CHAPTER 17 #2
And that one touch… those nails against my skin… f*ck, I’m gone. A rough breath leaves me before I can stop it. Our breaths turn choppy, our kisses increasingly desperate as I slide my palm upwards to cup her jaw firmly.
I stop kissing her the next moment and let my thumb glide slowly across her lower lip, wanting to feel her lush lips before tilting her head back and kissing her full mouth again. I’m addicted to this woman. I simply can’t get enough of her taste, no matter how many times I kiss her.
This no longer feels like a simple kiss. It feels like surrender. Like finally giving in to something dark and obsessive that has been growing between us from the very first moment we met.
Just then, I hear the sound of approaching footsteps. Siya hears it too, because she breaks the kiss first. But even then, neither of us actually moves. We just stand there, breathing heavily against each other, our foreheads almost touching, both of us completely wrecked by what just happened.
My hand is still cupping her face, and her fingers are still twisted into my shirt. And f*ck. The look on her face alone makes me want to kiss her all over again.
As realization hits slowly, Siya looks completely shocked, unable to believe she just kissed me back like that, while I’m trapped somewhere in that same haze, my mouth still tingling with the taste of her.
Then, remembering the sound that pulled us apart in the first place, we both turn towards it at the same time.
A few feet away, Haider and Esha stand frozen in place, watching us.
Or rather… watching the aftermath of what they clearly just witnessed.
Esha’s jaw drops in shock, while Haider looks like his brain has temporarily stopped functioning altogether.
In the next moment, Siya’s wide eyes flick back to my face, and panic crashes into her expression. She pushes against my chest and steps away from me, almost stumbling backwards. Before I can grab her again, she turns and runs away from me.
I take a step forward to follow her, but I notice that Esha is already rushing after Siya.
So, I stop where I am as Haider walks towards me.
He is still in shock. The man has witnessed me destroy people, kill men, and burn down entire operations without blinking.
But this? Watching me lose control over a woman like that?
That is probably the last thing he ever expected to see.
But the moment he reaches me, the shock in his expression disappears, replaced by something far more urgent.
“We have a problem.”
I barely process the words at first. My head is still full of Siya. Her mouth. Her touch. Her moans against my lips. Then Haider speaks again, and I snap back into the present.
“The weapons consignment,” he says sharply, “is crossing the border in four hours.”
“What?” My entire body goes still. “That shipment wasn’t supposed to move for another two days.”
“The Reddys changed the schedule,” Haider replies quickly, already pulling out his phone. “Looks like they don’t want to risk holding the cargo there any longer.”
My jaw clenches hard. This is bad, especially since GLEN still has no intel on this. Ayaan had asked me once if I had anything on a possible movement, but I held back the information. And now, an entire arms consignment is set to leave the country in just four f*cking hours.
I turn sharply and stride out of the temple grounds with Haider beside me. Whatever haze Siya had pushed me into shatters instantly.
“Call every man we have near that route,” I order, my voice hard as steel. “Nobody lets that shipment cross the border until we get there.”
Haider immediately starts dialling our men.
“I want eyes on every vehicle connected to that consignment,” I continue. “Track the movement of their convoy. Every checkpoint. Every f*cking road leading them out of the country.”
Haider nods, already speaking into another phone simultaneously.
“And get the chopper ready.”
“It’s on standby,” he replies, dialling our men.
“And Haider,” I say darkly as we descend the valley’s uneven slope towards the waiting car. He looks at me instantly. “Tell them that even if one crate of those weapons disappears before I get there… somebody dies for it.”
Haider gives a single nod as we finally reach the vehicle waiting below, both of us heading straight for RK Estate, where the helicopter is already prepared for take-off.
But beneath all of it, beneath every tactical calculation running through my head… I can still feel Siya’s lips on mine.
It irritates me how badly she has gotten under my skin.
I don’t have time to deal with this right now.
But when I get back after handling this mess, addressing that situation will be my only priority.
Because one thing has become clear with absolute certainty.
That kiss has changed everything. For both of us.
Haider is still coordinating with our men over the phone when I finally pull mine out and slam my foot harder on the accelerator.
I need to call Ayaan. GLEN has to know about the border movement before this turns into an international disaster.
There’s no hiding this anymore. I already know how this conversation is going to go.
Ayaan is going to lose his mind the moment he realises I sat on information tied to an illegal arms route while he kept asking me for updates for days. And the worst part? I did it knowingly.
And Ayaan? He does not forgive betrayal easily. And when it comes from me, it will be his biggest nightmare.
SIYA
Esha drives me back to RK Estate, but my mind never really left that temple backyard.
A part of me feels trapped there, caught between Raghav’s hands, his mouth, and the feel of his breath against mine.
And the way he kissed me… God. It felt as if he wanted to consume every breath from my lungs and without caring about the consequences.
And I kissed him back with the same madness!
Thankfully, Esha remains silent during the drive, but I know she noticed enough tonight. Haider too. At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if the entire valley had seen what happened.
I groan, mortified.
First, I placed that lily garland around Raghav’s neck in front of everyone like some possessive lunatic. Then I ran from him afterwards as though I had committed some unforgivable crime. Maybe I have. Because I still cannot understand what possessed me to do any of it.
And the kiss? Where the hell did that come from?
As soon as we reach RK Estate, Esha parks near the side pathway leading to the guest cottages. The second I step out of the car, Esha starts softly. “Siya Ma’am—”
But I shake my head before she can continue.
I can’t talk about this right now. Without even saying goodbye, I hurry towards my cottage, my heartbeat growing louder with every step.
Right now, all I want is to lock myself inside my room before anyone sees my face and realises something inside me has changed forever.
But the moment I turn the corner towards my cottage, I stop dead. Every single guard outside my cottage turns to look at me at once.
Michael.
My security detail.
And standing right in the middle of them all, like a volcano waiting to erupt, is Parag Reddy.
My stomach drops instantly. What is he doing here?
When did he arrive? Parag is dressed entirely in black, a long dark coat thrown over a charcoal shirt.
An expensive watch. Heavy rings. The usual cold Southern Syndicate arrogance radiating from every inch of him.
Two of his men stand behind him near the pathway, equally armed and just as intimidating.
Parag looks furious. One of my guards, the one usually stationed outside my cottage at night, is trying to explain something to him when Parag suddenly turns. And the second his eyes land on me, the entire atmosphere changes.
“There you are,” he says coldly.
An uneasy silence follows. All this time, I had managed to slip away unnoticed whenever I needed space from the constant security hovering around me.
But tonight, I got caught. I’m sure by now Michael must have already informed Samarjeet about my little escapade because even he looks furious.
His glare alone tells me he now knows how I’ve been sneaking past security for days.
I shift my gaze back to Parag, who is already striding towards me. “Where were you?” he demands.
Even with everything currently messing with my head, I don’t let him see my weakness. I straighten my shoulders and meet his gaze calmly. “I was at an event here,” I reply coolly. “That’s all.”
“And how many times have you disappeared without security like this?” he asks, his face darkening.
I stay silent, but then his gaze slowly drags over my appearance… on my traditional outfit.
“And what nonsense are you wearing?” he asks.
This is nonsense for him? Huh! I don’t bother answering because I suddenly remember how Raghav couldn’t take his eyes and hands off me tonight on seeing me in this attire. Parag really is blind if he thinks this outfit is nonsense.
The next moment, Parag steps closer as if about to grab my arm in anger. But I step back, and his hand freezes midair. That’s when my gaze accidentally drops to his hands. Bandages are wrapped around almost every finger on both hands. Before I can stop myself, a question slips out.
“What… what happened to your hands?”
For the first time since I arrived, his expression shifts. If he thinks I’m concerned about him, he’s seriously mistaken. I’m only trying to confirm whether the thought forming in my mind as I look at his bruised hands is true or not.
“I had a minor accident this morning,” he says dismissively. “It’s just a burn injury.”
My heartbeat falters as I recall Raghav warning me yesterday at the pool table to stop responding to Parag’s messages. There is absolutely no way this is a coincidence. Is this Raghav’s doing?