PART – 4
"Yes, I will be there"
Naina gently placed the phone down as she stared out of the window from her office. She loved this job. She worked as a child relief coordinator at CRY (Child Relief and You). Even though the job paid minimally it gave her the internal peace and satisfaction she always craved.
Her work at CRY never failed to fascinate her. She was very fortunate that she found the perfect job that she desired. Even though the wages were minimal she possessed an ample private income of her own. She knew she was fortunate to find her dream job and also not to have to worry about her expenses.
A pang of guilt took over. She enjoyed the private income because of Walia Industries and it was thanks to Naveen She felt sad for Naveen. He was really not cut out to run Walia Industries.
Thinking of Naveen brought back memories of the previous night dinner. A shiver ran through her spine.
He had disturbed her whether she wanted to admit it to herself or not. There had always been something about him that threatened her.
In her inner most thoughts she saw him again, lazily lounging in the chair like a contented lion, happy with his spoils of the night. He had trapped her with his hooded eyes making her his prey. Like last night, the memories prickled her skin.
Giving herself a resolute shake annoyed at herself she tried to return to the notes in front of her. She was organizing a CRY marathon and a follow up event in the next couple of days to support various projects the organization funded for the helpless babies and children.
She tried to suppress a yawn that was trying to make its way past her mouth. She had not had a good night's sleep. She had tried to sleep but her sleep had been disturbed by dreams which during the light of day she wished she hadn't had.
Those dark, laconic eyes had haunted her dreams. They had watched, desired and assessed her.
The phone gave a shrill ring jolting her out of reverie. She lifted the phone and cleared her mind.
"Yes" her voice was business like.
"Can I speak to Miss. Naina Walia?"
She stared at the phone disbelievingly. She knew the voice on the other end. Think of the devil and he has called…the thought leapt into her mind .She deliberately pushed the thought aside and tried to concentrate on the phone call.
"It's me" she said as her breath caught in her chest.
"Naina, come out for dinner tonight" he commanded with ruthlessness that she could only associate with him. No request, just a demand that she go out with him. After all this time the effect was still the same.
"Pardon…" her voice chilled even more as the sensation of being swamped tightened her chest.
"I said, come out for dinner" he repeated the same question once again. She could feel the amused smile that clearly was on his face right now.
"No" with an abrupt reply she cut off the phone and placed it on the cradle.
She could feel her heart beating unevenly at receiving this phone call. She knew that she had been rude but she just wanted to get him off the line and out of her life.
Naina watched the phone for another ten minutes expecting it to ring again. But it didn't ring again. She breathed a sigh of relief as her breathing came back to normal.
Rajveer sheekhawat.
How did he find out where I worked? My phone number?
She chastised herself for asking those silly questions. Of course he had all the money in the world. How hard it could have been to gather this information. All it would have taken was a single phone call. Angrily, she pulled the file that was in front of her and tried her best to get back to the work at hand.
Around 3.00 in the afternoon a bouquet of exotic lilies arrived for her. She looked at the card and immediately knew that it was from him. The card was simply signed RS in his bold hand-writing. So, he had taken the time to sign the card personally, what did that mean?
He was the only one who would have known that she loved exotic lilies or was this bit of information that he recently rediscovered about her.
The scent of the lilies surrounded her room. She couldn't take it anymore. She picked it up to throw it in the trash but something stopped her.
Realization struck, why she should show her anger on the beautiful flowers, when they did not do anything wrong? Picking them up, she went and gave it to the receptionist to keep it on display at the entrance
*************
In the presidential suite at the Marriot, Rajveer glanced at the tickets that were delivered to him earlier today. It was lying on the glass table next to the file that he was currently reviewing.
He knew the facts about her. She was 24 now, worked at CRY as a coordinator and spent a lot of her evening at the orphanage. She did not have many friends. Her constant friend and companion the last five years had been Amardeep Huda.
That Naina did not jump at the chance to have lunch with him did not surprise him nor did it bother him too much. He expected it. And he was pleased that she did not come to lunch with him. He wanted the thrill of the chase.
He gave a mocking smile to himself. He would meet her tonight even if the event was boring, it would have its compensations.
Thinking he walked towards the bathroom to shower and change.
Naina eased her way through the crowd of people at the CRY Annual Fund raiser. The event was about to start as she headed towards her seat. The event was going to start with a musical and the electricians were tuning the mikes to get everything ready before the actor's came on stage.
A sense of pleasant anticipation and happiness at the way the event was progressing thrilled her. As she sat down, her pleasant anticipation turned to shock as she saw the person who occupied the seat next to her.
Rajveer was the sitting at the chair besides her.
He stood up to greet her. "Naina" he greeted her as his lips lifted with sardonic amusement.
On the other side of the chair her friend Pooja leaning forward, said brightly "oh, you two know each other?" her eyes alight with curiosity.
"No" Naina said abruptly and tried to open up the pamphlet that was handed over to everyone before the program.
"Yes, we know each other" he contradicted, bestowing her with one of his briefest smiles. Pooja reacted and extended her hand introducing herself
"Pooja"
"Rajveer Sheekhawat" he said extending his hand to shake hers.
Naina refused to confirm the speculation in her friend's eyes. She buried herself in the pamphlet refusing to lift her head.
But throughout the program she was punishingly aware of the tall, dark frame besides her. He was intruding into her personal space. His hands rested at the back of her chair not touching her but stepping into her close personal space.
She was horribly aware of him.
She could feel him beside her. His jacket brushed against the bare hands of hers. She wanted to pull away from this horrible awareness that was creeping through her body but couldn't.
Somewhere in between her friend pooja had disappeared after seeing her boyfriend. Now, she sat horribly alone with just Rajveer for company.
Rajveer glanced down at her bent head.
His lips tightened as he watched her. She was waiting for him to say something but he did not say anything at all. To her utter disbelief his hands slowly stroked the exposed nape with his finger tips.
"I hear that you have turned into an ice-princess now, Is that so?" his hands moved on her exposed skin on her back. He felt the instant trembling and quivering to his touch.
"No, I think not. You haven't lost it…yet! Those men are fools!" he said as he dropped his hands from her back.
She couldn't move a muscle. Her anger was like a volcano trying to erupt any moment. How dare he touch her? She couldn't stop her hands from swinging up to give him a tight slap.
Something dangerous came into his eyes.
"Try it and you will have to face the consequences" he murmured with something akin to hate.
She got up abruptly and tried to leave but he caught her wrist and exerted sufficient pressure on her hands to make her sit.
"Sometimes" his voice told her quietly "or rarely does a girl like you forget her past mistakes or may be you have" he said looking cynically at her.
He let her go and abruptly walked way, heading for the exit. She stood watching him blindly as icy waves washed through her.
And something else she wouldn't think or wouldn't allow her to think.
Bollywood
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
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