She stopped walking, her spine going ramrod straight. Daksh walked up to where she stood and held the shirt out again.
She grabbed it and pulled it over her head. It swamped her, the fabric pooling around her knees, the sleeves slipping off her shoulders. It was baggier than her ugly dress but for some reason…the sight of her wearing his t-shirt had his chest tightening ominously.
Her gaze dropped to his naked chest and fluttered back to his face. “And if the Mathur heir falls sick?”
“Nobody would care,” he told her brusquely before turning away. “Let’s go.”
They walked back to the shack in silence, both lost in their thoughts. Daksh left his camera and the rest of their belongings with the manager before ushering Vedika into the little boutique attached to the entrance of the shack.
Vedika grabbed a few dresses from the meagre collection and disappeared into the trial room. Daksh picked up a plain black t-shirt, paid for it and shrugged into it as he waited for her to appear again.
When she did, it was in a bright pink sundress that left her shoulders bare and hugged her bosom, flaring out to fall in soft waves around her knees. Her hair was still damp but fell in a heavy waterfall over one shoulder as she self-consciously tugged at the neckline trying to get it to cover more of her.
And for the second time that night, Daksh felt his chest tighten. Apparently, it didn’t matter what Vedika Thakkar wore. A shapeless, brown dress, his fraying, threadbare t-shirt or a pretty, pink sundress. She was brutally captivating in all of them.
As he stood there staring at her, his words from earlier came rushing back to him, a prophetic whisper.
Even the fiercest predators know fear.
CHAPTER 17
VEDIKA
Vedika’sdamp hair studded with salt crystals and sand stuck uncomfortably to her back as she shifted in the dress she’d just bought. It was too bright, too form fitting, too much… How had Daksh managed to find a plain, black t-shirt that fit him perfectly in the same amount of time?
She yanked at the neckline as they left the store, trying to get it to cover more than it did. Sadly, it stayed resolutely low on her chest.
“Daksh,” she murmured, as they left the shop. “I want to go back to the room and shower. You can stay here and grab dinner but I think I’ll just get something with room service.”
He turned to look at her, his gaze a little strange, dark and unfocused. “To the room?”
“Yes.” Vedika nodded, bundling her messy hair together. There was too much of it to let it hang down her back in a sodden mess. “But you stay and enjoy your dinner. I’ll head back.”
“I’ll walk you to your room,” he said.
“Daksh no,” she smiled. “I’m a grown ass woman. I can get from the shack to the hotel on my own. You stay and have a relaxed meal. I’m pretty sure the food here is better than the food on the room service menu. I know you’ve been eyeing the lobster for dinner.”
“Fuck the lobster,” he said roughly. “I’ll walk you to your room.”
She slapped a hand to his chest halting his forward motion. Her palm burned and she dropped it quickly, trying to act like she’d felt nothing.
“Wait,” she said. She tapped her phone open and handed it to him. “Feed in your number.”
His dark gaze rested on her for a disquieting moment before he took the phone and entered his details. She glanced down to see he’d saved it as Daksh – Ashish’s brother. Something pinched in the vicinity of her chest but she pasted a bright smile on her face as she opened up a text window and sent him her live location.
“There,” she said brightly. “Now you can track me all the way back to my room.”
Daksh stared at his phone, at the message from her unsaved number. He swallowed hard and nodded. “Good night then. I’ll see you in the morning.”
She forced another smile to her lips. A strange fear swam through her as she looked at him. Great, now from being afraid of everything, she had graduated to being afraid of nothing in particular. Her stomach cramped, reminding her of her resolve to head back to her room.
“I’ll see you in the morning,” she said, that unease or fear growing in the pit of her stomach, spreading through her andurging her to move. And still, her feet stayed rooted in the same spot.
Daksh was watching her intently, something just the slightest bit off kilter in his expression. Her gaze dropped to his right hand which was fisted at his side, veins standing out with the pressure he was exerting.
Her phone rang, breaking the moment and she glanced down to see Ashish’s name flashing on it. She gave Daksh one last smile in farewell and turned away, her phone to her ear.
“Hi Ash.”
