Page 107 of Since You Stole My Heart

‘I like to think I know my friends, because they’re like family to me. I’ve known Swayam long enough to call him my brother,just like Abhay and Raag, and that’s not something I say lightly,’ Luv said, his voice flat now, stripped of its earlier amusement.

The fond way he spoke of Swayam stood in contrast to the memory of Viraj, and despite the tension simmering in the air, Kashvi smiled.

Luv went on, ‘And I know how he is when it comes to the people he cares about. That’s not the man who wakes up one day and goes out looking for a replacement, unless something forced his hand. Am I wrong?’

His gaze was direct and unflinching, leaving no space to avoid it.

‘No,’ she said softly, following it with an irritated honk of the horn.

Luv made a sceptical sound, and she stole a quick glance at him. ‘What?’

He shook his head, rubbing his jaw in thought. ‘Nothing. I’m just realising I was wrong about you. I thought you were smarter than this.’

Her irritation flared as she snapped, ‘It’s not a good day for you to test my patience, Luv.’

‘I’m only saying that letting go of a man who is completely, unapologetically devoted to you has to be a foolish tragedy,’ Luv said, unrelenting.

She couldn’t really argue with him there, but did he have to go for the kill shot?

Luv tapped his fingers against the dashboard. ‘I mean, the way he looks at you, Kashu… it’s like a blind man seeing the sun rise for the first time.’

The imagery struck harder than she expected, vivid in a way that made it difficult to push aside.

She glanced once at the line of vehicles ahead as she murmured, ‘It’s what’s best for him.’

‘Or is it just what you’ve decided is best for him?’ he asked calmly.

‘His family will talk to him. They’ll explain things and make him understand,’ she said, more to herself than to him.

‘That still doesn’t make it his choice. He’s the one who has to live with it. At the end of the day, he’s the one who will carry the regret that comes with it. So, don’t you think he deserves to be the one who chooses it?’

‘Why are you being so negative? It could actually work out well for him. Aisha already fits into his world and his family, and she’ll make her place in his life too.’

‘If that’s who he was looking for, he wouldn’t have married you.’

‘That’s not why he married me. He did it to help me, and to save the foundation from collapsing,’ Kashvi argued.

‘Did he?’ Luv asked, probing deeper.

She could not afford to think about it like that, because if she went looking for love in his eyes and found none, it would shatter her in a way she would never recover from.

Her pulse rang loudly in her ears as she said, ‘I mean… I’m sure she’ll be better for him than I ever could be.’

Luv exhaled slowly, his voice turning gravelly. ‘There are some people in your life that you just can’t replace, no matter how hard you try.’

Kashvi turned to see his profile, his gaze fixed out the window. Had she imagined the tremor in his voice?

She understood what he meant, because there was no version of her life where Swayam was someone she could simply replace.

‘It sounds like you’re talking from experience,’ she observed quietly.

‘I am,’ he said flatly.

‘What kind of experience?’ Kashvi asked, unable to stop herself.

‘The kind that leaves scars on your soul and haunts you in the silence of the night,’ Luv said, his throat bobbing as he swallowed hard.

‘What happened?’ she asked.