Page 37 of Born in Sin

His fingers stilled under hers.

“Help me understand,” she said gently. “Why she’s being like this.”

“I’m –“ He stopped, cleared his throat, seemed to take a moment to think it through and then tried again. “It may have something to do with the fact that I’m a bastard.” He seemed to say that word ‘bastard’ with extra relish. His gaze roamed her face, looking for her reaction. Celina struggled not to show too much of her shock and horror.

“I don’t know who my mother is. She had me, left me, and then…” he shrugged. “Well, here I am. The unwanted son to the granite magnate. It’s easier to stash me at boarding school andhis manager’s house than have to look at me across the dinner table while he plays the role of perfect dad and husband to the family he actually wanted. I guess that’s why your mother doesn’t want you to be around me. I understand.”

“What do you understand?” she asked, threading her fingers through his.

“Why would she want me around you? My own parents don’t want me around them.”

Celina shuffled closer, her shoulder bumping his. “I want you around.”

“Celi-“ He closed his eyes, shaking his head. “Don’t.”

“You can’t shake me off, Virat Jha. I’ve imprinted on you.”

He looked at her, his lips twitching slightly. “Like a duckling?”

“Quack Quack.”

Virat laughed, the sound bursting out of him. And Celina couldn’t help herself anymore. Her heart ached for this boy with all its sixteen-year-old passion. She leaned over and kissed him, a chaste touching of her lips to his.

Virat froze, his eyes going wide and wild.

Celina blushed, a fiery red and before he could do or say anything, she jumped to her feet, running back towards her dorm.

“Celi!”

His voice floated over to her on the breeze.

“Will you come tomorrow?” The desperate hope in his voice had her overflowing heart turning in her chest.

“Behind Chem Lab. 9 PM,” she said, repeating the words on the note he’d slipped her earlier in the day. “I’ll be here. Every day.”

Every single day, she thought, as she pressed her fingers to her lips. Every. Single. Day.

Chapter Fourteen

CARA

The quiet click of the door shutting felt like the first beat of a war drum. Cara turned away from the silent presence by the door, her gaze skimming the room they were in. A complicated looking computer system sat on a wide desk that took up most of the room. Papers were strewn all over the top of the desk.

Apparently, a lot of things had changed. This was a reminder that she didn’t know the man who stood behind her, silently. The Virat she’d known had been neat to the point of obsession. The papers on that desk would have driven him mad. But when she looked his way, he wasn’t looking at the papers.

He was looking only at her.

Cara cleared her throat. “You wanted to discuss something?”

“Behind Chem Lab. 9 PM.”

The familiar words in his voice had her blinking rapidly to control sudden tears.

“Are you asking me something, telling me something…what exactly? I don’t get it.” She stepped away from him, going over to look at the papers thrown everywhere on that messy but gorgeous desk. It looked like a genuine antique in rosewood with marble inlay. The papers looked to be business papers. She looked away quickly.

“Sorry,” she murmured. “I didn’t realise it was confidential stuff.”

“I have no secrets from you, Celi.” He shoved his hands in his jeans pockets as he watched her.