As she dried herself off and draped herself in a large towel she smiled and thought to herself “I really should find myself a man!”
Chapter Three
Dinner... and Desert!
Thursday arrived and Priya was sitting thoroughly engrossed as she read the Human Harp. She hadn’t yet reached the chapter on The Human Harp itself, Mr Simmons being clever enough to hold it back to a later chapter.
She was tempted to jump ahead, but held herself back. Besides, in a time when Indian society was fighting hard to change its attitude to women after some high profile rape cases it was refreshing to read the opening chapters where an influential man was stating the importance of mutual consent and the benefits to both parties.
I went to my first swingers’ party when I was 18 he wrote,
Priya’s eyebrow raised at the prospect of a man she was meeting having attended orgies!
...where the wife was there in most cases to please the husband who really wanted the experience. It was clear the wives in those cases were going through the motions and not enjoying the experience at all!
I decided then that no matter who the future partners may be I would only do things both wanted to experience and I made it my personal mission to discover more about what women wanted and to dedicate myself to discovering techniques to give women greater pleasure sexually.
The most important thing was to listen, but having gone down this route I have discovered the rewards for me are immense as a woman aroused will give back everything and more that a smart man invests in giving rather than taking.
Priya put the Kindle down to one side and smiled to herself. Maybe there is more to this man than a mere womaniser and certainly she could think of a couple of men in her past who wouldn’t understand the word foreplay if you highlighted it in a dictionary and read it out to them.
Most men were takers and it seemed this English man was more enlightened. She smiled to herself again. “If he thinks he can seduce me and still enjoy other women, he has another thing coming!” she was definitely going to have things on her terms if anything was to happen between them.
Then she caught herself and realised she was rationalising the prospect of a relationship with the man! She was only meeting him for a meal!
She didn’t know it, but Priya was having an equally confusing effect on the man too, but at least he understood why and had even explained it in his book...
Indifference, whether real or as part of an act, is one of the most powerful aphrodisiacs because it makes the pursuer work harder and thus the prize is more appreciated.
Many good looking people, both men and women have a natural indifference to those they see as lower down in the pecking order visually because their looks mean they never have to work hard to attract partners.
It is thus also often the case-if not always the case, that the best looking people are often the worst lovers because they never struggle to find willing lovers and their frequently massaged egos rarely extend to the needs or pleasures of their partners.
Writing and understanding was one thing, but rational thought was rarely the preserve of someone attracted to another and treading the fine line between curious and smitten. It was now Thursday and this girl really had been in his waking thoughts for those long days before he could see her again.
Maybe Priya’s indifference to his charm was the draw making her cross his mind over the few days since they first met? Maybe it was just a natural attraction to a very beautiful woman with a sharp wit and strong personality?
He had become used to women seeking him out for his reputation, but this was the first time for a while he couldn’t get a girl out of his head, which scared him a little. It was dangerous, because he used the public fascination with his love life to keep a secret. A pain which had made him vow to himself that he would remain single for the rest of his life.
There was something about this girl. He wasn’t influenced greatly by images created for the media. This was the machine of PR guru’s at work. Giving the public a character to love, or hate, to the benefit of the actors career. Priya had a following as a sex symbol, but Damian was more curious about the real girl. What she liked and loved rather than the image she presented to the World.
Something told him there was far more to this girl than meets the eye and this was the strongest attraction for Damian, but it made him nervous too. Emotions were a luxury he had denied himself. He had to hold back and stick to his philosophy of friendship... with occasional benefits.
He smiled to himself and took another sip of tea as he sat in the lobby, his train of thought distracted by a disturbance by the rotating door at the hotel entrance as several men stood back like parting waves through which breezed a confident and beautiful woman wearing a warm smile and followed by the gaze of the very men she had passed.
She wore a tight pencil skirt, stopping a couple of inches above her knees, and a light top her amazing long hair flicked and flowed as though almost lighter than air. She saw him sitting there and the smile was reinforced with extra warmth and her steps quickened as he rose to greet her with a kiss on the cheek.
“I am not late, am I?” she asked
“Not at all,” he smiled pausing to admire the vision before him, “...you look truly breathtaking!”
“I bet you say that to ALL the girls!” she mocked
“Honestly, you really do look stunning!”
“...Thank you!” she smiled, deciding to accept the compliment.
“Are you hungry?”
“Famished!”
“I’ve reserved a table for us in the dining room.”
The meal was exquisite as you’d expect in a five star hotel, and the conversation which had started with Priya sparring with her admirer to establish what his true intentions were was evolving into something altogether less confrontational.
“...Yes I really do believe a man should take no for an answer unless it was an agreed game with safe words.” Damian explained.
“Safe words?” Priya asked, discovering a whole new World of sexual practices she had never even considered.
“...Safe Words! In short you agree on a word that is spoken by either partner a sex game stops immediately. It’s often used by people into BDSM.”
Priya was speechless, so Damian decided to change the subject slightly.
“...In my view a girl can dress as provocatively as she likes, she could even walk naked down the high street and my first instinct would be to admire her bravery and to protect her from other men.”
“Well you won’t catch me walking naked down a high street!” Priya laughed.
“Of course not,” he smiled, “but if a girl chooses to dress in short skirts or sexy clothes my attitude as a man isn’t that she is asking for trouble, but that I have to work harder to deserve the company of such a strong and confident woman...”
Priya smiled.
“...To me the girl is in control of what happens. You, for example, will always have my respect and admiration. My friendship is a given and I feel it is important for me to earn your trust.” he continued.
Priya looked down and suddenly realised she had reached forward and was holding his hand. Damian smiled. It would seem that he too had found himself holding hands without realising it. It was a moment that didn’t require words, their eyes met and they smiled. It was all that needed to be said.
Eventually Damian called the waiter over, paid for the meal and left a healthy tip for the young man who had served them so well, then asking for his compliments to be given to the chef.
Priya worried momentarily that he would try to persuade her to go to his room, but Damian stayed true to his word, asking for a number so he could call her, “...I’d like to see you again.”
“I’d like that,” she smiled.
He then walk
ed her to the entrance and waited at her side until her car arrived. They parted with a respectful shadow kiss not quite touching her cheek and as the hotel disappeared behind her she sat back in the car and smiled to herself. It would seem that Damian Simmons was an English gentleman after all!
Chapter Four
A walk to the Queen’s Necklace
As the sun poked its bright fingers through the gaps in the blinds framing her bedroom window Priya awoke with a smile on her face. She had enjoyed a wonderful evening with a man who made a refreshing change to those she had dated previously. He wasn’t perfect, but it was nice to have a new experience and the conversation was stimulating and intelligent.
She realised he hadn’t once asked about her acting career or other Bollywood stars and when he had asked about her it was the girl behind the public façade he was trying to find out about.
A warm feeling entered her belly. Another smile crossed her face and she stretched her arms to shake off the stiffness of sleep.
She took a morning shower and then ate some breakfast while she contemplated what to do that day. The life of a Bollywood actress is rarely quiet, so a day without anything in the diary was indeed a rarity. She considered taking some pics to Tweet to her fans. Little things like this made a big difference, she’d found and created an even bigger following.
As she checked her Twitter messages her smart phone vibrated and a text arrived. She had a look at the message and a warm smile crossed her face yet again... Thank you for being such wonderful company yesterday. I know it’s short notice, but I am at a loose end and thought I’d go for a walk and explore, and thought I’d ask if you’d like to accompany me... Damian x
She paused to consider her reply, before settling on a simple Yes before heading to her wardrobe to decide what to wear.
A few texts later and they arranged to meet at his hotel at 4pm.
She busily set about organising her dress and makeup, choosing a low cut blue dress revealing a healthy amount of cleavage as the material hung in a loop from her neck. The dress flowed freely and as always faithfully met her pinched waist and then flowed into a loose fitting skirt with a hemline showing her lower thighs.
The obligatory high heeled shoes were also blue as was the bag, which she picked up during a shoot in England. She completed the look with a blue bracelet.
Her driver brought the car with her bodyguard sitting shotgun in the front passenger seat. She entered the leather lined vehicle and settled back, looking forward to the evening to follow.
The car pulled up at the hotel and Damian was again waiting in the lobby, wearing a white linen shirt and brown trousers with matching expensive looking brown leather shoes.
She walked through the revolving door into the air conditioned hotel and their eyes met.
The lobby could have been deserted as they could only see each other, Damian’s internal voice telling him he had to resist his attraction to this girl, but her smile was disarming and her beauty radiated. The eyes of every man following her across the room and she felt it and fed on their admiration.
“You are a vision,” he smiled, his blue eyes glistening.
“Thank you,” Priya smiled.
“I booked us a table at the Zodiac Grille. It was recommended by the hotel.”
“Yes,” she answered enthusiastically, “it is said to be the finest French restaurant in Mumbai.”
“Have you eaten there before?”
“No.”
“...Shall we?” he asked leading with his arm to suggest they set off toward the rotating door.
Beyond the climate controlled confines of the hotel lobby they momentarily gasped for breath as the heavy hot humid atmosphere of the city outside hit them.
They slowly walked toward the restaurant, the conversation being little more than small talk and observations about the sights around them. Priya was an enthusiastic and well informed guide, able to point out several places of interest.
Eventually they reached the restaurant and were guided to their table. The wine list was presented to Damian and he chose a white wine to compliment the fish dishes they were recommended to try.
“This is delicious!” Priya purred as another mouthful of her starter melted into her palate.
“It is rather good,” he agreed.
“I don’t really know anything about you.”
“Ask me anything you want to know,” Damian replied openly, “I promise to answer honestly.”
“Well...” Priya began, pausing before asking the question she was dying to have answered, “...how come you are not married?”
“Oh...!” he responded, a little stunned as she hit on his most painful memory.
“I’m sorry!” she apologised, realising she had upset him a little, “...If you’d rather not answer...?”
“No... No... It’s okay. I was married... once...” his voice trailed as his face dropped.
“What happened?”
“My wife and daughter died in a car accident.”
“Oh My God! I am sooo sorry”
“I was away directing a film and my wife was having an affair. She and her lover took my daughter in his car... he was driving too fast...” his voice trailed again.
“How old was your daughter?”
“It was a few weeks after her first birthday.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“It was a long time ago now.”
“Thank you for telling me.”
“I did promise... no secrets.”
“That’s refreshing.”
“More lazy, if you think about it.”
“Why is that?”
“Well when you tell lies you have to remember the story you invent so you don’t get caught out later,” Damian reasoned, “whereas if you tell the truth it’s easier to remember!”
Priya laughed, “I hadn’t thought about it like that!”
The waiter took away their plates and momentarily returned with their main course and with a nod from Damian re-charged their glasses.
“Are you trying to get me drunk?” Priya teased.
“No... I have absolutely no desire to take advantage of you,” he assured her.
“So you no longer wish to seduce me?”
Once more he paused to consider his reply as he chewed and swallowed another delicious morsel, “To suggest that I would seduce you implies that I am in control,” he began, “but I am absorbed by your beautiful brown eyes, your smile melts my resolve and your beauty overwhelms me... I am no longer in control and very much under your spell.”
His answer disarmed her completely, but she considered her reply while finishing another mouthful. “...So,” she finally began, “I am using witchcraft?”
“Not at all!” he smiled, “My affliction is entirely self induced!”
“Well...” Priya smiled before lowering her voice to a more seductive tone and leaning forward across the table, “If you were trying to seduce me... You’d be doing very well!”
The meal continued with a collection of glances and exchanged smiles. The food was exquisite, their conversation was light and casual after both having admitted more than they had expected to earlier.
With Priya’s bodyguard shadowing like an imposing chaperone they left the restaurant and made their way to Marine drive, the sky now a dark blue as darkness threw its star glittered blanket over the night sky.
The street lights lit ocean drive and the whole bay glistened like a jewel, “It’s called The Queen’s Necklace...” Priya explained sensing from the look on his face how impressed he was, “...beautiful ...isn’t it?”
He turned to face her, aching to lean forward to kiss the beauty before him, but remembering the laws against public displays of affection, he pulled back and smiled softly, “...It is even
more beautiful tonight!”
Priya felt butterflies in her stomach. She too was aching for a kiss, but her senses were overloaded. Her big brown eyes surveyed his face. Suddenly this plain man was the most beautiful man alive.
They walked along Marine drive, the hot humid air that night was heavy, but their hearts were floating and their steps were slow to savour every last moment together.
Eventually they returned to his hotel and Priya and her bodyguard stepped into her car, disappearing into the night.
Chapter Five
The Bollywood Film Set
Priya had arranged to meet Raj Kapoor on the set of his new comedy film. She didn’t make a habit of disturbing people on the set of their films when she wasn’t involved, but she wanted advice about Rattan Singh and Raj suggested they met in a break from shooting at a local shopping mall.
The mall was closed to the public for the day, but Raj and the director had informed security that Priya and her bodyguard would be coming so as she approached they let them through.
As they entered the modern multi-levelled mall designed along American lines, in the foreground was the usual chaos of a film set with runners looking like their underwear was on fire, director and assistant directors looking close to a nervous breakdown and assistants carrying hurriedly re-drafted scripts.
The cameramen were poised and one of the crew, who Priya recognised from one of her previous films, caught her eye and put a finger to his lips. Clearly they were close to shooting a take and Priya quietly looked for a vantage point to survey the scene.
In the mall foyer was an assortment of people in everyday clothes. It could have been a scene from real life but for the film crew and lights.
The director waved his hands frantically to his assistant, whispering loudly and looking totally distraught and unhappy before becoming the picture of calm and resting his hand on his chin, while the assistant seemed to have caught whatever had distressed his boss and was running around the set making sure everything was ready.
Bollywood Nights Page 2
