A/N: I'm really not sure yet what this will turn into, but just exploring an idea. Hope you enjoy reading.
On The Edge
It had been a good day.
As a young kid coming up in this world, negotiating had never been his strength. The stench of desperation rolled off him and his adversaries didn’t hesitate to take advantage, dangling the bare minimum that would get him to his next meal, his next rent payment.
But now he knew what rock bottom felt like and most importantly, knew he could survive it. He doubted these fat cats with their ill-fitting suits and gaudy rings crowding their fingers could say the same. Now when he negotiated, he played on their weaknesses, knew exactly what kept them up at night.
And if their biggest fear was the thought of crossing Raghav Rao?
All in a day’s work.
He saw Farhad making his way through the crowd and motioned for him to join him at the bar. He ordered him a club soda and another scotch for himself.
Farhad took the seat next to his and raised his glass. “To your continued success, Anna.”
“To our success,” Raghav corrected. “This is just the beginning.”
A group of young women broke out into giggles nearby. Raghav watched them disinterestedly. Sure, they were beautiful – all dolled up, teetering in dangerously high heels, some in outfits that left little to the imagination. Probably their first taste of freedom, he thought with a grimace.
Their animated conversation suddenly went quiet as five pairs of eyes fell on him. The giggles returned.
He frowned and turned back to Farhad. “That property you were talking about – think it’s worth checking out?”
Farhad nodded. “It’s an old mansion, but I think there’s a lot of potential. Owners are looking to sell quickly.”
Raghav was about to reply when he felt a hand on his arm. He turned to find one of the girls standing next to him, her long manicured nails gripping his bicep. She leaned in to be heard over the din. “Can I buy you a drink?”
He raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that my line?”
She smirked. “If you insist.” She offered him her hand. “Shalini.”
“Raghav.” He shook her hand and caught Farhad’s amused look over her shoulder. “Maybe some other time, Shalini.”
She looked taken aback at his response but quickly recovered. “This might be your only opportunity,” she smiled. “My friends and I are at the resort for a wedding this weekend – you might never see me again.” She lowered her voice on the last few words.
“I’ll take that chance sweetheart,” he said not unkindly. “But you and your friends enjoy your evening.” He motioned to the bartender. “Their drinks are on me.”
“Keep your money,” she huffed before storming back.
He followed her with his eyes, watching as her friends rallied around her and a new addition to the group pierced him with an angry look. She started to make her way towards them. “Great,” he muttered, turning back to his drink.
“Listen, I don’t know who you think you are – ”
“Pallavi?”
“Farhad?”
He watched as the two of them greeted each other, a radiant smile suddenly transforming her face. They chattered on excitedly until he finished his drink and set the glass down forcefully on the bar. “You two know each other?”
“Anna, this is Pallavi Sawant. She’s a friend of my sister’s from college.”
Pallavi scowled at him. “How sweet,” Raghav said drily.
“Is this your friend, Farhad?” She looked him up and down, clearly not willing to believe it. He chuckled.
“THE Raghav Rao, in the flesh.” He leaned in closer. “But you can call me Raghav.”
His needling set her off again. “There’s a lot of other names I can think of,” she hissed. “How dare you call Shalini a sl*t.”
“What?” he and Farhad exclaimed simultaneously. “I never said that.”
She glanced at Farhad for confirmation, sighing as the truth became evident. “Damn it, Shalini.”
Raghav’s anger cleared as he realized what her friend had done to save face. “I think you owe me an apology.”
To her credit, she didn’t waver. “I’m sorry.”
“Maybe next time you shouldn’t jump to conclusions…Pallavi.” He raised an eyebrow.
She glared at him again. “I was being a good friend.”
He found he did begrudgingly admire her sense of justice. And maybe a few other things, he thought as he took note of the way her dress flattered her slim figure, how her soft hair almost begged to be caressed.
“Don’t worry, you can still make it up to me. Have dinner with us.” He turned on the charm as his gaze turned soft, unleashing a teasing smile that had not yet failed him.
She seemed unprepared for this turn of events, her mouth opening in surprise. “Oh, I – I don’t know…”
“Bring your friends,” he added. “No hard feelings.”
She considered his offer. “Ok,” she smiled.
__________
“You didn’t mention your room had its own pool.”
“Would that have convinced you to come?”
Pallavi looked back over her shoulder and laughed. “Hardly. I can’t swim.”
He grinned as he followed her outside. “You’re not supposed to swim after you eat, anyway. But that doesn’t mean we can’t still enjoy the water.” Raghav sat at the edge of the pool and rolled up his pants, dipping his feet in the water. “Come on.”
She glanced over at her friends seated around the fire pit, laughing and shouting as they tried to guess the charade that Farhad was acting out. No one seemed to notice they had entered.
She joined him, shivering a little at the sensation of the cool water. Their shoulders brushed. She resisted the urge to lean in to his warmth. “I’m probably moving to Hyderabad soon,” she felt compelled to say.
“Really?” He had assumed she had traveled locally for the wedding. “Where are you from?”
“Kolhapur.” She watched the lights from the pool dance across the water. “I’m actually getting married. His family lives in Hyderabad.” She glanced over at him but his face revealed nothing.
“You’re engaged? Congratulations.”
“Almost engaged,” she corrected without knowing why.
“You love him?”
Normally she would bristle at a question that personal, but as a light breeze rustled the leaves on the trees, his voice felt almost hypnotic. “I don’t really know him well,” she admitted. “But he seems nice.”
“Your parents want the match,” he stated.
She stiffened. “No, it’s not like that.” There was an edge to her voice.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean anything by that.” He held his hands up in mock surrender. “So tell me about Mr. Nice Guy,” he said, nudging her playfully. “What does he do?”
She shivered again and this time let herself lean on his broad shoulder. “His family owns a sari shop.” He smelled good, she thought absently.
Raghav laughed. “Saree ka dukaan? Really?”
She punched his shoulder, hard enough to make him wince. He grabbed the offending hand, holding it in his lap. She swallowed hard, but only said, “Of course you would mock the middle class. There’s nothing wrong with an honorable way to make ends meet.”
A shadow passed over his face but before she could question it, she was distracted by the way he ran his thumb over her knuckles, back and forth. “You’re right. Sounds like you’ve got your life made. A good man, all the sarees you could ever want.”
He looked at her with those dark eyes and she felt her breath catch in her throat, helpless to look away. Suddenly she was acutely aware of everywhere they touched – his large hand covering hers, his chest brushing against her breast as he turned towards her, the pressure of his thigh against hers.
He pushed back a strand of hair and tucked it behind her ear, following the line of her jaw with his finger. “There’s not much I want for in life,” he murmured. “Not anymore. But right now I am insanely jealous of Mr. Nice Guy.”
“Oh,” she breathed.
She didn’t do this, she thought. She didn’t hang out at parties with random guys by the pool. She always did what she was supposed to, the right thing, the honest thing.
And then she stopped thinking because he was kissing her.
He brushed his lips against hers softly, gradually adding more pressure as he returned to taste her, again and again. She felt her entire body start to respond and tentatively mimicked his movements, her hesitation falling away as she reached up to caress his jaw.
He stopped and leaned his forehead against hers, his breathing uneven. “This ok?”
She calmed her breathing for a few moments before finally finding her voice. “I’m getting married,” she said again, even as she placed her hand on his chest.
“I know,” he said. “But I’ve been wanting to do that since we met.”
“And you always get what you want?”
He frowned and moved away from her, jumping up to stand. She immediately felt the loss of his presence. He held out his hand to help her. “I’m sorry. My curiosity tends to get me in trouble.”
“Curiosity?”
He smiled at her wolfishly. “I wanted to know if you tasted as sweet as you look.”
She blushed hotly, still keyed up from their encounter. He had the audacity to wink at her.
“Until we meet again, Saree ka Dukaan.”
TBC
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