Page 44 of Drunk On Love

I sat up abruptly—bad idea—and winced. “He’s not my chef anymore… and why did he— Oh, God…” The groan escaped before I could stop it as snippets of last night began piecing themselves together in my head like a terrible, embarrassing jigsaw puzzle.

“UUGGGGHHHH,” I flopped back onto the bed, pulling the blanket over my head, wishing it could smother both the hangover and my growing humiliation.

Myra raised an eyebrow, her curiosity practically radiating off her. “Ahh… looks like someone just unlocked an important memory!” She leaned in like she was about to get the gossip of the century.

I groaned, burying my face in my hands. “Oh God, please tell me I didn’t embarrass myself beyond recovery,” I mumbled, frantically sifting through the fragments of last night’s chaos swirling in my head.

I shook my head. “I think I… oh God. I dared him to kiss me.”

Myra’s eyes widened, and her jaw dropped for half a second before she exploded into laughter. “OH. MY. GOD! Youwhat?!”

“Yeah… laugh it up,” I muttered, sinking further into the bed, wishing it would just swallow me whole. “I was drunk… and clearly, I’ve lost every last shred of dignity and sanity.”

“Wait, wait… hold on a second.” Her laughter subsided as her expression turned deadly serious. “Did hekissyou?”

I froze, biting my lip as I tried to remember the rest, but the haze in my mind wasn’t clearing fast enough. “I… I don’t know,” I admitted, groaning again. “If he did, I don’t remember it. And if he didn’t, I hope the universe swallows me for even asking.”

Shit… shit… shit. Holyshit!Last night—the dance, the wine, the game—Oh God, what have Idone?I groaned, clutching my head, as memories played hopscotch in my brain.

Dear Earth, if you’ve ever cared about me, now’s the time to show it. Open up, swallow me whole, and I swear, I won’t ask for another favor in, like, amillionyears. Or, you know, if time machines could just hurry up and exist, that’d be great, too. I could erase last night from existence. Or maybe Manav will hit his head and forget everything about DrunkKiara’s epic performance last night.

Note to self:He didn’t kiss me. Not even when I was basically begging like an utter fool. Correction—Drunk Kiarawas the fool, notme.And I don’t even know what annoys me more—that he didn’t kiss me, even with all the drunken pleading, or the horrifying possibility that he might have and I don’t remember.

“Get up! Breakfast is ready!” Myra announced, yanking the quilt off me like some sort of human tornado.

“Go away. Let me die in peace…” I groaned, flailing an arm to grab the quilt back, fully intending to cocoon myself and hibernate until the embarrassment evaporated.

“Nope! Not happening anytime soon,” she said with a laugh, grabbing my arm and hauling me upright as I protested weakly.

“I hate you,” I muttered, rubbing my face and trying to fend off the combined assault of the hangover and the replay of last night’speak cringemoments in my head.

She gave me another nudge. “Now get downstairs before I have to carry you.”

I reluctantly dragged myself out of bed and shuffled toward the bathroom like a zombie in search of caffeine.

As I splashed cold water on my face, fragments of last night’s horror movie played on repeat in my head: the way I’d swayed a little too close to Manav during the dance, the way I’d practicallybeggedfor the kiss, the stupid, reckless words that had slipped out of my mouth.

“Roy’s leaving again for a few days, and he’s waiting for you downstairs,” Myra announced, her eyes glued to her phone as she scrolled mindlessly.

“What? Where’s he off to now? Did I sleep through a decade or something?” I muttered, stepping out of the washroom, towel in hand, dragging myself through thepainful process of getting ready.

“Oh, and guess what? Since I need to shoot some scenes for my upcoming movie, I’m going with him,” she squealed, practically vibrating with excitement. “Roy said I can film in his lab, and let me tell you, if I get even one good shot, this series is going to be ahit!”

I groaned, rubbing my temples. “Oh God… life was so much simpler when Roy was busy on another planet, mixing galaxies and trying to find water on Jupiter. And now he’s draggingyoualong for the ride… Great.”

____________

“Good morning, Sleepyhead.” Roy greeted me with a warm smile as soon as I shuffled down the stairs, still trying to convince my legs they were awake.

“Good morning…” I mumbled like more of a zombie than a human at this point.

I glanced around the table, relieved to see no sign of theenemy Oberoi.Small mercies. One less thing to deal with this morning.

“Kia… Did you enjoy last night?” Roy asked, stirring his coffee like he had all the time in the world. “Oh… and Mrs. Smith invited you to her next book launch.”

“Mmhmm…” I managed, my brain still in its booting-up phase.

I stood up, hoping to escape the conversation before my brain fully clocked in.