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“So, will you come and see yoursickgrandpa? And maybe stay with me for a couple of days?” His tone is filled with mischief, making me smile. He can’t help himself from meddling. I’ve never met a man who goes to any lengths to make sure he fulfils all the dreams of his loved ones.
“Do you honestly want me there? You do know that if I come and stay with you, it will make your granddaughter run away. Do you want me to chase her away?” I know that would be the case the second Alisha sees me there. That is what she has been doing for the past few months.
“No, she won’t. Trust me. I have spoken to her, and she understands how much you mean to me. I am sure she will not make a fuss over it. Unless you don’t want to be here. I will get it and won’t force you to come.”
“You know I will want nothing more than to be there with my wife.”
“Thought so,” I can hear the smile in his voice.
“There is one thing that might be a deal breaker,” I say hesitantly.
“What’s that?” he questions me. I can imagine Grandpa’s face turning into a frown.
“I will have Mili with me, if that’s okay with you.”
“Of course, get the angel. It’s been long since I have met her. Maybe having Mili here will help Alisha see things clearly. She’ll know that you do have it in you to go all out for your loved ones.”
My throat clogs with emotions at his vote of confidence in me. “I will be there, Grandpa.”
“Will wait for you, Son.”
“Thanks for this. Love you,” I say before I end the call.
I lean back and close my eyes for a second. I am fucking elated that I am going to stay with Alisha. Thereafter, I am barely able to focus my attention back on my work. All my thoughts revolve around Alisha. I try to ignore the rapid beating of my heart, but I can’t, anticipating all that the encounter would entail.
Chapter 16
Alisha
I push open the guest room next to Grandpa’s room. He did suggest that I take Ranveer’s room but I didn’t want to. That room has too many memories attached to it and it would be a torture to relive them. Moreover, I don’t even know if I have any right to avail that privilege now. Sure, I am still his legal wife on papers, but I don’t know for how long that will be the case. With everything around us so topsy-turvy, I don’t know how long we will be able to hold together in this way; we are bound to drift apart. Now I am not sure if I can truly blame Ranveer for it. Maybe it’s no one’s fault but fate’s, which has forbidden our love. The chance of our relationship working out is negligible.
Pushing the painful thoughts at the back of my mind, I walk further into the room andtake in the space before me.The centre of the room has a queen-size bed with a blue and white striped comforter on it. I move my eyes around, appreciating the luxurious ample that the deep mahogany wooden furniture and the artistic light fittings are exuding. The bookshelf near the window and the scenery painting above the single recliner bring a smile to my face. Books have always been my prized possession. I love curling up on the sofa and getting lost in a book. But of late, with so much on my plate, I was not able to give them my attention. While I am here, hopefully, I will get a chance to find some time to read.
With a huff, I turn back and look at my suitcase lying on the bed that the housekeeper dropped earlier. Time to unpack and settle in. Dragging my feet towards the bed, I make quick work of unpacking.
I am folding the last piece of cloth when I hear the deep baritone that makes me jump while my stomach knots into a ball. Suddenly, the garment slips from my hand which has gone numb.
“What are you doing here?”
Steeling myself, I slowly turn around, praying that I am strong enough to get through this conversation without having a breakdown. But the moment my eyes fall on Ranveer, I shiver at the tingling sensation that runs down my body and my heart palpitates in my chest. Great! I have no damn control over my senses when he is around. But it’s not my fault. Why the damn does he have to look so handsome always that I get tongue-tied whenever I look at him? Why does he have to be so damn intense that all my resistance melts away in a jiffy? To make matters worse, I can’t even avoid him, not at least till the time I am under this roof. Can my life get any knottier?
The smirk on his face tells that he exactly knows that I am not immune to him. He is leaning against the door frame with his hands folded over his chest. There has to be something wrong with my eyes that I am finding him more handsome today in his simple black t-shirt and dark blue jeans.
“Hey,” I say, forcing a smile but the stiffness of my facial muscles makes it hard for me. My eyes are glued to the door, ready to sally out. “Hmm…. I will just go and check on Granddad. Maybe he is awake and would like something to eat or even be up to play a game of chess with me.” Yes, now I’m going crazy and losing my composure. God, I’m blabbering such nonsense.
“You still didn’t answer me. What are you doing here?” Ranveer repeats, as he pushes himself off the door and then steps towards me.
“Umm… about that…” I mutter, wringing my fingers while stealing glances at him. “Look, I know you were not expecting me to be here. But when I heard about Granddad’s illness, I couldn’t hold myself back. I just wanted to be here for him. I really like him and care for him. And that has nothing to do with what our current relationship status is.” Ranveer doesn’t reply and continues to stare at me. “I understand it might be awkward for you if I stay here.” I lower my gaze, unable to meet his smouldering gaze as I mumble, “Maybe it’s a bad idea for me to be here. I should probably head back home.” I try to walk past him, but he grabs my hand and pulls me back.
“Granddad wants you here, and he will kick my ass if he learns that I am the reason you hightailed from here.”
“I too really want to be here for him.” The desperation to find a way out makes me suggest, “Maybe we can divide the days between us so that we don’t clash on the same day?” I suggest, hoping this plan will work. In this way, we both can spend time with Granddad without facing each other.
He keeps staring at me. “Not something I like.”
“Then how do we make this work?” I ask, feeling my shoulders slump. My worried eyes look up to him as I mutter, “Do you have any other alternative?”
“We will come to that in a bit. First, tell me what are you doing here,” he reiterates. Has he gone mad? Why is he stuck on that question like a parrot? Why the hell can’t he understand one simple logic? Didn’t I make myself clear that I am here for Granddad? But with Ranveer, when has anything ever been easy?
