Page 69 of The Rules of Playing with Fire

I peeked my head around Tara to smile at Sameer in reassurance, but he was already charging toward us. “Everything is fine,” I managed feebly as Sameer entered, his frown steady on Mihir, who was still shirtless.

“I caught them at it!” Tara cried, managing to find the perfect sweet spot between worry and elation.

“What the hell, Mihir!” Sameer said.

I quickly shut the door behind him and locked it this time.

“I told you not to toy with her,” Sameer continued.

“He isn’t toying,” I said, my voice still a hush.

“You gave me your word,” Sameer said to Mihir.

“And I didn’t break it,” Mihir replied in a confident voice.

Sameer turned to me, and I responded with a guilty nod. He narrowed his eyes at me and shook his head. “I expected this from him, but you, Sona!”

“She’s an independent woman. Can’t she decide who she wants to be with?” Mihir stared back at Sameer.

“That’s my problem. She chose you?” Sameer said with a deep frown of anger and disdain between his brows.

“What’s wrong with me?” Mihir cried in indignation.

“Nothing is wrong with you, Mr. Hop-skip-jump to the next one. I warned you, but you just couldn’t help yourself, could you?” Sameer replied, ready to charge toward him, but Tara put her hand out and thwarted him.

“Stop it, Sameer. Mihir is right. Sona is a grown woman capable of making her own decisions,” she said with a decided displeasure in her voice. “And can you put a shirt on, Mihir?” she said. “It’s horrible enough that I’ll have one naked man in my bed tonight. I don’t want the image of another one haunting me.”

An ill-timed chuckle escaped my lips, and she threw me a glare. Mihir grabbed his kurta from the chair and pulled it over his head while Tara crossed her arms, walked to the bed, and sat on the edge.

“And you, missy!” She jabbed her finger at me and demanded, “Explain.”

“We didn’t mean to,” I said. “We just connected.”

“Yes, I saw what parts connected,” Tara said with a frown.

I tittered again at her words, and she glared me down again.

“She’s right,” Mihir said. “One moment, we were talking at the lake house, and the next…well, you get the drift.”

“The lake house?” Tara jumped from her seat. “This has been going on since October?”

I nodded with a sheepish look.

“And you went to Montréal to see her?” Tara said to Mihir, the truth suddenly dawning on her.

This time, he nodded.

She turned to me, visibly offended. “And you both hid it from me?”

“Because you’ve been over-protective about me since Ajay,” I said, and Tara’s eyes darted instantly to Mihir.

A tiny smile began emerging at the corners of Tara’s lips. “He knows about Ajay?”

I ran a quick tongue over my dry lips. Darn, I had given it away, and I now had no choice but to confirm it. I returned a slight nod.

“Oh my god!” she squealed, wrapping me in her arm and rushing to grab Mihir into an embrace. I threw Sameer a save me look, but he stood with hands on his hips, feet apart, a frown on his forehead.

“What am I missing?” he asked with both hands in the air, and Tara turned to smile at him. She patted Mihir’s cheek, then mine.

---