AKDHA FF -My stolen dreams part 16 updated pg 196, June 30 - Page 77

Friday afternoon Jo sat at her desk going over the final schedule of events planned for the launch of Ruks new line of summer fashions ... its practically all that she'd worked on the last two weeks ... "this will be your last project as my employee" Ruks walks in, smirks and laughs "I can't believe you agreed to be Surya's PA, can't you see it is just a dummy position so he can keep you under this thumb and control you. You are an educated woman, how can you let a guy dominate you? ... I feel sorry for you Jodha, the way Surya argued and fought with me that too in front of my ego man Jalal and I was forced to agree... he went to the extent of telling my dad that he did not trust Jalal anywhere near his future wife and my dad got involved forcing me to terminate your contract" shaking her head "I tried to make you an independent woman, but you are too nave, let me warn you Surya is a womanizer too and a control freak, you are letting him control your life even before getting married, I have seen him behind doors flirting with your best friend, they travel together on business with Jalal, sometimes I think he is sleeping with her yet you want to shut your eyes and remain blind to everything ...he is just a typical indian MCP, once you become his wife and you'll be nothing but a domesticated woman bearing him children and raising his family" Jodha could not argue with her knowing Surya's actions were part of Jalal's master plan ...thoughts of Jalal makes her smile, he was coming back today to take her to his hideout... since their boat trip she began seeing Jalal a lot more frequently, he would come home for dinner and spend the night together, but he's been out of the country for the past two weeks ...they talk on the phone hours into the night, he was coming to take her away for a week ...she was startled out of her daydream by Ruks annoying voice "I know we started off ugly but I will remain your friend, I promise" holding up a hand over her heart ... "now lets go celebrate and give you a real send off"

Jo stood by the window, her eyes scanned the mountains, acres and acres of lush green trees, Jalal seemed genuinely excited as they carried in groceries for the week and to play tour guide as he showed her around his grandfather's summer estate, deep in the forest a cabin like house by a lake, fully modernized, "I completely renovated this place two years ago and come here when I want to be alone, this is my paradise, no one here knows about me so I have the freedom to roam about freely ... even my mother does not know this place has been restored back to its glory". Jalal closed the door behind him and stood in front of Jo, slowly his hand crept around her hips pulling her closer to him. Jo rested her hand against his chest ... and he closed his eyes leaning his forehead against hers and spoke quietly "finally I am going to take advantage of having you with me alone for a whole week ..." his lips captured hers "I have been waiting so long for this time Jo" everything about his touch was slow and deliberate, like he was planning his every move, "I don't even know where to start" he whispered ruefully ...Jalal had taken off a whole week to take Jo on a honeymoon trip, Jo insisted on spending alone time in their new home, "you travel a lot Jalal, I just want us to relax here in our home, just you and me" after a lot of cajoling Jalal agreed to stay at home "but not here, I want to take you to my grandfather's ancestral hide out in Simla" and that's where he brought her ...his hand cupped her face "I don't want to scare you with my dark desires and deepest passion Jo" his expression was tender his eyes desperate "I have imagined so many things, so many positions and ways I want us to be intimate ... I don't know which of them I want most ..."

"Well" she brushed her lips lightly against his jaw "what's the one fantasy you had the most that you would like fulfilled?" he swallowed hard wetting his lips, shaking his head "tell me, let me make it come true for you, this is our getting to know each other, I want to get to know you Jalal, I want to know all your deepest and darkest desires" Jo traces her fingers across his chest, trailing it slowly down to his waist, over the front of his pants, feels his arousal. He stared down at her, his look still hungry and eager "I've imagined your lips around me, your tongue ...getting me off" he closed his eyes but not before she saw the hopeful, almost ashamed look on his face ... she seals her lips to his for a brief heated kiss, then pulls away and drops to her knees, "you don't have to Jodha" she traces her fingers across the front of his pants, touching his arousal, he stared down at her, his look still hungry and eager as her bent down pulling her up forcing her to look into his eyes, "I want to do this Jalal, I've imagined it too" she whispers embarrassed "you have?" he asked roughly as she nodded "mmmhhmm, I read a lot of books" she went down on her knees, slowly unbuttoned his pants sliding her hands inside touching him ...she looks up at him, licks her lips watched his eyes follow her tongue as she leaned and trailed her tongue along him, his strangled moan " mmmhhmm babe" his voice trailed off as her tongue gave him the pleasure he was seeking ...

Once sated "I didn't get to see you Friday night" he brought the subject up again she had already tried to explain over and over... he refused to listen and finally told him to "if you don't' want to listen I want you to shut up and bring it up ever again" her eyes flared with anger "okay I know I shouldn't have brought that subject up, but I can't not stop thinking, I think I have calmed down enough to listen now" Jo looks at him, the openness in his eyes and cuts him off recalling how emotional he got the following morning "I went out with Ruks and few people from her office, we hung out too late they spiked my drinks as a prank, I ended getting wasted fast and I ended up staying at the hotel with Ruks" he stares at her intently for a moment, Jo reaches up and covers his hand with hers, her breath hitches, "you don't believe me?" she pulls away as her heart drops to her stomach "are you serious Jalal?" he does not answer her, she was shocked without saying a word he accused her of lying... "you think that I'm so shallow and would lie to you, that is insulting Jalal, I don't question you about where you hang out when you are out of town" she strongly yells, waits for a minute and stands up, he taunts "there were no guys no drinking, no flirting, no dancing? I asked you not to hang out with Rukiaya and her friends I know I am not perfect, I guess I misjudged our relationship ... misjudged you"

Jo now close to tears, suspicious "what is going on with you Jalal?" he pulls her into his arms lowering his lips to hers angrily, she tries to pull away but he bites her lips holding on till she gave in ...slowly releases her lips "I was there watching you ... what was going on between you and my father in law? I was forced to stand far away and watch him moving in on my territory ... I would have killed him first, then you, but Abdul bhai calmed me down and took me home" he pauses, sighs and continues " ...I come home after two weeks and you were not home, what else could I do but follow you to the bar?" The enormity of Jalal accusations begin to sink in ... "so you consider me your territory, I am just a piece of your property?" she questions trying to push him away as he begins trailing kisses along her neck "mine" he replies kissing down her neck to her chest "mine" he whispers kissing her lips, his hand running along her body "all definitely mine" he whispers "I'll kill anyone that touches you and then kill you too" his hands grabbing her butt pulls her against his body holding on tight ... Jo pushes against his chest wall "so far no encroachments by anyone but you, at least not to my knowledge, I don't know what you are imagining" he gazes into her eyes, twining his arms around her neck "mine?" he asks kissing her cheeks, she nods, he whispers "then why was his lips ... I didn't like it" pulling back slightly to look into her eyes again. Jo chuckles her voice barely audible exclaims "Oh, so that's what this is about, he kissed me on my cheek? Jalal, you know I hate him, but was forced to be nice for appearance sake, and the man is older than my dad" He laughs then looks at her seriously "Jo don't be nave, he sees you as a threat to his daughter's future, after all that happened he boldly came up to you and you allowed him near you? He saw me when he walked in ... he hates my guts and will go to any lengths to separate us ...including" he stops shakes his head "he is still a man and you are a beautiful woman who he knows warmed his son in law's bed and carried his heir" The instantaneous stab of pain she felt when Jalal alluded to the fact that he was still a married man and any relations with him should alarm her, she fights the urge to roll her eyes. "he is not an ignorant man, he has been married 4 times and divorced x 4, his youngest wife was a year older than Ruks, so nothing is beyond him, he pawns on his daughter's love for him" The whole situation made her uncomfortable ... being her last day working for Ruks, she was forced out for "one final night out with work friends" and when Ruks brought her father "to apologize for his past mistakes" she was forced to put up with his conversation ... amid tears Jo tells Jalal about the conversation she had with him "he apologized for his actions and assured me now that I know for sure that Surya and you are a couple and Jalal's concern was only for his unborn child and not for you ...I am at peace, I will transfer money into your account for the emotional and physical hardships my action has caused' "Jalal, you had no idea how I felt being stuck there, Ruks was standing by me, she is the one that brought her father to make peace between us"

Jalal hugs her "I don't know watching you dance with him made the hair on my body stand up ... I got the feeling that something just was not right, I was surprised to see him there and I don't like surprises I am his target and I know he will extract revenge on me by using you, he will go after people I care for, he will use you to hurt me " he eyes narrowed angrily then looks away "his last wife was my PA, she worked for me almost two years, she liked me, I did show some interest and encouraged her yeah I slept with her once and felt nothing but guilt and ended our relationship, but supported her financially to go to school, I wanted her to become successful ... she was a kid only 20 years old at that time, he pursued her with money, romanced her and convinced her to keep it a secret from me then talked her into bed and took pictures to prove it and black mailed her into marrying him...all because I cared for her, then together a year later they turned around and threatened to sue me for rape and work place sexual harassment... somehow he got videos of me and her making out in the elevator and a doctor's report of assault and threatened to file a lawsuit , one of the main reasons I am married today, the rest you know, ...don't ever get trapped with him again, walk away when you see him, Jodha, I don't trust him at all" he goes on and explains other events in his life that widened the animosity between them "but he maintains a very good relationship with my mother and put up a show like he is the most caring uncle in my life" moments later carries her to bed, "you are mine from head to toe, no one, no one" picks up her leg and kisses her toes, ankle, calf "no one can touch you" grabs her legs and wraps them around his waist gently lowering his weight on her body then pulls away balancing his weight away, Jo slides her arms around his back tugging him "don't, I want to feel your weight on me, it feels good" she whispers, he forces her to look into his eyes "I am too heavy for you" she pulls him forcibly "please, just for a few minutes" he gives in, they lay still breathing softly till he pulls away rests his forehead against hers, Jo watches as he swallows in deep thought "Jodha, I am so vulnerable in your arms, no one else has ever known me as intimately as you, no one else knows all my secret wants and desires but you" he whispers she rubs her nose against his, cupping his face "your secrets are safe with me" she smiles softly "you can trust me Jalal, I gave myself to you" he leans kissing her lightly "I know that baby girl, that's not what I meant, I meant that I've never trusted anyone or talked to anyone the way I do with you, no matter where I am, what I do, I long to be back with you" too choked to respond she scoots closer to him, resting her chest against his shoulders ...

Soon their bodies were moving easily together finding a stay rhythm that set their blood on fire .. they spent the rest of the week in bed only getting up long enough to shower and eat ... more love making in the shower throughout the day Jalal kept his promise of "this week is for us and for us only ... just you and me, I want to drown in you, be drunk in your passion" Watching Jalal become weak and defenseless as he succumbed to her passion made her feel more powerful and beautiful ... spending hours just hugging, kissing every inch of her body taking advantage of her desperate need to please him ...Jo did her best to ignore the ticking clock that told her their weekend was winding down ...the week flew by and Sunday night they hardly slept, touching, tasting each other until early hours of the morning ... Jo was sore from all the lovemaking but neither could stop, "you are my addiction" ... she dreaded the thought of Jalal leaving Monday morning bringing her fantasy week end to an abrupt halt, ... she had to go back to real life, her work roles were changing for the better, Jalal had Abdul create a dummy position as "Surya's PA, that way you'll be away from Ruks clutches and you'll be around me but not with me, I'll have easier access to you and you can focus on completing law school, we can be discreet, we just can't go out in public, you'll be my secret" he reaches out and grasps her hand ...just like always his touch gives her heat, desire and comfort ...

...she desperately wanted to hold on to what they had now, but she could feel it slipping away ...she lay awake in bed as the sky began to lighten, she wrapped her arms around his body and hugged him tucking herself against his naked torso "Jalal" he turned to face her his stubble heavy and rough against her neck ... igniting another round of passion, he finally collapsed on her and groaned "I don't think I'll be able to survive the next two weeks without you" kissing the top of her head "what are you thinking beautiful" Jo shuddered resting her forehead against his chest "I wish this week did not end" Jo sighs "maybe it is just as well, I ache Jalal" he pulled away with a worried look "I didn't hurt you did I?" she shakes her head "no, it is just ... we've never been this active" he smirked, pride replacing his worried look "me too ...that's what honeymoon is all about, getting to know each other without any boundaries, and honestly you are incredible, I never envisioned something like this ever"

They returned back to the NY together, back to reality ... Jalal left at the crack of dawn "I'll see you at the office soon", Jo lingered around the penthouse, caught up with her school work and sat down to tackle a long list of emails, her business ventures were doing well, checked on the stock market, her funds were doing well and double again, she transfers money to payoff all debts related to "le royale chateau" and on impulse calls the elderly couple, and chats with them for a while getting updates on their health and life in general ... Jo feels bad for them as Madeline explains how they struggled in life to get their business up and running "and by the time we began reaping the benefits of our hard work, our biological clocked had stopped working, we could not have any children, our only regret in life ... we were in our mid forties and it did not bother us at that time, we decided not to adopt but now we regret that decision, we have no to call family in our old age" bring Jo to tears "I'll always be there for you both" she promises R U on ur way msing u alrdy J Jalal's text forces her to cut short the conversation, it was past 10am and had to at work by 11, quickly gets ready, looks at herself in the mirror, she looked as exhausted as she felt, she did not feel like going into to work but forced herself to, she was scheduled to meet with Jalal, Ruks, Abdul and Moti as Ruks and her legal team wanted to be briefed on the overall strategy and of course Jalal wanted to give in his input on what he likes and doesn't like before launching phase 2 of Moghul dynasty's PR ad campaign being run by Moti's company ... and also take on the responsibilities of her new role as Surya's PA ...

Dressed conservatively hiding the marks on her neck, shoulder and chest by judiciously used concealer, Jalal had showed her there was nothing to be ashamed of exploring each other beyond their sexual boundaries or being uncomfortable with it ... she glanced at the clock and realized she was running late, rushed into the building and bumped into Ruks, "hey, slow down lady, I know you are excited to be working closely with Surya, you don't have to bull doze me down on the way" Ruks sarcastic voice stops as she scans Jo head to toe, focus on her lips and giggles as Jo blushed embarrassed "looks like your destressing vacation week with Surya was a good one, you lips are looking freshly kissed and the glow to your face, the blush to your cheeks" Tension furled in her stomach when she saw Jalal step out of the elevator and walks towards them Ruks rushed towards him immediately, Jo watched as their lips met ... No matter what Jalal told her, it hurt to watch them, she had to force herself not to stare at them, his steps slowed as he walked by her, he was subdued and polite as he greeted her, his gaze was warm when his eyes met hers, her voice barely a whispers when she greeted him back he sees panic in her eyes as he walk past her, Ruks stops, looks at her... "Jo, can you hang around the lobby, I was actually waiting on Moti to escort her to the boardroom, she is parking, she'll be in soon, bring her up to the boardroom directly, well meet you guys there" Ruks instructed as she walked away ...

Moti arrived, they hugged, exchanged quick greetings, gossips, then get down to business, they were so engrossed talking and without realizing, Jo escorted Moti to Jalal's office, she pushed the door open her eyes immediately froze ...Ruks was sitting on his desk, her mini skirt pushed up to her waist, she had her bare legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck, leaving very little to imagination ...numbly "I'm sorry, wrong room" Jo whispers and steps out ...her heart was hammering in her chest and felt like she could throw up any minute and escapes to the restroom, Moti followed her "Jo what was that all about?" Jo burst into tears, no matter how much she trusted him and what he said about his relationship with his wife, she felt terrible she desperately tried to block the images, Moti's voice interrupted her thoughts "he is a married man Jodha and that's what married couple do, you know his wife is a bitch, you should ignore what was going on in that office... are you alright Jodha?" Jo blinks back tears "yeah, I am fine, I skipped breakfast and felt nauseous" Moti teases "you are not pregnant again are you?" Jo shakes her head, "I am extra careful, I take birth control pills ...I don't need that complication in my life now" she quickly redirects the topic "so how is life with Surya?" they talked all the way back up to the board room, Jo double checked her destination this time she did not want to walk in to any surprises ...Jo was consumed with thoughts of what she saw in his office to really pay attention to what Moti was saying as they passed his office again, the door was slightly open, she hears her voice "Jalal, I know you are busy but I have my needs too, you are always traveling and when we meet up you are too tired, I need to get something in bed other than sleep" she felt Moti's hand grab her wrist and pull her away "you don't have to listen to that rubbish Jodha, lets go"

Abdul bhai, Salima and Mirza were already waiting for them, Ruks had her own legal team there as well .. Abdul and Moti exchange papers, and went over the details of the contract ... they had their heads down when Jalal and Ruks walked in ... Jalal came and sat next to her ... he gently brushed his fingertips across her back as he slipped into the chair next to hers ... Reached out and slipped his hand into hers under the table so their palms were touching, giving her a fluttery feeling deep in her chest, for a few moments everything went blank ...eventually she felt him squeeze her hands lightly, it was sweet and comforting and exactly what she needed ... but it still hurt "No, no, I can't do this" she gets up, her sudden outburst took everyone by surprise "Jodha, we were not discussing your role, I would never do that to you after all that happened between my husband and you" Ruks says calmly "we were discussing our expectations from Moti's company ... considering her partner is not even here I wonder if they are trust worthy" Jo realizes what just happened, she almost blew their cover ... heaves a deep sigh, Moti presents the plan Jo had prepared for the second phase, the legal team discuss the specifics and finally the meeting was done, Jo hesitates as they discussed her new role, it required occasional travel with Jalal ... when Jalal assures her openly "I know you have a lot to think about Jodha and it is probably not fair of me to try and influence you decision, but I want you to know I am really sorry for what happened between us in the past, that's what it will be, the past, I have put it behind me and moved forward with my wife and I want you to know that you can trust me, and I will do everything I can to make sure your job is never in any jeopardy" Ruks joined in "I know Jalal cannot guarantee anything but I will make sure he remains professional, I know my husband well, I want you to give it a shot, it is only a part time job, Surya will be with you and maybe once or twice a month you might run into Jalal, and you can always call me if Jalal behaves like a jerk, I'll set him straight for you ..." Ruks encouraged as Jalal gets up and leaves..., Jo lingered behind as Moti, Abdul, Mirza and Salima were deeply involved in conversation Jo wondered why Surya did not come ...her thoughts went back to Jalal, she would not see Jalal again for another two weeks ...

She made it the rest of the day frustrated and unable to focus feeling exhausted, she could not stop thinking about Jalal, by the time lunch time rolled around she was a complete wreck, caves in to stress and sends him a text "need to see you before you leave J" he texted back promptly "see you at home, heading out in 5" Moti was busy chatting away as Jo fidgeted impatiently eager to leave. Jalal stepped out of his office, Ruks hanging onto his arm, he looked exhausted, his hair disheveled, his tie loose, shirt crumpled ... he looked around caught her gaze, then looks away "Abdul bhai, we have to leave, I can't delay the flight any longer" catches her gaze again, "see you all" waves his hand, hugs Ruks, kisses her on her forehead and leaves ...she stared after him blankly and finally snaps out of her trance and hastily says "I gotta leave too, I am running late for my class, don't know where time flew ... bye guys" and rushes out ...takes a cab home was placing her finger on the bioID to open the door when he yanked it open and pulled her into his arms, immediately his lips captured her frantically, she gasped and fought as he forced her to kiss him back, winding his fingers through her hair, panting, breathless she pulls back "Jalal, I can't put the inevitable conversation on hold" he sighed "I know, I know, we do, but I have been wanting to do that since I saw you at the office this morning, it was difficult seeing you and not touching you, today was unbearable" Taking a deep breath, steeling herself for the upcoming conversation "Jalal, I know Ruks is your wife and you had sexual relationship with her for years, if you could leave her for me what guarantee can you give me that I won't be in the same boat after your lust for my body is satisfied?" Jalal grimaces and stares at her silently " ... after all that happened between us you went back to her, ... how could you Jalal, my first instinct was to jump on her and pull her away from you" holding back her tears closes her eyes, her voice cracked "I'll be honest with you, I am scared Jalal, I am scared, what if you find some else to satisfy you , I can't get the image out of my eyes" her words trailed off as she began to sob ... he threw his head back and laughed, Jo stared at him in awe and he continued and finally sat down on the couch, pulling her on his lap "you scared the shit out of me when I got your text, I thought you were going to call off things between us" he cupped her cheek in his hands pulling her close said

"Jodha, I am going to pretend I did not hear what you said about my relationship with Ruks, are you asking me to choose between you and Ruks?" shaking her head "I would never ask you to make the choice Jalal" she whispered "I know there is history between you and Ruks, I know you would not jeopardize" she sniffled doing her best not to cry... "I know things are complicated, what you saw in the office was not my doing, if you would have hung around you would have seen me push her away ... she is my wife, as my wife she was exercising her rights on me, my body legally belongs to her, I have not yet told her about you and my plan to divorce her, I need her on my side to keep you safe till I can openly have a relationship with you ...I know it sounds farfetched and crazy, but what you saw in the office was not me enjoying myself but I want you to think of it as me being sexually harassed by her, I can understand your doubts and fears, believe me I have them too, can we break it down to manageable pieces?" she nods " together we can find solutions, right at this moment I am not able to give up on keeping Ruks as my wife, so you will see me with her, I will continue to flaunt her as my wife in the public eye and you will have to put up with her display of affection... and I am definitely not willing to give you up as my lover, because I need you, we need each other and till we go public with our relationship we have to keep our relationship a secret, I have hired a team of private investigators the kind that will get results regardless of whether legal or not, I want them to pay for what they've done ... then I'll file for a legal separation from Ruks " Jo was bewildered by his explanation and his expectation, she hesitates still unsure of her stand .. "look, don't complicate what we have Jo, you are over thinking and over analyzing everything and this emotional drama is beginning to get to me, maybe that's why I was afraid of getting into any sort of relationship all my life ...what do you want of me Jo" he sounded frustrated ... "what is going on in that head of yours? I want you to care about me and be willing to make our relationship a priority" he swallowed hard and hurried to reassure her "I don't want to lose my temper with you Jo, please, you can trust me Jo, I know my past and present is hounding you, I don't want you to let my past mistakes ruin our future, and I can't keep putting life on hold and running back to you every time you see me with Ruks" Jo looks away, tears slips out, she was quiet for a long time looking out the window and finally spoke "I had time to think since this morning, our relationship is sleazy, and having an affair with you has been a huge mistake on my part, a really bad decision taken by me on my weakest moment, I want some time away from you to think..." he pulled away, hit the vase against the wall splintering it to pieces, she hears him sigh heavily as he paces the floor "fine, I will give you the space and time you need, I'm sorry I forced you to bend to my will last week" and walks away mumbling a goodbye...

No matter what Jalal said, she tortured herself with endless negative scenarios, when her exhausted mind lapsed to sleep, her subconscious mind took over and continued to assault her with wretched dreams of Jalal with other women, him leaving her and she living in loneliness she wakes up in a sweat, calls Moti and pours her heart out to her "Jo, you know he wasn't really yours, you know he is a player so I'm not shocked at the way he is going about it, maybe you should stop seeing Jalal, your life with him is a gamble Jo, I don't want you to gamble with your life, and definitely don't want you to jeopardize yourself and the company we both are struggling to establish" Jo gives her relationship a lot of though and somehow, between worry about the situation with Jalal and Ruks, three weeks crawl by buried in work, catching up with piled up assignments from college with only a few more weeks for the semester to end she began focusing on school and finds a touch balance juggling, part time jobs, and full time school and her two businesses, she had wanted to quit her job, but Ruks would not allow it and advices her "listen don't take hasty decisions, you can't even give me a proper reason for wanting to quit, moreover your presence in his life with curb his womanizing ways and avoid being in the situation like me and Jalal". The cover story Jalal used seemed to work, as Ruks was genuinely interested in keeping Surya and Jo together as a couple ...

Jodha had not heard from Jalal in over 3 weeks, raising her anxiety, she had texted him the day he walked out I miss you J' , she tossed and turned sporadically falling asleep and waking up in a panic of missing his call, each time checking her phone, no missed call, no texts no reply to her text .two days later busy, very little time, take care J' her heart sank as she read and re-read the text and tries to convince herself that it does not mean anything and that he was really busy and distracted, tries not to worry, but when rest of the week goes by without any communication, she begins to worry, in the past even on busiest days he had at least texted GN big part of her missed him and hoped he would at least call, she wanted him to reach out to her...but he did not call, text or email ... some nights she tossed and turned in bed thinking about him, she checks his schedule, he would be in London getting ready to return...finally helpless resigns herself to the beginning of an end to their relationship, giving up, lies in bed staring at the ceiling while letting tears fall, she knew this day was coming but did not think it would be this quick ... she figured there would be a period of waning desire first, the last time they were together did not feel like the last time ...

She wants to talk to someone about Jalal but there was no one she could be completely honest with ...her dadima was sick and in the hospital ...somehow drifts off to sleep when her phone goes off, sleepily she murmurs "hello" no answer, just heavy breathing she jumps up immediately, her heart races, recognizes his heavy breathing "Jalal?" still no answer ... "Jalal, I know it's you, answer me" she begs tearfully and finally he speaks, his voice soft "I wanted to give you the time you asked for, Jodha, sorry I disturbed you, you must be in bed already, sorry to disturb" he said huskily ... "yes" she was excited to hear his voice "yes, I am in bed, but you are not disturbing me Jalal, please don't hang up, I'm sorry" she cries laying back in bed "I miss you, I missed you every minute, I am wearing your shirt, I've worn your shirt to bed every night since you left...wanting to feel you, I miss you Jalal" she confessed a long pause, silence and finally a heavy sigh "so you missed me like I missed you" he asks, she rolls over cradling the phone closer to her ear "yes, more than you'll ever know" "then why you didn't call me or text me?" tears running down her cheeks "I had a crazy moment and regretted it the minute you walked out, I came running behind you but you'd already left, I was afraid, I texted you".. sob, sob, sob "I was afraid if I called you and you rejected me, I would not be able to handle it ... I don't know" sob, sob "Jo, baby ... stop crying, you know I can't stand hearing your cry" she nods but continues crying "what makes you doubt my feeling for you Jo?" in between tears "I don't know, all I know is I want you to come home" silence from his side "are you sure you won't send me away?" "no" "you tell me you want to end it?" "NO Jalal, how could you say that?" "I'm right here baby, a few feet away , I'm at the front door" she jumps out of bed "what" screaming runs to the door ... Sound of running feet echoed and the door opened, she jumped into his arms ...the hug silently and finally he carries her to bed ... "Jodha, I missed you" he laid her down and pressed his body onto to hers holding her in silence ...then softly chuckled kissing the curve of her neck "take off the shirt, I'm here, you can feel me now" sitting her up, when she raised to take it off he dug his face into her boobs, pulls away "Jodha, you're mine, you'll always be mine, I can never leave you, ever" she nodded "yes, I want to be yours, only yours Jalal, I'll never let you go"

Their relationship took off with another level of stability as Jalal helps her lay aside her fears ...she had truly become is mistress ... Their life was a whirl texts, emails, phone calls, laughter, kisses, fights and lots of lovemaking filled with excitement and joy than either thought possible. His possessiveness freaked her out, he uncontrollable temper frightened her at times but they matched her jealousy ... and when it was time for Jalal to leave on his trips, the reluctance they felt saying goodbyes seemed to grow every time they were together, they spent a long time standing by the door, locked in each other's arms, talking, kissing whispering sweetly, it took every ounce of her will power to let him go, watching him leave ... whenever Jalal was in NY he spent his nights with her, they stayed home, they laughed and talked effortlessly, danced to romantic music, he never took her out publicly. Over the next few weeks, they fell into a routine, Jalal managed to come home frequently, their romance grew stronger, they solidified their feelings laying a strong concrete foundation for their relationship they were building ... Jo cooked his favorite meals, they had romantic candle light dinners and spent the nights leisurely making passionate love ... when he worked locally, they showered together and left for work separately, at work when she ran into him neither of them spoke except to quietly say excuse me, thank you, and when he was on business trips, they emailed every day, talked and texted, their texts full of details about their days, their night time conversations were reserved for talk about their deepest desires and their hopes for the future, this was when they slowly drew closer and closer in their understanding of each other ...

Jo knew he spent time with Ruks but stopped questioning him about it, she followed them as a couple on social media, rumors of Jalal getting close to other women, her mind runs rampant with images and stories of what he is doing with her or whoever he is with ... When she questions him "its your jealousy Jo, trust me" although Moti managed Jalal's PR, Ruks PR team always managed to give out juicy gossip and pictures to the media ...pictures of him partying with Ruks and other women, she recalls the last time they were together "I've been starved for sex, for touch, for intimacy, I want your lips on mine and your body wrapped around me, how did I ever think I could stay away from you, you make me happy Jo" he had whispered, her answering kiss was deep and sensual, full of unchecked emotions as they made love, rocking together, hands searching to hold each other close as possible ... "thanks for trusting me, and not questioning my desire for you, for satisfying my dark passion in you, remember once you said all I cared for was your body and sex, I have been thinking a lot about us, yes I seek pleasure and comfort in you, but I also unwind, destress and feel carefree in your arms, you make me feel like I am the most important person in your life, I long to come home to you baby" his breath warm across her ears ... weeks went by, she had not gotten over the insecurities of their relationship, but put it aside to embrace the growing emotional intimacy between them.