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His head lolls to the side, eyes open and willfully blank, like two pale shards of glazed pottery, as he stares at Aadhya's aghast expression. "No way! You are planning on meeting with Inayat Khalil?" Her voice rose incredulously when she finally figured out their destination would be Dubai from the Pilot's mouth. He was sure many questions hovered at the tip of her tongue. But the only thing she found worth saying aloud was, "You should've told me that when I was taking oatmeal with us. What if something happened to him?"
"Okay, first of all, I am seriously hurt that you are worrying more about Motu's well being than your husband-to-be," Rocky says, sounding as offended as if Aadhya had just insulted him and his entire family. "And second, I clearly remember asking you why you are bringing that thing along," He adds, jabbing his finger at the dog stretched on Aadhya's lap, dozing off without a care. He wouldn't confess it aloud, but Rocky felt like the tiny mutt was living a far better life than him right now.
Aadhya looked indignant. "Well, First of all, you can fight back," Aadhya starts counting them off her fingers, imitating Rocky's speech, "—and Motu — I mean, Oatmeal," she stressed the word after a brief slip of the tongue, much to Rocky's amusement, "—can't fight back. So, of course, I am worried about him. And second, making a weird face and asking why I am carrying my son with me is not the same as asking me to not bring it along with me."
"Son?" He looked at her searchingly, the way he looked at some people when he was trying to tell if they had finally lost their last two brain cells.
Aadhya pointedly ignores his tone and defiantly adds, "Yes. And considering we are marrying, you should know this beforehand —My handsome Oatmeal will now and always be the first child in our family. And I will have no more discussions over this."
Rocky lets out a long, suffering sigh, his eyes casting skyward like he's searching for help from an uncaring universe. But then, as if he remembered something of a great value, he whips his head to stare at her, eyes wild and wheeling. "Wait? Did you say — children?"
Aadhya blinks as though it just occurred to her that she said something she shouldn't. "Why? You don't want kids?" Even though she looked calm on the outside, the dark-haired man could see the tension in the lines of her shoulders and mouth. There was the slightest change in the pitch of her tone. It's almost as if she was bracing for the worst answer.
Her barely apprehensiveness coaxed a sweet ache from him. It felt a little tightening around his heart. Sometimes, he felt like he didn't deserve to have this, this little miracle before him — the kind you kept close to your heart and would never let go.
