Page 7 of Addiction

“Yeah, right,” Armaan scoffed.

“The day I need your help to hook up with a woman will be my last day on this planet,” Mihir said.

Armaan studied Mihir. “Hmm, when exactly was the last timeyouwent out with a woman? Or had sex? Celibacy doesn’t suit you, big brother. You’re even worse of a grump than you were before.”

“I’d have to agree with Armaan on that,” Vedant said. “You need to get laid?—”

“Enough, both of you,” Mihir groused. “How the fuck did we move from Armaan being careful to my sex life?”

“Your non-existent sex life, you mean,” Armaan teased.

Vedant looked at Armaan, and they both burst out laughing. Mihir rolled his eyes, but Armaan did not miss the ghost of a smile on his face. His elder brother needed to smile more often. They had challenges galore ahead of them, but Armaan knew that the three of them could face anything put in their way as long as they were together. And once they found Karina, their broken circle would be complete again. God, even thinking of her made his chest ache.

There was a knock on the door, and one of their bodyguards, Tyrion, entered.

“Your guests are waiting for you,” the man said in Russian.

“We’re coming,” Mihir answered, also in Russian. All of them spoke Russian fluently, and it was also the language in which they usually spoke to each other.

After their man left, Mihir said, “Duty calls. I have some Arabs I’ve invited to discuss the new oil pipeline.”

Vedant reluctantly put his glass down and donned his specs again. “I, too, have some bankers waiting for me. Parties are always a good place to conduct business. All the drinks and food make them more amenable to agreeing to our terms.”

His brothers stood.

When Armaan didn’t follow, Mihir frowned. “Aren’t you coming?”

“I think I’ll take a pass on tonight.”

“Hey, you know we didn’t mean that you shouldn’t attend the party tonight,” Vedant said.

“It’s not that,” Armaan replied. “It’s just that after what went down with Dorab, I’ve lost the mood and the inclination to party. I feel as if I failed her.”

“We will find her, brother,” Mihir vowed. “But this party is a tradition we have to uphold. Vedant and I will wait for you. Papa would want you to be with us, celebrating our birthday.”

Noting Armaan’s silence, his brothers exited, leaving him to his thoughts. He drowned his vodka and rested his chin on his fist, thinking. God, what a fuck all day it had been so far. Dorab had hardly given them anything concrete to look for their sister, and now their adopted cousin was stirring up trouble. Added to that, the party outside… It always seemed so incomplete to celebrate without their dear Papa. Tonight, he was really missing their old man. He’d have known exactly what to do and would have been able to guide them correctly.

To the world, Alexander Oshnov had been cold, ruthless, and dangerous. But his sons remembered him fondly as someone who was not only bold, brilliant, and sharp, but also kind and wonderful. By taking in three homeless orphans, he’d not only given them a chance at a better life, but he’d also made them his heirs. In the present day, the three of them owned one of the biggest fortunes on the planet. Alexander had taught them all they needed to know about his businesses and made them capable so they could manage his vast empire after he was gone. Armaan knew he was one of the rare ones to have found such a privileged fate. He and his brothers revered the legacy Alexander had left them with. Familiar grief washed over him. He still wasn’t completely over losing Alexander.

His phone beeped with text messages. Quickly reading them, Armaan lifted his iPad from a side table. He played the camera feed and his eyes widened. His heart rate jumped as herecognized who was standing on his lawns, creating a ruckus. As was expected from her.

Tigritsa.His tigress. She was here, in his home?! Now wasn’t that a very pleasant surprise? His lips curved. Navya Mehra, the only woman who’d instantly snagged his attention since that very first time he’d touched her. Renewed energy burst through his veins. Not surprisingly, she was the one person who could make him forget everything, his grief and sadness included.

He studied the video again, pausing on her image. His heartrate jack-knifed. Damn, the effect of this woman hadn’t simmered down despite the years and the distance between them.

Four years back, after she’d hosed him down with a bloody fire hose, no less, Mihir had struck a deal with her brother that they’d all leave the Mehra sisters alone, as long as the girls stayed away from them and never crossed their paths again.

His smile broadened. Navya Mehra had walked intohishouse, intohisparty of herownfree will. Looks like his late father had sent him the best birthday gift ever.

Thank you, Papa. You always knew me too well.Whispering those words of thanks in his head, Armaan stood and straightened his jacket. Guess he was going to his party after all. Happy birthday to him!

2

One hour earlier

London, at this time of the year, was beautiful. The Xmas lights strung everywhere, the snowfall, the winter coats and boots, Navya Mehra loved it all. However, it was already time to return home to Dubai. Just one more night to enjoy with her younger sister, and then it would be back to dealing with designer labels and client interactions. She took in the current stark nature of her surroundings as her sister, Reina, drove them to God only knew where.

“At least tell me where we are going…” Navya asked Reina. “This looks like we are driving to the end of the world, not to a party. All I can see is an empty road and lots of trees.”

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