"Congratulations for your wedding. Though Mr. Malhotra surprised us with this sudden development." One of the women spoke up, in a sugary tone.

Nandini wanted to flinch at her tone, but kept her reaction to herself. She certainly wasn't all of what she seemed, starting with when Mrs. Anderson had introduced her she had given her a long hard stare from head to toe which was certainly irritating.

"So you both had a love marriage?" Another woman replied in a much kinder tone.

"Actually it was more of a destiny but yeah you can call it love.” Nandini replied, smiling.

"I love your hair. It's so true that Asian Women have gorgeous hair and here yours is as beautiful." This time, a much younger lady spoke up.

"Thank you so much." Nandini thanked her politely.

"But isn't it weird that the man who was single until a few weeks ago, suddenly got married?" That woman, Mrs. Thomas spoke up again, taunting yet coating it in sugar.

Nandini's eyes looked around for Manik and found him looking at her already. He smiled at her, and she gave him a soft smile.

"Let's just say, my brother found the woman he always wanted. But Mrs. Thomas it's surely not weirder than the fact that your daughter was after my brother's life calling him at the odd hours and texting him love messages after he had just dropped her home, one night because she was walking all alone." Mukti spoke up, after having enough.

After that, Mrs Thomas excused herself quickly when the other two women gave her weird looks for they surely were unaware of her daughter's act.

"Bitch!" Mukti sweared. "I need a drink. You boo?" She asked.

She was back with two glasses, scotch for herself and an apple cider for Nandini.

Some delicious starters came up as well and after a drink with some food, she was feeling much better.

The music had changed and she could see people walking up to middle of the floor.

Mukti finished her leftover scotch and pulled Nandini to the floor who tried to pull back but when was her best friend listening?

Though she found herself grooving too as one of her favorite songs Cake By The Ocean by DNCE came up.

Manik smiled seeing his ladies on the floor, he knew his baby girl to set up the dance floor on fire with her wild moves but Nandini had a cuteness to this too which made him quite amused.

"Isn't That Manik Malhotra's wife?"

A woman spoke up from behind him and he could hear her clearly.

"Yes, she is. They got married just a few weeks ago. It was all very sudden!" Another voice replied.

"I don't blame him, she's so young and beautiful."

"I know right? I've heard that she's of Mukti's age."

"Really? That's a huge age difference. How can he even marry a girl of his sister's age?"

"I know! Well he can, a man can always have a young wife. She would be amazing in bed, healthy enough to conceive his babies and even give him that love which will be difficult for a woman of his age because she's young. He can mould her in anyway he wants."

Manik knuckles tightened. How can anyone even speak of such disgusting things? Insulting their bond of marriage?!

"Also, you're forgetting that they're rich. These people can do anything without even batting an eyelid."

But one thing had stuck in his mind, a thing which he hadn't ever thought until today.

Those women weren't completely wrong. Nandini was young, very young.

She was actually Mukti's age, and they did have a huge age difference.

She needed a guy, who would be as young as she is. To share her thoughts, her hobbies, her interests with him. He certainly wasn't the kind, was that the reason why she wasn't able to open up to him?

But wasn't she was the one who had hugged him that night in the closet? Asked him to never leave her? But he himself had initiated that closeness.

Manik sighed, rubbing his throbbing temples.

Nandini noticed Manik walking up to the bar. There was certainly something off about him for just a few minutes ago, he was watching them but now he suddenly turned away.

Excusing herself, she followed him to the where he ordered another beer from the bartender.

"Aap theek hain?" She asked, softly.

"Haan kyun?" Manik asked her, with a smile.

"Aap wahaan se chalein aayein, kuch khaya bhi nahi?" She added, taking a seat beside him on the bar stool.

"Kuch Nahi, woh bas sar mein dard ho raha tha. Nothing to be worried about." He smiled, taking the bottle the bartender gave him.

"Ghar chaltein hain. Main aapke liye acchi si chai banaa dungi and I'll give you a massage with the balm too."

She replied, holding his hand as they stood up.

"Nandini, main theek hoon. It's just a headache, theek ho jayega. " Manik smiled at her concern.

"Aise theek nahi hoga. Waise Manik? Koi aur baat toh nahi hai naa? Stress? Workplace Tension? Did anyone say something?" Nandini asked him gently, holding his hand tighter.

She didn't know why, but there was certainly more to what he was telling her.

"No, Trust Me." He placed his palm on her cheek touched by her concern for him.

"Phir Bhi, let's get out of here after Dinner. I don't fit in here.” Nandini replied cutely making Manik chuckle at her cuteness.

"And you're not having that. Alcohol worsens headache." She added, taking away the bottle of beer from his hands.

"Hey! That's not fair lemme finish that!" Manik protested cutely making Nandini laugh this time.

"No!" She took it further away from his reach.

"Really?" Manik made a face and  being no less, reached out for it too as a playful banter started between the two of them.

Mukti watched the cute exchange between them smiling and let out a thanks to whoever was listening above. All she wanted was for them to be happy and in love, both of which she could see right in front of her eyes.

It was during this when Nandini's hand accidentally reached up to his waist and lingered longer than she had intended to.

Her breath was knocked out of her lungs when she felt the muscles flexing under her fingers as her mind could picture her husband sweating it out in the gym for these chiseled muscles.

"I'm so sorry!" She quickly removed her hand, her face flushed with heat.

Manik's brain had went blank for a moment! He couldn't come to the fact, that she had touched him so intimately. Well, she was his wife. She can if she wanted too but he didn't expect it from her, knowing how shy Nandini was. But then it had happened accidentally.

So why this felt so..so.. pleasurable?

Manik was sure, he would've moaned if her fingers touched him more.

What was more maddening was, he wanted to ask her to touch him more. He had a model girlfriend who once during kissing had touched him in the same way but he had felt so disgusted that he didn't even call her after that.

But her touch felt different. He damn wanted to tell her to touch him more, keep touching him more! But that wouldn't be advisable considering Nandini hadn't looked up at him in past 5 minutes and he could see her cheeks flaming red.

"I..I'm sorry. So Sorry. I didn't me..mean to." She fumbled playing with her ring.

"Well, you can keeping in mind that you're my wife." He replied huskily, coming closer to her.

"You want to go home now? I can sneak us out. But trust me, back home I just want to make love to you.

… I want to make love to you till your body becomes weak, and your mind is full of me." He whispered in her ears making Nandini gasp in pleasure as his breath was raspy against her skin.

••••••••

That week itself Manik made her and his sister fill up the online application form for Yale University's MBA program and an common entrance test was held which was aced by them together and soon it was the time for classes to start. Mukti had been after Manik's life to shop for some new outfits for the start of the new academic year and how can he ever turn a deaf ear to his baby girl?

But Nandini had surely kept out from all of this though Mukti had pestered her to accompany her for shopping and when her best friend hadn't budged, Poor Pallavi had been brought on board and Nandini had felt really bad for the lady for Mukti was a brat when it came to shopping.

After seeing them off, Nandini did a few small household jobs. There were servants, but she loved doing things on her own. Cooked up some favorite dishes of Manik for lunch, as he had told her that morning before leaving for work.

It was late afternoon when she finished, and decided to have a refreshing bath before lunch.

Manik unlocked the door using the spare key he always had and kept his equipments down. He was before time for the shoot had thankfully ended early.

It was a hot day, the sun was killing out there and right now all he had in his mind was a cold chilling shower.

Taking off his T-shirt and throwing it casually on the bed, he entered the bathroom locking the door behind him. He wasn't sure that he heard a sweet humming sound for the house was supposed to be empty. He walked further to find Nandini humming and looking for a bath oil fragrance, as the bathtub was filling up with water.

Wasn't she supposed to be out shopping with Mukti and Daima?

Nandini saw Manik through the huge life size mirror standing just behind her. Wasn't he supposed to be home at lunch? She turned and then suddenly became aware of her condition. There was just a silk bathrobe on her body, and her doe eyes took in his shirtless form as well.

That chiselled broad chest which made him so masculine and virile.

The star of his Majestic Monster tattoo that was sprawled from his back to his neck and like she had heard from his fangirling groups, you need to be man enough to carry an ink like that and Manik surely was every inch of the MAN.

His muscles flexed and she can understand why her husband did such intense workout every morning, surely his muscles made him sexier which narrowed down to his waist and of course can she ever forget that night at the community gathering?

His confession of wanting to make love to her still rang in her ears and made her breathless.

Manik himself didn't know what he was doing when he closed the distance between them.

He noticed Nandini trying to pull the neckline of her bathrobe which had rolled over a good bit being silk and chuckled at her cuteness. Her hair was tied up carelessly and he didn't think twice before tucking the loose strands behind her ears.

She could now feel his musk cologne as it drugged her like a slow poison. He was, devastatingly handsome and those tousled thick hairs added to that extra edge of cuteness. Sweat flowed in small rivulets from his chest making her gulp and give into that desire to trace that tattoo using her fingers, get it feeling under her fingertips.

Manik actually loved that she was just in her bathrobe and not a piece underneath. The silk rolled over from her soft skin giving a dangerous view of the seduction that lay underneath.

That curve of her waist was lethal and to think beneath the silk was just her bare skin was making every string of control snap slowly.

His hands trail down her arms as Nandini exhales a cool breath and soon enough she finds them on her waist as he pulls her closer.

"You want to get into the bath together? That lemon and jojoba bath salt is perfect." He spoke up huskily, as his fingers reach up to her bottom lip.

Those looked so irresistibly soft, hell he wanted to taste their sweetness. Kiss her senseless.

Her breathing was uneven as his fingers lingered there, his fingertips brushing and ask her, she wanted him to just kiss her. Ask him to kiss her!

She let out a gasp when she felt his fingers slowly untying that sash. She didn't know what to expect, but one thing was clear, she won't stop him.

Their breaths mingled and noses touched but before he could claim her lips, the doorbell rang making Manik cuss heavily again and Nandini couldn't help but giggle at his cuteness.

"Manik?" She spoke up as she leaned in to kiss his cheek.

"I'll wait for this." She added softly, kissing his other cheek as he smiled, cutely.

<•>

Don't hate me for being a tease 🙈
As I have informed earlier, It'll test your patience to some extent. But please bear with it.

Only some have payed attention to age difference being 13 years between them, and that's very huge! Above that the circumstances in which they were married weren't ideal. He is tend to get insecured! So lets see how Nandini give him the much needed assurance!

•Have you seen that beautiful cover?  Thankyou divatulips11, this was sucha sweet gesture❤

• Also Thanks to each one of you for so much love you've showered on Humsafar! Trust me your every comment is read many times, and it feels so special when you take out time and write back to me, when you re-read the chapters, when its talked about on twitter and IG! 😭❤

See you on Sunday with updates of all my ongoing stories🐣