"You're drunk," she stated, trying to sound accusatory but failing. She just felt weary. Weary of being herself. Weary of being so uptight and righteous all the time.
She had had an affair with a married man. A man she still loved. That did not leave her in any position to judge others. No matter how religious she forced herself to become, in the end she will always be the girl who fell for someone else's husband.
"You're gorgeous," he breathed, coming closer.
"Armaan," she said in a warning tone. "Don't."
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't," he challenged, his eyes burning like twin blue flames.
"Because I don't like feeling powerless and that's exactly how you're making me feel right now."
He stared at her for a moment after she had confessed what her real issue was and Jasmine let out a sigh before speaking again. "Someone hurt me, Armaan," she told him in a monotone. "I loved him and he hurt me. You know why? Because I gave him the power to do so." She paused, remembering. Fire ignited in her eyes. Bitterness invaded her heart. "I let myself become weak. I'm not over him. I don't know if I ever will be. But I do know that if I'm ever going to be involved with another guy again, it will be on my own terms."
There. She had said it. She had confessed what was in her heart. The pain of remembering Hamza flooded her soul and she squeezed her eyes shut. No. She was not going to cry. Not anymore. Not for him or for anyone else.
"Jasmine. I won't hurt you if you let me take control."
She sucked in a sharp breath. "Stop. You don't say that to me. I don't want to hear it."
Puffing out an impatient breath, Armaan turned around and began walking away from her. Clearly, he was not interested in her baggage. Or the drama and complications that came with it. What guy would be? They all wanted one thing and one thing only these days. The easier, the better. Lowering her head, she let out a small sigh and turned to face the bookshelves again, deciding to spend the rest of the evening moping in here until her dark mood wore off. She shouldn't have come here at all. He'd only brought more of her pain to the surface by reminding her of the past.
"What terms?"
He spoke softly but clearly and she turned to find him standing at the door with a serious expression on his face. His question puzzled her. What was he going on about now?
"You said if you ever got involved with someone again, it'd be on your own terms," he murmured, watching her intently. "I want to know what those terms are. I want to be that someone you get involved with."
****
Playing With Fire
10
"Armaan. Your scrambled eggs are to die for," Angelina murmured, smiling at him and moistening her lips.
God, could she be more obvious? She sat on Armaan's right at the table during breakfast and eyed him as if he was a piece of meat.
"Grazie." Armaan dipped his toast in the steaming cup of coffee and took a huge bite out of it. Normally, he would have loved that Scott's girlfriend was hitting on him. Scott and Angelina had an open relationship and she seemed to be taking full advantage of the fact. But he was only in the mood for one pretty brunette and Angelina wasn't it.
"What do you put in it, anyway?" She was still going on about the eggs.
He shrugged and whispered, "It's a secret," before taking a sip of his coffee.
"Mmm. I'm looking forward to uncovering it," she husked, leaning closer. Her eyes rested on his lips as he licked the coffee from it.
Armaan glanced at Scott who was busy chatting up Giselle on his right. He had no idea what the guy could be saying to her since she only spoke Italian and understood only a bit of English. Apparently, though, Angelina was not the only one taking advantage of the open relationship policy. The rest of the people who sat at the table, Jasmine, Alex and Rico, a friend from Milan, seemed to be free of any sexual vibes and were engaged in innocent conversation.
Alex was eating his cereal and both he and Jasmine were chuckling at one of Rico's jokes. Armaan was glad to see that Jasmine was finally enjoying herself. He had overheard her telling Alex that she had to work on her story so she would not be going on the fishing trip the others had planned for the day. Armaan hated that he was going to be caught up with work because he could think of something much more delicious to do during all those hours he would be alone in the house with her.
For starters, he could try convincing her that she wanted him just as badly as he wanted her and it was a good idea to take what one wanted if what one wanted was something good. Last night, after his offer to get involved with her, she hadn't said anything to him. He'd even wondered if he was insane making a suggestion like that considering his earlier resolve that week to stay away from her. But there was something about Jasmine Khan he found utterly irresistible. He wanted to uncover all those mysteries he knew were brewing underneath her surface, discover the flames that needed to be stoked.
As Armaan drank his coffee and continued to watch her, he vowed to himself that before she left tomorrow, she would be a woman convinced.
~~~~
It was late afternoon by the time Jasmine finished her writing and decided to take
