Tani’s lungs constricted as her vision greyed at the edges. Vik took a step forward, wrapping an arm around her, holding her up.
“Listen,” Varsha continued, sounding nothing like her normal, efficient, unshakeable self. “I’m at his hotel. Can you come? Please?”
Tani lifted her gaze. Vik was watching her. The worry in his eyes told her he’d heard everything.
Are you going to run? Or are you going to stick?
Her heart answered before her mind could catch up.
“I’m on my way.”
CHAPTER 39
KABIR
His head pounded,a relentless drum that kept time to the music. Music…he had to get ready for his concert, get these strangers out of his suite, and…
Before he could finish that thought, the door swung open again. Dammit, Varsha was a real pain in the ass. But when he turned to look, it wasn’t Varsha.
His vision zeroed in on that wild tangle of curls as she stood in the doorway taking in the scene. He saw Tani’s gaze drop to the arm he had wrapped around the strange girl whose name he still didn’t know. He fought the urge to remove his hand though it felt like her eyes were burning holes into it.
Tani walked into the room, followed closely by Vikram and Varsha. She stepped over a guy who was sprawled on the ground with his girl draped over him and walked over to the music system. She turned it off with a snap of her wrist and blessed silence fell on the room.
“Hey!” One of the guys objected, raising his hand like he was in a classroom and needed permission from his teacher. “Why are you guys-“
“Shut up.” Varsha swung her killer gaze on him and he subsided, lowering his hand like a chastised school boy. “Everybody out.”
Everyone’s heads swivelled towards Kabir who was still staring at Tani.
“Kabs?” Tani said, her voice level and coldly angry as she held his gaze.
“Everybody out,” he repeated, not looking away from Tani. Grumbles filled the room as everyone filed out. The emptier the room got, the more apparent the destruction was. Varsha’s expression kept souring as she took it in, until it looked like she’d swallowed an entire lemon tree.
The girl beside Kabir curled deeper into his side but he let go, stepping away from her, a silent rejection that had her eyes flashing. She stomped out after giving Tani the evil eye. Tani didn’t seem to notice, her eyes stayed on Kabir and Kabir only.
Vik was taking everything in, his eyes bright with interest. “This is awesome bro!”
Varsha turned on him, her gaze practically smoking. “Awesome? This is reckless, idiotic, and a fucking PR nightmare.”
Tani and Kabir didn’t look away from each other. “Could we have the room?” Tani asked quietly.
Varsha and Vik disappeared a second later, the door shutting behind them. And then, they were alone.
Kabir waited for her to say something…yell, scream, shout, cry…something…anything other than this blank, detached calmness with which she surveyed him.
“You’re here,” he said huskily.
Tani took a step back, closing her eyes and shaking her head in some silent message to herself. Then she mumbled, “Concert.”
“What?” Kabir’s head was spinning, the alcohol reeking from his every pore making him want to retch.
“Get into the bathroom,” she said, grabbing his arm and yanking him along.
The sudden motion had his stomach churning as all the excess alcohol sloshed around inside him. He barely made it to the toilet before he lost the contents of his stomach. A slim, cool hand cupped his forehead, bracing him as he retched over and over again, until it felt like there was nothing left inside him to bring out.
Her hand disappeared from his sweaty, clammy forehead and he felt the loss of it acutely. A second later, it reappeared with a glass of water in it. He took the glass gratefully, rinsing out his mouth before drinking some. He watched in silence as Tani turned on the shower in the cubicle, checking on the temperature of the water until she got it right.
Without a word, she held out a hand to him and he stood, his legs feeling wobbly and disjointed. She braced him against her side before helping him into the stall and under the shower.
