She showed
him a room adjacent to hers. It was huge and beautifully decorated. There was an
inviting poster-bed with satin sheets, a couch with floral print, a desk and a
chair, side-tables with table-lamps and an attached bathroom. Soft lights shone
their mellow beams on the bed, from concealed lighting in the false ceiling.
Samaira was watching his expression of
delight on seeing the well-appointed room. She was imagining being on that bed
with him! But she couldn’t make the first move, hence waited expectantly, with
bated breath, to let the serene and plush surroundings assail his senses and
overwhelm him, so that he made the first move. By now, she was finely attuned
to men and their behavior. They just couldn’t resist temptation and were wont
to make hay while the sun shone!
That day, a yellow, full moon was shining
outside and the breeze was cool; a perfect setting for a rendezvous. Would he
bite the bait?
She was jolted out of her romantic reverie by
his words, “O.K. then, Samaira, good night.” The finality in his words shocked
her. She felt as if she had been physically slapped after his rebuttal. She
could just manage to weakly say, “If you need anything, just ring that bell,”
indicating a switch beside the bed. “Hm, yes,” he said, avoiding looking at
her. If she just went out, he’d be O.K.!
She walked to the door and turned behind
abruptly, and caught him staring at her. Why couldn’t he ask her to stay? She
thought crossly. He hurriedly averted his eyes and pretended to be examining a
vase on the side-table. When she couldn’t dilly-dally any longer, she sighed
and walked out, her head held high, even as traitorous tears started welling up
in her beautiful eyes. She felt rejected and dejected! Wasn’t she worth even
for a one-night stand? She longed to be in the warmth of his strong hands, wanted
to be comforted and loved, was it too much to expect? The door closed behind
her softly. She could hear the lights being switched off. Now she was alone
again.
Back in her cozy room, decorated as
tastefully as the one occupied by Rohan, she lay on the couch in her satin
negligee, staring at the ceiling, crying softly. After a long time, she
realized that it was 2 a.m. and she had to catch up on her sleep, if she wanted
to avoid dark circles under her eyes, the next day, during shooting. Her eyes
were already swollen and red due to crying. She dragged herself to her bed. Involuntarily,
her hands reached for the switch beside her bed and pressed it.
Rohan jumped from his sleep as the buzzer
buzzed in his ears. Had he pressed the switch in his sleep? He was sure he
hadn’t. As his eyes opened slowly, he tried to get his bearings. Where was he?
As he focused his eyes on the contents of that room, he remembered that he was
in Samaira’s house. Had she pressed the buzzer in her room? Did she need anything? He decided to check
out and make sure.
The copyright of this novel is with Mrs. Priya Ramesh Swaminathan.
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