For her the attraction was powerful, she had lived such a sheltered life that the sight of her new bodyguard in the flower of youth had acted as an alkaloid, and try as she might she could not get him out of her mind. Not that he had shown any signs of being enticed with her, she knew he was a keen warrior and his eyes were trained to notice the minutest details, his mind attuned to peripheral awareness, a basic requirement of guard duty. She had taken a rather brazen step of unveiling herself partially to him, her cultural taboo keeping her from revealing anything more to a stranger. She had never transgressed the unwritten law for anyone else before. The ghoongat had been her constant companion from the moment she attained puberty, she was sure the men in her immediate family would not recognise her if they were to see her without it. She had ignored what her mind warned against and simply done what her heart pressed her on to, if he thought she was shameless so be it, the damage was already done.

As she returned she joined the other women in the endeavor to prepare the evening meal. Like all girls of the day she had been trained well, her fingers were adept at shaping the millet flat bread before it was slapped expertly on the griddle, turned until both sides were baked to an appetising brown hue and topped with a drizzle of butter fat. Other women stirred the pots of lentils and vegetables, and as soon as the menfolk were fed the ladies sat down to their own repast. The girl waited till her aunt served her first and then herself, anyone observing the girl's plate would wonder why she was deliberately being underfed. There was a small portion of bread, a bowl of lentils and a large helping of tossed leafy greens. She was not allowed any dessert or dairy fare other than thin whey simply seasoned and flavoured with fresh mint, having to end her meal with a handful of pomegranate arils.

This was one of many times that he had witnessed the spectacle discreetly, wondering why when food was abundant was she given such lean and frugal portions, unlike everyone else in her camp and when he mentioned this to Samsher he told him in hushed tones that in her camp she was the only one likely to have a monthly flow, all the other women were beyond the child bearing age. Rich, fatty foods made a woman bleed more profusely. Besides curtailing her diet they must be dosing her with special herbs to reduce her possible fluid loss so that travelling would be less cumbersome, considering there were limited avenues for managing personal hygiene. Any rags used to absorb the flow would be suitably disposed off, rather than being reused, to minimise risk of infection.

Samsher's considerably longer experience in such matters had helped educate the young boy several times. Like any other youth he too had been curious, and Samsher had been a very practical teacher. No taboo was too big for Samsher, during Randhir's first tour of duty with him he had insisted that the boy witness him in bed with his mistress without even a stitch covering them, showing the fascinated boy the whole buffet on how to send a woman over the cliff using one's hands, mouth and of course the staff of life, and how to get her to return the favour, demonstrating as many positions as he could manage at the time.

The poor boy had been aroused and appalled at the same time, and had flatly turned down the offer of bedding the woman after Samsher was done with her. The lesson had not ended in the one session, Randhir had several opportunities to watch him in action, filling the boy's dreams with a tableau of fantasies. Samsher has also given him sound advice about the possible risks involved in using multiple partners, the various diseases one could catch by sleeping around and how to work out a woman's least risky time for becoming pregnant. The boy was convinced by now that the most harmless way was to gratify oneself, and if he had to use a woman never to exchange body fluids with her unless they were a faithfully bonded pair, never having met such a partner before. Dancing girls and prostitutes were within easy reach for a man on the road, and although Randhir may have participated in a little harmless horseplay with particularly insistent nautch girls he had never lain with a woman like the other guardsmen did whenever the opportunity presented itself.

It was not going to be easy to forget the girl after he had seen her bare her back for him, he could remember the water dripping down her nape and soaking the strings of her choli, how she paused long enough before drying her face and neck, seeming innocent, but intending to catch his eye and hoping to torment his senses. If she wanted to play he was more than game. He has seen bare bodies of women before, but none had held his attention like this one with the telltale bells on her feet coding a secret message for his sole benefit. He had always taken his work very seriously, and if keeping this intriguing charge secure was his mission, he would strive to ensure that no harm would come to her while on his watch, and if he could help it, no other man would have access to her like she let him have!