Page 21 of She will Always be Mine

She stands motionless and terrified like she’s seeing me for the first time. She wants a monster, fine. I’ll just let it out to play.

By now, she should know that what I feel for her daughter is no joke.

I’ll be the shadow that will never stop haunting Nyra.

Retreating away from her, I walk out of the room without looking back. The second the door whooshes shut behind me, I find none other than my temptation standing outside with her hand covering her mouth and her eyes wide. I don’t need to ask to know that she heard every single word. It’s better this way anyway.

She should know the man she’ll be coming back to.

One that doesn’t care about the line between right and wrong until it ceases to exist.

Someone willing to burn down the world… just for her.

Chapter Eight

NYRA

Today has been such a whirlwind that it has taken a toll on my body and my head, it feels as though I’ll die out of exhaustion alone. It’s been even more draining emotionally that I’m feeling all over the place.

When Riaan caught me eavesdropping on him and my mom, I was still in shock to say anything to him but the vicious yet possessive look in his eyes told me everything I needed to know.

Only time will tell whether my mom will heed his threat or if he just made the coming days worse for me.

Once he was gone, my feet stayed rooted to the spot and I never went inside to confront my mom, scared of her reaction. Instead, I waited in my room until she came with her remaining bag and half an hour later, we left after saying goodbye to Uncle and Aunt, who were reluctant to let us go, but my mom was insistent.

The rest of the day passed by in a blur with her coming to my campus, stuffing my suitcase with clothes, few important books and meanwhile, I was glad that we didn’t run into Monica in my dorm because she would have guessed something was terribly wrong.

I was picturing things to be different, I would have loved my mom to meet my best friend because she adored her whenever they chatted on one of my video calls.

We would have had so much fun hanging out because my mom has always gotten along well with my friends even the ones from back in school. Now, I wonder if we will ever get that chance.

This isn’t how I imagined we’d spend time when Mom visited me in college. She didn’t even look twice at my room, the family picture I hanged on the wall over my bed, or scolded me for the mess in my closet, which she never let go unnoticed.

It was like she couldn’t bear to be there and just wanted to leave. It devastated me in a way I can’t explain. All too soon, we were at the airport, buckling ourselves into the seats and flying back home.

Everything hits different the second we land and take a cab afterward. There’s the familiar rush of the hominess that never fades away and is always there waiting when you come back to your hometown.

I don’t realize how much I missed the smell of my city, the common streets and quiet tranquility, until now, as I’m bombarded by it all. Although smaller compared to Pune, my city is no less beautiful and instantly, a tiny part of me finally feels at peace.

“When your dad asks, just tell him you felt homesick.” I blink at hearing my mom’s voice. “No mention of Riaan in the house. I never want to hear his name come out of your mouth unless you want your father to learn the truth.”

The last thing I want is that to happen so she has nothing to worry about. Still, I nod just to confirm that I heard her.

As long as I’m here, my priority is to fix the damage to my relationship between my mom and me because the constant tension is hurting us and slowly killing me. I have to find a way to earn her trust back. If we don’t, then it won’t be long until my dad and my younger sister, Priyanka, start to notice it too.

“Give me your phone.”

I stare sharply at her. “What! Why?”

“So I can make sure you are not in touch with yourcousin,” she snaps, stressing the word cousin like some sort of psychological trick. “You may be home but it doesn’t mean I won’t keep an eye on you. If I catch even a small hint that you are talking to him, I’ll send you to a place where he will never find you.”

Sacred out of my mind by her threat, I reluctantly give her my phone. My breath is lodged in my throat and I let it go in relief when she doesn’t ask for the password and just shoves it inside her purse.

My phone was my only lifeline to Riaan but more importantly, it was the only clue—connection—toward my blackmailer.

How the hell am I supposed to find him now?

I have to think of a way to get it back because what if he texts again and I don’t see it in time. These people could easily mistake my silence for defiance and I won’t be able to stop them from releasing the picture. Some might say I’m making a big deal out of nothing. It’s just a random picture of two people out on a friendly dinner. All they would need is one close glance at the way his hand is on my hip, my fingers digging in his hair, with our lips millimeters apart to know it’s so much more. Even the desire is apparent in our eyes.

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