|| 06. PAIZE 2 ♥ ||
Feeling the encapsulation of his warmth her breathing went further askew. Despite being alarmed at the man of her dreams appearing out of the blue she nonchalantly nodded. Mostly hoping to assure her berserk heart that everything would be alright.
The attendant was merrily laughing “..waiting to get married causes the most trouble, you should ask my husband he didn’t want a day longer of engagement”
“Yeah not a fan of all this waiting myself” keeping the editor-in-chief glued ahead of him Omar smilingly spoke to the attendant. His free hand took hold of the coffee cup from Mohana’s dainty fingers, stealing a warm sip.
The attendant joyfully laughed looking at the fabulous couple they made standing snugly together “My husband would love to meet you, all he waited was for churning the butter too!..” extending the box towards Mohana, she kindly offered “..hope you enjoy these selections on the flight. I told him that we ship throughout the country but if you like them I’ll personally get them catered for your wedding too”
All words aside, the declaration from Omar Shaan ‘we are not married’ achingly kept ringing through her. Barely picking on the hint to hold on to the box that kept getting extended towards her Mohana hesitantly took the artsy parcel from the woman
“Will definitely keep that in mind” Omar pleasantly spoke to the airport shop attendant
Slipping the chocolate box from Mohana he just as easily dropped the case in the black leather tote hanging from the crook of her arm. His move made the back of her head brush against his chiseled jaw making Mohana anxiously purse her lips.
“It was so wonderful to meet you, stay blessed always” saying the attendant hurried away towards a shop on the periphery of the terminal gallery
“Am hungry” Omar whispered to the beautiful woman he held secured against his torso
The velvety whisper of his voice from this close made goosebumps on her nape raise a notch higher. Tired eyes had regained a sense of purpose. Deceiving Mohana her sparkling silver spheres eagerly turned to gawk at the handsome tall figure that stood behind.
Taking a sip from the cup Omar quipped “This is neat. Have you also been wondering how come I am not fed the same as you?” taking the remaining cookie from her smaller hand he munched it away with another drink of her coffee
“Jojo?” a mere whispering breath escaped her. Mohana looked at her empty hands. Hands that had held a cup which was now in his captivity and the cookie which had disappeared altogether
Peeling her watchful eyes from observing the attendant return to her shop, Jojo responded “Yes, Miss Mohana”
“We need to discuss this unfairness around how am never invited to these early breakfasts before breakfast. But the team’s waiting for us, let’s go” Omar joked, encouraging Jojo to lead the way
“You are so funny Omar. Definitely!..” with a smile Jojo assured her boss “..Miss Mohana, I’ll get your coffee and breakfast sorted right away” she stepped ahead of them towards the boarding gate
Capturing Mohana’s elbow Omar guided them to follow Jojo. Taking another sip of the caffeine rich drink he checked in a whisper “You’re feeling cold?”
His hold made Mohana welcome the trickle of warmth seeping through her. Encountering another chill she instinctively moved closer “I..” but her words halted at the verge of accepting her sleepless shivering botheration
The rampant pulsating of his earlier clarification to the attendant ‘we are not married’ made her gulp. Lightly turning her arm to free from his hold Mohana mumbled “Uh I have to talk to Jojo”
Easing herself Mohana stepped further ahead to accompany her assistant. Finding him in less than five hours had taken her by surprise, considering she had three days from their exposé interview to look at his fabulous sight in real-life again. To add to her sleepless misery him correcting doubts regarding their association made her wince. His not wanting to be even remotely associated with her, not even for a mere misunderstanding, not even with a random confectionery stranger had her heart twist.
“Miss Mohana, are you alright?” Jojo whispered with concern looking at her pale boss
“Ya, ya..” Mohana whispered picking up speed to increase their distance from the man she had left behind “..what is going on here?”
Heaving a sigh Jojo shook her head “I am equally surprised Miss Mohana no wonder we don’t like this traveling but for a fact we are never getting chocolates catered for your wedding from that confectioner”
“Why ever in this life would I get married” Mohana mumbled. Agitated she fished for a can of water from her tote, his words ‘we are not married’ refusing to halt their ringing within her
As if it was foundational logic Jojo plainly offered “Because when you are in love you get married”
“Rhetorical question, Jojo. There are no marriages happening. We have to stay focused. Our aim is to ace this whole bold-act” Mohana determinedly declared
“Yes bold! Definitely bold! But what was that woman’s confectioner husband thinking? Like why would she want to churn butter on her wedding night if he is a chocolatier?!..” Jojo exclaimed “..Leya would have never drawn dresses on her wedding night just because Salm is a designer! Who does that!”
The mention of the ‘designer’ keyword further made her heart race on a track that she knew had no possible end. Taking a gulp of water Mohana stated “It worked out for her perhaps she liked it. she’s married. she seemed happy”
“Yes, sure. But you are not churning butter and neither am I. I will have to report this to Ceria urgently! She is right about to get married in a few months!” Jojo shuddered at the thought still unable to accept the delivery of words from the stranger
Mohana thoughtfully agreed “Yeah ya I highly doubt Ceria wants to fly planes for Vance right after her wedding”. Taking another sip of water she clenched on to the can averting the temptation of her eyes. She didn’t want to see the man who had been so adamant to clarify their lack of belonging to each other
Coming to join the duo Salm informed about the drafted article from their Sarrata host “Princesa, we need to review the adapting trends discussion from Tyr, his office just sent it through”
“That’s neat, let’s sort it out the first thing on the plane” Mohana confirmed. Glad at the distraction she steered her heart back to work. Other Sophista team members joined by their leaders, filed into lines approaching the boarding gate. The crew was busy discussing their plan to Honolulu for the upcoming coverage of Tyr and Sonya’s fabric industry Sarrata
Not wanting to brave herself to find the whereabouts of her lost coffee or the dashing man who had taken it, Mohana walked straight ahead to board her plane. Making her way through the aisles she dismissed their meeting as pure happen chance
The argument of a busy airport, busy terminal, multiple businesses boarding various flights made her feel relieved. She convinced herself that due to their brief interaction, the absence of her bold-act would have also been easily overlooked. Accepting the welcome and introduction from her steward Ethan, Mohana followed him to her personal section.
“Ma’am I’ll help you keep the tote, did you need anything from this?” saying Ethan courteously took the leather bag from Mohana
Occupied in her own thoughts Mohana murmured “My digi” reaching for the thin screen she gave the young man a smile
Smiling broadly at her the steward stored the tote in the long closet compartments ahead, eagerly checking “Ma’am Jojo requested the order for you. I’ll shortly bring you a coffee, would you like a toasted bagel with cream cheese alongside?”
Mohana urgently wished for all thoughts that had appeared at the mention of ‘coffee’ to disappear as the beverage and the cookie from her hands had
“No. Not that. Nothing. I’ll only have sparkling water” she requested, making Ethan look at her with concern
The steward checked in alarm “No coffee? Nothing to eat?”
“For now?” Mohana nearly pleaded at the mention of the said beverage again
“Yes Ma’am, right away! But I must bring you some food offerings because you cannot stay hungry” pleasantly declaring the server stepped beyond the slim pocket doors of her lounge
Taking seat on the couch Mohana gazed outside through the rain covered acrylic windows. The hasty meetup running through her head seemingly did not feel any brief for her still thumping heart. She pondered about being able to withstand on ‘The Bold List’ for when their paths would cross again in three days. Rattled from within she wished to prove that his refusal of being associated with her didn’t matter in the least bit. She grumbled in the solace of her private room “Why would anyone bother with clarifications to a married confectioner! He can do what he wants, am anyways never getting married!”
Absentmindedly accepting the sparkling water, selection of nuts and dried fruits from the steward, Mohana heaved a disgruntled sigh. The words ‘we are not married’ continued to circle in the pit of her stomach.
