Page 76 of Addiction

“What is wrong with me?” she rasped. “You’re right. He’s a known philanderer, a heartbreaker. Of course, he will cheat on me. A man like him doesn’t know how to be faithful. Oh God. I can’t fall for him. I won’t love him. I amnotin love with him, and he’s not the one for me.”

“Then what the hell are you doing with him?” Ananya asked.

“I’d like an answer to that as well.”

Navya whirled around, her chest tightening at the sound of Armaan’s stilted voice. He was standing right behind her, his arms crossed on his chest, a mixture of hurt and anger flashing on his face.

She moved toward him, and he backed a step away.

“Stay where you are and answer your sister,” he barked.

She tipped her head to stare at him. He was vibrating with fury, his expression rigid, immovable. This wasn’t the Armaan she’d gotten to know in the past weeks. He was replaced by this cold, hard man who was staring at her like she was a stranger. She hated it. She wanted the other Armaan back, the one who always smiled at her, the one who looked at her like she meant more than the sun, the moon, and the stars to him. The one who made her happy. And she had been happy with him. Deliriously so.

Memories of the past few weeks spent with him flashed in her mind’s eye and with that came a profound realization. Shepressed a hand to her rumbling chest. Her heart was telling her that it was at ease now that he was in front of her. That it always felt at ease around him. That being with him felt like coming home. That he made her feel safe, protected and cherished. That she was utterly happy when she was with him. Only him.

Oh God, Armaan was her home. He was her safe place—a haven to rest at the end of a long day and a place where she could voice her innermost feelings without the fear of being judged. Maybe, she ought to have thought through everything properly before speaking the way she had, because the truth was that his mere presence eased her doubts and worries. All the questions she battled with when she was away from him vanished into thin air. What remained was the intrinsic belief was that he was important to her, and that perhaps, she was wrong about everything.

Meeting him had been the most pivotal moment of her life. For years, she hadn’t forgotten him, and then fate had put her into his path again. She and him had been preordained by the stars. It was kismet, and now, standing in front of him, she was finally beginning to realize this.

At her silence, he turned, walking away. Something poked against her ribcage. It was her heart reminding her that a crucial piece of her was leaving. And if she allowed him to go, then the world would never be the same again.

Which meant… it meant that… Fuck, she was in love with Armaan Oshnov, and right now, he believed the complete opposite.

She was such a fool.

21

Navya took a step forward, and Ananya placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Let me go, Ananya,” Navya said. “I need to talk to him. He’s… everything. I love him, and I’ve been a fucking coward about it for so long. I let my fear consume me.”

Her sister stilled.

“I’ll explain later. All I know is that if I don’t stop him right now, I will regret it for the rest of my life.”

Navya didn’t stop to see her sister’s reaction. She ran after Armaan. He was making his way down the milling crowds to the stairs. She caught his hand. He hauled his hand out of her hold.

“Armaan, please listen,” she said. She had to yell to speak over the raging music. “What you heard was wrong.”

His eyes glimmered with fury. “Last I checked, my hearing is pretty good.”

Before he could reply, she grabbed his hand and drew him to a discreet exit. She swiped her card on it, and it opened to reveal a long, dimly lit corridor. Not waiting for his reaction, she dragged him to another steel door, swiped her card at it, and they walked outside to an enclosed parking area. Except fora few cars, the lot was thankfully empty. As far as she knew, only her family and a few VIP guests had access to this private entrance of the club.

Armaan removed his hand from hers and looked around for a brief second before his laser-sharp gaze landed on her.

“So, the only reason you’re with me is because of my looks and my prowess in bed.” His lips tightened. “I ought to have figured this when you refused to verbalize what you feel for me; when you refused to reply when I asked for more commitment.”

She took a step closer to him. “I’m sorry about what you heard earlier. I was too confused about our relationship and was voicing out my thoughts to Ananya without thinking them through. That is not how I feel about you.”

“Really? I think you voiced how you feel about me perfectly clearly. The thing is, Navya, that you never gave us a chance. You entered our relationship believing that I wasn’t a good person and that I would cheat on you and hurt you.”

“Armaan, please. This is all a misunderstanding.”

“Is it? The way I see it, you’re willing to say anything now to convince me so we can continue our arrangement. Here I was, falling in love with you, but you were using me only for sex and a good time.”

She gasped. Her heart went into shock. Oh God! Had he just admitted to being in love with her? And that too a few seconds after she’d admitted to herself that she loved him too. She’d always suspected that he felt a lot for her, but hearing that he, too, loved her was making her chest explode with delight. Except that now she had to convince him to listen to her.

She took another step toward him. From the side came the sound of footsteps and metal clanging against a surface. She turned, and four men appeared in front of them holding metal rods, chains, and… wait, was that a dagger in one of their hands? Good God. Within seconds, those men had surrounded them.They were tall, heavily built, and looked European. There was no way to escape except going past them. Armaan held her by the arm and pulled her closer to him.

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