‘Oh god, no,’ he chuckled, then wrapped his arm around her waist. ‘Sweetheart, I’ve been going out of my mind without you. I cannot even imagine being away from you.’
She looked away because she was afraid to ask for it. ‘Abhay, I need to know. If you’d known about my condition before, would you still have chosen me?’
‘Meri jaan, I already chose you when we were kids, and with time, my madness for you has only consumed me more. I know we can’t have it all and I can accept a life without kids. But a life without you by my side is no life at all. Our home feels too large and empty without you. Come back to me, please.’
‘Where else would I go?’she chuckled through tears.
‘I’m still shocked that you took my last name. Not complaining, though,’ he said cheekily.
‘It’s mine now, too,’ she said and she smiled softly and laid a kiss on his lips. ‘I love you, Abhay.’
‘I love you so much, baby. Now, stop distracting me before I lock the door and take you right here,’ he whispered against her lips and reluctantly pulled back. ‘Where have you been?’
‘I was with Dhruv. We’ve been going through Dad’s finances, contracts and deals he made to gather proof in case he tried to challenge the will or resist stepping down. And in the meantime, we registered my new company, moved the necessary assets, and shifted legal ownership of all jewellery to me. I needed it airtight.’
‘Did you find anything?’
She nodded. ‘We found plenty of questionable transactions and every forged document he presented to our investors. Dhruv… he found a lot more.’
He’d been so caught up with relief that he missed the person she had named. ‘Wait a second, you were staying with Dhruv and Vihaan?’
She chuckled at the dumbfounded look on his face as he tried to stitch together that image. ‘Yes, and somehow, we survived it. Dhruv is less insufferable when Vihaan is around, until they begin debating over any stupid topic. And Dhruv is not who I thought he was. There’s still a long way to go, but I think we’ve both realised that we are not each other’s enemy.’
‘You could’ve told me, Siya. You didn’t have to do this alone.’
‘I had to,’ she insisted. ‘It had to be done in silence and secrecy. I didn’t want this leading back to you, not if it got ugly.’
He opened his mouth to answer but Siya placed her palm lightly against his chest to stop him. ‘You’ve always protected me, no matter what. This time, it’s my turn to protect you.’
Abhay exhaled a slow, ragged breath. ‘You drive me insane, you know that?’
She smiled widely and said, ‘Yeah, but you still love me.’
‘I do,’ he accepted, pressing a kiss to her temple.
The door smashed open and Kartik stalked in. ‘How dare you try to throw me out of my company?’
Siya winced at the loud interruption, and when she noticed his blazing eyes and tight fists, she turned to face him head on. ‘I thought I made myself clear, Dad. Kashyap Luxe is dissolved.’
He stopped just a few feet away. ‘You went behind my back, humiliated me publicly, and tried to steal my company from me!’
‘It’s not your company,’ she said, and the conviction in her voice deepened when she felt Abhay stand behind her, as her shield.
‘It is! You’re such a bitch who isn’t grateful for what I’ve achieved and what I’ve given you,’ Kartik shouted.
Siya gripped Abhay’s hand in a vice when she felt him step forward to confront Kartik. She held her father’s gaze and said, ‘What I wanted was a home, but what you gave me was a place to survive.’
‘So now what? You take everything and leave me to rot?’
‘I’m not taking everything. I’ve left you with enough money to survive, and to build something of your own. The only reason I didn’t show your real face and your evil deeds to the public is because I respect my mother and the love she had for you, evenwhen you don’t. But your reign of terror is over, Dad. You’re on your own.’
He squared his shoulder, rage vibrating off him in waves as he stalked forward. ‘You think you’ve won, Siya? You think I’ll just roll over? I will fucking sue you, and drag you through every court in this country. I’ll show you what real power looks like then. You don’t know what I’m capable of.’
‘But I do,’ Dhruv interrupted him, shattering his bubble. He strolled into the room as he said, ‘I know about the hidden loan from the bank that was claimed for “strategic expansion in Japan”. I know how you sold shares of our US subsidiary overseas at a loss just to escape bankruptcy. And I know how, when the creditors closed in, you mortgaged Arohi ji’s personal jewellery to save yourself. And if this ever reaches a courtroom, I’ll be Siya’s key witness.’
‘You?’ Kartik spat as he swung to face him. ‘I brought you home from an orphanage and this is how you thank me? I gave you a family, a name, everything you have, and instead of being grateful, you stab me in the back?’
Dhruv didn’t flinch, but his fists were curled so tight that they practically trembled with the tension. ‘You want to talk about gratitude? Let’s do it. I’ve spent my life being grateful that you didn’t throw me out of your house, that you let me eat at your table while all you did was keep me around like an insurance policy.’
