Page 44 of Love Locked
Kabir felt his breathing change, and hers fell shallow, too. He closed the distance and caged her against the counter, only to catch her staring at his lips. Her eyes were chocolate-coloured pools that begged for a kiss. He could easily kiss her and make it worth her while, but he didn’t. He made a decision at that very moment.
“Kyra,” he said, sliding a glance at her mouth just as she licked her lips. “You’re so naive.” His voice sounded husky to his own ears. “We are here for business. Now that the storm has passed, the roads are clear, and the network is up and running, we’ll wrap up our work and get out of here as soon as we can. Pack up your shit and meet me downstairs in an hour.” Kabir looked away to avoid seeing the hurt that was creeping across her lovely face.
“You’re such a jerk,” she yelled, and Kabir paused near the front door. “You can forget the last few days. You can forget how we shared our deepest secrets. But can you really forget how our bodies were tangled up together last morning? Can you forget how you grabbed me and literally made out with me on the bed? Can you forget the connection we made?”
“Yes, I can. Because that was a mistake. So yes, I can fucking forget it ever happened.” Kabir roared angrily and went outside, slamming the door violently behind him.
Kyra’s face crumpled as tears poured from her eyes. Her chin trembled as she stood at a nearby shelf. She quietly walked up the stairs and slammed the door shut behind her, leaning against it with one hand and gasping for breath. Tears streamed down her eyes, refusing to stop. She whirled, covering her lips with her hands to stifle the sob that was lodged in her throat. She gently slipped to the ground, hugged her knees, and gave in to the sorrow.
Four years!She had dreamt about Kabir for four years, picturing him as a romantic hero. In none of her incessant fantasies did she ever find herself alone on the floor. Unhappy. She patted her eyes with the bottom of her palms before wiping her runny nose with the back of her hand. Gross! But she didn’t give a damn. She laughed piteously while reminiscing about her fictional love life, and her throat tightened. She was cursed. She was going to be the virgin who succumbed herself to unrequited love.
As her shock subsided, she eventually started breathing normally. She replayed the kitchen scene once she was calm. The anger and hunger in Kabir’s eyes had been palpable. But he was a moron, and she realised that it was useless to hold onto the possibility of more once they departed the cabin. She sobbed for the teen inside her who had a crush on Kabir as well as the adult who had fallen in love with him.
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“Fuck.” Kabir raked his hands through his hair as he walked outside. “Fuck. Fuck.”
Did she say she had a crush on him? So he was indeed the reason she had ended up with that fucker who tried to film her?
Kabir had screwed up. He kept screwing up when it came to Kyra. He didn’t know what had come over him. Never once did he let go of his iron control, even under the most trying of circumstances. He had never yelled at anyone before, much less a woman. After the snowball fight, his self-control was on thin ice.
Being near Kyra was both absolute bliss and sweet torture. As Kyra continued to debate his statements, he was inwardly restraining himself from hugging her like a lovesick idiot. His heart clenched tightly as he thought about how hurt she looked. He hated being an asshole. But he needed to do it. He had to forget her words because he wanted to kiss her after every question she asked.
There was a reason Kabir acted like the biggest douchebag. He was a workaholic. He had confessed to her that it was tough for him to balance his relationship and career. But he wasn’t a dumbass. He knew the connection they had formed over the last two days was special. And if he allowed himself, he was sure Kyra would make him the happiest man on earth. But she deserved more. She deserved someone better than him…someone her own age.
Kyra was a wonderful woman. She was fucking brave and had already gone through pain at such a young age. He didn’t think she deserved a decade-older man who worked like a log for 18 hours a day. She didn’t deserve someone giving her less attention and loving her any less.
He had to stop this madness. This was only attraction and nothing more. He needed to work nonstop like before. Work simplified his life. This business trip had to end before he managed to mess things up even worse. He would ensure that. With that, he dialled a number to get things rolling and get them out of here by midday.
????
It was late afternoon when Kabir drove back to Chandigarh. Although the roads had been ploughed, they still had snow on the sides. Driving carefully, he focused on the road and not on Kyra, who sat in the passenger seat wearing oversized sunglasses.
Clearly, she was giving him the silent treatment, and he deserved it. Earlier that morning, he had been an outright dick to her. She might have triggered him, speaking to him like that, but he was betterthan that. He should have controlled his anger.
The thing was, he knew why he acted like that with Kyra because,for thefirst time in his life, he was doubtful. He wasn’t sure what would happen if he gave in to the temptation.
????
Kabir had called the city corporation team early in the morning, so they started their work right away. With everything they did and said, they finally succeeded in persuading the client to go with Adil’s design within their given budget. Their business meeting was a success. At least one went her way, Kyra thought.
Following the meeting, Kyra came downstairs with her luggage within minutes. In the meantime, Kabir had already loaded his bag in the trunk of the car.
Shyamlal, the cabin’s caretaker, had just returned from tending to his hospitalised son. He was dismayed that he wasn’t there to serve them, but Kabir, in true Kabir fashion, assured him that it was alright and handed him some money to cover the home and medical expenses of his son. Furthermore, he assured him that the company would cover all hospital expenses once he reached the city. Shyamlal thanked him and Kyra profusely and wished them happiness with tears of gratitude in his eyes.
Kyra had always known Kabir to be kind and supportive of everyone, including his staff. After witnessing it firsthand, her respect for him grew manifold. Yes, she was upset with him. But that didn’t dissuade her from admiring him as a human being, even if she was disappointed that he treated her as though she didn’t matter to him. Maybe… she didn’t.
She wasn’t sure what might happen now that they were heading home. What would happen when they resumed living their normal lives? They would inevitably need to interact with each another. She wondered how she would handle seeing him date other women.
How could she still possibly be so fixated on him? Had she not learned her lesson?
SIXTEEN
ONE MONTH LATER
Taking in the view from her posh cabin’s floor-to-ceiling windows, Kyra leaned back into her seat. Her gaze travelled down the bridge as each car passed by. Then she looked into her phone screen that displayed the article saying,‘Ten techniques to distract yourself from what you don’t want to think about.’She didn’t believe it would be much use. She threw her phone on the desk and combed her hands through her hair, pulling it into a haphazard bun.
Come on, Kyra. There was a limit to her overthinking and daydreaming.
