True Colors New Thread 3-Chapter 51 Updated - Page 22

Anjali was prepared to answer a battery of questions and Arnav was the first to fire.

Arnav: "How long is NK staying Di?"

Anjali: "A week here and then sometime in Shantiven"

Aranv: "What! Here? Where? In the house?"

Anjali: "No in the outhouse. I have gotten it ready. NK will help me organize some stuff for GodBharai. And next week we also have Khushiji's birthday".

Arnav:" But'but'a week'with us? Is it needed?"

Anjali: "Very much!"

Arnav was fuming. What the! NK irritated him! Well he wasn't jealous! Why should he be? Khushi was his now. His wife, the would-be mother of his child.

NK would probably not drool over Khushi like before? Would he? Khushi was all bloated up and pregnant! His heart lifted up at the thought. NK couldn't possibly drool over a 7 month pregnant woman would he? Hmmm. No.

Then he looked at Khushi. The pregnancy had added a new glow and more beauty to her. While she was thin earlier now she was filled out and looked stunning.

Well. He couldn't be sure if NK would flirt again. He would have to keep an eye!

What irritated him the most about NK was not just the flirting, but also the fact that he could make Khushi laugh, something which he never achieved so effortlessly.

Khushi asked less questions and more hesitantly.

"And Lavanyaji? How long is she here for? "

Anjali hid her smile and said "May be a week too. And before you all ask, I have also arranged for her to stay in the outhouse. Lavanyaji will stay in the backside with the separate entrance. NK will stay in the frontside."

Khushi swallowed the information to the best of her abilities. She liked the idea of seeing Lavanya. But she was worried.

Arnav and she were not in the best of terms. Would Arnav find comfort and friendship with La? Would he prefer to talk to La more than her? Would Arnav spend more time with her La? He was spending much less time with her nowadays. Whatever he did spend were full of formalities

Anjali was delighted with their reactions. Just what she had wanted! But she had to take care not to upset Khushi much. She had been worried first about stressing her in this condition. But she had chosen the lesser of the two evils. Either stress her for a week through La and have her sort the problems with Arnav or have her stress for months till she sorted things with Arnav,

She had to take the first option. She desperately hoped it would work. She would have to thank Karan for this. Thoughts of him brought memories of her last appointment with him. As usual he had made her face another issue she would have to deal with about her broken marriage.

"Hi Karan," she had said when she reached his consulting room.

"Hi. You are on time. Good!" Karan said not looking up from his computer screen. Anjali was irritated. At least he could acknowledge her presence! She thought they had become friends the last time they met.

"So, are you ready to file for the divorce now?" Karan asked still looking at the computer screen. He did not want to see her face. Last time he had felt a little vulnerable towards her'something he hated. No woman would make him vulnerable. Ever!

It hurt him to even think of being vulnerable to another human being!

"Yes'yes ..I am ready," Anjali said.

"Why the hesitation?" Karan said finally looking up.

"No hesitation'just feels scary to take a big step," she said.

"So, can you do it? Are you still blaming yourself for the broken marriage?' he asked.

"No..umm 'yes'I feel he may have been different had I been different, may be if I was more attractive, more loving or may be had I satisfied him'." She stopped. She couldn't say had she satisfied his desires in bed.

"Satisfied him in bed you mean?" Karan asked her directly.

Anjali looked up utterly shocked. She had never shared this part of her married life with anyone. Shyam had always demanded more of her than she was capable of giving in marital intimacy. She had often wondered if he had strayed because of that. But she could never admit such intimate details to others.

She refused to answer that question and stared ahead.

"No point hiding it. I have hit bull's eye haven't I. You are guilty of not satisfying him in bed?" Karan asked.

Anjali bit her lips and stared down.

"Tell me Anjali, if someone doesn't love you, how will he be satisfied with you? Whatever you do will not make him happy. In bed he can't hide it. Other times he can. If a man loves you he will be happy, whatever you do, in bed or outside bed. It's like any fault. If you love someone, you accept the fault otherwise you don't," Karan said.

Anjali felt a profound sense of relief hearing his words. She had carried the guilt too long'.and today she felt a weight lift from her. Grateful to Karan for this, involuntarily she covered his hands resting on the table and said, "You don't know what you have done for me'I have no words." She looked with happy sparkle in her tearful eyes into Karan'. For a moment again Karan felt vulnerable and he was unable to shake off her hands that were covering his with so much gratitude'.

NK arrived the next day.

"Khushiji," NK smiled his wide cheerful smile. Arnav gave him a jaundiced look. The way he greeted Khushi always grated on his nerves.

'Nanheji welcome," Khushi said smiling. She was extremely happy to see NK whom she knew was her biggest well-wisher.

"Khushiji, you still look so beautiful. Bohut budhiya lag rahe ho," he said cracking his old joke, which made Khushi laugh.

NK had already started the flirting, Arnav thought. He had to stop this nonsense. He put his arms around Khushi's waist which deliberately rested on her baby bump. He then said to NK,"Khushi and I are extremely happy you came for the baby shower. You see both of us need blessings for our baby," he emphasized on the words 'both of us' and 'our' to let NK know that Khushi was not single and ready to mingle.

"Of course! Congratulations to both of you. Khushiji is looking even better as a would-be mother,' NK said smiling.

God the guy never missed a chance, Arnav thought tightening his hold on Khushi's waist making Khushi look up in surprise into his face. He looked down into her eyes and for the first time in days they shared a long eye lock'

Lavanya arrived on the afternoon of the same day.

"Lavanyaji how are you," Khushi greeted La with a hug.

"I am fine chamkili. How are you. ASR how are you?" she said proceeding to peck both of them on the cheek. She continued to hold ASR's hand and say, "ASR I cannot imagine even now that the Chamkili you threw out of the office window is now your wife."

Khushi stiffened at that. But she let it pass. This is Lavanya, her friend, she reminded herself.

But uneasily she glanced at La's fingers clasping Arnav's. Why didn't he shake it off? Khushi thought irritably. Because she is a friend, she reasoned with herself. But she continued to glance at their entwined fingers as Lavanya sat and chatted with them. Slowly Khushi moved towards Arnav and gradually rested her head on his shoulders. Arnav turned away from La, removed his hand and tenderly touched Khushi's head as she rested on his shoulder'

"Lavanya this is NK and NK this is Lavanya my ex-fiance," Arnav introduced NK and Lavanya.

NK checked out La and thought 'Hot chick! It's gonna be fun around her!'

Lavanya looked at NK and thought, "What guts. He is checking me out and he thinks I don't know! I have to be careful around him!"

Chapter 45

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