By the time Arnav and Khushi awake from their slumber it was nearing 3am. The rain was still falling outside, loud and heavy.
Looking at the time, Arnav jumped up and ran his hand through his hair.
“Shit! Look at the time.”
Looking at the clock, Khushi too gasped.
“Mom and dad… They’re going to kill me. I said I’d get home before too late.”
Pulling the sheets around her, Khushi got out of bed and pulled her phone out of her bag. She saw that she had a couple of missed calls from her parents and then a text from her dad saying that the weather was really bad and that he would feel much more at ease if Arnav and Khushi didn’t attempt to come home in this weather.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Khushi quickly tapped out a reply before taking her charger out of the bag, plugging it in and then putting her phone down before getting back into bed with Arnav.
“Don’t worry, dad said the weathers too bad and that we should find somewhere to stay and not try and get back into the city in this weather.”
Arnav relaxed against the pillows and pulled Khushi into his arms.
“You hair is still wet.”
Touching her hair, Khushi realised that Arnav was right.
“We should have showers before we both fall ill.”
“Might be too late for that already.”
Laughing, Arnav got out of bed and handed Khushi a fresh towel. Holding the sheets close, Khushi got out of bed again and made her way over to the bathroom, before stopping dead in her tracks and raising her hand to her head.
“Clothes! Arnav my clothes are all out in the rain!”
“I’ll bring them in and put them in the drier for you. For now just take some of my clothes from the wardrobe and wear them after your shower.”
Nodding, Khushi went over to the wardrobe, and Arnav followed her, grabbing a dressing gown before he left the bedroom.
*****
Standing under the shower, Khushi let the hot water cascade down her body. It maybe long past 3am, but Khushi was feeling wide awake again, thoughts of everything that had happened between her and Arnav playing on her mind. She couldn’t believe that he was thinking about marriage, that he was ready and was willing to tell his family. That he was ready to ask her parents for her hand. She couldn’t believe this was happening.
If someone had told her a couple of years ago that she would merge her business with someone else’s and that she would fall in love with her business partner, she would have laughed in their faces and told them that they were crazy. But now that is was actually happening, she didn’t find it a hard concept to get her head around.
Yes, her business was still her priority, but she loved Arnav and it was evident that he wasn’t going to come between her and her business. They had managed to maintain a professional relationship while in a personal relationship and she was certain that they would be able to continue this.
Ready to turn the water off and get out of the shower, Khushi felt a strong pair of arms around her waist, lips kissing her exposed neck. Turning her head and lifting her face, Khushi saw Arnav standing behind her, his hands dropping to her hips and pulling her against him so she could feel his length against her butt.
“Hey…”
“I thought, why wait for you to be done when I could just join you in the shower.”
“I’m ready to get out now Arnav.”
“Nope, I don’t think you are.”
Spinning her around, Arnav pushed Khushi up against the wall of the shower, his hands all over her naked body.
“Arnav what are you…”
“I want you.”
“But we’ve already…”
Before she could finish what she wanted to say, his lips were on hers, his hands on her hips, pulling her close so the lower half of her body was crushed against his.
In no time, they were off again, Khushi’s moans filling the shower cubical…
*****
It was nearing 4am when Khushi pushed Arnav out of the bathroom so she could get dressed.
Wrapping the towel around his waist, Arnav laughed and got out and went to get dressed.
By the time he was fully dressed, Khushi got out of the bathroom, wearing one of his big t-shirts and a pair of shorts. Her hair was wrapped up in a big towel, her cheeks bright red from the heat of the bathroom.
“I found a hairdryer for you.”
Arnav pointed to the top of his dresser where a hairdryer was sat, waiting for Khushi.
“You always keep track of all my needs don’t you Mr Raizada?”
“I do… And I plan to keep track of them as we go through life together.”
For some reason, Khushi found Arnav’s words really made her blush. Biting her lip, she turned away so that she could dry her hair. He was promising a future… Promising that he would take care of what she needed in the future. He really was being serious about their life together and Khushi couldn’t help but feel overjoyed.
*****
“Babe… Babe, wake up.”
Eyes fluttering open, Khushi was met with the beautiful sight of Arnav leaning over her. Stretching her arms over her head, Khushi looped her arms around his neck, pulled him close to herself and pressed a kiss on his lips before letting him go again.
“A man could really get used to waking up his girlfriend if he got greeted like that every morning.”
Laughing, Khushi sat up in bed, stretching her arms and legs.
“Did you sleep well?”
“Best nights sleep I’ve had in a long time.”
Moving the covers, Khushi swung her legs out of the bed and got to her feet. She was feeling slightly sore, but she didn’t want to worry Arnav. Arnav smirked as he took her in. She was still in his t-shirt that was completely oversized for her and came half way down her thighs and his shorts that were just peeping out from below the bottom of the shirt.
“You’re clothes are all dry and I’ve ironed them for you.”
He nodded to the sofa on the other side of the room and Khushi saw her clothes all sat there, ready for her.
“You didn’t have to iron them.”
“I know but you didn’t want to go home looking a complete wreck. May have caused your parents to ask a lot of questions.”
“You have a point there Raizada.”
“I’ve taken out a fresh toothbrush for you and left it on top of the towel. If you need anything else just let me know. I’m going to go and get breakfast ready.”
Arnav turned away and was about to leave the room when Khushi rushed over to him and hugged him from behind.
“Thank you… For being such an attentive and caring lover. And I’m not just thanking you for the clothes and the toothbrush. Last night… Last night was by far the most beautiful night of my life, maybe even more so than our first night together.”
Turning in her arms, he pressed a light kiss against her lips, looping his arms around her waist.
“Last night was… Intense and passionate and beautiful for me too. But I know we can’t do this again any time soon.”
Khushi felt slightly taken aback by him saying this. She was just about to say that herself.
“I know that’s what you would have said next and I understand. You wanted us to not spend the night together again until after marriage and I agreed with that. Last night is something we both needed but I know we can’t do that again. But it’s okay by me, as soon as Akash and Payal’s wedding is done, I will tell everyone about us and we’ll get our wedding on track as soon as possible.”
“Thank you for understanding me and my needs.”
“I told you, I’ll always take care of your needs and what you want from me.”
“I really do love you Arnav.”
“I love you too.”
*****
Walking through the front door of her apartment, Khushi was praying that her parents weren’t awake yet. It was still only half 7, so she was hoping she’d got back early enough to avoid any awkward questions. But unlucky for her, her father was sat in the living room, watching TV while eating his toast. Turning his attention to his daughter, he switched the TV off.
“Lalita! Khushi’s home!”
Putting her bag down on the sofa, Khushi came and sat down beside her father.
“You’re already awake?”
“I didn’t sleep well, the whole time difference thing is still causing me to sleep at weird times.”
“You’ll get used to it soon enough papa.”
“I hope so, otherwise it’s going to be a very long month.”
“Do you guys still plan on going back as soon as Payal’s wedding is over.”
“Haan beta. You know India isn’t the place for me. I don’t even know how I am going to stay here for a whole month.”
“But…”
She wanted to tell her father about what Arnav had said last night, about what he had proposed, but she couldn’t bring herself to do it. How does one tell their father that their boyfriend was ready to talk to the families about marriage?
“Did you and Arnav get all your work done yesterday?”
“We did.”
“You should invite him round one day so we can all have dinner together or something. It was nice meeting him at the engagement but it’ll be nice to talk to him when I can actually hear him.”
“I’ll let him know.”
“He is good to you isn’t he Khushi?”
“He is papa. He takes the best care of me and he respects me so, so much.”
“Well I’m glad that you have found love and happiness with Arnav. I’m hoping you kids do plan on making things official very soon.”
Blushing, Khushi looked away and her father got the answer he needed. She didn’t need to say anything, he knew his daughter well enough to know that she and Arnav did have plans for the future.
“Go and have some breakfast now otherwise you’ll be late for work.”
“I’ve already had breakfast but haan, I do need to get ready for work.”
Getting to her feet, Khushi hugged her father quickly before rushing off to her bedroom.
Karan watched his daughter rush away, her cheeks glowing bright pink. May she always remain this happy. That’s all he wanted in life.
*****
Akash walked into Arnav’s office to find his brother smiling at his phone.
“Ahem.”
Locking his phone, Arnav turned around. It was evident that he hadn’t been expecting anyone to walk in on him just now.
“Hey Akash, what’s up bro?”
“Nothing, I just came to see if you came into the office. You didn’t come home last night.”
Smirking, Arnav winked at Akash, who shut the door behind him and sat down at Arnav’s desk.
“You and Khushi spent the night together?”
Arnav nodded and sat down in his seat, opposite Akash.
“If I tell you a secret, will you make sure you don’t tell anyone at home just yet?”
“Of course bhai! You know I’d never tell anyone anything you told me in confidence.”
“I know you wouldn’t. I just wanted to make sure you knew. Well it’s just… I’m going to tell Nani and everyone at home about me and Khushi after your wedding. And I’m going to tell them and her parents that I want to marry her.”
“Wait! You’re going to marry her?”
Nodding, Arnav smiled.
“I spoke to her about it last night and yeah… It’s what we both want and we’ve seen that we can balance business and personal so, I don’t see why we should wait.”
“Wow! Congratulations bhai! That’s… I’m so happy for you! But… Don’t you think it’s too soon. You guys haven’t even been dating for long.”
“I know, but we love each other and we know we’re serious about each other, I know it’s going to work between us. I don’t feel we need to wait.”
Getting to his feet, Akash went over to Arnav and gave him a big hug.
“Really, I’m so happy you’ve found your happiness in Khushi. And if you guys know what you’re doing then of course I’m going to support your decisions.”
“Thanks bro, means a lot.”
Looking at his watch, Akash excused himself, saying that he had something important to attend to. Arnav let him go and then went to Khushi’s cabin to find her.
Her door was shut and so he knocked and waited.
“Come in.”
Pushing the door open, Arnav walked in, shut the door behind him and then proceeded to come and take a seat opposite her.
“Hi.”
“Hey.”
“You’re working away.”
“Yep. So much to do. You should be working yourself Mr Raizada.”
“I tried to work, but my girl is refusing to get out of my head today. You see, we shared a super passionate night together last night and I can’t stop thinking about her. Can’t stop thinking about how her soft skin felt against my hands, how her lips felt against mine. How her body moved under mine… I’m sure you can understand my issue.”
Biting her lip, Khushi turned her attention away from her laptop and looked at Arnav before lowering her eyes once more.
“You know, it’s highly inappropriate to talk to your business partner about your sex life.”
“Is it also inappropriate to tell my business partner that I really want to take her clothes off right now and make love to her on this very desk.”
“Very, very inappropriate…”
“But I can tell my business partner definitely is imagining how it would be if we actually did what I just mentioned.”
Arnav watched as Khushi’s eyes fluttered shut momentarily. He knew the effect his words were having on her, and he loved knowing how much he affected her.
“Arnav stop…”
Her voice was a mare whisper, pleading him to not make her want him more than she already did.
“Last night Khushi… I can’t stop thinking about us.”
“I can’t either.”
“To think, soon enough, that can be us every single night.”
“I can’t wait…”
“Are you okay, after last night? I wasn’t too rough with you or anything was I?”
“No, no you weren’t rough at all. But I am feeling a bit sore to be completely honest with you. But I guess it could be down to the fact that we haven’t really… I haven’t… Last night was only my second night so… And… You’re really big so…
“You don’t know how much it means to me, knowing that I will be your one and only. As for size, I think you accommodate me perfectly. Made for me.”
Looking away again, Khushi looked at the keyboard of her laptop, blushing furiously.
“There’s so much I want to do with you, try with you… I can’t wait to be married to you Khushi. To make you mine. To explore our sexuality together.”
He watched as her chest rose and fell rapidly. She was breathless, nervous, excited… She wanted everything he wanted and that excited him. Way more than he should allow himself to get excited at the office. Getting to his feet, he leaned over and pressed a kiss on the top of Khushi’s head.
“I’ve got to get back and get some work done. I’ll see you late baby.”
“Bye…”
He didn’t want to have to leave, but he knew that if either of them wanted to get any work done, he had to leave now. He turned his back and began to walk away. Khushi watched as he left, her heartbeat and breathing still erratic from his words. She wanted everything he wanted. And she too could wait until they got married.
*****
Much later the same afternoon, Arnav and Khushi were still in a trance, memories of their passion from the night before keeping them distracted.
A knock on her door brought Khushi back to her senses. Had Arnav come back again? She couldn’t face him again, not now when she had finally completely calmed herself down.
“Come… Come in.”
Popping his head into her cabin, Akash smiled.
“Jijaji, hi! Come in!”
Entering Khushi’s office, Akash shut the door behind himself.
“How are you Khushi? Had a good evening with bhai?”
Gasping at what he was insinuating, Khushi blushed a deep red once more and looked away.
“Jijaji!”
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I won’t tease you. I’m just so glad you guys found your happiness in each other. Any way, bhai sent me to get you to sign some papers. He would have come himself but he can’t trust himself to behave at the moment.”
Laughing, Khushi took the papers from Akash and sat down at her desk. Sitting down opposite her, Akash watched as she skim read the top page.
“Oh, this is all to do with the New Years fashion show?”
“Yeah. Bhai asked if you could just sign and date all the pages.”
“Sure.”
Signing the first page, Khushi skimmed over the next one and signed that too.
After that, she stopped reading the pages and just kept signing and dating all the pages.
“Don’t you want to read through it all properly.”
“No it’s alright. Me and Arnav went through all the decisions any way. I trust him to have implicated all my changes accordingly.”
“You trust bhai that much?”
“I’ve trusted him with my heart jijaji, and now I trust him more than I trust myself.”
Getting to the last page, Khushi signed it and then handed the file back to Akash.
“Thanks Khushi. I’ll just pass these to bhai to get signed and then it’s all done.”
Smiling, Khushi nodded and watched as Akash got to his feet and left. Yes, she had trusted Arnav with her heart, she’d completely handed it over to him. And she did trust him more than she trusted herself. She knew he’d never hurt her. She knew he’d always cherish and respect her. Her Arnav loved her, and she loved him, and that’s all that mattered in life.
Tanzeela’s Creative Writing Corner 