She shook her head, holding up her anger as an armour. ‘Then why lie to me back then? Why not just tell me who you were from the beginning?’
‘Because I was terrified,’ he admitted, the confession ripped from him in a rush. ‘Because for the first time in my life, I held the woman of my dreams in my arms, who looked like hell and heaven all at once, and I didn’t want to scare you away.’
Her lips parted, and with anger still bubbling within her, she said, ‘Is that the excuse you give yourself to justify what you did?’
‘I lied, and I lost your trust. That’s on me. But can you honestly tell me if I’d told you I was Abhay Agrawal, son of the man your father hated, and I’ve been in love with you all my life, would you have trusted me with your heart?’
Her lips parted, but nothing came out, because his question had hit too deep, too true.
‘Could you have seenmebeyond the hatred he sowed in your heart, beyond how he trained you to see me as a threat, and beyond the way he said my last name like a curse?’
Her mind wandered to that night. He’d looked at her with so much love then and she’d believed in the magic of the moment because he was a stranger who wasn’t asking for anything in return. She realised with a sharp, painful clarity that shecouldn’thave seen any of that if she knew who he was.
No matter how fiercely and confidently she wanted to say yes, she wouldn’t lie to him. ‘I… I don’t think I could have,’ she whispered.
The anger etched in his features softened and he softly brushed away droplets from her cheek. He was looking at her with such gentle understanding that she almost flinched. ‘I can’t turn back time, but I can ask you to see me now. Beyond the name and legacy, I’m just a man who has treasured your name in my heart since the night we met.’
The rain poured around them, but her body heated when he drew her so impossibly close that she could feel the wild and insistent rhythm of his heart against her palm.
‘All I ever wanted was one night to lay aside the name, the rivalry, the burden of legacy, and just be Abhay holding Siya. But when I lost you, and it nearly drove me mad, I only had myself to blame. There is no excuse for my lie, and I’m not shameless enough to justify it.’
His eyes burned into hers as he continued, ‘But, I didn’t lie to use you as a pawn. I don’t give a damn about this silly rivalry that Kartik started. Every move I’ve made, every battle I’vefought, every word I’ve bitten back has been for you. Because I see you, Siya.Only you.I always have, even when you were hellbent on proving to yourself that no one ever would.’
‘Stop it!’ a scream tore out of her and she tried to move away but he tightened his arm around her waist. Siya couldn’t bear how he was looking into her soul, and tearing it apart with his affection.
‘Why not? If you can accept that I took advantage of you for rivalry’s sake, why can’t you believe that I did what I did because I love you with all my heart?’
‘Because whatever you feel for me, I didn’t earn it! People like me don’t get love for free. That’s not how this works. That’s not how anything in my life has ever worked.’
Abhay swallowed hard, and when he spoke again, there was a tremor in his voice that went straight to her wounded heart. ‘You see yourself as Siya Kashyap, daughter of Kartik Kashyap. The dutiful firstborn. The responsible teenager who had to raise her sister. The woman who was told she had to be perfect to be enough for her father. But to me, you’re so much more than I ever deserved.’
He cradled her face gently in his hands and his eyes glistened with unshed tears. He spoke softly but his words hit her like lightning. ‘I see the woman who sits through cheesy dramas she hates because it's Meera’s comfort genre. I see the woman who calls out every injustice for Kashvi. I see the woman who fights for everyone and forgets to fight for herself. I seeyou, Siya, and that’s the only person I’ve ever loved.’
A sob clawed its way up her throat and she held on to him for dear life. Her heart, foolish as it was, pounded with something akin to hope.
The sincerity in his words shattered her rage and scattered the pieces at her feet. And now, staring at him, she wasn’t sure she had the strength to keep running. She felt heavy with exhaustion.
‘I know you’ve spent your whole life being told you had to earn love. Any scrap of affection came with conditions, expectations and sacrifices. But I love you unconditionally, jaan.’
He rested his forehead against hers as he confessed, ‘You don’t have to prove yourself to me, Siya. You just have to stay.’
She wanted to deny him, to push him back into the shadows where her rage could survive, but his thumb slowly stroked over her lower lip, and her breath caught on the edge of a whimper.
With a guttural sound of anguish and fury, Abhay clamped the back of her neck, and pulled her to him until their lips collided.
In a possessive grip, his other arm banded around her waist, yanking her flush against him. The air between them was hot, charged, his chest heaving so close to hers that she could feel the rise and fall of every breath. Her gasp melted into his mouth, her fists pounding once at his chest before clutching his shirt in a desperate grip.
She felt the wild pounding of his heart against her palm and the dam she’d built together with fragile threads finally burst open. Siya kissed him back with all the angst she’d buried over the years.
He loosened his grip on her nape, his thumb stroking her skin almost unconsciously. Her curves pressed to every hard line of his body, and his tongue teased hers, claiming, pleading, and pouring every flame of his desire into it.
The rough scrape of his stubble ignited her, and a needy moan escaped her when his kiss became feverish and demanding. She responded with equal ferocity, and bit on his lower lip. Abhay growled, then choked on it when she traced the sting away with her tongue.
When they finally broke apart, he rested his forehead against hers. ‘I’m not letting you go, Siya, and that’s final.’
Her hand fisted the lapel of his blazer as she challenged him. ‘What makes you think you can stop me?’
‘Come with me, I’ll show you how,’ Abhay said, intertwining their fingers as he pulled her toward the exit. He didn’t look away from her even once as they stepped into the elevator. His calloused skin felt rough against hers, and the friction sent a spark coursing through her, kicking up her heartbeat.
