Chapter Nine: Jealousy Strikes

"Nahiii Maan!!!!You can't force me to eat this!!!! "

Geet fell down dramatically on the sofa while he gave her an irritating look!

"I am bored of pasta in dinner & plain dal chaaval in lunch everyday!!! Ab aur attyachar nahi!!!!"

"Listen Mrs Khurana!!! We only know to cook these & nothing else!! So don't do drama & quietly eat this paasta!!"

"Bola na nahi!!!" she retorted, "If I don't get proper Indian masala food I will go on a hunger strike & if anything happens to me then only you will be responsible Mr Khurana!!! Mark my words!!!!"        

Man! She threatened him! Maan sighed. So they decided to go to an Indian restaurant for their dinner that night. Maan  wore casual jeans  & a black shirt with first two buttons open. And in his mind he had great expectations to see his wife in a saree but his hopes crashed she appeared wearing a knee length orange dress. Not wonder, she looked hot  but Maan wanted to see her in nine yards!

"Well...ah!  Since we are going to an Indian outlet, I thought you would wear an Indian traditional dress." he remarked.

Geet understood his desires.

"In that case, why didn't you wear dhoti kurta?" she snapped back.

He glared at her. She smiled cheesily.

They were just walking out of the main gate when they saw Mrs D'costa! She waved at them.

"Oh God! Not again!" rued Maan.

"She is coming this way! Maan, kiss me, hug me, do anything to me fast!!!!!" whispered Geet in panic.

"Excuse me? Why should I always make the first move??" he retorted.

Finding no other option, Geet clutched his arm & kissed him on his cheeks!  Maan grew wide eyed as if an electric current had just passed his body. The feel of her seductive soft lips shook him off his senses.

"But I wanted to see a lip lock!" said Mrs D'costa pouting!

"We are still working on the French Kiss." said Maan bluntly. It was only when Geet gave him a warning punch on his back that he came to his senses.

"Anyways, so you two are going out for dinner so that you can be very hungry on bed after that???" she winked naughtily.

Maan & Geet gaped at her with blank faces.

"Uh...She is on a hunger strike!" Maan pointed out to Geet, finding nothing else to say!

"Oh that's sad!" she said shaking her head, " But I recently read that making love thrice a week keeps the body healthy & mind stress free!" she brimmed happily.

"Woh...I do yoga to stay fit!" Geet replied quickly. Maan sighed inwardly.

"Yoga??? How boring!!!! Maan, make love to your wife daily!" she chirped.

Maan grew wide-eyed in shock.

"Ji??? I-I-I will try...!"

He saw Geet glaring at him dangerously. Before Mrs D'costa could say anything else, they excused themselves & left hurriedly!

"Even if you ask Google Baba & Yahoo Uncle, you would never find someone like Mrs D'costa!!!! It's all your fault Maan  that we got a landlady like her!!!!" sneered Geet while Maan drove the car.

"Yeah! As if I did telepathy to God requesting to bring another antique piece into my life like one was not enough!!!" he shot back.

"Are you trying to say that even I am an antique piece like her????!!!!!!!!!!!" her nose was red in anger!

"Aur nahi toh kya!!!!"

And as usual, they went arguing & taunting each other all the way!

The restaurant was dimly lit when Maan & Geet entered & soft romantic music played in background. Various couples were doing close dance while others were dining lost in their own world. Damn! This was the only restaurant with Indian food menu in the vicinity, else they would have gone somewhere else!

"Wine?" he asked her while they were in the cocktail counter.

"No thanks!" Geet gave a quirky smile, "Atleast one of us has to be in senses to drive the car back home."

So Maan ordered whisky for himself & then dinner for both of them.

Just then Geet saw a tall, suave looking, foreign young man entering the restaurant.

  

"Jason!!" she exclaimed in recognition.

Maan raised his eyebrows & saw Geet looking at a guy. He flinched not liking it.

"You know him?"

"Yup! I met him during one of my fashion workshops in New York! "

Even before he could digest that, Maan saw her waving at Jason & Jason too waved back at her with a smile!

That did not go down well with Maan.

"Maan, I will introduce you to him!"

"Not interested!" he refused as he held the glass of whisky.

Maan was shocked when Geet walked up to Jason. Both of them greeted each other with a friendly hug. And seeing that, sparks of jealousy began to fly within Maan. He clutched the glass fatally seeing Jason embracing Geet. Maan wanted to kick that guy away but didn't understand why was he even affected  on the first place. He tried to look away from them but failed. And here Maan was gulping down glasses of whisky as Geet continued smiling & giggling while talking to Jason. His eyes were drugged with jealousy in the form of anger & he groped the glass hell tight.

Maan was burning when Jason stretched out his hand to Geet for a dance! Not able to withstand anymore, Maan dumped the glass & advanced towards them like a ferocious wounded lion.

Geet was stunned the way Maan  possessively clutched her wrist. Even Jason was a bit startled.

"Uh...Jason, he is Maan."

"And she is Mrs Geet Maan Singh Khurana." His voice was frighteningly dense.

Geet was even more shocked. She didn't understand what the matter was with him. And the next moment, she found herself being dragged to the dance floor by Maan. He pulled her closer by her waist while he hands clutched his shoulders. His heated breaths lashed her face & his eyes were spitting fire. Geet had never seen him that way...

"What's wrong with you Maan??!! We had decided we will not introduce each other as husband-wife, hadn't we???"

That pinched Maan.

"And why did you drink so much!!!! It's not good!!!!" she said worriedly drowning in his intoxicated eyes...

He shook her more close if that was permitted

"Don't pretend to care about me!!! If you had really cared, you wouldn't have spoken to that guy!!!!!!!!"

Geet was numb with voice hearing his harsh voice...

The music kept playing & they danced. Maan twirled her around in his possessive arms. It was something very strange & new that night. Geet couldn't deny his extreme closeness. She realized that something was happening to her...She could hear her heart beat when his intense dark orbs pierced in her. Suddenly a thought...or rather a feeling struck her as her dazed eyes were locked with his. Was she falling...or rather has she fallen for him...??

Maan, who was so lost in her, was taken aback when suddenly she withdrew herself from his arms & ran outside. He followed her.

Geet breathed heavily as myriad of thought played in her mind.

"It's not possible!!!!! Maan & I are forced to be together & to serve a six month term. And after that, we will part ways! That's it!!!" she thought stubbornly

Just then she felt her back against a steel torso. Surprisingly she very well knew who he was...Maan laced his fingers with hers from behind  & then placed his hand on her tummy along with hers...She closed her eyes when his warm hot breaths swirled across her shoulders...He sided her hair & nuzzled his nose on her bare neck... She tilted the other side probably to give him more access...There was a trance...

" Mrs D'Costa is not here...then why..." her voice was breathless but she tried to remain stiff inspite of the sensations he was making her feel...

Maan abruptly pinned her to the wall & leaned closer...

"I have all the rights to get close to you even in our landlady's absence!!!!!"

Their lips were hardly away...Her heart beated desperately for a kiss from him but she wasn't ready to let herself be overpowered.

"Are you in love with me? Kya aap mujhse pyaar karne lage ho?"

That  shocked Maan & brought him back to his senses. Even Geet couldn't fathom why she asked that & moreover why did she address him as 'aap'! He composed himself & parted a little.

"Nahi. Abhi tak toh nahi but agar tumse pyaar ho bhi jaaye so what's the harm in it?, biwi ho tum meri!!!" his voice was quirky & possessive.

"We had a deal we will not follow this marriage!!! "

"Our mere deal cannot falsify the seven pheras that we have taken together!!"

Geet was startled hearing his sonorous voice.

"I will never ever fall in love with you!!!!!" she announced to him but more than that she was assuring herself...

Maan smirked.

"Don't trust your heart so much Geet. You will never know when it betrays you!"

Their dinner was a silent & awkward affair. Both avoided eye-contact.

Geet was driving the car back home while Maan sat next to her. Maan didn't know what had happened to him. What compelled  him to behave that way with Geet & to say those words to her. He never knew he could be so violent...

"May be I drank too much so couldn't control myself!" he reasoned out.

Geet was in her own train of thoughts.

"Maan was drunk but atleast I should have been in my senses. Why did I dance with him & allow him to come close to me? What's wrong with me??!!."