Bonus Chapter 1
The fifth month of Adhira's pregnancy brought with it a rounded baby bump, a glowing complexion, and a tempest of hormones that left Shreyash walking on eggshells. Adhira was a wildly unpredictable force of nature, and their home had become the stage for her mood swings.
At 1:30 AM, Adhira's eyes snapped open. The craving hit her with the force of a freight train.
She wanted Rasmalai. But not just any Rasmalai.
She needed the melt in your mouth Rasmalai from the 24/7 hour sweet shop near their college campus which was a solid one hour drive away.
She rolled over and poked his cheek. "Shreyash."
He stirred instantly, his hand immediately finding her waist. "Hmm? Bathroom break?"
"I need Rasmalai," she whispered, her voice carrying the teary tone of a woman on the edge. "From Panditji's shop. The one near your college."
Shreyash cracked one eye open, looking at the digital clock on the nightstand. "Adhi, it's 1:30 in the morning. Can I get it for you tomorrow after work?"
"Tomorrow?" Adhira gasped, clutching her chest as if wounded. "By tomorrow, the baby will feel neglected! He is kicking for some sweets! Do you want your son to be born holding a grudge?"
Shreyash sighed a soft fond sound. He didn't argue or tell Adhira about his early morning meeting. He threw off the covers, dragged a hand through his messy hair, and swapped his pajama pants for jeans.
"I'll be back soon," he said, pressing a warm kiss to her forehead.
Shreyash drove across the sleeping city, woke up the stall owner who was dozing off on a chair and was looking at him like he was a deranged man, bought the sweets and drove all the way back.
Adhira was waiting on the bed, her eyes lighting up as Shreyash walked in carrying a box of sweets. He looked devastatingly handsome, his hair was windblown from the drive, his white home tshirt clinging to his broad chest, and his dimples making an appearance as he smiled at her excitement.
He sat on the edge of the bed, patiently feeding her a piece of the sweet. "Good?" he asked softly.
"Perfect," she moaned around the bite, her eyes fluttering shut.
But as the sugar hit her bloodstream, her pregnancy hormones decided to pivot wildly from hunger to desire.
Her libido had been dialed up to a solid eleven for the past month.
Looking at her sweeter than sweets husband who had just driven across the city for her in the dead of night, Adhira felt a wave of arousal.
She swallowed the sweet and shifted closer. She reached out, her bold hand trailing up his thigh, moving purposefully toward the hem of his tshirt. She wanted to feel his skin, wanted to pull him down onto the mattress and kiss the daylight out of him.
"Shreyash...how about I feed you something sweet" she purred, her fingers slipping under his shirt to graze his warm stomach.
Instantly, Shreyash stiffened. Before her fingers could travel any higher, his large hand closed gently over her wrist. He didn't squeeze, but his grip was unyielding. He slowly pulled her hand away from his body, his cheeks already flushing a shade of crimson.
"Shreyash," she whined, leaning in to kiss his jaw. "Come here."
"Adhira, no," he swallowed hard, leaning back slightly to avoid her lips.
He shifted his weight, lifted his hand and to Adhira's absolute horror...patted her gently on the top of her head like she was an overly enthusiastic Golden Retriever.
"You've had a long night Adhi, and your body is working hard for our baby," he murmured, his voice dropping into that smooth tone that he used to pacify her.
He carefully tucked the blankets around her waist. "Besides the last time we went for a check up, the doctor didn't exactly recommend activities like these. "
"Thats cause I forgot to ask her." She mumbled.
He pressed a chaste fleeting kiss to the tip of her nose, grabbed the sweet box, and practically fled the bedroom, leaving Adhira sitting wide awake in the dim light.
She stared at the empty doorway, her chest heaving with frustration. She let out a muffled scream into her pillow. His patience was legendary, his devotion was unmatched, but his self imposed, overly cautious behavior was driving her absolutely insane.
It was maddening. And she was going to have to find a way to break his ironclad willpower.
She could not break his willpower. So she had to wait until her next check up arrived, bringing a sliver of hope. Sitting in the gynecologist's office, Adhira didn't mince words.
"Doctor," she asked boldly, leaning forward. "Is it okay if we have sex? Will there be a problem for the baby?"
Beside her, Shreyash turned into a living statue. His face remained poker straight, but a shade of red erupted from his collar and instantly consumed his ears and cheeks. He looked like a man quietly waiting for the earth to swallow him whole.
The doctor smiled warmly. "Yes, intimacy is perfectly fine in the second trimester. Just be gentle and find comfortable positions and be sure not to put pressure on the bump."
Adhira smirked at her husband, whose eyes were firmly glued to a spot on the floor.
After the checkup, Shreyash went to the reception to handle the billing.
Adhira, waiting near the entrance, watched as the young female receptionist handed him the receipt while saying something to him.
Shreyash said something in return, and then...
there it was. That damn smile. The devastating smile that carved those illegal dimples into his cheeks. The receptionist giggled.
Adhira's hormonal brain instantly caught fire. Hmph. Smiling at others when he has a cute, pregnant wife waiting right here? The audacity.
By the time Shreyash escorted her to the car and slid into the driver's seat, the temperature in the car had dropped to freezing. He smiled at her, oblivious. "Ready to go home, Adhi?"
Silence.
"Adhi? Are you tired?"
More silence. She turned her head, glaring fiercely out the window for the whole ride, leaving a confused Shreyash internally panicking over what he could have possibly done wrong.
When they reached home, Savita was waiting in the lounge. "How's everything with you? And what about the baby?" she beamed.
Adhira immediately switched to victim mode. "The baby and I are both fine, Ma. The doctor said everything is perfect." She paused, shooting a lethal glare at her husband. "But Shreyash was being inattentive to me Ma!"
Shreyash's jaw dropped. "Adhi, when did I..."
"You keep quiet!" Savita interrupted, stepping up to her daughter in law's defense. She swatted her son's arm. "Shame on you, Shreyash! Making my sweet lovely girl upset. You better be on your best behaviour or you can forget about dinner."
Adhira hid a smug smile behind her hand as Shreyash, looking utterly bewildered nodded meekly.
After dinner, they retreated to their bedroom. Adhira took a long warm bath, the hot water easing her muscles but doing nothing for her spiraling thoughts. By the time she came out and Shreyash went in for his turn, the image of that receptionist giggling at his dimples returned to her mind.
He doesn't look at me like that right now, she thought, her bottom lip quivering. All men are the same! As soon as your body changes, they go looking for other women to smile at.
Tears, hot and uncontrolled, spilled down her cheeks. She sat on the edge of the bed, furiously wiping her eyes, telling herself not to cry over a man. A part of her knew that she was being too sensitive but for some reason she just couldn't stop the tears from falling.
The bathroom door clicked open. Shreyash stepped out, his home pants slung low on his waist, a tshirt and his damp hair dripping water down his neck.
Adhira's breath hitched. A wave of attraction hit her, followed immediately by her stubborn inner voice.
No, Adhira, you can't. He's a dimpled traitor.
Shreyash looked up, and his heart plummeted. He saw her reddened eyes, the tear tracks on her cheeks and panicked. He rushed across the room, ignoring his wet state, and dropped to his knees on the rug right in front of her by the bed.
"Adhi? Hey, what's wrong baby?" He framed her face gently with his large, warm hands, his thumbs catching a stray tear.
"Don't touch me," she sniffled though she leaned into his palm. "You don't love me anymore. Go charm other women with your dimples."
"Charm... what?" Shreyash blinked, completely lost.
"That lady at the reception. You were smiling at her."
"Adhira, I was just asking her for the receipt."
"You smiled!"
"She said that we make a good match and that our baby would be very cute!" he pleaded gently. "Adhira, look at me. There is no one else. There could never be anyone else."
"Then why aren't you touching me?" she cried out, the real insecurity finally bubbling to the surface. She gestured wildly to her body. "I don't think you feel attracted to me anymore. I look like this now. I'm getting big and moody and I know I've been troubling you too much these few months."
Shreyash's expression softened into something unbearably tender. "Baby... don't ever speak about yourself like that. You are so beautiful."
"Really?" Adhira whispered. She leaned forward closing the distance between them until their lips were barely a breath apart.
Shreyash swallowed hard. A deep familiar flush began at his collarbone and creeped up his neck, turning him a bright cherry red. "Really," he breathed back.
They stared into each other's eyes. "Can't you see it?" he asked, his voice hoarse.
Adhira giggled through her tears. She could see it. She could see exactly how red he was, how his breath hitched, how much effect she still had on him despite the baby bump between them.
"Am I really affecting you that much?" she whispered.
"Yes," he confessed instantly.
"Why?" she breathed against his lips.
Shreyash looked at her his blush deepening. "Because... the thought that you look so beautiful, like a literal goddess carrying our child... it makes me feel things I can't explain. I... I..." he stuttered, thoroughly overwhelmed.
Adhira placed a gentle finger over his lips. She trailed it slowly down to his chin. "Shh... just kiss me, Shreyash."
He leaned forward, closing the gap. The kiss was just a peck...
soft, reverent, and heartbreakingly gentle.
He pulled back slightly to press soft kisses to her eyelids, tasting the salt of her tears.
"You're so silly," he murmured into her hair.
"Why waste your tears on these things? If you're upset, just get angry at me.
Hit me. But don't cry to yourself, Adhira. It hurts me when I see you cry."
Adhira sniffled looking into his earnest eyes. Then, without warning, she reached down and pinched his bare waist hard.
"Ow!" Shreyash winced, rubbing his side.
"I'm upset at you," she declared stubbornly.
Shreyash let out a soft laugh, patting her back gently as he remained kneeling. "Okay. What's upsetting you?"
She looked away, suddenly feeling a little shy. "I don't know. But... but I won't stop being upset until you get intimate with me. The doctor said it's okay now. Okay Shreyash?"
Shreyash went utterly still under her gaze. The redness which had started to fade, returned with a vengeance. He gave her a quick, almost panicked peck on the cheek and stood up.
"Lie down on the bed," he instructed. His voice was remarkably firm despite the fact that he looked like a ripe tomato. "Don't move. And tell me immediately if you feel uncomfortable."
Adhira's eyes widened with curiosity. Shreyash rarely took the upper hand in the bedroom. Usually, she was the one pulling him in, kissing him with fiery possessiveness while he made her feel loved and pampered with his shy, gentle pecks.
Carefully, Shreyash climbed onto the bed, hovering over her and making sure no part of his weight came near her baby bump.
He lowered his head, pressing a soft kiss to her nose, then her forehead.
Slowly, he moved down to her lips. He paused, brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear, his fingers lingering on her cheek.
He licked his dry lips nervously. "I... can I...?" he stuttered.
Adhira felt her eyes well up again from how incredibly considerate this man was. Goddammit, she thought, her heart swelling.
"Of course you can," she said, reaching up, grabbing him by the nape of his neck, and pulling him down for a proper kiss.
But the moment their lips clashed, Shreyash yanked himself backward. He grabbed both of her wrists in a vice like grip and pinned them firmly above her head against the mattress.
He looked breathless and slightly terrified. "Don't do that!" he scolded sternly. "I almost lost my balance and fell on your stomach! What if I hurt the baby? Keep your hands right here and don't do anything reckless."
Adhira blinked up at him. The visual of her sweet shy husband hovering over her, his broad shoulders tensed, pinning her wrists down with a dark, stern look in his eyes... it short circuited her brain.
Without thinking, she blurted out, "Okay, daddy."
Instantly, Shreyash shriveled like a sun baked plant. The stern authority vanished. The redness in his face reached nuclear levels. Adhira genuinely feared he might pass out.
"You... you..." Shreyash stammered, his eyes darting everywhere but her face. "Stop saying things like that!"
Adhira bit her lip to stop a wicked grin. "Things like what, daddy?"
Shreyash's elbows gave out slightly, nearly losing his hold. He caught himself just in time, looking down at her with a helpless slight pout...a little habit he'd developed over the last two years of marriage whenever she teased him too far.
"Please stop," he begged, his voice cracking. "Otherwise, I don't think I'll be able to..."
"Be able to?" Adhira supplied helpfully. "Have sex with me?"
Shreyash buried his blushing face into the crook of her neck, mumbling against her skin, "Hmm... make love to you."
Adhira's heart melted into a puddle. She let out a breathless laugh, tilting her head to give him access. "Shreyash," she whispered, her voice laced with adoration and desire, "if we end up having a football team of kids in the future, it is entirely your fault for being this damn sexy."