“It’s alright,” she heard Janak say, “but I hope that I’ve not started a war between you two because of this land.”
Janak looked from Sameer to Raashi.
“Don’t worry. Raashi and I will work something out, won’t we Raashi?” Sameer asked her pointedly.
Raashi looked up into his eyes and caught the challenge in it. They were at a deadlock in this situation and he knew that, but he still insisted on inciting her. She didn’t want to work anything out with him. She didn’t even want to be in the same room with him after the way she had responded to his kiss yesterday. She had sought Janak out because she wanted his help to figure out this issue between Sameer and her. She didn’t want to interact with Sameer by herself any more.
But before she could form an appropriate reply to Sameer’s question, Janak said, “Raashi, you need to talk to him. Will you do that for me please?”
“Hmm,” Raashi replied.
Taking that as her acceptance, Janak continued, “Good. You two are both important to me and I want both of you to be happy. So, for my sake please work it out.”
Janak checked his watch for the time before continuing, “Anyway, I have a meeting to get to and since both of you are here, can you please talk and clear it all out?”
Without waiting for their reply, he walked out, leaving the two of them alone.
Raashi stood up to leave the minute Janak left, but before she could take a step forward, she heard Sameer say, “Running away? I thought you just agreed to talk to me.”
“Firstly, I am not running away from you, I am staying away from you. Huge difference. And secondly, I didn’t agree to take part in any kind of discussion at all. Definitely not right now,” Raashi said and took a step forward.
Sameer took a step to his right and blocked her. It brought her in closer contact to him. He was so close to her that she had to look up to talk to him. Raashi hated how he towered over her.
“We are not finished,” Sameer said.
Raashi met his steady gaze, refusing to back away, refusing to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he was making her feel flustered.
“We were finished long back. Stop this nonsense and let me go.”
“We need to talk Raashi, whether you like it or not. So, if not now, choose a time and place. I will call you or come to your office or your house every day, whatever it takes till you agree to a meeting.”
Raashi stiffened. “Are you threatening me?” she asked, crossing her arms on her chest.
Sameer leaned down to whisper in her ear, “Not threatening you, beautiful, just warning you. You will find me at your door step, morning, evening and night till you don’t agree to talk to me.”
Raashi shut her eyes for a second, desperately trying to stand still, controlling her body’s reaction to him. It was so damn hard to do so, when he was so near, whispering in her ear.
She schooled her thoughts and her expression.
“Move,” she ordered.
He raised his hands in the air and took a step back and she let out the breath she’d been holding.
She took two steps forward, threw him a sideways glance and said as calmly as she could, “Tomorrow at one.”
Sameer felt victorious.
“I’ll come by to your office,” he told her.
Round one to me, he thought as he watched her walk out, her hips swaying and her soft hair flowing behind her. The woman had a body made for sin.
Fuck! He was spending way too much time thinking about her. Yesterday, the entire day had gone by and Sameer hadn’t been able to get any substantial work done. She haunted his thoughts. He remembered her scent, her softness, her warmth and how she fit into him so perfectly. Damn! He wanted Raashi. His body craved for hers and even though he was aware that she really didn’t like him very much, her body still responded to the call of his. She had been an equal and willing participant in the kiss they had shared yesterday. The ring of his cell phone brought him out of his daydream. The screen flashed with Natasha’s name.
It was ironic. He was not the least bit attracted to the woman he was considering to spend the rest of his life with and the woman he craved for was a bad bet for his heart. Perhaps therein lay the answer to his dilemma. Natasha was most definitely not a threat to his heart. But Raashi, with her sharp tongue, razor wit and gorgeous body would be challenging him at every turn. She would want his complete surrender, heart and soul. He was indeed better off without her. He should have never kissed her again. Big mistake, big bad mistake! Convincing himself of that, Sameer answered Natatsha’s call.
10
Raashi paced the floor of her office as she ran her hands through her hair again. Why had she agreed to meet with him? She should have put her foot down and refused to have anything more to do with him. But instead here she was, waiting for him, looking at her watch every few seconds. He was late and this feeling of being on the edge was annoying her. Her cell buzzed and she saw it was Sameer.
