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“Excuse me for caring,” he shot back, getting annoyed with her now. He’d saved her from a whole lot of mortification, and she knew it, but she was just too damn stubborn to accept his intention for what it was, which was merely to help her. He looked at her, feeling exasperated with her.
She scowled back at him. “You can take your false concern and shove it somewhere. I do not need your help or caring.”
“You will still have it whether you want it or not, Princess.”
Her jaw dropped. But he realized his words rang true. For some strange reason, he felt protective of her. Which meant that he’d help her out, whether she asked for help or not. That was just the way he was. He had a small set of people he protected. People that included his parents, his three sisters, and the entire Rajpoot family.
But now, for some reason he couldn’t explain, his heart had added Sheena to this tiny list. He hadn’t even thought twice before he’d stepped in to shield her from those viperous women. Agreed, he didn’t know her very well. He also didn’t know or care to find out what those women were accusing her of. Yet, he knew with an intrinsic certainty that he wouldn’t let them or anyone else hurt Sheena.
He roughed out a breath as he continued to observe the angry expression on her beautiful face. Fuck. He was so doomed to even be thinking like that. Yet he couldn’t and wouldn’t have done things differently if presented with that option again.
“Hi, brother,” Ananya said, interrupting their staring contest. She gave them a wide smile each. “You guys might want to tone that down a bit.”
Sheena blinked and looked around her at the people who were watching them.
Ananya addressed Sheena. “My brother can be a grouch, I know. But can you not look like you want to murder him in his own house?”
“Sorry about that,” Sheena told her, a mask of pure serenity on her face now. “But your brother is a class A asshole.”
“I don’t like those foul words coming out of your mouth,” Rajiv snapped.
Sheena took a step toward him and whispered. “Does it look like I care,Asshole?”
God, she was too much. She maddened him to a degree no other woman ever had.
His sister grinned and linked her arm with Sheena’s. “I have a feeling that you and I are going to get along just fine. You’re new to Dubai, right? Come, let me introduce you to my sisters.”
“I’d love to meet them,” Sheena said.
Their voices diminished as they walked further away from him.
Rajiv released the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding as he saw Ananya take Sheena to a corner where Navya and Reina were waiting. He watched the other two girls get introduced to Sheena. Ananya pointed at him, clearly telling them what she’d overheard between Sheena and him, and his sisters burst out laughing. Navya even patted Sheena’s hand. Sheena grinned at them, finally looking at ease. He stared at her. He couldn’t help it. His head, body, and eyes clearly had their own agenda when it concerned her.
Reina nudged her. Sheena flicked a glance in his direction and found him staring at her. She lifted her hand, and just before it touched her hair, she flipped him off, showing him the middle finger before she ran her hand down her hair. His jaw dropped. Did she just…? Had she just…? Fuck. He couldn’t believe her audacity. Giving him a cold smile, she turned away from him, showing him that she didn’t care even a tiny damn about him.
Her ice-cold demeanour poked something in his chest. His lips pursed. A short time ago, she’d been moaning in his arms, and now she was pretending to be indifferent. He didn’t like it. Not one bit. The urge to go to her and claim her mouth and remind her of exactly how she’d melted into him beat like a tempo within him.
Sighing, he looked away from her. The last thing he needed was for his sisters to figure out that he was attracted to Sheena. They’d make his life hell.
His sisters had been a menace his whole life. Ananya, Navya, and Reina had been inseparable since the moment Navya and Reina had moved in with them. They’d gotten into plenty of trouble over the years, with Ananya being their gang leader. And now they were adding someone as volatile as Sheena into their mix. God help him if they managed to involve Sheena in any of their escapades. All hell would break loose then, he was certain. But that was a worry for another day. Tonight, he was more worried about his own reaction to this wild, sassy temptress.
Sighing, he headed to his garage, texting Aaryan on the way to his car. A fight. Yeah, he needed a round in the ring to let off some steam. And facing Aaryan in the ring would remove the edge of frustration that was currently sitting heavy on his chest.
He started his car. He should have stayed far away from Sheena Sehgal. She was occupying too much of his mind space, and it had to stop. He’d make it stop. Come Monday, she’d start working at Poseidon. He had to school himself to stay away from her. There was no other option.
9
Monday morning, Rajiv parked his car in the basement and stepped into the elevator that would take him up to his corporate office. It was a private elevator used by only a few, and stopped only on the top two floors of the fifteen floors that his headquarters occupied in this thirty-floor building. The remaining floors were all residential spaces.
The elevator dinged. He looked at the screen, surprised to find it halting at the ground floor. There were only two other people who had access to this elevator—Ananya and his mom. The doors opened, and his heart skipped a beat. Sheena Sehgal was standing in front of him, an access card in her hand, her mouth agape as she stared at him.
His lips curved. “Hello, Princess.”
A quick glare followed. There was a second of hesitation, and then she stepped inside. She pressed the fourteenth-floor button before giving him her back. The elevator was mirrored on all four walls, and hence, he could see her very clearly through the mirrors, just as he was certain she could see him. He took a moment to study her. Dressed in black trousers and a lilac shirt, her hair tied at her nape, she looked sleek and professional. He hated her look. It was too prim and proper, and she wasn’t that person at all. She was all fire and brimstone. Their eyes met in one of the mirrors, and he arched a brow. She immediately looked away.
“Seriously? Are you giving me the silent treatment?” Rajiv teased. “After all that we shared?”
His deliberate provocation had the desired result because Sheena turned to face him.
