Naina agreed and bid us goodbye.
‘Can we talk?’ Jai asked once they disappeared down the stairs.
My pulse spiked. I swallowed, then nodded.
I slid into the seat, and Jai sat opposite me. My fingers picked at a nail as I tried to ignore the whirlwind of anxiety, dread, anticipation and hope churning in my stomach.
‘It seemed like the meeting went well,’ he said.
I slowly raised my eyes, skimming over his linen shirt and broad shoulders before looking at his face.
Splodges of purple coloured his under-eyes. He had a scruffy beard, as if he hadn’t shaved in days. And his hair looked like he had been dragging his fingers through it over and over again.
He looked battered. Exhausted.
My heart clenched. Every part of me wanted to reach across the table and comfort him. But how could I? I had done this to him.
Jai’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. ‘I’m happy for you,’ he added. His voice was low, rough, but the faint spark in his eyes told me he meant it.
‘Thank you.’
He nodded, pressing his lips together. ‘How are you doing?’
‘Been better,’ I said, attempting a smile.
The silence stretched, thick with uncertainty. I felt like I was out of my depth in an ocean of possibilities. I never imagined he’d want to talk to me, much less track me down and ask me how I was.
My eyes dropped to his hands idling on the table. I missed them. Their warmth. Their steadiness. Their gentle touch.
‘I’m not sure if you heard, but Lehenga Bazaar released a preview of their new collection, Eternal Weave,’ he said. ‘It’s a copy of Rivaayat.’
My senses dulled under a rush of cold.
The heartbreak had consumed me so completely that I had shut myself off from the world. I had to force myself not to look him up. It was why I had no idea about this.
Jai’s wrecked state made more sense now. We had worked incredibly hard to ensure the line’s success. It meant everything to him. To have his work stolen and put on display for the world to see and admire, right after our breakup … it must’ve been devastating.
Then, a worry crawled down my spine and coiled around my stomach. ‘I—’ My insides folded upon themselves. ‘It wasn’t me, if that’s what you wanted to ask. I had nothing to do with it.’
‘I know,’ he said softly. ‘I’m not here to accuse you.’ Pain contorted his features. ‘Rekha stole the business proposal from Harish uncle’s office. We have it on camera.’
That … doesn’t make sense. I frowned. ‘Why would she ask me for all the details on the line if she had the business proposal all along?’
Jai paused for a moment. ‘It was a draft proposal. Maybe she wanted something that wasn’t on there.’ His shoulders fell. ‘I have no idea what that woman does or why.’
She might not be his biological mother, but she was still his family. This was messed up. My throat tightened. ‘I’m sorry. I know how much it meant to you.’
‘It’s not your fault.’
But I felt it anyway. The guilt. The weight. The familiar, suffocating self-blame.
Then, a memory hit like a whip, my words to Rekha ringing in my head: ‘The morning of my interview, I saw Jai near my building.’
‘She was threatening me once, pressuring me for more information,’ I admitted in a hushed voice. ‘I told her I saw you near my building the morning of my interview. I didn’t know why you were there at the time, but I think she put the pieces together.’
I bit down on my lip as regret twisted in my gut. ‘Is that … do you think that’s how she knew where to look?’
Jai went still. The muscle in his jaw ticked. ‘My family isn’t aware of the extent of my relationship with Harish uncle. It is possible Rekha suspected it after what you said,’ he said, looking deep in thought.
