Page 38 of Driven By Desire
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Three days later, on a freezing Sunday evening, Krish finally made it back to Hyderabad. Three excruciatingly long days later. Days filled with long, stressful meetings, in-depth evaluations of what had gone wrong and how to fix it and practically back to back interviews to find the right person to replace the not-sorely-missed ex-employee.
Days interspersed with playful text messages and nights filled with scandalously intimate phone calls. It had left him craving more with a ferocity that scared the living daylights out of him. He couldn’t wait to get his hands on Max and drag her off somewhere private.
Frowning a bit at that last thought, he pulled his phone out for what felt like the hundredth time that day. Still no call or message from Max. No reply either to his earlier message. He would have been worried if Chirag hadn’t already mentioned that Pooja and she were spending the day together. Apparently, they felt the need for girly stuff. But still, not a single message? How could she not have the time for that? The irony of the irritable thought had his lips curving in a wry grin.
Exiting the airport, he made his way over to the rank of taxis lined up for passengers. The ridiculously long queue had his frown deepening. He really needed to look into getting himself a driver. Getting in line, he pulled out his phone and called Chirag.
“All okay at home?” he asked without preamble.
“Yes.” Chirag’s easy answer had him relaxing. “How much longer for you to reach?”
“I just landed. I’m waiting for a taxi now.” Eyeing the motionless line with growing frustration, he muttered, “Might take a while given the crowd.”
“Pooja, what the hell?”
The sudden yell in his ear had Krish wincing. Scrubbing a tired hand through his hair, he waited for Chirag to finish whatever lecture he was giving Pooja and get back on the line.
When it looked like it would take longer than expected, he disconnected and shoved his phone into his pocket. He’d anyway have to deal with whatever Pooja had gotten up to when he got back home. Reaching the front of the queue, he handed over his luggage to the taxi driver and slid into the back seat. Yanking his phone out when it rang, he checked the display and saw ‘home’ flashing.
“Ya?”
“Did you get a taxi yet?”
Chirag’s harried voice had him sighing. “What’s wrong?”
A moment’s pause and then, “I think you should come home and see for yourself.”
“Anybody sick, maimed or dying?”
“Nope.”
“Then I’ll get home and deal with it.”
“I offer no guarantees for once you reach home. Maimed is a distinct possibility.” On that ominous note, the line went dead.
Shrugging, he idly flipped the phone in his hand and let his mind wander back to Max. He had an hour at the least before facing whatever the circus at home had got up to. No reason for it to be an unpleasant hour. Unable to help himself, he tried her number again only to go to voice mail. Ignoring the unease trickling through him, he was about to put the phone aside when it beeped with a message.
Max’s name flashed and had him grabbing the phone.“I have a surprise for you.”
Did she? Smiling now, he forgot all about whatever mayhem was waiting for him and let his imagination have its own little party.
An hour later, he wasn’t smiling.
“Where is she?” He could barely get the words out past the red haze of fury that surrounded him.
“In her bedroom.”
“And Max?”
“Adi and she are out in the backyard.”
“I’ll talk to Pooja first.” Leaving his luggage where he’d dropped it, he took the stairs two at a time with Chirag close on his heels.
“Bhai, I think you might want to take a minute to cool off before-“ Whatever else he was going to say was cut off by the sound of Krish cursing as he tried the door to Pooja’s room and found it locked.
“I have a right to my privacy.” The surly response from the other side of the door had Krish gritting his teeth.
