Chapter 42
“Hey… hey, I’m here.”
The voice cut through the ringing in her ears. Sabrina lowered her hands to see Aditya pushing up on one knee, whole and breathing. Her heart clenched so hard it hurt.
“You’re alive…” she whispered, then threw herself into his chest, knocking him backward. He fell with her, his arms closing tight around her as sobs wracked her body.
“I’m fine,” he murmured against her hair. “Just a graze. See?”
Pushing to his feet, he helped her up, showing her his arm. A thin line of blood streaked his sleeve.
Sabrina cupped his face. “When that shot went off, I felt like my world ended. In that instant, I knew I could never breathe in a world without you.”
Her voice shook, but her words were clear. “I love you, Aditya. You are my heart, my home, my safe place. I can’t survive without you.”
Aditya’s eyes softened. He drew her close again. “I can’t survive without you either.”
She blinked. “Where’s Ahaan?”
“He’s safe at home with my mother.”
Before she could question him further, she saw Rithwik and VJ coming toward them. She looked around, realizing the chaos around them had quietened.
“It’s over,” VJ told her, his voice calm and steady as always. “You’re safe now. JD is dead.”
Sabrina lifted her head from Aditya’s shoulder and scanned the room. The stranger who had asked if she was all right and the other who had fought beside him were nowhere to be seen.
“They were Mihir’s men,” Aditya informed her, reading the question in her eyes. “Mihir helped us find you. It’s all over. You are safe now, beautiful.”
Relief swept through her.
As the last of the noise faded, Sabrina turned to Rithwik and VJ. “Thank you, both of you, for coming for me.”
VJ gave her a small smile, and she gave him a quick hug.
“It’s boring being a prince,” he said, holding her arms. “I’ve missed the action. This was… good.”
Rithwik snorted. “Good? I’ve only ever fought in boardrooms. This was exhilarating. But I’d rather not do it again.”
Sabrina laughed softly and kissed his cheek in gratitude.
Aditya pulled Rithwik into a quick hug. “You’re an idiot. You should never have put yourself in danger like that. I didn’t know you knew how to fight.”
“And I told you I wasn’t letting you go anywhere without me!” Rithwik grinned. “And when did you learn to fight?”
Aditya chuckled. “I practice with Rajiv when I’m in Dubai. He’s big on it, as you know.”
“Guess I should start too,” Rithwik replied with a wry smile. “Although I did very well tonight, don’t you think?”
VJ laughed. “Please, I had to come bail you out every time.”
“You did not,” Rithwik said, looking affronted.
VJ put an arm around Rithwik’s shoulder, steering him away from them, a sight that warmed her trembling heart.
“Come on, beautiful,” Aditya said. “Let’s go home to Ahaan.”
She smiled, taking his hand, rejoicing that her long nightmare was finally over. She could now live her life without fear.
Soft light filtered through when Aditya opened the doors of his house. Sabrina heard the low murmurs of conversation as she followed him past the foyer and into the busy living room.
Aisha stood with her mother and Diya near the sofa, while Keya and Raashi chatted with their husbands off to one side. The quiet hum of conversation faded the instant she and Aditya entered. Sabrina felt Aditya’s reassuring hand at the small of her back as she stepped forward.
Sabrina’s eyes swept the room, searching for her son.
“Mom!”
From a corner, her son broke into a sprint and launched himself at her. She held him tight against her chest.
“Mom, are you okay?” he asked, breathless.
“I’m perfectly fine,” she assured him, pressing a kiss to his hair.
“Those m…men? What happened?” he asked, his eyes round.
“They will never trouble us again. It’s over, my darling.”
He tugged on Aditya’s leg, who stood close beside her. “Thank you for bringing her back to me.”
Aditya put a hand on Ahaan’s shoulder and gently squeezed it. “I will always keep my promises to you, buddy.”
“Mom,” Ahaan said, his eyes bright, “Uncle Aditya’s house is so big and it has a pool. Can we stay here with him and Aunty Mamta? I like her. Her cook made me the best chocolate milkshake. He put Oreos on it.”
Sabrina swallowed hard, startled by his fearless enthusiasm. In his innocence, however, he’d made things awkward for her. Before she could reply, Aditya’s mother stepped forward.
“As soon as your mom agrees to marry my son,” Mamta said lightly, “we can all live together here.”
“Yay!” Ahaan whooped, already running down a corner. “I’m going to watch TV, Mom! They’ve got a pretty big one here!” He disappeared in the direction he’d come from.
Sabrina was frozen, caught between relief and awkwardness. Heat crept onto her cheeks. Around her, the room buzzed to life as Rithwik and VJ entered. All her friends gathered around them, asking them questions.
Her gaze drifted to Mamta. The older woman was watching her closely, an unreadable look in her eyes.
“Do you love my son?” Mamta asked.
“More than anything,” Sabrina replied without hesitation.
A gentle smile softened Mamta’s sharp features.
“Then I must apologize. The night of my party, Aditya said you left him because you thought he was too rich, and it made me wonder if I’d been wrong about you.
Then he said that he loved you. I saw the despair in his eyes when he looked at you, and it forced me to see the truth.
I only ever wanted to protect him and to see him happy.
I recognize now that his happiness is with you, and I will never stand in the way of that.
I promise to love you and Ahaan as my own. Can you forgive me?”
Sabrina felt her chest swell from the relief she felt. She wrapped Mamta in a warm embrace.
“Thank you,” she whispered. “Your words mean the world to me.”
Mamta looked at Aditya. “Come with me. I need to talk to you.”
Surprise flickered on his face. “Now?”
“Yes, now,” his mother replied. “It’s important.”
Without another word, Aditya followed his mother to the lawns outside.
Aisha and Diya came to her as soon as Aditya and his mother left, relief and excitement written across their faces. Sabrina stepped into their open arms, holding them tight as the day’s tension finally eased.
“Are you okay?” Aisha asked.
“I am.”
Diya grinned. “You’re getting married. I’m so excited! Oh, I just hope my baby comes on time.”
Diya was due any day now.
Sabrina smiled. “We haven’t worked out the details yet, but… I said yes to him.”
“Why do you look concerned?” Aisha asked.
Sabrina’s gaze drifted toward her mother-in-law. Noticing that, Aisha took her hand and guided her toward her mother. The older woman rose from the armchair, tears in her eyes as she pulled Sabrina into a fierce embrace.
“I thought I was going to lose you too,” her mother-in-law whispered. “I’m so glad you’re safe.”
Sabrina held her tighter.
“Aisha told me everything about your past,” she continued. “She also told me how Aditya protected Ahaan, and how his mother rushed to look after my grandson. I know Aditya proposed to you, and I’m so happy for you, Sabrina. You deserve a good life. A happy life.”
Sabrina let her tears fall freely now.
Her mother-in-law reached for Aisha’s hand.
“Aisha’s asked me to move in with her. I’ve agreed to start staying with her on the weekends.
But I need to learn to live on my own, to get my life back on track.
I’ve been dependent on you for far too long.
I know you’re worried about me, but I will be fine. ”
“You’ll always have a place here with us, Aunty,” Aditya said, coming right up to them.
Her mother-in-law turned and embraced him, her eyes bright. Aditya bent respectfully to touch her feet.
“Be happy, both of you,” she blessed them, before Aisha led her away.
Aditya pulled Sabrina into his arms. Cupping her cheeks, he said. “I have to—”
“Hey, guys,” Keya’s cheerful greeting cut in.
Sabrina turned to look at Keya and Kabier.
“I’m so happy you’ve agreed to marry him,” Keya said. “He’s been lonely for too long.”
“Now he can never refuse to go on a holiday with us because he thinks he will be the lone idiot tagging along with lovey-dovey couples,” Kabier commented.
Aditya narrowed his eyes at Keya. “Do you have to tell him everything?”
“Of course!” She grinned. “It was a stupid excuse in the first place.”
Aditya rolled his eyes.
Kabier patted his back. “Welcome to our world, buddy. These women rule our lives. Now you will know how it is always going to be.”
They spoke for a few more minutes before Keya and Kabier joined the others, and Raashi and Sameer took their place.
Raashi studied her. “I owe you an apology. My grandfather made me realize how biased I was. You had your reasons for what you did. I respect you a whole lot more now that I know everything.”
Sabrina nodded, grateful.
Sameer put an arm around his wife. “She means well. She’s just too damn pigheaded when it comes to the people she cares about. It is both, her greatest flaw and her biggest strength.”
“I understand…” Sabrina smiled.
Raashi kissed Aditya’s cheek. “I am so happy for you, you know.”
He gave her a warm smile. They left, and Sabrina was finally alone with Aditya.
“Come with me,” he said, taking her hand.
Surprised, she followed him as he led her to the center of the lawn.
It was silent here. Tall lamps cast a warm glow while strings of tiny lights shimmered on the trees.
Sabrina turned, taking everything in. It was all so pretty.
The house in front of her was bathed in golden light from the dozens of carefully placed lamps, glowing against the darkness of the night. Smiling, she turned to Aditya.
Her breath caught when she saw that Aditya was down on one knee, an open velvet box resting in his palm. From inside the box, a familiar bright yellow diamond glittered with promise.
She gasped, recognizing the ring immediately. “Is that…?”