Page 130 of The Ex Factor

“You make me very happy too. You make me laugh like no one else can. But I’m also glad I can cry with you when I need to. Without judgement, without shame.”

“But I’d rather you didn’t have to cry anymore, sweet girl. Your tears wreak havoc on my heart.”

“I can’t promise that,” I confessed truthfully.

“That’s all right too, I’m always here.”

When I paused again, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed my forehead.

“Aarti, you know you never have to think twice before saying what’s on your mind. Just say it, sweetheart.”

He saidsweetheartand my heart skipped a beat. How could something so simple, so innocuous, create such strong ripples in my being?

“Tara warned me about Manoj.” I glanced at the phone on the side table by me. “He’s been calling you. I didn’t want to disturb your nap, but I brought the phone in.”

Just then, as if I had summoned the devil himself, the screen lit up again with his name. The whirr of the phone echoed in the silent bedroom. Sujit reached across and grabbed it. He declined the call, and in a second, it buzzed again in his hand. He declined it again.

“I don’t get why you’re ignoring his calls. I would’ve answered the phone and tore him a new one.”

“Because I have nothing to say to him. Why would I waste my words this way? He got what he deserved, and actions speak louder than words anyway.”

I agreed with him. In theory. “But it would be so satisfying.”

The phone buzzed again, and Sujit cocked his head. I wasn’t about to persuade him to compromise on his ethics, but I sincerely wished to see him blast Manoj to smithereens with his words. Giving me his sweetest smile, Sujit answered the phone and put it on speaker.

“Yes, Manoj,” he said in a very formal, distant tone.

“I know it was your doing, you fucker. I thought you were my friend. Do you have any idea what I’ve been through the last few days? I know you can stop it. Stop it,now!” he screamed like an ill-tempered child.

Sujit’s composure remained unruffled. “I gave you a long leash all these years, Manoj. But this time, you messed with the wrong person. You fucking messed with thewrongperson.” He enunciated each word through clenched teeth.

That seemed to have rendered Manoj speechless. There was only silence at the other end. Clearly, he had misjudged Sujit’s determination.

“You were never my friend, Manoj. I only kept you close because Tejal asked me to keep an eye on you. You stole her from me, yet she trusts me more than she trusts you. How’s that for fate, eh?”

“You bast?—”

“I have to thank you for one thing, though,” Sujit said and ran a finger along my jaw. “I have to thank you for trying to use Aarti to fuck with me. If you hadn’t, I wouldn’t have realized the intensity of my feelings for her. And for that, I’ll leave you with just enough to save you from bankruptcy. Consider it a gift. But you’re done, Manoj. You are done.” Sujit ended the call before Manoj could muster up a response.

The words sent pride surging through my heart. This was the kind of passion I yearned for. The kind I’d seen Sameer show for Tara. After years of tolerating him, Sujit destroyed Manoj just because he had targeted me. I took Sujit’s hand and kissed his palm.

“Of course, my love. That is how strongly I feel about you.”

He raised his index finger. “But wait for it. He’ll call back in one minute because he’ll need that time to think about what he’s going to say next.”

In about another minute, the phone buzzed in his hand, and Sujit declined the call. In another few beats, Manoj called again. This time, Sujit powered down his phone and pushed it under the pillows.

“There, that’s taken care of.” He brushed a finger against my cheek. “Now, where were we? Oh yes, naked and in bed. Wasting time talking about futile things.”

“What would you rather do?” I asked provocatively.

“I’d rather spend time kissing my girlfriend.”

“Girlfriend, huh?”

“Indeed,” he said and leaned in with a kiss.

In only a few minutes, we had knocked the pillows off the bed and rumpled up the sheets.

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