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Avantika pushed her head across his side and frowned.

The woman didn’t look like somebody she would have to deal with.

She was old. Looked pretty old, even with the botox perfection that stretched her bright face.

There was a whole seven-course makeup routine going on for her, with foundation and contouring and everything else.

Her lips were an elegant soft orange. A rare shade but it suited her so well.

In a long, loose silk shirt over matching loose silk trousers, an Hermes scarf wrapped in a loop knot, she exuded elegance.

And royalty. Was she from Nawanagar royal family? Was she his stepmother?

Avantika peered closer. No. She had seen photos of his stepmother. She was the complete opposite of this.

“Jai Dwarkadhish,” Samarth folded his hands, his phone sandwiched between them. “How are you?”

“I am well. What a pleasant surprise! What are you doing this side?”

“Catching a flight to Florence.”

“Oh, I thought you were actively working in the kingdom now.”

“Partly, yes.”

“This is a holiday, then?”

“No, it’s work.”

“Hmm…” the lady nodded, her eyes roving and finally landing on her. “Won’t you introduce your friend?”

“Of course. This is Avantika Kumari Raje of Gwalior. Avantika, this is Vaibhavi Kumari Vaghela of Sanand.”

A Gujarati princess then, as she had guessed. Avantika immediately folded her hands together — “Namaste, Kumari saheb.”

She nodded, her lips tipped in that perfect curve of acknowledgement and mild enthusiasm, one that was ingrained into them for public life ever since they were born.

“Kumari. Are you here for work as well?”

“Yes,” Avantika lied, taking Samarth’s cue.

“You are Jaidev Rao Scindia’s daughter?”

“Niece. I am Kunwar Ajay Rao Scindia’s daughter.”

“Right… it’s been a while since I stepped foot in India. But it was nice meeting you. Both of you. My flight is announced or I would have loved to chat,” she held up her elegant hand that was locked around a phone, passport and a boarding pass.

Samarth stepped out of her path. She turned and walked towards her boarding gate. Her gait was so royal. Royal and modelesque. Like she could own the runway and also own the man owning the runway.

“Who is she?” Avantika whispered to Samarth as soon as she was out of earshot.

“My mother.”

————————————————————

“Hey,” she called out to him once the plane had settled and the flight was idling on the runway.

“Hmm?” His head emerged from his phone that he was still using, sending out texts.

“Your mother?”

Samarth smiled, toggling his phone to airplane mode and tossing it in the holder between them. This time they had made sure to snag their seats together and taken the privacy screen off. His shoulder did not touch hers but it would, if she so much as leaned another inch.

“Yes.”

“Samarth…” her anger took off at his heedless response. “How can she behave like this with you?! How dare she walk away without even a proper bye? She didn’t even look at you long enough! What kind of a whacko…”

His eyebrow cocked up — “Language, Kumari.”

“Shut your mouth. Why did you even introduce us? Such a woman shouldn’t even be graced with your eyes. You should have just walked off. Seriously, Samarth, why would you talk nicely to her? Fold your hands in front of such a woman?”

“She is my mother. I have to fold my hands.”

“She didn’t even touch you…”

“It’s alright, Ava.”

“No it is not!”

He chuckled, grabbing her hand. That’s when she realised she had it up and wildly gesturing. His touch, shockingly, calmed her whole body. She breathed. His chin nodded with each breath of hers, as if willing her down from Ragetown.

“Want water?”

“No.”

“Ok.”

“Where does she live?”

“Denmark, if I am not mistaken. Last we heard she was there. She has lived all over Europe.”

“What does she do? Is she married?”

“I don’t know.”

“She was alone today.”

“Hmm.”

“You don’t want to know? See how lonely her life would be? Show her how awesome your life is?”

“No.”

“You are some saint!”

“No, I am satisfied. My father made me this satisfied. My Dada-Dadi Sarkar, Hira ben. Now Sharan and Maarani…”

“That’s another whacko. What’s with you and these whacko women in your life?!”

“You are also whacko?”

She jerked his hand off, making him vibrate with laughter.

“I hated it.”

“What, Ava?” He grabbed her hand again, soothing her body without even doing anything. "Her? I have gone through life and a lot of things in it to waste any grief on my mother.”

She stared at him. Debated if she should say the next words. Then she said ‘Chuck it’ and just blurted — “You were indifferent to her in school but you had a longing for her… for something that only she could give.”

His mouth pursed.

“Samarth?” She covered their joined hands with hers. “What made you not feel that longing anymore?”

He shrugged. “Age.”

She didn’t believe it. But she let it go. The plane zoomed up the runway, tilted and speared into the clear night sky. Samarth did not leave her hand. He brought it to his chest and held it there. She let him. Because his head fell back on the headrest and his eyes fell shut.

Her head fell back and she closed her eyes too. The knowledge of four days together had allowed him to relax instead of verbal vomit anything and everything in a limited time. She too, was at peace knowing there were four days.

“She looked lonely today,” he murmured. She heard the other part too, the one that he did not say but thought in the tightening of his hand around hers.

I look like that too.

————————————————————

There was no time to feel lonely in Tuscany!

They landed in Florence late at night, got into his chauffeured car waiting to whisk them away to the ancient Province of Arezzo, and checked into their hotel very early in the morning.

His team hadn’t landed yet, and even when they did, Samarth informed her that they would be booked into another hotel.

He had gotten himself another booking here, at her boutique hotel.

He got himself a room adjacent to her, with connecting doors ‘in case they wanted to chat.’

Avantika, sensing her tight schedule of work-from-home, immediately went to her room and fell asleep.

If she wanted to explore the town, spend time with Samarth and work responsibly then she needed at least a few hours of sleep.

That was one princess habit that was yet to be beaten out of her.

Beauty sleep. She needed it. Come. What. May.

“Hey, sleeping beauty…” his fluttering breath moved over her face. She cried in her sleep, pulling the duvet over her head. It was slowly slithered away. She whacked his hand. A chuckle, hot minty breath, then silence.

“Ava?” He poked one finger into her bicep. She was about to break the said finger when his loud blaring ringtone startled her out of sleep.

Heart racing, she shot up straight, only to find him swiping the phone to his ear and silencing the ringtone. Avantika breathed, panting her way to peace as she glared at his happy morning face. It was morning, wasn’t it? She glanced at the cracks in her curtain.

“Khamma Ghani, Hukum,” Samarth said jovially into the phone. Then his face leached of all colour. His Adam’s apple worked.

What happened? She mouthed.

He held one finger up, listening intently.

Avantika strolled her gaze lazily down his wet hair clawed back from his forehand to the perfect bone structure of his face highlighted by the Tuscan sunbeams that cracked through the curtains, to the crisp sage green Chinese collar shirt that somehow was a unique pick but looked like it was tailored for him.

It would have been. He had paired cream pants with it and made the design/aesthetic fanatic in her so happy.

“I am looking forward to seeing you both, Hukum…” a pause, and he laughed. A forced laugh. “Of course not, I am very excited! Yes, yes… no, tomorrow. I’ll see you then. Jai Dwarkadhish, Hukum.”

Samarth ended his call and sighed.

“What’s that sigh for?”

His dark eyes met hers — “Hukum and Maan bhai are coming.”

“Here?”

“Not here, to Villa a Sesta Polo Club directly. For my game tomorrow.”

“Oh no… then I won’t come.”

“No way. What will you do here alone by yourself?”

“I’ll work, I’ll sightsee.”

“I can’t leave you alone in a foreign city like this.”

“I am a big girl and I have lived, travelled and returned safely from foreign cities like these.”

“No.”

“Samarth, you can’t mean I sit with them and cheer you on… there will be questions. It will go back to my parents. Hukum already keeps dropping these innuendos.”

His mouth fell shut.

“This is the best idea. You play your match tomorrow. You were planning to stay overnight, you can return to the town on Saturday and we can still do some sightseeing over the weekend.”

“I have a physio and recup session Saturday first half. I can’t blow it because I need to recover after the match to immediately go for the next one on Monday…”

“So then we will have second half Saturday and the whole of Sunday.”

He clicked his tongue — “You are coming with me to Villa a Sesta.”

“But…”

“You remain in the stables with my team. I’ll get you a pass.”

“What will you tell your team?”

“You are my guest, what’s to hide?”

“And what about social media?”

“I’ll have a chat with Ritu.”

She fell back in bed with a sigh. His head cocked to one side, his voice amused — “Feels like school all over again, no?”

“And then some!” She rolled her eyes, wondering if she would be able to fall asleep now. “Hey! Why did you wake me up?”

“To tell you that I am going.”

“What’s to tell in that? Go, no!”

Samarth’s rich laughter reverberated in her room as he got to his feet and patted her calf — “Sleep.”

“Easy for you to say now,” she yawned.

“I did not want you to wake up in an unknown room all alone.”

“Umm… I checked into it alone.”

“Still.”

“What are we doing, Samarth?”

He stilled.

“Ava… I thought… you came… you wanted to come…”

“Yeah just…” she smiled. “Don’t spoil me so bad that I can’t go back to living with myself alone.”

His jaw tightened. His mouth remained pursed, eyes on her. He finally gave a nod.

“I’ll be back in a few hours.”

“Bye.”

The door shut behind him and she rolled in bed, eyeing the dark room that felt darker without him.

He was right. Waking up alone in an unknown room did have an icky feeling.

She had it whenever she was in a new place.

Strangely, not in her Paris apartment. That place had felt like home from the get-go.

Because he had been there that first night with you, something inside her echoed. Avantika rolled again and silenced it.