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She put a hand to her head. “I can’t do this right now.”
Concern flashed in his eyes. “Are you okay?”
She swayed. He captured her elbow, and she fell against his chest. “I’m not feeling too good.”
“Fucking hell,” he cursed. He put an arm around her, keeping her pressed against him.
“Look, just call Aditya,” she said. “He’ll take me home.”
Rohan looked down at her. “The only person who’s going to take you home when you’re in this state is me.”
She was not even in a position to fight him. Her head was ringing, and dark spots were flashing behind her eyes. Rohan carried her in his arms bridal style and left the nightclub. She snapped her eyes close, unable to keep them open. From a distant corner of her awareness, she heard Rohan shoot instructions at someone, and then she was settled against his chest inside a car. That was the last thing she remembered, and everything went dark.
26
Her scent wafted in his nose, jolting him awake. The place next to him was empty. Jiya wasn’t there. His chest constricted. She’d been fast asleep when he’d tucked her in his bed last night. He’d changed her and held her in his arms. He’d slept through the night again. Last night was the best sleep he’d had in a long time.
He pushed the sheets off himself and searched inside his ensuite. The bathroom was vacant, but the shower area was wet. Steam still lingered on the mirrors, which meant she’d taken a bath. He quickly brushed his teeth and donned a fresh T-shirt before going in search of her. But she wasn’t anywhere inside the house. No one in his staff had seen her.
It took him less than a moment to figure out where she’d probably be. He headed in the direction of the stables and heard her voice before he saw her. He released the breath that had been stuck in his lungs as he went in her direction. He rounded a corner, and there she was, petting his horse.
“I missed you, you know,” she told Xerxes. “How have you been? Did you miss me?”
The horse snorted as if telling her that he’d missed her too.
Jiya rested her head against the horse’s snout. “It’s been so hard. He and I are not together anymore, and I…”
Her voice softened, and he couldn’t hear the rest of her words. She continued to whisper to the horse. Suddenly, she looked to the side and caught him watching her.
She shifted away from Xerxes, her hand still on his nose. “Sorry, I just had to meet him.”
Rohan took her in. Jiya was dressed in one of his shirts and boxers. His heart rocked. At one time, she’d always been dressed like this in the mornings. Images cascaded in his mind, of him and her entangled in his bed, of them watching Xerxes getting trained before having breakfast together, Jiya greeting him with a kiss after his morning rides, her laughter, and her happy voice floating around in his house. He’d lost all that because of his own choices.
He noted the paper bag filled with her clothes at her feet.
“You’re leaving?” he choked out.
She shrugged, her focus on his horse. “Yes, last night was a mistake. I didn’t realize I’d been drinking so much. Thank you for bringing me here and for informing my friends. I read their texts when I woke up. I appreciate you doing that. But I have to go now.”
She stepped back and lifted the bag. He hated that she was behaving like a stranger. Her indifference stung. Perhaps, this was what she’d felt when he’d behaved as such with her.
She began to move away, and his heart fell to his feet. He couldn’t let her walk away again. He’d finally accepted that letting her go had been the biggest mistake of his life. He couldn’t live without her. He wanted the happiness she gave him. She was his.
“Jiya, wait.”
She turned and touched the shirt that she was wearing. “I’ll return your clothes as soon as I can.”
“I don’t fucking care about the clothes, Jiya,” he said. “They don’t mean anything. None of it means anything without you.”
Her forehead creased. “What are you saying?”
“I’m sorry, Jiya, for pushing you away and for breaking up with you like I did. It was wrong on my part. I want you back.”
Jiya shut her eyes. When she opened them again, she didn’t say anything for a long moment. She simply watched him. His blood slowed with every second that ticked.
Finally, she took a step forward and then another until she stood facing him. “You were right, Rohan.”
His brow puckered. “About what?”
