Page 80 of Since You Stole My Heart

After a beat, Swayam sighed. ‘No.’

‘You’re just going to abandon that? You do know I have very high standards for my birthday gifts, right?’

‘Yes, I know. But don’t you know I care more about making sure you’re okay than about a surprise?’

Kashvi held the phone a little tighter. ‘I’m okay. And if I’m not, I’ll call you, and then you can come here and play action hero. Deal?’ she asked, hoping it would work.

The protective note in his voice made her chest ache. ‘Alright. But you better make sure to give me a detailed list about them. I like to be thorough.’

‘You got it,’ she said, glad to let go of the topic.

Then he asked, with an undercurrent of doubt in his voice, ‘Why is your phone off, Kash?’

‘I forgot my charger at home, and my phone died,’ she said lightly.

Swayam hummed. ‘And what about the flowers you mentioned?’

‘I don’t know who sent them,’ she admitted.

‘Well, I can guess,’ he said with a huff of amusement. ‘It’s probably someone from one of the departments. You’re about to be their boss with a very generous budget. Of course they’d try to impress you early.’

Could he be right?

Kashvi shook her head. It didn’t make sense. None of them would send a cryptic, anonymous bouquet with a personal note.

‘Yeah, I didn’t think of that,’ she said.

A mischievous note slipped into his voice as he teased, ‘See, you’d be lost without me.’

Kashvi managed a half-hearted chuckle. ‘That’s debatable.’

‘Or…’ he trailed off, sounding thoughtful. ‘Could it be from an admirer?’

She didn’t laugh this time.

‘It wouldn’t matter anyway,’ he went on. ‘I don’t mind competition.’

‘You sound confident,’ she observed dryly.

‘Why wouldn’t I be? I’m the one who has a date with you today.’

Her tattered heart skipped a beat. ‘You didn’t say it was a date.’

‘Kash, you can call it whatever you want, but one thing is certain. You’re coming home with me tonight,’ he said without a hint of hesitation.

She bit her lip to tamp down the heat flushing her cheeks. ‘That’s not really an achievement. I kind of have to come home with you because we live together, remember?’

His soft chuckle reached her before he said, ‘Even if we didn’t, I know you’d still choose me.’

‘So, last night didn’t scare you off, huh?’ The question slipped out from the depths of her mind, where she shoved her worst fears.

‘Kash, listen to me,’ he said, immediately pulling all her attention. ‘I meant what I said. You make me feel alive, and there’s nothing I’m scared of, as long as I’m with you. All I’m asking for in return is a chance to prove that I’m not going anywhere.’

‘Idiot,’ she whispered, because she couldn’t tell him what she really wanted to say.

Keep that promise.

‘For you,’ he said fondly. ‘I’ll pick you up in the evening. And just so you know, I’m counting down the minutes until I see you.’