Page 39 of Driven By Desire
“If you don’t open up right this moment, I’m going to disable the lock on this door at the first possible opportunity. Then you’ll never have privacy ever again.”
The door swung open with an alacrity which would have been amusing under other circumstances. Storming in, Krish took one look at the tiny mutinous face in front of him and stopped in his tracks.
My God. Raking a disbelieving glance over the defiant form, he turned to look askance at the brother he’d left in charge. Whose only response was a shrug. So much for accountability.
“I think I look pretty.”
“You look like you have a head full of cotton candy.” Bright pink streaks streamed merrily through her previously jet black hair. Wanting to groan at the thought of the firing he was going to get from her principal when she went to school the next door, Krish yelled, “What the hell were you thinking?”
“I was thinking that I wanted to look pretty for once. Not like one of the boys.” Glaring at his suit like it had personally offended her, she added, “Certainly not like the boys here.”
Was she seriously dissing his clothes right now? Ignoring Chirag’s bemused laugh, he shoved both hands through his hair and gripped. He’d take a factory full of striking workers over this, any day. Wanting to rip his own, thankfully still black, hair out in frustration, he growled, “Who gave you permission to do this?”
“Max.” The lofty reply had something snapping in his head. Striding over to the window of the bedroom that overlooked the backyard, he yanked it open and stuck his head out.
“MAXXXX.” The angry roar had Max fumbling the hot mug of tea in her hand and looking up in surprise. “Get up here. Right now!”
Slamming the window shut, he whirled back into the room and crossed his arms, waiting for the other culprit to appear.
It didn’t take long for her to poke her head around the door and drawl sarcastically, “You summoned?”
Sarcasm? Really? There was a high possibility there was steam pouring out of his ears. “You gave Pooja permission to colour her hair pink?”
“It’s technically only highlights. And yes,” Shrugging, she shoved her hands into her pockets and asked, “Why?”
“Why?” His voice dropped a decibel and would have had most grown men cowering in a corner. Max just raised one enquiring eyebrow. “Are you out of your mind? She has school tomorrow. She isn’t even allowed to wear nail polish, you think she will be allowed to walk in with pink hair?”
“Krish-“
He held one finger up stopping her explanation. “I’m not done yet.”
“Of course you’re not. We couldn’t actually be that lucky,” she muttered in response which only fueled his temper.
“We have rules in this house. We have limits and boundaries and a certain set of checks and balances that need to be honored.” Aware he was sounding like a sanctimonious prig but quite unable to help himself, he continued, “You have no business giving her permission to do anything without checking with Chirag or me first.”
“I didn’t think it was that big a deal. It’s not like I took her to get a tattoo or something.”
“I understand that following the rules and having some discipline are not that big of a deal to you, Max, but could you try and not undermine the values I’m trying so hard to inculcate in my siblings.”
“I’m not undermining anything. It was just some harmless, girly fun.”
“She’s thirteen years old.” The roar was back. “She goes to a convent school with extremely strict rules and regulations. What the hell am I supposed to tell her teacher and her principal when they call to complain? She’s just started to settle down. She’s just started to fit in and not get into trouble. And now this.”
Turning to Pooja, he asked, “Aren’t you tired of being hauled into the principal’s office, Pooj? What the heck are you going to tell her when she asks you why you decided to flout the rules so blatantly?”
“She could tell her that it washes out.” The vaguely insolent response froze him mid-rant. Taking in Pooja’s smirk, he turned to eye Max who looked ready to swing at him with the nearest hard object. Good thing her tool box was nowhere around.
“What’s going on?” Adi poking his head into the room was a welcome interruption. Until Krish got a clear look athishead.
“Doesthatwash out too?”
The strangled question had Adi frowning. “Of course not. I spent a shit load of money on this. Why would I want to wash it out?” Admiring himself in the mirror that hung over Pooja’s dresser,he ran his fingers through the new blonde tips of his otherwise normal hair.
“Maybe because you look like a freaking boy band wannabe?” Was Chirag’s dry rejoinder.
“You’re going to be starting a business degree at one of the premier management institutions in the country soon and that is the first impression you want to make?”
Krish’s incredulous question had Adi shuffling in embarrassment. “I didn’t think of that. I just thought it would be fun. Everyone was doing it.”
