13 Chapter 13

He woke up startled the next morning and turned to see that the bed was empty next to him. He immediately remembered last night's events and rushed out to find Sneha. She was sleeping on the couch and he heaved a sigh of relief and thanked God that Sneha hadn't left him. She was curled up trying to fit comfortably on the couch and her nightgown had rolled up to her thighs; Rohan had the impulse to pick her up and put her on the bed but stopped himself short of doing it.

He went to her, shook her slightly and said, "You must go to bed and sleep there, it must be uncomfortable here."

Sneha got up and went inside the bedroom without uttering a word. Normally she would have gone to the kitchen and prepared a cup of tea for him but today she didn't feel like it. She was angry and didn't want to talk to him.

However, she couldn't sleep any longer but wanted to stay in bed because of a nasty headache. She was thinking about what happened last night and wondered, 'Did Rohan really hate her so much or was it that little smile she gave him while he was looking at her that irked him? Was there a fleeting chance he was becoming attracted to her?' The more she thought about it her headache got worse.

'Oh God! I need to rest! Please help me forget these thoughts!' she cried to herself.

Fifteen minutes later Rohan came into the room. She immediately closed her eyes to fake sleep but Rohan caught her in her silly act. He smiled and held out a cup of tea. "I've made some tea for you. Would you like some?"

She would have loved to because of her terrible headache but thought of refusing it anyway. She couldn't help accepting this sincere, generous offer from him. She took the cup and started sipping the tea with a comforting pleasure. 'This doesn't mean I have forgiven you,' she said to him in her mind and then looked up angrily at Rohan.

"I know."

Sneha was shocked to hear those two words coming from him. She hadn't asked her question out loud so how did he know what she was thinking? 'Did she accidently say it out loud?' Her confusion was obvious and Rohan enjoyed every moment of it. He gazed fondly at her and smiled.

"It's Saturday and you have to come to my office at about 11 a.m., remember?"

Sneha wanted to tear the entry pass up and throw it into the dustbin. She wanted to go home to her papa instead where she'd feel safe and loved.

"Is it okay if I don't come today?" She sounded silly because she was the one who had wanted to go, but now with this headache and the tension between them, she didn't know if she would be able to behave normally.

She looked up at Rohan and announced, "I have a bad headache."

Rohan looked concerned. He went to fetch his medicine kit and retrieved it from the cupboard and looked for Crocin. He gave one tablet to Sneha and asked her to rest for the day. He added that she should only come if she felt better. He also told her in case she didn't feel any better she should stay in bed.

Rohan left to get ready for the office. He felt guilty hearing about Sneha's headache and hoped she would feel better soon. When he went to leave an hour later he could see that Sneha had fallen asleep again. He smiled and closed the door quietly as he left the room.