Page 35 of 12 Years
She didn’t look at me. ‘The part that guilt-trips me. Says things like, “You’re a bad girl, Payal. What are you doing? This is so wrong. You’re letting your parents down.”’
‘Really?’
‘Yeah. And that’s why, more wine please.’
‘I think we’ve had enough—’
‘You’re old,youshould keep it in check. But please, I’d like some more,’ she said, holding her empty glass out towards me.
‘You, Payal Jain, are brutal.’
‘Come on, a first kiss is momentous. A girl’s allowed an extra glass of wine after that,’ she said.
Shaking my head, I got up and refilled both our glasses.
‘Cheers,’ I said as I handed the glass back to her and took a sip of the wine.
Maybe it was all the wine we’d had, or perhaps it was the kiss that made me bold. I sat down and placed my hand on her leg. An electric current shot through me.
‘I like you, Payal,’ I said.
‘I like you too, Saket …’
‘And I trust you. After a long time, I feel like I can trust someone. And that’s you.’
‘I trust you too.’
‘And I feel special.’
‘Why?’
‘Because I’m the first guy to kiss you.’
‘Oh,’ she looked at me, her gaze steady, and said, ‘I feel special too.’
‘Why?’
‘Because I’m the first girl you’ve liked after your divorce, right?’
Before I could answer, however, she spoke again. ‘Or wait, I may be wrong. Am I? I’m just assuming—’
‘No, you’re right,’ I cut her off mid-sentence. ‘I had decided to never be in a relationship again. But you, something about you …’
‘What about me?’
‘Initially, I thought it’s just physical attraction, an infatuation perhaps.’
‘And now?’
‘Now … it isn’t just that. When we sat here on the ledge earlier, sipping our wine in silence, it felt right. I felt at peace. That’s the best test—when you feel comfortable in the silences, and it doesn’t feel awkward. There’s something real there.’
Payal didn’t respond. She just continued to look right into my eyes.
I stood up and gently pulled her by her hands to make her stand beside me. Then I leaned forward and kissed her again. She wrapped her arms around me and kissed me back, pouring herself into the moment.
I unbuttoned the top few buttons of my shirt and placed Payal’s hand inside. Fine, I admit it—I wanted her to feel my chiselled pecs. Did she notice? I couldn’t tell. She only held me tighter as we kissed again, and again and again. She had waited more than twenty years for her first kiss, but the next hundred came by in just twenty minutes.
I pulled away for a quick second to drop my shirt on the floor, and came back to kiss her.
