Blue blood. 

Aagnay

Mr. Delgado held the papers out to me and I took it and glanced at the red ink on the header. "A-?" As I read, my grip tightened around the edges until I crumpled the papers. "But..." It was redundant to argue with my caregiver. "Gracias."

As I pivoted to exit the room, he rounded my hips, covering his hands on mine as he reached my ear. "You know what you have brought upon yourself kid." His low whisper accompanied his breaths near my ear and the back of my neck began to prickle with cold sweat. "You know what comes next."

Wrong. It was wrong and it made me sick. I pushed forward but he trapped me in his arms. "Strip." I twisted my head to meet his gaze in disbelief. "Right here and right now."

My gaze drifted to my peers in the room and the sick feeling intensified. "No, please don't—"

"I said, strip," he demanded harshly this time and began to remove my jacket forcefully. "This is what you get when you choose to slip. There's no place for mediocrity in this world. You'd rather die than live with flaws," he hissed as he loosened the knot of my tie and I crushed the papers in my hands. I caught his hand to stop him, to defy him and protest him but he was quick to deflect my moves. "Don't push it," he ordained. "Someday you will realize how much you needed this."

I'd never felt the need to be exploited in exchange for perfection. I didn't want that. I wanted my friends—my life was in Mumbai—Spain wasn't for me.

"Don't think too much," he coaxed as he began to unbutton my shirt and my hands dropped to my sides. "You're only a trash." He threw my garments on the desk-top and I stepped back to fight him off. Murmurs and laughter coalesced into the thick air in the room as I began to tremble. "The next time you decide to slip, remember that this is what you get for being an utter piece of garbage."

The skin on my exposed torso crawled as he removed the shirt. The last strand of restrain broke loose and my chest heaved as my shirt dropped near my feet on the linoleum floor. The roar of my blood coursed through my ears as my head bowed down in unbearable shame.

"How many times?" His pants were heavy near my ear and I closed my eyes to shut his voice out. "How many times do I have to administer this for you to understand that you can't lose?" The sharp hiss of the zipper tore through me and my jaw steeled. "Hold your hands behind."

I deserved it. I was worthless—even my parents didn't want me.

He tugged my slacks down in a swift movement until I was starkly naked—naked in front of a room half-filled with people—my peers. The silence that followed was a steady dribble in the air and my chest burned in an unbearable need to scream.

"Now stroke," he demanded and the world was lost under the roar of blood in my pounding heart. "Stroke yourself until you come." My hands trembled and I stepped back from him. I wanted to apologize but I was so surprised and disbelieving that I barely struggled when he was rounding me with his predatory strides.

His hands covered mine on my penis as he urged me to stroke myself on full display. His eagerness made me feel dirty—worthless. The laughter in the air was next, billowing like a sandstorm that choked me; I couldn't breathe—

I jerked awake in my bed with an audible gasp and sat up with a rush. I threw the duvets off my feet and the breeze from the air conditioner swayed across my sweat-soaked skin. I couldn't breathe through the panic, blind with terror and searing pain that crushed my chest. I fumbled for the switch of the lamp on the nightstand and a sharp groan cut through me as the light flared through the space of my room.

I glared at the foot of the bed—the disparity wasn't easy to get away from. As I drank water, it weighed down on me and I threw the glass flying across the room until it crashed on the floor. That feeling of helplessness and shame haunted me; I couldn't shove them out of my mind.

As I gazed out of the window that revealed the Mumbai skyline, regret hit me hard. The demon that I often fought under the layer of perfection consumed me and drove a wedge between me and the world. My fear propelled me off the edge until I gave in.

*

"Why do you have to be such a control freak?"

I narrowed my eyes on Ella as I scrolled through the spreadsheets on my iPad. It wasn't like her to exchange words with me in person. We usually spoke over calls or exchanged texts, a form of communication that didn't demand extensive efforts. "Your negligence can't cost me a dime, Ella."

"That doesn't mean I'm not entitled to a life I want." Her fingers flew over the screen of her smartphone and I leaned back to my seat. "I can see other people and you shouldn't have a problem with that since we aren't..." Her gaze drifted to my face. "Together-together, get it?"

"You are free to do whatever you want," I told her. "I couldn't care any less about your affairs as long as they don't jeopardize mine."

"Your affairs include having a girlfriend who is pristine," she drawled and I frowned at her. "And I'm not your version of perfect."

"Perfection doesn't bear a version," I muttered lowly. "And if it does then you will have to upgrade."

She stopped typing on her phone and scoffed. "So I can't be the person I am now? Do I have to wear all these attires that suit your style? Who in the right mind dresses in suits all the damned time anyway?"

I had a big learning curve when it came to regulating prying women. My incessant need to conceal every inch of my skin was deep-seated and stemmed from my experience. It was unimportant for people to understand that as much as my explanation. People in my life needed to cut me some slack.

"That's not for you to be concerned about," I shot back. "You do as you're told and everything else will fall into place, are we clear on that?"

"Sure." She rolled her eyes and got back to typing on her phone. "So are we still visiting the racecourse this Sunday afternoon?"

"Yes." I rolled the stylus on my fingers. "And you need to be dressed to the nines."

"You never have to say to a blue blood," she said and circled the desk to lean closer to my ear. "See you tonight at my place? Don't be late." She pressed her lips against my cheekbone and an unusual quiet settled over me as I stared at the spreadsheet.

I wasn't used to human intimacy—it didn't concern me. "See you around, Ella." I was certain that I didn't deserve heaven.

Ella

2020

I had booked us a room at the Ritz for the night. Mama had insisted on deepening my relationship with Aagnay and that was exactly what I was planning on to. I had ordered the best of everything for room service before Aagnay could arrive and relaxed at the spa of the hotel.

I wasn't willing to be deterred so easily with him. I knew he had to be dealt with delicately but I was willing to give him a chance. It was infuriating and taxing to be dealing with the men in my life. Everything was falling apart around me, my family, my relationship, and even CSU.

Sambhavna was topping the records, making impression on professors and that was bad. She was hell-bent on replacing me and I wasn't going to let her. I couldn't lose my social standing or my father would have made it worse. I was supposed to be pristine for his campaign; so much for being the Poster Daddy of the year.

I moaned as the masseuse worked his magic on my sore muscles. I had to find a way to beat her. I had to find a way to convince Aagnay that I wasn't a threat. It scared me to fathom just how far his father was willing to go to hide his dirty business.

Afterward, Aagnay arrived at the luxurious suite, looking glorious as ever. There was an inexplicable charm to him that spoke volumes about Aagnay Bhasin. It often intrigued me to dig deeper; I was curious to know the concealed aspects of his being.

His gaze flickered with blatant shock for the arrangement. I'd had lied if I didn't admit how nervous I was. It was supposed to be a night to remember and I was raging with jitters. I drummed my fingers against the ball of my knee as I waited for him to absorb the view. His gaze wandered across the room filled with scented candles and wine.

"I hope you like what you see." My voice was barely a whisper and I chuckled as I followed his gaze. "Do you?"

He shoved his hands in the pockets of his dress pants and pinned me down with his gaze. "I appreciate the effort," he told me lowly and removed his luxurious timepiece. "However, candles and wines are not my strong suit."

I laughed nervously. "Sensuality has a language if you play it right." I pushed to my feet and straightened my silk robe delicately as I pulled the sash to reveal my frame.

His lips twitched to a smirk. "Sensuality is subjective." He tossed his watch on the console table near the door and loosened his tie. "Is there a reason we have to do this?"

"I—" I looked away and felt my heart lodge in my throat. Was I seemingly desperate? "I—" I shook my head and looked at him. "You're my boyfriend so—"

"That gives you a right to do this?" His black eyebrows narrowed and I gaped at him in horror. He looked mad.

"Is it too much for you?" I asked softly and smiled before I bowed my head and clicked my tongue. "I know I can go overboard with a lot of things."

He held his stare as his eyes met mine. He looked brooding and dangerous and then he looked away as he tossed his tie near his watch. His loaded eyes dropped to my stomach and I suddenly had the urge to hideaway. His breaths grew heavier and I clenched my thighs instinctively.

"Why didn't you tell me sex was a part of the memo?" He removed his suit jacket and dropped it on the floor after removing his oxfords.

I had realized that it was a bad idea. "Never mind," I muttered and wrapped the robe around my frame as I darted for the master bath and as soon as I moved, he moved, for me and shot his hand out to grab my waist and pinned me against the wall, pressing his fully clothed body against mine before he planted his other hand on the wall above me.

The room spun and I gasped.

He dipped his head to meet my gaze, his breath brushing against the seam of my lips and the gesture was intimate. I thought he would kiss me but he didn't. He was cold but I felt the fire inside me.

Reaching down, he peeled the robe off of my frame and moved his lips near my ear, dipping his mouth near my hairline and forehead, inhaling sharply. What was he doing?

I pressed my hands against his chest, shivering to the pleasure that shot under my skin like electricity. It was weird but oddly sexy. I closed my eyes as my skin tightened, loving the feeling of dropping my inhibitions.

"I—" I choked out. "I thought you didn't want to." He leaned his forehead against mine and I hated that he didn't speak in return. In the next hot beat, he moved his hand between us and undid his dress pants.

"Whoa—what?" My mouth fell open as I watched his wild movements. "Wait you need to—"

He pressed himself against me; breathing harshly and I felt his hard ridge rub in between my legs. I exhaled harshly and my eyes fluttered.

He slid his hands down the back of my panties, cupping my ass as he lifted me in his arms and spun us around. My tummy quivered but I held on to him until he landed me on the bed and nestled in between his legs. "Aagnay—"

"Isn't this what you want?" He fisted my hair and came onto my mouth, wild with unchecked speed, crashing and I felt flustered with jitters under my skin. His tongue dived in and I moaned to the throb down low. Holy shit.

He rolled his hips into me. "You were mad literally a minute ago." He shut me up as he bit on my lip and I felt worse because my thighs were on fire.

He came down on top of me, my pulse ringing in my ears as he licked the sensitive skin on the mounds of my breast and I bit on my lip. His mouth poured heat all over my body and my nails dug deeper into the duvet because I knew he had full access to my body. It was terrifying but I was too aroused to care about that.

I wanted to stop him but I failed. "We should talk—"

I shut up as he growled and ripped my panties. That violent movement spurred me further and his mouth found my hipbone hot and lush against my flushed skin. "Oh, God..."

I groaned as he stopped in his tracks and leaned away to push back to his feet. What the hell?

"Never pull this stunt on me," he snarled at me and I gawked at him. "Ever again." He gripped me up my upper arms and tears hung on the corner of my eyes.

I glare at him right-the-fuck back. "What? How—"

"Read my words, Ella, this can't be happening again." He strode to the console table to fetch his accessories. "This isn't my thing and you're not my type."

A touch of humiliation wound through me but his glare was still on me. "This isn't funny." I found my goddamned voice. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

He didn't bother to answer me before he strode out of the room. I slid back into the robe but I was too mad to be embarrassed.

Later that night, I poured my heart out in my journal before I broke down in my bedroom.

*

The sun was pounding down on the backyard of CSU as I set my bag on one of the benches and browsed through the online catalog of Paco Rabanne. I needed retail therapy. My morning started with Mama's soft sobs in her room that continued to echo in my mind a lot after I drove to CSU.

My integrity was wounded enough by Aagnay and I was starting to grow wary about our bearings. I told myself that we never truly belonged to the relationship. Our bond was a convenient arrangement between our families for allegiance that only benefited our fathers. It hurt. I blinked the thoughts away and glanced back at the catalog.

After placing my order, I darted my gaze in the hallway only to spot the woman of the hour.

Sambhavna was probably headed towards the library, not that I cared—I just knew what I had to do; I was tempted. "It's a great noon you're ruining."

She halted in her tracks and I cackled as I dropped my smartphone in my satchel and walked to her. "I think you should make peace with my existence."

She thought she was so clever. Bitch. I smirked as I towered over her and she lowered her gaze immediately. "Did anyone ask for your opinion?"

"Funny because I don't remember seeking your presence either," she scoffed and gazed at the backyard and then back at me. "You're blocking my way."

"And what are you gonna do about that huh?" I daggered challengingly and she stepped back. "Call your criminal daddy to your rescue?"

"Don't you dare speak against my father," she bit out and her grip tightened around the strap of her bag. She was getting worked up—exactly what I wanted her to be. Poor thing didn't realize that she held no candle on the face of who I was.

I rolled my eyes and tossed my hair back. "Or what?" I arched a brow and smirked. "You will con me for my riches too?" I chuckled and she fumed. Goody! "I'm sure you must have gotten a crash course on how to extort money from rich people, isn't that right sweetie?"

"Your father is a politician, you tell me," she shot back and my teeth clenched.

"I must admire your audacity," I murmured and she shrugged. Her nonchalance reminded me of my father, the mere mention of him propelled me far enough to lose my mind. It induced me to rip her apart.

"My father may be a criminal but yours is no saint either."

I couldn't hear myself under the ring of my pulse in my ear. How did she know anything about my father?

I stepped closer to her and she backed away. "Explain that right the fuck now," I demanded but she remained silent; a smirk lingering on the corner of her mouth that ricocheted fury through my blood. On pure instinct, I gripped her by her hair and she groaned. "Explain that, bitch."

"I—"

The slap across her face reverbed through the air around us and my chest heaved. She couldn't have—she shouldn't have known about my father; that was my deep-seated secret, a glaring skeleton in my closet that I never wished to touch for other's knowledge.

"How dare you say anything against my father?" Didn't she know what that man was capable of? My teeth gnashed as I gripped her hair tighter. "You tend to forget who is in charge here."

She had been deliberately replacing me, jeopardizing me. If she laid her hands on my secret then...I couldn't afford that blasphemy.

"I'm sorry," she muttered and my grip loosened on her hair. "I didn't mean to."

"I'm irreplaceable, do you understand me?" I bit out and she gaped at me in terror. "You are going to lay low for your self-preservation, do you get that? You will back out because my spot isn't open for competition."

"I don't know what you're talking about—"

"Really?" I snapped and backed away from her. "You think I'd turn a blind eye towards everything you have been doing since you got here?"

"I don't wish to compete," she clarified as she rubbed her scalp and I smirked. How foolish did she take me for? "All I want is to finish my course and get out of here."

"Without intervening in my ways," I added and she looked away. "You will never succeed with your little plan because I won't let you." She had to know the kind of power I was born with.

"Well, I will succeed with my plan, believe it or not."

Everything from the other day—Aagnay, my parents, and my hate for Sambhavna Gupta crashed on my shoulder and I lost it. It felt relieving when I smacked her, one blow after another until she fell to the floor. I didn't register her words because I was furious beyond the point of return.

My mind was fuzzy with memories from the other night at the suite with Aagnay. How could he make me feel so worthless? Arousing me to humiliate me? Rat bastard! He was sick—a sick psychotic bastard. I exhaled harshly as my phone buzzed in my purse and I glanced at a crew of juniors gawking at us.

"You are going to be the live example for people to understand that nobody messes with me." I walked out of the building almost immediately before I answered the call from Aagnay.

~~~~

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