I lowered my head and kissed her.
Her fingers played with the hair at the nape of my neck, softly tugging, pulling me closer. The world shrank to the taste of her lips, the feel of her body against mine and my deep-seated desire to always have her close to me.
She pulled back and rested her cheek on my shoulder. Her breath teased my neck.
The dark sky had turned the floor-to-ceiling windows into a mirror. The city lights beyond blurred into streaks while our reflections stayed sharp.
What I saw wasn’t just us swaying. It was everything I wanted in a single moment. Love. Home. Her. The warmth unravelled into yearning. My heart pattered. ‘Ananya, I … I lo—’
‘Jai.’ My name came out in a shallow burst of breath. She took a step back. One trembling hand rose and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. Her eyes darted away.
Unease rippled through me. ‘Is everything okay?’
Her lips parted, then closed. Finally, she whispered, ‘I have something I need to tell you. I … I interviewed for the position of Suraina ma’am’s assistant. Not yours.’
‘Oh.’Why was she bringing this up right now?‘So, HR made a mistake. I might need to fire someone again,’ I joked. ‘But I’m particularly fond of its outcome, so maybe I’ll let them off with a warning. Save us another disagreement.’
She smiled, but it looked strained. ‘It wasn’t a mistake. I was given this job on purpose. By your mom. Rekha.’
‘What are you talking about?’
Ananya’s throat bobbed as she swallowed. ‘When I came in for my final interview, I found out that the job was already given to Krisha. I was crying in the bathroom, complaining to Rhea on the phone, when Rekha overheard me. She offered to … fix it.’
That didn’t sound too bad. While it wasn’t her place to do it, Mom was trying to do the right thing, especially because it was her actions that cost Ananya the job she deserved. ‘By handing you this job?’
She nodded, her chin trembling. ‘And promising me Krisha’s once it’s available.’
This was still outrageous. But not earth-shattering. Then why did Ananya’s eyes glisten as she looked away?
‘And ...’ Her voice trembled like a leaf clinging to a branch in a storm. An eerie sense of foreboding seeped into my bones, cold and unshakeable. ‘And in exchange, she asked me to keep an eye on you. And report to her.’
The words detonated. A ringing erupted in my ears, drowning the music, the room, everything except Ananya. For a moment, I thought I’d misheard. ‘What?’
‘She said there were problems within the company. Delays, leaks. Money going missing. She feared it was you. Said you were inexperienced. Reckless.’ Her voice shrank with each word until it was barely a whisper.
‘Me? Reckless?’ My hand raked through my hair. ‘The only thing I’ve ever cared about is this company.I’ve worked there for eight years. She knows that. Why would she—’She hates me that much. It felt like I’d been cracked open from within, left aching and exposed.
Yes, there were delays, hiccups, the usual chaos of running a business. But theft? Sabotage? It never even crossed my mind that someone was behind it. And for her to think it was me … to go so far as planting someone to watch me … Raw hurt clawed into my chest.
I forced my eyes back to Ananya.
Her lips quivered. She was picking at her cuticles.
‘Tell me you said no.’ My voice sounded rough. Foreign. ‘Tell me you weren’t fucking spying on me for the last seven months.’
‘I’m sorry.’ A strangled sob escaped her throat.
‘I didn’t know what I was doing at first. I didn’t even know you. And she was yourmother. I thought she had good intentions.’
‘But then you stopped?’ My voice sharpened, desperation bleeding through. ‘After The Masala Box dinner, we started over. You saw me. And realised I wasn’t … I wasn’t that person.Right?’
Ananya’s shoulders shook as she cried. She couldn’t even meet my eyes.
‘Goddammit, Ananya.’ A wildfire of rage blazed through my veins. ‘When did you stop? Tell me you weren’t in my bed, weren’t in my arms, and reporting to her at the same fucking time.’
Her lips quivered, no sound coming out.
Suddenly, a terrifying thought gripped me. Dark tendrils of dread wrapped around my ribs. ‘Did you seduce me to spy on me better?’
