He’d filled her head and heart with hopes of more. That maybe she could let go of the past and start fresh with him. That maybe making this marriage real wasn’t foolish after all. Maybe it would be good for both of them. Maybe giving him another chance didn’t make her weak.
And the way he’d kissed her?
It had totally wrecked her. She’d walked away from him with her body humming, his hands still imprinted on her skin. Theway he’d touched her, so boldly, so confidently, had undone her composure completely. She hated how much she wanted more. How easily he’d made her ache for things she’d sworn she no longer needed from him.
Fuck. She was an idiot.
Nothing had ever really changed. It had taken her years to get over him. Years to stitch herself back together after realizing how easily he could unravel her. And now, like a fool, she was considering marrying him. To build a life with him. To trust him again.
Only to see him holding another woman close. Kissing her.
Yes, it was only a kiss on the forehead. And yet, it was the way they stood. The familiarity between them. The quiet intimacy in the way they looked at each other. As though they were more to each other.
A fierce, burning anger flared through her at the woman in his arms. For one reckless moment, she wanted to pull her away from Akash. To claim him as hers.
She exhaled slowly, steadying herself. He wasn’t hers.
But he was going to be her husband, a traitorous voice whispered in her head. She shut the thought down just as the woman stepped away and disappeared into the night.
Akash turned… and looked straight at her. Something akin to remorse flashed across his face. The fragile restraint she’d been clinging to shattered. She turned sharply and moved away, her only instinct to escape him, this place, and this sudden, searing pain that had no right to exist and yet had lodged itself deep in her chest.
She didn’t want to hear explanations. Didn’t want to hear his voice. She just wanted to leave.
Of all the places she could have chosen to meet her sister, she’d chosen this one. Maybe it was good she’d witnessed whatshe had. Now she could firmly shut down the thought of a real marriage with him.
Real? Fuck.
He didn’t know the meaning of the word. Perhaps she shouldn’t marry him at all. She knew she wouldn’t be able to tolerate him cheating on her.
She’d barely taken a few steps when a hand closed around her elbow.
“Shauna—”
Before she could react, he steered her into the restaurant and down a narrow side passage tucked into a corner. It was dimly lit and quiet. A corridor meant for staff and storage.
“It’s not what you think,” he said urgently.
She let out a sharp, bitter laugh. “No shit.”
“Shauna, please,” he said, stepping closer. “It’s not what you think.”
“I don’t care,” she shot back, her voice shaking despite her effort to keep it steady.
He lifted her chin and forced her to meet his eyes. “I think you do.”
“Fuck you, Akash Karia,” she snapped, trying to pull away. “Let me go.”
“That was Amara,” he said.
The name hit her, and somehow, it made everything worse.
She sucked in a breath, fury blazing. “Oh, that makes it so much better. Fucking asshole.”
His lips thinned, but she didn’t care. She soldiered on. “You know what? You should marry?—”
She broke off as he suddenly covered her mouth with his hand, cutting off her words.
“I wasn’t alone with her,” he said quietly, his eyes dark and intense. “Her brothers were there too. Like I told you before, we’re all friends.”
