Page 25 of Driven By Desire
“Consider it a done deal. We’ll go tomorrow.”
A scream of joy rent the air even as she ran back towards him. Throwing her arms around him and squeezing with all her might, she yelled, “Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.”
Staggering under the weight of her gleeful hug, Krish laughed, “You’re welcome. Plus you earned it.” Gesturing discreetly towards the door, he added, “Look what you’re saving me from.”
“Leave her to me.” With that strangely adult statement and the confidence that went with it, she gave him one last exuberant hug and ran back to their aunt. He waited and watched until she was safely inside with the door shut behind her before getting back into the car with the two other juvenile delinquents he called family.
---***---
She definitely wasn’t wearing cargo pants. She was wearing a handkerchief. And God help him, it was red! Two pieces of string tied around her neck held up the scrap of cloth that clung to her toned, lithe body like it was painted on. Her hair streamed down her back in a waterfall of black ending at her waist. Her dress ended mid-thigh exposing lean, shapely legs that seemed to goon forever before ending in pale gold stilettos that would make lethal weapons.
However, nothing would ever be more lethal than her face. He’d never seen her with makeup on before, he realized a trifle dazedly. Her eyes looked like deep, mysterious pools while her lips, sweet heaven, were a moist, succulent slash of crimson that had him craving a taste of them more than he did his next breath.
When Chirag gave him a friendly shove from behind, he realized he was still standing in the entryway of the pub. Taking a few shaky steps forward, he gestured the steward over.
“Table for three.” He mouthed over the blaring music. The man acknowledged him with a brief nod and led them to a booth a scant few feet away from the spot near the bar where Max sat perched precariously on a barstool. The Goliath leaning over her seemed thrilled with his vantage point which afforded him an excellent view of Max’s cleavage.
Sliding into the booth, Krish dragged his gaze away from them and glared at Chirag. “Did you know she was going to be here?”
Pretending not to hear, Chirag buried his face behind the menu. Emerging a few minutes later, he realized his brother’s glower hadn’t in any way dimmed. Handing the menu over to him, he cleared his throat uncomfortably before telling the waiter, “I think I’ll have a beer.”
“You needed the menu to decide on that?” Yanking the menu out of Chirag’s hand, he tossed it to Adi. Blissfully unaware as always of the undercurrents at the table, he ran through the selections quickly before settling on a Bloody Mary.
“Scotch and water, please.” Krish added briefly to the order before waiting for the other two to decide on the starters they wanted. He was going to strangle Chirag before the night was over. He didn’t know where this new urge to play matchmaker came from.
Letting the retro music wash over him, he settled back in the seat as Chirag ordered enough food to feed an army. Although, they had Adi at their table so even that might not be enough.
Familiar husky laughter floated across to them causing all three of them to turn towards the bar.
“Is that Max?” Adi’s incredulous voice had Krish glancing back at him. If his jaw dropped any further, it was going to be dragging on the floor.
“Is there anything going on between the two of you?”
Krish’s grim question had Adi staring at him in horror. “What? NO! Max is, she is…” After spluttering for a second, he managed, “She’s a bud.” When his eldest brother only continued to stare at him like he wanted to disembowel him, he thought a little translation might be helpful. “One of the guys.”
Some of his tension easing, Krish ignored Chirag’s face swallowing grin and Adi’s muttered ‘although she doesn’t look like it tonight’ and turned back to the waiter who’d just walked up to serve their drinks. Only it wasn’t the waiter. When his eyes clashed with a red satin covered midriff, he froze even as other parts of his body came happily alive. His eyes slowly travelled up until they met hers even as he rose to his feet. Up close, she looked even more incredible. It took every ounce of will power he possessed not to yank her away from the stranger who had a proprietary hand wrapped around her waist.
Stepping aside, he let Chirag and Adi greet her like they hadn’t seen her for centuries. It didn’t take long for introductions to commence. Apparently, her date was a software engineer called Rajiv. Topping off at an easy six feet four inches and with shoulders broad enough to block the rest of the pub from view, he looked like he could tuck Max into his pocket and carry her around. Outside of looking like a WWF wrestler, Krish really couldn’t find anything to fault the guy with. He was polite, fairly erudite and actually managed to pretend interest in his date’s male friends.
“Excuse me. I need a smoke.” He on the other hand was, apparently, rude, abrupt and completely incapable of polite conversation. Walking away without giving any of them a chance to respond, he’d reached the secluded smoking area before he remembered that he’d quit two years ago. If ever there was a night for abandoning good intentions, it was this one.
Walking over to the solitary guy smoking in a corner, he asked, “Hey. Could I bum a cigarette off you?”
“Sure.” Shaking one out, the guy helped him light it before stubbing his own out. “I’m going to head back inside. See you.”
“Thanks man.” That first sweet drag had his tense muscles slowly uncoiling even as he shut his eyes and slumped against the most private corner of the empty smoking room. What the hell was wrong with him? He did not behave like this. Especially in public. He was the rational, responsible, mature one. The one who always knew the right thing to do and did it. No questions asked. Until Max walked in and turned his world upside down.
“I thought you quit.”
Opening his eyes to find Chirag standing a few feet from him, he straightened from his slouch against the wall. “I did.”
Pulling an almost full pack out of his pocket, Chirag came to stand next to him. “I brought reinforcements.”
Holding out his lit cigarette for Chirag to light his own, he watched as a couple walked in and huddled together at the other end of the smoking area.
“Why is she in there with that doofus and not out here with you?”
Not bothering to pretend he didn’t know whom he was talking about, Krish answered, “Maybe because she doesn’t smoke.” Exhaling the last puff of smoke, he stubbed out his cigarette before reaching for another one.
