Chapter 36
*****
Later that night, Ashok smiled to himself as he heard Isha mumble to herself, half asleep. He kept his eyes on the road as he rode through empty city streets. It was late for him but he didn’t mind her company.
That evening they went to one of the best restaurants for dinner and he was able to reserve the best spot there.
The evening breeze and the grand view of the city lights made it enjoyable.
What was a surprise for him was how much fun Isha was.
In his mind she was stuck up but she had a lot of thoughts to share, aware of world affairs and yet there was a vulnerability that he had not seen before.
A shudder passed through him at the memory of her soft, pillow-like lips brushing over his and it took all his resolve to not kiss her back. He had made that mistake once in the heat of the moment a couple of months back, but never again.
“Ashok, why were all the women looking at you?” her soft yet clear words made him smile.
He had been holding off on responding to her somewhat random questions since he knew she had a bit too much to drink.
She kept repeating how much she needed the outing and he did too.
He had not been active socially and had been ignoring the calls of the women who made good companions for a dinner date.
Especially since the time Isha’s and his marriage was legal. He knew his family had been watching him all along. He didn’t expect his sister to call BS on the legal marriage. Isha was quite resourceful in coming up with a decently believable story about how they had a connection in the past.
“Ashok, why were they all looking at you?”
Her question made him chuckle. “I don’t know.”
She fell silent again and he could tell she had her eyes shut. Moments later she was awake. “You need a ring too. They don’t know you’re married.”
Another chuckle escaped him. He was used to the attention from attractive women but he could not recollect looking at anyone that night. He had his eyes on his date for the night.
His wife, only legal.
“Ok, I’ll get a ring.” He knew she was only half listening.
“Good,” she murmured, settling deeper into the passenger seat. “I can’t have women thinking you’re available when you’re not.”
He chuckled as the irony wasn’t lost on him. She claimed he was unavailable when their marriage was nothing more than an arrangement. And yet something about the possessiveness in her drowsy voice made his chest tighten in a way that had nothing to do with their fake relationship.
Ashok stole a glance at her profile in the dim light from the vehicle dashboard. Her face was relaxed, lips slightly parted, completely vulnerable in a way she never allowed herself to be when awake. He had a great time with her that night. Way more than he had expected to.
The same woman who had kissed him to break out of his grasp.
Earlier that evening, it was extremely hard for him to not pull her into a deeper kiss when she grazed her lips over his at the jewelry store.
He stepped back then, reminding himself of the boundaries.
But now, in the quiet intimacy of the car, he needed to muster up the resolve to fight his thoughts that stated that the boundaries felt increasingly meaningless.
“Ashok?” Her voice was barely a whisper.
He liked the way his name played on her lips. “Yeah?” He fought hard not to think about how she would say his name if she were aroused.
After a long pause, she said, “Thank you for tonight. I... I needed this.”
Before he could respond, he noticed her breathing had evened out, and she had fallen asleep. He drove the rest of the way home in silence, trying to forget how badly he wanted her, and not just because of some moment of weakness.
Shortly after, he pulled into the driveway, and he sat for a moment under the pretext of waiting for the main gate to close automatically. He watched her sleep long after the gate had closed. Their fake marriage seemed real that day and he wasn’t sure why.
“Isha,” he said softly, gently shaking her shoulder. “We’re home.”
She stirred, blinking up at him with sleepy and confused eyes. “Already?”
“Yeah.” Ashok got out and walked around to her side, opening the passenger door. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”
Isha took his offered hand, and slowly stepped out of the car. But as she stood, she swayed, the wine from dinner still affecting her balance. His hands immediately went to her waist to steady her, and suddenly she was looking up at him with those dark eyes that had been driving him crazy lately.
“Ashok,” she whispered, her voice soft and raspy in the dim light of the driveway.
Before he could respond, she rose up on her toes and kissed him. Her lips were as soft as he remembered, and for a moment he was lost. His resolve crumbled as she pressed closer, her hands fisting in his shirt. The kiss was sweet and desperate, tasting of wine and something that was purely her.
He kissed her back without thinking, his hands tightening on her waist as what seemed like months of suppressed desire crashed over him.
He’d wanted this, wanted her, for a while now.
Even as every nerve in his body screamed for more, his conscience fought its way to the surface. The wine on her breath, the way she’d been fighting sleep just moments ago, the vulnerability in her eyes, it all hit together in his mind.
With tremendous effort, he pulled back, his hands moving to her shoulders to create distance between them. His chest heaved as he tried to catch his breath, trying to regain his control.
She stared up at him, confusion and hurt flickering across her features. The silence stretched between them, heavy with everything he didn’t want to say.
“Ashok.” Her eyes searched his face, as if looking for an explanation. He avoided her eyes as he silently led her into the house and up the stairs to her room.
“Good night. Get some sleep.” He kept his eyes away from her as he could feel the disappointment exuding from her.
She didn’t respond back and he knew there was no point staying there any longer, especially after the kiss they shared on the driveway.
He took one step toward the door and he heard her move, before he felt her hand fisting in his shirt from behind. He froze like he had no strength to pull away from her.
She didn’t respond back and he knew there was no point staying there any longer, especially after the kiss they shared on the driveway.
He took one step toward the door and he heard her move, before he felt her hand fisting in his shirt from behind. He froze like he had no strength to pull away from her.
“Don’t go,” she whispered, her voice barely audible but laced with something that made his chest tighten.
He stood there, every muscle in his body coiled tight, fighting the urge to turn around.
Her grip tightened on his shirt, and he could feel the warmth of her body just inches behind him.
“Stay,” she breathed, and then her other hand pressed flat against his back, sending electricity through the thin fabric.
That was his undoing. Ashok turned around slowly, his eyes finding hers in the dim light. The vulnerability mixed with raw desire, made something snap inside him.
This is a mistake.
He pushed away the thought as his hands reached for her face, thumbs tracing the line of her jaw. As if in response she rose up on her toes.
When their lips met, it was different from the driveway, hungrier, more needy. His hands tangled in her hair as she pressed herself against him, her fingers working at the buttons of his shirt with trembling urgency.
He backed her against the wall, his mouth trailing down her neck, taking in her taste that he craved. She gasped, her head falling back as he found that sensitive spot just below her ear, her nails digging into his shoulders.
She let out a moan when his hands slid under the hem of her dress, skimming the soft skin of her thigh. Her breath was coming fast as she pulled him closer, her legs wrapping around him as he pressed her harder against the wall.
Their mouths crashed together again, all restraint abandoned. Months of tension, of heated glares and careful distance, exploded between them in a tangle of desperate kisses and wandering hands that couldn’t get enough of each other.
“Ashok,” she said with so much desperation he wanted to rip her dress to pieces. But in that moment of lust and desire something hit him hard.
He pulled back and saw her blink in confusion. “You have a fucking boyfriend. Stop this.”
She saw the anger in her eyes flare and saw her hand go up, before he felt her palm strike the side of his face. “Don’t you dare slut shame me for wanting you. I don’t have a boyfriend, not anymore.”
He had an inkling something was off for a few weeks, a couple of months back but didn’t know what it was. The new information further angered him. “I have no fucking desire to be a rebound guy.”
With those words he left her standing in the middle of the room, frozen.
He was painfully hard as he walked into his room. It would have been so much easier to just take her against the wall but not yet. Not like this.