Page 8 of Obsession

He exhaled deeply. For the last couple of months, Anna routinely published scandalous gossip about him in Noir. She never named him directly, but her hints were rather too loud.

Until now, he had ignored that rubbish and her. But she simply wouldn’t give up. He looked in the rear-view mirror and finally spotted her Lamborghini Urus. She was quite a distance behind, but on this empty stretch of road, her car was easily visible. Fuck. What was she thinking following him like this?

She and he had been heading for a confrontation for months now. He’d been avoiding it for the longest. But it was time to face her once and for all and put an end to all her nonsense.

3

She’d lost her mind. That was the only reason why she was following the most dangerous man on the planet to God only knew where.

She should have gone straight home when she saw his car standing at the opposite signal. She shouldn’t have let her curiosity overtake her mind. She should have ignored him, and the danger that lurked around him, and returned home, instead of following him like she was.

But thanks to Avantika, she’d finally, for the first time in months, been able to escape her bodyguard. She hadn’t wanted anyone in her family to know that she was going to meet Mihir. That would have created a huge uproar, which neither of them needed. Their conversation needed to remain private. That’s why she’d enlisted Avi’s help.

Avi had pretended to be sick and left early from the party, taking Ananya’s car with her, as she’d arrived with Dev and one of her brothers. Ananya had announced that she was retiring early too, and had informed her bodyguard, Adam, that Avantika was taking her car, so he could turn in for the night as well. What no one knew was that she had hidden in the back seat of her own car while Avantika had driven off. After dropping her friend home, Ananya had driven straight in the direction of Mihir’s massive seaside estate. On the way, however, she had noticed his Bugatti at a signal, and on a whim, decided to follow him. Now, as Mihir turned into a narrow lane on the Dubai-Abu Dhabi highway, she began to further question her judgment. She ought to turn back. It wasn’t too late. But her body refused to do what her mind was warning her to.

She wanted to see where he was going. While her agenda for tonight had been to confront him and put an end to this vendetta he had going on with her, her resolve had started to shake with every mile that had taken her closer to his house. Doing this meant shutting the last door on the past and breaking that tie that bound her to him. Her heart had screamed in protest all through the drive.

But then she’d seen him at the signal, and for some inane reason, her curiosity had been piqued. For months, she had tried to catch his attention, to learn more about him. Tonight, perhaps, was her chance to see what he did when no one was watching.

Ugh. Rajiv would never let her out of the house if he knew what she was up to. But her mind was set. She was doing this. She twirled the ring dangling from the gold chain around her neck with one hand. The red diamond twinkled under passing the street lights, grabbing her attention for a second. At one time, this ring belonged tohim. At one time, she’d thought thatshebelonged to him too. She’d thought he was her forever. Alas, how wrong she’d been.

She’d started wearing this ring as a locket on her chain after that disastrous yacht incident, and now she wore it all the time, especially because it annoyed him to see it on her. Both his brothers had similar rings, given to all of them by their late adopted father.

Mihir Oshnov—adopted son of the uber-rich oligarch Alexander Oshnov. Till date, she didn’t know his whole story. She hadn’t even known who he was when she had fallen in love with him all those years ago. He’d given her very little of himself back then, and like a fool, she’d assumed it to be enough.

She’d studied him from afar for years, especially after the yacht incident, and now, she knew everything that was publicly available for her to know about him.

His family jointly owned O-Corp—one of the largest business conglomerates in the world. They were into diamond mines, oil wells, and energy. After his adopted father passed away five years ago, Mihir had become the Managing Director of O-Corp. But even prior to that, while his father was still alive, Mihir had been handed the reins of O-Energy. His forward-thinking approach and commitment to reusable and sustainable energy had quickly earned him favor with environment ministers globally. People listened when he spoke. And now, after becoming the MD of O-Corp, he was frequently in the news, attending meetings and discussions with heads of states and business tycoons from various countries.

It amazed her to see how successful he really was. The only thing missing everywhere were pictures of him. For some reason, the media never posted pictures of him, which was rather strange. Was it deliberate? And if so, why? Fuck. Her curiosity about him was endless.

She focused on the road ahead, maintaining a healthy distance from Mihir’s car, ensuring there were always at least two cars between her vehicle and his. When Mihir took a turn onto a side road, she followed discreetly behind. The traffic around her thinned as she drove further.

Fifteen minutes later, Mihir took another turn onto an even narrower road lined with palm trees, which led to a compound with a small, single-storey shed.

She made a face. There was literally no way she could follow him down what looked like a private stretch of road without being noticed. She pulled her car to the side, watching as both his Bugatti and the Escalade following him drove into the compound and finally stopped in front of the building.

What are you doing here, Mihir? What is inside that damn shed that you felt the need to come here in the middle of the night? And could she use it in her grand revenge plan against him?

She swore. She was behaving mental. Hadn’t she just decided to abort the revenge plan? But Mihir had made her life hell these past years. Perhaps this was her opportunity to learn something devious about him and use it against him.

She peered out of her window. Damn it. It was too dark to make out much. She squinted hard, finally spotting Mihir’s shadowy figure as he stepped out of his car and entered the warehouse, two of his bodyguards following him.

She tapped her steering wheel, her belly fluttering with intrigue and inquisitiveness. She’d reached this far. She couldn’t just sit still and not know what was going on inside that damn warehouse, and why Mihir had chosen to come here.

Putting her phone on silent, she pocketed it. Good thing she’d changed into her jeans and sneakers before taking off from her house. She unbuckled her seat belt and stepped out of the car, running between the palm trees, making her way toward the warehouse.

The compound was dark, lit by only a few bulbs. Tall stacks of large corrugated wooden crates were littered all around. It looked like a scene straight out of a murder movie. She cursed herself for behaving so recklessly. But she was here now, and she was going to find out what Mihir was up to. Then she’d get the hell out of here. She weaved her way through the rows of crates. Hiding behind a tall stack, she assessed her surroundings. There was no one here—no Mihir and no bodyguards. She had to make her way inside and find out what the hell was going on.

Suddenly, all her senses went on full alert. Electricity crackled down her nape. The feeling of being watched washed over her. Her heart thundered as she looked around. No one was there. It was just her imagination playing up.

But that familiar prickling sensation grew stronger. Her heart squeezed and heat spread across her skin. She spun around, and her eyes met caramel-brown ones. Her breath hitched. Dressed in all black, his eyes seething with anger, his jaw tight, and his sculpted lips set in a straight line, Mihir Oshnov stood in front of her, looking like an avenging angel. A gorgeous, avenging angel. Her eyes traced the scar on his face. That scar… It only added to his appeal.

Fuck, he looked sexy. Years ago, she’d found him handsome, but now he oozed danger and sensuality—a potent combination that she foolishly found even more attractive.

Mihir’s eyes fell on the ring dangling on her chest before he looked at her again. More heat flared under her skin. Her heart thundered as she realized that, for the first time in years, she was truly alone with him.

She raised her chin, shaking off every emotion she was beginning to feel. “Hello,husband. We are finally alone.”

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