"Bhabhi sa, is everything fine?" Randhir asked Anokhi, who had summoned him for a private tête-à-tête. "No, nothing is fine, and unless you clarify a few things I will be unable to sleep tonight. After I found you leaving that woman's chamber I paid a visit to her!" Anokhi sounded indignant. For a moment Randhir's face turned pale. "I can explain, it is not what you think Bhabhi sa!" He said softly. "Then please also explain why she was lounging topless on that bed the moment you left her chamber. What happened in there? Sanyukta and I may not be siblings but she is more than a sister to me, I've assumed her responsibility for life, and I cannot see you philandering with someone under the same roof. Sanyukta will be devastated!" Anokhi sounded breathless, being overcome by emotion.

"Bhabhi sa, nothing of the sort you imagined happened between me and Tara. You need to listen to me patiently and in good faith. I first met Tara under unusual circumstances just after Bhaisa got married to Vidushi Bhabhi sa. One evening as I was riding through the town in Bhabhi sa's father's Thikana I saw a gang of thugs trying to abduct a beautiful woman. I intervened impulsively, turning my sword on them. After a brief skirmish the men made good their escape and I managed to calm the frightened woman. I dropped her off to what she claimed was her residence. She tended my wounds and helped dress them. She then told me she was being abducted by her husband's goons."

  "She said she was born as Tara, an illegitimate daughter to Vidushi Bhabhi sa's father's cousin by his concubine Meryem who had Turkish roots. Tara's fascination for the courtesan's art grew to see how her father gave more attention to her mother rather than to his Rajput wives. She trained in singing and dancing against her mother's wishes. After her father died his legitimate wives expelled Meryem and her daughter and Meryem returned to her old profession. To keep her daughter from entering her profession she got her married to a minor Nawab who was much older than Tara. After the Nikah Tara was named Najma. When the colour of henna faded from her palms she realised that life had short-changed her, she was one among several inmates within the cloistered walls of a harem and her husband was unable to satisfy her."  

"Tara managed to escape from there and went straight to her mother who refused to take her back, forcing her to take a rich patron who set her up in a small kothi. When he was out of town she began entertaining other rich men, causing her to lose favour of her earlier patron who left her. But by then she was an established courtesan who had clients showering her with money because she was young, beautiful and elegant due to her upbringing in a noble household. Her husband tracked her down and sent those men to get rid of her to save himself from disgrace. Tara feared for her life and appealed me to take her as my mistress but I turned her proposal down, although I did move her to another location where she could be secure. She continued plying her trade but also followed me closely, offering her services to entertain any officials that were important enough to the running of our fief!" Randhir took a deep breath.

"So you never enjoyed her services yourself? She must have offered herself on a platter, she seems to be obsessed by you!" Anokhi could not help but probe. "To tell you the truth, if she had not told me her backstory I may have considered her as an option. But she was still married to another man when I met her, even though he divorced her later. More than anything else, she had chosen to be a courtesan, unlike other women who are kidnapped in their childhood or tricked into entering a brothel. I could not possibly give her a place next to me, I expected her to be unfaithful, because she had come to enjoy the attention men paid to her. Such a woman cannot be any single man's companion for long, her wanderlust would take over.Earlier this evening when I entered the chamber to give her the nazrana she flirted with me as usual, hoping to seduce me. This is not new to her, she does this each time we meet and I walk away without succumbing to the temptation. This is the third time that we have engaged her services, she consents with the hope that I will relent some day." Randhir has the slightest of discomfiture in his eyes.

"This is highly irregular. Knowing your history with her, if Sanyukta finds out you will be in major trouble." Anokhi voiced her doubt. "Bhabhi sa, you are aware of Tara's reputation. Even as we speak she must be taking that man on a trip to Jannat, it will be a night he will never forget. She is highly accomplished in flattering and pleasing a man, she will make conversation, ply him with liquor, pander his ego and then captivate him with her lovemaking skills. Even Vidushi Bhabhi sa has engaged her to train her in the art of seduction so that she could enslave my brother. Going by the name of either Tara or Najma, depending on what the client prefers to call her, she guarantees satisfaction and this is a matter of professional pride for her, she has no qualms over morality because she knows she can make men worship her. They always return for more, such is her charm!" Randhir explained. 

"I know about her prowess as a Tawaif, and that is why I am not comfortable with her presence around you or my husband. Do not forget, Sanyukta is unfamiliar with the world of polygyny, if you hurt her it will break her spirit!" Anokhi clarified. "I am completely in love with Sanyukta, Bhabhi sa. I have no motivation to cheat on her, I can barely keep the tigress within her satiated." He smiled at Anokhi. "Fine then, she is waiting for you on the terrace adjoining your chamber, it is cooler outdoors where one can enjoy the breeze. And I want Najma to leave from here first thing in the morning, I had better warn your brother about it!" Randhir left the chamber and walked towards the terrace where his wife waited for him eagerly.

"Now you find the time for me! The girl had you hypnotised you it seems!" Sanyukta whined. "So you are truly jealous, and I thought you were quite secure in our wedded life!" He teased her as he unveiled her, casting her odhani aside. "Why should I look at another woman when I have such a pretty wife waiting to make me lose my senses?" He opened her hair, breathing in the perfume she had rubbed on her delicate skin. He undid her kurti and cast if off. Raining kisses down her bare back he let his palms cup her softness as she responded by turning around and planting her lips upon his, inviting him to kiss her deeply. She untied her ghagra and also disrobed him, pulling him upon herself letting their bodies came together in an embrace. Randhir spared no effort in thrilling her as he continued to make love to her under the stars, losing track of time. Anybody watching them could tell how intimate they were, each time they climaxed they held each other close and cuddled and kissed untiringly to crown their already heightened pleasure.

Unknown to them they were being watched by a set of eyes that were filled with despair to see the man she coveted shower such affection on his wife, who certainly looked like she had his heart. Distasteful as it had been Tara had permitted her client for the night to take his pleasure with her a couple of times before he fell into a deep slumber because of the sleeping draught she had added to his wine goblet after making sure that he would remember his carnal adventure with her very well before he nodded off. After rinsing her body thoroughly and after a change of clothes Tara had stepped out onto the balcony where she caught sight of Randhir and Sanyukta making love far into the night until Sanyukta dozed off in his arms and he carried her off to bed as if she was the most precious thing to him. Tears stung in Tara's eyes as she recalled how skillfully Randhir had dodged her overtures whenever she made them and right before her eyes he had unleashed his passion on a girl with an insignificant background. 

Tara had always believed that she had inherited the legacy of Aphrodite and any man would be proud to have her under him. Only Randhir had remained unconquered making the chase even more exciting for her. But the evidence was right before her, he had willingly united his body and mind with that girl soon after he had rejected her endearment. The humiliation of being passed over was not something she was about to forget. It was a matter of time before the right opportunity presented itself and she would have her say. She walked back into the chamber to catch a few winks before morning unaware that she had been spotted by Anokhi who had witnessed the whole drama unfold before her, after she managed to put a drowsy Parth to sleep.