Chapter 3 continued - for some reason, unable to post the chapters in one post as it comes up as spam? 😏
Maan’s voice gently pulled her from the memory. “You disappeared again” he commented as he watched her carefully.
Geet blinked before placing her fork down. “Sorry, I’m doing the comparing thing again.”
“You don’t need to apologise” Maan replied.
“It’s rude” Geet insisted as embarrassment crept into her expression.
“I don’t think it is” Maan responded as he leaned back slightly. “You were married for eight years, so I would be more surprised if you didn’t compare things occasionally.”
Geet studied him for a moment. “You’re very calm about everything.”
“I’m not calm about everything” Maan corrected as he smiled faintly.
“What makes you angry?” she asked curiously.
“Incompetence when people refuse to learn” Maan answered without hesitation.
Geet laughed at the speed of his response. “That answer came remarkably quickly.”
“I’ve had a difficult week” Maan admitted as he shook his head.
“What else?” Geet asked.
“Dishonesty, people who are unnecessarily cruel and being late” Maan replied after considering it for a moment.
Geet’s eyes widened as she stared at him with sudden concern. “Oh no.”
Maan frowned. “What?”
“I was three minutes late tonight” she replied seriously.
Maan lifted his wrist and checked his watch. “Four” he corrected.
Geet stared at him in horror before noticing the amusement he was attempting to conceal. “You’re joking” she accused.
“A little” Maan admitted.
Geet shook her head as a reluctant smile appeared across her face. “I nearly left twice before I managed to walk inside.”
The amusement faded from Maan’s expression and was replaced by something gentler. “Then I’m glad you were only four minutes late” he responded.
The sincerity in his voice caused Geet’s smile to linger longer than she intended, and she lowered her eyes towards her plate before he could notice just how deeply his answer had affected her.
“So, your engagement ended because she liked going out?” Geet asked after a moment.
“Not exactly” Maan explained as he shook his head. “That was part of it, but the greater problem was that she believed my quietness meant I wasn’t trying.”
Geet remained attentive as she waited for him to continue.
“She wanted someone who would arrange extravagant surprises, turn up at every party, spend weekends surrounded by friends and book last minute trips without considering anything else” Maan continued as he moved his glass between his fingers. “I tried to become that person for a while because I loved her, but eventually it started to feel as though we were both asking the other person to become somebody else.”
Geet nodded thoughtfully. “And she couldn’t accept you being reserved?”
“Reserved was the polite word she used at first” Maan replied with a slight smile.
“What was the impolite version?” Geet asked.
“Boring” Maan answered simply.
Geet stared at him with genuine disbelief. “You?”
Maan lifted one eyebrow. “We’ve known each other for approximately forty minutes” he reminded her.
“I already know enough to understand that boring seems unnecessarily harsh” Geet replied.
Maan’s expression warmed as he looked across the table at her. “That may be the nicest thing you’ve said to me tonight.”
“Don’t get used to it” Geet warned as she lifted her wine.
“I’ll try not to” Maan responded.
Geet smiled against the edge of her glass before placing it down. “What would your ideal evening actually involve?”
Maan paused as he considered the question. “A quiet dinner.”
Geet waited for him to continue, but when he remained silent, she gestured for him to elaborate. “And?”
Maan looked faintly confused by the question. “That can be the entire evening.”
Geet laughed as she stared at him. “There wouldn’t be a club afterwards?”
“No” Maan replied.
“A fundraiser?” she questioned.
“No” he repeated as his expression became increasingly amused.
“An exclusive rooftop restaurant where everyone photographs their food for twenty minutes before they’re allowed to eat it?” Geet continued.
Maan’s face twisted with immediate disapproval. “Absolutely not.”
Geet laughed properly, and Maan smiled as he watched her amusement.
“I enjoy restaurants like this” Maan explained as he glanced around them. “But I’m equally happy somewhere small where nobody recognises me.”
Geet nodded, waiting for him to continue.
“I enjoy walking, and sometimes I’ll drive somewhere outside the city and spend a few hours walking without anyone disturbing me” Maan added.
“You hike?” Geet asked.
“Occasionally, although it’s nothing dramatic” Maan clarified. “I’m not climbing mountains every Sunday.”
Geet smiled as she rested her chin lightly against her hand. “What else?”
“I cook badly” Maan admitted.
“Badly?” she repeated as one eyebrow lifted.
“I can cook enough to survive, but I wouldn’t invite someone over and promise them an unforgettable culinary experience” Maan explained.
“That sounds considerably safer” Geet remarked.
“I read quite a lot and watch films” Maan continued. “I also enjoy travelling, but I prefer visiting somewhere because I’m interested in the place itself rather than because there happens to be a party there.”
Geet listened quietly as he spoke because Maan appeared almost embarrassed while describing the simplicity of the things he enjoyed, as though he expected her to find his life underwhelming.
She didn’t.
In fact, it sounded lovely.
“What are you looking for now?” Geet asked softly.
Maan’s expression became more thoughtful. “In a relationship?”
Geet nodded.
Maan loosely clasped his hands together on the table before looking directly at her. “Peace” he answered.
Geet became completely still because although he had only spoken one word, it landed with greater force than anything else he had said throughout the evening.
“Peace?” she repeated quietly.
Maan nodded. “I don’t mean a relationship where nobody ever disagrees because that would be unrealistic.”
Geet remained silent as she waited for him to explain.
“I don’t want to spend my personal life constantly performing” Maan continued as he held her gaze. “I do enough of that professionally. I have responsibilities, people depending on me and decisions to make that affect hundreds of employees, which means I’m expected to remain switched on throughout the day.”
Geet nodded slowly, understanding exactly what he meant.
“When I go home, I want it to feel like somewhere I can breathe” Maan explained. “I want to sit beside someone without feeling pressured to fill every silence, have dinner together, go for a walk and talk when there’s something to say, but also be quiet when there isn’t.”
Geet lowered her eyes as that single word continued moving through her mind.
Peace.
She had never thought about relationships in that way before. She had considered love, trust, loyalty, attraction and commitment, but she couldn’t remember ever imagining that another person could offer peace.
Dev had never been peaceful, and even during the happier periods of their marriage, their life had been unbearably loud. His phone had constantly been ringing, people had always been visiting and there had been endless events, arguments, plans, flights, dinners and pressure. Everything needed to look impressive and every moment needed to prove something to someone.
Even their holidays had been carefully arranged performances involving the best hotels, the most expensive suites, the fashionable restaurants and the perfect photographs. Dev hadn’t wanted experiences unless somebody else could see that he was having them.
Geet remembered sitting on a balcony in Santorini while the most breathtaking sunset spread across the sky, and all she had wanted was to remain quiet and watch it. Dev, however, had spent almost twenty minutes arranging a photograph of himself holding a glass of champagne because he wanted to upload it to social media.
At some point, Geet had gone inside.
Dev hadn’t noticed that she was missing for nearly half an hour.
Geet slowly lifted her eyes and looked at Maan again. “You really mean that” she said quietly.
Maan frowned slightly. “About wanting peace?”
“Yes” she responded.
“I do” Maan confirmed without hesitation.
A faint smile touched Geet’s lips. “I think I like that.”
Maan studied her expression carefully. “The idea of peace?”
Geet nodded as she traced one finger around the base of her glass. “I don’t think I’ve ever considered wanting that from another person, but now that you’ve said it… it sounds like exactly what I would want.”
Maan remained quiet, allowing her to work through the thoughts filling her mind.
“My marriage was very loud” Geet admitted with a small, almost self conscious laugh.
Maan didn’t ask for details or attempt to force the conversation in a direction she wasn’t ready to follow. He simply listened.
“My ex husband loved being noticed” she continued. “He enjoyed parties, events, fundraisers and networking because he wanted to be anywhere there were important people wearing expensive clothes.”
“You didn’t enjoy those things?” Maan asked.
“Sometimes I did” Geet replied honestly. “I’m not antisocial, and I enjoy going out, dressing up and spending time with my friends.”
Maan nodded as though he understood the distinction. “But you didn’t want to do it constantly.”
“Exactly” Geet responded as she smiled. “I used to ask Dev if we could remain at home occasionally, order food, watch something or sit outside if the weather was nice.”
Maan waited patiently while she gathered her thoughts.
“He would look at me as though I had suggested spending the entire evening watching paint dry” Geet continued as quiet laughter escaped her.
Maan smiled slightly. “He liked noise?”
“Dev liked attention” Geet corrected before she had time to consider the answer.
The words came so quickly that she almost surprised herself, yet Maan’s expression remained neutral. She appreciated that he didn’t criticise a man he had never met simply because Geet had reason to dislike him, nor did he pretend to understand the complications of her marriage after listening to a few fragments of it. Most importantly, he didn’t use Dev’s failures as an opportunity to make himself appear better.
Geet found herself noticing those things constantly.
“I sound as though I’m talking about him far too much” she remarked as embarrassment crept into her expression.
“You’re talking about yourself” Maan corrected calmly.
Geet frowned. “How?”
“You’re explaining what you did and didn’t enjoy about your previous life” he replied. “Your ex husband happens to be part of the context.”
Geet stared at him for a moment before shaking her head. “Proofread” she murmured again.
Maan laughed as he looked at her. “I’m going to regret speaking properly around you, aren’t I?”
“Definitely” Geet confirmed with a smile.
The waiter returned to clear their plates before offering them dessert menus, and Maan looked towards Geet questioningly. “Dessert?”
“Yes” Geet replied immediately as she reached for the menu.
Maan smiled at the speed of her response. “That was remarkably decisive.”
“You haven’t seen me around tiramisu” Geet warned.
“Should I be concerned?” he questioned.
“Armaan claims tiramisu makes me emotionally vulnerable” she explained solemnly.
Maan’s eyebrows rose. “That explains why he specifically told me not to order it for you.”
Geet slowly looked up from the menu and stared at him. “He did not.”
“He did” Maan confirmed.
“I’m changing my emergency contact” Geet muttered as she opened the menu.
Maan laughed, and after Geet insisted she didn’t want an entire dessert, they ordered one tiramisu to share. However, less than three minutes after it arrived, Maan silently pushed the plate entirely towards her.
Geet paused with the spoon in her hand and looked at him suspiciously. “What are you doing?”
“I’ve assessed the situation” Maan responded calmly.
“And?” Geet prompted.
“I don’t believe attempting to share this with you is going to end particularly well for me” he explained.
Geet laughed as she placed one hand against her chest. “I can share.”
Maan looked down at the dessert, almost half of which had already disappeared, before lifting his eyes towards her again. “Of course” he replied with exaggerated politeness.
Geet narrowed her eyes. “You’re judging me.”
“I’m observing” Maan corrected.
“That somehow sounds worse.”
“It probably is” he admitted.
Geet laughed again as she returned her attention to the dessert, and somewhere between their conversation, the teasing and the quiet moments in which neither of them felt pressured to speak, she realised how easy the evening had become.
There were pauses between them, and sometimes those pauses lasted longer than she would have expected on a first date, but Maan didn’t panic inside them. He didn’t immediately reach for his phone, glance impatiently around the restaurant or search the room for somebody he considered more interesting.
He simply remained there with her, occasionally watching her, lifting his drink or quietly observing the room, and strangely, his silences never felt like rejection.
They felt comfortable.
By the time the bill arrived, Geet glanced at the time and blinked in surprise because almost three hours had passed. She had entered the restaurant expecting to remain for forty five minutes, perhaps an hour if he proved tolerable, yet the evening had slipped past without her noticing.
Maan reached for the bill, but Geet immediately opened her clutch. “I can pay half” she offered as she searched for her card.
Maan looked towards her. “I invited you to dinner.”
“Armaan invited both of us” Geet corrected.
“That is technically true” Maan conceded with a faint smile.
“So, we’ll pay half each” Geet insisted as she pulled out her card.
Maan looked at her for a moment before responding. “I’d like to pay, but not because I think you can’t afford to and not because I expect anything from you afterwards. I invited you to sit down and have dinner with me, so I would like to pay for it.”
Geet paused because there was no battle for control hidden inside his voice and no wounded masculinity at the thought of her reaching for money. He had simply explained what he wanted without making her independence feel like a personal insult.
“Fine” she agreed as she slowly returned her card to her purse. “But if there’s a second date, I’m paying.”
Maan’s eyes lifted towards hers immediately. “A second date?”
Geet froze as she realised what she had accidentally revealed, and when Maan’s mouth began curving into a smile, she narrowed her eyes at him. “Don’t.”
“I didn’t say anything” he replied innocently.
“You were about to.”
“I wasn’t.”
“You had the face” Geet accused.
Maan frowned as though he had no idea what she meant. “What face?”
“The smug one.”
Maan looked offended by the accusation. “I don’t have a smug face.”
“You absolutely do” Geet argued as she picked up her clutch.
“I’ve been called reserved, boring and occasionally intimidating” Maan replied as he stood from his chair. “Smug is new.”
“Well, now you can add it to the list” Geet responded as she stood beside him.
Maan smiled as they walked towards the exit together, and when the cool night air greeted them outside, Geet instinctively wrapped her arms around herself.
Maan noticed the movement immediately. “Are you cold?”
“A little” Geet admitted.
Without making a performance of it, Maan removed his jacket and held it out towards her.
Geet looked down at the jacket before lifting her eyes towards him again. “You don’t have to.”
“I know” Maan responded simply.
His answer made her pause because he hadn’t told her that she was a woman and therefore expected to accept it, nor had he declared that a gentleman should always give his jacket to his date. He hadn’t instructed her not to argue or behaved as though his gesture deserved applause.
He knew he didn’t have to.
He simply wanted to.
“Thank you” Geet murmured as she accepted the jacket and slipped it around her shoulders.
“You’re welcome” Maan responded with a nod.
They began walking slowly towards the car park, and for a few moments, neither of them spoke. The silence remained comfortable between them until Geet glanced sideways and realised how unhurried his steps had become.
“Do you always walk this slowly?” she asked.
Maan looked towards her with amusement. “I thought you liked walking.”
“I do” Geet confirmed.
“Then I’m extending the date by approximately four minutes” he explained.
Geet laughed as she shook her head. “That was almost smooth.”
“Almost?” Maan questioned.
“You ruined it by calculating the exact number of minutes.”
“I like accuracy.”
“I’ve noticed” Geet replied as her smile widened.
They continued walking until they reached her car, and although neither of them mentioned it, Geet’s steps became slower when she realised the evening was about to end.
She turned to face him, and Maan stopped at a comfortable distance from her without attempting to crowd her against the car. He didn’t place a hand around her waist, lean closer or behave as though buying dinner entitled him to anything more.
Geet appreciated that far more than she wanted to admit.
“I had a lovely time” she said as she held his jacket closed around herself.
“I did too” Maan responded.
Geet studied him for a moment before amusement returned to her expression. “Were you terrified when Armaan told you that I was divorced and apparently deeply suspicious of everyone?”
“No” Maan replied.
“Not even slightly?” she questioned.
Maan shook his head. “Not even slightly.”
Geet smiled as she looked at him. “Why?”
Maan studied her expression for a moment before answering. “Because being divorced tells me that a marriage ended” he explained quietly. “It doesn’t tell me who you are.”
The smile slowly faded from Geet’s face as his words settled somewhere deep inside her.
For months, she had carried the word divorced as though it was a label she needed to display before anyone got too close. It had felt like a failure she needed to explain, a warning she was obligated to offer and something that would forever alter the way people looked at her.
Maan had reduced it to what it truly was.
A marriage had ended.
Nothing more.
“Goodnight, Maan” Geet murmured as she slipped his jacket from her shoulders and held it out towards him.
Maan accepted it from her before resting it over one arm. “Goodnight, Geet.”
Geet opened her car door, but before she could climb inside, Maan stepped back and looked at her. “Drive safely.”
“You too” she responded with a soft smile.
Maan nodded before turning towards his own car, while Geet climbed into hers and closed the door behind her. She remained completely still in the driver’s seat, staring through the windscreen as she attempted to process the evening, but her phone began vibrating inside her clutch before she had the opportunity.
Geet pulled it out and immediately saw Armaan’s name covering the screen.
A: WELL????
Before Geet could type a response, another message appeared.
A: IS HE HOT?
Geet stared at the screen, but Armaan apparently had no intention of giving her enough time to answer before he sent another.
A: DO NOT GIVE ME SOME DEEP EMOTIONAL ANSWER. START WITH HOT OR NOT.
Geet burst into laughter and dropped her forehead against the steering wheel, but her phone vibrated again in her hand.
A: GEET MALHOTRA, I KNOW YOU’RE READING THESE.
Geet lifted her head, unlocked her phone and allowed her fingers to hover above the keyboard before she finally replied.
G: He’s nice.
The three dots appeared almost immediately, confirming that Armaan had been staring at his phone while waiting for her response.
A: NICE?
Another message arrived before she could defend herself.
A: I DID NOT SPEND THREE MONTHS ARRANGING THIS FOR NICE.
Geet smiled as she lifted her eyes and glanced through the windscreen.
Maan stood beside a dark car several spaces away, speaking briefly on his phone before ending the call and climbing inside. There was no driver waiting to open the door for him, no entourage lingering nearby and no unnecessary display of wealth or importance.
It was simply him.
He was successful enough for his family name to carry weight inside rooms he wasn’t even standing in, yet he hadn’t used that name once throughout the evening to make himself appear important.
Geet looked down at her phone again before typing another response.
G: He’s different.
Armaan replied almost immediately.
A: GOOD DIFFERENT?
Geet allowed herself to think about the evening properly.
She remembered quiet dinners, long walks and silences that didn’t need to be filled. She imagined a life where home wasn’t another stage, where love didn’t need an audience and where two people could sit beside each other without constantly proving something to the rest of the world.
Most of all, she remembered the single word Maan had used when she asked him what he wanted.
Peace.
Her fingers moved slowly across the screen.
G: Peaceful different.
Geet continued staring at the words for several seconds after sending them before a smile gradually spread across her face.
For the first time in a very long time, peace didn’t sound boring.
It sounded beautiful.
Next chapter will be posted next weekend
Edited by ChandlerBong - 5 days ago
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