Page 33 of Fixation

Vedant cracked a grin. “How did you manage to convince her?”

“To be honest, there are tons of decisions to be taken regarding the security of this house, and while your brothers have taken it upon themselves to look into everything, it would be easier for the team here if we didn’t have to wait on their approval for every little thing. The time difference also slows everything down. She agreed with me.”

Vedant quickly entered his passcode and unlocked his phone. There were hundreds of unread messages and emails. He’d need days to sift through everything. But at least he could begin returning to normal life now.

He addressed Tyrion. “What do I ought to know first?”

Tyrion handed him the iPad, on which there was a prioritised list of items regarding the security. He took him through the new protocols Mihir had put in place regarding the incoming and outgoing of vehicles from the house. Tyrion spoke to him about the various open-ended decisions, and Vedant told him how and what to do.

Finally, an hour later, Tyrion took the iPad back. “One more thing, Sir. Ms. Svensson called yesterday asking for you.”

He frowned. Why was Anita calling so much? They had met while discussing the new oil pipeline deal and had gone out on a couple of dates, during which they had discussed work for most of the time. She was intelligent and attractive and had made her intentions clear. She wanted a few no-string nights with him and he’d taken up on her offer. That’s all it had been—two adults consenting to a good time.

Now that he’d been out of action and out of touch for so long, perhaps, she wanted to discuss something regarding the deal with him. Had he missed something there? No, he couldn’t think of anything. Besides, Armaan had mentioned they had closed this out. What could she want now?

He dialled her number from his phone, but there was no response. “Thanks, Tyrion. I’ll look into it. Please come to me in case you need anything.”

Tyrion lowered his head and left. The door opened and Stefan entered.

“Good afternoon, Sir,” Stefan greeted him before addressing Laila. “I’ve come to relieve you.”

Laila stood. “Why? My shift has just begun.”

“Reina said she’ll be here soon. I need to help her with something and there’s no point in all of us being here. You can rest for an hour or so. I’ll come get you when we’re done.”

“Oh, but I can help too,” Laila insisted.

“Doctor,” Vedant called out. “Please take a break. You deserve it more than anyone since you’ve been constantly by my side each time I’ve woken up.”

She beamed and left.

Excitement surged through him. Reina was coming, finally. After hearing how selflessly she’d saved him, he felt even more drawn to her. He now had an insight into the kind of woman Reina Singh was, and he had to admit that he liked her even more. He couldn’t wait to see her again.

Stefan checked his charts once and then said, “If you don’t mind, Sir, Reina has asked me to take off your cast.”

His excitement dimmed. “I thought Dr. Singh said she’s going to remove it herself.”

“She’ll be here in a few minutes,” Stefan said. “I’ll just cut through it and clean your wound until then.”

Stefan worked on him quickly. Once he was done, Vedant could stretch his leg fully, finally free of the restriction. But there were twinges of pain in his leg as he tried to move it. He looked at his thigh. A long scar ran from the side of his thigh down to his knee. It felt stiff and hard.

The door opened and Reina walked in. Their eyes met in the distance and she paused. He gave her a tentative smile and her lips curved slightly. He studied her. The glasses and tight hairdo were back in place. He disliked it. He wanted to see the real her again.

Disinfecting her hands, she came straight to him to check his right leg. Stefan had rolled his cotton bottoms up his thigh. She studied his wound from afar for a moment. Her cool hands touched his knee, and a tremor went down his spine. He swallowed hard, unable to comprehend his reaction to her. How could such a simple touch affect him like that? It was unthinkable, yet it continued to happen as her hands skimmed over his leg.

She checked his wound properly. “It’s healing well.”

“Is it?”

“Yes,” she addressed Stefan. “I had requested Tyrion for some things. Please, can you bring them for me?”

With a smile, the younger man quickly exited the room.

Reina turned to Vedant. “How are you feeling?”

“Great, actually.”

“May I take a look at your chest?”

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