‘Welcome to Berlin’
Swara: I can’tbelieve I slept the whole time. What time is it here?
she asked as she looked out the window to the rather quiet streets
Don: Around 1 am
Swara; Gosh. Aren’t you tired? Do you wantme to drive?
Don looked at her and giggled mockingly She raised an eyebrow
Swara: You’ve seen me drive the streets of Berlin before
Don: That I have.
he admitted)I’m fine. I’ll sleep when we arrive.
He pulled up to a tall nice building. Looked rather residential. He went over to open the door for her and help her out of the car she shivered. Maybe shorts weren’t such a good idea for Berlin, even if it was summer time.
Don: You’re cold
he put his arm around her, stroking her arms, warming her up
Don: Let’s hurry inside.
He kept caressing her arms as they entered the building, and Swara wasn’t surprised to see him press the penthouse button on the elevator panel.The sight of the place was breathtaking. It didn’t even compare to his apartment in Paris
Swara: Is this some sort of a 7 star hotel or something?
Don chuckled
Don: No, darling. There’s no checking out from here.
he raised his eyebrows She tried to ignore the look he gave her and looked around
Don: You know… now you’re my guest.
She turned and arched her brow, waiting for him to make his point
Don: That means I get to decide where you sleep…
Swara: I doubt there isn’t a guest room in this vast apartment.
she crossed her arms
Don: There is.
he said as he knelt in frontof the fireplace, starting the fire. He finally came upto her
Don: You’re not fit for a guest room.
She frowned
Don: You’ll be sleeping in the master suite.
She was getting ready to protest when he added
Don: Alone. I’ll take the guest room
She watched him return to the fireplace
Swara: I don’t feel comfortable taking your room.
Don: Oh, it’s comfortable!
he smiled at her and gestured at a doorfor her to go enter the roomShe walked towards the room and as she entered it she literally felt her jawhitting the hardwood floor. The centerpiece was the baldaquinking sized bed. The color scheme was simple yet elegant and luxurious, cream fabrics decoratingthe dark wood furnishings, gold accents here and there.
Everything was so breathtaking, she couldn’t even check out the bathroom, she knew it’d be too much to take in.
‘You like?’ she heard him right behind her
Swara: It’s so… you.
she said as she paced the room. She resolved that it was at least trice her own bedroom.
Don: How so?
Swara: Very masculine, yet elegant.
Don: Subtle yet…
Swara: Hm?
She couldn’t look him in the eye he arched his brow as he slowly got next to her, his hands at his back
Swara: It’s charming
shesaid, as though she had found a better word
Don: But do you like it?
he almost whispered, awfully close she knew they weren’t talking about the bedroom anymore, she hesitantly nodded and tried to smile, but his gaze was so intense she could barely breathe.
Don: Will you give it a chance, then?
his hand reached at the small of her back, his fingers gently caressing up and down her spine
Swara: I could try
she uttered
Don:Does it scare you?
he whispered in her ear
Swara:…It does, a little.
Don: You’re safe here, Swara.
he pressed her against his chest gently, and breathing in he continued whispering.
Don:
Come dear, set your world apart
And on me yourself bestow;
Even should I take your heart,
No one in the world would know.
Don left to sleep, Swara could see he was utterly exhausted. It wasn’t a sight she’d seen often. Piloting a jet for about 9 hours wasapparently no piece of cake, she thought. Was there anything this man couldn’t do? He insisted she’d make herself confortable and feel free to roam around and especially grab a bite to eat, then excused himself and she knew he’dbe going to sleep.
The penthouse was quiet, it was almost scary. She could hear the fire place, the place did need a bit of warming up, and now the fire was slowly dying on its own. She stared at it for a while then decided to go inspect the kitchen. Everything was so contemporary but at the same time so classic and tasteful that she really made a point to ask Don whether he’d had any contribution to it. She kind of already knew the answer, it was his style, all of it. It felt like an extension of Don’s persona.
She opened the fridge and wasn’t surprised to see it stacked. She decided on some brie cheese and cantaloupe slices, along with a glass of wine she found was already opened and left tochill on the counter.She could barely eat, the place was just too quiet. Andthe thought of Don sleeping in the guestroom sent chills down her spine. It was as if the lion was sleeping in his den and everything around him had to come to a halt.
She decided to stick to her room. She inspected it carefully and finally went for the closet. The walk-incloset. It took her breath away as she saw suits upon suits in different fabrics, shades, styles, dress shoes, loafers, dress shirts, casual shirts, jeans, belts… underwear. She couldn’t help but inspect the underwear more closely. She resolved that his wardrobe alone must have cost him a fortune. But then, when she was about to exit the closet she spotted dresses, shirts, jeans, lingerie, shoes, everything a woman could desire in her own size and style, justnear the entrance. He had lent her about a quarter of his closet. And that was a lot of space, considering the size of it. She gasped as she looked at every individual piece ofclothing, awe-struck.All of a sudden, she felt like chocking. This was all just too much. Sharing his closet like that feltlike a huge deal. Sharing his bedroom like this was a huge deal! She gasped for air but it didn’t reach her lungs.
She searched for the balcony door and walked into the crisp German air. She cooled off immediately but her mind was still lost in the daze of the last few days. It travelled overseas and got lost forever. She just knew it. And her heart? It was trapped in the lion’s den.It wasn’t until 4 o’clock in the morning that she decided she should try and sleep, not wanting to be jet lagged the next day. She tried to find something comfy to wear to bed but Don had provided her with just satin or lace baby dolls. Eventually she had to snatch a plain white t-shirt of his own and slide under the black Egyptian cotton bedding.
Her heart skipped a beat when she saw something stare at her from atop the baldaquin. It took her a few moments to realize it was her own reflection. It was so typical of Don to have a mirror framed into his four poster king size bed, in which to stare at, at nights, contemplating world domination. Or just admiring himself as he made love to various women? She turned to lay on her chest, trying to dismiss that thought. Just how many women had visited that bed, she didn’t want to know.It must have been that thought on which she drifted to sleep, explaining bits of the nightmare she remembered as she woke up the next morning.
Not knowing what time it was, she went to take a shower in Don’s ridiculous marble bathroom. She wrapped herself in one of his black, D-embroidered towels, and stepped out of the bathroom and headed towards the closet to find herself something to wear, when she let out a scream as she jumped two steps back
‘Good morning’ Don gave her a dimpled smile as he secured his watch on his wrists She tightened the towel around her
Don:…I’m sorry I startled you.
Swara: I had to get dressed.
he gave her a half smile and so he had. She didn’t even want to stare at him, but by the time she decided she wouldn’t, she realized she already was staring.He arched an eyebrow and she caught his smirk so she pointed out.
Don: I like what you’re wearing.
Swara: What, this old thing?
he wrinkled his nose pinching the hem of his black dress shirt, loosening it and exposing more of his sculpted chest
Don:May I, then?
he gestured over to her side of the closet.
To Be Continued