Chapter 10 — Stay With Me Tonight
1344 Words
Chapter 10 — Stay With Me Tonight
The rain refused to stop.
Lightning flashed across the shattered windows of the safehouse while security teams rushed through the halls repairing damage from the sniper attack.
But inside the living room, silence wrapped tightly around Maya Verma and Mihir Raichand.
Heavy silence.
Because Mihir had just looked at her and practically confessed everything without saying the actual words.
You’re the first thing that ever made me want more than survival.
Maya’s heart still hadn’t recovered.
And honestly?
Neither had Mihir.
Naina cleared her throat awkwardly from nearby.
“I’m going upstairs before this becomes emotionally intense.”
Maya snapped out of her thoughts instantly. “It is not emotionally intense.”
Naina stared directly at Mihir.
Mihir stared back calmly.
Then Naina pointed dramatically between them. “You two look at each other like tragic billionaires in a Netflix series.”
Maya covered her face. “Please leave.”
“Gladly.”
Naina disappeared upstairs with suspiciously amused energy.
Silence returned.
Maya refused to look at Mihir.
Because if she did—
she might do something catastrophic.
Like kiss him.
Or worse.
Confess feelings.
Mihir watched her quietly for several seconds before speaking.
“You’re avoiding eye contact.”
“I’m protecting society.”
“That sounds dramatic.”
“You inspire drama.”
A faint smile appeared on his face again.
God.
That smile was becoming a serious issue.
Maya looked away toward the broken windows quickly.
Outside, rainwater shimmered across the city lights of Mumbai.
Inside, her pulse refused to behave normally.
Work.
She needed work.
Distractions.
Maya immediately grabbed her laptop and sat near the coffee table.
“We should focus on Helix.”
Mihir walked toward her slowly. “That’s your escape strategy?”
“It’s a very good strategy.”
“You panic whenever emotions become real.”
Maya looked personally attacked.
“That was unnecessarily accurate.”
Mihir sat beside her.
Close.
Always close now.
And somehow it no longer felt uncomfortable.
Dangerous development.
Maya opened multiple encrypted windows rapidly.
“Okay,” she muttered. “Raghav plans to steal Helix tomorrow night.”
“He’ll need internal access.”
“He already has it.”
Mihir’s expression hardened.
Someone inside AstraVex was still betraying him.
Maya enlarged a building blueprint across the screen.
“If they breach through the underground server vault, they can extract the neural prediction core in under eight minutes.”
Mihir studied the map carefully.
“Unless we trap them first.”
Maya glanced sideways at him.
“You already have a plan.”
“I always have a plan.”
“Of course you do, Batman.”
Mihir ignored the insult gracefully.
Then his gaze shifted toward her hand resting near the keyboard.
Small scratches still visible from broken glass earlier.
His expression softened slightly.
“You should clean those properly.”
Maya blinked.
“Mihir.”
“What?”
“You literally got shot today.”
“And your hand is injured.”
“You are medically obsessed.”
“You’re careless.”
“You’re controlling.”
“You hacked a government satellite.”
“That was one time.”
Mihir gave her a look.
“…Fine. Three times.”
A quiet laugh escaped him.
Maya froze for half a second.
She loved that sound.
The realization hit suddenly and violently.
Loved.
Oh no.
No no no.
Absolutely not.
Maya looked back at the laptop aggressively.
Catastrophic.
Her brain was officially compromised.
Mihir noticed the panic flicker across her expression.
“What happened?”
“Nothing.”
“You look distressed.”
“I remembered taxes exist.”
“Maya.”
She sighed dramatically.
“You keep smiling at me and it’s creating problems.”
Silence.
Mihir stared at her carefully.
Then softly—
“What kind of problems?”
Maya’s throat went dry instantly.
Why did he ask questions like that?
She avoided his gaze. “The emotionally complicated kind.”
Mihir went very still.
Something warm and dangerous flickered behind his eyes.
“Maya.”
She looked at him finally.
Big mistake.
Because he was already staring at her like she was something precious.
And suddenly the room felt too quiet again.
Too close.
Mihir slowly reached toward her hand resting on the table.
Carefully.
Giving her time to pull away.
Maya didn’t move.
His fingers slid gently between hers.
Warm.
Steady.
Intentional.
Maya’s heartbeat completely lost stability.
Neither spoke.
They simply sat there holding hands while rain hammered against the windows.
And somehow—
it felt more intimate than almost kissing.
Mihir looked down briefly at their joined hands like he still couldn’t fully believe himself.
“I usually hate this.”
Maya’s chest tightened softly.
“But not with me?”
His thumb brushed lightly against her knuckles.
“No.”
The honesty in that single word nearly destroyed her.
Maya whispered shakily, “You realize you’re making it very difficult to stay emotionally unavailable.”
A quiet smile touched Mihir’s lips.
“Good.”
Maya stared at him.
Then muttered weakly, “That was smooth. I don’t trust it.”
“I’m adapting.”
“To flirting?”
“To you.”
Silence again.
Warm this time.
Safe.
And that terrified Maya most of all.
Because somewhere between gunfights and hacking wars and stolen glances—
Mihir Raichand had become home.
The thought scared her enough that she immediately stood up.
“I need coffee.”
“You already have coffee.”
“I need emotionally supportive coffee.”
Mihir watched her walk toward the kitchen with obvious amusement.
Then suddenly—
Every monitor in the room flashed red simultaneously.
Emergency breach alert.
Maya spun around instantly.
“What now?”
A distorted voice echoed through the speakers.
“Good evening, lovers.”
Raghav.
Mihir’s entire expression turned lethal immediately.
Maya moved toward the monitors rapidly.
Raghav appeared onscreen smiling casually.
Behind him—
AstraVex headquarters.
Live footage.
Maya’s stomach dropped.
“He’s already inside.”
Raghav leaned back comfortably. “You really should improve employee loyalty, Mihir.”
Mihir’s voice became ice cold.
“You’re dead.”
Raghav laughed softly.
“Maybe. But tomorrow your company dies with me.”
The screen shifted to reveal armed men planting explosives near underground server rooms.
Maya cursed sharply.
“They rigged the vault.”
Raghav smirked wider.
“At midnight tomorrow, Project Helix becomes mine.”
Then his eyes shifted toward Maya specifically.
“And after that… I take Nyx.”
Mihir stepped closer to the screen instinctively.
Protective rage radiated from him violently.
Raghav noticed and smiled.
“There it is again,” he murmured. “That look.”
Mihir’s jaw tightened.
Raghav tilted his head slightly.
“You love her already.”
Silence.
Maya’s pulse stopped.
Mihir didn’t answer.
Didn’t deny it either.
Raghav chuckled knowingly.
“That’s going to destroy you.”
The transmission ended abruptly.
Silence swallowed the room afterward.
Heavy.
Electric.
Maya slowly turned toward Mihir.
He still stared at the black screen with terrifying calm.
But his hand—
the one still holding hers—
tightened slightly.
Maya’s heartbeat became uneven again.
Because he never denied it.
And somehow that mattered more than words.
Mihir finally looked at her.
Their eyes locked.
And suddenly neither of them cared about Raghav.
Or Helix.
Or the danger surrounding them.
Only this.
This impossible thing growing stronger every time they looked at each other.
Maya whispered softly—
“You didn’t say he was wrong.”
Mihir stepped closer slowly.
Very slowly.
Like he knew this moment mattered.
Then he lifted his free hand gently against her cheek.
No hesitation anymore.
No fear.
Just her.
“Maya,” he said quietly, “if I start saying everything I feel for you right now…”
Her breath caught sharply.
Mihir lowered his forehead against hers softly.
“…we’re never surviving this conversation.”
Maya laughed shakily despite herself.
Then whispered the most dangerous truth she’d ever admitted.
“I don’t think I want to survive it.”
- Writer
