Forbidden Heat

**Chapter 1: Unspoken Sparks**

Divya tapped her foot impatiently on the polished hardwood floor of Vidya’s sprawling bungalow, her crimson saree clinging to her curves like a second skin. She had come over to catch up with her best friend, but Vidya’s sudden work emergency had left her stranded with an unexpected companion—Sunil, Vidya’s devilishly handsome husband. He stood by the bar counter, pouring a glass of whiskey, his dark eyes flicking toward her with a heat that could melt steel.

“Looks like it’s just us, Divya,” Sunil drawled, his voice a low rumble that sent a shiver down her spine. He handed her a glass, his fingers brushing hers deliberately. “Care to keep me company, or are you too good for a lonely man’s hospitality?”

Divya smirked, taking the glass and sipping it with a challenging glint in her eyes. “Oh, Sunil, I’m never too good for anything. Question is, can you handle me? I’m not one of your tame little housewives.”

His laughter was sharp, edged with something dangerous. “Tame? Darling, I’ve been itching to see just how wild you can get. Vidya’s stories don’t do you justice.” He stepped closer, the scent of his cologne—woodsy and intoxicating—wrapping around her like a caress.

She tilted her head, her long black hair cascading over one shoulder, and met his gaze head-on. “Careful what you wish for. I bite back.” Her words were a dare, a spark tossed into dry tinder, and she saw the way his jaw tightened, the hunger in his eyes flaring.

Sunil set his glass down with a deliberate clink, closing the distance between them until she could feel the heat radiating off his body. “Bite all you want, Divya. I’ve got plenty of fight in me.” His hand grazed her waist, fingers digging into the fabric of her saree as if he could tear through it with sheer will.

Her breath hitched, but she didn’t pull away. Instead, she leaned in, her lips hovering just an inch from his. “You think you can keep up? I don’t play nice, and I don’t break easy.”

“Oh, I’m counting on it,” he growled, and before she could throw another barb, his mouth crashed into hers. The kiss was raw, hungry, a clash of teeth and tongues that left her dizzy. Her hands fisted in his shirt, pulling him closer, her nails scraping against his chest as if she could mark him as hers.

He backed her against the counter, his hands roaming with a possessiveness that made her pulse race. “You’ve been driving me insane for years,” he muttered against her neck, his lips trailing fire down her skin. “Every damn time you walk in here, all I can think about is how you’d taste.”

Divya laughed, a throaty sound that was half challenge, half invitation. “Then stop thinking and start doing, Sunil. I’m not here for your daydreams.” She tugged at his collar, pulling him down as her legs parted just enough to let him press against her, the hard evidence of his desire unmistakable through his trousers.

His eyes darkened, a wicked grin spreading across his face. “Oh, I’m going to devour you, Divya. Every inch. Starting right now.” He dropped to his knees, his hands sliding up her thighs, pushing the saree higher as he looked up at her with a hunger that made her core clench. Her breath came faster, anticipation building as his fingers teased the edge of her panties, his gaze locked on hers, daring her to stop him.

She didn’t. She wouldn’t. Divya arched a brow, her voice dripping with command. “Make it worth my while, Sunil. I don’t settle for less.”

And as his lips found the sensitive skin of her inner thigh, inching closer to where she was already wet with want, she knew this was only the beginning of a fire that would consume them both.