2 | ARGUMENT

"And when he looks at me, I swear I can't breathe."

~Anonymous

SIDYA's POV

My body's temperature drops, like someone poured over a cold bucket of water on me. My hands freeze on the keyboard as I process the news.

Did he really just call off the deal?

I was in a meeting when the news went live. But when I came out, I had a dozen texts from my father sitting on my phone and several missed calls. At first I thought it would be about some random argument he had with my brother, but then Taran asked me to check the news immediately.

And now that I have checked it, I get why my father  has been trying to contact me.

According to the way Taran pestered me to check the news, my father definitely thinks I messed up. Vanie left the house in the middle of night after the fight she had with Aadish and I guess he blames me for it.

Yes, the turn of events was different than expected, but I did not mess up.

Aadish had it coming.

I don't care what sappy excuse he gives, he did call her an unnecessary wife. And a man that does not respect his woman or openly accepts his feelings for her, doesn't deserve her in the first place.

Women are so used to bare minimum that they forget the real power they carry. I gave that video to Vanie to show her the real side of Aadish, and considering he accepted his love for her publicly, I consider it mission accomplished.

I am snapped out of my thoughts as I hear the door knob twisting and then abruptly shutting close instead of opening. Through the wooden doors, I can hear the faint voice of my secretary as he clearly struggles with something, probably trying to stop someone from entering my office.

I push my chair back as a deep frown covers my forehead.

The day has already surpassed all my expectations of chaos, I don't need more mess adding to it.

I walk towards the large wooden door, my fingers wrap around the cold metal knob, I twist it and pull the door towards myself.

A tall man in white shirt and navy pants with broad shoulders stands outside my office. Taran has his fingers wrapped around his wrist as he probably tries to stop the said visitor.

The tall man grunts and his strong, masculine voice stirs something inside me. My body momentarily freezes as my eyes instantly recognise the man in front of me.

I don't need him to turn around. The back of his head is enough to tell me who the said visitor is. After all, in the last few years there hasn't been a single day when I haven't thought about running my fingers in these black, wavy locks as I moaned a name I hate.

I feel my mouth drying with the thought, my heart beats harder than its capacity as goosebumps break all over my skin. Never in the last four years have I been in this close proximity with this man.

My morals tell me to hate him, despise him, but my body doesn't get that memo. My body sees this man and forgets everything he has ever done. I blame it all on evolution, the need to reproduce and definitely my ovaries.

"Mr. Kapoor, you don't have an appointment. I can't let you in," my secretary tells Avinash, who is clearly here to meet me.

He was there in the conference with Aadi just a few minutes ago. So there can be only one reason for his unexpected appearance, he is here to talk about the video, or my part in whatever went down today.

"I said it before and I am going to say it again, I am not leaving this place without meeting your boss."

"But you don't have an appointment. She already has meetings lined up. I don't think I can adjust you in."

"I don't fucking care. She can't just continue with her life after messing mine." He slams his palm against the mahogany table. "Either you let me in respectfully, or I am opening that door and giving your boss a little surprise."

The words pull all the wrong strings in me. Lightning strikes my head as my insides burn with cortisol. I clench my fists and my nails dig into my flesh.

I messed with his life?

The last time I checked it was the other way round.

"Sir, with all due respect, don't force me to call the security and drag you out of here."

I have already heard enough of their conversation. It's time to let my presence known.

"Why would you call the security to take the trash out?" I interrupt.

Two sets of eyes instantly turn towards me. The moment I feel his burning gaze on me the air around me vanishes and I struggle to fill my lungs. My head feels light, due to lack of oxygen or anger, I can't quite tell.

It's been years since I last saw him this closely. He almost looks the same, except the quiet edge to his features. He has grown. He went from being a boy with dreams to a man with lies and secrets.

I can see disappointment and shock flash on his face as he realises I just called him trash.

"Is that how you talk to everyone?" He raises an eyebrow at me.

"Only to the ones who think they own the place, when clearly they don't."

The muscles in his jaw twitch as his eyes narrow on me. For a moment there is complete silence.

Something dark passes over his face as his pupils dilate and eyebrows relax a little.

Fuck.

But the reaction vanishes as soon as I blink my eyes, like it was never there. The strong urge to go back in time and witness it again overpowers me.

He takes in a deep breath, probably trying to put his masks on as he tries to act like a man he isn't.

"Considering I shouldn't have talked to your secretary like that, I am going to let your snide remark pass. I am here to talk, and I am not going to leave without having a word with you."

I should ask him to leave right now. But instead my mind keeps repeating his words in my head.

I am here to talk.

He is probably here regarding what went down today, but my heart is beating with a need for different talk, a different conversation.

I roll my eyes at him, turn around silently and walk back into my office. He doesn't need an invitation and follows right after me like a fucking dog, who wouldn't hesitate to bite my back.

As the door closes behind him  my heart starts pounding in anticipation and my body heats up.

It's his presence.

Physically I am in the present, but mentally I am still stuck in the past. I tried, I really tried to move on after I found out his truth, but instead I became a part of his lies, his secrets. It's because of me he is safe today. It's because of me that he gets to put his mask on and pretend like he is a gentleman, a saint in the world of sinners.

I walk towards my table and sit down. I cross my legs and lean back in the chair as I watch him pull out a chair for himself.

"Did I tell you to sit?"

He stops mid action and raises his head to meet mine.

"It's my office and you are an unnecessary guest, you will get treated as such....," his name sits on my tongue but I bite it back and choose to stay formal instead, "Mr. Kapoor."

"I was thinking of carrying this conversation civilly, but it seems like you don't deserve it."

The fool.

My lips curve upwards as they form a smile.

He doesn't even know who he is messing with. It will take me seconds to destroy him.

Then why haven't you done it? My conscience asks me. But like always I push her back into the little corner she belongs.

"Do you even realise how many people will be suffering because of the stunt you pulled today, just out of pure spite?" He crosses his arms against his chest, which makes his pecs rise higher under his white plain shirt whose top buttons are undone, giving me a proper view of his throat as his Adam's apple bobs up and down. My eyes slowly travel towards his sleeves that are rolled upwards, with his creamy, white skin on full display.

Stop ogling him! I internally shout at myself.

I force myself to tip my head backwards and meet his eyes. The shine that once lived there is long gone. His eyes used to be filled with dreams, hope, love. But today all I find staring back at me are black, bottomless eyes that no longer have a story to tell.

It's like looking at foreign object, that can either be something that brings life or something that sucks it out of you.

"I don't see how that's my concern."

He shakes his head and lets out an exhausted breath. "I seriously thought you would be different, that you would have a reason or at least an excuse for what you did, but you really are just a spoiled daddy's princess who was handed the keys to an empire.”

I fist my palms as I force myself to stay calm.

"Last I checked you were the prince who led the kingdom to a downfall. I don't think you should be pointing fingers at others." He took over his father's company after coming back from VAR and within 6 months the company suffered hard losses, and instead of making it right, the asshole took the easy way out and quit. One of the reasons I hate him.

"Exactly, that is why I know how many people suffer when a company suffers losses. The stunt you pulled will render a number of people jobless, affect Arya Groups of Industries image in public. You have no remorse, and you know why? Because you never had to work for a single thing in your life."

His words trigger something inside me. I have been told I don't deserve my father's legacy many times. Everyone just automatically assumes that I have no idea what I am doing with the company, when the truth is since I took over our profits have only increased.

"And yet I am the CEO, running a company successfully, while you, 'the know it all', are just working for your friend, who probably just took you in out of pity." My grip on the chair tightens to the point that my rings cut into my skin.

A muscle feathers in his jaw.

He bends forward and presses his palm against the glass of my table. Watching him this closely, my fingers twitch with the need to pull his hair as they fall forward with the movement.

His cologne fills my nostrils as hints of spice and leather linger in the air. A blanket of haze covers my brain as all my blood pumps to an organ it shouldn't. I clench my legs as I force myself to gain balance.

He can't keep pushing me off equilibrium like that.

With our faces inches away, I can feel my heart jackhammering against my sternum. He brings out his tongue as he nonchalantly moves it across his lips and swallows uncomfortably.

"Unlike you, Aadish worked for where he is today. I wasn't here to take digs at you, but that's all you have done since this conversation started. So let me tell you, you handled this situation poorly. It's because of you people who were never a part of this will be suffering. We might even have to cut some people to compensate for the loss."

"I didn't tell him to cancel the deal. I did what was needed to protect the people I care about."

"And where were you when the said person was struggling? Do you even realise the amount of emotional trauma you caused on her part?" He raises his brow at me.

I can't believe he has the audacity to talk about emotional trauma. I feel this strong urge to slap him and make him regret what he did. But the moment he licks his lips absentmindedly another urge comes to play, stronger than the former.

My throat dries and no amount of swallowing seems to help the constant itching I feel. My mouth waters at the sight in front of me. Just like Eve ate the apple she was forbidden to, I want the man I shouldn't.

Avinash Kapoor is everything I stand against. Yet I can't help how my body reacts in his presence.

He can never compare the amount of distress he caused me to what I did today. My intentions were to protect my best friend. She doesn't deserve the drama that they were bringing upon her by keeping secrets. I never intended harm.

Wherever Avinash is concerned, I will never take chances. I had to make sure I wasn't letting Vanie fall into a trap she couldn't get out of. I would have done anything to protect her from the hurt I once suffered, even if that meant hurting her myself.

Cancelling the deal will not only bring them closer, but it also means her parents can no longer trade her. It means, Vanie will marry the man she always wanted to by free will. There is no third person in their relationship.

Before I can tell him to fuck off or say something equally bitter by coating it with truth, a sharp voice fills the air.

Avinash pulls away from the table and cool, fresh air flows in. I finally let out the breath I didn't know I was holding.

Get your shit together.

I use this sudden diversion to get my head straight.

He doesn't answer the phone instantly, but whoever the caller is has definitely thrown him off track.

His body visibly stiffens the moment he reads the name of the caller. And I plan on using it to my advantage. He can't come into my office and mess with my brain like this.

The part of me that loved him is buried 6 feet deep into the ground. She was stupid and naive, but not me. I know his truth, I know the sins he committed in the shadows. I know the man he actually is behind all the masks he wears.

After a moment of contemplating, he finally answers the call. "Dad, I am in a meeting. I will talk to you later." He cuts the phone.

For some reason hearing him address his father sends sparks of electricity through my entire body. My veins burn with the fresh flow of adrenaline through them.

"Unlike you, I don't abandon my people at first sign of distress. I stood by her throughout it." I clench my jaws as hard as I can, then push my chair back as I stand to face him.

Even in my fucking 2-inch heels I am shorter than him. And that infuriates me.

"Get the fuck out of my office. And do me a favour, on your way out ask my secretary to call the cleaners. The place smells like you." I scrunch my nose in disgust. I want to feel him as small , as insignificant as I once did.

His muscles tighten. "As long as this place harbours a bitch, it will never stop stinking."

He looks straight into my eyes, as if trying to find a portal to my soul. But then all of a sudden he jerks his eyes away from mine, as I disgust him.

And with that he walks out.

As soon as the door closes behind him, I fall back into the chair as my eyes sting.

I should have said something, but I couldn't. Not when the memories were weighing heavy on my chest.

───※ ·❆· ※───

Hey!

I hope you guys are doing well.

Did you guys like the chapter?

Next chapter will be in Avinash's POV😉.

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Also the quote in the beginning, I found it on Pinterest and have no idea who said it. So, I wrote Anonymous under it.