Suhaag Raat

Chapter 3

Pragya stared up at her rockstar husband, not quite able to believe this was really happening. After years of failing at having any kind of love life, she had somehow managed to marry the hottest celebrity in the entire country. It was her wedding night, and her impossibly attractive husband not only wanted to sleep with her, he was actually asking her permission just to kiss her.

"I - I don't know how," she blurted. She had not meant to say that, and a wave of embarrassment crashed through her. But her tongue was clearly disconnected from her brain because she found herself continuing, "Kissing, or any of it, I don't know how, I've never -"

"Right." Abhi took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "OK. Of course."

Pragya felt foolish, all her doubts and insecurities roaring to life in her mind. She might be married to him, but she could never be a match for him. He probably had so much experience, he must be used to women who weren't shy and cautious like her. She wouldn't be surprised if -

"It's ok," Abhi's hands dropped away from her. "We can stop, we don't have to -"

"No!" Pragya touched his arm, not wanting him to pull away. He had caught her off guard, but she did want to kiss him. She just wanted a bit more time to get used to the idea. "I don't want to stop." She looked into his eyes, hoping he would know what to do next.

"Yeah?" He set his hands on her shoulders, looking down at her in concern. "You want to keep going...but slower?"

She nodded, feeling her heart in her throat as she watched him. She wished she knew how to be cool and confident, how to make this easy for both of them. But all she knew was that she didn't want to stop, and she hoped her hesitation hadn't turned him off.

"We can go slower." He smiled at her, and the doubt seizing her body melted away.

His fingers curled on the edge of her chunni. "How can we take this off?"

"There's a pin," she explained, quickly undoing it.

He took the pin from her and tossed it onto the nightstand. "Hasta la vista, pin," he said in an exaggerated growly voice.

She giggled at his Arnold Schwarzenegger impression, and he waggled his eyebrows at her. Feeling more relaxed, she pulled off her bridal chunni. With a deep breath to steady her nerves, she also removed the dupatta covering her blouse.

Taking off half her clothes wasn't exactly going slower, but it needed to be done, and she wanted him to know she was serious about continuing.

He took the chunni and dupatta from her and turned to lay them on the chair by his vanity. She looked to the ground as he turned back, feeling shy about meeting his gaze when she was standing in front of him in just her blouse and skirt.

He had taken off his pointed slippers, his broad feet bare on the ground. His black churidar hugged the curves of his legs, tightly fitted from his ankle upwards. His long kurta hit low on his shins, blocking her view of anything further up. Realizing that she was ogling him, Pragya stopped herself, feeling heat rush to her cheeks.

Several moments had passed without any movement from him. When she peeked up at him, he was staring at her chest.

"Excuse me," she said sharply, feeling indignant even though she had just been doing almost the same thing. "My eyes are up here."

Abhi met her gaze with a naughty glint in his eye. "I know that. They're not going anywhere." He winked at her, and before she could muster a reply, he scooped her into his arms and climbed onto the bed.

She gripped at his arms for balance, watching over his shoulder as rose petals flew off the bedcovers, drifting messily to the floor.

Abhi laid her gently on her back, settling on his side next to her. It felt ten times more intimate to be lying in his bed with him, but he was giving her a goofy, playful smile that did not feel the least bit threatening.

He grazed one knuckle slowly down the side of her arm, a touch so gentle she could barely feel it. Then his fingers closed lightly around her wrist, sending a spark of electricity racing under her skin.

He lifted her hand up. "My name is written here, right? Is it on this hand?"

Pragya kept her voice calm although her heart was hammering. "I don't know," she answered honestly. Then she thought about it and added, "But even if I did, I'm not supposed to tell you."

"Guess I'll need to search all over, then." He traced the intricate designs in her mehendi with his fingertip. Starting at the base of her palm, he followed the curling leaves and flowers line by line. Everywhere he touched, her skin tingled with awareness.

"Ah...found it." He held up her right thumb.

Curious, Pragya sat up to get a proper look. She really didn't know where the mehendi artist had written his name, as Bulbul had kept her distracted on purpose. She didn't think they would make it that easy for him, but she could clearly see that "Mehra" was written in small letters at the outside edge of her thumb.

He took her other hand and flipped it to check the thumb. "And here I should find...Oh."

He held her hand up so she could get a closer look. His middle name "Prem" was written into the design, matching the elegant lettering of his last name.

"But then..." he muttered, picking up both her hands to look closely over them again, "Where did they write 'Abhi'?"

She smiled as she watched him focus on his task. His head was bowed in front of her, his eyes glued to her hands.

He traced along each side of her fingers, following each swirl and curve of the design. When he didn't find his name there, he looked over her palms again, bringing each hand up close to his face so he could see better.

He still couldn't find his name. He ran his thumb across her wrist, banging up against the edge of her chooda. "It's not hidden under here, is it?" he demanded, starting to slide the first large ivory kangan off her hand.

"Arre!" She stopped him quickly. "It can't be there, I can't take these off for forty days," she reminded him.

He looked at her suspiciously. "Really?"

"Pakka," she replied, pinching her throat to show sincerity.

He let out a heavy sigh. "OK. Then I need a better angle." He winked at her again, and that distracted her so much she didn't protest as he rolled her onto her back.

He straddled her middle and pulled her hands up to him again, getting back to the hunt for his name.

Pragya gulped back a breath as she got used to the position, the entire lower half of her body coming to alertness with Abhi's weight on her. His knees were settled around her hips, his groin brushing her lower belly. There were still many layers of clothes in between them, but it was a reminder of where the night was heading.

Finally he shouted triumphantly, "Got it!"

He turned her hands to show her how the letters of his name were spread across her fingers. He held her hands slightly cupped, and then she could read his full name written on her skin, Abhishek Prem Mehra.