Page 77 of Reckless Dare

What is he doing here?

Ava’s heart began thudding. As though sensing her gaze, her tormentor looked right at her.

Their eyes clashed, hers angry and shocked, while his remained cool.

“He must have followed us here!” Neeraj said angrily.

Dragging her eyes away from her tormentor, she looked at Neeraj’s upset face.

“Ignore him, Neeraj,” she advised.

Neeraj’s face relaxed slightly and he nodded. “You are right. Let’s ignore him. I would rather focus on our date tonight.”

Ava nodded even as she felt like a hypocrite.

She had advised Neeraj to ignore Abhiram Simha, but she felt hyper aware of her tormentor’s presence in the sports bar. She was angry that he was there but what seared her insides was the fact that he was with some girl.

I shouldn’t care.

So what if her tormentor had been kissing her passionately only a couple of hours ago? And so what if he made her burn with his lips trailing hotly over her bare skin?

It must all have been a game for him. A mind game. Just like he thought he could disrupt her date with Neeraj.

Abhiram Simha was mistaken. She refused to be distracted or shaken by his presence.

“Turn up the TV,” she heard his deep voice instructing the sports bar manager. “The game is on tonight.”

Soon, the sports bar was filled with sounds of the game.

What is wrong with him? Why would he bring his date to such a noisy place?

Just as she wondered, she saw a few more familiar faces entering the sports bar. And they joined her tormentor’s table.

The strange relief that the girl with her tormentor wasn’t his date, made her angry.

What is wrong with me? I shouldn’t care whether or not he is on a date with some girl.

Minutes later, the place was bustling with the rest of the Simhas, the Vipers team members and the student council members. She realized they were celebrating the student council president elections win.

“To Abhi, the best president ever!”

“To Abhi! May he win the third time as the president next year too!”

The place was as loud as it could be, with the game on TV running on the highest volume and the group cheering her tormentor.

She looked at Neeraj who looked quite upset.

“Neeraj, we should leave. Let’s go to another place for dinner.”

But strangely Neeraj shook his head. “No. I want to stay here. I don’t want it to look like I’m running away.”

Ava nodded.

She glared at her tormentor a few times, but that didn't seem to ward off his gaze towards her. So, she once again looked away from him and focused on Neeraj.

Soon the food arrived, a sizzler dish that let out smoke in the whole area as the waiter brought out the pan. It was a grilled chicken with vegetables dish. Although it looked good, she was hoping to enjoy a burger with fries and milkshake at a sports bar.

“I don’t like carbs,” Neeraj explained. “I’m sure you don’t either since you visit the gym regularly.”

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