‘Abhay.’ His name escaped her lips, wrapped in a loud moan.
Abhay hushed her with a hand over her mouth. He gently pinched the hard nub between his fingers, just enough to make her toes curl, and she was grateful to him for muffling her needy sounds.
His hands slid down her body, pulling her flush against him, and his hard erection dug into her lower belly, making her core throb with need. Driven by need, Siya wrapped her leg around his waist, and when he grinded right at her sweet spot, she closed her eyes and whimpered against his palm.
Laughter and chatter echoed out in the hallway, coming closer. The sharp sound broke their cocoon and he reluctantly pulled back. His lips were glistening wet and Siya had an absurd urge to lick it.
She shook her head, snapping herself out of it. ‘I—need to check the certifications,’ she mumbled and pulled out of his grasp.
She didn’t stop until she was in her cabin, and her entire body ached with the need to return to the warmth and safety of his arms.
Her coffee mug was right. Love makes people want reckless, illogical, and ridiculous things.
Chapter 18
The smell of coffee reached her and nudged her awake. She blinked her eyes to ease the sting in them, and felt the weight of fatigue deep in her bones. Her room was soaked in the late morning light. She quickly freshened up, the pull of coffee luring her like a siren.
Dragging her fingers through the chaos of her hair, she padded out of the room in her silk shorts and camisole. She didn’t care about her presentation, just followed the rich scent of caffeine.
Abhay stood at the stove, stirring something in a pot, a dish towel slung casually over his shoulder. He was barefoot, dressed only in a faded grey t-shirt and trackpants. The coffee pot was still half-full on the counter.
‘You made coffee?’ she croaked.
Abhay glanced at her, then did a double take, scanning her in that unbothered, slightly amused way. ‘I did. I figured you might need it, seeing as you dragged yourself home in the middle of the night.’
‘More like early morning,’ she mumbled as she reached for her personal mug and filled it to the brim.
‘You’re very agreeable in the morning, huh,’ he observed with a smile as she took a seat on the kitchen table, and wrapped both hands around the steaming cup.
‘Don’t push your luck. I might still bite,’ she warned him, her voice gravelly from sleep.
‘It might be worth it. You look very cute when you’re homicidal.’
‘Careful, I might start believing you’re not afraid of me anymore,’ she took a long sip, wincing slightly as the hot coffee hit her throat.
‘I used to be,’ he said, then turned around and placed a plate full of fritters with spicy and sweet chutney. ‘Now, I know how this works, so I’m well prepared.’
‘Are you—wait. You made pakodas for me?’ she asked.
‘I did.’
‘Why?’ she asked, dumbfounded. No one had ever cooked for her before, except Meera. Her mother didn’t like cooking, and the chefs at Kashyap house cooked because it was their job to feed her.
‘You’ve been working yourself into the ground so I thought you could use a reason to smile,’ he explained, rubbing the back of his neck.
‘You’re a saint,’ she breathed out, then quickly jumped on the fritters. It was an explosion of taste in her mouth and she ate them in quick, savoury bites.
‘Is that all it takes? Pakodas?’ he watched her with a smile as he sipped coffee.
She shrugged, getting some mint chutney on her plate and said through a full mouth. ‘I’m a woman of simple pleasures.’
‘You know, my Dad swears pakodas are the reason my mom fell for him.’
She raised an eyebrow. ‘Seriously?’
Abhay nodded, taking a seat beside her. ‘He swears by it, says it was part of his master plan to woo her.’
Siya rested her cheek on her hand, intrigued. ‘I’m listening.’
