Flaming Sun Collection 2: Marriages Made in India (Box Set with 5 novellas)

by Sundari Venkatraman

  He lifted her chin with his forefinger, kissing her gently. “I love you Shikha.” Yeah, he would tell her that a hundred times a day, if necessary.

  “I know Abhi. I don’t really know what I ever did in my life to deserve you in it. I’m not all that better than my parents. I have been mean, angry, rude and what not to everyone who came within speaking distance of me. I…”

  Abhi placed a finger on her lips, shutting her flow of words. He shook his head. “I love you Shikha, exactly the way you are.”

  Her eyes turned bright with a sheen of tears. “Are you sure? I can be a pain…”

  “I think I know that better than anyone else,” he grinned, “you’ve been the rudest to me.”

  “Don’t you want to chuck me out of your life?” Though she was grinning, Abhi noticed the wary look behind the grin.

  “No way. If you’re trying to get rid of me, you’ll have to think again. You’re stuck with me now that you’re married to me,” said Abhi, no smile on his face, totally serious.

  “What if I piss you off?” she challenged.

  “You mean you’ve ne’er done that before?” Abhi laughed out loud. He pressed his forehead to hers. “Shikha, if you piss me off, we’ll fight and then we’ll make up. Okay?”

  “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

  “As if you’d a choice,” he said, tongue-in-cheek. “Did you recently look at yourself in the mirror?”

  “Of course, every day. Why?” she asked, wondering what he was getting at.

  “You are glowing, more beautiful than ever,” he said in a whisper, kissing her on her velvet cheek. The many treatments at the rehab centre, along with the fruits, raw veggies and coconut water that she had been consuming; minus the alcohol and cigarettes, made her look gorgeous.

  “I am loved!” she declared, turning her head to kiss him deeply.

  Epilogue

  It was their first wedding anniversary. Abhimanyu and Shikha had decided to celebrate it with a brief second honeymoon in Goa. It was almost a year since she had felt the urge to touch a cigarette. She had an occasional glass of champagne but preferred fruit juices nowadays. Shikha wondered how she had ever enjoyed beer. She couldn’t even stand the smell now.

  The two of them exercised together or jogged for a while almost every day of the week. She still had an occasional tantrum, more because she felt the urge to be reassured that her husband loved her despite it. And Abhi never hesitated even a second before assuring her of his love. As she got to know Abhi better, Shikha discovered that he wasn’t exactly a docile husband. He had a temper that he lost rarely, but those occasions the fireworks blew up to the sky.

  But the making up was truly worth the arguments. Shikha felt pampered and cherished. She raised a toast to him, holding up her glass of freshly squeezed orange juice, “To you, my husband and the love of my life.”

  Instead of drinking from his wine glass, Abhi carefully placed the glass on the table with a trembling hand, looking at her intently. “Say that again.”

  She also placed her glass down, getting up from her chair and going to sit on his lap. “You are the love of my life, my Abhimanyu.”

  Dinner was forgotten as he lifted her in his arms. He placed her on the bed and lay down on top of her, his elbows braced on the bed, his brown eyes intense. “I want to hear that again.”

  “I love you Abhimanyu.”

  He groaned, bending down to bury his face between her breasts. “Now she talks.”

  He peeled the transparent negligee that she was wearing, even as she pulled off his shorts. “I adore you,” he growled, trailing kisses down her body. Her skin had turned luminescent and was flushed just now with all his attention. He pressed his lips to her instep, his tongue peeping out to taste the skin.

  “Abhi, you’re too far away,” complained his wife.

  “In a minute.” He bit the pad of her big toe, before he took it in his mouth to suck it. She fisted the bedspread in her hands, loving the sensation. He took his time paying the same attention to her other foot, before moving up, tracing a tongue over the nerves behind her knee.

  Her hands were in his hair, trying to pull him up. He pressed his face to her slender thighs, taking bites of the tender flesh. Her nails dug into his shoulders as she thrashed about, only to go still when she felt his tongue probe into her core. He was relentless in the giving of pleasure and didn’t stop thrusting till she found her release.

  She jumped off the bed and pushed him down. “It’s my turn.” Her sherry brown eyes glowed as she looked at him.

  “Get on with it woman,” he said, his hands under his head, an eager smile on his face. His wife was an innovative partner in bed and never failed to thrill him.

  With a mischievous smile, Shikha sat at the far end, her hands running down his legs, from the knees down, her breasts brushing teasingly against his feet. He wiggled his toes, holding a hard nipple between his big toe and the second one.

  “Abhi,” moaned Shikha, bending down to kiss the underside of his foot, her hair spread out on his legs.

  “I want to see you,” objected Abhi.

  Shikha obliged him immediately by lifting both arms to tie her hair up in a knot, her breasts jiggling invitingly.

  She walked her fingers up his legs, her breasts trailing behind, her lips, tongue and teeth playing havoc. She soon reached his swollen manhood, her tongue tracing the shape.

  “Shikha,” groaned Abhimanyu, “now!”

  She climbed over him, guiding his manhood inside her, riding him hard. He cupped her breasts with his hands, teasing the nipples with his thumbs. It wasn’t long before the earth shattered around them as they reached the zenith simultaneously.

  “I love you, Abhi.”

  He smiled. Yeah, his wife was drunk on his love these days.

  THE END

  “What’s up?” he asked, trying to keep the situation light.

  She winked at him. “Shouldn’t I be asking that question?” she asked, looking pointedly down at his lower body.

  Reacting to her flirtation, his manhood immediately sprang to action, making Lakshman swear. “Cut that out, Ruma,” he growled, sidestepping her as she would’ve wrapped her arms around him. “I need a shower,” he insisted, not meeting her eyes. He went into the bathroom and locked himself in. The place smelled of Ruma. Cursing, Lakshman stood under the cold shower to tame his libido. She looked like she meant business. How could he convince her to wait till they got married? He dried himself with the towel that was on a rack, glaring at the mirror. He needed a shave. But no, they weren’t going to make love, so it didn’t really matter. Just then he realised that he would have to step out in the towel as his clothes were in the wardrobe. Swearing again, Lakshman walked into the bedroom.

  “Laki,” called out Ruma, eyeing him avidly. Fascinated, she got up from the bed and walked up to him. He appeared like a Greek God with his chiselled body that was still damp from the shower.

  She stood close to him and raised her left hand to caress his rough cheek. Her right hand was hooked into his towel as if she was going to pull it off him any second. Lakshman clamped his hand on hers, his fingers holding the towel firmly. “No!”

  “Huh?!” She looked deeply into his eyes, her brown gaze like melted cocoa, inviting him to make love to her. Her mouth was pouted deliciously, glistening wetly, begging for a kiss. Lakshman groaned deep in his throat, letting go of her hand to wrap his arms around her. He placed his lips on hers, sucking her upper lip. She tasted as sweet as honey, driving him crazy. His right hand moved down the curve of her hip to touch a thigh. He traced the curve, working his way under her nightshirt to encounter her bare bottom.

  “Ruma.” He deliberately removed his hands off her and raised his head to look at her.

  She stared back at him with slumberous eyes. “What?” A small frown puckered her forehead.

  “We’ll make love after we get married,” he declared.

  “What if I don’t agree?”

/>   “I’ll have to beg, right?” he grinned weakly. “Please, my love. You know your parents won’t agree to a marriage between us. Doesn’t it make sense to wait until after the event?”

  “What if I want you desperately?” She nuzzled his neck, her teeth taking a sharp nip.

  Lakshman groaned again, his arms crushing her to his chest. “Do you love me or just lust after my body?”

  “Can’t I do both?”

  HER SECRET HUSBAND

  (Marriages Made in India Book #3)

  A romance novella by

  Sundari Venkatraman

  1

  Ruma looked up when the two strangers walked in. While one could notice immediately that they were related, she found the taller man’s personality striking.

  “Hello, I’m Ram Maheshwari and this is my brother, Lakshman. We would like to meet Ranveer Singh.”

  “Good morning, gentlemen. Please take a seat. Let me check if Mr. Singh is free to meet you now.”

  After the two men settled down on the sofa in the reception, Ruma lifted the phone to call Ranveer’s extension. As the phone rang, she checked the taller of the two men from the corner of her eyes, the one who had been introduced as Lakshman. While both were good-looking, Lakshman appeared handsomer.

  The phone rang and rang but no one picked up. With a small frown on her face, Ruma had an office boy bring tea to the two men waiting to meet Ranveer.

  She tried for a couple of more times and not getting through, Ruma called Shikha’s cabin with reluctance. She did her best to keep out of Ranveer’s secretary’s way. The older woman had a lashing tongue and Ruma wasn’t one who was keen to be at the receiving end. Shikha picked up the phone immediately and barked, “Yes?”

  “Hi Shikha, there are two guys waiting at the reception—Ram and Lakshman Maheshwari—to meet Ranveer. They don’t have an appointment, it seems. Should I—”

  “Young or old?” barked Shikha again.

  “Huh?” said Ruma, not sure that she had heard Shikha right.

  “Are you dumb or what? I asked you whether the guys you’re talking about are young in age or old,” drawled Shikha, sarcasm dripping in her voice as she dragged out the syllables as if she was talking to a retarded child.

  Ruma blanched. With great difficulty, she kept her face straight as she replied, “Why don’t you get your butt out here and find out for yourself?” before disconnecting the line. While she had been tempted to bang the phone down, she didn’t want to create a bad impression on the visitors who sat waiting to meet her boss. She gave them a sweet smile as she said, “Ranveer’s secretary should be here to meet you soon.”

  Ruma sat back to update the files on her computer, while attending to a few more calls—all this while watching Shikha flirting with the men. She clenched her teeth as Shikha’s loud laughter broke out a couple of times, getting even more angry with the other woman than she already was.

  What’s with Shikha and men? She never spoke to any of the women staff members of RS Software. Thinking about it, Ruma recalled that Ranveer’s secretary didn’t interact with the male staff much either. Yeah, she flirted with every one of them. But…but, there was something in her body language that changed around Ranveer, the same as right now when she interacted with the two guests. Was it because they appeared wealthy? Ruma just caught herself from snapping her fingers. That must be it! Her lips curled in disgust.

  Shikha finally got up to say “bye” to the visitors and left the reception. Ruma was pleasantly surprised when Lakshman Maheshwari walked up to her desk and said, “Bye Ruma. We’ll see you tomorrow.” His throaty voice sent goose pimples chasing all over her body.

  Ruma looked at the attractive man in front of her in surprise. Did she hear right? Ranveer wasn’t there the whole week. She had just received an email from his second-in-command, Abhimanyu, which said so. The mail had been sent to everyone in the office. Then how come Shikha had given them an appointment? Ruma decided it wouldn’t be right on her part to say anything. She nodded to Lakshman, who waved before leaving.

  Ruma called Abhimanyu’s extension. She knew that he was the man in charge when Ranveer wasn’t in the office. She explained to him about Ram and Lakshman’s visit and how Shikha had given them an appointment to meet Ranveer the next day. “Did you say Maheshwari?” asked Abhimanyu. When Ruma answered in the affirmative, Abhimanyu left clear instructions that she was to send the men to his cabin when they arrived the next day.

  “Sure, Abhi. I’ll do that,” said Ruma, disconnecting the call. A small smile played on her lips when she recalled Lakshman Maheshwari’s face. Though he seemed quiet, his black eyes framed by thick and curling lashes, were sharp. With a broad forehead and a head full of dark curls, an aquiline nose, chiselled, clean-shaven cheeks and a tiny cleft on his chin, he was enough to turn any woman’s head. And Ruma realised that she didn’t like the idea of Shikha getting close to the hunk. She would ensure that the Maheshwaris were directed to Abhimanyu’s cabin even before Shikha realised they were there the next day.

  2

  Lakshman woke up with a jerk from his dream. It was a recurring one about Ruma Malhotra. Yeah, he knew her full name. He also knew that she hailed from a rich Punjabi family and didn’t really need to work. Her parents were probably biding their time before getting her married.

  Yeah, he was attracted to her from first sight, but had decided to pursue her after Chanda’s marital problems got sorted out. His sister had been married as a kid. The bridegroom had run away immediately after the wedding and was untraceable. Now, just when she’d met a guy she liked, the family astrologer had brought up a new confusion. Lakshman and his brother Ram were determined to get her life sorted once and for all before doing anything else.

  But his subconscious seemed to have different ideas. He dreamt of Ruma most nights. Though each dream was different, it ended on the same note—their parting ways from each other.

  “Tch.” It was barely 5 am and Lakshman was wide awake and totally disturbed. The woman was giving him sleepless nights it seemed.

  He went down to the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea, glad that no one was up yet. He took his cup and settled down on the cane swing in the garden, out of sight of the main house, staring at nothing.

  Peace stole over him as the seconds ticked by, the birdsong soothing his nerves. Moping around was not in his nature. Lakshman decided to go to work early that day. His baking factory was open twenty-four hours and there was no dearth of work to do.

  Meera was up when Lakshman walked down the stairs, dressed for work. “Are you leaving so early, beta?” she asked.

  “Yes, Mamma.” Lakshman hugged his plump mother. Her head barely reached his chest.

  “Have a cup of tea along with me,” she said. Unable to deny her, Lakshman sat down on the sofa without protest, sipping his second cup of tea that morning.

  “Is something bothering you?” asked Meera, sensitive to her children’s moods. Her second-born spoke little, but she was attuned to his body language. He had been restless over the past few weeks.

  “Nahi toh!” Lakshman shook his head at her, not really meeting her all-knowing eyes.

  Meera shrugged, raising a brow at him, a smile on her face. She knew he would tell her in his own time.

  Lakshman got up with a jerk, placing his teacup on the table. He rushed out of the front door as he heard more footsteps coming down the stairs.

  Meera gave him a mildly worried look realising that he was avoiding the rest of the family, before she got distracted by the twins, Bharat and Shatrughan, who had rushed down the staircase.

  “Good morning, Mamma,” they chorused, hugging her tightly.

  They looked exactly alike, except for the colour of their eyes. Meera wondered at the way of nature that had blessed four of her offspring with Mohan’s obsidian black eyes, while Bharat had her dark brown coloured eyes. That was the only thing that helped people to differentiate between the twins.

  “Has Lakshman already gone
to work?” asked Bharat, a scowl on his face. With his hectic schedule, mornings were the only time he got to meet the family. Suddenly, Lakshman seemed to be disappearing rather early nowadays. “What’s up, Mamma? Why is Lakshman rushing away in the mornings? Is he having any problem at his factory?”

  Shatrughan poured tea into two cups, carrying them carefully over, handing one to his twin. He didn’t utter a word, looking at his mother intensely, waiting for her to reply. Suddenly remembering, he asked her, “Will you have another cup of tea, Mamma?”

  Meera shook her head at Shatru in a distracted fashion, looking at Bharat, her brown eyes clouded in confusion. “I don’t think it’s a problem at work.”

  “Do you think Lakshman’s in love?” queried Ram cheekily, having walked down the stairs noiselessly. He hugged his mother before getting himself a cup of tea.

  “What?” asked three voices together as his mother and twin brothers stared at Ram.

  He grinned widely, saying, “You heard me right.”

  “Do you know who the girl is?” asked Meera, wonder on her face. Her sons weren’t kids any more, it seemed.

  “I’ll let Lakshman give you the details,” said Ram, a smug look on his face. That was just a shot in the dark, but he so enjoyed teasing people. And now he was satisfied with his morning’s work of having set the cat among the pigeons.

  3

  It was almost a couple of months later that Lakshman walked into RS Software, twenty minutes before closing time. Ruma’s heart stopped for a couple of seconds before picking up beat at double pace, as she stared at the man walking towards her. He had grown a thick moustache that sat well on his handsome features. She couldn’t stop the wide smile of welcome that flashed on her features.

  “Hello, Mr. Maheshwari, how can I help you today?” she asked.