Chapter 15

Namrata was in high spirits as she sat on the passenger side of his car. It was 4AM. He was dropping her home… He loved her.… She had a perennial smile on her face ever since he declared his feelings.

After he had said he loved her. She had pushed him on the bed and climbed on top of him. She had kissed him pouring out the passion and love from within. Then… she had been adventurous. She had held him from behind and placing herself on his tip had slid down his length. It was a different feeling. She had ridden him… his eyes had widened but she knew he loved it. She had collapsed on him as soon as she came. He had caught her hips and had thrust inside her till he released explosively inside her taking her to another pinnacle along with him…

After the euphoria had subsided they both had fallen asleep entwined in each other’s arms. But she had to reach home early morning to help her mother finish packing for her trip. So they were on their way. He held her hand throughout the ride to her place. When he stopped the car at the usual place, he took her hand to his mouth and kissed her fingers one by one. It was so sensual she was igniting from inside. If this continued she wouldn’t be able to go home…

He released her hand and turned to look at her. His face had so much emotion written on it, she fell in love all the more…

“You know…little sparrow? Monday is a make or break day for me… for my company… I have made some vital decisions…. It’s either do…or die… And trust me sweetheart, for both our sakes…I want this to materialise. I must have that contract… I can’t lose…” He took a deep breath and held her and again. “… Will you …. You know … if I lose this tender… I will lose… a lot of … I may touch bankruptcy… A lot is at stake. But… will you…” He looked away.

She kept her hand on their joined palms and said, “look at me darling…” when he did she continued softly, “You are more valuable to me than all the money in the world put together. No one can understand this better than me… My family…We lost everything like this…” She snapped her fingers. “…Overnight we were left with nothing. I know how it is. But Trust me when I say I am with you… Always…in thick and thin.”

He pulled her head towards him and kissed her hard and deep… He touched her forehead with his. He whispered, “I love you so much my little sparrow….I love you…” He sighed as he released her. “Look…” He moved back she looked into her eyes and said, “… I will be staying in my office… till Monday. So maybe… we won’t be able to meet…”

“…Hey it’s fine… I will miss you but … its ok… really”. She smiled biting back tears. “We will directly meet on Monday to celebrate.”

He gave her a tight hug and then she stepped out of the car.

Namrata went to work after her mother left for her outing. It was a tearful moment for the mother-daughter duo…  Her mother looked very confident considering her ordeal in the last few years. The NGO volunteers assured her they would watch over her mother. Her brother was to leave next day early morning. So he wanted to sleepover at his friend’s house. The friend’s father was to drop them to school early morning. Namrata spoke with him and once she was convinced she permitted her brother for the sleepover. That meant she would be alone that night…

Once in Office work kept her on her toes. She had to assist Jatin on a gig and since James was there too, she had to be extra careful so as to not reveal her secret rendezvous. They were managing a terrace party even where she had to mainly handle food and the welcome table. Cakewalk for her considering she had independently handled her earlier gigs.

As the party was in full swing, Jatin called her aside and gave her an envelope, “Smriti ma’am has given this to you. I got one too. Can you beat that? We made record profits man!!” She took the envelope and peeked in. There was a wad of notes… again.  She was perplexed… why was Smriti being so generous to all of them? Did they really make that kind of money? She decided to take his help when he got free from his tender.

It was past 2AM when James dropped her home. Since it was a late gig, they could report late tomorrow morning. That relieved her. She was bone tired…

As she was about to hit the sack, her doorbell rang. She was scared… who could it be at this hour?

She checked through the peephole and her heart skipped a beat. She opened the door and let him in. Ranvijay looked terrible… She was saddened by his haggard appearance.

He walked in as she locked her door and flopped down on her small sofa. He was in his work clothes. She offered him water. He drank and rubbed a hand over his face.

“Did you eat dinner?” she asked

“No…” he shook his head. “…not hungry…”

“… Just freshen up a bit. I will fix you something…”

Before he could answer she rushed to her kitchen. Her emotions were paradoxical. She was thrilled he was here… in her house but at the same time her heart was breaking seeing him in this state. She had to be strong for him. Steadying herself, she prepared scrambled eggs with buttered bread. She also heated milk and placed it in a glass along with the eggs. When she took the tray outside, he was leaning on her sofa with his eyes closed… she kept the tray on the stool nearby and touched his shoulders to wake him. He opened his tired eyes and smiled. She brought the plate to him and he finished the eggs and bread in record time! He drowned them down with the glass of hot milk. She then dragged him to her room and made the bed. She made him lie on the single bed and before she could say anything he was fast asleep. She smiled and covered him with a blanket. She went to her mother’s room and slept off immediately.

The next morning when she woke up he was gone… But this time there was a note in his beautiful handwriting,

Had to leave. Urgent meeting today with shareholders. Need to prepare….

Cu soon…

Love you…

Namrata took in a breath of satisfaction and hugged the note. She liked that he was opening up to her. Soon she would find out about his family. She needed something to tell her mother when she finally revealed about Ranvijay to her.

After finishing her morning chores she left for work.

Today she was entrusted an outstation gig. She had to go to Pune with Jatin and two other subordinates. This was huge because of the local political involvement. That meant absolutely no room for mistakes. At one end she was thrilled at been given the opportunity of such a scale while at the other end she would miss him…She had to leave in the afternoon itself…

She went home to pack a bag. James was to pick her up in an hour. She finished winding up everything and messaged him as she waited for James to arrive.

Hi…

Off to Pune for a gig…

Don’t skip dinner..

Love you…miss you…

After waiting for some time when she got no reply, she kept the phone away and focussed on gathering her stuff. Her heart sank as she thought about him overworking himself.

Soon she was on her way to Pune

Meanwhile few kilometres away…

The old man got off the phone with his CEO. PC Infotech was going to touch great heights. But even more than that, the Giant Eagle was going to be destroyed. The eagle would now understand his pain… The pain of losing all that you have earned the pain of losing someone you love…. Now that was going to be a bonus he hadn’t counted upon getting. Lady luck was in his favour after all. Everything was in position. The ball was ready to strike. His intelligent ex-wife always said, ‘it’s not how you bowl, its how you roll.’

He had already set the ball rolling…. It was time to hit the pins within the next two strikes.

 Monday again would be….his.

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