Circle of Trust

Chapter 10

Varun couldn't complete the sentence even in his head. He couldn't blame Naina for walking out. What was wrong with him? He hadn't really been suspecting her of an affair, did he? She loved him; she was crazy about him. There were times when he thought she was more emotionally dependent on him than he was on her. So why had he let the seed of doubt grow in his mind? He had let it take root; he couldn't deny it.

She had been right in reading his expression. Doubt. What if? But had she also sensed his fear alongside those? He didn't think so. If she had, she would have been here consoling him instead of shutting the door on him. She had a thing for lost causes.

Varun dropped down on his bed and clutched his head in his hands. She was right again. Had he really let the past go inspite of promising her he would? If after eight years, a simple phone call from that bastard friend of his could rile him up to the point of obsessing over it then he really needed to rethink how far they have come.

He needed to find her and apologize, something he was doing quite regularly nowadays.  But before that, he had to take his mother somewhere. His stomach churned at having to revisit the place. But, the chances of his mother signing over the sale deed was high if he let her look at the mansion and recollect why it would be in their best interests to let the place go. He was confident he could get his mother to see his point.

Dressed in casuals, he sprinted down the stairs, and searched every room for his wife. He entered the room that was being renovated. The walls were covered with plastic sheets and there were four men working to get the room ready for his mother in a week. She wasn't there either.

"Naina drove out an hour ago, Varun," his mother said. Was it disappointment or disapproval he heard in her voice?

He frowned. "Did she tell you where she was going?"

"Did she tell you?" her mother asked. If it weren't for her soft voice, he would have thought she was rebuking him.

Giving her a hard glare, he shook his head.

"We can wait for her and go when she returns," her mother said, resting her back against the living room settee.

It took a moment for Varun to realize that he had asked him mother to be ready by 9 to visit the mansion.

"No, we'll go now. I have couple of hours before I need to get to work."

"But, I thought Naina will be coming with us," she sounded reluctant to go anywhere without there.

That was plain crazy since she was going out with none other than her son. She didn't need a chaperone. He gritted his teeth and glowered at his mother.

"I am capable of taking care of you for couple of hours," he said, mockingly.

She was about to protest but decided against it. "Okay, I'll get my specks."

He took the opportunity to call Naina, but changed his mind right when the call was about to go through. She wouldn't pick up anyways. Calling himself all kinds of names, he shoved his phone into his pocket. He shut his eyes and counted to ten to stop the urge from rushing out in search of her. When it didn't work, he started counting to twenty and back.

The powerful fragrance of Jasmine hit his nostrils before he felt his mother's fingers gently smooth the creases in his forehead. He opened his eyes and for the first time, he let his mother see the moisture gathering in his eyes.

She sighed and patted his cheek. "She'll be back soon. Naina doesn't take long to cool down."

"Ma..." he hesitated. "We didn't mean to fight..." He looked at their room, nervous about how much his mother had heard.