by P. G. Van
“She does, and I do, too.” She hugged his arm reaching over the wide separation between their seats and planted a kiss on his arm.
“I had contacted him the last time I was in India.” Samraat’s voice was low.
Naina looked into his arms. “You… saw him?”
“I met him, spoke with him as well.”
Naina took a deep breath. “I don’t want to talk about him. Let him live the life he is living. I don’t care anymore.”
“Okay. What do you want to talk about?”
“Your family. When do I get to meet your uncle?”
Samraat smiled. “He is still in rehab for his gambling addiction, but you will meet him soon.”
“I am sorry.”
“I am the one to blame. I fueled his addiction out of gratitude and led him to this state.”
She patted his arm. “You are taking care of him, that’s what’s important. I wish I had some family, too.”
“I’m here for you.”
“I love you, Samraat. I will… I always want to be where you are. I cannot imagine spending another day without you.”
He kissed her on the forehead and adjusted her seat belt as the captain announced their descent. “Love you, too.”
She batted away happy tears and said, “People come into your life for a reason, season, or a lifetime. I never thought… I want this for the rest of my life.”
Samraat smiled, reaching up to wipe away the moisture that gathered at the edge of her eye. “I promise.”
Later that day, Samraat stepped out of his home office to find Naina standing in the patio looking out into the greenery in the back yard.
“Where did M&M go?” he asked about Mini and Marc as he walked up to Naina.
She turned to look at him smiling. “They went to do some sightseeing, and she hates it when you call them M&M.”
Samraat laughed, hugging her from behind. “I know.”
Naina smiled, turning around to face him. “I know she secretly likes it. It’s kind of cute. I don’t know why she makes such a huge deal with you.”
“It’s fun. That’s why.”
“Are you finished with your work?”
“Yes, sorry it took longer than expected.” He planted a kiss on her temple as she moved closer.
“Never apologize for that. I am just so happy to be here. The land I dreaded the most now feels like home. From the moment I stepped foot on the ground, it reminded me of Mom and Dad, happy thoughts and not the dreadful man. Why?”
He smiled, thrilled to hear her words as he held her to him. “Because you have many other memories here in this city.”
“I know. When is Mini meeting her father?”
He pulled back to look down at her. “She doesn’t want to, and I need your help with that.”
“She loves her father but is pissed at him for what happened to her mother. There is no better way to do it. You should take her to him.”
He shook his head. “She made me promise that I would not force her to go meet her father.”
Naina thought for a moment. “Invite him to join us for dinner tonight. M&M should be back by that time.”
“Are you sure about this?” Samraat asked, and Naina nodded.
A few hours later, Naina was in the bedroom, nervous about the meeting that was about to happen. Mini’s dad was on his way to Samraat’s house, and Mini and Marc were headed back as well. According to Naina’s suggestion, Samraat had invited Mini’s father to his home without letting Mini know, but he let Marc know, so they got back in time for the meeting.
Naina looked up when Samraat stepped out of his closet looking dapper in a dress shirt and pants. She smiled, her eyes on him as he walked to her. “What’s wrong, baby?”
She stood up to wrap one arm around him. “I am worried how Mini will take it.”
“I thought you said she would be fine.”
“I know, I know, but I feel like I betrayed her.” Naina shook her head.
“Naina, is this good for Mini?”
“Yes, this is good for her. I feel guilty that I dragged her with me and kept her on the run with me for the longest time.”
“Don’t be…” His voice trailed off when his phone buzzed a notification. “Mini’s father is here. Let’s go meet the man who helped me become who I am today.”
Naina followed Samraat down the stairs and heard voices from the lower floor. Samraat had a group of people who took care of the house and household activities including tasks like welcoming guests.
She stopped at the last stair and let Samraat walk ahead to greet the older man whose eyes kept roaming the room as if in search. “Mr. Sharma, so good to see you.”
“Samraat, where is she?” The way the older man asked the question, a lump formed in Naina’s throat and guilt engulfed her. She felt responsible for taking the man’s daughter away from him.
If she had not taken Mini with her when she ran away, maybe Mini would have learned to forgive her father over time. The thought made tears well to her eyes, and just then, as if sensing her pain, Samraat turned to look at her.
She stood by the stairs as Samraat excused himself to walk back to her. “Naina, let’s go.”
She shook her head. “I can’t face him, Samraat. Mini left because of me. It’s my fault.”
Samraat wiped away the moisture on her cheeks. “If you think it’s your fault, you have a way to fix it. Let’s go, Mini should be home any minute now.”
Naina clung to him as he led her to the large seating area where Mini’s dad sat looking anxious. “Mr. Sharma, this is Naina. Mini and Naina are like sisters.”
Mr. Sharma smiled. “Thank you for taking care of my Mini.”
Naina smiled but felt guilty for taking Mini away from such a loving father. She sat next to Samraat as he conversed with Mini’s father, her worry building up with every passing moment.
She jerked out of her thoughts when Samraat patted her on her knee and said, “They are here. Let’s go meet them out front.”
Samraat asked Mini’s father to wait indoors while he stepped out with Naina to meet Mini and Marc. “Welcome back, M&M.”
Mini growled getting out of the car and looked at Marc. “Does it not bother you when he addresses us as M&M? I hate that name.”
“Babe, I think it’s cool.” Marc winked at Samraat, making Mini fume.
Mini looked at Naina and asked, “You okay?”
Her best friend knew her too well and could guess when she was under duress. “I am fine. Just getting used to being here.”
“I don’t mind this weather at all. I actually like this.” Mini walked up the small flight of stairs to hug Naina.
“Mini, I…” Naina started to say, but Samraat interjected and ushered everyone into the house with Marc leading Mini.
Naina watched from behind, walking next to Samraat as Mini giggled about something as they walked into the living room where her father was waiting. Naina’s heart came to her mouth when she heard her friend gasp, and the laughter died in its track.
Samraat stopped a few feet behind Marc and Mini, and Naina stopped with him, but she could see Mini and her father looking at each other. She took in Mini’s shocked expression and then averted her eyes to look at the man she hated most, but the look on his face melted Naina’s heart.
The man who was once a fearless police officer looked fragile, and tears gathered in his eyes. “Mini, sweetheart.”
“Papa,” Mini let out a cry holding on to Marc.
Tears blurred Naina’s vision as Marc led Mini closer to her father as the weeping parent said, “I am sorry.”
“Papa, please.” Mini cried, holding onto Marc without looking at her father, and Naina feared the worst. The moment her father placed his palm on her head, she moved, stepping away from Marc and threw her arms around her weeping father.
Naina wiped away her tears and looked at Samraat. “Thank you for coming for Mini.”
Samraat smiled, hugging her. “I am so glad
I did. How else would I have found the love of my life?”
Chapter 23
“Thank you, Samraat.” Mini’s tone was soft as they sat at the breakfast table the next morning.
Samraat looked up from his plate. “You don’t need to thank me. It was Naina’s idea to invite your dad for dinner.”
Mini gave Naina a shocked look before smiling. “What would I do without you?”
Naina smiled. “I feel bad that you stayed away from your dad because of me.”
“Stop it. That’s not it. I am still angry about what happened, but to see him that way, I can’t imagine what I put him through for something that was not his fault. I am so glad I saw him last night.”
“Why didn’t you go home, Mini?” Naina asked, knowing how many times her father asked her to go with him.
“I am not leaving you.” Mini sounded adamant.
Samraat let out a snort. “I would appreciate some alone time with Naina.”
Mini growled, throwing her napkin at Samraat. “I am going to take Naina with me when I go to my dad’s place.”
Samraat laughed, shaking his head and looked at his phone when it started to ring. It was his assistant calling. He answered it knowing his assistant would not call unless there was an emergency.
“Sir, sorry to disturb you, but Mr. Nayudu is insisting on talking to you as soon as possible.” His assistant sounded shaken.
Samraat knew why he was calling, and everything was happening according to plan. “I know why Mr. Nayudu wants to talk to me. Tell him I am not in town.”
“Sir, it looks like he has been keeping tabs on your schedule. He knows you are back and is insisting on meeting you.”
Samraat looked at Naina, who was in a quiet conversation with Mini, and had stiffened when she heard the name and turned to look at him.
“Tell Mr. Raghava Nayudu that I cannot meet him.”
Just the mention of the man’s name made her remember the sadness, fear, and loneliness. Samraat continued to talk on the phone. “I am not available tonight. Do you not know that I have to attend the party at Mr. Sharma’s place?”
“Sir, he says he is willing to meet you anywhere at any time.” His assistant was under duress.
“Fine, tell him I can meet with him if he can attend Mr. Sharma’s party.” Samraat was curt with his response before he ended the call.
Naina took a deep breath and asked, “Why does he want to meet you, Samraat?”
“I will find out when I meet him.”
Naina was getting impatient. “Why? Does he know I am here?”
“No.”
“Then why, Samraat?” Mini interjected.
Samraat thought for a moment. “He wants me to marry his daughter.”
“What?” Mini and Naina said in unison.
“Ladies, relax.” Marc tried to calm the two women who were visibly upset.
“I had no other way to get close to him.” Samraat looked at Naina.
Naina stood up abruptly and walked away from the dining table without looking at Samraat even when he called out to her.
“Really?” Mini growled, getting up from the table, but Samraat waved her away.
“I will go talk to her.” Samraat stood up from the table to go find Naina.
As expected, Naina was in the bedroom with the door locked from the inside. He knocked, finding her reaction adorable. For a woman who had trained herself not to react to anything, he was amused that she was reacting so much.
After ten minutes of knocking and calling out to her, she was not responding to him, so he used his master key to open the door only to find the bedroom and the seating area in the bedroom empty.
“Naina, baby, where are you?” He heard a soft sob in response to his question and knew she had to be in the bathroom. He walked through the hallway with the closets on either side before he laid eyes on her, sitting in the middle of the empty bathtub, her knees drawn into her chest.
“Baby, why are you upset?” he asked when she looked away, wiping away her tears.
“Why are you doing all this? I told you not to go after him. I don’t care,” she asked, still not looking at him.
“Baby, when you left, I wanted to wipe him out and then bring you to India, but when I realized that he had a decoy in your place, I wanted him to feel more pain. So I met with his daughter first because it was easier to get to him through her.” He walked over to sit on the platform of the tub.
She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter to me anymore. Why did you even bring me here? Why not let me live my life?”
He smiled, taking her hand to his lips. “Because I love you, and I want you to live your life, not be on the run.”
“I don’t need to run now. I won’t, so you don’t need to do any of this. If the man is not looking for me, just let it go. I can’t… what if he finds out about you and me and hurts you?”
“Easy…” he said, pulling her body from the bathtub as he stood up. He held her by her waist and made her sit on the platform as he sat next to her. “You are right, I don’t need to do any of this, but I want to because I never want you to have a moment of fear or sadness.”
“Why?” Her voice trembled.
“Because I love the look of joy in your eyes. I am addicted to your beautiful smile, and every time you think of this man, that smile becomes tarnished, and I can’t let that happen anymore.” He kissed her cheek before getting up to walk to his closet. He kept his eyes on her as he opened the small shelf and retrieved a tiny box.
He walked back taking a small object out of the box and going down of one knee in front of her while she sat on the marble platform of the bathtub. She looked at him, chaos building up inside her even though she had not taken her eyes off of his.
“Nayana Tara Ramachandra, will you marry me? Will you be the reason for my happiness?”
She covered her mouth with her hand to suppress the sob as she batted away tears that refused to stop. She nodded, unable to find her voice, and saw his eyes brighten as he slipped the ring on her finger before kissing the back of her hand.
“Samraat…”
He silenced her words that were about to flow in a devouring kiss. “This will be the happiest day of my life.”
“Mine, too.” She sobbed.
He laughed, kissing her forehead. “Whatever happened to all your training to control your emotions?”
She sobbed, covering her mouth with her hand as he pulled her to him and swept her feet off the bathroom floor. She hugged him, burying her face into his chest. “I can’t control my emotions with you. Everything is off-the-table when it comes to you.”
He carried her toward the bedroom, placing her on the plush bench at the foot of the bed and kneeled next to her. “I never thought this is what I would end up having when I took the plane to Vegas.”
She smiled. “I never thought I would ever come to India and be so happy.”
He kissed her hand. “That is all I want, your happiness.”
“What will make you happy?”
He looked at her for a long moment. “I want your fear to be his fear. I promise not to go ahead with my plan to take him out, but I want you to look him in the eye and show him you don’t care.”
She smiled. “I can do that.”
He smiled. “I have something else for you.”
“Now what?” She smiled, watching him go back to the closet and return with a lightweight package.
She looked at him when he placed it on her lap. “What is this?”
He didn’t respond but looked at her as she eagerly pulled open the packaging and stared at the silk fabric in front of her. “This is beautiful. I love this saree.”
“Will you wear it tonight?” He sat next to her on her bench.
“I’ve never worn a saree, but I will wear it for you.” She smiled at him coyly.
“I will make the first time special by helping you take off the saree.”
She held his collar in his hand to run her lips on his
cheek. “What will you do after you take off my saree?”
His breath hitched in response to her seduction. She ran her hand over his chest, kissing him gently as his chest started heaving. “Baby…”
“Do you need to be somewhere else other than with your new fiancée?” she slurred, running the tip of her tongue along his jawline, nipping the skin on his chin.
He ran his arm around her waist, pulling her to him. “Nothing is more important than you. Everything else can wait.”
“Then, I’d like a preview of what you will do after you take off my saree tonight.”
His breath was hissy as he lifted her off the bench and on to him, her legs straddling his waist as he buried his face into her chest, kissing the curves of her delicate peaks through the low neck of her t-shirt. “Anything you want, sweetness.”
“Make me yours, Samraat… tonight.” She smiled.
“I can’t wait, love. Our friends will understand,” he said, smiling mischievously.
And he made her his as he pulled her into a kiss that made her forget everything else. She fell into a state of bliss where all she knew was him. All he heard was her beating heart and what she felt was his love. The warmth surrounding her made her feel high with longing. With every small touch, stroke, and kiss, she tugged at his hair as if she had no other way to contain her excitement.
The sparks of energy were not just a bodily reaction but something cemented deep inside, ignited by the passion they had for each other and ultimately, the love that tangled their hearts forever.
Chapter 24
“This is such a beautiful ring, and it’s making your face glow with the sparkle,” Mini squeaked as they got dressed for the party Mini’s father was hosting later that evening.
Naina smiled, knowing what Mini was referring to—the glow of love—the same look she recognized on Mini’s face a few months into dating Marc. For her, it was the glow of love and happiness, gifts that were given to her by the man she loved most.
After spending a beautiful afternoon in his arms, she could not wait to be sleeping, cocooned in his arms. She knew she was geographically much closer to the man who took everything away from her, but somehow, she didn’t fear him anymore. She knew Samraat would protect her, keep her safe.
