he next morning, I stepped into my office, coffee in one hand, phone in the other, barely listening to the updates my assistant rattled off. Numbers, reports, meetings-none of it mattered at the moment.
Because my mind was still stuck on her.
Avni Rajput.
The woman who walked out of that restaurant like she owned the damn world. The woman who looked me straight in the eye and challenged me, who didn't flinch, didn't cower, didn't back down the way most people did when faced with me.
She was a contradiction-composed yet fiery, unshaken yet burning with defiance. And last night?
Last night was the first time in a long time that someone had dared to cross me so boldly.
And I hadn't been able to stop thinking about it since. Not just about her words, not just about that sharp glare she threw my way, but about the way she left-back straight, head high, like she had won something.
I smirked to myself, leaning back in my chair. She really thought she could just end this? That one conversation, one little display of defiance, was enough to shake me off? She didn't realize something-something crucial.
I liked a challenge.
And Avni Rajput was shaping up to be my favorite one yet.
"Sir?" My assistant's voice pulled me from my thoughts. I glanced up, arching a brow. "What?" "There's a board meeting in an hour. And..." She hesitated. "You also have a scheduled discussion with Miss Rajput regarding the recent investment proposal you both were in yesterday."
Ah. The universe really had a twisted sense of humor. I bit back a chuckle, swirling the coffee in my mug.
Perfect. Because if Avni Rajput thought last night was the last time she'd be dealing with me...
She was about to get a very rude awakening.
..............
I hated waiting.
Patience had never been my strong suit, and the ticking of the clock only sharpened my irritation. The meeting was scheduled for ten. It was now ten twenty-five, and the chair opposite me was still empty.
Avni Rajput was late. A deliberate move? Maybe. Or maybe she was just testing limits, seeing how far she could push before I snapped. Either way, she was playing with fire.
The door finally swung open, and in she walked-calm, composed, like she owned the damn room despite making everyone wait.
Her heels clicked against the marble floor, her black business suit tailored to perfection, her face unreadable as she made her way to the table. Not a flicker of guilt, not a single trace of apology.
I leaned back in my chair, watching as she took her seat, flipped open her notepad, and-without so much as a glance my way-spoke. "Let's get this over with."
A smirk tugged at my lips. Oh, this was going to be fun. "Bold of you to assume I haven't already moved on, Ms Rajput," I drawled, taking a sip of my coffee. "Twenty-five minutes is a long time to expect someone to wait. Some would call it disrespectful."
She finally looked up, her gaze sharp as steel. "Some would also call it karma Mr Singhania."
A slow, amused chuckle left my lips. "Ah. So this is payback, then?" She didn't answer, just held my stare with that defiant little tilt of her chin.
"Interesting," I mused, setting my coffee cup down. "You seem to think you're in a position to play games, Ms Rajput. But tell me, did keeping me waiting make you feel powerful?"
Her fingers tightened around the pen in her hand, a flicker of something passing through her gaze. Annoyance? Satisfaction? I wasn't sure.
"It made me feel like I didn't have to waste my time on an overgrown ego," she shot back smoothly.
I laughed. God, she really didn't hold back, did she?
Leaning forward, I rested my elbows on the table, my tone deceptively calm. "Careful, Ms Rajput. If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were obsessed with me."
She scoffed, shaking her head in disbelief. "You really think everything is about you, don't you?" I shrugged. "Not everything. Just the things that bother you."
That hit its mark. Her jaw clenched ever so slightly, and I knew I had her right where I wanted her.
"And here I thought you were a businessman," she said, tilting her head. "Didn't realize provoking me was part of your job description."
"Oh, it's not." I smirked. "But it is my hobby."
That was it. The final push.
Before I could even anticipate her next move, she grabbed the glass of water in front of her- And threw it straight at my face.
The ice-cold liquid hit me instantly, soaking my shirt, dripping down my jaw, and shocking the entire room into silence.
For a moment, no one moved. No one breathed. I sat there, drenched, the chill biting at my skin. And then?
And then? Deep, rich, unbothered.
Because fuck, she was something else.
Avni, on the other hand, looked furious. Her chest rose and fell with sharp breaths, her fingers still curled around the now-empty glass like she was considering throwing that at me too.
"Feel better?" I asked, wiping a drop of water from my jaw. She narrowed her eyes. "Immensely."
I grinned, leaning back in my chair as if I wasn't sitting there with water dripping down my face
. "Good. Now that you've had your little tantrum, can we get to business?" Her nostrils flared. "You-" "What?" I cut her off smoothly. "Going to throw something else? Or are you finally realizing that nothing you do can shake me?"
She stood up so fast her chair scraped against the floor. "You're insufferable." "And yet," I mused, meeting her gaze head-on, "you still showed up." "You know what . Fuck this deal" she said.
That did it. She spun on her heel and stormed out, leaving a stunned silence in her wake.
The moment she was gone, my smirk widened. Because this-this was far from over.
She had declared war.
And I was more than happy to play.