Page 158 of Obsession

“You’d told me once that you wanted a ring with a red diamond identical to this one. So, I got that for you to wear around your neck.” He offered her the ring in his hand. “But this diamond has always been yours. It’s the one with which I proposed to you all those years ago. I’ve reset it onto a ring that will fit you. Is it acceptable?”

A tear fell down her eye. “It’s perfect.”

He held her left hand. “There is a Japanese art form calledKintsugi.It involves fixing a broken object using lacquer and gold. The end result is that the object gets fixed but is even more beautiful than before. You and I have been broken for too long. Let’s fix us and make our relationship even more beautiful than before.” His chest swelled as he gazed at her. “Anna, you are the most incredible woman I’ve ever met. I want to share my life with you. I want to grow old with you. I want to raise my children with you. You make my world better and brighter. You make me a better man. You have always been only mine, just like I’ve always been only yours. Will you marry me again?”

“You’re just so intense.” Another tear escaped her eyes. She chuckled, wiping it away. “You’re a nice guy, Mihir Oshnov, and I’m anything but nice. I’m bossy, temperamental, hard to please, and very high-maintenance.”

He laughed, remembering their first meeting and the time when she’d said those words to another man while looking at him.

“I love all that and everything else about you, Anna,” he said. “You own me, heart and soul. I can’t say that I won’t drive you mad—I’m sure I will—but I will also love you so much that you will never need anything more.” He slipped the ring on her finger. “Marry me and plan the biggest, loudest wedding you want. What do you say? Shall we renew our vows? Shall we choose happiness above everything?”

“Yes. Absolutely yes to happiness.” She helped him stand and kissed his lips. “I love you, Mihir. I want to fix us and make us even better than before.”

His hands sank into her hair as she attacked his mouth. Her hands went to remove his t-shirt, but he stopped her, placing his hand on her belly.

“Are you sure we can do this?” he asked.

She rolled her eyes. “I’m pregnant, not sick. And don’t even give me the excuse of you being sick. I need you right now, like I need air to breathe, so make me yours,husband.”

“Whatever you say,wife.”

Lifting her into his arms, he carried her to the bed.

* * *

The sky had turned dark,and all the lights around them were turned on. It was late evening as Mihir stood on the steps of his house with Anna, her hand in his, while he waited for his sister to arrive. A few steps below, Armaan and Vedant stood with Navya and Reina, with Rajiv and Sheena next to them. They were friends with Karina, and it only made sense to have them here on this momentous day. Mihir had told them everything, and they’d been shocked to learn that their friend Sabrina was actually the Oshnovs’ long-lost sister.

He checked the time on his watch again and rubbed his scar impatiently. Any minute now.

Anna squeezed his hand once again. He exhaled, glad to have her beside him. Lifting her hand, he kissed it. The red diamond glittered on her finger. It looked perfect on her hand, like it was finally where it was always meant to be. He’d spent the wee hours of the morning making love to her. When he’d woken up later in the day, his heart was at peace, and his arms were around her. This was how he wanted to wake up for the rest of his life. He and Anna had spent a lot of time together by themselves, talking about their future. His chest rumbled in happiness.

Finding his eyes on her, Anna looked at him.

“Are you feeling alright?” she checked.

He nodded. He was better than ever.

The sound of a car entering the estate made him look to the side. He released a slow breath.

“It’s going to be perfect,” Anna told him. “You’ll see. She will love you all.”

He lowered his chin. The Rolls-Royce stopped under the porch. Mihir followed his brothers down the steps to it. Aditya climbed out first. He looked at all of them waiting and leaned inside to whisper a few words. He held out a hand, and a beautiful, dark-haired woman stepped out.

Karina paused, taking in the faces of her brothers, and then she rushed to them. Vedant held her first. Her eyes filled with tears as she took him in.

“Vedant!” she cried aloud. “I can’t believe I’m actually seeing you… touching you.”

Vedant drew her into a hug, his eyes misty. “You’re here, Karina. You’re safe. We are always going to keep you safe.”

Armaan went to her next.

“Hi,” he whispered. “You look all grown up.”

She chuckled. “And your smile is still the same. So naughty. I missed you so much.”

Armaan held her close for a long moment, and then she went to Mihir. She threw herself at his chest, hugging him hard.

“Thank you,” Karina said. Tears dripped down her cheeks. “That knife you gave me saved my life more than once. You taught me to defend myself, and because of that, I lived a good life.”

---