Page 113 of Addiction

Armaan flicked his nose playfully. “He’s cute.”

“He knows that, don’t you?” Navya asked Shiven.

Totally uninterested in them, the little boy pointed to the floor.

“I want to play,” he said.

Navya dropped him on his feet, and he ran away to play with his toys.

Nia plucked Armaan’s cheeks, demanding attention from him.

“Oh, you know you’re the prettiest, isn’t it?” Armaan told her.

“She’s a proper little princess,” Navya said. “She wants all eyes on her, always.”

Seeing her brother playing with his toys, she said, “Down.”

Armaan gently put her on her feet, and she went running to her brother.

“Now, when is the wedding going to happen?” Ananya asked. “I’ll ensure Noir covers it as the wedding of the century. It’s been on my mind to start covering some big-ass weddings. I’ll start with yours.”

“Hey, I never said I wanted a loud wedding,” Navya protested.

“You’re my sister,” Rajiv said. “Your wedding will be loud. You can make it as private as you want, but it will be grand.”

“Oh God. There is so much to be done,” Ananya lamented. “We need to plan outfits, then caterers, and décor, so much to do. Wait, we have to tell Reina as well.” Ananya checked her time. “But she won’t answer now; she’s not off work yet.”

Navya shared a look with Armaan. Her family still didn’t know that Reina was treating Vedant in London and living withhim. And while Armaan had assured her that Vedant wouldn’t hurt her, and yes, she believed him, Navya hated that her baby sister was unintentionally involved with Armaan’s other brother, albeit as his personal doctor. Their family, however, continued to think that Reina was working at the hospital.

Navya couldn’t wait for the day Vedant was fully recovered, and Reina would return to her own home. Only then she’d be able to breathe freely. While Vasily had been captured, the threat of Ivan still loomed over their lives and she didn’t want Reina mixed with anything concerning him.

“Well,” Ananya prodded. “When’s the wedding?”

“Will you take it a bit slow, please? She’s just proposed to me,” Armaan replied. “We need to talk about it amongst each another first.”

Navya smiled at her sister. It was heart-warming to see Ananya so excited. She ran a gaze down her sister. Ananya still was too damn thin, and the circles around her eyes were getting darker. Even her crop t-shirt was hanging off of her. God. Ananya needed to eat more. She needed to get healthier. She needed to start living again. Navya needed to have a serious conversation with her soon.

“Dinner is set,” her mom called out. “I’m sure everyone is hungry after the eventful day we’ve all had.”

All of them turned to go to the dining table, discussing options for her wedding.

Armaan curled his hand around Navya’s waist. “So,moya tigritsa, I told you that one day you’d like me enough to tell your brother about me. See, not only did you do that, you even introduced me to your whole family. And I got to meet your nephew and niece as well, like I wanted. Look how far we have come.”

She laughed recalling those moments between them so long ago. How hard she’d tried to resist him. How convinced she’dbeen that their relationship would be short-lived. How wrong she’d been. She couldn’t live a moment away from him.

She looked into his eyes. “Armaan, we areforever.”

“I’ve always known that; it’s taken you a long time to accept it. Ask me that question you always ask me.”

She frowned, and then her face cleared. “Why me, Armaan?

“Because you’re you, and you are the only woman who makes my heartbeat double, who makes my skin tingle, and who makes me believe in happily ever after. I’m in love with you, Navya Mehra. I’ve loved you for a long time now.”

She grinned. “I love you, Armaan Oshnov. You make me so happy. You make my heart sing in joy. You make my soul sigh in pleasure. You’ve taught me the meaning of true love.”

“You know, I remembered the events of the night of the attack. I remember seeing Vasily behind the pillar just before you told me that you love me.”

Her eyes rounded. “I’m glad you remember everything. I still feel so guilty about hurting you that night with my ill-spoken words, and the fact that you forgot I told you how I felt about you made me feel that the universe was punishing me.”

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