Tanya whirled around. “What? What happened?”
“Condom. How the fuck did I forget? Damn! I’m sorry.” Neil looked stricken, panicked even.
“Will it be terrible if there are consequences?” Tanya’s quiet voice broke the tense silence.
“Are you kidding me? Of course! You’re just coming up in your career. I am already shunting between so many places. How will we deal with a kid? Especially an unplanned one?”
If Tanya had had any doubts about his feelings towards her, his statement erased it completely. She paled and swallowed the sudden lump against her throat. “Don’t worry, it’s safe. I…I am due any day.”
“Thank God!” Neil ran his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry. I’d definitely be more careful henceforth.” Before he could pull her into his arms, Tanya stepped into the shower, neatly stepping away from him.
That night, Tanya hardly slept. Her stomach churned with worry at her one-sided love for Neil.What am I going to do? How will I protect myself from getting hurt? Is it too late already?Tanya realized the pain and hurt of loving Neil was nothing compared to the crush that she’d had for Ritwik. She almost threw up at the prospect of Neil moving on with another woman. She finally decided to make the most of her time with Neil. She saw no point in ruining her happiness, however fleeting it was likely to be.I love him for both of us. That should do, isn’t it?
Chapter 16
Neil swirled the pen around his fingers, absently. Something was wrong with Tanya, but he couldn’t identify the issue. By now Neil knew when to trust his gut instinct. All that he knew was that she was not her usual open and generous self the past week. He locked the computer and got up from his desk. Just as he walked towards Tanya’s desk, he saw his best friend talking to Tanya. The only problem? His best friend was also an unashamed womanizer. Armaan Mailk, the well-known billionaire and party animal, was now making Tanya, his Tanya, blush. Seeing red at the picture in front of him, Neil walked towards the oblivious two people.
“Did you want to see me?” The icy voice broke Tanya and Armaan’s tete-a-tete.
Armaan barely looked at Neil. “That was my intention, yes. But, I was stopped by this beautiful thing.” He flashed his sexy grin at Tanya, a sure shot move that usually worked with the ladies.
Tanya looked at Armaan in surprise, before looking at Neil. Her eyes widened at Neil’s outraged expression. She looked back at Armaan before she quickly spoke. “Er…”
Neil turned around, not waiting for Tanya to speak. He quickly moved towards his cabin, not bothering to wait for his friend to catch up. He almost slammed the door close before he bared his teeth at his friend. “That woman is off limits. You hear me?”
Armaan simply raised a brow. “Chill! I didn’t know that she was taken.”
“You better keep it in your pants while you’re in my property.” Neil almost snarled.
Armaan whistled. “The high and mighty has fallen, after all.” A shit eating grin caught his handsome face.
“What the hell are you talking about?” Neil’s expression didn’t soften one bit.
“The fact that the tiny woman there has you wrapped around her little finger.”
Neil frowned, not realizing the all too evident feelings that were just beneath the surface. “This is not about me. You behave!”
Armaan put up his hands. “Sure, sure! I came up to see why you and that asshole Arjun aren’t responding to my messages.”
Neil ran a distracted hand through his hair. “He…he’s with a client. On call!”
For the first time after coming into the room, Armaan turned serious. “Really? Anyone we know? Is he okay?”
“Yeah, it’s…hmm…Natasha.”
Armaan’s eyes widened. “The same one who…”
“Yep. The very same.”
Armaan simply nodded his head and went towards the door. That was one past he had no intention of reminiscing. “Well, if you don’t want me to come to your domain, better pull yourself out of the tiny woman’s bed and meet me.”
Neil simply threw his pen at a laughing Armaan and muttered a curse. He barely sat down before Tanya came into his room. “Who was that and why were you so rude to him?”
Neil got up and immediately went towards Tanya. “My college mate, best friend, and a pain in the ass. Anyway, I’ve been meaning to ask you something.”
“What?”
“Is everything okay with you? With us?” Neil caught Tanya’s waist and pulled her closer.
