The Ache

“Hey Devi Maiya! What evil person created these heinous contraptions? Such lame excuses for shoes!” she pointedly accused, glaring at the glittering gold heels that lay haphazardly by the closet where she’d kicked them off as soon as she’d gotten inside her bedroom. Sitting on the mattress, she reached forward and rubbed at her aching feet, trying to find some relief. She noted a rather agitated red spot, knowing there’d be a blister there by tomorrow. “It must have been some Rakshas! Let’s just torture women even more by making them balance and walk on thin little pencil sticks because it looks nice!” she sneered out loud, silently spewing every curse she knew, in every language, at the inventor of high heels. She shook her head in disdain, blowing her bangs out of her face with an angry huff, and continued to tend to her poor feet.

When Arnav marched through the doors to his room, he was met by the sight of his seemingly piqued wife sitting on their bed, inspecting her feet. He promptly turned to close the doors behind him. A little chat was in order.

Khushi looked up when a tall, lean form came into her peripheral vision. Her favorite Rakshas had just entered their domestic domain. She looked at his back as he leaned forward to close the doors, then dropped her gaze to his muscled behind, watching the way the expensive material of his pants pulled taut, molding to his tight tush. She tilted her head in appreciation before sobering up and realizing she didn’t really want to like him right now. She’d fallen, on a runway, in front of a crowd of people, and he’d just gaped at her, before she lost her marbles and ran out of the room like a big sissy. She knew it was a competition and all, but deep down she had still hoped he would follow her.

“Khushi why are you wearing heels when you know you can’t walk in them?!”

He’d just all but barked at her. The nerve! “All the contestants have to wear them. If all those girls can walk in heels, then I can learn too!” She rebutted his comment without looking at him.

Arnav watched as his stubborn wife continued to try and rub her own feet. He took a step forward, pointing a finger her way to carelessly remind her of the spill she took on the stairs to the runway and how she shouldn’t even be taking part in such a competition, when he noted a little rip in the pajami of her anarkali suit. He immediately softened, worry replacing his anger. Why was he such a jackass sometimes? His poor wife had fallen today and he hadn’t even asked her if she was ok. He let out a long sigh to release the lecture he’d prepared to berate her with and sat at the edge of the bed. He reached out a hand and delicately traced the little tear with a fingertip. “Tumhe chott lagi?” (“Did you get hurt?”) he asked, concern lacing his tone.

Khushi looked up at her husband and saw that boyish lock of hair falling into his soft, milk chocolate eyes as he gazed at her shin. She instantly melted. Why had she looked at his face?! She let out a sigh, releasing her pent up stubbornness. Who was she kidding? She could never not like her husband. “Hum… hum teekh hai.” (I’m…. I’m ok.”) she managed to reply. She still wasn’t ready to admit defeat though, so she refocused her attention onto her sore feet again.

Arnav watched Khushi’s face tell the tale of her discomfort and unease as she tried to wiggle and flex her toes about. She let out a hiss and began rubbing at a tender spot. She was clearly in pain, something he did not like seeing Khushi go through, no matter how big or small. He reached forward and grasped her feet.

Khushi gasped and instantly tried to pull her feet back. “Arnavji, what are you doing?!”

Arnav momentarily looked down at his grasp on her ankles before locking eyes with her. “Uh, what does it look like I’m doing? I know your feet hurt from wearing those heels” he stated plainly as he curled his fingers around her arches, taking a better hold.

“Arnavji no! You’re not supposed to touch my feet!” she tried again to tug her feet away from his iron grip.

“Excuse me?” Arnav’s eyebrow quirked up. He was befuddled and shot her with an incredulous look.

“Arnavji, I’m your wife! You’re not supposed to touch my feet. Choriye! (Let go!)” She tried again to wiggle away from him. And again it was in vain.

He immediately dismissed her protestations. “Khushi, you know I don’t believe all that rubbish.” She continued to struggle against him for a few more moments before he firmed his grip and leaned in closer to her. She was now looking at him with those big doe eyes. “And yes, you are my wife….” his gaze dropped to her slightly parted lips before going back to hers again, leaning in just a smidge closer “….I can touch you wherever I want to.” Arnav glared at her for a moment to emphasize his point. He watched as Khushi sheepishly looked away and her cheeks infused with a rosy pink tint. Letting a victorious smirk slip across his lips, he placed her feet in his lap and returned to the task at hand.

Khushi could not believe her husband’s blunt audacity sometimes. She revved up to give him a piece of her mind, but whatever her sharp tongue had gotten ready to deliver died on her lips as she felt his fingers dig into her tense soles. His grip was gentle yet firm as he weaved his magic. The muscles in her tired feet gave no fight as he kneaded and pressed away. Khushi helplessly sank into the mattress, succumbing to his skilled fingers, as her eyes rolled back into her head with pleasure. She was an utter pool of putty in his hands, her feet exulting in his ministrations. When he ran his thumbs down the aching arches of her feet she bit back a moan. She let out a deep exhale as she sank further into the mattress, lethargy beginning to creep in on her. “Arnavji, you’re putting me to sleep and I need to shower still” she managed to murmur out.

Khushi’s voice sounded velvety soft and warm as it drifted to his ears. When he looked at his wife, her face had taken on a serene calm. She’d probably had a rough few days going through the competition’s selection process. He knew first hand how grueling it was, having been one of the main people to place the qualifications of the contestants. He also knew how headstrong his Khushi was. There was no chance he was going to be able to convince her to withdraw. And now that she’d made it this far he didn’t want to deter her either. As he looked at her again, he took in the sweet picture his wife made, and watched her soft breathing. He had no choice but to support her, and he’d start doing so right now.

Khushi inhaled a whiff of her husband’s cologne as she sensed him hovering over her. She felt his lips gently press onto her forehead and she opened her eyes to look at him.

Arnav gazed right back into the warm embers of her eyes. “Stay here and relax. I’ll be right back.”

Khushi had closed her eyes but for a moment before her husband lovingly tucked her unruly bangs behind her ears. He extended a hand towards her, one she took without any hesitance, and let him lead her over to the bathroom. He further opened the slightly ajar door to show her the unreal ambiance he’d created for her. She took in the large pillar candles set along the rim of their tub, creating a hushed glow in the dim room. The flames gave off subtle hints of ylang-ylang, patchouli and vanilla that drifted into her nostrils and intoxicated her, beckoning her further into their bathing quarters. She noticed the tub was filled two-thirds of the way topped off with a layer of frothy bubbles, no doubt also attributing to the alluring aromas dancing across her senses. She turned to look at her husband partly in astonishment, partly in awe, and partly in gratitude.

Arnav leaned in to drop a kiss on the soft spot over her temple. “Get in and relax. It’ll help with all your aches.”

Before she could even mull over how to overcome her shyness to ask, he brought her hand to his mouth to place a chaste kiss on her knuckles, and left the bathroom, closing the door behind him. She was disappointed that he wasn’t going to join her. Her gaze returned to the beautiful bubble bath and a smile of appreciation spread across her face as she began to pile her hair atop her head into a messy bun. She commenced to disrobe and get into the perfectly-warm water, sighing in pleasure as she sunk in.

Arnav busied himself on his laptop. As tempted as he had been to get in with her, he’d wanted her to rest and recoup even more. If he truly wanted her to succeed, he’d have to think of her needs first and foremost. So he’d quickly extricated himself from her and sat on the lounger to finish up some work. It was always too easy for him to lose himself in budget reports and net income analyses. When he glanced at the time, he noted that over a half hour had already gone by and she still hadn’t come back out. “The water must’ve already gone tepid” he thought to himself, and went to check on her. When he opened the door, he found his lady utterly relaxed in the tub. Upon closer inspection, he noted how her head was lolled off to one side. “She must’ve fallen asleep” he said to himself. Preparing to get her slumbering form out of the bath, he deftly unbuttoned his shirt and threw it off to the side. He draped a large fluffy towel over his shoulder and bent closer, ready to lift her out when his eyes were drawn to her ethereal face. He visually traced over the thick black lashes framing her closed eyes, over the slope of her button nose, and paused to stare at her glinting nose pin. Naturally, his gaze descended onto her lush mouth. The urge to kiss her everywhere his eyes had lingered, hit him hard. Gathering control of himself, he decided to only brush aside the few wet tendrils that were stuck to the side of her face with his fingertip instead. His wife’s eyes drifted open upon his initial touch. He could see the candlelight flickering within those honey depths, setting them alive. She graced him with a relaxed smile that made his pulse quicken. Seeing his Khushi like this did unexplainable things to his mind, body and heart.

Khushi couldn’t have been greeted by a better sight upon opening her eyes, than the one in front of her right now. Her Arnavji, in very close proximity, bare from the waist up. She audibly sighed. Her eyes candidly perused his form, showing no apologies for it. She may not have been very experienced with intimacy, but through her husband she had learned quite quickly as to what pleased her senses. One of the greatest things that brought her pleasure was ogling his body. All that sleek, tan skin, lean, agile muscle…..all mine, mine, mine she silently thought. But her favorite part was his face. She could spend a year just staring at his perfectly chiseled features, and still wouldn’t get her fill. She reached up to stroke his stubbled cheek.

Arnav broke out of his own reverie when he felt Khushi’s hand on his face. “Feeling better?” he asked, his voice cracking in a husky tone. His wife replied with a sweet nod and another stroke of her thumb along his jaw. He stood upright and unraveled the towel, holding it open for her.

Khushi normally would’ve blushed and probably tried to find any excuse not to get out of the tub in front of her husband. Not because she thought it was wrong, just out of sheer mortification and shyness. But tonight, after having lazed and relaxed at the hands of her Arnavji, she felt empowered. She had nothing to hide from him and she secretly had a desire to see the raw passion in his eyes that she often got a glimpse of when they were alone.

He stood frozen in place as he watched Khushi rise out of the bath, as if it were happening in slow motion. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her, not wanting to even risk blinking. She looked something akin to a mystic fairy emerging from a celestial lake. Water sluiced down her body and back into the tub. He watched as narrow rivulets dripped a path down her chest, over the swell of her breasts only to linger on the tip of her perfectly brown, cherry-tipped nipples before falling off and landing in the shallow pool at her feet. Each droplet had taunted him before it left her body and fell with a delicate plop into the tub. As he watched another few droplets they had called out to him. “Arnav chase me!….Arnav trace me!…..Arnav taste me!” His mouth went dry, dangerously close to succumbing to those teasing drops of water, when he saw goosebumps on her flesh. He quickly sobered up and held the towel closer to her body before wrapping it around her.

Khushi stepped into the towel and rested her palms at the sides of his taut torso, her hands hungry to feel his warmth. She leaned her head forward, letting her nose graze his clavicle as her lips came to rest over the skin covering his heart. She lightly puckered her lips to lay an open mouth kiss there.

Arnav felt a current shoot through his body at the feel of his wife’s soft lips. He bent to scoop her out of the tub and commenced to carry her into their bedroom.

As Khushi reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, she’d heard her husband’s heart beat pick up pace. Her Arnavji was a man of few words when it came to love and emotion, but two things always spoke to her as clearly as day; his expressive eyes and his even more expressive heart. Anytime she heard that dhak dhak dhak, her own would start responding just as enthusiastically, like it was doing so right now. As her back met their soft mattress, she clutched a hand over her heart.

Arnav nuzzled her ear. “Khushi, turn around for me.” Her eyes met his with question for a moment, before she complied, not waiting for further explanation.

Khushi had just rested her head on the pillow when she felt the towel open, baring her back down to the base of her spine. Before the cool night air could caress her skin, she felt her husband’s hands. Thrill shot through her body at whatever he was about to do next. She felt his palms glide over her back and stroke all the way up to the nape of her neck before traveling back down. Her nostrils were filled with the light fragrance of peony and she realized he was using her favorite lotion. As her husband continued to knead away at muscles she hadn’t even realized were tense, she melted into the mattress. She let out a breathy moan when his fingers found a particularly pertinacious spot between her shoulder blades. Hey Devi Maiya, her Arnavji was blessed with the gift of touch. Every fiber of her being rejoiced and tingled with his knowing strokes. It was as if his hands were made solely for her body.

Once Arnav was satisfied that the muscles in her back had finally become pliable, he moved onto her feet once again. He grasped her heels, continued to press at her feet, and stretched her toes with long pulls of his fingers. “How do your feet feel now?” he asked in a hushed tone. All he received was a low moan of approval. He smiled to himself and continued up her supple calves. His thumbs and fingers rubbed deep circles over her lower legs and back down until her flesh finally yielded and softened under his hands. He continued to massage up her thighs, rimming the edge of the towel that still covered her delectable derriere. He’d done that intentionally, not to so much for her modesty, but more so for his own sanity. As much as he always desired Khushi, he didn’t want to exhaust her in any way in the middle of this competition. So he kept his mind focused on her alone. Khushi was a slight thing, but she was healthy with plenty of stamina. As he continued to stroke and rub her thighs, he couldn’t keep his mind from wandering to how deliciously tight those same thighs gripped his hips when he was inside her. Yes, he knew her strength very well and often reveled in it.

Every time Khushi felt his skillful hands climb up her thighs she had hoped he would keep going higher. But after a few massaging strokes, she realized that was not his intention. She leaned over to chance a look at her husband. His eyes were trained on wherever his hands went. She couldn’t believe that all that sheer brilliance, and all that concentration was acutely focused on her alone. She was one lucky woman. He had left no area neglected….well almost no area neglected, with the exception of one or two pertinent ones that she really wished he would further delve into and explore. She was becoming restless. The ache in her feet was gone, but now she ached elsewhere, in a whole different way.  Her eyes wandered over his body as he continued on. The lines of his carved body shifted and flexed with every sinuous movement he made, hypnotizing her. Along with being shirtless, she noted he had abandoned his pants as well. All this pampering made her feel as if she were a royal queen being serviced by her hunky concubine serf. Her husband must’ve felt her penetrating gaze because his eyes darted up to meet hers. She quickly turned her head away and rested her forehead on the cool sheets beneath her. Her face had gone aflame at the thought of where her wild imagination had just taken her. She languidly stretched like a lazy cat as her body continued to melt under his fingertips. “Arnavji, I could get used to this. What would people say if they found out the sponsor was seducing a contestant?”

Arnav leaned over his wife as he began to massage her arms. “I’m not a sponsor. In this house, in this room, in this bed, I’m only your husband. And you’re not a contestant.”

Khushi smiled with her eyes closed. “No? Then what am I?”

Arnav leaned in even closer, letting his chest brush her back and his lips brush her ear. “The person I cherish the most, my wife.”

Khushi shivered as his warm breath tickled her ear, and his huskily spoken words invaded her heart. She quickly turned onto her side to face him as he lay on his side, next to her. “Arnavji, I’m sorry about the past few days, I should’ve told you about this competition. Just that when you said those things the other day….”

Arnav interrupted his wife’s rambling by cupping her cheek and stroking across it. “Khushi, you don’t have to apologize. I shouldn’t have said all those things and pushed you. I’m sorry.”

Even though her Arnavji was able to apologize to her without hesitance now, she knew how hard it was for him to say those two words. She softened even more and placed her palm over his heart. He unraveled her hair and dropped sweet kisses on her forehead, cheeks, and finally landed on her mouth. She began traversing her hand lower down his abdomen, but to her dismay his kiss had been brief and chaste.

He caught her roaming hand in his to still her descent. “Khushi, you’re tired. You should rest up for tomorrow.”

“Arnavji, I’m never too tired to be your wife.”

Before Arnav could argue, his wife had silenced him with a kiss. She softly coaxed his mouth open to invite his tongue to join hers. All the while her small hand had found its way into his boxer briefs, cupping his blatant desire. Even though he’d tried his best to distract himself, touching Khushi had undoubtedly affected him, as it always had. Now she was the one who deliciously stroked him, as her mouth licked at his bottom lip, setting a fire deep in his belly. When his wife’s thumb grazed across his sensitive head, he broke the kiss to let out a groan. He opened his eyes to find his Khushi staring at him, eyes sparkling with rapture. His hand reached up to pull the towel away from her body, finally giving in to the sweet, sweet inevitable.

Khushi smiled right before her Arnavji finally gave in and kissed her. She continued to stroke his manhood as he unleashed his mouth onto hers. He teased her with his lips and teeth before diving in to kiss her deeply, just as she’d been wanting this whole time. She felt his hand palm her breast, finally paying attention to one of those pertinent spots he’d missed before. His fingers circled around her areola before rubbing across her nipple. She sighed into his mouth and tilted her head, inviting him deeper. She felt his fingers pinch her sensitive peak and she instinctively tightened her grasp on his member. They both moaned in unison, unwilling to break the kiss.

Arnav’s hands couldn’t get enough of her. He’d been touching her body for the past two hours, non-stop, and it was nowhere near enough. His hand traveled down her flat belly, over her hip, until his fingers found the seam of her femininity. As he explored a little further, he encountered warmth and slickness. A sound of satisfaction rumbled from his chest, as his wife’s hand continued to heighten his pleasure.

As she felt his tongue curl around hers and glide back with a tug, her husband’s clever fingers had simultaneously found her clitoris and began tormenting circles around it. She wanted to cry out with the acuity of her pleasure, but his kiss had her ensnared. She didn’t know what to focus on, her body distracted with the sensations of his kiss, his fingers, and her grasp on his livelihood. Her mind went blank as he inserted his fingers into her, his thumb still on her clitoris. As he began to push his digits in and out of her, she instinctively began stroking him faster.

Arnav pulled away from her sweet mouth to let out a gasp of pleasure. He slowly pulled his fingers out and rested his forehead against hers. “Sweetheart, stop” he managed to pant breathlessly. He hastily lowered his boxer-briefs. “I need to be inside you.”

Khushi began to lean onto her back before her husband caught her right leg and brought it over his left hip. He drew her extremely close to the warmth of his body. She met him face to face, chest to chest, intimate part to intimate part. Her breath hitched as he finally thrust into her.

“God Khushi, why do you always feel so perfect wrapped around me?” Arnav pondered aloud in ecstasy.

Khushi knew it had been a rhetorical question, but she often wondered the same thing. Why did her Arnavji always feel so perfect inside her? Her thought process vanished as he began to thrust. Just as he was blessed with the gift of touch, he was also blessed with the gift of lovemaking. They stared at each other as he continued to enter and leave her body, her arms coming up to wrap around his neck. Something about lying on her side, facing him like this as they made love made her feel extremely close and connected to him. She dug her heel into his thigh and surged her hips forward to meet his thrust just as he wrapped an arm around her waist to hold her even closer.

Arnav was crazy if he thought he could’ve abstained from making love to his wife. If there was ever something Arnav Singh Raizada would admit defeat to it was his love and desire for the woman in front of him. He leaned in to take her mouth as his hand cupped her behind and pressed her closer into himself. He went as far deep as her body would welcome him, needing to be fully joined with her.

Khushi’s pulse raced as that sweet, sharp feeling began to resonate in her veins. Her husband began to swivel in and out, touching upon that dark secret place inside her, which she herself never knew existed, until him. She would fall over the crest any second now. The sensations became excruciatingly acute as he continued to glide in and out of her body. She knew her husband would not have his own satisfaction until hers was seen to first. But she was determined to take him with her this time. As she felt the wave of her release begin to pulse, she clenched down onto his length and held on with every retreat he continued to make. He pulled his mouth away from hers.

“Khushi…”

Feeling truly and fully feminine, Khushi continued to clutch at her husband’s girth as she felt herself explode. She tightened her insides with all her strength, releasing a moan at the sensation, until she finally felt her husband’s release and heard his groan of pleasure.

Arnav held his wife close as he rolled onto his back, taking her with him. He was completely spent and relished the feel of her body draped over his. He rubbed lazy circles over her hip and dropped a kiss on her crown. “Khushi…” he waited until those mesmerizing hazel depths met his own. “….I love you.”

Khushi tightened her arms around her husband and snuggled further into his chest. “Arnavji, I love you too.”

“Khushi, you’re the most resilient person I know. You’re going to kick ass in this competition” Arnav divulged with some husbandly pride.

“But Arnavji, no one can know I’m your wife. How will we manage that?”

“Simple. I’ll be your sponsor by day and husband by night.” He didn’t have to look to know that his Khushi was now smiling. “Khushi, are you feeling better?”

Khushi tilted her head and gazed at her husband. She stroked her hand across his chest, down to the side of his torso. “Arnavji, you definitely took care of all of my aches.” She smiled brightly as her husband replied with a breathtaking one of his own.