him. “Tanya, honey come and
meet Gautam.”
Tanya was a
sweet-looking petite girl with elaborate mehendi on her hands; in her
short hair, denim shorts and a pink tee she looked like a schoolgirl.
“Hello
Gautam.” She wrapped her heavily mehendied arms around Sanjay. “I’ve
heard loads about you. We’re both in Mumbai, yet we haven’t met. I hear you
keep very busy and don’t socialize much, but don’t worry, now that we have met,
I’ll make sure you have a rocking time in Mumbai.”
“Congratulations
Tanya,” said Gautam.
The match
seemed to be made in heaven for the two warm, happy, talkative people.
He turned
around at the sound of laughter and found the girl from the airport coming
towards them with another guy. Gautam winced, annoyed at the irrational jealousy
he felt. The strength of his feeling, compounded by the fact that the emotion
had been aroused by a stranger, confused him.
“Sanjay, who
is that girl?”
“Oh that’s
Sameera, Tanya’s childhood friend. They are quite inseparable.” Sanjay winked
at Gautam. “Isn’t she gorgeous? She’s also from Mumbai.” His grin spread. “I
have a great idea—why don’t I try and set you up with her? Double dates, just
like high school. What say?”
Gautam
stiffened. “You’ll do no such thing. I hardly dated even in high school; don’t
embarrass me in front of your guests.”
Sameera came
and stood beside them, tucking an errant strand of hair behind her left ear.
Gautam’s gaze lingered on her beautiful slender fingers with their perfectly
manicured nails. Tall, slim, with broad shoulders and an amazingly narrow
waist, she looked even prettier up close. Her dark, long, softly curled hair,
limpid eyes heavily lined with kajal , glowing complexion, and wide, pink
lips made her look incredibly sensual.
“Excuse me,
but could you please stop monopolizing the bride and groom? There’s an awful
lot to be done. The function’s just a few hours away, you see,” Sameera seemed
to be speaking to him. “Why don’t you also go and freshen up? And yeah, please
try to change into something more appropriate; it’s a wedding, not a board room.”
Tanya giggled
but Sanjay jumped to his defense, “Sameera don’t bully the poor guy. He just got here. Let’s go, buddy.”
As Gautam
picked up his bag, he heard Sameera comment, “‘Poor guy’? That’s what we’ll
call him since he hasn’t bothered to introduce himself. Uff. Are all Delhi guys
boorish and ill mannered?”
The comment
was the last straw for Gautam. Here he was, trying hard to be civil amidst the
chaos while that girl, a complete stranger, was taking liberties with him and
had the nerve to call him ill-mannered. She should look in the mirror.
≈
TWO
Finally
alone in his room, Gautam heaved a sigh of relief, thankful for the privacy of
a single room. He quickly locked the door, flopped on the bed and took a long
deep breath. He checked his watch; there was time for a few hours of work on
his laptop before the pandemonium of the engagement ceremony broke loose. The
heat had taken its toll; his body and his internal organs felt like they were coated
with the grime and dust of Delhi. He stepped into the shower, a fancy cubicle
with lots of mirrors that reflected his muscular five-eleven frame and chiseled
features—what his friends called the ‘Adonis’ look. His only concern was his
thick unruly mop of curly hair which he kept really short. He was well-groomed
with thick eyebrows and dark brown eyes that complemented his wheatish
complexion and clean-shaven face.
Lathering
his broad chest, his thoughts reverted to work and the presentation he had to
complete before landing in Mumbai the next day. Suddenly, through the misty
space in which he stood, Sameera’s gorgeous face appeared in his mind and he
felt a deep urge to smell her cascading hair and gaze into her large eyes. He
was used to pretty girls vying for his attention but never before had a
meet Gautam.”
Tanya was a
sweet-looking petite girl with elaborate mehendi on her hands; in her
short hair, denim shorts and a pink tee she looked like a schoolgirl.
“Hello
Gautam.” She wrapped her heavily mehendied arms around Sanjay. “I’ve
heard loads about you. We’re both in Mumbai, yet we haven’t met. I hear you
keep very busy and don’t socialize much, but don’t worry, now that we have met,
I’ll make sure you have a rocking time in Mumbai.”
“Congratulations
Tanya,” said Gautam.
The match
seemed to be made in heaven for the two warm, happy, talkative people.
He turned
around at the sound of laughter and found the girl from the airport coming
towards them with another guy. Gautam winced, annoyed at the irrational jealousy
he felt. The strength of his feeling, compounded by the fact that the emotion
had been aroused by a stranger, confused him.
“Sanjay, who
is that girl?”
“Oh that’s
Sameera, Tanya’s childhood friend. They are quite inseparable.” Sanjay winked
at Gautam. “Isn’t she gorgeous? She’s also from Mumbai.” His grin spread. “I
have a great idea—why don’t I try and set you up with her? Double dates, just
like high school. What say?”
Gautam
stiffened. “You’ll do no such thing. I hardly dated even in high school; don’t
embarrass me in front of your guests.”
Sameera came
and stood beside them, tucking an errant strand of hair behind her left ear.
Gautam’s gaze lingered on her beautiful slender fingers with their perfectly
manicured nails. Tall, slim, with broad shoulders and an amazingly narrow
waist, she looked even prettier up close. Her dark, long, softly curled hair,
limpid eyes heavily lined with kajal , glowing complexion, and wide, pink
lips made her look incredibly sensual.
“Excuse me,
but could you please stop monopolizing the bride and groom? There’s an awful
lot to be done. The function’s just a few hours away, you see,” Sameera seemed
to be speaking to him. “Why don’t you also go and freshen up? And yeah, please
try to change into something more appropriate; it’s a wedding, not a board room.”
Tanya giggled
but Sanjay jumped to his defense, “Sameera don’t bully the poor guy. He just got here. Let’s go, buddy.”
As Gautam
picked up his bag, he heard Sameera comment, “‘Poor guy’? That’s what we’ll
call him since he hasn’t bothered to introduce himself. Uff. Are all Delhi guys
boorish and ill mannered?”
The comment
was the last straw for Gautam. Here he was, trying hard to be civil amidst the
chaos while that girl, a complete stranger, was taking liberties with him and
had the nerve to call him ill-mannered. She should look in the mirror.
≈
TWO
Finally
alone in his room, Gautam heaved a sigh of relief, thankful for the privacy of
a single room. He quickly locked the door, flopped on the bed and took a long
deep breath. He checked his watch; there was time for a few hours of work on
his laptop before the pandemonium of the engagement ceremony broke loose. The
heat had taken its toll; his body and his internal organs felt like they were coated
with the grime and dust of Delhi. He stepped into the shower, a fancy cubicle
with lots of mirrors that reflected his muscular five-eleven frame and chiseled
features—what his friends called the ‘Adonis’ look. His only concern was his
thick unruly mop of curly hair which he kept really short. He was well-groomed
with thick eyebrows and dark brown eyes that complemented his wheatish
complexion and clean-shaven face.
Lathering
his broad chest, his thoughts reverted to work and the presentation he had to
complete before landing in Mumbai the next day. Suddenly, through the misty
space in which he stood, Sameera’s gorgeous face appeared in his mind and he
felt a deep urge to smell her cascading hair and gaze into her large eyes. He
was used to pretty girls vying for his attention but never before had a
Similar Books
