The Holiday Affair: A Match Made In Hell Novel

by KASI, MV

  "That was awesome dada! But Mamma said I can only do it when I'm an old man like you!"

  He picked up both Nitin and Nethra in each of his arms. "Mamma is right. Now both of you, give your old man a kiss," he said.

  He got two loud smacking kisses on each cheek.

  "Can I build a few parachutes for my toys, dada? I can make them jump from the drones in front of the house," said Nethra.

  "Sure princess. As long as it's safe. Let's build one this evening when both mamma and I are there to watch your toys fly and land safely."

  He gently set both of them on their feet.

  "Now, let me kiss mamma. Or she'll be mad that I gave you both more kisses than her."

  "Well, if it's a competition, then I clearly won today," she told him softly, reminding him of their quick morning session.

  "Hmm...Speaking of this morning's session. How about we set up another one tonight? A longer session of mergers and acquisitions between the interested parties, Mrs. Bugati?"

  She smiled. "Looks like you've got yourself a deal, Mr. Bugati."

  He laughed and kissed her with a loud smack on her cheek.

  Soon, the four of them headed back home, each excited with their plans for the future.

  THE END.

  ALSO BY MV KASI

  That Same Old Love

  https://www.amazon.com/That-Same-Old-Love-Match-ebook/dp/B01DPQ46KK

  Soulless

  https://www.amazon.com/Soulless-Revenge-Romance-MV-Kasi-ebook/dp/B01MFDEERI

  CONTACT THE AUTHOR

  Author Page URL: www.amazon.com/author/mvkasi

  Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/mvkasi

  Goodreads profile: https://www.goodreads.com/mvkasi

  Twitter: author_mvkasi

  ABOUT MV KASI

  By day, MV Kasi works for a software company. By night, she gives in to her fascination to explore the human psychology and the various facets of life in her writing. She has particular fascination with successful people who are not considered 'normal' by society's standards.

  Her love for reading has led her to start writing on her own. She likes to add depth to her characters and explore their psychological motivations. Due to the nature of topics and plots, she does not shy away from writing about sexuality or violence. Despite covering some heavy topics, she likes to infuse humor into her writing.

  MV Kasi

  Email: manyavkasi@gmail.com

  That Same Old Love – Sample

  CHAPTER ONE

  "OH GOD! NO! No. No. No. No!"

  Mahi was still staring into her messy purse. She had rummaged through it plenty of times to know that the house key was definitely missing. And also enough to know that she would have to go to the neighbor's house and ask them for the emergency spare key.

  She was bone tired and hungry after a long journey from San Francisco to Hyderabad, which was made even longer due to a missed flight connection.

  She was really looking forward to crashing in her childhood home the moment she entered inside. And now, she had to find a way to get inside the damn house first.

  "Great. Just great. And it's not even six in the morning," she muttered, looking towards the neighboring houses.

  Almost all of the homes had been renovated in some way or the other over the past fourteen years. Although not as much as the opposite house.

  The opposite house was currently occupied since the lights were turned on the top floor. And she thought she even saw someone's shadow move.

  But wow! It wasn't anything like the modest two-leveled structure from before.

  Someone had renovated or most likely razed and built from ground up. Whoever designed it, must like building over-the-top energy efficient ultra-modern houses. The house was a stark white structure with lots of shiny brown wooden edges and plenty of glass windows. The sloped roofs around the curvy balconies had plenty of solar panels on top of them that were reflecting light.

  It definitely looked odd within the homey looking houses around.

  "You need to focus!" she muttered to herself as she peeled her eyes away from the house. She had plenty of time to gawk at the odd looking house from her balcony if she could get inside first.

  "Okay then..." she said tiredly and walked across the street.

  She rang the neighbor's doorbell a few times and waited impatiently. "Oh come on. Hurry up and open already," she muttered.

  On the fourth or maybe the fifth ring, she heard footsteps inside, and then the door was finally opened by a really tall and broad man, who stood staring or rather glaring down at her with a grim expression.

  "Hello, Maha Lakshmi Challuri," he said ominously.

  For a second, she was really surprised and was wondering how he knew her name. Smiling politely, she was just about to ask him to excuse her for the odd hour, and then request him for the spare key. But when she looked at his face properly, especially at the thin eyebrow scar, she was shell shocked.

  "Tarzan?" she blurted out his nickname from their college days, remembering it too late that he hated that name with a passion.

  His face grew even grimmer, which she didn't think could be possible. And he also stood up straighter, appearing even more dangerous with his rugged features and his steely narrow eyed stare.

  "No. It's Samrat Reddy," he growled.

  She was still gaping at him in shock.

  It has been close to fourteen years since she last saw him, and in those years he managed to fill out his tall, broad, but painfully bony body. His face had never been cute or boyish even during their college days, but now he looked even more raw and masculine, like one of those famous actors in the cowboy movies, who looked dangerous, and ready to shoot and protect their property from the trespassers. The thin T-shirt wasn't doing a great job of concealing his impressive body either. And his hair was styled in a short, but deliberately messy way. Fourteen years ago, it had been simply falling messily over his eyes and ears.

  He was currently looming threateningly, giving her a quick sweeping look from the top of her head to the bottom of her four inch platform heels, with a barely concealed thin lipped sneer. He had often given her similar looks during their college days, and it usually meant that she wasn't worth noticing or even wasting time on.

  That same old bloody look made her dormant attention seeking insecure persona rear its ugly head.

  "Why the hell are you still living here?" she asked him in a surly tone.

  He raised an eyebrow at her tone. "Why is that any of your business?" he asked icily. "And is that why you rang my bell so many times this early in the morning? Simply to ask me why I lived here? Now, if you'll excuse me, unlike you, I'm rather busy."

  He was just about to close the door, but had to stop when she put her foot in between and said, "Wait!"

  "What?" he snapped impatiently.

  She was annoyed at his rudeness. But beggars can't be choosers. And she really needed the spare key and also had to use a bathroom.

  Fidgeting a little and feeling ridiculous about the entire situation, she used her most friendly and polite tone. "I lost my house keys and my parents told me that they kept a spare key here...I also need to use your bathroom urgently, and then borrow your phone to make a few calls...since I don't have a phone yet."

  He didn't move or respond to her for a few seconds. "Quite a list of demands. You really haven't changed much, have you? Demanding as ever," he said, shaking his head and sneering slightly. But he thankfully moved aside. "Come in. The guest bathroom is to the right, next to the elevator."

  She didn't want to argue with him or get defensive about his inaccurate deductions.

  Quickly going into his house, she found the bathroom.

  After a while, when she was washing her hands, she stared at the white marble lined bright bathroom. There were way too many buttons next to the shower cubicle.

  Shaking her head slightly, she went out to the living room and took in her surroundings.

  No family pictures o
r anything resembling remotely homey even on the inside. The interior of the house had an extremely cold and sterile modern decor. There were several large control panels with touch screens and buttons. Even the furniture looked sleek and ultra-modern with buttons on them.

  "Oh wow. Your house looks so futuristic rather than simply modern. I almost expect a couple of robots to pop out from your woodwork," she remarked while looking around.

  "Maybe next time I decide to re-decorate the house, I'll call you for consultation," he replied stonily.

  She was taken aback by his sarcastic response. Assessing him slowly, she realized that he had every right to be rude to her even after all these years because of what she had done to him. And she also knew that it was high time she apologized to him for that.

  "Samrat...I'm really very sorry for what I did to you...you know...about the cheating allegations. I knew you didn't cheat and what I did was wrong...I even told my parents later about it, and asked them to speak with the dean and to our principal on your behalf."

  She looked at him sincerely. "Until I was in San Francisco, I really didn't know that they had cancelled your scholarships or your admissions. Had I known, I would have definitely done something more to have them re-instated."

  He was slowly simmering. "Oh really? I didn't know that the Stanford or MIT deans were on speaking terms with you."

  "No. I-I meant that...that...come on, you know what I actually mean."

  "I don't. Please do let me know what you actually mean."

  Based on his expression, Mahi knew he wasn't ready to hear anything from her, let alone forgive her. She could fall on his feet and beg for forgiveness, but he wouldn't relent.

  "It was a very long time ago, Samrat."

  She knew he deserved a better apology. Maybe once she was well rested and cleaned up, she'd meet him again to apologize properly.

  "Anyway, can I get the spare key now?" And then she remembered that she had to let someone know of her arrival. "Also, can I borrow your phone to make a couple of phone calls? One of them is an international call."

  "Sure. Why not? I've been waiting for you to arrive this early in the morning, so I could cater to your demands." He handed her a sleek white phone from his pocket. "Here. You can make international calls on this. Meantime, let me get your key."

  She took the phone gingerly from his hand. It was so white and shiny, it looked like it might get dirty even with gloves on.

  Her first call was a very brief one, simply informing the person on the other end of her arrival. The next call was to her brother, to let him know she'd reached India safely.

  Apart from a disinterested acknowledgement, her brother didn't have anything else to ask. Her mother and father were too busy to talk to her as usual. "Give Paddu and Nikhil my love. Let them know I've asked for them," she said softly before hanging up.

  Samrat was already waiting with the spare key in his hand, looking impatient and restless, as though he couldn't wait for her to take it and get the hell out from his house.

  Even if she wasn't welcome anymore and her brain was shutting down with exhaustion, she wanted to try and apologize one more time before she came up with a decent lengthy apology.

  "Look Samrat, I know what I did was inexcusable. I was young and stupid then. You must know how it is...to be young and stupid."

  He folded his arms together looking all the more formidable. "I don't."

  She let out an uncomfortable laugh. "Oh come on. Even you must have done some stupid things in your late teens or early twenties. I know I did plenty."

  He scoffed. "I think everyone knows and remembers what you did." Then looking thoughtful, he wrinkled his elegant nose as though something disgusted him. "Just the late teens and twenties? From what we have heard, even your late twenties and early thirties continued to have the so called young and stupid moments. An extramarital affair leading to a divorce? How very...modern of you."

  She was slowly getting irritated with him. "I didn't know thirty five year old men in India are part of the gossip network. Wow, India must have really changed during these past fourteen years."

  She hated how judgmental people could be and maybe it was not the time to apologize when he wasn't in a receptive mood. "Anyway, can I have that key now?" she asked impatiently.

  Samrat rested his body on the back of a couch as though preparing to have a long drawn out discussion. "We Indian men try to keep up with the gossip news as well, especially when it comes to someone who almost destroyed our lives."

  She sighed. "I'm glad the men here are well informed now, but I really have to leave. So if you don't mind..."

  She extended her hand.

  He ignored it.

  "So...Tell me, were you too bored with your much older, rich and pedigreed husband that you soon developed a wandering eye for younger men?"

  Mahi narrowed her eyes and snapped out, "Yeah, I have a bad reputation. But guess what? It took me years of very dedicated effort to get there. And looks like you turned into a judgmental gossipy old lady in all these years. I somehow imagined you'd be an arrogant absent minded genius who became a self-made millionaire or billionaire...or whatever it is you are worth now. Since when do you engage in such common gossip?"

  When he didn't respond, she sighed wearily. "Look, obviously you have better things to do, and I really need to get going as well. I know you want me to repent and suffer. I already do, believe me...and I've already told you that I'm really sorry. I'm not sure what else you want me to do."

  Samrat dropped his hands to the sides and stood up straight with a grim expression. "What do you think I could ever want from someone like you?"

  She ignored his obvious insult and frowned. "I don't know...Maybe some sort of revenge? I know you think you deserve one and I agree. But seriously, I'm really, really tired and I'm about to fall down at your feet with exhaustion. Can I please have that key?"

  He didn't move or respond again, and she had exhausted all her energy to think of other ways to get that key from him. Short of throwing a serious hissy fit and tackling him to the floor to drag the key from his hands, she knew there was nothing she could do.

  Making one last attempt, she went closer to him with a friendly smile pasted on her face. She had to crane her neck up as he was towering on top of her. Even with her four inch platform heels, her eyes were at his throat level.

  "Oh come on Samrat. You are a successful gazillionare whose face is splashed all over Forbes and other oh-so-great magazines, while I ended up being just a measly divorcee with a bad reputation like you just said. See how Karma got back at me? You already got your revenge. Can I have my key now?" she asked him sweetly with an outstretched hand

  He scoffed. "You think that compensates for what you did to me personally?"

  Sick and tired of their cat and mouse game, she snapped out, "Do what you want later, but stop throwing a freaking tantrum and give me the damned spare key!"

  She had barely finished saying the word key, when he grabbed her outstretched hand and pulled her against him. Emitting an "Oof" when she hit his chest, she looked up at him in surprise.

  He was glaring down at her with a quiet menace.

  She froze.

  Her heart was speeding up in response to a sick irrational fear, but she refused to show any reaction or fight him off. She also couldn't get her eyes away from him. Especially at his jaw, which was clenched and she could also feel his fingers digging into her upper arms. A few seconds or maybe a few minutes passed by and their staring seemed to go on and on. She could hear a dog barking from somewhere and the milkman announcing a delivery from outside the house.

  One of her hands was on his chest for balance and to also push him away in defense if needed. She could feel his heart beat erratically under her hand, either fighting for control or building up rage.

  She could have screamed, or kneed him in his delicate area to put an end to the current display, but she stayed still.

  He was staring at her lips. "
You accused me of forcibly grabbing you and kissing you. It was on a balcony at Chandra's house during a party in our final year. Do you remember that?" he asked tonelessly, before looking into her eyes, "You were almost drunk at that time, but I'm sure you were aware of the lie."

  "I-I remember it...and I was aware that I lied," she stuttered, recalling the incident clearly.

  She knew his grabbing her would slowly have a terrifying effect on her and she would embarass herself. But luckily before anything happened, her instincts kicked in.

  She refused to be cowed. "Go ahead then. Kiss me, if it makes you feel avenged. I know I will feel relieved. One mistake among hundreds washed away." Then mustering some more courage, she slowly and deliberately grinned at him. "I wish I could simply kiss away my other mistakes as well. But then...I'll probably have to hunt the people I hurt, and kiss them all. And your sister in particular will definitely not be so receptive to my kisses."

  *****

  Samrat continued to stare at her stonily with narrowed eyes.

  The woman in front of him was really something.

  He remembered how she used to have a huge ego. She used to think that everyone wanted her.

  He didn't.

  In fact he had no idea why he would grab her like a villain from a bad movie. But when she looked so impatient and brushed off what she did to him as something insignificant, he simply lost it.

  He definitely didn't think that her hurried apology from before would ever begin to compensate the trauma he had gone through, when she accused him of cheating during their finals. And she was behaving as though he was the one being extremely unreasonable and immature by not letting their past go. The humiliation and the loss, not just for him, but for his entire family had affected him through the years. Then there was also the matter of other false allegations she threw at him...

  He had felt like an idiot indulging or even listening to the gossip about her past, and then repeating it to her. But he really needed to let her know that everyone was aware of her circumstances and also that whatever malicious games she might have planned would be ineffective due to her reputation.