Father, If You Only Knew
Shivering, with clenched teeth and a body soaked entirely from head to toe, she came home again.
"Chudail!" Kaka's elated voice warmed her heart but the worried gasp she heard a second later took her back to the fall she had suffered on her way here.
"Ai! What happened to you?"
His stern question melted her annoyance; she had missed his scolding, loving ways.
Ignoring his gaze as he inspected her bedraggled hair, she pulled the old man into a hug. "Kaka!" Pulling him back, she frowned. "You've lost weight."
"I haven't had you here to boss me around. Maybe if you hadn't left this poor old man behind..."
"Oh please. Save your nautanki for someone who'll buy it." Shooing him away to an armchair, she took his place behind the front desk and began looking through the mail. "All set for the group from Mumbai? They're coming next week, right?"
When he didn't reply, she turned with an eyebrow raised to see him smiling with a gleam in his eye. "Kaka?"
"Two of them have arrived early. A Ms. Geet Handa and Mr. Maan Khurana. Another two are checking in today - Ms. Heer Perera and Mr. -"
He stopped at the sudden sound of the front door opening. They turned and watched as a tall figure stepped out of the shadow of the doorway and entered the house.
She gasped.
Kaka, too, was surprised but for a different reason altogether. Shrewdly, he observed the man's flushed face, the wet hair plastered on his forehead and the water left on the floorboards from his clothes and shoes. He narrowed his eyes and looked from the man to the Chudail.
"Eta ke?" ("Who is this?") He asked her, slipping into Bangla, as was his habit when on guard. When she didn't offer an answer and continued to stare at the man, Kaka repeated his question in agitation. "Eta ke? Tui ki ei lok ta ke janish?" ("Who is this? Do you know this man?")
She tore her eyes away from the man and made to reply when he himself stepped forward and addressed Kaka. "Hello, Sir. My name is Dev Khurana. I have a booking." When Kaka continued to look at him suspiciously, Dev offered, "It was booked by the Bulani House of Architecture, I believe."
When Kaka nodded slowly but continued to observe Dev with narrowed eyes, she decided it was time to step in. "Kaka, why don't I get Mr. Khurana checked in? You must be tired."
"Sure?" Kaka asked quietly. She nodded to reassure him and slowly, he acquiesced. With last look and a gruff "welcome" in Dev's direction, he went inside to check on lunch.
"I'm sorry for the delay, Mr. Khurana." She gave him a bright, winning smile and winced internally at the overkill. If he noticed, he didn't comment.
"Beautiful view," he noted after a while.
She faltered. "Sorry?"
"The mountains. I'm talking about the mountains. I've never been to Darjeeling before."
"It's not the most popular tourist destination."
A silence followed, punctuated only by the tapping of her keyboard. He tried to train his gaze on a painting on the wall - a moody silhouette of a woman - but his eyes were drawn to the woman before him and the long, wet hair that tumbled down one shoulder.
There was no doubt in his mind. It was her.
His thoughts were interrupted by the jangle of keys. He looked up to see her waiting patiently.
"This one is your room key," she said, pointing. "And this is a key for the front door in case it's ever locked."
She opened her hand to him and he reached forward to take the keys. For the briefest of seconds, his fingers touched her palm and a spark, sweeping and electric, took her by surprise. She looked up to see if he had noticed but he seemed as oblivious as she was aware.
"Would you like me to show you to your room?" She murmured.
"Please."
They walked in silence until he stopped and turned to face her. "I'm afraid I didn't catch your name."
His eyes held a strange intensity, as if this was the most important task in the world and her answer mattered more to him than anything he had known before.
Her throat became dry and in little more than a whisper, "Nayantara. My name is Nayantara."
Dev smiled. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Nayantara. Let's go."
"Yes. Let's."
Edited by kaamchorni - 6 years ago
Real Estate
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