The morning sun filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of Kajol's sleek, modern office, casting a golden hue over the polished mahogany desk. The scent of freshly brewed coffee lingers in the air, but her untouched cup has gone cold. Her manicured fingers hover over her phone screen, still thinking about Shah Rukh's text messages last night. He must have gone mad.
A sigh escapes her lips as she leans back in her chair, eyes drifting toward the city skyline. The memory of last night, his hands gripping her waist, the heat of his mouth against hers, sends a shiver down her spine. It had been a long time since she felt desired like that. But then reality crashes in. Shah Rukh is married. She knows better than to be another woman in a man's life, she's been on the other side of betrayal before.
A knock on the door pulls her back to the present. Her assistant, Anya a sharp-eyed woman in her early thirties, steps in with a stack of reports. "Ms. Kajol, the investors' meeting is in an hour. And your mother's doctor called, she wants to discuss your mom's latest test results."
Kajol presses her temples, feeling the weight of responsibilities pressing in. Business, family, a man who should be off-limits. She has no room for distractions. And yet, her pulse betrays her as she types a response to Shah Rukh hesitating before hitting send. 'We need to talk ASAP'
Kajol tosses her phone onto the desk, thinking logically about the situation she was in irritation simmering beneath her skin. She shouldn't even be entertaining this. Shah Rukh was being selfish and reckless. There he was living his perfect life with his wife and kids while wanting to keep her on the side, who was going to benefit from this arrangement if not him.
She stood up from her seat pacing around her office, running a hand through her hair. No, I deserve more than this. She thought about how Shah Rukh was brazen last night with his pursuit, she had welcomed it due to her loneliness and it had been a nice feeling to be desired by a man of his Calibre.
But the problem wasn't just Shah Rukh. It was her, he had dangled the affection and attention and she ate it all up greedily.Why had she let herself fall into this situation. She had worked so hard to rebuild her reputation after her divorce, to prove she was more than just a woman discarded by her husband. And yet, here she was, on the verge of becoming someone else's secret.
Her mother's fragile health, the investors she needed to impress, the empire she was trying to build, with hard work and dedication, those were real. Shah Rukh was a tall glass of sin and more complications. It was better for him to remain a fantasy far away from her grasp. One that would leave her with nothing but regrets.
Kajol calls her mother's doctor, she had done a biopsy and she was still waiting for the results " Good morning Dr. Gupta, it's Kajol, Jaya-ji's daughter" " Good morning Kajol, I wanted to give you the good news, your mother said you were quite worried. We have nothing to worry about, the test results shows everything is normal. Her heart rate is normal and the nodules in her lungs were worrying me but the biopsy is okay" said Dr. Gupta. " Oh that's a relief, am grateful for that" Kajol was genuinely happy to get the news, one less thing to worry about.
She stood up and headed to the meeting, a little bit happy just then Shah Rukh texted 'Okay, what time and where'. So predictable, So eager. She knew men like him so she thought to herself. Comparing Shah Rukh with Varun, men who always wanted more, who took without giving, who thought women like her would always be waiting. She texted him 'The Ritz Hotel at 7 pm, tonight ' she switched her phone off as she entered the boardroom.
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Then hour later, Shah Rukh sat in the driver's seat of his car, his fingers tapping impatiently on the steering wheel. He had chosen not to carry his security detail again this night, he wanted to be alone with Kajol far from curious eyes, far from the life he was betraying.
He checked his phone. No new messages was she going to show up. Just then he saw Kajol's BMW entering the parking lot. He got out of his car as Rahul was opening the door for Kajol. She approached them ,"Good evening Sir" Rahul greeted him. " Am well, good evening to you too" Shah Rukh responded.
Doubt gnawed at her, she looked at Shah Rukh nervously as he guided her to the restaurant. Kajol wasn't impulsive, that's for sure, she wasn't the kind of woman who leaped into things without thinking either. But last night, last night, she had admitted the truth with her actions, she was physically attracted to him and she had made it known.
She wanted him and there was no two ways about it. She was here to make a suggestion to him. For this 'arrangement' between them. Maybe her horniness was clouding her judgement, if she gave in to him maybe she would feel otherwise about him. She decided to dip her toes in the thought and indulge him. He had more to loose than her at the end of it, why not take advantage of it. She thought to herself.
They took their seats and conversations between them flowed easily. There was no denying that they had chemistry between them. As they were eating, Kajol decided to take the bull by the horns and steer the conversation to where she wanted it to go. "So I have been thinking about this 'feelings' between us. I want to rip the bandaid off it once and for all." Kajol stated her voice even, betraying nothing.
Shah Rukh was shocked at her forwardness, "Meaning?". " I mean all these sexual tension is becoming a distraction, helping no one". Kajol finished her gaze on him unwavering. " So what do you suggest we do about this so called distraction of ours" Shah Rukh had amusement in his tone. Of all conversations he imagined he would be having with Kajol, this was beyond his imaginations.
" I have a suggestion, hear me out please. We should make an arrangement to quench this thirst before it blows up to something else" Kajol was trying to read his eyes but his expression was unreadable. All of a sudden Shah Rukh burst out laughing, "Kajol I don't think sex is going to quench the fire between us. But your suggestion is a good one, something I can take into consideration", he smirked. Kajol felt like slapping the smirk off his face. " That's lovely, I live with my mom so my home isn't a good option, your place is out of the picture because of your wife and kids". Kajol was intent on making this as transactional as possible.
She didn't want to be invest her emotions in this arrangement. " We have a business convention coming up in Belgium and I took my time to look it up and you're invited. It is going to last three days, so that's our queue, once just me and you". She finished in one breath.
Shah Rukh just looked at her while sipping his whisky, " It is a well thought out plan of yours, it is very tempting, you think you will be able to get rid of me after just one encounter?".
"I hope so, am not asking you to leave your wife, am just asking for sex. We have attraction why not take advantage of it". Kajol countered him.
"Okay, I will agree with you, sex no strings attached " " No strings attached, just sex" Kajol responded. "Then see you in Belgium next week." They left the restaurant this time, in separate directions, Kajol kept asking herself if she had made the right decision, or will it come back to bite her in the ass. Only time will tell, right now she had a mother to take care of. She made her way to the parking lot where Rahul was waiting for her.