Aboli

Part 12

For three nights in a row she had slept in his bed, every morning that followed he woke up before her in the same room and was thankful that she was unaware of the state he had gotten up in. He had avoided sharing his bed with her for a very valid reason, like most young men he woke up with morning glory in his pants, especially after finding himself being swaddled by her warm sleeping form. Just a touch would have been enough, and here she had probably slept clinging to him, causing a state of arousal that was completely natural, a biological reaction to a stimulus. He could not let her see him like this, far from being scandalised, she would try to tempt him.

He regretted letting her remain in his room so far, now there was no sending her back to the guest room, she would continue to sleep in his room till her mother returned. Randhir knew his father would give him hell if he got to know, he would imagine the worst. There was an unspoken understanding between father and son, Randhir knew Harsh was fiercely protective of Sanyukta because she was Anju's daughter. It would not be discreet for either of his parents to know. In any case after Anju was back Sanyukta would probably never be back in his home, his mother and the Agarwal women kept safe distance to avoid trouble.

He had warned Parth and Vidushi to keep their mouth shut and the staff had been given strict instructions to keep off the floor after evening. He even took care to ruffle up the bed in the guest room so that it would look slept-in. The Shekhawat boys had never had girls sleep over in the house. He had a hard time convincing Vidushi that, unlike between Parth and her, nothing had happened between Sanyukta and him. In fact he had reminded her that had she willingly shared the guest room with Sanyukta there would be no problem at all.

Parth warned Vidushi that if she annoyed Randhir he would send her back to her parent's home and she relented immediately, she was having way too much fun. Parth knew his brother well; he was convinced he would never take advantage of Sanyukta, even though he had sensed her feelings for Randhir. He felt it was a harmless crush; most girls found his brother irresistible, but were also aware that they could not entrap him beyond a point. He flirted would many but never got seriously involved in relationships. Notwithstanding her weirdness Sanyukta was like any other girl; she could not help falling for Randhir.

Randhir showered and went straight to the gym, working out for longer than usual. If he returned sooner his attention could drift towards her swimming in the pool and he could not let that happen. Fantasising about her would be pathetic; he had no dearth of grown girls willing to throw themselves at him. Cradle-snatching was just not his thing. The previous day he had intervened timely when he noticed Noel checking her out. Had it been a regular employee he would not have bothered, those women were old enough to look after themselves. Because of Sanyukta's inexperience in such matters it was necessary to protect her and he had dropped that not so subtle hint to Nafisa to do the same.

By the time Sanyukta showered, got dressed and came down for breakfast the staff had already dished up the food and Randhir had finished eating. He was busy working on his laptop so she simply greeted him and sat down to eat. "Don't pack any lunch for me. I am going to be outdoors most of the time." He reminded her. She said nothing; she already knew that from his planner. After they reached the office both got busy at their respective desks. Randhir spent the morning in a meeting with key persons; in his cabin. He left the office for site visits and was supposed to meet an important client for lunch.

Sanyukta kept herself occupied with work, she had picked up tasks so well that Nafisa was confident after she went on maternity leave Sanyukta could handle the job independently, although she would still need advice from Randhir. Sanyukta's eyes kept darting between Randhir's cabin and the office entrance so often that Nafisa reminded her gently that he would only return by closing time. Sanyukta ate her lunch dispiritedly; she was surprised how much she was affected by her absence. The day trudged on and at 5.30 pm, just as she was about to leave with others, her phone rang. It was Randhir, asking her to meet him near his car in 10 minutes. She rushed to freshen up and spray on some fragrance.

When he drove them away from the usual route she was puzzled. "We are joining Parth and Vidushi to watch a movie." He informed her. "Which one? She asked, not sounding too interested at the mention of the other couple. "Which movie could I take Mowgli for? The Jungle Book, of course!" He laughed, noticing her expression, as he pulled over by the kerbside to pick up Parth and Vidushi, who had been out shopping. It looked like Vidushi had cleaned out the store. She asked Randhir to play some music, and he obliged happily. "Why on earth are you playing this track?" Vidushi exclaimed. "Going To The Chapel is Mowgli's favourite song, she sang it on the loop after the wedding on Sunday, that's why!" He said, his smirk widening, and Sanyukta tried hard to look unaffected.

They got in to see the movie, the two girls sitting in between being flanked by Parth and Randhir. Sanyukta seemed engrossed watching the adventures of Mowgli, Baloo and Bagheera; hiding behind the 3-D glasses as Randhir alternated between watching and texting clients. Vidushi kept nudging Parth, whispering in his ear. "Hey Randhir, sorry, but we need to leave, I have a bad headache." Vidushi whispered to Randhir, who knew exactly what was wrong. "Head straight home, and don't forget that latex is man's best friend!" Randhir whispered to Parth who grinned like the Cheshire Cat. "She'll grab her shopping in the morning, enjoy the movie guys." Parth said, before leaving with Vidushi.

Both Randhir and Sanyukta were ravenously hungry after the movie; they had avoided munching on snacks during it. They stopped by at a café, ordering burgers and sides. "Two large Arnold Palmers, make mine the usual one." Randhir ordered their drinks. Sanyukta noticed that it was just a fancy name for lemonade topped with ice tea, and she enjoyed the drink as they ate hungrily. Just then Randhir got an important call and stepped outside the cafe, unable to converse due to the loud music playing. Noticing her chance, Sanyukta quickly switched their drinks, sipped through his straw. "This is the closest I'll come to kissing him. Hey, this drink tastes funny, though it looks like mine."

When she asked she was told it was a John Daley, an Arnold Palmer with vodka; and she immediately downed it in quick swigs. Randhir was still not back and she ordered another, finishing that one too, quickly asking the waiter to clear the table and to bring the check. By the time Randhir returned, he was surprised to see the table empty. He used his credit card to pay the check and stuffed the paid copy into his pocket as they left. He saw her walking funny, and by the time they were on their way home she had kicked off her shoes and stretched her body like an alley cat.

He could guess what had happened, he took out the restaurant check and sighed to notice that he had been charged for three drinks, of which only one had been without vodka. "I was a very bad girl Randhir, are you going to spank me now?" She asked, her senses having gone for a toss. "No, I'll let your mother do that after she returns. She needs to know." He tried sounding cold. "You will tell her that we slept in your bed daily, and then what will Uncle Harsh say to you, Randhir?" She asked, tipsy yet sober enough to indulge in mischief. "You are not as innocent as you look!" He was irritated now; of course she had called his bluff, fully aware that things could get complicated if he told her mother.

"Carry me to bed!" She looped her arms around his neck, her shoes still in the car. As he walked away, she slid onto the driveway, leaving him no choice. As soon as they were in the bedroom her tossed her some clothes and pushed her into the bathroom while he went to the guest room to freshen up. By the time he returned she had changed and plonked on the bed, singing to herself. He slid next to her and sat her up." Listen to me, don't you dare drink alcohol again." He warned her. "Haanv bebdi na, you ordered a lemon ice tea for me." She whispered softly, telling him that she was not a drunk person.

"Why are you lying? I am running out of patience here." He thundered. "You don't play fair Randhir, you know what those two are up to in his room, and you yell at me for this?" She whined. "Can't you see, they are both consenting adults, and you are a kid, you can neither drink nor have sex yet." He tried to talk sense into her. "If I were a consenting adult, then could I? She looked straight into his eyes. "I have told you several times before this, the answer is no. You are my responsibility, Sanyukta, I cannot let you experiment, no matter how strong the urge. Just fight your hormones, please." He did not know what else to say. "Why don't you tell your other girls what you just told me?" She had to know. "Because unlike them, you are special!" He was barely audible but she heard every word.