Second Chances | Grooms #2 | Slow Updates #WattyLonglist

【 xxiv. near or far 】

Parth parked the car in the driveway of Maahi's parents' house that night as he drove her back. Sanam offered for her to stay at their place to avoid having to come back in the morning, but Maahi had said she should go home. Even though it was late and she doubted her parents would still be awake, she knew she had to go back and try to reach out to her mother. As much as she would have liked to stay among a group of people that made her smile, her primary aim of visiting was to come home for a few days to patch her relationship with her parents.

He leaned back in the driver seat, turning his head sideways to look at her. She too turned her body in his direction with a sigh, "Thank you for the distraction. It was just what I needed."

"Come on, love." He replied, "It was nothing." If anything, he was relieved to see that she was just as eager to meet his friends and moreover, he loved how well they got along. It was important to him. In some ways, it meant more than his own parents' approval because he knew: his parents would be happy for him no matter what. Winning over his friends, however, was not an easy task.

Reaching for her hand lying in her lap, he asked, "What did you mean earlier when you said I make it too easy?"

She clearly recalled her words she'd spoken earlier in the night when he had come to get her. She lowered her gaze to her lap, "I told you; I didn't mean much of anything by it."

"If that was the case," he countered, "you wouldn't look away like this." When she raised her eyes to his again, he added, "You're forgetting. You are not the only one in the profession of reading people's face. I'm a lawyer too, and I know there was something in between those lines."

She tried a different tactic, "If you know that, then why don't you try to figure it out?"

"I would, but I want to hear it from you," he replied intertwining their hands, rubbing the back of her palm and relishing the softness of her skin.

Fighting the urge to uncoil the tension from her shoulder with a simple action of his, she tugged her hand out of his. When he raised a brow questioningly, she said, "You can flirt better than this."

A soft chuckle escaped his lips. Then, he reached for her hand again by wrapping his fingers around her wrist and pulling her towards him unexpectedly. Her lips parted in a gasp as his other hand lifted to brush over her lips. "Can you handle it?"

Her heart rate started to pick up, staring into his eyes closely and trying to read them. Though his actions and words seemed sly and full of mischief, the affection in his eyes spoke a different story. It was that same affection she had noted that night in the elevator all those months ago when he had kissed her eyelids as if to express that he never wanted to see fear in those eyes ever again.

Leaning forward, she turned her head to kiss his cheek. "We'll find out another time," she replied before moving back. "I should go."

He nodded, releasing her wrist. "See you tomorrow."

"Yeah, I'll text you when I wake up," she suggested so they could hatch out the details in the morning. He had vaguely informed her that they were planning on spending the day at the beach, but the finer details like what time, where, and such needed to be planned out.

༺༻ ༺༻༺༻

Jayesh looked between his wife and daughter seated at the breakfast table with their coffee's and neither saying a word. Tension was evident in the air and so was the awkwardness. Both wanted to talk to each other but neither knew how to start that conversation.

Clearing his throat to get their attention, he suggested, "So, now that we have all cooled down since yesterday, can the two of you just talk? Like, really talk? No arguments. No snide comments. Just talk and try to understand each other's perspectives. Because, quite honestly, I do not want to have to keep feeling like I have to pick between my wife and my daughter."