Chapter 76: chapter 76

SRUTHI “Sruthi, what are you doing here?” my brother croaks out from the bed.I give him a mega-watt grin, “It is nice to see you too, brother. I have missed you so much that I decided to spend a week with you here.”“What?” he groans. “Tell me this is a nightmare.”My grin only grows bigger, “Nope, this is your sweet dream.”“Where is Madhav?” Vikram asks.“Ouch! I am hurt brother,” I say feigning a sad expression on my face and placing a hand on my heart. “You don't want to see your sister but are eager to see your best friend.”“Quit your lousy acting and call him,” my brother says with a shake of his head.“He is not here. He has gone to his jewellery shop regarding the postponement of the expo.”“He is postponing the expo? Why?”I give him an incredulous look. My brother can be dumb sometimes, “Why else? You are hurt and need time to recover.“Oh! Okay,” my brother says nodding his head. “So, how are you?”I look around me trying to see if there is anyone else other than me in the room. Vikram lets out a bone-weary sigh, “I am asking about you, Sruthi.”“Who? Me? Aha! Finally, you realised you have a sister who was badly injured not a few days ago.”Vikram flinchs, “Sorry for not visiting you sooner. I was swept up in the government work. Also, I didn't want to disturb you and Madhav. You are still in your newlywed phase.”“Oh! Is that why you decided to visit me in the middle of the night?” I ask raising my eyebrow.“Madhav! That idiot. He told you that, didn't he?”  “Yes, he did but don't call him an idiot. I forced it out of him.”“Aww, look at how protective you are of your husband,” my brother gushes. I shake my head, “It is not like that. I am just stating the facts.”My brother only smirks back at me, “Yeah, say that to yourself.”“Are you hungry?” I ask bringing a subject change.“Yeah,” my brother replies and to prove his point his stomach grumbles in hunger.“I will get you dinner,” I say walking out of the door. Right when I am at the door my brother calls my name.“Jokes apart Sruthi, I am glad and grateful that you are here,” he says with a soft smile.“You can count on me always,” I say and walk out.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥The doorbell rings and my heart skips a beat in anticipation. It has been only six hours since Madhav left the house, yet it feels like he went for many hours. I am going crazy for him slowly. I open the door to find him standing with a phone pressed to his ear and frown. His frown disappears and he gives me a smile when he sees me. His hand is holding a trolley bag and I realise he must have dropped by at our home to pack his things to stay here.“I will call you later,” he says in a gruff tone and hangs up the call. I move from the door to let him inside. He brushes past me and he still smells good. That should be illegal.I lock the door and turn to find him staring at me. His eyes travel from my head to toe and I realise that I am wearing one of my old T-shirts that is a tad bit too tight than my usual ones. The sleeves of it are rolled up to my forearms and are covered in places with flour stains. In my left hand, I am holding a spatula. My hair is pulled up in a tight bun making my forehead look big. One of my pantsleevese is rolled up to my calf while the other is covering part of my foot. In short,t I look like a total mess compared to him and that makes me self-conscious. Way too self-conscious that I can't meet his eyes. “Are you hungry?” I ask thinking about how sweaty I am. The floor pattern of my brother's house looks cool. Why haven't I noticed it before? “I am,” answers Madhav taking my mind off floor tiles.“Why don't you freshen up? I will get you dinner?”“Hmm,” he says and I pass him on the way to kitchen. I am two steps away from him and five from the kitchen when his fingers close around my wrist. I freeze in my tracks and turn to face him. “Madhav?” I prompt meeting his eyes. I suck in a sharp breath at the softness of his gaze. His eyes are so affectionate and gentle that I don't even know why I was feeling insecure in the first place.“Your brother...,” he stops short and looks away. “What about my brother, Madhav?” I ask concern filling me. He huffs out a frustrated breath, “How is he? Did he wake up after I left?”“He did and asked for you. I told him about the postponement of the jewellery expo. He is sleeping now. You can see him in the morning.”Madhav nods his head, “Then I will go and freshen up.”“Yeah, okay,” I say turning to the kitchen but his fingers are still wrapped around my hand. How did I forget that?I turn back again to find him assessing the house and I realise how stupid I am, “I am sorry. I forget to tell you but you can use my room. We never had guests growing up. Even if we did, Vikram made them stay in the guest house, so the only two rooms furnished here are Vikram's and mine. You use mine since we are married and all. That is if you are okay with sharing.”I give him a doubtful look. His house is bigger than my brother's and has a lot of luxury. I don't want him to feel uncomfortable here.He yanks me closer to him and the saptula I am holding clatters to the ground. I gasp in surprise, “Madhav?”He leans closer to me and my heart races. He smells so good that I wonder what cologne he uses. His fingers slowly trail up my arm and I feel a shiver down my spine that has nothing to with the cold. I meet his eyes that are gleaming sliver and fascinated by them. His fingers cup my jaw as he whispers in a deep voice, “I will gladly share.”Sometimes tells me that it is not only the room he is talking about. I swallow as I realise how dangerous the man standing before me is. I totally forget about this lethal side of Madhav. I should be scared but for some reason, I am excited. His eyes drop down to my lips and I swallow seeing his eyes darken. What is he thinking now? Does he also wonder how it would feel to close the gap between us? Does he also feel this weird tension—Before I could finish that thought, his phone rings breaking the trance I am in. I pull away from him and take a deep breath.Shoot! A burnt smell hits my nose and I remember about the Chappathi that was on the tava before Madhav rang the doorbell. I run off in the direction of the kitchen to find it filled with smoke. I turn off the stove and open all the windows. The Chappathi is badly burnt that has no hope. I search for the spatula and remember it fell from my hand when Madhav pulled me to him.I go out in search of the spatula and collide with a solid muscular wall. Strong hands wrap around my body before I could fall back. I look up to find Madhav with a grin and I get a deja vu of this scene. Not weeks ago, he exited a smoky kitchen and now it is my turn. Our eyes meet for a brief second before we both burst out laughing.“So, I am not the only one who forgets about putting something on the stove?” he asks with a smile.“I wouldn't have burnt it if you hadn't...,” I stop short wondering how to finish. I can't admit to him that I forget everything around me when he comes closer and the only thing that I can remember is him. Nope! Not going to confess that.His eyebrow raise in question to which I only shake my head and take the saptula he is holding and run to the kitchen to finish what I started before he came.❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥