"The seating arrangements—" Saroj started.
"Will be ready by tomorrow. As promised."
She left before anyone could respond, Bruno at her heels.
In the hallway, she leaned against the wall and took a deep breath.
Don't romanticize what we are.
She wouldn't. She'd remember the boundaries. The rules.
Even if last night had felt like something more.
Even if the way he'd touched her, claimed her, possessed her had felt like it meant something.
It didn't.
It never would.
That Night - Master Bedroom
Nimisha was already in bed when Samarth entered their room. She'd showered, changed into one of her modest nightgowns, and had been trying to read but the words kept blurring on the page.
She wasn't thinking about Kritika. She wasn't thinking about the sweets or the fond tone in Samarth's voice or the years of history they shared.
She definitely wasn't thinking about any of that.
"You left early," Samarth said, closing the door behind him.
"I had work."
"Liar."
She looked up from her book. He was stripping off his shirt, revealing the planes of muscle she knew intimately but which still made her mouth go dry.
"I'm not lying."
"You ran away because Kritika brought me sweets." He unbuckled his belt, his movements efficient. "You were jealous."
"I wasn't—"
"You were." He dropped his pants, standing before her in just his boxers, utterly unselfconscious. "I could see it in your eyes. The way you looked at her. At me."
"If you're here to gloat—"
"I'm here because I want my wife." He crossed to the bed, his eyes dark with intent. "Come here."
Her pulse kicked up. "I'm not in the mood."
"Yes, you are." He reached down and pulled the book from her hands, tossing it aside. "You're always in the mood for me, Nimisha. Even when you're angry. Especially when you're angry."
"You're arrogant."
"I'm right." His hand wrapped around her ankle, tugging her down the bed. "And you're going to prove it."
She should resist. Should make him work for it. Should maintain some dignity.
But when his hands gripped her nightgown and yanked it over her head, leaving her bare except for her panties, all thoughts of resistance fled.
