61. Like Sunshine After Rain
His warm hand cupped my cheek, his eyes full of emotion as they gazed into my confused ones.
âI...I...â I stammered, unsure of how to respond. âI donât know what to say.â
He chuckled lightly. âWell, there are a few things you could say. For one, saying âI love youâ back to me would make me the happiest man in the world.â
He smiled, uninhibited and it took my breath away, a small smile playing at my own lips. His gaze slipped at my smile, touching the corner of my lips with his thumb.
âYou have no idea how many times I have dreamt or imagined this moment.â His whisper warmed me. âAnd now when it is coming true, Iâm going to do my hardest to never let it end.â
At his words, my smile faded and I slowly but firmly removed his hand from my cheek. My action caused a multitude of emotions to flash across his face. First came shock, followed by confusion, next was hurt but his face fixated on understanding as he let his hands rest in his lap and looked down.
I had an urge to hold his face between my hands and lift it. His lowered head was pinching me but I controlled myself from doing anything and calmly waited.
âI know I have hurt you a lot and I canât undo what Iâve done.â His voice was thick with emotion.
When he raised his eyes again, there was unmistakable sincerity in them, persuading me to trust him. âBut it is a promise from me that you will never ever be hurt because of me again. I would rather die before I cause any harm to you.â
âI donât want you to die for me.â I whispered.
He waited patiently for me to speak further as I carefully worded my scrambled thoughts. âI... I have already told you what I have in my heart for you. I still stand by my words that I...â feeling overwhelmed, I lowered my eyes and struggled to continue, âI... I love you...â When I looked back up, a small smile was set on his lips, his eyes gleaming as he gazed at me. âBut you and I cannot become âusâ now.â
His brows furrowed. âWhy not?â
I took a deep breath. âI could never do this to the woman you have to chosen as your life partner.â I swallowed, looking down. âShe hasnât wronged either of us to deserve being deserted.â
His hands extended and held both of mine in a gentle grip, prompting me to look up at him. âThis is one of the reasons I love you. You have the purest of hearts.â He smiled in such a loving manner that it tingled my senses. âYouâre worried about hurting someone you donât even know, and willing to give up your own chance at happiness for her.â His smiled faded, seriousness crept up on his face. âBut Geet, I am not as selfless. I can not and I will not let you go this time. No matter what it takes.â
The firm conviction he spoke with had me asking, âWhat will you do?â
âIâm going to break off this engagement.â He spoke determinedly. âI canât continue with this relationship any more.â
âBut Maan -" I started but was immediately cut off by a gentle tightening of his hands around mine.
âThink of it this way,â he said. âIt's unfair to her to be married to someone who couldnât give her the love and care she deserves because heâs in love with someone else.â
I thought about it. âWhen you put it that way... it sounds right.â
He chuckled a bit at the thoughtfulness clearly evident on my face. âAnd thatâs why, Iâm not letting you get away from me this time.â Holding my gaze with his enchanting one, he slowly raised my hand to his face as I watched wide-eyed. Still maintaining an even eye contact, he brought my hand to his lips and planted a slow, ardent kiss, sending butterflies crazily fluttering in my stomach. My cheeks flushed under his intense gaze.
Quickly pulling my hand away from his grasp, I folded it in my lap, discreetly rubbing the spot he had kissed at to cool down the burning sensation. These feelings were alien to me and I wasnât too sure how to deal with them just yet.
âGeet...â Maan's calm voice reached me but I didnât dare to raise my eyes to look at him. âGeet...â He called again and when I didnât respond, his long, sleek fingers lightly tipped my chin up, forcing me to meet his gaze. âI know you must have quite a few questions. Donât keep them to yourself.â His hand reached over and tucked a few loose strands behind my ears before resting on my cheeks. âI'm here to answer any questions, to eliminate any doubts you have.â
I bit my lip, thinking how to get my point across to him. Watching me deliberate, he reassured me, âGeet, you donât ever have to worry whether you can share something with me or whether you can ask anything from me or not. I promise that till my last breath, even if I donât agree with you, you will never hear a scornful word from me. Your thoughts are far more important to me than you can imagine and Iâd loathe myself if you ever shut me out again.â
His words, his expression was overwhelming and it left me unable to speak but I was deeply touched by his speech. I lifted my hand and placed it on top of his, where it was still holding my cheek. Closing my eyes, I leaned my face into his hand, revelling in the moment, feeling the warmth of his hand and the love emanating from him. This was all too good to be true. It was all starting to feel like a dream.
âI donât ever want to wake up from this beautiful dream.â My whisper was barely audible, yet he heard it. The musical sound of his small chuckle made me open my eyes.
âI know what you mean.â His low voice was smooth like velvet. âAnd this is our reality, my love.â
Hearing him call me my love made me blush.
To my utter embarrassment, my stomach chose the exact moment to growl loudly, making my face even redder as Maan let a wide grin grace his face.
âMaybe youâll believe me when you have eaten something.â If it was possible, I blushed even harder while meekly protesting needing to eat anything. As a matter of fact, I could not remember the last meal I had taken and if I were to be honest, my body hadnât even alerted me of hunger for the past few days in such a pronounced manner as this.
I wanted to hide somewhere but he didnât even flinch as he lithely rose to his feet, pulling me off the floor along with him.
âWhy donât you sit right here while I fetch something for you to eat.â He practically pushed me on to the couch and trotted off into my open kitchen without giving any heed to my protests.
I watched as he rummaged through the fridge. âSeems like you havenât been grocery shopping in a while.â
âYeah, I havenât been myself for the past few days.â I off-handedly replied to his comment, making him look at me, with his lips pressed together as he nodded in understanding.
Finding a sandwich spread and some bread, he made a sandwich with such agility that it seemed like he was used to working in the kitchen. It was hard to digest, knowing he had a team of people at his beck and call to do stuff for him, yet here he was, fixing a sandwich for me without any problem.
âYou didnât have to do this.â I said as he brought the plate and pushed it into my hands.
âOf course I did!â He sat down beside me on the couch. âNow eat!â He almost ordered, making me quickly take a small bite.
âYou seemed quite adept in the kitchen as compared to the rich brat you are.â My comment earned me a throaty laugh.
âIâm not nearly as much a brat as you believe me to be.â I nodded, swallowing another bite. Contrary to what I had thought, I was enjoying my sandwich so I thanked him sincerely for making it for me. He gave me a warm smile, relaxing against the back of the couch as he stretched his legs in front of me. He seemed tired himself and then it struck me that I hadnât even courteously offered him food.
âDo you want to eat some?â I held my sandwich forward. He opened his eyes and looked at me, his orbs dark as he wordlessly reached for my hand, brought it closer to his mouth and bit off a chunk from where I was eating. His action flabbergasted me as I quickly retrieved my hand.
âCan I ask you something?â I started, wanting to diffuse the way I was feeling.
âSure.â
âHow did you... um... how did you change your mind?â
His brows knitted together. âIn what terms?â
âIn terms of, you know, coming here...â
âIâve already told you.â He said calmly.
âNo, what I mean is,â I thought of how to formulate what was in my mind, âwhat made you decide it was better to follow me â the runaway â than stick with the girl you are about to be tied with?â He pursed his lips, perhaps thinking of his own answer, when I added in a small voice, âIâm sure you chose an amazing girl who must be smart, intelligent and beautiful.â
I looked down, not wanting him to take hint of the jealousy I was feeling. If he had selected a life partner, he must feel something for her.
âHey,â his whisper was much closer to my face than the position he had been lying in, which startled me because I hadnât noticed him straighten up. âYou donât have to stress over that.â He lightly held my face between his hands as he spoke, his eyes conveying his sincerity. âYou are the only woman I have ever chosen as a life partner for myself.â Before his words could confuse me, I saw a shift in his eyes, like there was some mischief. âAnd a dozen others.â
My mouth opened up in shock and he laughed. âJokes aside, itâs only you.â
As elated as I felt on his words, it didnât make sense. âBut how can you say that? You chose her!â
âI didnât.â
I frowned. âYou didnât?â
âNo.â
âThen who did?â I asked.
âMom did.â He said quietly.
I couldnât conceal my surprise at this new information. âIt was arranged?â He nodded. With this knowledge came another understanding which made me happy. âSo you donât have any feelings for her?â He shook his head, a hint of a smile touching the corner of his lips. âOh!â I bit my lip to conceal my own smile but he caught on.
âI like the relief on your face.â He rubbed a thumb across my cheek, his breath fanning my face. Naturally, I blushed but I was feeling lighter after knowing I was his one and only choice. The smile I had been trying to hide leaked through and I smiled like I hadnât done so in so many days.
Now that the stressful part was almost past me, I felt relaxed and the curious cat in me wanted to know more about Maan's situation.
âSo tell me,â I started as I leaned against the couch comfortably and he followed suit. âHow did a young, eligible and fine looking man like yourself agree for an arranged marriage?â
âWell...â he said as a matter of fact. âI think mom lost all hope in me finding anyone for myself since I was technically still hung over a certain someone. Sheâd been quite worried for me after our trip.â His tone became a bit serious. âShe was already unwell and the stress was affecting her health so when she put her foot down and said she was going to find me a life partner herself, I wasnât going to say no. Sheâd been very patient with me and if me marrying someone gave her some peace, Iâd do it without giving a second thought.â
I nodded. I knew all too well how aunty had been unwell and how she had been emotional about Maan becoming a loner for life. Despite the fact that he was telling me how he didnât think twice before obeying his mother, I couldnât help but feel manifolds of respect for the guy sitting across me. His bond with his mother was something I always adored and he had proven yet again how much he loved her. âYouâre an amazing son.â I lauded him and he smiled. âIsnât your mum going to be upset if you tell her you wonât continue with this engagement?â
âMaybe.â He shrugged. âBut Iâm sure sheâll be happier to know that I finally got my heart's deepest desire.â His fingers intertwined with mine as he gazed at me with love.
âDoes anyone know youâre here?â I asked.
âNo, I didnât know if you were going to kick me out and banish me or not.â He joked. âAnd the first person I wanted to open my heart to was the one who resided in it.â
I smiled. âNow what?â
âI will figure out how to go about telling mom about us.â
His phone rang then and after glancing at the caller ID, he pinched the bridge of his nose.
âWhatâs wrong?â I was concerned.
âI forgot I had an important meeting today.â
âAnd why is this so upsetting?â I asked.
He sighed and shook his head. âI wasnât hoping on this time to end so soon.â
His reply warmed my heart as I smiled. âBut it isnât going to end. We wonât let it end now.â
His eyes twinkled as he smiled at my words. âI have to go now but Iâll come back as soon as I can.â He got up from the couch and walked to the door as I followed him. Turning to me, he looked at my face for a few long moments. âWill you wait for me?â I nodded.
Gracing me with a breath-taking smile, he leaned in and pressed his warm lips against my forehead. I closed my eyes, relishing the moment. He pulled away much too soon and walked out the door as I stood there, my senses tingling with happiness at the turn of events.
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