She stiffened when DP wrapped an arm around her with a proprietary clasp that made her want to struggle against him like a recalcitrant child. He pulled her to his side, his arm a clamp around her waist. So that they could both fit under the umbrella, she realized belatedly.
Her stilettos clicked on the sidewalk as they walked in lockstep. The drizzle slapped her other side, making it cold and wet. As if to taunt her with contrast on the side he tucked her tight into his body, warm and hard. Slowly, whatever tension had built up dissipated as they walked past chic new cafes, and old bars with faded facades and dull neon lights. Dressed as she was, she was glad for the deserted streets.
DP kept up a steady stream of conversation about the city and she let his voice soothe the needy, insecure parts of herself she’d thought had healed.
In the twenty years since she’d moved to the area as a young bride, the city had transformed into the IT hub it was today, pushing everyone who didn’t have a job in the same field farther and farther out. Almost parallel to how she’d gone from a cushy lifestyle with her ex to fending for herself and her son. In her case though, even poverty had tasted better, spiced with the hard-won taste of freedom.
That Kaasi might join the illustrious club of highly-paid IT jobs after he graduated filled her with a sparkling sense of triumph.
“A penny for your thoughts,” DP said, as they finally turned into a narrow alley and then down a steep lane. She could see his monster truck at the foot.
Her breasts pressed up into his side as she tried to maneuver the slope on her heels. Pleasure receptors lit up inside her body as if they had been switched on while her mind shouted out warning after warning. “Indulging in a flight of fancy,” she said, her words a breathy whisper.
Nudging her gently off him, he took her arm in a firm grip. “About?”
“Kaasi getting a job in one of these skyscrapers.”
“He will,” DP said, squeezing her cold fingers.
“It’s strange. For so long, I worried about his education and future prospects, about the divorce not affecting his mental health. Now, I can’t imagine how lonely it will be without him cluttering the house and eating all the food.”
DP laughed. “He has a year and a half to graduation.” Squeezing her closer, he pressed a kiss to her temple. “And I know exactly how it feels. I’ll be there to hold you through it like you did after Maggie left.”
Chaaru blinked away hot tears. “Promises, promises.”
He pulled away the umbrella with a jerk, leaving her to stare up at him through needle-like drizzle prickling her eyes from the side of the awning.
Something intense flitted over his features. He stared at her, his face damp, his thick lashes catching them like dew drops on leaves. He looked so gorgeous, so real that a flood of longing filled her.
“When have I ever broken a promise to you?” he demanded, with most un-DP like intensity.
“I just…” Chaaru tried to force a laugh that didn’t come. “I meant that eighteen months is a long time. The entire landscape of our lives could be different by then.”
Her explanation made his scowl deepen. “You say that after two decades of friendship?” he said, opening the passenger door to his truck.
Chaaru sighed. “I’m not implying that something drastic will happen.” She looked over her shoulder at him but his jaw was tight. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I said that.”
“Do you need a hand up?” he said, ignoring her half-assed apology.
She shook her head, braced her foot on the step and pulled herself up. Only when her ass hit the leather seat did she realize that she might have flashed it at him. God, she hated having to gauge and measure every word and action around him.
When he joined her in the truck, she exhaled. The truck was gigantic but the front seat still wasn’t enough room for the two of themandthe tension between them. “I hate fighting with you,” she said, anxious to dispel the building sparks. She grabbed his hand from the gearshift with her own and squeezed tight. For an accountant, the man’s hands were full of calluses. Then she realized it had to be rope burn.
He laid his head back against the headrest. “Not fighting. Arguing.”
“There’s a distinction?”
Turning to her, he grinned. And she felt like she’d emerged into sunny spring after months of gloomy, drizzly winter. “That’s the line Maggie uses against me. Must be true.”
Chaaru breathed in relief as he started the truck.
“Let’s go straight to Pooja’s,” she said, and instantly realized it was the wrong thing to say.
“With you looking like that?” DP said, his gaze sweeping over the now damp shirt clinging to her chest and rucking up around her thighs. Her skin warmed at the scrutiny.
The air switched to a heated blast and a jacket fell into her lap. Flushing, Chaaru spread it around. “Home it is then.”
He was right. She’d already interrupted their date. The last thing they needed was for her to show up at Pooja’s place with her ass hanging out under the tails of DP’s shirt.