Fixation (Fatal Attraction #3)

Epilogue

One week later

“ Oh, I can’t watch!” Reina hid her face against Vedant’s chest. “Rajiv is pounding the life out of Mihir.”

The atmosphere around them was tense, violent and bloody. Mihir and Rajiv were sparring in the centre of the ring. Actually, Rajiv was sparring; Mihir was just accepting every hit Rajiv was giving him. Both of them were dressed only in gym shorts, their hands wrapped in white tape.

Vedant palmed her cheeks. “Hey, it’s all good. My brother owes it to him. He’s paying the price for kidnapping a friend’s sister.”

“Not this way, he shouldn’t,” Reina mumbled. She looked to the side and winced.

Rajiv was raining a flurry of blows on Mihir. As before, Mihir didn’t even defend himself. He took the attack calmly. The corner of his mouth was bleeding, and so was his forehead.

“Oh God, Mihir looks awful,” Reina groaned.

“I’m glad to see you worrying about him,” Vedant said.

“I do,” Reina replied. “He’s your brother, and I like him. He pretends to be a grouch all the time, but he’s a softie inside. Of course, I don’t like how he’s with Ananya, but that is something neither of us can do anything about.”

Vedant laughed. Over the last week, he’d seen Reina spending a lot of time with his brothers. While she already had a good relationship with Armaan, he was happy to note that she was getting along well with Mihir too.

Rajiv levelled a hard jab on Mihir’s face. Mihir didn’t duck. Shit. This was indeed getting too much now. Vedant checked the time. Two more minutes were left until the two of them sparred as equals. Besides him and Reina, Armaan, Navya, and Sheena also watched the fight from the side.

“Rajiv looks mad,” Navya said. “I’ve never seen him that mad.”

Sheena huffed out a breath. “I hate this.”

The sound of running footsteps made them all turn.

“Shit, I got late,” Ananya panted. “What’s happening?”

Armaan made a face. “Rajiv is thrashing Mihir.”

“Good, it’s high time.” Ananya’s face dropped into a cool mask.

Armaan scowled, but Ananya remained unfazed, her eyes glued to the men in the ring.

Mihir and Rajiv circled one another.

“How could you?” Rajiv stormed. “She’s my sister. I was just beginning to like you, and you go and do this.”

“To be fair,” Mihir began, “I did this before you started liking me.”

Rajiv slammed a fist to Mihir’s jaw.

Mihir staggered back. He twisted his head from side to side.

“If you ever do something like this again which involves one of my sisters, then our friendship is over,” Rajiv said aloud.

“Do you really think I’d hurt the women my brothers are in love with?” Mihir retaliated.

Rajiv threw his fist in the air. It caught Mihir’s face, sending his head flying back.

Armaan groaned. He exchanged a frustrated look with Vedant. Vedant felt his desperation and irritation. It was hard to watch their brother get beaten up and not be able to do anything. But this had to play out this way for things to be back to normal between Mihir and Rajiv. The two of them circled one another again.

“I know you won’t hurt Navya and Reina,” Rajiv said. “I do have one more sister who seems to be obsessed with you . Or are you obsessed with her ?”

“Fucking hell,” Ananya swore loudly.

Mihir’s gaze locked in on her for a brief moment. His eyes turned feral. Rajiv swung his fist out, but this time, Mihir defended his blow. In fact, Mihir blocked every punch Rajiv threw his way. Vedant checked the time. The five minutes were up. Now, the fight was going to be fair and, judging from his brother’s expression, gruesome.

“Tell your sister to never cross my path,” Mihir stormed. “And you and I won’t have a problem.”

“What if she does cross your path?” Rajiv asked.

Mihir struck Rajiv from all angles. He backed Rajiv into a corner and rained blows on his face and chest. Before Rajiv could recover, Mihir followed with a barrage of punches, driving him to the ropes. They both were sweaty and bleeding now, their white hand wraps covered in red and dirty brown.

“I’ll ask again,” Rajiv repeated. “What if she does cross your path?”

“Then I won’t be held responsible, not by you or anyone standing here,” Mihir’s words were a warning, clearly intended for the woman standing outside the ring, staring at him. His eyes met Ananya’s.

Ananya lifted both her hands in the air, her middle fingers raised defiantly. Mihir’s expression turned wild. Ignoring him, she flipped her hair and stormed out.

Vedant exchanged a worried look with Reina.

Thankfully, the buzzer at the end of the ring rang. Mihir held a hand out to Rajiv. He took it. The two of them faced each other once again.

“Are we done with this now?” Mihir asked.

Rajiv nodded.

They bumped fists, a gesture of camaraderie and mutual respect.

“Same time, next week,” Rajiv said, stepping out of the ring.

With a quick wave to all, Rajiv and Sheena left.

Vedant handed a towel to Mihir. He wiped his face and began scrolling through his phone.

He looked up. “Our men who had infiltrated JD’s organisation have reported that he may be returning to India. It could be any time now.”

Vedant’s pulse spiked. “Tell them to keep a watch on him the second he lands.”

“Our people are also searching through every record registered in Mumbai to find Karina,” Mihir said. “Hopefully, we should find her before JD returns.”

“We have to find her first,” Armaan said.

“Agreed,” Vedant said. “Now that all his money has been blocked, Ivan will get even more desperate. Vasily had told him what Karina meant to us, which means he must also be searching for her. If he cannot get to us, then he will try and find her.”

Reina hooked her arm through Vedant’s. She squeezed his bicep, her touch soothing him. She spoke up, “If you all, with all your resources and AI images, haven’t been able to find her yet, then it means Ivan won’t be able to find her easily either. After all, he lacks the money to do so now, isn’t it?”

A few days back, he’d shown Reina the AI image Mihir had gotten made of Karina. He’d also updated her on all they were doing with regards to their sister.

“That is a silver lining,” Armaan said.

Mihir nodded. “Also, Rajiv got the van’s number plate via the CCTV footage from La Soiree . Our guys found it abandoned a little distance away from the restaurant. So, nothing moving forward there.”

Mihir’s phone beeped again.

“Fuck,” he growled.

Vedant immediately tensed. “What happened?”

“Check the latest issue of Noir,” Mihir barked.

Vedant scrolled through his phone. “It’s the article on Armaan and Navya. We were expecting that.”

“You both look great,” Reina told them.

“We do,” Navya gushed, peering into Armaan’s phone.

“Scroll to the section titled Hush-Hush by Miss Butterfly .” Mihir sounded very annoyed.

Navya grabbed the phone from Armaan. “What? Ananya’s started a gossip section in Noir?! Unbelievable.”

Reina began to read aloud, “ This reclusive, enigmatic Russian billionaire hasn’t been seen with any woman for a long time. Is he uninterested in women, or do women find him unappealing? Or is he going to come out of the closet any time now? Stay tuned for more news from our very own Miss Butterfly. ”

“Oh fuck.” Armaan tried to hide his chuckle, but failed.

Reina giggled and then slapped a palm on her mouth when Mihir glared at her. “Sorry, but it is funny. You’re the last person whose sexual orientation ought to be in question, and she’s…”

Reina burst out laughing. Vedant joined her, and soon all of them except Mihir were rolling in laughter.

“This woman is going to be the death of me,” Mihir ground out.

“She’s diabolical,” Reina said. “You really have pissed her off now.”

“She doesn’t know what will happen if she starts a war with me,” Mihir said. “Fucking annoying woman. Tell her to stop or it will get ugly.”

“ You tell her,” Navya said. “Ananya never listens when she’s fixated on something, and this article reeks of fixation.”

Well, to Vedant, it reeked of obsession, but he wasn’t saying that aloud. Considering the foul mood Mihir was in, Vedant would surely get punched.

“I’m out of here,” Mihir said.

“Wait, you’re with us,” Armaan said. With a quick wave to Vedant and Reina, the three of them left.

Vedant turned to Reina. “Let’s go.”

Reina stayed silent for a moment before she said. “I just want to clarify about Ananya and Mihir because I have a feeling we’ve heard two different stories.”

“What has she told you?”

“Very little,” Reina sighed. “All I know is that she fell in love with him while studying in London, only to have her heart shattered by his tragic death in an accident. Years later, she discovered, through a news article, that Mihir was alive and the adopted son of Alexander Oshnov. She was shocked and devastated to learn that. Post that, she tried for a long time to get in touch with him, but Mihir refused to acknowledge her existence. Then, the yacht incident happened. She ran away from him, and after that, she categorically refused to talk about him.”

Oh God, he wasn’t even sure if his brother was aware of this. There was a massive misunderstanding between Mihir and Ananya that needed to be clarified ASAP.

“Okay, you know Mihir thinks differently,” Vedant said. “In his head, she’s betrayed him, and he’s never forgiven her for that.”

“They need to talk,” Reina said. “I just wish they’d both let get of their egos and… talk. At least for our sakes.”

“Some battles are not ours to fight, beautiful…” Vedant caressed her cheek. “We need to let them be.”

“I think there is a war brewing between them…” Reina gulped. “I just don’t want either of them to end up hurt.”

“I’ve been thinking that we ought to return to London,” Vedant said. “How does next week sound to you?”

Her eyes widened. “Wow. Quite a change of subject. Why though? In London, you were missing your brothers when they left.”

“I did, but you weren’t exactly in my life then. With you, it feels like I’ve finally found my place in this world, and I don’t feel so alone anymore. And I do want to return and spend some time alone with you. Let’s go for a short holiday.”

“I want to be alone with you too. Just you and me sounds perfect,” she said softly.

He grinned, his heart rejoicing at her words. Her expressing what she felt for him would never get old.

“Besides,” he continued, “like you said, this drama between Mihir and Ananya is only going to escalate into an all-out war, especially if she continues with those snippets about him. He already hates being in the public eye, and this paints him in a bad light.”

“Oh God, yes,” Reina grumbled. “I ought to talk to her.”

“You really shouldn’t. They need to hash it out, and we all ought to stay out of it.”

“So, next week, huh?” Reina queried. “I’ll have to convince my parents that I want to go with you. Already, they weren’t too happy with both Navya and me living in your house here, but I think they’ll be happy for me. I’m glad you managed to impress them.”

He was glad about that too. He’d met Reina’s parents that first night when they announced their engagement to them, and since then, he’d met them twice. They were genuinely good people, and he was grateful to them for giving Reina a stable upbringing. He’d even been introduced to Rajiv and Sheena’s adorable kids. His family was really growing.

Vedant gave her a sheepish look. “I also did a thing.”

Reina narrowed her eyes. “What thing?”

“There’s a small hospital close to our house here in Dubai, and I spoke to the director there. They have an opening for a general surgeon, if you think you’d be interested. I mean, I know it reeks of nepotism, and I also know you hate that. It’s not a very big hospital, but I know you love working?—”

Reina launched herself in his arms. “Thank you. That sounds perfect. I love it. I can’t wait to get back to work. For the longest time, I didn’t look for a job here in Dubai because it never felt like home, not until you returned here. You are my home, Vedant. I can work anywhere as long as you are by my side.”

He held her close. “I’m so happy to hear that. I can’t wait to be alone with you in London. I’m going to make love to you in every room and on every surface.”

She laughed. “I think your brothers won’t like us using their rooms that way.”

“Oh, well, except their rooms then.”

Reina kissed his smiling mouth. “I love you.”

“I love you too. Now, let’s go convince your parents that you’re going to return to London with me.”

He linked her hand with her left one, pausing to stare at the matching stone in their rings. Just last night, he’d gifted her the engagement ring she was wearing. Set on a platinum band with a five carat round blue diamond, it sat on a bed of smaller diamonds. Now they both had the same stone on their fingers, just like she’d wanted.

She looked at her ring. “You know, I just realised that I got my happy ending. Just like in those romance books I’ve been reading.”

He shook his head. “Not just a happy ending. A never ending. You and I will never end, Reina.”

“Never ever.” She gave him a brilliant smile.

Pulling her with him, Vedant led her out of the sports club and to his waiting car. He knew they had to face many challenges in the days ahead. It was going to take a while until they were fully safe, but that day would come soon. His brothers would ensure it. He’d ensure it. He’d found love, and he’d protect it with all he had.

That was all that mattered.

THE END