Page 66 of That Same Old Love

“Whaat? Never mind. I’ll deal with it later. Now go on… shooo. We are discussing something important here. Go take a shower and fix yourself a snack from the fridge,” Jhanvi told her husband before settling down. “Okay so where were we?”

They resumed with their talk until everyone had to leave since they had their families waiting at home or places to go to.

By the time Mahi got back home it was almost seven thirty in the night. She loaded the groceries in the fridge and ate a quick dinner. The jet lag was hitting her hard and she went to bed early, glad about that fact. She didn’t want to think about missing Samrat that night or the confusing feelings and thoughts in her mind.

***

Sometime during the night, Mahi felt the covers slide down from her body and a hand caressing her back. She arched slightly, feeling the cool hands on her heated body. She could feel Samrat’s weight dip the mattress slightly as he stretched out behind her. Slowly he turned her towards him.

Mahi opened her mouth to call him out, “Sam—”

Before she could form his name completely, he covered her mouth with his.

For the next few hours, they didn’t talk, except to whisper their needs to each other. Later, they fell into an exhausted sleep wrapped around each other.

Early next morning, she woke up and noticed that it was still a little dark outside. Samrat was already up and she could see his shadow move in the room.

For some strange reason, she didn’t want to let him know she was awake.

Samrat was putting on his clothes and she could hear the slight rustle. After he was done, he slowly walked towards the bed and stood there quietly.

She tried to keep her breathing even and closed her eyes.

He bent down and pulled down the covers, revealing the top half of her body until her hips. He traced her shoulders and her back with his fingers, making her breakout into goose bumps.

And then he gently pushed her hair aside from her ears. He kissed her on her ear and whispered, “I know you are awake and can hear me, Mahi. I’ll see you later. I have to make some work calls now.”

She tried very hard to not respond with a shiver or to pull him down on top of her. She heard him sigh, and then he covered her back with the blanket before turning back and walking away from her room.

Soon, she heard the click of her main door closing.

She lay there for several minutes, confused and numb.

Then after sometime, “Oh shit. I’m screwed. Literally and figuratively. I have fallen for him and want him with me forever,” she whispered and pulled a pillow on her face.

CHAPTER 21

Their night before had been intense, shaking Mahi up. Just after Samrat left, she had spent the next few hours, strategizing and reasoning with why she felt like an emotional wreck. She even browsed the internet on her cell phone for the reasons on why women felt that way even during a brief relationship with no strings attached. Apparently, according to internet, the culprit was Oxytocin, the chemical making her feel unnecessarily attached to him.

“I’m not going to be a slave to some chemical reactions happening in my body. I’m strong, independent andextremelypractical,” she muttered repeatedly.

That morning she received multiple messages from Samrat that she ignored. She needed some time to re-build her defenses. Soon she got ready and was hurriedly having her breakfast, when she heard a car honking insistently outside. When she went out, she saw Samrat waiting impatiently for her, standing next to his SUV.

“Why haven’t you replied to my messages? Anyway, come on. Let’s go. I am getting late,” he shouted from the street.

Mahi saw some of the neighbors standing near their gates due to the racket happening in their usually quiet street.

Samrat greeted them loudly and started exchanging pleasantries with them, while she grumbled and went back into the house to grab her bag, before locking up her house.

“I could have called a cab; you didn’t have to wait for me. Why carpool in India all of a sudden?” she asked him grumpily.

He raised his eyebrow at her scowl. “Habit from the last three weeks, I guess. Now get in. We are getting late,” he ordered.

She was about to get into the passenger side, but he already beat her to it.

“Samrat. I can’t drive here. I-I’m not used to the traffic here,” she told him with a frown, hating to admit a weakness.

He looked at her sternly. “It’s almost the same as driving in the Bay Area and this vehicle is an automatic one too. And you drove like a maniac in the past three weeks, zipping between lanes. Traffic moves much slower here and I’m sitting right next you. So get in,” he ordered her again.

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