Page 60 of Dream On, Liar

“Is it bad that I’m hoping you do run into him?”

“Yes,” she replied without hesitation. “Not only does that make you a terrible friend, it also makes you a terrible person in general for wishing that upon me, all because you want us to experience misery together.”

“No, I just think your love life needs a bit of spiciness.”

“Said the single girl.”

“I have had to block my creepy ex because he won’t stop texting me—or tell me what he wants unless it’s face to face. I think that counts as enough spice.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Well, there’s a different kind of spice.”

“Yeah, but I won’t find that here. Not that I’m interested in dating any cricketers, but my father basically said that I’m forbidden to even entertain that with his players. Plus, flings are only fun when your father isn’t around to accidentally run into and kill the vibes. So, for now—you’re all I got.”

“God, help me.”

13

Rihaan

THE KNOCK ON MY hotel room door startled me, making me freeze just behind it, ready to leave.

For a second, all I could do was simply stare at the door, my heart already settled in the acid of my stomach. Like I already knew who was behind the door.

Another knock followed.

Three short taps.

Nobody from the team had mentioned coming up, Oliver was in the next room talking to Raina, and I hadn’t ordered anything—hell, I’d been prepared to go out for a run.

I pulled the door open.

Surprise nearly knocked the breath out of me.

My father stood on the other side.

After more than month of silence, and no contact at all; here he suddenly was. “What the fuck?”

His eyes hardened. “Watch your language, boy.”

I blinked, still trying to process the fact that the last person I’d expected to find standing outside my hotel room was the one person who had somehow managed to turn up. “Dad. What are you doing here?”

“I came here to know some sense into you. You’ve thrown your tantrum, and I’ve let it play out long enough. It’s time to be serious again.”

My heart hammered in my chest at his words, and before I could respond, he was already shoving past me and entering my room.

The door slipped from hand at the push, the bang echoing across the room. “How’d you know which room was I in? Did you bribe the bell boy or something?”

“The receptionist knew who I was.”

I closed my eyes briefly.

Of course.

“Rihaan. Stop sulking like a child,” Vikram Patel’s anger was like a scalpel. His sharp voice was enough to cut cleanly through my skin. It didn’t just hurt, it left me with the distinct feeling that I was bleeding. When I didn’t move, his voice only grew louder. “Right now.”

Hesitantly, I moved until my feet landed where he had pointed. He had a few inches on me, but it didn’t matter—he towered over me, a dark look in his eyes as he watched me.

I felt something inside me retreat.