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She raises her eyebrows as she regards me. “What about your dream? This boutique has always been close to your heart.”
I shrug, remaining stoic. “I can still continue with online orders till I don’t find another place on rent.” The pained look in her eyes is as intense as mine. I bite my lip and then attempt a weak smile as I say, “There is no pressure on you. You are free to look for a job elsewhere.”
She lets out a huff. “You think I will leave you? This is the faith you have in our friendship?”
“I don’t want you to have a financial hit on my account. It’s not going to be easy. I don’t even know if I will make the same profit as before.”
“I am with you in this. Period.”
I nod my head, understanding that her mind is made up, and she won’t budge. Before I can tell her that I have already spoken to a few buyers, she beats me with a question.
“What about Ranveer and you?”
Her question catches me off guard and it takes me a few moments to reply to her. “It’s over between us.”
“Are you being honest to yourself? This is it? Ranveer and you are done, just like that?” she shoots her questions at me, and her eyebrows pull in tight as she studies me.
Holding her gaze, I reply, “For now, I don’t have it in me to let go of the bitter feelings of resentment towards him. So, stop meddling with my brain.”
She looks back at me grimly. “I am doing no such thing, Alisha. All I want to put across is that before you take any harsh decision, give your relationship a thought.”
My jaw clenches. “Please, can you drop it?”
“Don’t you dare dodge the bullet! I hate it when you behave like Miss-I-don’t-want-to-talk-about-it. Your bullheadedness gets on my nerves at times.”
“That’s too bad, you need to practise the art of patience. I think meditation will help. Try it.” I pout and she treats me with a mock glare.
“You are impossible.” She gives in and bursts into laughter as she shakes her head. But the next instant, the smile vanishes from her face. “I am serious about what I said. I’ll stand with you through thick and thin without remorse. No matter what or where you are, I’ll always be by your side,” she repeats.
“I am aware of that, mommy bear,” I tease her.
“I also meant when I said I am not looking for another job. I am going to continue working for you. So don’t you try convincing me otherwise,” she says, giving me a sceptical look.
“Okay, I won’t ask you to quit or look for another job.” I roll my eyes and mutter, “God, you can really be persuasive at times.”
“It takes one to know one!” she mocks with a grin.
“And you are the one to call me crazy?”
“Well, I have my moments.” She rises to her feet. “Listen, I have some errands to run and need to go now. You okay here?”
“Yup.”
After giving me a quick hug, Rewa leaves. With a huff, I get back to the list of buyers who showed interest in purchasing my property. God, I have a hard task in front of me. Dad won’t be happy about my decision, however, I have no choice but to convince him.
Damn! My heartbeat is going through one hell of an emotion.
Chapter 5
Ranveer
I step into my office to find Grandpa sitting on the chair opposite mine. Groaning, I walk to my desk and sink into the chair as I let out a long breath. I know the reason for his unannounced visit. But I am so not in the mood for a conversation; as if I need him to tell me what a big mistake I have committed. Anyway, the past few days have been hell, to say the least. All I really want at the moment is some sort of miracle that will help to erase my memory of the day I married Soha. Hiding the fucking truth from Alisha was a catastrophic mistake that hampered our relationship, something I was not prepared for. I knew in my heart that my intentions were never to hurt her. I chose the cowardly way to hide the truth only because I was scared. Scared to lose my wife. It’s hard to believe, but we men do such an incredibly good job at hiding our fears and vulnerabilities that even our close ones don’t know how terrified we are from within. The only reason we opt to hide our apprehensions is because we are taught that real men don’t fear anything. If they do, they should never let anyone know, because that would cause a dent in their masculinity. But at this moment, it doesn’t matter to me at all. I am not ashamed to acknowledge my forebodings.
Grabbing the files from the desk, I begin to flip through the pages, trying hard to ignore Grandpa’s presence. But the heat from his eyes staring at me brings me to the edge. Maybe I should just talk about the elephant in the room. Well, by the looks of it, more like a herd of them. Fuck! But how do I bridge the subject?
“Do you mind giving me your attention for a couple of minutes? I am hoping we can have a chat like sensible adults and not dodge the issue which seems to be your forte,” Grandpa remarks with a raised eyebrow.
I slam the file in my hand shut, and my eyes meet his gaze. He shakes his head, and a look of disappointment washes over his face as he grumbles, “I did warn you to tell Alisha about Soha. Why didn’t you?”
