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Neither of them moved.

Neither of them blinked.

The air between them was so charged, it could’ve powered all of Serene Meadows for the rest of the year.

Finally, Shaurya exhaled harshly.

“Fine,” he swallowed. “Next time, stay out of my house.”

“Oh, trust me,” she snapped. “There won’t be a next time.”

She turned on her heel and stormed out, slamming the door behind her.

Shaurya stood in the darkness. His pulse throbbed at his temples. His shirt still smelled like her shampoo. His mouth still carried her taste.

And for the first time in a long, long time, Shaurya Ahuja had absolutely no idea what the hell to do next.

CHAPTER 9

01stJanuary – Shaurya’s Villa - Morning

The next morning, Shaurya summoned Varun with the urgency of a man teetering on the edge of a breakdown.

And Varun, his ever-ready, annoyingly smug best friend, was now lounging comfortably on the plush couch in Shaurya’s living room, a steaming mug of coffee in hand and the world’s most ridiculous grin plastered on his face.

“You kissed her?” Varun blinked dramatically, holding the mug mid-air like the moment deserved a toast. “Your neighbour?”

Shaurya raked a hand through his hair and shot him a killer glare. “You don’t need to shout it like I committed murder.”

“I’m not shouting,” Varun said, lowering his voice mock-seriously. “I’m simply trying to process the fact that Mr. Grumpy actually indulged in a midnight lip-lock with Little Miss Sunshine from next door.”

Shaurya exhaled harshly like it physically hurt him. “This is all your fault.”

Varun snorted. “My fault? I wasn’t the one playing‘guess who’with his lips. You kissed your neighbour without even checking who she actually was. That’s on you, buddy.”

Shaurya stood up, pacing across the living room like a caged animal.

“That’s becauseyousaid you were sending someone here last night for a blind date.”

“I did,” Varun replied, completely unbothered. He was enjoying this too much. “But after all your dramatic texts last night threatening to block me for life if I dared to send anyone, I cancelled the whole thing.”

Shaurya clenched his jaw.

Varun continued, “But even if you thought she was the blind date I sent, who the hell kisses a blind date the second you walk in? No hi, no name exchange, no introduction? You just dove in mouth-first like an alpha hero from some spicy romance novel.”

Shaurya paused, then muttered darkly, “I didn’t know it washer…”

“Oh, clearly,” Varun drawled, sipping his coffee with zero sympathy. “I mean, your track record post-divorce hasn’t exactly been... thriving. But I never knew you were that desperate.”

“Shut up,” Shaurya growled, shooting him a warning glare.

Varun leaned back on the couch, one leg casually crossed over the other, looking positively entertained. “No, seriously, what were you going to do next? Ask her name after the second kiss? Or just propose mid-make-out?”

Shaurya’s jaw ticked as he turned away. “Stop giving me lectures and just fix this, okay?”

Varun raised an eyebrow. “Fix what, exactly?Youwere the one who kissed her, not me.Youfix it.”

Shaurya spun around, pointing a finger at his best friend. “This started because of your stupid idea. You told me I needed to ‘move on.’ Well, now I’ve got a neighbour who might file a sexual harassment complaint against me before noon. So yes, Varun, you fix it.”