Chapter 11
Later that day, Mantra drove Yash’s SUV into the valet parking line of the resort they were staying at for the night. The ride wasn’t as weird as she had expected it to be after the fiasco in the darkness of the morning. She had offered to drive the rest of the way considering he was up while she had caught up on her sleep.
Their conversations were limited but varied from space to cars to National Geographic to the Oscars. She had never expected to have a decent conversation with him and had dreaded the drive.
“We are here.” She was relieved the drive was over. Her bottom was hurting from sitting all day.
“Thank you for the smooth ride.”
“Anytime.” She beamed before stepping out of the car.
She followed him through the lobby toward the elevators. “Don’t we need to check in?”
“No, we are set.”
“Oh… is this how celebrities check in?”
“You mean they don’t check in?” He let out a chuckle.
“Whatever, I’m not complaining we skipped the line. Am I checked in, too?”
“Of course, you are my guest.”
The burning question in her head was about the room. She had made up her mind that if she weren’t given a room for herself, she would camp on the couch or hopefully a second bed.
Mantra followed him as he walked ahead of her carrying their bags. She pulled out her phone and pretended like she had something important to do as they rode the elevator. Her eyes were on her phone screen, but she felt his eyes on her and did not dare look up.
Yash stopped in front of a set of double doors and held his phone to what looked like a keypad on the wall. “I’ll set your phone to have the access as well.”
“Oh, okay.” She walked past him as he held the door open for her.
Mantra’s eyes widened at the sight in front of her. The hotel room was massive. Even though it was a suite, it seemed more like an apartment. The living area was large and inviting.
“This is nice.” Her eyes wandered the room looking for her potential sleeping accommodations, but there was no bed or couch in sight. The living room had plush chairs, and she was almost resigned to the fact that she would be camping out on one of the chairs for the night.
“Your bag is in there.” She turned to look at Yash shut a door to what looked like a bedroom.
“Umm… I don’t need such a big space for myself.”
“Mine’s bigger.” He opened the door to another room which seemed to be a larger.
“What time do we need to go?”
“Six.” He disappeared into his room without another word.
It was barely thirty minutes after four, and she had enough time to take a nap and go for a walk and get dressed. The bed looked inviting, and the weather was nicer in the afternoon, but she decided she wasn’t going to take a nap or a walk.
She stepped into the bathroom, and her lips curved up. The bathroom was massive with a behemoth tub to one side. She ran the water in the tub and set up her personal items. She dropped the bath bomb into the water and slid into the warmth.
She sighed softly feeling her muscles uncoil to the warmth and the soft thumping from the Jacuzzi. The bath water smelled exotic, and all she wanted to do was stay in the water and float to a promising blissful state.
“Mantra.” The voice seemed distant but very familiar. The warmth she remembered wasn’t there, but she was still cocooned in comfort.
Her eyes shot open, and she gasped when she saw Yash standing by the tub looking down at her. He was fully dressed wearing a tuxedo.
“Oh shit, what time is it?” She tried not to jump out of the water in a hurry.
“You have time. Meet me in the banquet hall on the first floor.”
“I’m so sorry I dozed off,” she managed to say, very aware of his eyes lazily scanning the surface of the water.
“You’re fine. I need to go, meet me downstairs. You’ll be fashionably late.” He chuckled before he turned away and left as if he was in a hurry.
She let out a sigh of relief and waited for her bedroom door to shut and then the double doors. Her heart was still thudding so hard it could create more ripples than the jets in the Jacuzzi.
Forty-five minutes later, she scurried toward the banquet hall. She could hear the jazz music playing as she came to the check-in desk.
“Mantra Varma, thank you for joining us. Mr. Birla is at the bar waiting for you,” the friendly woman stated.
“Thank you!” Mantra walked past the grand entrance and came to a halt at the top of a double-rounded staircase that led to the banquet hall.
She didn’t know what she was expecting, but she wasn’t expecting such a lavish banquet hall, and it looked like it was filled to capacity. Large stained-glass windows lined the top half of the wall, and wide plain glass offered a view of the pool that was lit up with a series of lights for the event.
She scanned the crowd for Yash until her eyes fell on the structure with broad shoulders standing by the bar. She could not wipe out the image of him as he stood by the bathtub as she lay naked under the water.
As she slowly went down the stairs, she felt a lot of eyes on her, but they were not the eyes she was interested in. She had picked a plum-colored chiffon dress. The bunched fabric neatly sculpted around her waist while the embellishments on her shoulders added drama as they ran down to the short sleeves of the dress.
The high-low dance-friendly skirt of the dress bounced as she made her way down the stairs looking up from time to time to scan the group.
“I can’t believe we haven’t met yet.” A smooth male voice made her look up as she stepped off the last step onto the marble floor.
She smiled at the man who looked stunning in a navy suit, his dark hair styled with too much product and a million-dollar smile pasted on his face. “I’m Mantra Varma.”
“Ankit Singh, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” The man gracefully took the back of her hand to his lips.
“Nice to meet you, Ankit.” She smiled pulling her hand away from his.
“We need to get you a starter cocktail,” he said looking around for a roaming tray of cocktails.
“I am fully capable of taking care of my date, Ankit,” the overly-familiar voice sounded in her ears from behind.
“Yash, you always have to interrupt.” Ankit looked unhappy.
“Hey, Mantra.” Yash ran his arm around her waist and ran his lips on her cheeks as Ankit watched, gritting his teeth.
“Yash, sorry to keep you waiting. Ankit, it was very nice to meet you, excuse us.” She smiled.
“Pleasure is all mine, Mantra.” Ankit smiled at her and gave Yash a nod before he left.
“Best friends I suppose.” Mantra chuckled.
“Don’t care for him,” Yash said gruffly.
“What’s the plan?”
“The usual drill. I have to step away for a few minutes to speak and then you are stuck with me for the rest of the night.”
“Sounds like fun.”
“Yeah, let’s get you a cocktail before I have to disappear for a bit.” He led her to the bar at the back of the center wall.
“Sure, I’m parched after talking to your bestie.” She smiled when he turned to look at her, a smug look on his face.
“What can I get you?”
“Not drinking tonight. I’ll take a soda.”
“You need to have one drink. It’s a fundraiser,” he encouraged.
“I’ll save the host some money by not drinking since I can’t contribute tonight.”
“Your presence is a huge contribution,” he crooned making her wonder if he was messing with her.
“Seriously, I’ll get a soda.”
He nodded at the bartender and handed her a carbonated drink.
“I’ll introduce you to some people in a few minutes. Be right back.”
She stood by the bar and watched him disappear into the crowd. He was tall enough for her to see over most heads as he walked away.
She mingled making small conversation until Ankit approached her again.
“Hey, Mantra. I’m here to keep you company while Yash does his thing.” Ankit was starting to be annoying.
“I’m okay, Ankit.”
“I’m not okay to leave you alone by yourself.”
“I’m fine, and I’m not shy. I can talk, you know,” she almost snapped.
“I’m sure… how did you and…” His voice trailed off when the music was lowered, and Yash appeared on the stage in the center of the banquet hall.
“Show off,” Ankit grumbled.
“Excuse me?”
“Your boyfriend is such a show-off, and all those fancy pictures all over the magazines add fuel to the fire.”
Mantra was about to clarify the boyfriend part when she heard her name over the speakers. Yash was saying her name, and the group of people who were in front of her turned to look at her. They were clapping and smiling at her.
“Great, go on… he wants you to join him. What a prick!” Ankit growled.
Mantra took a shaky breath in as she walked toward the center stage. She smiled at the people who made way for her and raised her eyes to look at him. His eyes were trained on her, and they had a tinge of something she had never seen before which she couldn’t decipher.
“Mantra, thank you for joining us for the fundraiser.” Yash smiled handing her the microphone.
She smiled at him nervously and turned to look at the crowd. She spoke a few sentences about how this was her first time, thanking everyone who was there and encouraged everyone to show their generosity for this good cause.
Yash addressed everyone marking the kick-off of the event and led her off the center stage.
“What was that?” she asked unsure about why he made her go up on the stage.
“I needed to rescue you from asshole Ankit.”
Was he possessive?
“Whatever, now what?”
“Well, it is customary for the host to kick off the event by dancing with their date.” He led her to the dance floor with a smirk playing on his lips.
“What? This is your fundraiser?” she whispered as he held her to him, his one hand in her’s and another hand on her upper back.
“Yeah, I’m the host you are saving money by not drinking.”
The music started to play—a slow, soft tune. “Yash, I can’t do this. There are too many people, and I suck at dancing.”
“You don’t know anyone here, and this is my hotel and event. Have fun, just go with the flow.”
“No, I can’t do this…” Her words dove into her throat when he pulled her closer to him, his arm wrapping around her waist.
“Relax… let go.” He looked into her eyes.
She took a deep breath and dug her fingers into his shoulder as the tempo picked up. She was very aware of his body only inches away from hers. She kept her eyes on him as he guided her moving around the dance floor.
A few other couples joined them putting her slightly at ease. “Why did you want me to go to this event?”
“Are you complaining?”
“No… there is no need to bring me here.” Her mind was in total confusion.
“I have my reasons.”
“And what are those?”
“Maybe I wanted someone who is going to pay to get my car fixed to attend the event,” he whispered.
“You’re back to being your usual self.”
“Never claimed to be a nice guy,” his voice was rough as he spun her around and pulled her to him.
Her chest crashed into his rock-hard chest making her gasp. He held her to him as they glided on the dance floor, and she felt the temperature in the room rising.
She looked into his penetrating eyes and let her guard down smiling at him. “You look beautiful.”
She was caught by surprise but managed to smile back at him. The attraction was undeniable, and as he held her to him, she wasn’t sure how long she could fight her own need to be lost in her desire.