29. Red Roses for Love

 Arnav looked at a doll-like Khushi, asleep, curled up in her warm blanket, a faint smile teasing her lips. She looked so happy, so much at peace, so cozy...He wished he could curl up with her under one blanket, his head on her chest, listening to her heart beating, feeling her draw breath...touching her flushed cheeks...listening to her mad ramblings...He smiled. The way in which she caught the crooks in his office, her non-stop chatter about the price of vegetables and her dabba service...She had talked the cheats out of their game. His smile widened. Talking for him, reading his lips, at times even reading his mind...His smile slowly left his face. How could she? What was this bond that tied their hearts to each other, a bond that couldn't be broken whatever the circumstances? Now his heart burned when her eyes filled with tears. His peace of mind depended on her being safe, his, happy, smiling...

Khushi stirred, mumbling about malai kofta, and then settled down to dream her food-filled dreams. How could she be so happy with so little? And smile and make others smile in dire situations? He wished he could make up for all that she had lost in her life, beginning with her parents. He wanted to put a smile on her face, a large grin that couldn't be wiped off. What should he give her? Maybe he should ask Di? No, this was between him and Khushi. What would she like? A sari? suit? jewels? money? She wouldn't take them from him. Because of the six-month clause. Because he was no husband to her...He could force her, trick her into taking them, but she would do so with a heavy heart. He didn't want that...It had to be something that would...that would make her very happy, something that he could do for her, only he would do for her...He knew what to do.

Khushi woke up, her eyes bright and eager to face the day. She looked to the recliner to see Arnavji, but he had already woken up and left the room. She cocked her ears, but he was not in the washroom, either. She hurried down for the aarti, served breakfast to the whole family, including Arnav who had returned from jogging. And then she started her cooking to fill the dabbas.

Today, Arnavji was to work from home. So she would be serving his lunch here. She had something special planned for him. The idea had come to her in her sleep, as most of her brilliant ideas often did.

As soon as her work was over, she left the house without letting anyone know. She didn't want to explain about this to anyone. It was between Arnavji and herself. What could you give a man who had everything, and wanted nothing from you? A man who said that he hated you, but showed how much he cared in a hundred ways? A man who could not hide one thing he liked about you, your cooking? She knew what to do.

A sweet dish, a healthy dessert that diabetics could have, daily for the six months that she would have with him...After that...Well, he had his Di...and the rest of his family. Maybe her Jiji would make healthy sweets for him...She could leave the recipes with her...She went to the physician who ran a clinic in Laxmi Nagar near her Buaji's house, and asked him question after question about diabetes and the kind of food that diabetics should take till she was finally satisfied and the doctor exhausted. Then she went exploring the bookstores nearby, in search of that perfect book with recipes of healthy sweet dishes for diabetics.

Arnav wanted to finish his work before noon. He was on a schedule. Khushi would finish her dabba business and return home for lunch. He wanted everything ready by then. But setting up a rose garden took more than a little effort. The pre-fabricated arbor in treated wood had to be set up, support on his wall had to be provided, the climbers with clusters of red, fragrant roses, Don Juan, Altissmo, and Blaze had to be planted, their stems had to be gently tied around the frame of the arbor and along the wall, a bench had to be placed in the arbor so that Khushi could sit under the canopy of roses and breathe their scent...He had debated over selecting a bench in wood or metal. He had finally picked wood. Wood would be always warm. Metal would be cold in the morning, and Khushi might find it uncomfortable to sit on.



He had chosen potted roses too, all in red colour. Her favourite. And he had picked the most fragrant ones. He knew she would love to smell them. Mister Lincoln, Crimson Glory, and Fragrant Cloud now resided in large pots of potting mixture, scenting his entire garden. He wanted to see her face when she saw them. He wanted to capture every expression of joy on her face, every smile...

He was filthy, and after a bath, went down for lunch. Khushi & Payal served food, and as usual, while others had their sweet dish, Arnav left the table. As he neared the foot of the stairs, he turned towards Khushi and said, "I need to talk to you. Come up as soon as possible." She nodded.

She took his dessert, a chilled serving of Anjeer Basundi, tastefully presented in a silver dish, to his room. He was sitting by the pool on his recliner, his laptop beside him.

He looked up to see her standing by the door to the poolside, a dish clutched in her hands.
"What is that?"
"M...meeta fo..or y..you."
"You know I can't have sweets."
"You can have this." Her eagerness to persuade him into tasting it propelled her towards him. Blind to the riot of red behind her, she earnestly told him everything that the doctor had said and the details of the recipe. When she stopped to draw breath, he took the dish from her hands, and slowly raised a spoonful to his lips.

It tasted divine. She had gone to a lot of trouble...for him..only for him...so that he could have something sweet but healthy to eat. She had checked with a doctor, found a perfect book with recipes and pictures...all for him. His throat closed, his emotions overpowering him for a few seconds. He looked up at her, her anxious eyes scanning his face for the verdict.

"It is very tasty.", he said, and watched the smile blossom on her face.

Suddenly she paused. "What is this wonderful scent?...how...where...?"

"I don't know...Maybe you should look around and find out..."

She turned around, and saw that a portion of the garden had been turned in to paradise. Red roses hung in clumps from green, leathery creepers climbing up the wall. Red roses grew in bunches, covering a wooden arbor. Pots and pots of red roses covered every inch of that corner. Their combined fragrance was heady, enough to make one swoon...She ran in wonder towards the arbor, Arnav following her leisurely, his dessert in hand.

"There is even a wooden bench. I can sit here and look up at the roses. It is like...like being covered in roses...", she squealed in joy, her smile wide enough to please him. She jumped up from the bench, cupped a Mister Lincoln rose in her palms, and breathed in the sweetness. He watched her flit like a titliya from plump flower to flower, smelling them, caressing their velvety petals, touching the rose hips...

She winced, a thorn piercing the soft skin of her thumb. Arnav tensed, quickly drew her to the new bench in the arbor, and made her sit down. He set the dessert bowl on the bench beside them, and inspected the prick. There was a drop of blood visible, a tiny drop, as red as the roses she had been admiring. He looked in to her eyes, and slowly raised her thumb to his mouth, enclosing it with his lips. His tongue laved the wound, taking away the hurt. The feel of his warm tongue and his sinful mouth sent electric waves through her. She tried to pull her finger out of his mouth, to end the torture, but Arnav was determined to take care of his wife. He continued to minister to her, his sharp eyes taking note of her frantic pulse, her rapid heart beat, her heaving chest, her shortness of breath, her trembling limbs, her eyes shut tight... Flushed with pleasure at his day's work, Arnav finally took pity on her, and released her.

"Khushi, Tum Theek Ho?", came the innocent query from the devil incarnate.

She was in no position to respond. She was too busy trembling to reply.

When she parted her lips to form the words, he smoothed a spoon of her delicious concoction into her mouth. She shuddered. She could taste him on the spoon. Arnav's eyes held hers captive. The bees droned, the red roses danced in the breeze. The lovers sat lost in each other.



(Thanx a million, Shruti_P)