Chapter 7 #2
“Oh my god,” she said when she began emptying the bags. Inside was a La Perla lace balconette bra and matching thong in her size in a plum color. It was a beautiful lingerie set, and although she’d indulged in La Perla before, her sets were pretty basic and reserved for special occasions.
A vivid cobalt blue V- neck sundress with a swing skirt was next, and then a pair of wedge heels with blue- and- white polka dot fabric ankle ties. She could’ve worn her black dress home after she’d laundered it, but this was so much nicer. More obscure.
She stroked her hand over the shoes and the dress for a moment before taking out the hair and skin products from the second bag. Ajay’s assistant had thought of everything.
She had to pay Hem back. Two people who weren’t in a relationship yet should not be buying each other expensive lingerie and scented creams. It was presumptuous.
For Mina, the stakes were especially high because she was never supposed to be sidetracked by a man, even if that man kissed her like Hem.
She stared at her dull complexion in the mirror for a moment before she tackled brushing her teeth and then washed the rest of the grime away in the glass- enclosed rain shower.
She French- braided her wet hair into submission and then left all the products she used in one of the bags.
She couldn’t justify taking them with her.
She passed two bedrooms and a half bath all exquisitely decorated before she entered the living space.
She let out a sigh as she took in the most beautiful great room she’d ever seen.
The glass wall overlooking Manhattan was a full two stories.
A circular couch faced a gas fireplace with a large flat screen mounted over the mantel while the kitchen and a bar station fit in the back corner of the penthouse accented by a curved marble island.
The built- in oven light illuminated a foil tray while the state-of-the-art coffee and espresso bar was the only countertop machine.
The spicy scent of Indian food— paranthas maybe? — perfumed the air.
“Most people like the loft area, but the kitchen island is what sold me on this place.”
Mina looked up to the second story where Hem leaned over the edge of a half wall. “You bought a penthouse with two- story views of midtown because of the kitchen island?”
He started down the spiral stairs to the main level. “And the rooftop terrace. Oh, and the private parking. This place was my first investment, but it became my permanent living quarters recently. Did Ajay’s assistant pack everything you need?”
“Like you don’t know,” Mina said with a smirk.
“Know what?”
“About the La Perla, Hem.”
His gaze heated as he approached her like a stalking predator. “It’s better if you show me. Just so I know it fits correctly.”
She held up a hand like a traffic cop. “Wait! First, let’s address the underwear.”
“That’s what I’m trying to do.”
Mina laughed. “No, seriously. You cannot be purchasing designer lingerie for me. It’s presumptuous.”
“Technically, I didn’t,” he said with a shrug. “I took pictures of your tags and just told Rafael to get you whatever women need, and he’s the one who purchased the lingerie.”
“Hem.”
He held up his hands in surrender. “If I’m being completely honest with you, I enjoy buying you things, Mina.
I dated someone a while back who would’ve gone to war with me if I so much as purchased a T- shirt for her and we were engaged.
I totally respected her boundaries, but last night when the opportunity presented itself, I ran with it.
I’ll wait to buy you more underwear until you’re comfortable with the idea. ”
Mina winced as she remembered the backstory Raj had told her the night before about Hem’s past relationship. “Look, we need to discuss this thing between us. About what happened last night and . . . and this morning.”
He hesitated, then took her hand to press a kiss to her knuckles. “Okay. Want some coffee? Or are you a chai person?”
Her fingers tingled from the contact. “Uh, I’d normally be okay with coffee but if you have chai, I won’t turn it down.”
He raised an eyebrow before heading over to a cabinet close to the oven. He pulled down a canister of what looked like loose- leaf tea. With deft efficiency Mina didn’t know he possessed, Hem put a pot of water on the stovetop to boil. He also took out a mug, a strainer, ginger, and sugar.
“I’m impressed,” she said. “Your mother taught you well.”
“My Nani, actually. We used to go stay at her farmhouse outside Chandigarh during the summer months when we were boys. She said that the one thing she always wished for was a husband who would bring her a cup of chai on occasion, not the reverse, so she taught us all how to make it.”
“I think I still have distant relatives in Amritsar, but I’m not sure. My father stopped speaking with his family because he had a love marriage, not an arranged one.”
“How long has it been since you’ve visited India?” Hem asked.
“I went with my mom and dad when I was a kid and haven’t gotten a chance to go back since. I keep up the Punjabi because it’s important to know what the hell my uncles are talking about when they think no one else is looking.”
Mina rounded the island and hoisted herself up to perch on the counter so she could sit and watch him more closely.
He grated the ginger as if he’d done it a thousand times and added it to the water.
When it began to simmer, he poured in three tablespoons of the loose- leaf tea, along with a teaspoon of masala that he pulled from a steel canister. It smelled like cardamom and cloves.
Hem walked over to the custom- designed fridge and took out a glass bottle of milk. “You’re staring,” he said, shooting her a look as he put the milk back.
“It’s nothing.”
“Somethings on your mind, hiriye.”
Beloved. The endearment rocked her.
Now was probably the best time to talk about why they didn’t belong together, at least not while they worked together. There was too much riding on her decision to get sidetracked. She wanted partner, damn it.
“Hem, I know that you came to the club last night because I sort of initiated the invite. I’m not going to lie. I’m attracted to you. But maybe we should keep things professional, at least until I’m done working at your father’s company. Our involvement could be considered a conflict of interest.”
He placed the cup of chai next to her and Mina sighed at the scent rising from the steaming caramel- colored liquid.
“Want some breakfast, too?” Hem asked. “Paranthas and aachar.”
“Seriously?”
“Absolutely.”
“Damn it,” she said with a groan. “How am I supposed to tell you to stay away when you’re trying to seduce me with food?”
He turned from the stove and placed his hands on her knees.
Heat pooled at the juncture of her thighs when he slowly pushed her legs apart and stepped between them.
His hands were at her waist, and with the way he looked at her, with his dark stubble giving him a rugged, sexy appeal, had her squirming against the marble. They were eye to eye, inches apart.
“Mina. Are you interested?”
“We met a week ago!”
“No, we met when we were kids.”
“You and your brothers never looked in my direction. And honestly, I wasn’t really interested in looking in yours, either,” she said.
“Fine,” Hem said. “We noticed each other a week ago, but we’ve known about each other for years. Are you attracted to me or not, Mina?”
“That’s not the point?— ”
He squeezed her hips and yanked her forward so that her pelvis was flush against the hard ridges of his abdomen. “I never took you for a chicken, counselor,” he said. “Do. You. Want. Me.”
Her breath came out short and fast. “Obviously I do, damn it, but it doesn’t matter!”
He relaxed his hold and dropped a kiss on her collarbone. His stubble tickled the softness of her skin, and she had to hold back a sigh.
“It matters. We’ll be professional in the office, and we’ll take some time to know each other.
To date. Nice and easy. But I want you, Mina.
And if you want me, too, then we should see what happens.
When we’re both sober, and alert with no excuses between us.
This is the first time in forever that I felt something for someone else, and I think you feel it, too. ”
“I have too much riding on my role at Bharat for my personal life to interfere.” She tugged his hair at the nape of his neck, and her fingers flexed instinctively in the thick, lush texture of his waves. She couldn’t help brushing her thumb over the diamond stud in his earlobe.
Hem’s hold on her stiffened. “What do you mean by that?” he said, his voice hardening.
Shit. She wasn’t ready to tell him that she was trying to find out if her uncle was sabotaging Bharat’s offer. She needed more time to do some investigative work before she came clean to Hem and his brothers.
“I mean,” she said, stretching out her pronunciation, “that my uncle is on your board of directors, and if I screw up, my chances of becoming partner will be slim to none.”
The lines of his shoulders relaxed a fraction. “How about we let things progress, but we’ll keep it out of the office? We’ll keep this between us. Deal?”
“I’ll think about it,” she muttered.
He leaned forward and nipped her bottom lip. She let out a gasp and couldn’t help but lick the skin that he’d pinched with teeth. He didn’t notice since he had already backed away and was too busy taking the foil tray out of the oven.
She pressed her thighs together and tried to think of unsexy thoughts like Tort Law. Con Law. Civil Procedure. Anything.
It was difficult not to be horny as she watched Hem assemble two plates with mango pickle and what looked like methi paranthas.
She’d always loved the smell of methi paranthas, even though when she was a child, her mother made the fenugreek seeds ingredient into a paste and forced her to put it in her hair every Sunday, so she’d have soft curls.
“Why don’t you grab your plate and chai?” Hem said. “We’ll eat on the terrace. I’ll even let you lecture me some more.”
She hopped off the counter, eager to see the view even though she knew she had to maintain the distance between them. Mina picked up her plate and Hem smacked her butt.
Pleasure shot up her spine like a lightning bolt. “Hemdeep Singh!”
He grinned, the mischievous sparkle in his eyes already dulling her annoyance. “Just checking out the La Perla.”
“You see, this is what I’m talking about,” she said as she stepped aside so he’d lead. “Are you seriously going to avoid this kind of behavior once we’re at Bharat headquarters? I doubt it.”
“Hiriye, I’m a sardar. Do you really think I can resist letting everyone know that you’ve chosen me?”
“And I’m a Sardarni,” she snapped. “Do you really think I’ll put up with your bullshit?”
He leaned forward and stole a quick kiss. “We’ll just have to see.”