Chapter 8

I did not spend the rest of the day thinking about Mehul.

Absolutely not.

Sure, my brain kept replaying that last sentence—"And yet, you're still here."—but that was just because it was annoying.

That's it….…Right?

I sighed, stretching in my chair. It was almost end of the day, and I had actually managed to get some work done despite my brain's best efforts to distract me.

Across the room, Arjun and Riya were deep in conversation, but as soon as I rolled my chair over, they both turned to me with matching smirks.

I frowned. "What?"

Arjun leaned back. "Nothing."

Riya rested her chin on her hand. "So, how's your new favorite topic doing?"

I squinted. "What new favorite topic?"

She grinned. "Mehul."

I groaned, leaning my head back. This was a mistake.

Arjun whistled. "Man, this is bad. I've never seen you actually struggle to charm someone before."

"I'm not trying to charm him," I muttered.

Riya gasped dramatically. "Wait. Is that the problem? You're actually trying to be friends with him?"

I sat up. "What's wrong with that?"

Arjun and Riya exchanged a look.

Arjun sighed. "Vihaan. He doesn't do 'friends.'"

I scoffed. "Oh, come on. Everyone has friends."

Riya tapped her nails on the desk. "Name one."

I opened my mouth. Then immediately closed it.

…Crap.

Riya raised an eyebrow. "Exactly."

Arjun patted my shoulder. "Good luck, man."

I glared at both of them. "You guys are the worst."

They both smiled sweetly.

I sighed, turning away—just in time to see Mehul walking past.

And, like an idiot, I acted on impulse.

I pushed my chair back, standing up just as Mehul stepped into the elevator.

I wasn't sure what my plan was.

Maybe I was just bored. Maybe I liked annoying him.

Or maybe I just wanted another one of those unreadable looks he gave me.

I slipped into the elevator just before the doors closed.

Mehul glanced at me. "You leaving too?"

"Yeah," I said casually. "Figured I'd head out."

Silence.

I cleared my throat. "Busy day?"

Mehul didn't even blink. "Same as always."

I nodded, rocking on my heels. "So… What do you do after work?"

Mehul gave me a flat look. "Why?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe I'm curious."

He turned away, watching the floor numbers change. "That's dangerous."

I blinked. "What?"

The elevator dinged. The doors slid open.

Mehul walked out without another word.

I stood there, still staring at the empty space where he had been.

…Okay. So what the hell was I supposed to do with that?

That night, I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.

This wasn't normal.

I'd worked with a hundred different people before. I'd been friendly, flirty, sarcastic, professional—whatever the situation needed.

But this?

This was different.

I wasn't trying to get anything from Mehul. I wasn't chasing his approval or winning a game. I just… wanted to figure him out.

No.

That wasn't right. I wanted him to look at me like I was worth figuring out.

I groaned, dragging a pillow over my face.

This was bad.

Really, really bad.

The next morning, I walked into the office, still very much pretending that I hadn't spent all night thinking about Mehul.

I went straight to my desk, dropped my bag, and turned on my laptop—only to realize…My charger wasn't there.

I checked my drawers. My bag. Nothing.

I sighed, rubbing my forehead. "Great."

"Here."

I looked up.

Mehul was standing next to my desk, holding out his charger.

I blinked. "Huh?"

"You left yours in the conference room yesterday," he said simply. "Figured you'd need one."

I stared at him. Then at the charger.

Then back at him.

Did Mehul just… notice something about me?

I took it slowly, still processing. "Uh. Thanks."

Mehul just nodded and walked away.

I sat there, holding the charger, my brain a complete mess.

Okay.

So maybe… just maybe…

Mehul wasn't as unaffected as I thought.

And that thought?