Page 10 of Let's Start with Forever
Probably living a bit recklessly and behaving a little wild like Rishi maybe good for him. Perhaps it would help get his mind off his problems and maybe he’d even be able to stop thinking about this one beautiful hazel-eyed woman who had taken over all his thoughts ever since she had reappeared in his life.
“OK,” Sameer agreed, “let’s do this.” He gave his brother a broad smile.
Rishi’s bikewas a beauty and she was fast as well. Sameer lifted the front cover of his helmet to let the wind on his face. Due to the speed conversation was impossible, so he let himself enjoy the fast ride and the cool breeze. This time of the night, the city roads were practically empty and he could easily speed on the super-fast bike without any danger. The clean crisp breeze wafting off the sea felt good and he let go. Rishi had been right; he needed this outlet.
But try as he might, he couldn’t stop thinking of Raashi. Since the night he had met her at the restaurant, she had infiltrated his thoughts. His mind had been in an endless turmoil ever since.
He had chased her all those months ago because he had wanted her, badly. She had imprinted herself on his mind so much so that day in and day out he’d been only thinking about her.
That fateful night, their one night together, Raashi had stirred something intense in him. He had run scared of all the feelings she had aroused in him. And hence, even though she’dasked him to be there with her in the morning, he had deserted her.
And now after meeting her again, the memory of that night kept returning in full force and his heart was throwing dozens of questions at him. Questions that had always been there, which he had chosen to ignore until now. Questions that made him feel guilty, that he had blocked, but were now consuming him. And seeing her again, they kept playing in his mind on repeat mode.
Should he have at least contacted her later and told her that they didn’t have a future together? Should he have explained to her that he was incapable of being in a committed relationship? If he had then perhaps he would have had some closure and he wouldn’t be debating his actions now like he was and feeling guilty about it.
But no matter how much he thought about that night, in the end, he always came to the same conclusion that though it must have hurt her, leaving had been the right thing for him. Had he stayed, he would have jumped straight into a hot, heady, steamy affair with her. And he knew it would have muddled his mind and he had to admit, his heart too, which was something that he definitely did not want. He knew firsthand what it felt like when he had handed his heart on a platter to a woman; only to have it crushed. His experience with Natasha had made him immune to having a steady relationship with any woman again, not even Raashi.
He had protected himself that night, but what about her? How had she felt when she had woken up to an empty bed in the morning? Had she been hurt, offended maybe or had she brushed off the encounter with him in her usual confident way? Of course, she must have been a bit hurt and livid too. Which woman, wouldn’t be? He had walked away from their night together and never contacted her again.
But then Sheena had confirmed that Raashi was fine. Hadn’t she?
Sameer recollected the evening he had met Sheena, a week after his night with Raashi. Sheena had met him at home for a family dinner and when he had bent forward to kiss her cheek, she had punched him hard on his shoulder and whispered to him, “You’re a complete jerk and I hate you for what you did.”
He had stepped back to look at her, confused at first and then seeing the anger in her eyes, he had immediately understood what she was referring to.
For a second his heart had melted and he had asked, “How is she?”
To which Sheena had given him an angry look and said, “Of course, she is fine. What did you think? That she’d be crying over an ass like you.”
And she had stormed off.
So Raashi obviously survived it, albeit hating him in the process. He had left her because for the first time in years a woman was able to break through the defenses around his heart. Even when he had been pursuing her, he had known that Raashi was special. She made him feel things he hadn’t felt in a long time, feelings, he really didn’t want to feel.
Sameer shook his head. He had to stop this line of thinking. It wouldn’t get him anywhere. He was still unwilling to give his heart to any woman. So really these thoughts were useless.
He revved the accelerator of the bike up to a higher speed. The bike flew, scattering his thoughts in the wind.
There was something about speeding on a lean mean powerful bike that made you feel free. Sameer felt like he was flying. He had not done this in such a long time and it felt great. The thrill was indefinable. They were zipping across the Queen’s Necklace, one of the best stretches of road in Mumbai. Most of the skyscrapers of Mumbai were located on this stretch. Some ofthe best hotels in the city were located on one side of the road and the other side was lined by the Arabian Sea. At this speed all the sites just whizzed past in a blur.
After three wild, lightning fast turns on the drive Sameer finally slowed down.
Lifting up his helmet flap, he turned to Rishi, “That was thrilling.”
“I know,” Rishi concurred with a slight grin.
They crossed The Marquis and Rishi asked, “Do you think Rhea would have told us where she was if she hadn’t realized there was a problem at The Marquis?”
“Not voluntarily, no. Though I’m quite sure if we checked our social media accounts we would have known sooner or later. Either she would have posted an update or her friends would have tagged her in theirs.”
“Yeah. Why is it so hard for her to give us a straight answer when we ask her anything?” Rishi paused for a second and then continued. “I cannot still digest the fact that she quit college without telling us or even talking to us.”
They were all worried about her. Something was going on with her and he had to find out what. The twins were known to rebel all the time but this closed, unhappy and angry behavior was not like Rhea at all. She was usually happy-go-lucky, vivacious and fun. He had to get her to confide in him soon.
Knowing that they wouldn’t get any answers unless their sister confided in them herself.
Rishi changed the subject, “What about that property next to The Marquis? I thought you wanted to extend The Marquis onto it.”
Sameer stopped the bike in front of the ancient villa that was lying nondescript and abandoned next to his hotel. It was prime real estate and it had belonged to his grandmother’s family for ages. On her death, it had passed on to his grandfather andSameer was planning to refurbish it and extend a new wing of The Marquis on it, since a while now. Sameer and Rishi both got off the bike and gazed at the villa. It was not too big, about ten thousand square feet, but sufficient to add a new wing to one of his most prestigious and sought after hotels.
