city of Auckland tomorrow which he couldn’t wait to explore with her. Since he knew skiing too, they decided to start their day with it. Khushi appreciated his cooking, though it wasn’t very authentic, she loved that her husband had put so much of efforts to cook for her.


“I have something for you” he said when they finished the dinner and put the plates in the sink. “Come”


He caught Khushi’s hand and took her in his room. She waited patiently until he opened his bag and removed a small golden box from inside.

“Present?” she teased.

“No, it’s not a present. But it’s yours and you should have it back”


Khushi was confused but she didn’t waste time thinking. She opened the box and her body froze. She was hoping to get this since the time she had started staying in Shantivan again. It was her Mangalsutra.. with black and gold beads and a small diamond pendant. Tears brimmed in her eyes as she touched the beads and took the chain in between her fingers. Arnav observed her reactions.. it was just as he had expected.


“During your delivery, you had taken it out and since then… it was with me” he stated in an equally pained voice. He cupped her nape and stroked over her racing pulse with his thumb. “I want you to wear it again.. forever this time”

Her hands trembled as she passed on the chain to him, an indication that she wanted the same. He turned her around and slid the chain around her neck. Tears rolled down her cheeks as he hooked the Mangalsutra and met her eyes again.

“One of the best moments of my life” he purred. “to see you wearing it”


She knew just what he meant. Before she could express her feelings, Arnav leaned on her neck and kissed the beads. When his lips made contact with her neck pulse along with those beads, Khushi gave in. She wrapped her arms around him to pull him closer, to feel him like she always wanted. Arnav pulled back nuzzling his nose with hers.


“What was that dream you saw? The one you mentioned in the diary?” he asked, watching her intently.

“We decided not to talk about that diary ever” Her voice was breathy, her pulse racing.

“I didn’t agree. It was more of a single sided decision and couples should always avoid that. Why don’t you wish to talk about that diary? It’s beautiful”

“It’s not” she pouted. “It’s very.. raw and..”

“They are your feelings Khushi. They are meant to be raw”

Khushi shivered. Whether that was from the chill of the weather, his closeness, his touch, she didn’t know. The doorbell rang, breaking their stance.

“Must be the maid”

“Now?” Arnav didn’t sound happy.

“She will be done in an hour” Khushi smiled coming out of his embrace and slipped out of the room.


Arnav followed her down. The maid was old and the way she spoke to Khushi, made her sound humble and caring. Khushi quickly introduced Arnav to her as if she wasn’t less than a family to her.


“That’s Arnav.. my husband”

“Hello Sir” the maid replied. “It’s nice to have you here. Ma’am was missing her family, especially you”

“I missed her too” he replied grinning back at his wife, sliding his arm around her waist.


The public display of affection was something Khushi had avoided so far but she couldn’t do it this time. She wanted people to know she was his.. that she too had someone finally who had claimed her.


“I will get back to work” the maid said before leaving to the kitchen. Khushi looked at him. There was an unexpected tenderness in the way he stared back at her. He curled his finger around her Mangalsutra and pulled her closer.

“Seeing this around your neck is unraveling something inside me”

“Jeez” Khushi muttered flashing a dazzling smile. “Don’t get ideas Mr. Raizada”

“Wish I could stop those ideas running in my head right now”


His flirting style was excellent and worked for her but she didn’t show it off.


“You mentioned something about watching a movie together in your diary...” he asked. “Show me your collection”


Now that sounded nice. At least watching a movie together will help them spend some time together, cozy on the couch, shifting their focus on the TV screen than each other.


To be Continued

NEXT PART

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Advay Raj Bohra

What a perfect night at a Bar – Meeting a stranger and then making her pretend to be my girlfriend for winning a bet. Least did I know by the next morning she was going to be my legally wedded wife. I never wanted a marriage and the complications that came with it but one look at my accidental wife, Jiya and my emotions spiraled out of control, my life changed drastically.

Jiya Mathur

My Café house was at the risk of shutting down having no support from the bankers and financers. The only light at the end of that dark tunnel was the CEO of the Media Channel, Advay Raj Bohra. I was drawn into his Universe as he offered me a proposition I couldn’t deny.

Advay and Jiya’s worlds collide as they step into a Marriage Bubble promising no messy emotional entanglements. Will they ever want a real relationship?

Releasing this December!!

SNEAK PEEK

“I can pay for your drink”

She gives me a weird stare, as if I just proposed to her.

“No thanks. I don’t enjoy taking help from Strangers”

“It’s not a help, Ma’am,” I curtly reply. “You can always pay me later. I see you need a drink badly to stop your tears from overcrowding your heart”

Now she eases down, but surprise doesn’t leave her face yet.

“How did you know I am.. not in my best mood today?” she asks, flopping back to her seat.

“Either you can’t hide it well or I am a face-reader”

My reply brings a smile, and I am so glad that I want to pat myself.

“Well, thanks for your help. I will pay you once we are done here”

“Any time” I gulp my second shot. I can feel the difference. The drink is making me hyperactive. I don’t understand if this is the drink doing it or the woman beside me. I try not to analyze that yet.

She orders a drink for herself and quietly gulps it down and then just like me she quickly orders another one. I have seen girls drinking for fun, but this woman here, she is in pain. I can feel that.

“I am Advay Raj Bohra” I introduce myself.

“Hello Advay,” she smiles. “I am Jiya”

“Just Jiya?” I know I am grinning. Why would a woman like her want to hide her full name? “Worried I will stalk you, Jiya?”

She laughs. This time I want to kiss myself for making a sad woman laugh.

“Jiya Mathur” she replies. “I don’t really share my name with strangers that easily, but you don’t look like a stalker to me, so that’s fine”

“What do you think I am, if not a Stalker?”


She meets my eyes again, and this time with seriousness. Has the drink started affecting her too because she smiles cutely the next instant?

“You look like a Model. Are you some famous Model from India? I think I have seen you before on TV”

Now it’s my turn to laugh. The world is so small. She has seen me on TV, of course, but not Modelling. I don’t correct her though. I like to keep her guessing.

“Come on Jiya, you can do better than that”

She raises her hands in defeat.

“I give up. I am not very good in guessing” she takes a pause and becomes serious again. “In fact, I am not good in anything. I couldn’t convince them. I suck!!”

Her head falls down on the table and my fingers itch to draw it back. I am so desperate to know what’s wrong with her life.

“Broken marriage?” I ask crossing my fingers hoping she isn’t taken. I have never been so interested in a woman to be single. For me!!

“Worse than that.” She raises her head and turns to me. “Business problems” she adds.

“Business?” I am impressed.

“Why? Don’t I look like a businesswoman to you?”

“You look” I pause. I cannot describe what she looks like. She is really something I want to know.

“Forget it” she shrugs. “I don’t want to talk about it. You know why?”

“Why?”

“Because Life sucks”

“Cheers to that line” I raise my glass towards her.

“Cheers” she giggles and we gulp our respective drinks.

BOOK 1 of ACCIDENTAL MARRIAGE SERIES - MARRIAGE JITTERS 

Standalone Romance Novel of Accidental Marriage Series Book 1 

Billionaire Viren Dewan’s sister was getting married in one month and Event Manager Tarini Kaur bagged that project to plan her wedding. She struggled organizing the wedding as Viren Dewan’s classy extravagant attitude kept hurdling her work. Least did she know they had a history together, a knot which his family easily forgot and hers denied to accept. What would happen when that past resurfaced?


A roller coaster ride of a forgotten accidental marriage, claiming its identity between Innocence versus Power.

READ ON AMAZON KINDLE

BUY  PDF (Indian Readers ) by Netbanking/eWallet 

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International Readers/Indian Readers can BUY PDF by CARD HERE

_________________________________________________________

SAMPLE CHAPTERS. Read HERE

SNEAK PEEK Of Marriage Jitters. Read HERE

READ Excerpt 1 HERE

READ Excerpt 2 HERE

READ Excerpt 3 HERE