Lilith's Lucifer

Chapter 55.

Nandini Murthy's POV—

(A few days later...)

I swiped my sweat clad forehead using my arm and pushed the tendrils of my hair behind my ear. Heat waves were slowly starting to creep in now that it was the beginning of summer. Moreover, working in the kitchen during this season, is much more unbearable.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts of procrastination and switched on the gas. Upon it, I placed a cauldron and allowed it to heat for a while. Alongside it, I began chopping onions which I had already peeled. My eyes were brimmed for every time I sliced into it but when you take a charge of a kitchen, you are ought to deal with these small inconveniences.

On the other hand, a cauldron seemed like it was heated enough so, by using a simmer, I adjusted the blue flames to moderate. Subsequently, I poured a sufficient amount of oil into the vessel and then I began adding the ingredients which I had previously kept ready on the island, one after the other. As I was busy cooking the gravy, I failed to hear the footsteps that were approaching me and when a rough hand touched my shoulder, alarmed, I shrieked.

"Calm down, it's just me Nandini!" Manik assured me by rubbing his hands down the either sides of my arms. Amusement written all over his face.

"You think that was funny?" Shooting daggers through my eyes, I asked. "You caught me off guard." I pointed my index finger as I blamed him.

Sighing, he threw his arms in the air dramatically and then said, "okay..my bad I should've come hollering your name, straight from the living room."

"Shut up." I remarked and shifted my attention back to the gravy. I added two and a half glasses of water to it, stirred it well with a ladle and then left it for boiling nicely.

"What?" I questioned Manik because he kept looking strangely at the bubbling curry inside a cauldron.

"Nothing." He answered as he clapped his hands together.

I gave him a onceover while wiping my hands with a kitchen cloth.

"Oh don't look at me like that, it just smells good that's why I was wondering how it will taste." This time he answered me truthfully but preferred dodging to meet my gaze due to embarrassment.

God, what? He's behaving as though I have forgotten his love for food. Stupid, tall-trouble!

"Did you call me stupid, right now?" He first cocked his eyebrow and followed by it, he folded his arms over his torso to intimidate me.

"I said it out loud, didn't I?" Biting my tongue, I queried.

Manik uncrossed his arms and took three predator steps in my way and falling prey to his intimidation, I backed away from him till my hip touched the cold slab of a kitchen island.

I silently watched him from beneath my eyelashes meanwhile he completely cornered me by placing his arms on either of my side, trapping me between himself and the kitchen's island. This reminded me of our previous times whenever he had caught me against him in this same position also, in this very same place.

"Manik the curry will-" my voice stuck into my throat as I kept looking at him and he dared not to break our eye contact either.

"The curry will?" He repeated my words by keeping his tone lowered.

"It-iitt will burn." I managed to utter in a small voice.

He brought his left hand up to cup my cheek and involuntarily, my eyes closed.

"Let it burn, then." He further asked in a husky tone, "aren't you loving the warmth of this burn?"

From this, I knew, he was definitely not referring to the curry anymore.