Claimed by the Hunk

Chapter 1

It was an hour since I was studying the man sitting on the seat beside me. I already had watched two movies and now my eyes were protesting when I started reading The Witch of Portobello by Paulo Coelho. It was not that I was blatantly looking at the handsome male with devouring eyes who was the living advertisement of sex. His activities were a bit different from the men I generally came across. His shoes were prim and proper and shining, he was wearing a suit even on a train journey. He was watching videos of someone crazy looking playing drums in a similar crazy manner. He received his phone-calls and took notes on his really high-tech gadgets with fingers and spoke in hushed tones referring to time by the 24-hour clock rather than the normal 12 hour pattern that we use. I was rather intrigued by his actions and appalled by the smell of the cigarettes he smoked.

With nothing useful to do on this boring home-coming 10 hour long train journey I finally decided to strike up a conversation with this dark, handsome male.

“Excuse me?”

“Yes,” his voice oozed a raw husky quality that I immediately fell in love with.

“May I know what do you do?”

“Yes, of course. Why not? I work for the Air force.”

OMG! I thought. Finally I am speaking to an Air force officer. This is just going great. My evening will be worth it.

“I thought that either you were an executive level officer or you are a top-level manager of an MNC,”I said.

He smiled and my heart skipped a beat.

He said,”Oh!no no,not an MNC. I am the Squadron Leader of, if you do not mind I am not actually allowed to reveal the details of my post.”

Loyalty. In-built or bred was a rare quality in 21st century men. I was now beginning to doubt that if this male was of this planet or not.

“No no, that is absolutely alright. So you are into rock music that too drums?”

“Yeah I love metals but mostly I prefer soft blues.”

As he started divulging more information about those eerie looking musical instruments I stopped him saying,” Actually I don’t have any knowledge about drums, I myself have been trained in Hindusthani classical music for several years. So I have no idea of metals or soft blues.”

“Well you can say the same in my case for Hindusthani classical music,”

“Are you a Jewish?” I asked him although his accent revealed none of the flaws,  that is normally possessed by others.

“Yes, I am.”

“Look, still we are speaking in English. That’s a shame, isn’t it?”

“It is, but you are not a Jewish right? So how come you speak Hebrew?”

“Now this is news. It is the first time I have been asked if I am a Jewish or not. Of course I am a Jewish.”

“But neither your face nor your language reveals your identity!”

“Same for your case. But I didn’t say that, did I?”

“Of course, you did not. I am Samael Lowell,”he said extending his hand.

“I am Cassandra Lowell, “I replied shaking his hands.

His hands were rough and calloused, but his grip was firm and gentle at the same time.

“Can I have a look at your hands? “I asked

“Why? Do you know how to read palms?”

“No. I want to look at why your hands are so rough like a pumice stone.”

“Ummmmmmmmm…………..well, my drums are guilty on that front.”

“Apply cold cream or olive-oil. They will soften down.”

“Are you nuts? Why does a man’s hand need softening up? Creams are for women.”

“They hurt. Atleast think of the girl you will marry. She will cry every time you touch her.”

“I know a fellow drummer who plays for a nation renowned rock-band. He has same hands like mine. He has married two years ago and has a son, that means………”

“That does not mean his wife has to be compulsorily happy with him. Is it?”

In between the conversation the conversation, my phone buzzed and I asked him to excuse me. My father asked my whereabouts since it was for the first and last time I was taking this journey alone. I told him that my train was somewhere between Chandrapura and Dhanbad. After I disconnected the call the conversation kept on going for some time when I realized that the train had not moved for quite some time.

I asked Samael if he could possibly know the problem by asking the T.T.E, then suddenly as if they had heard my question the loudspeakers answered that it has found that the rail-tracks have been removed for quite a distance and the train will be stranded here for the night. Due to the activity of the insurgents the rescue train would not arrive only after daybreak. I felt like I had been stabbed. I called my parents and as usual the typical family melodrama started.

Her face was stricken and tears glistened on her rosy cheeks. Her full lovely lips quivered as she sobbed on phone speaking to her parents. I was not being the knight in shining armour but it was a situation where any man with honour would have done the same thing.

In the meantime when Red Riding Hood beside me cried and spoke, I called my superior and explained the situation to him. He said it would be risky for me to travel by roads at night in the present conditions with a young girl. He said that he would arrange for a pick-up from the station where we were stranded and arrange for a guest house for staying the night nearby.

Would this be proper to tell this to her? She was a well-bred young girl of a respectable family, would she think that I was trying to take advantage of her?

She interrupted my steady train of thoughts by asking,” Isn’t there any other place where we can stay the nights instead of this crammed train seats?”

I looked at her with surprise evident on my face.” You would prefer that?”

“Of course. Why not? What do you think?”

“Then what did you cry for?”

“Oh! You fell for my act then. That was for my parents not for you. They wanted my behavior to be like damsel in distress, so I played the part. That’s it.”

“Then hats off, madam. You are a damn good actress.”

“Oh! Thanks for the compliment. It’s my pleasure.”

“My superior has arranged for a guest-house little faraway. Maybe it is a room on the top-floor of one of his subordinate’s house……”

“That is Elysium for me darling. You are my true hero.”

“Hmmmmmmmmmm…..but how can you give clean chit to a man you know barely for a couple of hours?”

“Oh! That’s quite easy. I have my own analysis on men which I am not going to share with you at this moment. When are we moving?”

“We can move now itself. Maybe the car has arrived and waiting for us at this moment. Just take the bag with the valuables in them and the rest of your luggage can be locked in the luggage van under the surveillance of the T.T.E. Would that suit you?”

“Yeah, that is perfectly fine.”

Then she stuffed some clothes in her small backpack, took her toiletries and essentials and within ten minutes we were ready to go. But I just couldn’t believe that this was really happening to me, it all still felt like a dream. I never went close to women because they were emotional burdens and liked to live their life only in the essence of their worldly pleasures and daily soaps. We moved out of the train and walked out of the dimly lit dead country station. A car was waiting for us. And to my dismay, it was an ambassador.

I really felt ashamed at what services were I providing to this girl, at this time.” I am sincerely sorry for all the problems you are facing and I cannot be of much help. This car……..”

She looked at me with fiery eyes and said,” Are you bonkers? It is an adventurous night, I am getting to ride in a classic vintage an ambassador, I don’t even know the name of this station. How many times in my life would I get a chance like this?”

The more I was seeing this girl the more stunned I was becoming. Instead of throwing tantrums as usually girls do she was taking this to be an adventure. Good Heavens!!!!!!!!! This female was defying all concepts I had about women.

She got into the car and got into the seat and as she adjusted herself in the backseat I took the front seat beside the driver.

“Why are you sitting in the front seat?” came a question from the back as expected.

“It is a protocol madam.”

“Oh my goodness! PROTOCOL? Are you kidding me? Samael for tonight sweep off all your protocols with a broom into a dust-pan and come to the back seat. Stop the car immediately.”

The car came to a halt and I had no other option left rather than moving into the back seat.