Mishti paused mid-step. “Dubai?”
“Yes.” He nodded. “And that’s the strange part. The meeting in Dubai isn’t until next week. Anyone could have handled it. There was absolutely no need for him to go personally.” He frowned slightly, clearly puzzled. “Rajat and I didn’t even know. We found out just now from his assistant. Maria confirmed it too. He left with his bags before sunrise.”
Mishti did not ask another question. She did not need to. She knew exactly why Karan had left like this, without a word, without an explanation, without even the courtesy of informing her. Because of last night.
That kiss.
That moment he had not planned, and yet had not stopped.
If he hated her and didn’t want to give a chance to their marriage, why kiss her like that? For days, he had made it a pointto remind her that she would never have the rights of his wife, that he would never claim her. Even when circumstances forced him physically close to her, he always ensured he wounded her with cruel words before walking away and leaving her alone. And yet, last night, he had lost control, and the kiss had happened. Probably, that shocked him, and now this was his way of pulling himself back. Of rebuilding the walls, he had let crumble for a few minutes.
Distance from her had always been Karan’s strongest weapon, and he had chosen it again. This time, miles of it. Making her wait, wonder and suffer with questions she knew he would never answer.
Mishti herself still could not believe that the kiss had happened. For her, something as simple as a kiss demanded a deep emotional bond first, a space where feelings were shared and understood before heading toward physical closeness. Between her and Karan, none of that existed.
They did not share normal conversations, laughter or even honesty. Their marriage was built on bitterness and resentment. The kiss had come out of nowhere, leaving her shaken in its wake.
But now she promised herself it would never happen again, not until she understood where their marriage truly stood and what place, if any, she held in Karan’s life.
**************
The entire two weeks that followed passed without his return, and Mishti learnt very quickly that waiting for Karan would only hollow her out. He did not leave a message, did not call her, did not even send word through someone about when he would be back. For a man who controlled everything down to the smallest detail, the silence was definitely deliberate.
She thought of calling him more than once. Her fingers had almost hovered over her phone late at night, but each time shestopped herself. She knew him well enough now to understand that he would not answer, and she refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing she had tried. If he wanted distance, she would not chase him into it.
Work slowly became her refuge. The office gave her something solid to hold on to when the house felt too large and empty. She began spending longer hours there, arriving early and leaving late, not because she wanted to prove anything to anyone, but because the work demanded her presence and, in doing so, distracted her from missing a man who had never been truly hers.
KW Capital, which had once felt intimidating and foreign, began to make sense to her. She studied files, observed meetings, asked questions when she needed clarity and listened when she did not.
She’d also started working officially on the Trinity project. Mishti poured herself into it, staying back after office hours too at times, reading through data until the words blurred, taking notes, reworking projections, learning as she went. Because failure was not an option she could afford. If she had been placed here as part of the company board, watched so closely, then she would give no one a reason to doubt her capability.
Rajat and Abhimanyu’s guidance and support became her anchors during those days. They helped her where she got stuck, never making her feel small for not knowing enough.
And yet, no matter how busy she kept herself, her gaze would often drift to the table lamp on her desk, which was Karan’s surveillance upon her. His unseen presence. Some days, she wondered if Karan was still watching from wherever he was, observing her routines, her expressions, her silences.
Even by the end of the second week, there was no update on Karan’s return. He was in touch with Rajat and Abhimanyu, yes, but even to them he hadn’t given a definite return date.He continued to handle work from Dubai, which should have required his presence in Mumbai.
Something in her snapped. If Karan could still see her, follow her work day through that lamp while she was clueless about him, then she would no longer play the helpless wife. It was time he tasted his own medicine.
She picked up the intercom and asked the peon to come to her cabin. When he arrived, she asked him calmly to remove the lamp from her desk and place it in Karan’s cabin instead.Anywhere but here, she added quietly. The peon hesitated for a fraction of a second, then reached for the lamp, whenhissharp voice echoed in the room.
“Do nottouch it.”
Mishti’s breath caught as she turned towards the door. Karan stood there, filling the doorway in a tailored ivory three-piece suit, looking handsome as usual. His eyes were fixed on the peon in a warning. The man immediately put the lamp back in its place, muttered an apology, and left the cabin that very moment.
Silence settled between them once the door closed. Karan’s gaze then shifted to Mishti. “Your habit of defying me has not gone yet,” he said.
She had not expected him to return like this, at this exact moment, as though summoned by her decision. But one thing was sure. He had been watching. He knew her routines. He probably even had anticipated this.
Instead of shrinking under his stare, Mishti straightened. She was already standing beside the desk. For days, while he hadn’t been here, she had wondered how their next meeting would unfold after that kiss. She had promised herself that no matter how brutally he tried to corner her again with his words, no matter what bitter justification he chose to offer,if he even offered one regarding the kiss,she would no longer submit.
But now, as he advanced toward her with that commanding stride, all her rehearsed strength began to dissolve. Karan carried an aura like that. It was overwhelming and not meant for the weak.
“I… I don’t like being watched,” she said quietly.
“It’s onlymewatching you. No one else.” His response was immediate. “And it’s not just the lamp. This entire cabin has been modified to keep an eye on you. There are corners here you don’t even know exist. And they all have eyes on you.My eyes.And they always will.”
Shock slammed into her. She hadn’t known there were more cameras. This was an invasion, control taken to another level entirely.
