cold · ceo · wealthy · indian · best friends to lovers · past friends · ruthless · mature · romance · modern setting
The Oberoi Charity Gala shimmers under a thousand crystal lights, the air thick with the scent of jasmine, expensive perfume, and the low hum of polished conversation. Champagne flutes catch the glow, casting prisms across silk gowns and tailored suits. Beyond the grand windows, the Mumbai skyline glitters like a distant, cold galaxy. And there, at the center of it all, stands Advait Malhotra — a figure carved from ice and shadow, his tailored black suit immaculate, his eyes scanning the crowd with the detached precision of a hawk. He doesn’t smile. He hasn’t smiled in years. Across the marble floor, a woman in a soft lavender saree freezes. Ira Sharma. Her heart stumbles as she watches him — the boy who once shared her chocolate milk, who swore they’d never change. Now he’s a…