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Shaurya fisted the edge of her dress before slowly inching it upward, his fingers grazing the soft skin of her outer thigh, leaving goosebumps in its wake. She let out a throaty moan as he pulled away and kissed her jawline, his fingers still caressing her legs underneath her dress. He wanted to freeze this moment forever. Just him and her. Kissing, touching, and just feeling.

And then…

Suddenly, a voice rang out from outside. Priya. She was calling for Nandini.

She jolted back as if reality had just thrown a bucket of cold water over her. Her face was flushed, and her breathing ragged. Panic flickered in her eyes as she straightened, unsure whether to run, hide, or pretend the last few minutes hadn’t just happened.

Shaurya, still pressed close, exhaled a soft breath and gently withdrew his hands from under the hem of her dress. He placed them on her waist, steadying her as she leaned against the table, her legs still shaky from everything that had just happened between them.

“It’s fine,” he said quietly. “You came here to give me cake, remember?”

She blinked at him.

He licked his lips and smirked slightly. “Go tell them I ate it… and I loved it.”

Her blush deepened, the meaning behind his words far from innocent. They both knew he wasn’t talking about the cake.

Nandini instinctively reached up, smoothing her hair and patting down the creases of her dress like she could erase what just happened off her skin. With one last wide-eyed glance at him, she turned and rushed out before Priya could step in and witness the storm she had barely escaped.

Shaurya watched her retreat, his lips curved in something between a smirk and a sigh.

He looked back at the table—theirtable now, in some quiet weird way. Still warm from their touch, still holding the memory of her pressed against him like she belonged there.

But all that remained now was the box of cake, neatly set where she’d dropped it before things had gotten… intense.

He opened it, picked up the cake, and took a slow bite—rich, gooey, and sweet.

But as he chewed, his mind drifted back to her lips, her breathless gasps, and the way she trembled beneath his touch.

He looked at the remaining piece of the cake and murmured to himself with a smile tugging at his lips, “Still not as sweet as her.”

And with that, he finished the rest of the sweet treat.

CHAPTER 15

Nandini stepped out of Shaurya’s villa, her breath unsteady, her cheeks still warm from the kiss that had left her pulse racing and her lips tingling. Her thoughts were all tangled, her heart beating like it was trying to escape her chest. But the moment she was outside, she stopped. Something felt off.

Where was Priya?

It had gone suspiciously quiet.

She was about to pick up her pace towards the Raichand Villa when she heard a soft giggle. Not hers. It came from behind a dense ornamental shrub that sat prettily in the corner of Shaurya’s garden.

Before she could react, she heard footsteps behind her. She turned quickly, startled, only to find Shaurya standing there, hands in his pockets, his gaze still locked on her like he hadn’t quite recovered from what had just happened between them.

“I—” he began, but she raised a hand and placed it over his mouth to shut him up.

“Shh,” she whispered, her eyes wide. “Someone’s here.”

He looked at her, confused. “Where?”

She pulled her hand away and pointed toward the shrub. And then, they heard it again. Another giggle. Low. Giddy. Definitely guilty.

They exchanged a look of suspicion before tiptoeing toward the bush. The moment they peeked around the leaves, they froze.

Priya and Varun werekissing. Not hugging. Not holding hands. Kissing. Full-on lip-locked like the garden had suddenly transformed into the set of a romance film.

Shaurya’s eyes slid back to Nandini, who looked equally stunned and then slowly her lips tipped in amusement. The kiss they’d just shared flashed across both their minds. The tension. The breathlessness. The heat.