Her healer

7. A gift from him

She tried to turn back but was stopped by a strong hold of him on her shoulder.

"Aap chinta mat kijiye. Ham aapko kabhi bhi galat niyat se nhi chhuyenge." Aashrit said and their eyes met in the mirror. (Don't worry. I'll never touch you with ill intentions.)

Goosebumps appeared on Meera's back after hearing his words. She suddenly felt hard to breathe and her stomach twisted. She wet her dry lips with her tongue.

Aashrit noticed her goosebumps and dry lips. He noticed how her throat gulped a lump of saliva and her chest heaved up and down with raging breath.

"Your necklace is tied tightly. It would be hard for you to open it. So if you allow me?" He asked maintaining eye contact with her in the mirror.

Meera didn't believe her voice at the moment and could just nod in agreement. She averted her eyes instantly not able to handle the intensity of his gaze. Aashrit took it as a yes and unhooked her necklaces.

As his hand touched the back of her neck, she tightly held her lehenga. Her heart suddenly went silent. It wasn't a silence of calm but a silence before the storm. ( Lehenga – Long skirt )

She came out of her thoughts when she heard the closing sound of the door. She looked in the mirror and found Aashrit gone.

As she found him nowhere, she took some deep breaths from her mouth and held the slab of washbasin feeling her knees gone jelly. She tightly held the slab and looked at her reflection in the mirror. Her face went red completely and her chest was heaving up and down visible from the net dupatta she wrapped around herself.

"What was that feeling?" She uttered "Oh God!! I never felt that. It was like I was craving for his touch. I want him but not at the same time. Meera!! Meera !!Meera !! Control yourself. He told you already that I should not expect anything from this marriage. Don't ignite any feelings or you'll end up getting hurt and you won't have anyone to blame except your ownself." She said looking at her reflection in the mirror.

◊

As Aashrit left the bathroom he took a deep breath.

"Compose yourself Aashrit. Your self-control can't be that fragile." He said to himself and sat on the bed.

But no thoughts seem to remove the thought of that one particular honey-voiced girl. He then took the novel from his nightstand and started reading it to distract himself.

His concentration broke as soon as he heard the sound of Payal reaching his ear. He lifted his eyes from the novel and looked at his wife who was now wearing a night suit and standing at the door of the wardrobe looking at the other side of the bed while her hands were fidgeting. He understood her inner dilemma.

"Let's talk about some important thing." He said which gained her attention.

She looked at his hand signaling her to sit on the other side of the bed. Without any protest, she went and sat there on the other side.

Aashrit kept his novel on the nightstand and turned to look at her who was looking at her fidgeting hands.

He looked at her and turned to her side " Well !! Let's talk about some important things."He said making Meera look up at him with curious eyes.

"The bed is big enough for two people. But still, if you are not comfortable I can settle on the couch." He said and looked at her for an answer.

Meera looked at him on hearing his words "No!! It's your bed. Why would you settle on the couch?"

"Well !!!! I can't let my wife sleep uncomfortably. So either we both are sleeping on the same bed or you are sleeping here alone." He said with thinned brows.