Page 91 of Since You Stole My Heart

Her stomach twisted violently, and nausea rose so fast that Kashvi had to lean over the sink as she dry-heaved.

Please, dear God, this couldn’t be happening for real.

Her phone buzzed with a new message.

See? Worth the wait, wasn’t it?

She felt dangerously close to panicking and had to clamp down on it with all her might.

The image was a cruel reminder that whoever this was, there was no telling how far he’d go to get her attention. Enough was enough.

Before she could weigh the consequences, Kashvi hit the dial option next to the unknown number. She hurried through thehorde of people in the living room, keeping her head down so no one would notice her distress.

She didn’t breathe properly until she reached the balcony and stepped out into the night air. She slammed the glass door behind her, but it slid shut with a muted whoosh.

Kashvi pressed the phone harder against her ear, straining to hear the tone of the call connecting. The cold metal of the railing bit into her skin as she gripped the edge tightly.

The call dropped.

Clouded by frantic thoughts, Kashvi quickly typed out a message.

You wanted my attention, and you got it. Now stop being a coward and answer the damn call!

She called him back as she leaned against the railing, each ring stretching longer.

‘Hello, Kashvi,’ came the soft voice that sounded so deliberately intimate it made her skin crawl. ‘So eager to talk to me, babygirl?’

She had never heard that voice before, and there went her hope that it was someone she knew. ‘Tell me who you are right now and what the hell you want from me, and maybe I won’t get you arrested!’

On the other end, she heard the soft click of his tongue as he tsked. ‘See, this is what I meant. It’s a good thing you’re hot, Kashvi, because you’re definitely not smart.’

She clenched her jaw so tightly it hurt. ‘Shut the fuck up with your bullshit and answer my question. Who are you?’

He chuckled. ‘Babygirl, I know you have a tiny amount of brain, but do yourself a favour and use it. You ruined my plans by forcing me to send you the picture earlier than I planned, and now you’re threatening me. If you keep doing that, I could lose my temper again.’

Her mind flashed back to the image, and his implication froze like ice in her veins, numbing and burning all at once.

He went on in a lowered, amused voice, ‘But this time, I wouldn’t send it to you. I’d send it to everyone in your friends and family. Maybe even the media. Imagine that, hmm? A nice little exclusive headline about one of the Kashyap daughters. They’d love that.’

Her thoughts fractured in a hundred directions, each one worse than the last. ‘Don’t,’ she managed to whisper.

He hummed in response, satisfied. ‘Then you should listen to me, because I don’t think Siya would enjoy getting a message like that in the middle of the night.’

The mention of her sister made her recoil, fear flaring in a way it hadn’t before. ‘You’re sick,’ she whispered, unable to hold back the disgust.

He sounded unbothered, almost proud, as he said, ‘Careful. I can’t promise to behave myself if you talk dirty to me like that.’

Kashvi forced herself to inhale slowly through her nose, then said, ‘I understand that your elaborate plans didn’t go the wayyou wanted, so why don’t you cut this short and tell me what you want?’

‘Oh, I knew you’d come around. A firecracker like you was never going to be easy, and I can already tell I’m going to have my hands full. But I like that you’re finally trying to be nice.’

‘That still doesn’t answer my question.’

‘I heard you, but I think you’re asking the wrong questions. What you should be asking me is how soon I can come over and kiss you.’

She dug her fingers harder against the steel railing as she said, ‘I’d rather drink bleach than kiss you.’

‘I love how kinky you are. You can fight me all you want in bed like a feisty bitch, but when I meet you, you’ll laugh at my jokes, you’ll follow my lead. Understood?’