Candle In The Wind © (3)-End-Pg85-9/5 - Page 36

Hello every one, my apologies for not thanking or responding to PMs, comments and other important events...This part is for TINK, sorry buddy, for not being there, I was at a camp, no access to a computer other than my iphone, I was able to post small comments here and there, but not much else. Again my apologies. I did this in a bit of hurry, it's just a filler...only happy parts from now on - I promise.

Part 46

"Mamma, I chose Papa's clothes today, aren't they nice?" Jai stilled as the words rolled off the little girl's tongue easily. It was all he could do not to shout out his happiness. Her first time calling him papa. He closed his eyes trying to subdue the emotions that rushed through him. When he opened them, his eyes met Bani's and held in silent exchange of acceptance.

"Thank you God!" He whispered as he looked skywards conveying his heartfelt gratitude to the omnipresent. He suppressed the yearning to hug the little girl and shout to the world his happiness.

Bani smiled at him tearfully. She was glad that her daughter was finally accepting her father. The reconciliation is going to be slow and steady.

"Did you call any one for the party tonight?" Jai asked Bani casually while letting Reya adjust his stole around his neck. Bani nodded, watching awestruck, the sweet scene in front of her. His daughter was almost choking him with the long scarf but he was too scared to tell her so. Bani laughed inwardly as she sensed his discomfort. She came forward and stood in front of him and adjusted it loosely around his neck telling Reya firmly it's hurting her dad.

Her fingers lingered on his bronzed column of his exposed neck for longer than necessary. He smelled of soap and spice and a scent that is distinctively his and his alone. She breathed his scent trying to memorize it, her eyes half closing in reminiscence.

He moved back casually, a little too casually. Bani wondered what he was playing at, it was almost as if she was coming on to him and he didn't want her to.

"Well?" He looked at her questioningly.

"Hmmm?" Bani was lost in thought.

"I asked you if any one was coming to the party tonight?" he looked impatiently at her.

"You know that I don't have any family!" She looked at him reproachfully. "However, I did invite some friends of mine" she responded to him defensively.

"Male or female?" he looked at her with interest. He was dying to know about Reya's uncles, Vik and Vishy. He wanted to find out and squash and thwart any visible and invisible love interests of Bani.

She looked at him belligerently. So he wants to know if she was seeing anyone in the last 6 years.

"Yes!" She replied with dignity. "Actually I have invited three very good friends of mine, they are all male." She was rewarded with a visual of his face turn red with displeasure. If she felt she won that round, his words made her want to cry.

"Bani, Roshni is coming with her brother, niece and nephew. Rohit is Ranvijay's son and we are going to announce Anu's wedding tonight with him. I have to bear with Roshni till the wedding" Jai looked into her eyes deeply to see her reaction to his announcement.

Bani closed her eyelids, dropping them to look at the floor and concealing her hurt and disappointment. How could he do this to her? After what Roshni did to them?


She turned and left the room miffed.

"I am ready, you can use the room now, I am finished in here" He shouted at her departing figure.

Jai wondered if he was too transparent in trying to make her jealous. He also strengthened his resolve to get out every male influence from Bani and Reya's life other than his own. Guilty pangs of conscience hit him about the subtle game he played with Maasi. He told maasi deliberately about Bani's unwillingness for the Suhaag raat knowing that his aunt was not the type to sit idly and let time take its course. He knew that she would scheme with Biji and plan the circumstances where Jai and Bani would be thrown together. If Bani thought for one minute that he would sit quietly and let her think that he is a domesticated pet, then it was time she knew better. He smiled with satisfaction and caught the small hand of his precious daughter, lifted her up in the air, making her chortle with delight and left the room.

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Bani seethed in silence. The memories of his arrogance were coming back with vengeance. Roshni was going to be at the party. She wanted to scream at the top of her lungs.

Jai was estranged from her for the last six years and he thinks that everything was normal? Truth of the matter is, she wanted him desperately; she wanted to be with him physically, mentally and in every other way possible. But she wanted equality in their love, she wanted him to love her back and not bound in a marriage because of their daughter. Yes, their daughter was important, but it was better that she had two loving parents sharing her custody than them being in a loveless and unhappy marriage.

Two could play this game, if he was going to be possessive and do not trust her, she will not run away this time, she will fight him at every turn and make sure that he falls in love with her, hopelessly, irrevocably – she was not the same person as she used to be before. She was worldly and she was smart. How old was Roshni anyway, probably close to forty now, still single, she had youth, success and motherhood on her side. She had no intention of losing to Roshni this time around.

She unpacked her clothes and put them in the closet, pushing aside his clothes angrily to the side. Those cravats needed to go, they are so old fashioned, and may be she should take Vishy and buy him some trendy clothes. He was going to have a shock seeing Vik and Vishy, they have too much respect for Jai and they always treated her like their elder sister and called her Bhabhi, even if she was the same age as Vikrum. She needed some one else to act as a foil to her plan in making Jai jealous.

So he wants her to wear red, does he? She picked the tomato red color sari with black vines, a Rohit Bali creation (LOL, Rohit and Bali, not related to Aditya Bal and not Anu's fiancee…nah, the real designer). She laid the accessories to go with the sari, a huge red pendant with roped black strings and long red drop earrings with black beads hanging from them. She matched a rhinestone bangle in matching colors, and wore the black shoes with tomato red straps. The blouse was black with rhinestones tied with dories in the back. She traced her eyes with Kohl, and her lips with a colorless lip gloss and was satisfied with the reflection that stared back from the cheval beveled mirror.

She picked a black velvet pants for Reya with a spaghetti strapped black blouse that said "Drama Queen". Another of Pia's bright ideas…



Jai went into the den with Reya, he showed Reya his office, all the books her mother used to be fascinated with, twirled her around in his hunter green leather chair and read her the Cinderella story she was so fond of. Her endless chatter about her favorite characters on TV made him smile. She regaled him with the story of her boyfriends at school causing him to frown unhappily. He showed her all the trees and plants in the garden, telling her how her grandmother nurtured them painstakingly. He promised her that they both would plant some flower beds in the morning.

He reluctantly let her go when Rohan came and dragged her out with him. That boy reminded him so much of Rano. Same energy and same intelligence. He smiled tiredly.

His muscles were hurting from all the exertion in the gym that morning. He decided to take a power nap before the party began in earnest.

When Bani came looking for Reya, she found him with his legs on the cherry study table, and sprawled back in his leather chair. His mouth was slightly open and a lock of hair fell on his forehead endearingly. She stared at him, all the love she had for him reflecting in her eyes. She gripped the side of the chair with one hand and she leaned forward to flick the tendril back and smoothed the frown on his large forehead. Just as she was about to retreat, her locket dropped from her chest on to his chin. Alarmed she tried to push herself off the chair arm, but making the chair revolve precariously. She fell forward on to his chest and looked up stricken into his face.

The silence stretched between them, she was sure that he could hear the thud of her heart, she placed her palm on his chest, trying to push back but lingered as she felt the heavy rhythmic beat of his heart. His breath fanned her cheek, evoking sensations that were dormant for years. She stopped breathing, not that she cared about breathing anymore. He stared into her face, his eyes locking with hers with sensuality that oozed.

"I….I am sorry" she tried to break from his hold.

"I am not!!" his stomach flipped dangerously. His hands on her waist tightened imperceptibly.

"I…I was looking for Reya!" She stammered.

"She is with Rohan" he whispered huskily.

"Oh!"

"Bani…you are looking beautiful!" He couldn't break the eye lock for the life of him.

A pink tongue darted out quickly and wet her lips as he stared at it in fascination.

She could see his Adam's apple convulse as he swallowed with difficulty.

She didn't know how her fingers came to be inside his kurta but they seemed to have a will of their own and delighted in exploring his chest.

"I won't be responsible for my actions, if you continue in that fashion" he warned her.

"What do you plan to do?" She didn't know what came over her.

"This" he bent his head to kiss her with all the pent up emotion inside him.


It was as if all the nerve ending in her body ended in her lips, she quivered helplessly under his expert tutelage.

"I am going to mess your hair" Bani treaded her fingers into her hair to keep him enslaved to her.

"I don't give a damn" he groaned as she massaged his scalp lightly while keeping him captive.

"Somebody might come in" she traced the high cheekbones of his face.

"I will tell them to go to hell" he explored the recesses of the warm cavern of her mouth.

The silence reigned in the room for a short while until the door bell chimed dutifully. He raised his mouth from hers reluctantly.

"I shouldn't have told Maasi about the canceling the Suhaag Raat!" He bemoaned wistfully.

Bani raised her head from his chest and stared at him open mouthed.

Jai almost kicked himself. Him and his big mouth.

"What did you say?" she looked at him aghast. "You talked to your aunt about our wedding night?"

"I wasn't sure if you wanted our marital bed to be decked with flowers and all the women folk teasing you" Jai tried to inveigle out of the death trap he laid for himself.

She sprang away from him quickly as if he was a reptile. "You…You!" she sputtered.

"Bani, let me explain, please! Naaraz mat ho, wait…" he tried to grab her as she tried to flee from the room.

"Mama-ji" Sahil entered the room without knocking.

Bani escaped in the ensuing confusion.

Jai glared at Sahil. "Sahil, tumare akhal kidhar hoti hai? Don't you know to knock before barging in on people?" Sahil took a step back and cringed with fear. Jai was in one of those moods, it wasn't uncommon for Jai to be like a bear with a sore head. Sahil suffered the worst of Jai's outbursts. Not having enough, emotional intelligence, Sahil never knew how to deal with Jai's mood swings.

"Ji, mama-ji – papa wanted me to call you, the guests are arriving" Sahil looked at him reproachfully.

Jai took a deep breath and combed his disheveled hair with his fingers.

"Oh! Listen, Sahil – I am sorry, but next time, knock before you come in" Jai apologized to the boy knowing that he was a little too harsh with his nephew.

"Sahil, Maasi kahan hai?" he asked the boy as he left his den.


"Mama-ji, dadi and maasi are conspiring something – I tried to listen in, but they shooed me out. They were talking about flowers, candles and sweets. Mama-ji, looks like it's going to be a big night for you and Bhaiyya." Sahil winked at him conspirationally.

Jai groaned.

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Sorry for stopping here...it's been a bad week for me, I am overwhelmed with stuff, or may I am not managing my time well...whatever the reason is, this is a filler part, I know it's not that great! SorryPart 46

Finally finally I have achieved it...haila it sure feels good to be first... 😆phew...all my life I have tried to be first...I attained it today..aarre not moksha but the first spot 😉