The Royal Nightmare

Day 02

I shut the connecting door and walk towards the dressing room mirror and look at my reflection. The argument at the break of dawn had drained me. The only reason I don't have a severe case of bed head right now, is because of all the expensive treatments Raavi made the stylist do, in my pre-bridal sessions at the studio.

My phone rings as I walk towards the table to see who it was from.

"Good morning mumma." I say, as I hear her disappointed grunt from the other side.

"Thank God, you are up. Or what will your in-laws be thinking? Her mother taught her absolutely nothing."

"Mom, They are the Royal family. Believe me, their biggest concern is not if their daughter-in-law is up at..." I pause to look at the time. "5:42 am or not. They have a kingdom to worry about."

"Don't do this makhanning up right in the morning. Get ready, and make them breakfast. I'll be at the reception at sharp 7pm tonight." She says, as I huff.

"Okay mumma. But I don't know why you hate butter so much. Are you starting to get lactose intolerant or something?" I say as I imagine her shaking her head at my nonsense as I hear the phone disconnect.

She had always been strict with me since dad passed away. A house with no male figure to protect and guide was sought after by many, and she had assumed this role for my well being and safety.

I knew I couldn't go back to sleep now, so I went to the washroom in search of my toothbrush. In an hour I was wearing a black chikankari kurta, red and white bangles with blue jeans. I pick up my body mist with top notes of Amber, spraying a little before opening the door out to the huge verandah with the pool and leading to a swing on the balcony overlooking the picturesque mountains.

Except that wasn't the scenery that met my eyes when I opened the door.

"Holy smokes." I say, my hand immediately going to my mouth but thankfully he doesn't hear it over the sound of splashing water. If mermaids existed, this man could surely out-swim them with the grace he bend and curved his large muscular body. The way water touched him, looked like it parted to give him speed.

His feet touches the opposite end of the pool as he uses the wall to propel himself forward achieving a speed even faster than before.

Something (also known as 'his beautiful wife') catches his attention as his pace slows. He comes to a halt already on the other side of the large pool, with his huge arms resting on the floor.

"What are you wearing?" he asks, as I was reminded of what the maid had told yesterday.

"Jeans?" I say as a matter of fact.

"I am pretty sure that no administrative officer is allowed to wear jeans. 'They were designed for the laborers in the industrial revolution to be rough and tough and require very less maintenance like washing and ironing.' Isn't that what you guys say? No executive level officer wears it in our govt. offices." he asks, quoting my instructor from the UPSC academy days.

"This isn't official or administrative. I... I couldn't find my grey trousers so I wore this for the funeral. I can't wear white because I am a newlywed so, black is the next color of mourning. Right?" I say looking up at him as he just smiles back at me.

"She would have loved you." He says, and jumps back in the pool as I peel my eyes from his toned and scarred back to be frustrated at his lack of communication. Sometimes, he just avoided saying the name Kaveri, as if it will burst the bubble we are living in right now. I shake my head focussing on the present.

Why did he mock me for wearing jeans? I turn towards the heavy wooden door opening the latch as I step out. The guard posted outside salutes me. I nod and walk out meeting a lot of servants and guards on my way to the kitchen.

"Skip the eggs in the French toast today. I'm not sure if Divjyot eats them." My father-in-law said as I entered the kitchen.

"Good morning uncle." I say bending down to touch his feet, as he smiles.

"Good morning child. I can't really keep my hand on your head right now but may His blessings always be upon you." He says, as I notice the flour on his hands and smile.

"How can I help you?" I ask, as he shakes his head.

"Na na na na... That henna on your hands is still bright red. You are not allowed to touch anything minutely resembling a household chore. Got it?" he says, as I notice he was assembling things for aalo ke paranthe. I wanted to tell him, if he could not add onion to the mashed potato and spices filling of the parantha but stopped. I hated onions in my parantha.

I can't be just making demands on the third day in this house.

"I'll just find my way to Raavi and see what she's doing." I say as he nods with a smile, focusing on his cuisine and I take my leave. I ask a few maids as they point me towards the section shared by Raavi, her husband, kids and Tejpartap. Tejpartap had left early in the morning as the maids said, and I was met with a wide open main door. This was similar to what me and Tejas had, just a floor above us and with a more scenic view.

More sky, less mountains.

I walk towards the right hoping it would be Raavi's bedroom as I was met with the sound of moans and screams.

But I thought her husband had flown back to USA on the night of our wedding for some business.

"AAaaaahhh Alex... Oooh...  I'm... Aaaah" I hear her scream as I notice the door left a little ajar. I instantly turn and walk fast out of that verandah closing the door and walking the stairs down to my floor.

That was what a happily married couple sounded like and that was supposed to happen to me last night. My brain conjured up images of me and Tejas in compromising positions as I felt like I couldn't breath.

Naked and sweaty, not knowing where one ended and the other began.
I shake my head trying to think of anything else, as I could feel my nipples erect under the fabric of my bra and my breathing grow shallow.   

I open the door as Tejas had walked out of the pool with water dripping down as he reaches for the towel. He picks it up and looks at me confused.

"Divjyot, everything okay?" he asks, as I shake my head. He immediately throws the towel back on the lounger and walks to me. I notice the huge ugly scar over his torso that somehow made him a notch hotter rendering a rugged appearance that no one wanted to mess with.

"You look like you've seen a ghost. Tell me what happened. Did someone say something to you?" he says, his voice authoritative and turning me on even more than I already was. "Give me one second." He says, walking inside his bedroom as I try to speak something and stop him. I take the moments to slow my breathing and shove the images out of my head.

He walks out of his room in less than a minute, in a tshirt and sweatpants with a lossley tied turban instead of his swimming cap as he opens the main door out of our section.

"Rimpy?" he almost shouted over the household, as my mouth falls open.

"What are you doing? I'm fine."

"Did she say something again?" he asks ready to go out, as my eyes widen. Did Raavi tell him what happened yesterday?

"NO. Oh my God, No she didn't." I say as I could see Rimpy almost running towards us with the fear of her life in her eyes.

I push him back inside and shut the door. I stood there caged between him and the door as he looked at me in a questioning gaze. Thoughts of his lips over the soft skin of my neck made their way as I shook my head.

"She didn't say anything." I say and take a deep breath covering my face. "I... I went to talk to Raavi and... I didn't know her husband was back. It... They..." I looked down at my hands still on his chest when I had pushed him back. Blush tainted my cheeks as I let my hands distance from the heat of his body.

The moment those words left my mouth, I could hear my heartbeat in my ears as my face warmed up. He chuckled taking a step back as he shook his head.

"Wow." He says, his both hands placed on either side of his waist. "Uhmm... I should get ready." He says excusing him back towards his room as I take a moment to compose myself before I open the door to dismiss Rimpy.