‘My feelings for him deepened and then one day he called me home. I was young and naïve and thought he was going to ask me out. That night he told me he loved me and wanted to spend his life with me. I said yes, overjoyed to start this welcome chapter in my life. But later that night he told me that he was already married and that his wife and daughter lived in the Netherlands. He said he would leave them and marry me, but I couldn’t bear that he had lied to me this whole time. I refused and he became angry. He tried to force himself on me but I resisted. Somehow I managed to escape and left London that very night. Later he emailed me saying that he never loved me and only needed a shoulder to cry on.

‘I completed my research in India on special request. My parents have been asking me to come back to London but that incident has left a deep scar on me. I even thought of leaving this profession, but my mentor made me realize that therapists are human after all and thus, vulnerable too. I became a workaholic and did not get involved with anyone for years. I treated all my patients with utmost professionalism and even kept friends at arm’s length because I was scared someone would take advantage of me again.

‘That night, with you at the club, all those memories came flowing back and I reacted out of fear. I am sorry, Madhav. I am really sorry. I don’t want to hurt you, but I don’t want to suffer either.’

Madhav held Radhika by the shoulders and kissed her forehead. He was reminded of the way he had treated Meera. He felt bad and wanted to apologize for trying to force Radhika to open up earlier, but this was not the right time.

‘You scared me! The way you began your story, I thought it was going to end in murder,’ he joked, trying to make her smile. ‘So you decided to not love any more because of one unstable man? I understand he hurt you badly, but you can’t give up on love because of the way he treated you,’ Madhav said.

Radhika nodded and he kissed her forehead again. She asked him hesitantly, ‘Are you going to leave me?’

‘Leave you? I want to live with you, Radhika! I don’t want to just grow old with you, I want to live every single moment with you, no matter how trivial. I love the way you listen keenly to people. And I’m not saying this just because you listened to my problems. I love the way you care for each person around you. The way you talk and paint so freely, the way you dance so elegantly, the way you drive your scooter, the way you puncture tyres—I love everything about you!’ he said.

Radhika laughed and planted a kiss on his cheek. ‘I didn’t want to keep any secrets from you, Madhav. I want to destroy all the barriers between us.’