Chapter 15 (3/4/07)
Bani stumbled out of the shower cubicle, wrapped the towel around her body and another one round her hair, and escaped to her bedroom. Ten minutes later, dressed in old jeans and a comfortable, loose white shirt, she went in search of the man who had invaded her home and almost saved her, but not before destroying her life first.
Jai stood in the kitchen, sipping strong black coffee. Something to restore normality after his encounter with Bani. He made a quick call, gave somebody instructions and then hung up.
He stared blindly into the back yard and swallowed another mouthful of the searing liquid. He barely registered the heat. Instead he concentrated on the images that played alternately in his mind. First the sight of Bani opening the door in such a bad shape that he'd simply gawped in shock.
And second, the picture of her slumped in his hands. Water streaming down, accentuating her seductive curves. His mouth dried as he remembered the narrowness of her waist, the sensuous flare of her hips. Her lacy bra and briefs had been saturated. They had left nothing to his imagination, everything was revealed by the delicate fabric.
He'd held her in his hands and immediately he'd wanted her, desired her with a raw, aching hunger that told him he'd been far too long without a woman. Just the feel of her supple, smooth skin against his and he'd known an overwhelming compulsion to have her then and there.
He'd stood there, oblivious to the drenching spray, and wished the circumstances completely different, just for an hour, or two. For long enough to lose himself in the sweet temptation of her. To forget his responsibilities and worries in the mindless bliss he knew he could find in this siren's body.
Jai sipped the scalding coffee and tried to ignore the heavy tension in his lower body. His mission was too urgent. No matter how delicious the enticement, he wouldn't be distracted from his purpose.
The sound of a shuffling footstep made him spin round. Bani stood in the doorway, apparently now on her own two feet. She looked about sixteen in those clothes, and with her hair combed down to her shoulders. But her eyes and the purple shadows beneath them belied that illusion.
Jai frowned as his mind superimposed an image of her almost naked in her s*xy, pristine lace undergarments. The baggy shirt failed miserably as camouflage. He'd stripped her, touched her bare skin with his hands. The experience was printed for life on his brain.
"There's coffee," he said abruptly, gesturing to the steaming mug on the table.
Bani didn't meet his eyes as she sank into a chair and slowly lifted the mug in both hands.
"Thank you" she said. Her voice was like water; cool, devoid of color, slipping away to nothing.
"How is Kabir?" asked Bani. "Is everything alright, has something happened to him?"
"No, he is fine. I came here to check on you, would have done that last night, but I thought you might need some space and it was Kabir's first night at home, so…….." replied Jai.
Her eyes met his and Jai endured once again that unwanted, unstoppable sizzle of sexual need.
"You did not have to, I can look after myself. Where is Kabir, can I please see him?" asked Bani.
Jai shifted his weight, tired of this nonsense. He was getting nowhere.
"I have asked Masi to get Kabir here. They are waiting with him outside. We will meet them in some time. I have something important I'd like to discuss with you first, then you can see Kabir" replied Jai.
Snake. Using her nephew to get his way. But it worked. Love for Kabir swayed Bani. She needed to hold him even if it was only for a few minutes, to feel his small strong body tight against hers, to feel his little palms stroke her cheeks playfully, to hear his giggle.
Simmering with resentment, Bani watched through the glass window how Jai's directions had been followed. Involuntarily, she walked towards the door and opened it.
On seeing her Kabir called out "Mama."
Jai grasped her elbow, stopping her from going any further. Bani jerked her arm, but he held her easily.
"Hold still," he commanded in a low voice. "You'll see him in sometime. I have told them to take him to the park which is down the road, as soon as we have finished talking, you can meet him."
Poor Kabir, he'd been incredibly good so far, so when he looked longingly at Bani over Masi's shoulder and put out his arms for her, Bani summoned a smile, putting all her love in the gesture and waved out to him. She did want what was best for him and if that meant having to talk with this heartless man, so be it.
Jai squeezed her arm, whether in approval for her compliance, or to gain her attention she didn't know. And didn't care. As soon as Kabir was out of sight, she put extra effort into freeing herself and this time she succeeded.
Holding up his hands in a pacifying manner, Jai gestured for her to precede him. "Get back in here." He held open the door.
"Can we talk outside perhaps?" asked Bani. "It's been a long day and some fresh air would be welcome, I am feeling too claustrophobic in there" she urged. The thought of staying in the house, where this man's presence dominated the very atmosphere, was unthinkable. It wasn't just his size. It was the way he unsettled her. The indefinable sense of authority that emanated from him.
Bani looked so fragile; Jai doubted she'd make it to the main gate, let alone down the street.
"You don't look like you are upto……."
"You were the one who wanted to talk Jai. This is your chance. Take it or leave it" said Bani.
Her chin notched up belligerently and faint color washed her cheeks. Animation, or temper, suited this passionate woman. Finally Jai nodded. If she collapsed and he had to carry her back, then so be it.
"So where do you want to go" he asked.
"The park" came the reply.
"No way, that is where Kabir is with Masi and the others. I will not have you making a scene there" warned Jai.
"Fine, then I don't want to talk" argued Bani.
"Ok then, I take that to mean you don't want to see Kabir" retorted Jai.
"You……..you….."
"Stop right there Bani. Enough is enough. I am tired, and I don't want to fight anymore, so please, just listen to me" said Jai in a stern voice.
Fine, she'd listen to what he had to say then she'd find her lawyer and try and get Kabir back.
Careful not to touch Jai, Bani entered the house once again and turned to face him. She immediately took a step back, then another. Jai took up too much space. At six-two, he towered over her five foot four inches even with the added height of her three-inch heels. The clothes he wore lent an intimidating line to his broad shoulders, an image helped along by his authoritative stance.
"Okay, I'm here" Bani stopped her retreat and thrust her chin in the air. If Jai thought she'd give up without a fight, he could think again. "What do you want?"
Jai indicated towards the sofa. "Have a seat."
"No." Bani already felt at a disadvantage, sitting would only intensify the feeling.
Jai frowned, then shrugged as if her standing didn't matter. "I am going to get some coffee, why don't you join me in the kitchen. I know you are upset, but what had to be done is done. And this won't take long."
His arrogance just made Bani want to fight him more.
Agitated she paced towards the kitchen and then kept walking around. Jai poured both of them some coffee and handed her a cup. She took it and finally settled down on a chair.
"I have just spent a sleepless night Bani. I tried calling you whole night, left messages for you on the answering machine………messages that were never returned, but I guess you couldn't, given the state you were in. But…"
Jai watched Bani's perplexity morph into anger. Her coffee mug thumped onto the table. "You left messages on the answering machine, you had a sleepless night, and you are tired………..so I am supposed to feel all sorry for you. You bas*ard" Bani hissed, scrambling to her feet so fast her chair crashed to the floor. "You blackmail me, using Kabir and you expect me to sympathize with you…….you can leave right now. I want you out of here!"
Jai didn't budge. The girl was clearly unhinged. Her eyes were wild and her fingers curved like talons against the edge of the table. But he'd deal with the devil himself to get what he wanted. Deliberately Jai leaned back against the kitchen bench, crossing one foot over the other.
"I'm not going anywhere. I've come to talk to you. And I'm not leaving until I do" he stated defiantly.
Fascinated, Jai watched the emotions race across Bani's face. Her snarling frown blanked out into staring shock. Then her features seemed to crumple into a mask of pain. She laughed, an ugly, hysterical sound that filled him with a sense of foreboding.
Hell! If only she had the strength when she opened the front door this morning, she'd have slammed it in his good-looking face.
How dare he show up here the day after he snatched Kabir from her and then have the cheek to make himself at home? Bani stared at the mug Jai held and wanted to smash it right out of his hand. There'd be satisfaction in a violent outburst. She imagined vividly the splash of hot coffee on his snowy white shirt, the look of outrage on his face.
Pity it took all her strength to stay upright.
Furiously she blinked. She wouldn't let him see her cry. Her grief was too raw, too overwhelming to share, let alone with a man as coldly unfeeling as he was.
She wanted to shout. To rage. Damn it, she wanted to pummel him with her fists till he felt just a fraction of the pain that was ripping her apart.
But what good would that do? Kabir was gone. Nothing would bring him back, she could try, but she knew, she would lose.
Bani drew a shuddering breath and lifted her eyes to meet Jai's. His black gaze wasn't quite so unreadable now. Maybe it was the way his eyes had widened, brows raised in surprise.
A muscle in his hard-set jaw worked, pumped frenetically. It was the only sign of animation in him. He didn't even blink. Then she saw a flicker of emotion in his eyes. Something so fierce that she almost backed away.
"I'm sorry," Jai said at last. "Had I known you would be so upset, I would not have intruded on you today."
"You wouldn't have been welcome at any time" Bani said bluntly.
He had a nerve, offering her condolences, now when it didn't matter. It was too little and far, far too late.
"Pardon?" Jai's wide brow pleated in a frown just as if he hadn't understood exactly what Bani had said.
"I don't want your apologies," she said. "I don't want anything from you except Kabir."
"I understand you are……….."
"You understand nothing" she snarled. "You with your superior air and apologies. You make me sick." Bani gulped down a raw breath. "I want you out of my house and I never want to see you again."
Silence gathered as Jai returned her gaze, his brows drawing together in a straight, disapproving line.
"If I could, I would leave now. But I cannot, I will not, until I talk to you. The matter is of great importance. A family matter" said Jai.
'A family matter?' Bani's voice rose and broke. How could Jai be so callous? "I have no family. No siblings. No parents. And now no Kabir….." she said and started laughing.
"Of course you have a family" said Jai. He stepped close. So close that his warmth insinuated itself into her chilled body, sending tendrils of heat through her. The invasion of her space was strangely shocking. But she didn't move away. This was her home, her territory. No way was she backing down.
"Stop it!" Jai barked, his hands closing around her shoulders, digging into her flesh.
Bani jumped, startled out of the beginning of hysterical laughter. She felt branded by his touch, contaminated. She shrugged, tried to shove his hands off her. Finally Jai let her go.
"I have no family, you took away the only family I had left" said Bani, staring into Jai's furious gaze.
"You are upset" Jai countered, as if explaining away her emotions.
Bani looked up into his impenetrable eyes, felt again his aura of implacable power. A shiver of apprehension feathered down her spine.
"What do you want Jai?" asked Bani finally giving in. She flung her hand in the direction of the door. "I love that boy. I won't give him up, so you better remember that."
Jai blocked her path. "Once again you are over reacting Bani. I have no intention of keeping Kabir from you."
Brought up short, Bani instinctively retreated a step, distancing herself from his overwhelming presence. "You don't?"
Jai stared into the sparkling, troubled eyes of this woman before him and wished he could leave her in peace. She was wound up tighter than a spring.
He'd released his hold on her reluctantly, but was on his guard, in case she lashed out. If there had been a knife at hand, she'd probably have swept it up and plunged it straight into his heart. She'd looked like a Fury, eager for vengeance. But the next moment she was heartbreakingly vulnerable.
He felt her grief as a palpable force, heard it in the savage, scouring breaths she took. He exhaled slowly, schooling his face against the pity he knew Bani wouldn't want to see.
Not for the first time Jai wished he'd never become entangled in this mess. That Bani was not a part of this issue. He thrust his hand through his hair and silently cursed this appalling mess. A pang of guilt pierced his chest. He should give her time. Respect her wishes. But time was the one luxury he didn't possess.
"No. I don't" he replied. He, too, stepped back, allowing Bani to breathe easier. He fixed her with an impatient stare. "If you'd calm down and listen you'd know I mean for you to be a part of our family."
Slowly, both confused and suspicious, Bani sat at the table and folded her hands on the wooden surface.
"Okay. I am calm" she said.
Jai strolled to the opposite side of the table and surprised her by sliding into an empty chair. His expression carefully bland, he placed both hands on the oak finish.
"I want you to marry me and help me make a complete home for Kabir" he said calmly.
"What……what did you just say" asked Bani.
"You heard me…..stop flipping out on me again" countered Jai.
"Let me see if I got this right, you take Kabir away from me, then you have the nerve to come to my home and offer me a two for the price of one deal, and you expect me to be thrilled about it? I would tell you where you could shove that proposal of yours Jai, but I don't want to be on Santa's bad list this year" screamed Bani.
"You came here looking for a readymade nanny for your son. Sorry darling, I am not on sale. Go shop elsewhere" suggested Bani.
"No, I won't go looking elsewhere, I get married to you or to no one at all……..Kabir will continue to have the Mama he loves and is used to, or then remain without one all his life, the choice is yours."
Edited by sabsj - 18 years ago
Vasudha
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