Chapter 147

Chapter 225: The Moon Mystery

Lying in bed, Lord Arnav watched the shadows dance across the moonlit ceiling while the leaves and trees outside swayed in the breeze.

The moon is not all white...

His gaze slid down to the window at the other end of the room through which the round white moon could be seen bright and big, staring back at him.

Lord Arnav frowned. Logically, a moon is not all white. It's dull, dark and grey. It gets its light from the sun. So does he mean to say that something that appears to be pure white is not pure in its core but borrowing or masking purity?

Somewhere an owl hooted while Lord Arnav resumed his unearthing of the General's intentions.

When is the moon not all white...?

"When it's not full moon... Or when there is an eclipse..." he reasoned. But it is full moon tonight and there are certainly no signs of forthcoming eclipses.

Dissatisfied, he sighed. Was he thinking wrong? Perhaps too deep? The moon is not all white...And where is that Kushi?!

It was well past midnight when Kushi found herself making way up the moonlighted stairs, one hand lifting the skirt of her night robe so she wouldn't trip on the hem.

When she reached the door of the room upstairs, she opened it and peered in, casting her glance over the bed chamber that was dimly lit by the moonlight pouring in from the window.

The bed itself was empty and there seemed to be no sign of life in the chamber.

Wondering where Lord Arnav had gone, Kushi stepped in, closed the door and paced towards the window.

Drawing the curtains apart, Kushi pulled open the window and stuck her head out.

The rain had stopped but the moistness lingered in the cold breeze that blew over the land. The gush of air that greeted her chilled her cheeks and stung her tired eyes.

She closed her eyes and breathed in the smell of the wet grass from the garden below.

Another gust of eager wind blew at her, loosening her hair that had been tied in a casual bun.

Her exhilaration at the play of the wind froze when she felt the warmth of his approaching presence.

In a swift move, she turned around and was startled to find him standing inches away from her, his hand paused midair as though it had been attempting to reach for her hair.

He was in his night pants and his shirtless chest glowed pale in the moonbeams from the window.

Uncertainly, Kushi looked up and her heart fluttered. Dark desire swirled in the depths of his eyes.

For a moment, she stood helplessly staring at him not knowing what he would do.

But after a strained minute, his paused hand was withdrawn and he looked away.

Kushi's shoulders relaxed and, fearing he would change his mind, she moved hastily towards the wooden chest in the corner of the room.

Lord Arnav ambled towards the bed and as Kushi knelt before the chest, opened its lid and fumbled through the contents for a spare blanket, she heard the bed creek as it accepted his weight.

A sigh of relief escaped her lips.

With his back leaning against the headboard of the tiny bed, Lord Arnav watched as Kushi took her spare sheet out of the chest. He waited until she had stepped back to the lighted area before the window.

"How is he?"

Kushi looked at him where he sat in the bed, leaning against the headboard, one of his muscled arms folded behind his head.

"He is quite recovered," replied Kushi, looking away.

She had only just held the sheet wide open before her as though to drape it on the floor when his voice asked, "What are you doing?"

Kushi held the sheet midair and looked over her shoulder at him, "Getting ready for sleep."

He nodded, "I can see that but I don't understand what that has to do with the window."

Kushi frowned at him, "Where else do you suppose I am to sleep? Out in the garden where the grass is wet with rain?"

Lord Arnav leaned back, his unblinking eyes on her, "Why not try the bed, for instance?"

Kushi blinked, "What bed?"

Lord Arnav's hand directed to where he lay, "I can see only this bed as an option in this room. Do you see any other?"

Kushi snorted, "I can't possibly sleep on THAT bed!"

"Why not?" Lord Arnav asked in fake curiosity.

Kushi frowned at him, slightly suspicious of where this was leading, "Because your Royal Highness is sleeping on it."

"I am not sleeping," he stated innocently.

"Not yet," Kushi mumbled.

"Then come and lie here with me."

Kushi's mouth fell open, "Wh-?" And then she frowned, "There isn't enough space."

"Probably not," said Lord Arnav, "But I am certain there might be just for the two of us."

Unconvinced, Kushi draped her sheet wide on the floor, "I am not sleeping on that bed. With you."

Lord Arnav's eyebrows rose, "You expect me to sleep on the floor?"

Kushi's eyes lit, "That would be a gallant gesture on your part if you will."

A chuckle escaped his mouth and Kushi's heart skipped a beat.

"You really expect me to be gallant?" he asked.

"No, I don't," Kushi expressed emphatically, "In fact, it would surprise me if you did."

"If I did what?"

Defiantly, Kushi crossed her arms before her chest, "If you gave up the bed for me and offered to sleep on the floor,"

Lord Arnav's eyes shone cunningly, "Then prepare yourself to be surprised."

Kushi gaped at him, "You would give up the bed and sleep on the floor?"

"Yes, I would," he affirmed as he swung his legs to the side of the bed.

Standing up, he strode towards the window before which Kushi stood, trying hard to not look directly at his chest or his face.

When he came to stand before her, Kushi hastily bent down and picked up the sheet, clutching it to her chest as though it was not a sheet but her own courage that she had gathered up to hold her standing.

As he stood there, watching the contortion of emotions running across her face, she stepped around him, wanting to be as far away from him as she could manage.

Suddenly, his hand shot out and held her by her elbow.

Kushi froze and looked at him, standing there in all his manly moonlit glory.

"Where do you think you are going?" he asked like a cougar cornering its prey.

"To bed..." Kushi sounded unsure. She was intending to go to bed but it seemed he was not mollified with the answer.

"And who said you could?"

"You did," Kushi defended, her ears going red with worry.

"I am certain I didn't."

Kushi paled, "No, you did! You said you would sleep on the floor and I on the bed."

"I said no such thing," said Lord Arnav coolly, "I proposed to give up the bed to sleep on the floor. I never said that in return you could have the bed."

"But--" Kushi was disabled of words and her mind had suddenly gone numb, "I presumed when you said-"

"What you presume is not significant here," Lord Arnav said calmly, "All that matters is I have given up the bed to give you company on the floor."

"No, I-" Kushi wriggled out of his hold but he had pulled the blanket out of her hold and was draping it on the floor again.

Kushi stared in astonishment at all that was happening, incapacitated of thoughts or justifiable reactions.

Finally, her feeble voice managed to utter, "I can't."

He straightened up, "You can't what?"

Kushi looked away, "I can't sleep on the floor."

Lord Arnav's eyebrows rose, "You like the floor now?"

Kushi didn't reply, only pursed her lips in resistance.

"You leave me no choice," concluded Lord Arnav and suddenly he was lifting her up in his arms.

Kushi gasped, "What are you doing!"

"Taking my wife to bed!"

"NO," Kushi went red, "NO, I don't want to sleep on the bed!"

"But you insisted," Lord Arnav reminded her as he walked towards the bed with her in his arms.

"No, I-," said Kushi desperately, "I don't remember insisting so. You are making it up."

"No, kitten, you're the one making it up," he said, as he neared his destination.

"But-" Kushi eyed the nearing bed frantically, "What if the bed can't have us both? Would you want it to break?"

"I don't think it will," assured Lord Arnav warmly and then he dropped her onto the bed.

Kushi had just enough time to gather herself on her knees to scramble out when she felt his weight beside her and his arms strapping around her.

"No!" Kushi gasped, as he pulled her back to his chest and felt his face press against the back of her head.

Her breath hitched when she felt his warm breath on her ear, "If you wish to make a lot of noise, I will bear no obstruction. But I may have to remind you to formulate valid explanations for your family when morning comes."

Kushi winced at the thought he'd offered to imagine and decided it wiser to remain silent.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she pressed her face to the pillow.

Suddenly, she stiffened.

Warm lips were at her shoulder and they were travelling down her arm, lavishing leisurely.

Her breath came out queasily and her fingers clutched at the pillow.

Slowly, he turned her to her side so that she was facing him and he gazed at her while one of his hands played with the hair that framed her beautiful face.

Oddly, she found herself fascinated with the way his head was inclined to the pillow, like a child about to sleep, and how he looked younger when his hair fell over his forehead.

His deep brown eyes were fastened on her face and as she lost herself in their mysterious mire, he brought her hand towards his mouth.

She watched as he gently pressed his lips to her palm and then continued to lovingly kiss the tips of her fingers.

Affected by his tender expression of love, Kushi slid towards him and wrapped her arms around him.

Lord Arnav was stunned by her submission.

Then, he leaned towards her and dug his face into the crook of her neck, where he felt safe and assured of his fears.

Fears...

The moon is not all white.

All of a sudden, he froze.

Kushi felt him stiffen in her embrace and asked concernedly, "What is it, my lord?"

"Nothing..." He was looking, over her shoulder, at the reflection in the mirror of the window behind him. The curtains fluttered in the breeze but now and then, he caught a glimpse of the bright, round moon watching him ominously from its dark throne.

His face lit with sudden realization. When is the moon not all white...when is a light never completely able to light a place...

"When something obstructs it," he spoke his thought out.

"My lord?" Kushi was about to withdraw from the embrace but he held her fastened to his chest, his fingers caressing her hair, "It's nothing. I was just mumbling..."

Kushi made a face but he didn't see it, "Since when did you become me?"

Lord Arnav grinned into her hair, "Among the many diseases I contracted from marrying you..."

Kushi frowned at the air but clenched him closer to her, "I may be a disease but you are death itself. Death to my pride, to my principles, to my peace..."

Lord Arnav smirked, "And how I adore puncturing your precious little p's!"

If Kushi had retorted to his remark, he hadn't pay heed. For his eyes were on the mirror, watching the moon at the window through it.

And though they weren't there presently, he saw them clearly in his mind's eye: Huge wings stretched out to block the light of the white moon that was reflected in his eyes...