Chapter 15 #2
“Mom, this is Sabrina Solanki,” he began. To Sabrina, he said, “My mom, Mamta Wahi. She has a flair for the dramatic, and as usual, likes to keep me on my toes.”
“Well, someone has to,” his mom replied, holding a hand out to Sabrina.
Sabrina took it, offering a small smile.
Regal like a queen, his mom flicked a hand, and a waiter approached them. The man pulled a chair for her, and his mother sank into it. Once they were all seated, her eyes latched onto Sabrina again.
Noticing the hovering waiter by their side, Aditya repeated his whiskey order for his mother. She nodded in acknowledgment, her eyes never leaving Sabrina.
“So, tell me about yourself, Sabrina,” his mother said, her command polite but unmistakable. “How long have you known my son?”
“Mom…” Aditya began, his tone light. “Can we not start with an inquisition?”
His mother tilted her head. “When I find my son out on a date with a woman—one I know nothing about—I’m bound to be curious.”
Aditya shook his head. She was too much, as always.
“So, Sabrina,” his mother continued, “You were going to tell me about yourself.”
Aditya cut in. “She’s Aisha’s—”
“I’m sure she’s perfectly capable of speaking for herself.”
“Mom…” His jaw tightened. He was thirty-three years old, for God’s sake, and he didn’t need his mother policing his love life.
Before he could give her an apt reply, Sabrina touched his arm.
“It’s okay.” Sabrina gave him a warm smile that instantly calmed him. “I can speak for myself.”
Sabrina addressed his mother. “I’m Sabrina Solanki, like Aditya already told you. I’m a trained chef, and now I own my catering and event management company in Mumbai. I’m here in Singapore to do a culinary course. And like Aditya was trying to tell you earlier, I am also Aisha’s sister-in-law.”
His mother’s steely gaze narrowed on Sabrina’s hand that was still resting on Aditya’s arm. “You’re married to Aisha’s brother?”
“Was. My husband passed away six years ago.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” his mother said. Sabrina lowered her chin in acknowledgement.
His mom studied Sabrina carefully. Aditya could practically hear the wheels turning in his mother’s head. So, before she could say anything else, he cut in, yet again, “How did you know where to find me?”
“Your assistant makes all your reservations for you. I just had to make a phone call.”
“Next time, call me first,” he said.
“Where would the fun be in that, my love?”
He rolled his eyes. Incorrigible. His mother was truly incorrigible.
“So, Sabrina,” she continued, coolly sipping the whiskey now set in front of her. “What do you plan to do after this course? Go back to India? Work here?”
Sabrina smiled. “I have to go back. I have a son, Ahaan. He’ll be waiting for me.”
His mother blinked, just once, but he saw the disdain flare in her eyes. “You have a child.”
“I do,” Sabrina said, her voice unwavering. “Ahaan’s eleven, and he’s the most important part of my life.”
“I see.”
“And with that, we come to the end of your interrogation,” Aditya announced calmly, but firmly.
Sabrina’s phone rang. She pulled it out of her purse, and her face lifted in a smile.
“It’s Ahaan,” she told him. “I’ll take this and return in a bit.”
He nodded, watching her as she answered the call, walking away from them, her hips swinging, her hand twirling a lock of her hair.
His mother cleared her throat, snapping his attention to her.
“Why would you drop in unannounced like this?” Aditya asked.
“Actually, I did want to surprise you. I miss you. The house is empty without you.”
He caught her hand, squeezing it. “I love you too, Mom. But coming here like this isn’t okay.”
She glared at him. “When your assistant told me you were here at this fancy, romantic restaurant, I knew I’d find you with a woman. And since I’m always the last one to learn about anything in your life, I decided to come see for myself who you were with.”
He looked heavenward, shaking his head, before saying, “How long are you here for? Are you staying the night?”
“I have to be in Bali in a few hours. I’ll head to the airport from here.”
He gave her a smile. “Okay.”
She looked at him for a long moment before taking a large sip of her whiskey.
“I’m so damn disappointed in you,” she said, her voice dripping with disapproval. “Your choice in women is getting worse by the day. You keep falling for gold diggers.”
Anger rushed through him. “Sabrina is not a gold digger.”
“Says the man who thought the same about Kanika. We both know how that turned out.”
“Are you forever going to throw that in my face? Kanika was wrong for me, I know that. But Sabrina is not her.”
He turned his head to look at Sabrina. She was leaning against a wall at the entrance. Her eyes met his, and she gave him a brilliant smile. Something clenched in his chest. A protective instinct surged through him. Whatever his mother thought, he knew Sabrina wasn’t with him for anything but him.
“Oh my God,” his mom squeaked. “Stop looking at her like you’re besotted. I won’t allow you to throw your life away on some stupid crush you’ve developed on a woman who is all wrong for you.”
“Will you stop this?” he said. “Sabrina and I are too new.”
“And yet your eyes gleam when you look at her.”
Well, he couldn’t deny that. “There is something…”
“Bloody hell. No, Aditya,” she said, her tone firm. “I don’t approve of her. She’s a widow with a child, and she’s with you only because you’re rich. She wants a father for her son, and a sugar daddy for herself.”
His temper flared. “That is an awful assumption to make.”
“It is true, nonetheless.”
This was so far from the truth. Sabrina had already planned to end this affair.
She didn’t want him anywhere near her son.
He stole another glance at Sabrina, his chest tightening.
He was only just getting to know her, yet he knew that a few weeks with her wouldn’t be enough.
But that was a battle for another day. Right now, his mother was judging Sabrina incorrectly, and he hated it. It made him so damn angry.
He clenched his jaw, inhaling deeply, holding himself back from saying something to his mother that he’d regret. But he did need to set the tone right for whatever happened next between Sabrina and him.
“I don’t need your approval, Mom,” he finally said. “It would mean something to me, yes. But I’m not asking for your permission. This is my life, and I will decide who I want beside me. Not you.”
His mother’s eyes widened in shock. He’d never spoken to her like this before, and yet, he meant every word. She rose from her chair, every inch of her radiating fury.
“You’re making a mistake,” she bit out. “But since you clearly are not going to listen, it’s best I leave and let you learn by yourself, again.”
She turned on her heel and swept out of the restaurant. He dragged a hand through his hair and dropped back into his seat, his chest tight. Tension throbbed in his temples.
“Where’s your mother?” Sabrina’s voice cut through his haze. He looked up and found her standing beside him.
“She left.” His voice was rougher than he intended.
Sabrina slid into her chair. Her fingers scraped gently along his jaw, the simple touch soothing his frazzled nerves. “You okay?”
He didn’t answer right away. He couldn’t. He hated being at odds with his mother. In the past, she’d never reacted this negatively to him dating a woman. But with Sabrina… it felt different. He was different this time.
“She’s right to be protective of you,” Sabrina said softly.
His eyes widened. “You’re too smart to not have realized that she disapproves of you. And yet you’re taking her side?”
“I’m a mother too…” Her tone was light, steady. “I know how fierce that instinct to protect your child is, no matter how old they are. Besides, I know I’m not the kind of match she’d want for you. Not even for short-term.”
Something snapped in him.
He sat up straighter. “Don’t say that. Don’t ever say that.”
Her lips compressed, and she lowered her gaze.
“You keep doing this.” He tugged her face up with a finger, ensuring she met his eyes. “Why do you think you’re not enough? Why do you think that you have to keep putting yourself last? What have you been through in your life that you think so little of yourself?”
She gasped softly. His finger held her face up, not allowing her to escape from his gaze.
Her eyes warmed, and she gave him a soft smile. “Thank you for seeing me. For always seeing me. You’re the first person to ever do that.”
“I see you, Sabrina. I see your calm, your strength, your honesty, your devotion to your son, even your hesitation to put yourself first—it’s all beautiful. You are beautiful. You, Sabrina, are absolutely perfect for me.”
“You make me feel brave,” she whispered. “You make me choose myself. You’re rewriting every single thing I’d ever thought of myself.”
She leaned forward and pecked his lips softly.
Immediately, the air between them shifted.
The charge between them returned with a vengeance, making his body tighten.
Raw, primal need coursed through him. He stared at her.
This spark between them was burning hotter with each passing second, wiping away all his thoughts. Only she remained. Sabrina.
“I’m not hungry anymore,” she whispered, her gaze dipping to his mouth. “Not for the food, at least. Can we leave?”
His lips curved as he stood and signaled to the waiter. Her hand remained clasped in his as the driver drove them to his hotel. He stole a glance at her; she was already watching him, need swirling in her dark, heavy gaze. The heat between them was simmering like a fuse waiting to ignite.
Fuck, this woman would be the ruin of him.