“The watches, Ishani. The matching watches that probably cost more than my monthly rent.” Kavya pointed to Ishani’s wrist. “Plus the ‘urgent document’ deliveries. The closed blinds. The lipstick on his collar yesterday. The way he called you ‘dar’ in the staff meeting.”
“He stumbled over his words,” Ishani countered. “It was a mistake.”
“And the way you both disappeared for twenty minutes during lunch yesterday? Also a mistake?”
Heat crept up Ishani’s neck. That had been Raghav’s idea—a quick trip to his car for what he’d called a “meeting” but had actually been his hands in her hair and his mouth on her throat while she sat across his lap in the backseat.
“I’m dating someone,” Ishani admitted, deciding a partial truth might deflect suspicion. “But it’s not what you think.”
Kavya’s eyebrows shot up. “Not the boss?”
Ishani smiled, enjoying the private joke too much to resist. “I’m seeing the man my parents arranged for me to meet.”
It wasn’t a lie. Not technically. Raghav was indeed the man her parents had arranged for her to marry. The fact that no one knew that fact yet was just a minor detail.
“What?” Kavya’s face contorted with confusion. “But the watches—”
“A gift from him,” Ishani lied smoothly.
Kavya’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “So all those times you’ve been disappearing...”
“Phone calls to coordinate with my parents. Boss is very involved in the process, making sure the man I am marrying is good.” Another half-truth.
“And the way Boss watches you?”
Ishani shrugged, enjoying the confusion on her friend’s face. “He’s the boss. He watches everyone.”
Before Kavya could press further, Ansh appeared at the break room door, looking slightly harried.
“Ishani, I need you. Singapore is on the line for the boss and the translator hasn’t shown.”
She nodded gratefully at the rescue and slipped past a still-suspicious Kavya. Once in the hallway, Ansh spoke in a low voice.
“There’s no call. But the boss wants you in his office. Now.”
Ishani smiled. “Thank you, Ansh.”
“Don’t thank me yet,” he muttered. “This is getting ridiculous. I’ve invented three phantom phone calls, redirected sixcolleagues, and told Samrat that Raghav has a contagious eye infection to keep him from dropping by unannounced.”
“We appreciate it,” she said, trying to sound sincere despite the laugh threatening to bubble up.
Ansh rolled his eyes. “Just go. I’ll stand guard.”
In Raghav’s office, she found him pacing behind his desk, phone pressed to his ear. He waved her in, eyes lighting up at the sight of her. As soon as the door closed, he ended the call and tossed the phone aside.
“That was the longest meeting of my life,” he said, moving toward her with purposeful strides. “Three hours without seeing you.”
“People are noticing,” she warned, even as her body leaned toward his like a flower tracking the sun. “The watches were a mistake.”
His hands found her waist, pulling her close. “I don’t care.”
“You will when HR gets involved,” she murmured, though her hands were already sliding into his hair, messing the perfect style.
He lowered his head, lips brushing her ear. “I own the company, Ishani. HR works for me.”
She chuckled, head tilting, eyes closing on its own accord as his mouth traced the line of her throat.
“Five minutes,” she whispered. “Then I really need to finish the quarterly report.”