Chapter 6 #2
Sabrina took a sip of her Singapore Sling, and her eyes widened. “This is good.”
“The Long Bar in Singapore is literally the birthplace of the Singapore Sling,” Shauna explained. “That’s why, for your first authentic experience, I got you to this bar. We’ll finish up here and go for dinner to another local joint.”
“Sounds good to me.” Sabrina looked around the world-famous Long Bar. Set with cane furnishings, ceiling fans, and warm wood, it had a romantic colonial era charm.
The conversation flowed easily between them, and by the time an hour had passed, Sabrina was sipping the last of her second cocktail—something she never did back home.
There, she always stuck to her one-drink rule.
With Ahaan to care for and her mother-in-law’s watchful eyes on her, she rarely let herself unwind.
But tonight, so far away from home, for the first time in what felt like forever, she felt completely unburdened. Liberated.
No wonder Aisha was always urging her to carve out time for herself. This… this lightness felt incredible. She missed her son, of course, but tonight, it felt good to just be Sabrina again.
Shauna ordered a third round for them. Sabrina lifted her glass and froze mid-motion.
Two men were seated at a table near the bar, their backs partly turned. Her heart began to race as she stared at the tall, broad-shouldered man with thick dark hair and a profile sharp enough to make someone look twice. He was laughing at something his companion said.
Aditya was here? Here? She knew he often visited Singapore for work, but to see him here, at this exact restaurant, in this exact moment, was shockingly unexpected.
“What?” Shauna followed her gaze. “Oh, look, Aditya’s here, and… Ugh!”
Sabrina leaned in slightly. “What happened?”
“He’s here too…” Shauna rolled her eyes. “My nemesis.”
Sabrina glanced back at the two men. The man next to Aditya looked slightly to the side, and Sabrina recognized him instantly. He was Keya Sehgal’s younger brother, a part of the younger set in their group.
“Akash Karia is your nemesis?” Sabrina asked.
“Uh huh…” Shauna sipped her drink, and before Sabrina could say anything, she held a hand out.
“I know what you’re going to say. That Akash is so sweet.
He’s such a good boy.” Shauna made a face.
“Please, he’s awful. He pretends to be this Mr. Nice Guy, but he isn’t.
He’s annoying. He and I do not get along, at all.
He thinks no end of himself and walks like he was born with a stick up his—well, you get the idea. ”
Sabrina suppressed a giggle. “I’ve had limited interactions with him, but he didn’t come across to be that bad. I found him to be quite intelligent, actually.”
“That’s exactly the problem,” Shauna muttered, downing her drink in one gulp. “He’s infuriating and brilliant at the same time, and makes me question my sanity when he’s near.”
Sabrina’s eyes drifted back to the men. Her attention was immediately drawn to Aditya. Dressed in a button-down shirt rolled up to reveal his strong forearms, he exuded that precise blend of casual arrogance and effortless charm. God, he looked good. She couldn’t stop staring at him.
Shauna clicked her fingers in front of Sabrina’s face and laughed. “Stop staring at them, especially Akash.”
“Please, Akash is way younger than me,” Sabrina said.
“Oh my God, so it’s Aditya you’ve been ogling.”
Sabrina felt her cheeks burn.
Shauna tilted her head. “Huh, you find Aditya hot? Strange, I never noticed. Not that I notice any of my brothers’ friends. Please, they all come with protective elder brother tags stamped on their foreheads. Ugh. But I can see his appeal for you.”
“It’s not like that,” Sabrina explained, feeling flustered.
“Don’t be shy. It’s okay if you find him hot,” Shauna egged her on.
Sabrina’s eyes latched onto Aditya again. He raked a hand through his hair, mussing it up further, and then he smiled at something Akash said.
“He does look hot tonight,” Shauna said.
“So deliciously hot…” Sabrina murmured in agreement. She tilted her head to study him better. “Sooo… sexy.”
“Interesting. So, you do like him,” Shauna said, one brow arched.
Sabrina blinked. Fuck. What was wrong with her?
She was openly checking out Aditya, out loud—something she’d never done before.
Not even in a throwaway comment or a lingering glance.
Definitely not in front of someone else.
It must be the drinks she’d consumed. That was the only explanation for her reckless tongue.
Shauna laughed. “Don’t look so horrified. Your secret is safe with me.”
“It’s really not like that,” Sabrina choked out.
As if on cue, Aditya looked up, and their eyes met. A flicker of surprise crossed his features.
Aditya blinked. His lips parted slightly as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Then that crooked half-smile tugged at his mouth—the one that always made her forget to breathe. He said something to Akash, and then he was walking toward her. She stood up to greet him.
His gaze swept over her, slow and deliberate, taking in every detail.
Something warm unfurled in her stomach as his eyes lit with unmistakable appreciation—like he genuinely liked what he saw.
She ran a slightly shaky hand through her hair.
She’d left it loose, something she rarely did.
She knew she looked different. She’d worn one of Diya’s dresses.
A simple black one, with delicate puffed sleeves and a wide boat neckline.
Its hem skimmed just above her knees. A bolder stroke of eyeliner, dark lipstick, and bam—she’d felt… different. Young and alive.
The unguarded flicker of approval in Aditya’s eyes made her feel bold.
Confident. Like a completely different version of herself.
The truth was, she felt safe here in Singapore.
It was far from India and the people she was still hiding from.
For the first time in years, she could breathe without fear.
And maybe, just maybe, dare to be someone new.
“Oh my God, Sabrina, what a lovely surprise to see you here,” he grinned as he reached her, pulling her into a brief hug. His musky scent reached her nose, and her heart began to race.
“Hi,” she squeaked, shifting back a step, putting a little space between them. “You’re here? How? I mean, I know you have business in Singapore, and you live here a lot…”
Fuck, she needed to shut up. She was babbling like a teenager. Clearing her throat, she tried again, softer this time. “It’s… really nice to see you.”
“You look fabulous,” he said. “It took me a moment to recognize you.”
She smiled.
“Are you here for work? Pleasure?” he asked.
“I’m actually doing a Masters in Food Business from the Culinary Institute of Singapore.”
“That is amazing,” he replied. “How long is it for? Are you going to be staying for a while? And what about Ahaan? Is he here too?”
Her heart warmed. It was unexpectedly sweet of him to think of Ahaan. And he remembered her son’s name? Then again, Rithwik and Aisha must have mentioned Ahaan often. Still, it touched her more than she cared to admit.
“Ahaan’s actually with Rithwik and Aisha in London. He’s going to attend a four-week program at a school there.”
“Rithwik never mentioned this,” Aditya said. “Although I really haven’t spoken to him much this past week. I landed just this morning from Dubai.”
He leaned in slightly, and another wave of his cologne hit her—clean, musky, far too distracting.
This close, he looked ridiculously good.
A faint shadow of stubble traced his sharp jaw, and his hair was tousled, like he’d run a hand through it more than once.
She’d always assumed his eyes were dark.
But this close, she realized they were more of a warm brown.
God. She needed to stop staring. Immediately.
Nonetheless, her gaze stayed on him. And then she noticed that he was watching her too, and that was… That meant nothing. He was simply surprised to bump into her. That’s all. Nothing more.
She looked away and finally noticed Shauna and Akash, standing awkwardly next to them, not talking at all. From beside her, Aditya greeted Shauna with a hug.
Sabrina faced Akash. “Hi.”
The younger man pecked her cheek. “Hi, Sabrina. How are you? I’m so happy to see you here in Singapore.”
“Same. How come you’re here?”
“I’ve been interning with Aditya for the last few months.”
Her gaze turned to Shauna. “Oh, Shauna’s interning here too.”
“At Big Four Media,” Shauna explained to Aditya, ignoring Akash altogether.
“That’s amazing,” Aditya said. “Raashi mentioned that you were working here. I was going to check on you anyway.”
He looked at Sabrina and smiled. That killer smile was making her stomach flutter. She really needed him to go away so she could take control of her unruly mind.
Aditya’s eyes swept over her. “Akash and I were planning to go to The Marquee. Why don’t you both join us?”
“It’s a nightclub,” Shauna clarified for Sabrina.
“Oh, we wouldn’t want to intrude,” Sabrina said. “Besides, we were going to get something to eat.”
She glanced at Shauna and gave a barely perceptible shake of her head, hoping she’d take the hint and turn them down. Because, in Aditya’s presence, his scent surrounding her, his eyes lingering on her, she felt off-balance. She needed distance from him to gather herself.
“It’s no intrusion at all. Join us,” Akash said, addressing Sabrina. “That is, if Shauna doesn’t mind.”
“Why would I mind?” Shauna shrugged. “We’re happy to join you guys, aren’t we, Sabrina?”
Sabrina gulped, not quite sure what to say. She’d deliberately never spent much time in Aditya’s company, and especially now, with her heart pulsating the way it was, it didn’t seem like a good idea at all.
Since she was left with no choice, she said, “Sure, why not?”
“That’s settled then,” Aditya announced. He signaled to a waiter and paid their bills, despite Sabrina and Shauna protesting.
Within minutes, she found herself nestled in the back seat of a sleek black Mercedes, sandwiched between Aditya and Shauna, while Akash sat up front beside the driver.
The conversation flowed effortlessly—Aditya and Akash bantered with an ease that hinted at a long-standing camaraderie, while Shauna chimed in with her usual spark.
Talk drifted from Singapore’s ever-changing skyline to local politics and the best weekend escapes.
Sabrina listened, half amused, half awed, absorbing everything with a quiet wonder. Her eyes drifted to the window, and she gasped.
“Is that the Marina Bay Sands?” Sabrina whispered, her eyes wide as the sleek silhouette lit up the skyline.
“It is,” Shauna replied with a grin. “Trust me, it looks even better up close. And the inside? Pure luxury. We’re going there.”
“Oh, I’ve been wanting to visit.”
Aditya chuckled. “It’s just a hotel.”
Sabrina shot him a look, half-teasing. “Spoken like someone who probably stays there all the time.”
He glanced at her, a smile tugging at his lips. “Actually, I do stay there. Several times a year.”
“You stay there?” she asked, her voice laced with awe. “I was joking when I said that.”
The corners of his mouth lifted. “Yeah. Akash and I are both staying there.”
“Akash is also staying there?” Shauna asked, her voice laced with surprise.
Akash turned to look at her. “Yes. Why do you sound so shocked?”
“I’m not,” Shauna replied.
“Good,” he muttered, facing forward.
Shauna mumbled something under her breath that sounded a lot like, “Spoilt brat. Living off big sis’s money.”
Sabrina tensed at the remark, but no one else seemed to have heard it, thankfully.
Aditya turned slightly toward her, causing his knee to brush against hers. “This is your first time here, right?”
“Yes.”
She focused on the glowing skyline blurring past them, refusing to acknowledge the heat radiating from his body or the way it made her stomach dip with unsettling intensity.
Everything felt bigger, brighter, and somehow, more alive at night. She hadn’t had a chance to explore the city yet, so now, seeing it like this—on the move, under a canopy of stars—felt like she was finally catching a glimpse of the Singapore she’d only heard about.
“Well then,” Aditya said, his tone easy, soft. “I’d like to show you around my favorite city.”
Something about the way he said it—gentle, sure, like a quiet promise—sent a flutter through her. And suddenly, she felt like this trip might truly end up changing more than she’d anticipated.