Page 63 of Since You Stole My Heart

‘Everything looks in order. I’ll get it all notarised by the trustees, then initiate the transfer process,’ Piyush announced in a measured tone.

The fear and tension coiled tightly around her chest snapped all at once, and an overwhelming rush of relief made Kashvi dizzy. Her knees threatened to give out, and if not for Swayam holding her firmly, she was certain she would have fallen.

She briefly closed her eyes and missed the moment Karthik lunged towards her, his hand raised to strike as he screamed, ‘You lying, scheming bitch!’

It happened too quickly. A sudden, firm grip pulled Kashvi back behind a solid barrier before she could process what was happening. Though she lost her balance, Siya caught her before she fell.

The next thing she knew, Swayam was standing in front of her, shielding her from her father as he gripped Karthik’s raised hand.

‘This will be my only warning. Take a step back right now, or you will lose your hand,’ Swayam said, firm and uncompromising.

Her heart slammed against her ribs as it hit her just how close her father had come to hurting her.

A sharp, aching frustration settled in her chest as she took in the ugliness of her father laid bare in a way she had spent years trying to ignore. This was the side of him she had not wanted Swayam to see, yet now he was caught in the middle of it.

She placed her palm against his back to calm him, and that was when she felt the rigid muscles straining beneath her touch. When he turned to look at her and their eyes met, Kashvi forgot to breathe.

His eyes were darker than she had ever seen, fury burning like lava in them, and she saw how he was holding himself back through sheer force. She had grown up associating anger with loud bursts of chaos, and that contrast with Swayam’s restrained rage made it far more unsettling.

Abhay stood shoulder to shoulder with Swayam, glaring daggers at Karthik as he pushed him back. ‘That’s enough.’

Karthik breathed heavily, glaring at the men who had dared to stand in his way. He curled his lips in disdain at Swayam as he spat, ‘Get out of my way. This doesn’t concern you.’

‘It concerned me the second you took a step towards my girl,’ Swayam said, standing firmly in place.

‘Your girl? Please. This is between me and my daughter.’

‘Then you should have treated her like one.’

‘And if I don’t?’ he asked, challenging Swayam.

‘Then you’ll find out just how far I’m willing to go to make sure my wife is safe,’ Swayam answered, dangerously calm.

‘What could she possibly be giving you in return to play this part?’ he asked.

‘Kashvi owns my heart, so she can get me to do anything she wants. That’s the reason I married her.’

Karthik scoffed, a mocking edge creeping into his tone. ‘This is ridiculous. You actually expect anyone here to believe that you conveniently got married right before this? Please.’

Her father’s gaze locked onto her and he pointed a finger at her. ‘I thought you couldn’t sink any lower in life, but marrying for money? This shows you’re a greedy bitch, just like your mother.’

Despite growing up in the shadow of his jealousy, Kashvi was taken aback by how easily he twisted anything into an accusation against her mother.

He wanted her to react, to argue, because he thrived on chaos and conflict, but she refused to let him gain the upper hand this time. ‘So let me get this straight. Your theory is that I went through the trouble of getting legally married, gathering testimonies, registering everything officially, all for what?’

‘For money, what else?’ Karthik snapped.

‘For money,’ she repeated with a thoughtful hum. ‘The same money I have outlined to fund new departments? The same money I have no intention of keeping, but rather reinvesting entirely back into Maa’s foundation?’

Doubt flickered across his face, and Kashvi pressed on. ‘Despite not planning to keep the money, I apparently bound myself legally to someone, knowing full well that when this ends, I carry the label of a divorcee with me for the rest of my life?’

Kashvi saw the crack of hesitation in his façade and went in for the kill. ‘And I did all of this because I’m a malicious daughter who is so desperate to rob my father that I would ruin my own future for it, right?’

Because yes, yes I did.

When her father had no answer, she turned to Piyush. ‘Swayam and I have been friends for six years. From the rent agreement, you can see that we’ve been living together too. Is it really so outrageous to believe that somewhere along the way we fell in love?’

Piyush smiled. ‘No. It’s not outrageous at all.’