The Femme Fatale- IV- The Affair Begins

Read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

 

Anjali looked at the mirror and adored herself. She looked beautiful in that white summer dress. Her hair set loose fell to her waist. She was ready for another dinner date with Sahil.

When she came out of her apartment, Sahil could not take his eyes off her. She always had looked gorgeous, but today there was something spell binding in her which he could not decipher. “You look stunning” was all he could manage to tell her.

He drove the car in 3rd gear in no hurry. She asked him where they were heading to but he would not tell. There was a heat between them. He drove towards the end of the city to a lonely beach. There was a beautiful set up there- a bonfire, a table for two and soft music. The food was Italian complimented with red wine.

They went for a stroll after the dinner. She took off her stilettos and walked bare feet on the sand. He held her hand and pulled her closer. They looked into each other’s eyes and they were both acquainted with the other’s desires for them.

Their lips pressed and it was immaterial who made the first move. In a matter of minutes they lay on the sand exploring each other’s bodies.

She opened her eyes with the first ray of the rising sun and looked at Sahil who lay peacefully slept by her side, his arms around her. The movement of her eyelash on his face woke him up. He smiled and kissed her.

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She wanted to keep their affair physical but Sahil was turning out to be a diehard romantic. He brought her flowers, wrote her music discs, took her to movies. She was kind of surprised to see him this way. Nevertheless, she was enjoying being the focus of his attention. “He is a brilliant actor”, she thought at times.

In the days that followed, their affair became the talk of the town. They complimented each other so well. However, only Anjali knew to herself that it was a fake.

“You think you have an upper hand on me if you are seeing my brother?” this came as a surprise from Khanna when she was busy winding up after a hectic day at office.

“Excuse me?” she exclaimed.

“Don’t you dare to fill him up against me” he exhaled the smoke of an exquisite cigar on her face.

"Look, my personal life and professional life are way apart and don’t even talk even talk about you” she was fighting to breathe.

“He will not choose you over me any day” he pushed out.

“Now when you are out in the open against me, let’s see who does he choose” she was finding it hard to not shout.

This conversation made her uneasy. Her mind was racing. “Why did Khanna throw that challenge on her face? They had been playing a game secretly and she had been falling in for that. Now why all of sudden did he act that way? Was Sahil really falling for her? Did he tell his brother about it? Why had Khanna sounded insecure?” Whatever it was, she was game. She was set for the next move.

“I know there is something cold between you and bhai.” Sahil shot at her that evening. “I have nothing personal against him, it’s just the office dynamics you know” she had rehearsed this answer many times. “Are you sure?” he asked. “Of course” she replied. This topic was never brought up again.

Part V- hopefully the concluding one coming soon..