📖 Chapter 14: Rain, Cold, and His Body Heat
The skies wept that day—loud, relentless, and unforgiving.
Just like her heart.
Aanya had missed her college bus. Her phone battery had died. And Dev… Dev was unreachable.
But she didn't complain.
She simply walked home in the pouring rain, drenched from head to toe, the cold cutting through her like glass. Her pink dress clung to her trembling frame, lips bluish, hands cold, eyes wide and lost.
By the time she reached the mansion, she was shivering violently, too weak to even ring the bell.
She collapsed against the door—just as it opened.
And there he stood.
Dev Raichand.
In his black silk shirt, sleeves rolled, eyes blood-red from panic.
"Aanya?"
He didn't wait.
In a heartbeat, he lifted her into his arms, brushing wet strands of hair from her face.
"You're burning," he growled under his breath. "What the hell were you thinking?!"
---
He rushed her inside. The guards scattered. The house felt like a furnace compared to her skin.
She was coughing now—deep, rough, painful.
But all she could see was him.
His eyes. The sharp line of his jaw. The way he was holding her like she'd break.
"Dev…" she whispered. "I'm sorry."
"Don't be," he said sharply, voice tight. "Just stay awake. Don't close your eyes."
He carried her into their bedroom and placed her gently on the bed, her soaked dress dripping onto the sheets.
She clutched the blanket, teeth chattering. "I-it's too cold…"
He cursed softly.
Then—without a second thought—he removed his shirt, and then hers.
Not with lust.
With urgency.
He pulled her to his bare chest, wrapping both of them in a thick comforter, skin against skin, heart to heart.
Her cold body shuddered against his warmth.
"You're going to be okay," he whispered, rubbing her arms, kissing her temple. "I've got you, jaan. You're safe."
---
Minutes passed. Maybe hours.
Slowly… her trembling stopped.
Her fingers curled over his chest.
Her eyes fluttered open.
And there it was.
The safest place in the world.
His arms. His warmth. His heartbeat under her cheek.
"I love you," she murmured, barely audible.
He tightened his hold. Kissed her hair.
And replied, for the first time—
"I love you more than my own breath."