Page 92 of Lawfully Yours

And now, with only the chill of the linen and her own tangle of thoughts for company, the room felt bigger, colder and emptier.

She switched off the bedside lamp, letting the room fall into darkness. One more day, she told herself. Just one more, before they confronted Noyonika, wrapped up the matter here, and returned to Delhi. Back to their separate lives. Separate homes. Separate everything.

But the thought didn’t sit right.

Why did the idea of going back to that old reality suddenly feel so unbearable?

Why was it so hard to say that maybe she wasn’t as certain about ending this marriage as she once was?

Suddenly, the handle of the connecting door clicked. Her breath caught as the knob turned and the door creaked open.

She knew it was him. But why was he here now?

Instinct took over. She squeezed her eyes shut, pretending to be asleep, hoping maybe he would see her resting and quietly slip away.

But the silence only deepened… until the mattress dipped behind her.

Her eyes flew open.

He was here.In her bed.

Before she could even process that, his arm slid around her waist, pulling her back against the solid line of his chest.

She gasped, instinctively reaching to push him away. But he lowered his mouth to her ear.

“Shh,” he whispered. “After last night, I couldn’t sleep without you beside me. I tried.”

She froze.

He continued, his breath skimming her skin, setting it alight. “I know we go back to our separate lives the day after tomorrow.But… until then, Aru, just let me remember what it feels like to hold you this close again.Please.”

The words cracked something inside her. She felt the ache in his voice, the sincerity in his touch, the plea of a man too proud to ever beg. And just like that her resistance faded, inch by inch. Her hands dropped. And then slowly, without a word, she melted back into him.

Chapter 16

Dalhousie Hotel – Next Morning

Arundhati stirred in her sleep, slightly awake. Her back was nestled against Kushal’s chest, his arm draped possessively around her waist. There wasn’t a sliver of space between them; not even the air dared to slip through.

Kushal’s breathing was deep and even. She felt the rise and fall of his chest against her spine. But what made her heart skip now wasn’t the closeness but the movement of his fingers. Somehow, they had found their way to the neckline of her nightdress, which had slipped low during the night. They moved lazily, grazing the delicate swell of her cleavage with a featherlight touch. Her throat felt suddenly dry, and a soft, silent gasp parted her lips as the sensation stirred something deeper within her.

Half-asleep, she recalled last night how he had crossed into her room, pulled her into his arms, and she hadn’t stopped him. He hadn’t asked for more. He’d simply held her. Comforted her. But now... now his fingers seemed to have a mind of their own.

She didn’t know whether he was still asleep or wide awake and feigning the dream. And that uncertainty of whether it was his unconscious need or his very conscious desire left her breathless.

His touch grew bolder as his fingers skimmed over the soft swell of her breast, as if weighing them. She felt slight restraint in his touch, but despite that, it was enough to send a pulse ofheat straight through her body. A delicious ache bloomed inside her, urging him to touch her fully, without hesitation, without restraint.

She had never said it aloud. Not even to herself. But she missed this…missed him. Missed the way his hands knew her body even better than she allowed herself to know her own.

Just then, his hand drifted lower, slipping over the curve of her waist until it reached the hem of her nightdress.Nowher body tensed.

No. This wasn’t right.

They were supposed to be getting divorced. And yet, here she was, pretending to be asleep while his fingers inched closer to the territory that was legally still his to claim.

Her conscience screamed for control. She needed to move. To stop this.

But just as she summoned the will to shift away, his palm slipped beneath the fabric, grazing the sensitive skin of her inner thigh. Her nightie bunched as his hand moved higher, igniting a fire her logic was powerless to extinguish.