Free The Malhotra Bride by Sundari Venkatraman

hair in a
    high ponytail, she could have passed off for a school girl. Her eyes sparkled under pale green eye-
    shadow while her lips glowed with a trace of natural colour. A dash of perfume and she was ready.
    She ran down to Grandpa Ratan’s room. “ Dadaji .”
    Surprise! Akshay was there sharing a cup of coffee with Grandpa, totally relaxed.
    “Come on in, my dear. Look who’s here. You’re late, my child. Akshay’s been waiting for a while.”
    “No, I—”
    “No, Dadaji , Sunita’s not late,” his eyes were admiring the length of her legs encased in the
    jeggings as a broad smile broke out on his lips, “I came early. Sunita’s before time too. An admirable
    quality in a lady, eh, Dadaji? ”
    Sunita’s eyes promised murder at his mischievous comment while she couldn’t but admire his
    dashing personality. The beige corduroys and black t-shirt complemented his tall figure. Her eyes
    caught the vee of his collar and moved away in a hurry. Akshay enjoyed her confusion as his grin
    grew wider.
    “And Good evening to you too, Mr. Akshay Malhotra,” said Sunita in an extra polite voice,
    obviously peeved.
    “Good evening, Sunita,” he raised his hand in a mock salute. “Ready to leave?”
    “Yeah,” she nodded, her ponytail bouncing.
    Dadaji watched in amusement. He looked at Akshay and said, “Bye, son. See you later and you too,
    Sunita.”
    “We’ll be late as we’re having dinner out, Dadaji . Please don’t wait up for us.”
    Sunita was confused. This was the first she heard about dinner. Won’t her Pappa hit the ceiling? She
    gritted her teeth. She had clear instructions to keep Akshay—grr—happy. It wasn’t her problem.
    She walked stiffly out of Grandpa’s room into the corridor. Akshay followed her and closed the
    door carefully behind him.
    “Which is your room, Sunita?” He asked.
    Sunita gave him a fiery look as she pointed to the door across.
    It happened in a flash. Sunita found herself in her room with Akshay, the door firmly closed. She
    walked away from him and stood on the other side of the bed.
    “Hey Beautiful! What’s biting you?” asked Akshay, pretending ignorance as he walked towards her.
    “I’m sure you’ve something on below that tightly buttoned-up jacket.” He went to her and gently
    started pulling the buttons one by one.
    Sunita gasped. She put her hands on his to stop him. Akshay took her hands in his.
    “Look at me.”
    Sunita’s eyelids felt so heavy that it was too much of an effort. She felt Akshay’s eyes on her face as
    colour bloomed in her cheeks.
    “Sunita!”
    She looked at his face that was too close for comfort. He placed her hands on his shoulders, his
    sliding to her waist. “Sweetheart,” he kissed her on the forehead.
    Sunita did her best to hold on to her bad temper. She thought it was the best way to retain her sanity.
    Her eyes were on her hands, restless on his shoulders. Her fingers caught a few strands of his hair
    and she found them deliciously silky.
    She forgot her plans to remain angry as the fingers of her right hand played with his hair. She rose
    on tiptoe to press her lips to his hard cheek. Was this heaven?
    Akshay had managed to unbutton her jacket and pull it off completely as he moved her a few inches
    away from him. Sunita wasn’t even aware of her protesting groan that had brought a smile to his face.
    Akshay whistled under his breath as he saw the short sleeveless top she was wearing. It fit snugly
    on her firm breasts and left a couple inches of her waist bare. His large hands spanned her waist as he
    pulled her back into his arms.
    He pressed his lips against her ear as he whispered, “Now I know the reason for that jacket.” His
    voice lost its amusement as he traced his lips over her petal soft cheek.
    Sunita shivered at the sensations that bombarded her. She held on to his neck for support as her
    knees turned weak with an unfamiliar need. Akshay’s hands were restless as he explored her