Chapter Twenty Five
Twenty-Five
“Yes, Puppa.”
“Don’t ‘yes, Puppa’ me. I just got off the phone with Suraj Verma.”
“With who?”
“Dinesh’s father. We met him and his family just this week,” Puppa said, sounding impatient. “He’s seen the photos of you and Mr. Ethan. He says you’re romantically involved. Is this true, Priya?”
Priya felt her throat tighten. Answering her father while Ethan watched was like being caught between two fires.
“Answer us, Priya!” Her mother joined the call, her voice crackling through the speaker. “We are here trying to find you a decent guy, and you are fooling around with Mr. Ethan there?”
Across from her, Ethan’s expression shuttered. Now he knows exactly what they think, that he’s a wrong turn I should never have taken. Face burning, Priya took the call off speaker. “It’s not like that, Mumma.”
“No? Then let me ask you one thing,” her father cut in. “Has Mr. Ethan proposed?”
“No, but—”
“Then it’s just as we thought,” Puppa muttered. “I am reading these headlines as we speak.”
“Hai Ram!” Mumma wailed, her voice spiraling into despair. “What are we supposed to do now?”
Her parents’ voices merged with the calls of the paparazzi, the endless comments, the relentless shutter of cameras. Priya’s heart raced as though she was reliving everything all over again—the chase through the streets, the posts, strangers digging through her life.
“You have gone too far this time, Priya,” Puppa said.
“Now the whole world is going after you. And not just you. Moksha has been dragged into this too. Do you know what this will do to our reputation, Priya?” His voice turned cold.
“This is what happens when you don’t stay within your limits.
Mr. Ethan is used to this. Every day, a new story, a new sensation.
But you, Priya. You are out of your league.
You think we are being strict, but we are just trying to protect you. ”
“Amari vaat maan,” her mother said. Listen to us. “Whatever is going on between you and Mr. Ethan is make-believe, Priya. It may be fun, but it’s just fantasy.”
Mumma’s words hit hard, not because they were harsh but because she was probably right.
Priya looked across the table at Ethan—he was unwavering, testing her without a word.
It was up to her. Her response could either solidify their future or unravel everything between them.
And no matter what she chose to say, someone she loved would pay the price.
Priya gripped the phone tight. “Those photos have been taken out of context and blown way out of proportion,” she said, her voice flat and brittle, so distant it barely sounded like her own. “Ethan and I are just friends.”
For an intense, excruciating moment, Ethan’s gaze burned into hers.
Pain and betrayal flashed across his face before he shut down, a wall sliding into place.
Priya knew that look well. It was the look he wore outside Knight Estates when his father pretended he wasn’t home.
And now she’d put the same anguish in his eyes.
His hand retreated slowly from where it rested on the table. Every part of Priya wanted to reach out and undo the damage, but it was too late. She had finally driven him away, not just out of Moksha but out of her life too.
Ethan turned away as if he could no longer bear to look at her.
Her parents’ voices blurred into the background.
She mumbled something in reply, wanting only to end the call.
The moment she disconnected, a heavy, suffocating silence filled the room.
Ethan sat like a statue, his jaw clenched, face unreadable.
“Ethan—”
With a flicker of resolve, he reached for his phone.
“Mr. Solanki,” he said, when Priya’s father answered the call.
“This is Ethan. I’m afraid word has gotten out about me being at Moksha.
It’s also creating problems for you and your family.
Given the circumstances, I’ve decided to leave sooner than expected. ”
A deep, immovable sadness settled in Priya’s chest. He was closing the door, sealing all possibilities.
“No, please keep the payment,” he added.
“I apologize for any problems my presence created. I’ll be leaving tonight, as soon as I arrange a pickup.
The sooner I leave, the faster you and your family can move past the media spotlight.
Thank you for the kindness you’ve shown me.
Please give my regards to Mrs. Solanki.”
As soon as the call ended, Ethan dialed out again. “Zach, I need a ride out of Moksha. Right away.” He listened for a moment, then nodded. “Yeah, I know they’re camped outside. Let’s throw them off like we did in Vegas. Let me know when we’re good to go.”
He shoved his chair back and stood, moving quickly as he gathered his things with quiet, deliberate efficiency.
Priya flinched at the swiftness of it, at how completely he shut her out, as if she no longer existed.
Grabbing his toiletries from the bathroom, he retreated to the bedroom.
When he returned, he had his luggage in tow and headed straight for the door.
As he put on his jacket, Priya felt their connection slipping through her fingers.
A hollow ache spread through her as she replayed the moments they had shared. His stubble grazing her cheek at dawn. Nights spent stargazing on the roof of the freight car. Sharing quiet cups of coffee. His laughter filling the silent spaces around her.
“Ethan,” she said, her voice catching.
But Ethan did not once look at her. Not when four identical sedans with tinted windows rolled into Moksha.
Not when his bags were loaded into one of the cars, and not when the vehicles sped away in a storm of camera flashes, leading the paparazzi on a wild-goose chase.
He did not look at her as she followed him to his motorcycle, nor when he tugged on his gloves and fastened his helmet.
“Ethan,” she tried again. She didn’t know what to say next, only that they could be the last words she ever said to him. But Ethan ignored her. Instead, he clutched the handlebars and began pushing his motorcycle silently toward the open field beyond the train tracks.
“Ethan!” she cried out, her voice cracking with desperation.
He still did not turn around. He moved steadily past the freight car, disappearing gradually into the dusk.
Priya stared after his silhouette until darkness consumed it entirely.
Only when he was safely out of range of any remaining press did his engine come alive.
The sound echoed briefly through the air, then receded, until there was nothing left but silence.
Priya stood motionless, her mind flashing back to the first time she had watched him disappear into that field.
Eventually, she forced herself to move, retracing her steps to the coach house.
She grabbed a flashlight and walked to the funeral home, her footsteps echoing through the empty corridors.
Shadows twisted and bent as the beam of light cut through the gloom.
Her breath faltered when she entered the casket showroom.
The casket Ethan had rested in seemed to call her.
Priya climbed inside and turned off her flashlight.
Darkness settled around her. Whoever said it was better to have loved and lost had never lived through this kind of grief—raw, searing, and inescapable.
She wasn’t just mourning the end of her relationship with Ethan.
She was mourning herself, too—the version of her who had dared to dream of more.
That part of her was now buried under the weight of failure.
And here she was, laying down her arms, finding comfort in the very place that had been waiting to claim her.