by Mahi Jay
Nina waved back to them as Aadith left the wrought iron gates behind and sped into the night.
He’d guessed his gran would be happy he’d chosen to tie the knot. But he hadn’t anticipated it being magnified many fold due to it being Nina. Damn! Breaking it off wasn’t going to be that simple. Envisioning the hurt his family would eventually feel made him feel like a cad. Nina’s voice cut into his morose thoughts.
‘You know, I’ve always envied you your daadhi. I used to wish she were mine.’
‘I don’t mind sharing her, but I do mind sharing you.’ Aadith chuckled.
‘You are so lucky she stepped in when your mother died.’
Aadith froze for a minute. ‘My mother is not dead. Whatever gave you that impression?’
She looked at him in confusion. His mother hadn’t been there with them. They’d never spoken about her. There hadn’t been any photographs of her around, so she’d naturally assumed that his mum had passed away.
‘She’s alive? Where is she, then?’ asked a bewildered Nina.
‘Somewhere down south. Can we not talk about this please?’ came his curt reply.
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t know your parents were divorced. I just assumed she wasn’t alive when none of you ever spoke about her. It must have been painful for your father and you.’
Aadith merely grunted in reply. ‘Why didn’t she ever visit you?’ persisted Nina.
‘Nina, I’m not going to talk about this ever again, so, in reply to your question, they are not divorced. My mum just left with her rich boyfriend—an old flame of hers—who was also married!’
She was lost for words for a second. ‘And?’
‘And that’s it!’ he exclaimed shortly.
‘That’s it? One fine day she just upped and left? Just abandoned you?’ asked Nina. At least her parents had never done that to her. Nina couldn’t imagine the pain he must have gone through.
‘Apparently money was more important to her than her family. My father begged her to stay, but it didn’t seem to make a difference,’ he said bitterly.
‘He knew she was leaving?’
‘Oh, she was courteous, mind you,’ he added sarcastically. ‘She said her goodbyes to us before leaving.’
Nina held her tongue. She could feel the pain that was he was reliving. No wonder he thought money spoke when his own mother had left him for a better life.
‘Now that you’re famous has she contacted you?’
‘She wouldn’t dare to, after the pain and humiliation she put my father through. Though for some weird reason I get the feeling that he still loves her. I can’t understand why.’
Something didn’t add up. If his mother had accorded that much importance to money wouldn’t she have at least tried to establish some contact with Aadith now?
‘What happened to the other guy’s family?’
‘Luckily there wasn’t a child involved there. The guy’s parents had been against him marrying my mother and had threatened to cut him out of their will. So he had married someone of their choosing. My father, who had always been in love with her, stepped up and married her. They had a few happy years until the ex-boyfriend returned. His parents had died, leaving him free to get back with my mother. Once he was back on the scene flashing his wealth, there was no looking back for her.’
‘It is certainly not an excuse to abandon your loved ones, but maybe it was actually his love that drew her to him,’ pointed out Nina.
Aadith snorted. ‘Love? No one could have loved her more than my father. If she’d wanted love, who other than her husband and child could have given her more? I’m sure it’s the fancy life he offered that lured her. Now look who the loser is. I can keep her in style a hundred times better than he ever could. If she’d waited just a few more years I could have given her all she’d ever dreamed of,’ he muttered savagely.
Nina ached for the little boy who had thought his mother had left him for riches. Maybe she had. Maybe she hadn’t. Who is to say? she thought sadly. All it had done was make Aadith wary of love. What his mum had started, Monica must have finished, guessed Nina. No wonder he didn’t believe in love.
‘Aadith, you and I both know it doesn’t work that way. One sided love never works, does it? Maybe she tried. Maybe all she could ever feel for your dad was affection and she couldn’t live without her love for this other man. Have you spoken to him about this?’
‘No, and I don’t intend to. Ever. So keep out of this,’ he bit out harshly.
Nina knew he was hurting like hell. But she was hurting too. The tears she’d been holding back the whole night slipped from her eyes. Tears for the boy he had been and for the man he had become. Tears for herself, for what they could have had together if things had been different.
Aadith saw the glitter of tears as they rolled down her cheeks. He cursed loudly and searched for a side lane to pull into.
‘Nina, I’m sorry. I never meant to take my anger out on you. It’s all water under the bridge now. It has nothing to do with us.’
At that, she wept harder. Aadith looked on helplessly. In all the years he’d never seen her cry and now she was crying because of him. He felt like a heel.
‘I … I’m sorry. Just talking about what she did to us gets to me,’ he said softly.
‘No. It’s not what you said. It’s just the hurt … the unhappiness of it all … plus our situation of lying to people close to us … I don’t know … It just got the better of me for a minute. I’m OK now.’
Scores of women had tried to move him with tears. It hadn’t worked; he’d merely become impatient. But Nina’s silent tears had struck a chord with him. She hadn’t cried for herself. He understood that she’d shed those tears for the past. His past. His hurt. His family. A tiny bit of his heart thawed.
She sniffled. He offered her a tissue. She offered him a tremulous smile.
He didn’t know why, but his heart lightened at that smile.
CHAPTER EIGHT
STROLLING ACROSS THE deck of the pool in an orange and gold swimsuit with a delicately worked crochet cover-up, Nina turned a lot of male heads. She came to a stop near the lounger that was placed next to his and caught hold of the hem of her cover up. She pulled it over her head and tossed it onto the lounger behind her.
Watching her, Aadith felt an instant jerk of desire. Her smooth skin, slathered with sun block, glistened golden. Her hair hung in loose ebony waves well past her shoulders. Her long slim legs stretched endlessly. Lush curves filled out the modest suit enticingly. It was more than two weeks since his fake engagement with her and he was no closer to getting her out of his system. Their desire for each other seemed insatiable.
‘Stop it,’ she chided.
‘Stop what?’ he asked innocently.
‘You’re staring!’
‘So I am, but then so are more than half the men here.’
‘They’re all probably wondering how good I am in the sack, if I managed to snag you!’ Aadith almost choked on the mocktail he was sipping. Nina seemed to be singularly unaware of the effect she had on the men around her. Must be a remnant of having been an ignored daughter in her childhood, he guessed.
‘Nope, they are more likely to wonder how I got you there in the first place,’ he retorted.
Nina leaned back against the lounger and crossed her slim ankles. Aadith spied a thin gold anklet, spanning her ankle with a couple of charms dangling from it. He leaned forward and hooked a finger under it and twisted it around his finger. It brought him in touch with her skin.
‘Wh-what are you doing?’
‘Admiring your charms?’ he said, grinning from ear to ear. She caught the innuendo in his line.
‘Oh, really? And you need to do that at close quarters?’ she asked with a lift of her brow.
‘Of course, everything about you deserves my closest attention!’ he declared cheekily as he lightly trailed his fingertips up her legs. Nina sucked in her breath. His touch made her melt like an ice cream sundae unde
r the blaze of the summer sun. A dangerous melting that by rights should now be under control but showed no sign of abating. His slightest touch still sent a shower of sensation zinging through her body.
Despite sleeping with him, Nina tried to keep her emotions out of it and treat it strictly as an affair. She never went to his house. She made sure they either met outside in public places or stuck to her flat. The movie’s world premiere was happening in Dubai and she’d reluctantly agreed to make a short trip out of it. So here she was sunning herself by the pool of a luxurious hotel with a man who made her blood sing with just a hot glance. Yet, she was scared it would end at any moment, reflected Nina grimly.
She couldn’t ignore his fingers a moment longer as they glided further up her legs. She quickly caught his hands and dragged him towards the pool.
‘Race me,’ she said breezily as she took a quick clean dive into the glittering aquamarine pool. Aadith quickly followed suit and caught up with her in no time. He caught her by the ankles and pulled her to him. Their bodies were almost touching yet not quite. Nina couldn’t help but stare at him. With his hair slicked back, and water dripping down his powerful torso, he looked incredibly sexy. Photo shoot worthy.
They were almost at the shallow end of the pool lightly treading water. She let her eyes blatantly shine with desire, placed her palms on his chest as if leaning in for a kiss, then shoved him back with all her might. Aadith, who had been in a haze of desire, lost his footing and fell backwards into the pool. He came up blinking and sputtering water, with a healthy need for revenge. Anticipating it, she’d darted to the other end of the pool. He declared war.
He dived under water and quickly swam towards her slim form before she could even note his absence above the water. He caught her ankles and dragged her below with him. He tried to get his arms around her and pull her close to him but Nina was slippery as an eel. She slid out of his hold and hurried towards the pool steps to get out. Aadith wasn’t far behind. He lifted her as if she weighed next to nothing and tossed her back into the pool. They chased, dunked and tried to get the better of the other until Nina finally ran out of energy and pleaded for mercy.
They emerged from the pool tired but happy and headed to their suite. Aadith couldn’t remember the last time he’d had so much fun with a woman. Pleasure and desire certainly, but fun and frolic … not in a long time, if ever. She refused to let him slot her into the space he’d earmarked exclusively for pleasure. She didn’t ask for more, but she made him want more himself. And that was something he didn’t want to think too closely about, so he resolutely pushed it back into the furthest corners of his mind.
A leisurely breakfast later Nina remarked, ‘I’m going to head to the stores for some retail therapy.’
Aadith fished a card out of his wallet and extended it towards her. ‘Use this,’ he said, indicating a platinum black credit card.
Nina cringed. ‘That was not meant as a hint for you to sponsor my shopping trip.’
‘Of course not. If you are going to be making more public appearances with me, it is only fair that I foot the bill.’
‘Thanks, but no. I might not be as loaded as you but I can certainly take care of my wardrobe needs by myself,’ she said hotly.
Nina knew she should not be insulted, but nevertheless found it difficult not to take offence. He believed money spoke louder than feelings and the long line of women he’d dated hadn’t bothered to disabuse him of the notion either, she thought sourly. They must have been all too happy with the way he chose to substitute love for expensive baubles.
The sudden tensing of her body let Aadith know that he was treading on sensitive ground. But he couldn’t imagine why.
Agreed, she wasn’t the sort of woman to brazenly hint at expensive gifts, but when he offered it willingly didn’t it make sense for her to take him up on it? Maybe she liked a bit of prodding, he surmised.
‘I know you can. But I want to spoil and pamper you. Let me,’ he persisted.
Nina had no intention of becoming one in the long line of women he’d undoubtedly lavished his money on. ‘Another time maybe,’ she refused politely.
His failsafe option of flashing a bit of money to hold a woman’s interest didn’t seem to be working with her. He felt bewildered, as it was the only way he knew to let her know that she made him happy.
He was running out of ideas. What the hell does it take to keep her hooked until I’m ready to let her go? he wondered. She’d refused his gifts on more than one occasion. She never visited his house. She didn’t seem to want the expensive cars, luxurious mansions and fancy vacations. The high life really didn’t seem to matter to her. It was proving to be notoriously hard to impress her but he wasn’t done yet.
Aadith narrowed his eyes at her. He was nothing if not determined.
‘Well, in that case, let me at least offer you the use of my body.’ At her sardonic look he added impishly, ‘I merely meant that you could use me to help you carry your shopping around.’
‘You want to come shopping with me?’ she asked in disbelief.
‘I don’t really have anything else planned for the day—besides, I can’t just stroll out and about in India, so doing simple stuff does have its allure at times.’
For a minute Nina wondered if she too fell under the category of simple after the exotic beauties he usually dated. There was no sense beating herself up about why, when, how long et cetera. He was with her right now and she should enjoy that for however long it lasted, she decided.
‘Sure. I’d love the company,’ she said happily.
Dubai was a shopper’s paradise, host to a slew of high-end designer outlets and quite a few quirky and unique boutiques too. Nina changed into a chiffon peach sundress and added nude heels to complete the outfit.
They headed to an exclusive multi-label designer store where Aadith immediately engaged the assistance of a personal shopper. After her dress sizes were ascertained an array of beautiful clothes were brought out for selection. Nina had only intended to purchase a few well-chosen items that she could mix and match, so she demurred at the sheer number of items brought out for her approval.
‘I could have chosen what I wanted myself,’ she muttered darkly, glaring at him. A couple of other sales assistants also joined in and hustled her into the luxurious changing rooms to try on various outfits.
She knew what worked on her but it also gave her a thrill to model the outfits for Aadith and watch his reaction. His taste in jewellery might run towards the showy and gaudy, but where clothes were concerned his taste was impeccable. He seemed to like most of what she’d picked out and at the end she was hard pressed to make her final choices.
When she emerged from the dressing rooms back in her original outfit, the sales woman who had been helping her had disappeared along with the clothes she’d chosen. Aadith was still seated indolently in the same spot he’d been in the whole time. A month ago if someone had told her that she would be shopping with Aadith she would have called them crazy. It felt surreal even now, she thought.
‘Let me get the bill and then you can be relieved from this snooze fest,’ she said, smiling at him happily.
‘It’s all taken care of. They’ve offered to deliver all of it back to the hotel.’
‘What do you mean “taken care of”? I thought I told you I didn’t want to be treated like a kept woman.’ Nina found it very difficult to hold onto her temper.
‘So you did, but I never agreed, did I?’ he said calmly.
She didn’t want to cause a scene, so she kept her voice tightly controlled.
‘And what does “all of it” mean?’
‘Look, it’s all done. So stop making a fuss,’ he said flippantly.
The sales assistant returned with his card at just that moment. She looked at Nina enviously, which made Nina even madder. Aadith put a hand around her stiff back and escorted her outside. She didn’t say a word as he guided her to an upscale coffee shop with widely spaced tables that afforde
d them a bit of privacy.
Nina kept her eyes glued to the menu card and refused to meet his eyes.
‘Are you going to sulk all day?’ he asked lazily.
‘I never sulk. I was just gathering my thoughts to give you a piece of my mind.’
He forestalled her rush of words with a finger on her lips. ‘To gift you something is my prerogative. Whether you choose to accept it or not is yours. I enjoy spending money on you. The clothes are yours now, so use them if you want to or just donate them to Goodwill,’ he said adamantly.
‘Are you always this pig-headed?’ she asked caustically.
‘Surprisingly, no. You are the only woman whom I seem to rub the wrong way.’
‘That’s probably because I don’t capitulate to your every demand.’
He found her defiance refreshing although a bit unusual. He couldn’t remember a time he’d had to trick a woman into accepting a gift.
Aadith shrugged. ‘Or maybe because you’re too prickly.’
‘Me? Prickly?’ she asked incredulously.
‘Well, you’re not really the tame, docile type, are you?’ he shot back.
‘If you want a tame, docile girl, then look elsewhere!’ she exclaimed heatedly.
‘I’ve had my fill of them … Now all I want is you,’ he declared as he caught hold of her hand and pressed a kiss into her palm.
Nina had never been one to hold onto her anger for long. She sighed and said, ‘You are too smooth for your own good!’
‘I’m going to take that as a compliment.’
‘It wasn’t meant as one,’ she said tartly, looking at his unrepentant grin. He took her hand in his as they made their way onto the streets. They hit a few more shops to round off her shopping and headed back to the hotel.
It had been a surprisingly pleasant day, thought Aadith. Even shopping for women’s clothes hadn’t reduced him to biting the bit to end the day. Just being away from the constant scrutiny of the press back at home had been a welcome relief for them both.