Page 257 of A King's Oath

He snorted.

“I said khul ja sim sim once,” she pushed her hips up, the naughty level rising. He loved it. “A lot more than once. I can say it again.”

He clicked his tongue, transferring his body weight on her hips, effectively thwarting her — “After marriage.”

“Samarth!” She tried to push her hips up. He kept them down. She punched his side. “Oooh,” he laughed. “What’s a good boy got to do here to keep himself safe from a predator like you?”

Ava braced her body and flipped him in an instant. Shocked, he landed on his back, eyes wide as she sat up on his waist. An evil laugh, the cutest evil laugh he had ever heard emanated from her — “Where will you go now…”

“Mama, why are you fighting with Papa?”

Samarth’s eyes widened, as did hers. They looked behind her at the half-asleep little girl with her snugly tucked under one arm and remembered collectively that they had a daughter. Her eyes were squinting in the light and her hair was all over her face, thank god.

“I am not fighting with Papa…” “She was trying to defeat me in pillow fight!”

Brahmi glanced from him to Ava and back to him.

“Where are the pillows?”

“Mama was cheating,” he twisted his body to plop her on the sofa and slide out from under her to get his baby.

“I wasn’t cheating!”

Samarth gathered Brahmi into his arms like a baby and cradled her to his chest. Her head automatically fell on his chest. “Wanna go back to sleep?”

“I want to play pillow fight too,” she rubbed her knuckles over one eye. Samarth glanced back at Ava, whose smile had turned tender now. He smiled back and kissed his daughter’s head — “Tomorrow.”

“Chocolate hearts?!!” She squealed. Samarth glanced down at the coffee table.

“Al-right,” he turned her away and began to stride towards her bedroom, Ava on his heels.

“I want, I want, Mama…”

“Tomorrow.”

“You were eating chocolate hearts without me?” His daughter glared at him.

“I wasn’t. We saved them all for you. Tomorrow for breakfa…”

“Uhhh hhh,” Ava warned from behind him.

“I mean, after lunch.”

“After breakfast, “ Brahmi argued, having caught his weakness.

“We’ll see tomorrow morning,” he lay her down in the middle of her bed and pulled her duvet over her. She grabbed his hand and tried to pull him. Samarth went down, stretching beside her — “What is it?”

“You both cannot go out and play without me.”

He chuckled. Glanced at Ava. Then sat up, pushed out of his shoes and went in under the duvet.

“Alright, I am in your team. Now ask Mama to also sleep here so that she doesn’t go and play alone.”

“You also, Mama.”

“I have to wind up outside…”

“She’ll go and play alone,” Samarth whispered in her ear. “And chocolate hearts are there too.”

---