Chapter 40

There are moments in life when suddenly someone seems to look more beautiful than before.

They might be with us for our whole life but at that specific moment, they look dreamy.

Something changes. Every little thing they do looks more charming. You wonder why you didn't notice before.

All of a sudden, your brain releases those endorphins that make you feel high all the time.

Your stomach will churn whenever you are near them and you will smile at everything they say, not because it's funny, it's just...

It's like your body has an involuntary response to them. And you will never know that you are doing these things until someone else tells you

Every day I felt that something was changing. It's as if the feeling I had for him was taking root, growing like a tree.

I used to think that I didn't want this, but now I didn't want it to stop. I felt alive again after a long time. Like a teenager all over again.

I had been gawking at him for God knows how long from the kitchen. He was wearing an untucked grey formal shirt with black jeans.

The top two buttons were open, and the sleeves were rolled up just below his elbow. His face looked vivid, glowing, and fresh after a clean shave.

His eyebrows were knotted in deep thought. He combed that silky, still-wet hair out of his face with his hands.

God, he should look at himself in the mirror to see how handsome he is right now.

I was watching him from a distance while devouring a carrot.

It was so entertaining until I heard someone clearing his throat beside me. I closed my eyes in annoyance, knowing very well who it was.

"Uh... What are you doing?" Harsha asked me in a mocking tone, raising his eyebrows.

"I am jogging in the kitchen. Can't you see I am cooking?" I said dramatically.

He saw everything, so there was no point in hiding and getting embarrassed.

"You know you need to light the stove first," he said, trying to contain his laughter.

I turned around to look. He was right, there was a pan with oil, but the stove was not lit. I was about to start cooking before I got distracted. I gave him a glare.

"You know you could go there and talk to him," he said, pointing his finger toward my husband.

"This is much more fun," I said, winking at him and munching my carrot.

When I turned around to watch him again, Mia came in and sat beside him.

She moved closer to him and muttered something in his ear.

He smiled and whispered something back in her ear. That disturbed me.

"Why can't they just talk normally?" I complained.

"Let's ask them," Harsha said casually. He started to approach them.

My head jerked toward him so fast that I might get whiplash. He laughed at the look on my face and picked up his pace.

"Don't do this, Harsha!" I ran behind him yelling, which caught everyone's attention.

"It's nothing," I said before anyone asked. I glared at Harsha. warning him not to say anything.

That idiot was just grinning all the while. I will have my revenge.

Mia followed into the kitchen.

"Hey, Aadhi. Can I help with something?" she asked excitedly.

"Just piss off, will you?" That came out of my mouth suddenly.

For a second, I felt bad, but she deserved it. I had had enough of her. I didn't even look back when she left.

After hearing my ex-boyfriend's voice on my phone saying Mia's name, my mind was a mess.

I couldn't believe Mia would do something like this and at the same time, she had every reason to do it.

If she somehow managed to make my husband believe that I was still in contact with my ex-boyfriend, then that would end our relationship.

My husband didn't even know about my ex. He could get suspicious and I might not be able to convince him of my innocence.

I wanted to get up in her face and demand an explanation, but I didn't want to alert her. I had to catch her red-handed if I wanted to prove it.

As for Abhi, I never thought he was such a bastard. How could he do this to someone he used to love? I couldn't believe that I ever had feelings for him.

***

It was my first day as Harsha's personal assistant. Everyone had gotten bored with working from home, so we were all getting ready to go to the office. I was so excited.

I packed lunch for everyone, hoping that my husband would like it. When I left the kitchen, I saw Bharathi playing games on my phone.

Barathi borrowed my phone often. I thought about warning her about Mia, but I decided that she didn't need to be involved in this. She might tell her brother.

So I just told her to inform me if Mia ever used my phone. She was busy playing games and didn't ask questions.

As expected, my husband didn't take his lunch. Everyone was about to get in the car when I ran inside to get his lunch for him. But it was not where I left it.

I went to the kitchen to see if I left it there, but it was gone. I was sure that I left it on the table with everyone else's lunch.

"What are you searching for?" His sudden voice startled me, and I jumped. I took a minute to calm myself. "Your lunch... It's not there on the table," I said, resuming my search.

After a moment or so he replied, "It's with me."

I stopped and looked at him. I couldn't stop the smile that was forming on my lips. He took it! I chewed my inner cheeks to suppress my smile and tried to walk past him.

He stopped me with an outstretched arm. "Why are you smiling?" he asked.

That made me want to smile even more. Not only he did take the lunch that I prepared but he also came to look for me. How could I not smile?

At that moment, I wanted to do something daring. I might regret it later, but I didn't care.

I moved close to him with a smirk. He looked confused but didn't move away. Good. I snaked my arms around his neck, closing the distance.

I decided to tease him a little. He looked amazed but didn't budge an inch. I could see the anticipation in his eyes- exactly the reaction I wanted.

I tilted my head and leaned in to touch our cheeks. I whispered in his ear, "No reason. Have a good day, my dear husband."

I grazed our cheeks once more as I slowly withdrew. I stopped for a moment to look into his eyes. I had him right where I wanted him.

With a smug smile, I distanced myself from him and ran out. I was blushing by the time I got into the car where the others had been waiting.

He came outside after a minute. He looked unaffected, but I knew better.

When he was about to start the car, our eyes met for a second in the rearview mirror, which made me blush even more.

In the office, I didn't listen to the presentation. I was looking at him, but nothing that came out of his mouth stayed inside my brain.

But Harsha would explain everything to me later. I just hoped that my husband wouldn't ask me any questions mid-presentation.

Immediately, I regretted thinking that. As if he heard what I was thinking, he asked, "Isn't that right, Aadhi?" I didn't know what to answer.

Shit! He is going to embarrass me in front of everyone.

"Um...yeah?" I replied, more like a question.

"Good." He smirked like he knew what I was doing.

I let out a sigh and continued to listen to his presentation. This time with more concentration, as I didn't want to embarrass myself.

He directed some more questions toward me on purpose. Thankfully I answered them correctly with confidence since I had been listening.

When we were about to leave the room after the presentation, he nodded his head and smiled proudly at me. That was enough to make me as happy as if I had won the Nobel Prize.

"Everyone....there is good news," Ria called everyone to get their attention. We all looked at her in anticipation.

"We are going on a trip." She clapped her hands excitedly. Everyone smiled at her childish behaviour.

"Aadhi, we are going shopping today." She came toward me, still bubbling with excitement.

"I don't think so, Ria. I don't want to go on this trip." I shrugged and turned around to leave. I knew that if I stayed, she would pressure me until I agreed.

We were always together, but we were not all happy. Nija refused to speak to me, and I still didn't want Mia anywhere near me. My husband and I were not on good terms.

This trip wouldn't be as fun as the one before. I didn't want to go and be sad.

I was in Harsha's office looking at some numbers when someone knocked on the door. Harsha went to get coffee for both of us.

"Come in," I ordered without looking at the door.

There was silence, so I looked up to see who it was. Mia. I did feel a little bad for yelling at her before, so I decided to be as calm as possible.

"What is it?" I asked, trying not to be rude.

"Why were you so furious at me before? What did I do?" she asked innocently. But I knew better. Everything was an act, and I would not fall for it again.

"Nothing." I tried to dismiss her because if she stayed longer, I might yell at her again. That's how angry I was. Even looking at her face made me burn with rage.

"Just be honest with me, Aadhi."

"Honest? Do you even know what that word means?"

"I don't understand," she said in confusion.

At that moment every rational thought I had about this flew away. Anger filled me and I wanted to yell at her and demand an explanation for what she did to me.

"Why? I believed you. I never shared my past with anyone, but I did with you because I considered you a friend. But you went and backstabbed me.

You contacted him on my phone. What were you seeking to achieve by this, Mia?" A tear escaped my eyes. I couldn't accept the fact that she betrayed me.

"No I didn't-" She tried to say something but I didn't want to hear her lies anymore.

"Get out." I stopped her mid-sentence. She tried to say something again, but I yelled this time.

She looked puzzled and shocked as she slowly retreated to the door.

Before closing the door, she looked back and said, "You don't deserve him, and I am going to make sure he knows that while we are on this trip."

She was challenging me and, unfortunately, I felt threatened. I rushed to find Ria.

"I am coming."