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

by Sundari Venkatraman

  “You did, the last time.” He ran a hand down her leg, tracing the silky skin left bare by her shorts. His eyes were serious as he looked at her intently.

  Dia sighed. “I told you why I did. I was insecure. I…”

  “If you could have talked to me instead of arriving at your own conclusions…” He felt hurt.

  Dia sat up from her reclining position, turning to face him. She placed her feet on his bare thighs, relishing the rough texture. She held his face between her palms. “I’m sorry. Terribly sorry.” She kissed him on his forehead. “I was immature. And Bharat, I still can’t understand what you see in me. The models who work with you are so glamorous, so beautiful. And I’m so ordinary. I…” She stopped when Bharat placed a finger against her lips, arresting her words.

  He shook his head at her. “Don’t you realise I love you, exactly the way you are? Anyone can turn stylish with the right accessories. Glamour is great clothes and make-up. Actually, I like you more with neither on.” He winked as he moved closer to the bed and her, kissing her bare thigh, making her flesh tingle.

  Dia looked down at his bent head. She caressed his nape, unable to keep her hands off him. Could he be right? She had the tendency to wear casual clothes outside working hours. While in the office, she wore trousers teamed with formal shirts. But she didn’t think they could really be called stylish. Functional, more like.

  Bharat raised his head suddenly to look up at her. “What’s running in that lovely head of yours? I can almost hear the wheels turning.”

  She shook her head at him, a tense smile on her face. “Nothing.”

  He pulled her down from the bed and into his arms, rolling on the floor with her. She was insecure. He could see it now. The only way to help her out of it was to convince her of his love. He kissed her gently, his lips sucking her lower lip, his tongue tracing its shape. “Hmm, you taste so good.” He trailed his tongue on her upper lip, before probing further inside to rub it against hers.

  Dia clung to his wide shoulders, glad to be lying down. Her legs wouldn’t have supported her if she’d been standing just now. She returned his kiss with equal fervour, her slim legs tangling with his muscular ones. She was thrilled to feel the expanding bulge of his manhood against her stomach.

  Bharat raised his head to look down at the woman in his arms. Her face was flushed and her lips were a dark, wet red, looking thoroughly kissed. “You know something?” He paused.

  She opened silver eyes that had gone almost black with desire and looked at him. “What?” Her voice was a soft whisper as she traced a hand over his masculine shape, loving the freedom.

  He smiled into her eyes. “That’s the first time in two years that I have had a hard on, only for you.”

  Dia blanched.

  12

  A visibly shaken Dia stared at Bharat, not really knowing what to say. And here she had been thinking that he must have bedded so many women after they parted ways. “I…I’m sorry. I didn’t know, didn’t realise…” she got stuck for words. Becoming conscious of her hand touching him intimately, she removed it.

  He protested loudly, taking her hand and placing it back on his crotch. “I need your hands on me.” He bent down to smother her lips with his. “And don’t be sorry. I’m not.” He kissed her throat, his tongue tracing a rapidly beating pulse. “Hmm,” he breathed in deeply, “you smell so good.” He traced a wet tongue below her throat, pressing brief kisses on his way down. He lifted his head suddenly to look at her flushed face, with her eyes shut, her long, curling lashes resting against her cheeks.

  Dia opened her eyes a slit, wondering what had stopped him. “Why did you stop?”

  He grinned. “This is exactly the reason why I didn’t get into your bed. See what you do to me.”

  “And what do I do to you?” she asked, a smile on her face, her hands pulling his t-shirt out of the waist band of his shorts to caress his back.

  “For one, you give me a painful hard-on after two years. For another, you make my heart beat go wild.” He pulled her hands from his back and guided one to his chest and the other to his privates. “See?”

  Dia caressed him with both her hands, before complaining, “You’re wearing too many clothes.”

  “Dia…” He got up from on top of her to remove his t-shirt swiftly. She helped him out of his shorts, pressing soft kisses on his manly chest, rubbing her face against him, relishing the rough texture, before giggling suddenly.

  “Hey.” Bharat clutched a handful of her hair to prise her face away from his chest, his hold gentle but firm. “What’s funny?” His brown eyes studied her face curiously.

  “I saw the ad you did for some branded briefs. Your chest was free of hair.” Her hand moved caressingly over his chest, even as she spoke. “It made me wonder if I was seeing things. Did you shave it all off?” she asked, her silver eyes amused.

  Bharat grimaced, pulling her on his lap as he squatted on the floor. “Don’t remind me. I had to have my chest waxed before that particular shoot. Ouch! It was damn painful. Thank God they wrapped up the shoot in a couple of days. Can’t imagine what more torture I’d have had to undergo if it had taken longer.”

  Dia laughed outright while he pretended to glare at her. She shook her head at him. “We women do have a better pain threshold it seems. We do this month after month.”

  “Yeah, I know,” said Bharat, his hand running down a silky thigh. “Will I be a MCP if I say I like your skin silky and free of hair?” he asked, his eyes serious.

  “Nope. I do it because I like my body this way. Why blame you?” She reached out with her tongue to trace a male nipple, making him groan.

  Bharat moved her away, got up and pulled her to bed. “This time, I’ll let you have your wicked way with me. But we need to talk after that.”

  She rolled on top of him and looked deeply into his eyes. “And will you love me again after we finish talking?”

  Bharat growled, kissing her hard, his hand swatting her bottom. “Whatever you want.” He pushed the noodle straps of her thin top off her shoulders with an impatient hand, nibbling his way over her collarbone. When his hands encountered her bra straps, he sighed loudly, much to Dia’s amusement.

  “What?” she asked, grinning down at him, “Don’t tell me you need help undressing me,” she teased, “Not Mr. Casanova.”

  He took his hands off Dia and held them up for her inspection. “See.” When she looked at them, he continued, “See how my hands tremble in excitement when I’m this close to you. I need you too much. And yeah, you’ll have to help me.”

  Looking at his serious expression, Dia sobered, before sitting up on his stomach. She unhooked her bra swiftly and threw it down on the floor, along with her top. Colour ran up her body when she felt his feverish brown gaze on her pert breasts, the nipples tightening in anticipation.

  Bharat almost choked when he drew in a sharp breath, his body screaming for her. He raised his hands to cup her breasts even as she shimmied out of her shorts. “What are you doing?” he growled when she moved this way and that on his stomach.

  Dia laughed. “Getting naked.” Her breath caught in her throat when she saw the expression on his face. “Only for you,” she whispered, putting her hands over his to hold them firmly against her body.

  He pulled her down to stroke his tongue in a circle round the aureole of her right breast, even as a hand caressed the other one. Dia moaned, her hands holding his head tightly against her, moving her body down his stomach, closer to his pelvis and his jutting manhood.

  Bharat dipped a hand into her vulva to find her hot and wet. He lifted her up by the hips and brought her down against his hard shaft, entering her in one single stroke. They groaned as one before Dia rode him, a frenzied excitement building within her womb. Faster and faster she rode, his hands on her hips, helping her find her rhythm, until an explosion ripped through her. She felt as if she had been blown into pieces that floated away in a vacuum, before they all came back together in slow motio
n, making her whole again. She felt like a rag doll as she continued to ride him.

  And then Bharat’s life came apart as he shattered into a million pieces, his climax stopping both his heart and lungs from functioning for a few seconds. It was after a while that he regained his consciousness to understand why the French called it a little death.

  He felt reborn.

  13

  Dia continued to lie on Bharat, taking deep breaths to calm down her racing heart. Her fingers continued to stroke his manly shoulders, revelling in the texture of his rippling muscles. She felt happy and at peace with his arms around her, her legs clenched, still holding him within her. She didn’t plan to let him go anytime soon.

  Bharat ran a gentle hand down her back, his fingers caressing her silky bottom. “I love you.”

  Dia whispered against his chest. “I love you too.”

  His hands stopped their stroking and went to her shoulders, prising her off his chest. “Say that again.” His molten chocolate eyes bored into her slumberous silver gaze.

  “I love you.”

  He groaned, pulling her down to kiss her hard on her lips, his tongue demanding entry into her mouth, even as he went hard within her.

  Dia’s eyes went wide in surprise, before shutting down. That was some fast recovery, not that she complained. She clung to him as he rolled her over, coming on top of her to ride her hard. She revelled in the sensation when he caressed her breasts, his hands rough.

  Bharat groaned as he climaxed too soon this time, his face buried on her shoulder. It was some time before he recovered and moved off her, still holding her close, whispering in her ear. “I’m sorry I…”

  She rubbed her back against his chest, treasuring the moments in his hold. “What for?” she asked, stretching like a satisfied cat, turning her head slightly to look at him from the corner of her eyes.

  “I didn’t wait for you before climaxing.” He kissed her on her ear, his hand stroking her breast. “I’ll make it up for you, I promise. Just give me a few moments to recover.”

  Dia laughed softly. “I thought we were going to talk,” she teased, turning around to face him. He looked so handsome, his brown eyes gone soft, making her want to drown herself in them. She spread her hands on his chest, moving them across in a caress.

  “You keep that up and I’m going to forget how to talk, ever,” said Bharat, pulling her closer. He went on his back, tucking her on his side, her head on his shoulder. “I need some food in me.” He got up suddenly. “Let me order something.” He lifted his shorts to get his phone out of the pocket, even as he felt Dia’s hand on his arm. He turned to look at her with a raised eyebrow, his finger running through the phone screen, in search of the Zomato app.

  “I have dinner ready.” She got off the bed, took his t-shirt and pulled it over her head, as Bharat looked on, his eyes studying her movements keenly. His t-shirt fell off one slender, golden shoulder, but she liked wearing it, feeling close to him. She sniffed, imbibing the scent that was a combination of the musky fragrance that he wore and something else that was all him.

  “Come here,” he beckoned imperiously.

  Her legs seemed to have a mind of their own as they took her close to him. She pressed a kiss to his manly lips, rejoicing in taking a bite of his lower lip.

  He crushed her to his body, kissing her deeply. It was a while before he let her go with a sigh, getting up from the bed, looking glorious in his nakedness.

  She devoured him with her eyes, watching in fascination as his manhood sprang to life. She laughingly placed a hand against him, saying, “Do you think dinner or talk is going to happen tonight?”

  Bharat removed her hand away and turned to wrap a bed sheet around his middle. “Yep, they are.”

  “A man with iron willpower is one that I can admire for sure,” she said cheekily, turning towards the kitchenette, even as he followed close behind. “So, what would you like to have? I’ve three pizzas and a helping of pasta.” She looked back at him over her shoulder, even as she opened the freezer.

  Bharat eyed the pizzas. “Red, yellow, green peppers, corn and onions. Woohoo! With loads and loads of cheese. I already love it. Let’s have pizza,” he said, rubbing his flat stomach. “Did you make them?”

  Dia nodded, removing all three pizzas and placing them in the microwave, setting it to ‘defreeze’. “From scratch.”

  Bharat gave her a surprised look. “You mean you baked the bread too?” He smiled when she nodded. “You’re a whiz,” he said, hugging her, moving the t-shirt up to caress her bare bottom. “I thought you’re into management. How come so much of cooking?”

  She shrugged. “Management is to earn my living. This is pure joy. I love cooking since it totally relaxes me after a hectic week. I thank my lucky stars that I have both Saturdays and Sundays off. I cook for the whole week in those days.”

  “What all do you make?” he asked, wanting to know more, fascinated by all things about her.

  “Parathas with different fillings, an array of chutneys, enough to last me a week. Pizza and pasta as you can see. I cook Chinese for immediate consumption. So weekends are set aside for noodles or fried rice. I’m also experimenting with Mexican. Need to practice more.” She changed the setting on the microwave to ‘heat’ when the oven pinged.

  “Do you know how amazing you are?” said Bharat, kissing her on her forehead.

  “I am?” She looked into his eyes searchingly. Yeah, he looked serious. “But Bharat, I’m very ordinary. I…”

  He pressed a finger to her lips, shaking his head. “Why do you keep saying that?” He wondered if someone had said something to lower her self esteem. “You’re anything but ordinary. You have a management career at twenty-four. You can cook different cuisines. You look gorgeous.” He stopped to look at her enquiringly when she made a sound of protest. “What?”

  “I know I don’t look gorgeous. You don’t need to say that to boost my confidence.” Her eyes looked at him accusingly.

  Bharat shook his head, his coffee coloured eyes gazing deeply into hers. “You’re crazy if you think that, baby. Listen. Your quicksilver gaze pierces my heart.” He kissed her eyes one by one. “Your pert nose beckons to me.” He kissed her there. “Your pouting lips turn me on.” He gave her a brief, hard kiss. “Your pointed chin challenges me.” His pressed his lips to her chin. “Your shell-like ears call out to me.” He bit on her right earlobe, making her moan with desire. His voice turned softer as he spoke into her ear. “Your gorgeous breasts make me salivate. And your…”

  Dia pressed her fingers against his mouth to stop the flow of words, blushing to the roots of her hair. Her eyelids felt heavy as she felt a strange shyness invade her. His verbal lovemaking was more arousing than the actual physical act. She hid her face on his broad chest, feeling too shy to look into his eyes.

  Bharat hugged her close with a smile on his face, kissing her on the top of her head. She was simply adorable! And completely unaware of how much she affected him.

  14

  Dia paid the rickshaw driver before getting out at the gates of a famous film studio in Bandra. No one stopped her when she walked in, searching for the venue where Bharat was shooting since morning. He said he’d be finishing by eight or so and had invited her over after she was done at work. She asked someone for directions before taking a right and finding herself in front of large metal gates that hid the studio from view. A small door cut out on the gate opened into the area and she went in to find what seemed like chaos. She stared in awe at the glaring lights, three cameras that were set in different angles, and at least fifty people running around. She walked carefully in the peripheral, not wanting to get in the way, before finding a batch of plastic chairs in one corner. She sat on one of them and turned to see the action.

  She could see an order in the chaos by now. And yes, she had noticed Bharat’s tall form right in the middle of it. He was wearing ripped jeans and a casual white shirt that was unbuttoned at his throat, sporting a sma
rt pair of glares. As she watched, Dia guessed that he was probably shooting for some brand of sunglasses as he kept changing them, picking one by one from the tray held by an assistant who wasn’t far away, but out of line of the cameras. She was glad to see him alone on the stage.

  But after about half an hour, Bharat went away. She sat back to check the messages and emails on her phone before logging into Facebook. Raising her head after a while, she saw that he was back, wearing a pair of navy blue corduroy pants and a collarless shirt of a brick red colour. He held a casual jacket hooked from a finger on the back of one shoulder, posing with his hand holding a pair of sunglasses against his face. Two women models, clothed in barely-there dresses, came to stand on both sides of him, their arms around his waist. Dia sighed. They looked so beautiful. How could Bharat resist them when they were working in such close proximity, especially if they were willing?

  She couldn’t remove her eyes from the scene as they posed in different areas of the stage, in varied postures. The director kept calling for a shot again and yet again. Bharat had been right. It was a lot of hard work. But he looked happy as he chatted with his colleagues during breaks. She also noticed another thing that day. It was not just the women models that he spoke to. He also seemed to share a rapport with the rest of the staff hovering around. She saw him place an arm around the shoulders of the guy holding the tray of glares, taking the burden off him. The other man laughed, shaking his head and taking the tray right back into his keeping.

  She heard the director call out for yet another costume change and went back to her phone when she saw Bharat walk out once again through a side door.

  It was 8.15 when her cell vibrated in her hand. Her face lit up when she saw his face on her phone and picked it up.

  “Hey baby,” came the gravelly voice. “Could you make it to the studio?”

  “Oh yes,” she whispered into her phone. “I’ve been right here since the past couple of hours.”