Chapter 44

My eyelids begin to droop.

Any moment now, I will feel the pleasure of Jeet's lips.

Just then, the phone rings and my eyes fly open. This time it's my phone.

Vicky hastily withdraws upstairs, running his hands through his hair, muttering a string of expletives.

"Taru hi," Purvi is on the other end of the line.

"Hi! What's up?" I reply in an unsteady voice.

"Just checking if you reached home. Orders from management to make sure everyone is safe."

"I am fine and safe."

"That's good. There's a storm outside, high speed winds and torrential rains. Did you watch the news? Cars are stuck in the middle of the road. People are walking in chest deep water."

"Um not yet. How's the apartment?" I ask, changing the subject.

"Its fine. Oliver spoke to the officials. They said it was a short circuit in the apartment above and caused no major damage to the building structure."

Purvi and her Italian boyfriend Oliver met when she was a freelance web designer and was hired to create a website for his Italian restaurant. They have been dating for two years and moved in together around six months ago. I met Oliver once, when we were invited to their housewarming party.

"So anyway, I spoke to Oliver about our plan to start our own company and he too thinks it's a great idea. And guess what? He has promised to hire us once we are officially start. How about that? We already have our first client," she effuses.

"What? that is amazing!" I squeal. "Purvi, I have a good feeling about our venture. Let me start working on this." A thought crosses my mind which quickly makes me serious. "Although, starting a new company will take a lot of time and effort."

"Yes, it will," Purvi's voice also sounds serious, although it perks up again instantly. "Let's discuss during our lunch break in office. Gosh Taru, I am so excited!" We hang up after Purvi brings me up to date on the latest office gossip and Rohit's roka ceremony.

A discreet clearing of throat makes me turn around. "Hi," I greet nervously.

"Hi. I apologise for my action. I behaved out of line, even though I was just kidding." Jeet's eyes do not meet mine, looking beyond me instead.

"Just kidding?" I spit the words out in distaste.

"You did know I was joking right?" I think his voice holds a hint of regret, but I could be wrong.

"Yes, of course! I think we have established the fact many times over that I am merely an employee in your office.. Sir." I say with a straight face, stifling the overwhelming urge to throw myself on the ground and cry like a baby.

"Well then," he nods towards the floor above. "I will be upstairs in my office. You can watch a movie or any series you like," he points to the entertainment area, "we have cable, OTT services, DVDs and gaming devices. Feel free to use anything you like."

"Is it alright if I read a book in your sister's room?"

"Sure. If you need anything, you can call me through the intercom. The buttons are marked with the room name."

Outside the window of Alishka's room, lightning streaks across the bleak sky, the heavy downpour showing no signs of abating any time soon. I hope that it subsides enough for me to return home today.

I inspect the array of books on the bookshelf. Most of the books are science and medical related, but there are a few other genres as well.

I pick up a copy of 'The Alchemist' and settle myself on the hanging chair to read. Somewhere in between I fall asleep.

When I open my eyes, I notice that there is no daylight outside anymore. The weather has turned worse than before, the rain gushing in torrents, its loud sound coming from everywhere. I stretch my arms and I realize I have a blanket on me and the book I was reading is kept on the side table.

I get off the chair and switch on the bedside lamp, glancing at my wrist watch. It is almost eight o'clock. Vicky must think I am a lazy slob, always sleeping.

My head feels heavy, like a basket of bricks is on my head. My body hurts and my mouth feels like it has been sandpapered. I hope I am not coming down with a flu. I somehow drag myself out of bed.

I quickly freshen up, which makes me feel a little better and head downstairs. Shadow and Merry who are lying on the ivory carpet, spot me coming and spring towards me. Vicky hidden from my view sitting in the high back winged chair, also gets up when he hears me.

"Good evening. I am sorry I did not realize it was this late," I apologise.

"Nothing to worry. Hope you managed to rest well."

"Yes. Thank you. I shall take your leave now. I have taken much advantage of your hospitality."

"Look, the rains have become worse. There is no way you can reach your house in this weather. Besides, it's night time and not a good idea to travel now. I insist you stay here tonight."

He is right. It would be foolish to venture out in this inclement weather. "Alright," I sigh, dropping to my knees to pet the dogs. He smiles in relief.

"You like dogs?" he asks, watching me play with the animals.

"We used to also have two back in Nainital, Sultan and Rani. They were my best companions." I smile sadly, missing those days of home.

"That's Shadow," Vicky points to the rottweiler "and the other guy is Merry. Our third dog, Captain is at the Vet hospital. He's old but thinks he's still a pup. Fractured his spine prancing with these boys."

"Do you get these dogs from a breeder?"

"I got them from our shelter. It's sad that people want purebred, pedigree breeds of dogs to show off, but have no clue about their temperament, food requirements or maintenance. Once they realise how high maintenance they are, their owners just abandon them. Shadow here, was left on the street to die. When we found him, he was just a mass of bones, with a bad worm infestation. When we found Merry on the railway tracks, he had multiple fractures from beatings."

"We?" I ask in surprise, "As in, you work in the shelter too?"

Vicky looks down sheepishly. "Well, my mother set up two animal shelters in the city. We have an excellent team of volunteers and vets and they take care of the animals and run the shelter. I sometimes volunteer and oversee the activities," he shrugs casually, brushing it off like it's no big deal.

"That is so noble of you and your mother."

"Shall we have dinner?" Vicky changes the topic of discussion.

How do I tell him that I don't have an appetite right now? That would be rude, seeing he is waiting to dine with me. "Sure!" I answer with a weak smile. I follow him to the kitchen and look around while he sets up the dishes at the breakfast bar.

The kitchen is no surprise, after seeing the rest of the house. Polished granite tops, breakfast bar, state of the art cooking range and modern gadgets as expected.

I take a little food, that Kaaki had prepared, avoiding telling Vicky that I have lost my appetite and the body ache and lethargy is quickly increasing.

I help Vicky clear the table and clean the dishes. My cold is getting worse and I feel my body getting warmer, and this time it's not because of Vicky's presence.

"Are you alright? You look pale." Vicky looks at me with his brows creased in worry.

"I think I may have caught a cold, being in the rain. But nothing to worry, I will be fine," I reply in between sniffles.

"Let me check," Vicky places the back of his hand on my forehead and neck. "You have a fever."

"It may be due to the cold. It will go away in a while." I grab a bunch of tissues as a bout of sneezes attack.

"I think you need to rest. I will call my doctor. Come with me." He grabs my hand and leads me to the elevator.

I feel enervated and have no energy to refuse, so I let him.

"Here lie down," he guides me to the bed. My head is heavy and now my throat aches. The lethargy has quickly worsened, and I walk with half closed eyes, as I allow Vicky to lead me. My body starts shivering. Vicky puts a blanket over me, which I immediately snuggle into. I abstractly note that it smells like him.

I pry open my heavy eyes to take a look around me. Wait a minute! This isn't Alishka's room. The furniture and layout are different.

"This is not your sister's room?!" It is more of a statement than question.

"No, it's mine."

"Huh?" I am too stunned and feverish to say anything else.

"What? This is not the first time we have slept in the same room. I need to monitor you through the night to make sure your fever does not rise."

I prop myself upon my elbows, slowly bringing myself to a sitting position. Every joint aches as I make the slightest move.

"I will be fine; it is just a cold. Maybe I should go home."

Vicky sits next to me "You have a high fever and you should not be alone at this time. You are in no state to even stand on your own. Get some rest now. I am calling the doctor."

Oddly, I don't mind his presumptuous overriding of my decision. In fact, I like it that he feels a sense of familiarity and care towards me.

He whips out his phone and leaves the room. I let out a long sigh as I fall back on the bed.

I am in Vikamjeet Grewal's bed. Who would have thought? I smile softly to myself as I pull the blanket to my chin engulfing me in Jeet's comforting scent.

Vicky enters the room, "The doctor has said, you need to rest. He will come by tomorrow morning to examine you."

He points to a desk near the window, "I am right here if you need anything."

I pull the blanket tighter around me as I snuggle into bed, falling into fever induced sleep again.

I wake up from my sleep, my throat parched and body like it's on fire from the inside. It takes me a while to focus my eyes and remember where I am. I try to get myself up, but the heaviness is too much for me to fight, my joints feel rusted. It is pitch dark outside the window but dim bedside lamps throw a soft light, enough for visibility around the room.

I turn to see Vicky sleeping on the far side of the bed, facing me.

Despite my discomfort, looking at him sleep brings a smile to my face. He looks so innocent and cute. I wonder how it would be to cuddle him while sleeping.

Water, my itching throat reminds me what I woke up for. A pitcher of water and glass is on the bedside table next to him. I make another attempt to get up.

My fidgeting must have disturbed Vicky, as he slowly opens his eyes. They snap wider when he sees me.

"Tarana? Why are you awake? Do you need something?"

"Water," I whisper. Vicky pours a glass of water and hands it to me. I drink the water which gives a little relief from the aching throat.

He places his hand on my forehead.

"You are burning up." He says worriedly. He quickly gets out of bed and rushes outside and returns with a bowl and some towels.

"This should help reduce your temperature."

I can feel the heat radiating off my body and I know he is right. Can't let the fever reach the brain.

He sits near me and dips the towel in the ice water. He wrings it and places it on my forehead. I can almost hear the sizzle as the cold towel touches my hot forehead.

Vicky wipes hair away from my face while waiting for the towel to cool my head. It is such a sweet gesture, even though he did it to remove obstructions to the towel.

I feel the heat in my head reducing; it no longer feels like a furnace raging inside as the cool cloth brings down the temperature. I drift off to sleep again.

A gentle shaking wakes me up from my slumber. I flutter my eyes open, feeling like my body is made of lead, my mouth dry as a desert.

"Tarana?" Vicky calls to me softly. The harsh light of the day is blindingly bright, so I slowly open my eyes, getting them to focus on the two figures in front of me. One is the comfortingly familiar face of Vicky. The other is of an elderly man.

"Tarana, Doctor Boise is here. He wants to examine you. Can you sit up for a bit?" Vicky asks gently. I nod my head. Vicky holds me as get myself to a sitting position. Once he ensures I am comfortable, Vicky nods to the doctor and leaves the room.

The kind doctor examines me and smiles. "Nothing to worry about, it's just due to sudden change of temperature. Take one tablet," he says handing me a strip of tablets, "3 times a day after every meal and you should be fine by tomorrow."

"Thank you doctor," I reply, "I am feeling better than yesterday."

"Good," he smiles as he leaves the room. I can hear him talking softly to Vicky, probably telling him the same, the voices going further away, till I don't hear them anymore.

I take this time to use the washroom. Vikram Grewal's bathroom.

The bathroom came as surprise. I expected it to be fully white with all white fittings. But this one was grey. Dark grey slate tiles covering the floor and walls. On the far corner is glass enclosed jacuzzi tub with a huge overhead rain shower and body jets on the walls. I wonder how luxurious it would be to relax under streaming jets of water spraying from all sides.

After admiring the decor for a bit, I use the facilities, and wash my face.

Jeet is looking out the window when I return, "Hi" I say shyly. He turns around when he hears me. "Hi," he replies, "got you a change of clothes. Hope they fit."

"There was no need for these. I must leave, I have to go to office."

Vicky walks up to me and places his hand on my forehead. "You still have a fever. Besides the office is closed for the next two days, so don't worry about work. You can go home once your fever is gone which doctor says should be today."

He hands me track pants and a tee. There is also a set of brand new set of undergarments, with the tags still on. I look at him in surprise but feel too awkward to ask him how he knew my size. Did he get them himself for me or does he keep spare ladies' undergarments at his place?

"You need to change," he nods to the clothes, not looking at me. I thank him and go to the bathroom for a quick shower and change. He gives a soft smile when I come out and I don't know if it is because, he thinks I look funny or he's pleased that the clothes fit perfectly.

He helps me on to the bed and hands me a tray laden with a cup of coffee, grilled cheese sandwich and some cut fruits.

"Have breakfast and then get some rest," he says.

I do as he instructs and get back to bed. Images of Jeet shopping for lingerie, keep flitting in my mind till feverish sleep starts blurring the thoughts.

My eyelids begin to droop.

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A/N: Did you notice that every chapter starts and ends with the same phrase? Does it work? Any suggestions for improvement?