Page 104 of The Rules of Playing with Fire

Thankfully, the doorbell rang, and with a thumping heart, I scampered away to answer it. Appa entered with a smile. He’d been particularly upbeat since I’d arrived. He removed his footwear and put on his home slippers.

“Oh! I didn’t know we had a visitor,” he said when he spotted Mihir.

“Appa, this is Mihir Seth, my friend from Dallas. Actually, he’s Tara’s friend,” I said and gave Mihir the stink eye. He stood with a smile, and I introduced them. “Mihir, my father, Thomas Abraham.”

“Hello, sir.” Mihir offered a deferential handshake.

“Nice to meet you, young man. What brings you to India?” Appa asked, ready to settle down next to me on the couch.

“Appa, can we have a moment, please?” I said. “I’m sorry, it’s personal.”

“Oh.” Appa hesitated but maintained his dignified posture. “Of course, of course, carry on.”

“Thank you,” I said, and he turned to give me a smile.

“Okay, you were saying?” I said when we were alone again.

“I need to do this for me and my parents, and I need your help. That’s all I’m asking. It will only take a couple of days, maybe a week. Then I’ll be gone, like I was never here.”

“Yes, you seem to be good at that.”

He sat up, his expression somber. “I’m really sor?—”

“You’ve said that before. Sadly, it doesn’t erase the hurt you’ve caused.” I rubbed my hands over my face, partially to avoid looking at him. “Alright,” I said and gently opened my eyes. “I’ll help you, but I want you to know I’m doing this for your parents. You came here looking for a friend, and I will be one, for as long as you need me.”

He looked into my eyes with some unreadable emotion. I used to be good at deciphering his thoughts. That magic seemed to have disappeared now.

“Thank you,” he finally said.

I nodded. “You still need food and rest.” I stood up and went to Aai.

Upon returning to the living room, I asked, “Do you want to take a shower first or eat something?”

“I think it’s best if I left,” he said, and I frowned at his formality. “I checked online. There’s a Taj Hotel just a few blocks from here.”

“Aai’s preparing lunch,” I said, ignoring his suggestion. “You can use a guest room to shower and change. And we don’t measure distance in blocks here.”

I pulled the handle on his bag and rolled it behind me to the guest room. He hesitated before following me inside.

In the time it took for him to shower and change into fresh clothes, Lata and Aai prepared a quick lunch while I set the table. When he came out, my heart skipped a beat. I smelled him on him. His signature cologne. Not the tobacco one, the clean aquatic one. This was the scent I’d spent my nights missing and my days trying to forget.

I should’ve felt morose, angry even, but I found myself heavily turned on. I’d been hard up since he broke up with me. Now he was here, and I was dripping wet. I scurried away to the kitchen after seating him at the dining table and helped Lata bring out the food. But my mind kept dragging me toward his thick arms that held me tight as I orgasmed. The smile that mocked me into arousal, then into submission. The touch of his soft lips, the brush of his beard on every part of my body. My heart thudded so loudly, I was terrified Aai and Appa would hear it.

“Ah, how are you feeling, young man?” Appa emerged from his study and joined us at the table.

“Much better,” Mihir said, standing as Appa took a seat. “That warm shower did the trick.”

“That’s good. I’m glad it did not rain, or it would have been an annoying ride here.”

“It’s incredibly humid, though,” Mihir said while I worked diligently to avoid him. “It was a pleasure to enter the cool house.”

“Yes, it has been hot and humid. It will be pleasant once it rains, but that brings in a whole other set of problems,” Appa said as he served himself some rice. “Go ahead, son. What would you like? Sona, can you help him, please?”

“Yes,” I said and offered him roti, dal, stir-fried cabbage with peas, and rice. Aai walked in with cucumber salad and a bowl of fresh homemade dahi. I took it from her and put some in bowls for him, avoiding all eye contact.

“Thank you, Sona.” His deep, sexy voice made my insides quiver. The way he said my name still held a strong hint of possessiveness.

“How do you know Sona?” Appa asked Mihir when we had all settled around the table.

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