Page 14 of My Sinner

She opened the door to what happened to be a bedroom and quickly locked it before dropping onto the bed. She put her trembling hands on her face. The imprint of his mouth lingered on the back of her hand. Finding another door to the side, she rushed inside it, happy to find it was a bathroom. She opened the tap at the basin and washed her left hand with soap, scrubbing the skin he had put his mouth on. She wanted to erase him and the feelings he was hellbent on bringing forth.

Her left hand was red after she was done scrubbing it. She looked at herself in the mirror. A pale woman with wide, worried eyes greeted her. Then her eyes fell on her tattoos. They’d always be a stark reminder of his betrayal, one she would never allow herself to forget. No matter what. She was strong. She would fight even with herself if she had to, but she would never succumb to Dev Luthra ever again.

4

Avantika woke up with a start, feeling disoriented. She looked around the small room, and reality dawned on her. Fuck! She had fallen asleep in the bedroom ofhisjet. She was insane. How could she have fallen asleep withhimso close by? Her eyes fell on her left hand, no longer red and raw. Sometime after she’d returned from the bathroom, she must have dozed off. She looked around the lavishly done, elegant bedroom. It was the epitome of luxury. The queen-size bed was tucked in a corner backed by a black lacquer headboard. A small matching dresser was by its side, and plush grey carpet covered the floor.

She frowned. The aircraft seemed to be at a stand-still. That sensation one felt when the aircraft was in the air and in motion was absent. She opened the blinds, and sure enough, they were at a private airstrip. There was nothing around for her to recognize where he had brought her except for some green landscape and a small airport building. Where were they? She checked the time, and it had been more than ten hours since they’d taken off. Surprisingly, she’d slept through most of them.

She quickly freshened up, opened the door, and halted at the threshold. Dev was seated where she’d left him, working on a laptop. He was dressed in fresh clothes, his jaw smooth, and his hair pulled back from his forehead. Of course, he would have changed. She had thrown a martini on him, after all. Her lips curved as she remembered doing that. His hot amber eyes fell on her right then, and she smoothened her expression as she walked forward.

“Good afternoon,” he greeted.

She gave him a nod before looking outside the bright windows. She’d decided that if he only wanted to talk to her, she could do that. Well, as much as she could tolerate, at least. It was but a small price to pay for her own sanity.

“Is this a refueling stop?” she asked him.

He placed his chin on his hand as he watched her. “No.”

“Then why are we still in the jet?”

“Because you were sleeping.”

Her eyes widened. “How long ago did we land?”

“A little more than two hours ago.”

“And you didn’t wake me? Why?”

He stood. “I thought you needed the rest.”

“What if I had slept for a few more hours?”

He shrugged. “I’d have waited.”

His reply confused her. Why was he being so thoughtful?

“Are you ready to leave now?” he asked.

She nodded, trying to remember where she’d kept her purse last night and realized she’d left it in her seat, right in front of him. Her breath hitched. Would he have searched through her things? She’d thankfully changed her phone’s wallpaper from her picture of Neil and her to something neutral. But what ifhehad gone through her phone? Her phone had a pass lock, but Dev was capable of the worst. What if he knew a way to override her passcode and get into her phone? She wouldn’t put anything past him. Her heart began to frantically beat at that thought. What if he’d seen…

“I didn’t go through your things,” he said casually. “I wouldn’t violate your privacy that way.”

His answer further muddled her mind because this was the antithesis of the behavior she’d expected of him. In fact, all his behavior so far had been unsettling, but not entirely disturbing. He’d not given her any reason to be afraid or fearful of him. Yes, she still held it against him that he’d tried to touch her, but other than that, he hadn’t been vile and villainous. He’d let her leave his presence when she’d wanted to. He’d let her sleep and hadn’t disturbed her, despite landing more than two hours ago. But who knew when his behavior would change? So, she still wasn’t giving him the benefit of the doubt.

She grabbed her bag and jacket and preceded him down the steps of the jet. A black car, another Rolls Royce, was waiting for them on the tarmac. He held the door for her to climb inside and settled beside her. The driver took off as soon as they were seated.

Within seconds, they were weaving through the traffic. She looked around, and soon she had the answer to where he’d brought her. She had spent many a vacation here with her family or just with Neil.

“You’ve brought me to London?” she asked. “Why?”

“Because you told me once that our first trip together would be to London.”

Her jaw dropped. Shit! She had told him that on a winter evening while they’d been ice skating all those years ago. And he’d remembered it? Oh God! What was she to make of that now?

She cleared her dry throat. “Good. It’s a city I’m familiar with.”

Dev turned to look at her. “I didn’t know that, but I am glad to hear it.”

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