Page 113 of Lawfully Yours

Just then, his hand appeared beside hers…broad, rough, and far too close…and opened the door. When his breath brushed her cheek, she cleared her throat again; a habit she’d developed lately anytime desire tangled with denial.

As if he knew exactly what caused that reaction, Kushal smirked.

She quickly slid into the passenger seat, flustered, while he shut the door, and circled around to the driver’s side. He started the car, setting the GPS to the location Vivek had sent, of the private short-stay villa where Noyonika was holed up under a fake name. Vivek was already stationed outside.

The drive was wrapped in silence.

As soon as Kushal parked at a quiet, secluded spot just short of the villa, she unbuckled her seatbelt and stepped out. The moment he got out of the car, she blurted out.

“Last night shouldn’t have happened.”

He stopped mid-step and looked at her.

“I… I mean, I was—”

“Drunk,” he finished for her. “Tired. Overwhelmed. And then when I blindfolded you, whispered a few things, seduced you, you kissed me, and we both lost our way.” He said all that in one breath, like he’d memorized the words she hadn’t yet gathered the courage to say.

It was exactly what she’d rehearsed. Every word. Excepthe’dsaid it instead. Not her!

That was what made Kushal dangerous. He didn’t need confessions. He read them. Pulled them out of her like he’d always known they were there.

She opened her mouth, but the words failed.

He stepped closer.

She instinctively backed up until her spine hit the car door, before she stilled. Kushal didn’t touch her. But his body bracketed hers, his arms on either side, not making contact, but close enough to feel the heat.

“Say what you need to, Aru,” he murmured, his eyes locked on hers. “All your excuses. All the lines you’ve prepared. But don’t stand here and tell me it wasn’t supposed to happen. And don’t insult what we shared last night by calling it a mistake.”

She stayed silent, lips slightly parted.

“Because we both know,” he added, voice dropping an inch lower, “itwasgoing to happen. Eventually. And as much as you want to hide behind logic and guilt, what I saw in your eyes last night? That wasn’t regret. You and I both know…the last night? It’s not something either of us will forget.”

He tilted his head slightly.

“Especially me,” he added, his tone turning wicked. “And just so you know, after you passed out…right after I made you see stars…I had avery hardtime… easing the rest of that night’s high.” His gaze dipped momentarily to her lips before finding her eyes again. “Alone.”

She gasped, but didn’t move.

Just then, they heard a man calling Kushal’s name.

He groaned under his breath, annoyed at the interruption, clearly unwilling to let anyone break the charged moment hanging between them. Yet, he slowly turned, only to see Vivek approaching from across the property.

Arundhati quickly composed herself, and shifted her expression back to neutral.

Once Vivek reached them, Kushal introduced her. “Arundhati, this is Vivek, my source.”

Vivek gave her a polite nod, then turned to Kushal. “She’s in. Noyonika hasn’t left the villa. Everything’s in place.”

Kushal nodded, before turning to Arundhati.

“Time to get someone to confess,” he said.

And she heard it…the layered meaning beneath those words. He wasn’t talking just about the case anymore. Not with that look in his eyes.

Vivek stepped away to speak to his men, and as soon as his footsteps faded, Kushal leaned in again, just enough for her to hear.

“The next confession I want…is yours,” he whispered. “That you want to give us a real chance. That you want to stay in this marriage.”