Kartavya’s POV

Next Day

“What the hell do you mean that man escaped?” I said coldly, my voice echoing dangerously through the cabin.

The men standing in front of me immediately lowered their heads.

“Listen carefully. If that man is not found, then be ready to lose your lives.”

Fear instantly spread across their faces.

“In the next two hours, I want that man in front of me along with his confession. And if that doesn’t happen—”

I leaned slightly forward, my eyes darkening.

Toh tumhari family ko tumhari laash bhi nahi milegi antim sanskaar ke liye.

(Then your family won’t even receive your dead bodies for the last rites.)”

The room fell completely silent.

“Get that?”

All of them nodded nervously before rushing out of the cabin.

The moment the door closed, irritation burned inside me again.

First, that tender was lost.

Then that man escaped.

And more importantly—

Dhani still hadn’t come to the office.

I glanced at the clock.

It was already 12 p.m.

Without wasting another second, I pressed the intercom.

Within moments, Shesh entered the cabin.

“Dhani… I mean, Dharini Shekhawat hasn’t come yet,” I said casually, though my irritation clearly slipped into my tone. “Ask HR for the valid reason for her absence.”

Shesh nodded once and left quietly.

The moment he left, my thoughts immediately drifted back toward yesterday’s incident.

Maybe she didn’t come because of what happened yesterday.

Did I make her uncomfortable?

I shut my eyes in frustration.

I shouldn’t have held her hand.

And fine…

if she doesn’t want me to call her by that nickname, then I won’t.

But then why didn’t she come?

What if she submitted her resignation because of me?

The thought instantly irritated me for some unknown reason.

“No… she won’t do that,” I muttered under my breath.

Just then, the cabin door opened again, and Shesh walked back in.

“Sir, she has taken four days leave,” he informed calmly. “And she had applied for this leave ten days ago.”

The tightness inside my chest instantly loosened.

“Oh…”

So it had nothing to do with yesterday.

I leaned back slightly in relief.

“Any specific reason mentioned?” I asked.

“No, sir.”

“Okay. You can leave.”

As Shesh turned to leave, he suddenly stopped“But sir… every month she takes three to four days leave in the name of personal problems.”

My eyes narrowed instantly.n

“What do you mean every month?”

“From the time she joined the company, she has been taking three to four days leave every month.”

Something about that immediately caught my attention.n

“Okay,” I said after a pause. “Get me all the information regarding Dharini Shekhawat. Background check, family details, everything.”

Shesh nodded and left again.

The cabin fell silent.

Every month… four days leave?

My gaze unconsciously shifted toward the CCTV screen open on my laptop.

Her desk was empty.

For some reason, seeing that empty chair irritated me more than it should have.

After a few minutes, Shesh returned with a file and placed it in front of me.

I opened it immediately.

Father: Ankush Shekhawat — small bank employee in Kasol.

Mother: Kanika Shekhawat — housewife.

Sister: Riya Shekhawat — wants to become a model, currently working in local photography shoots and local advertisements.m

My eyes stopped at one particular line.

Dharini Shekhawat — class topper.

A faint smirk appeared on my face unconsciously.

Then another line caught my attention.

Social Anxiety Disorder.

Haphephobia.

I frowned slightly.

“What the hell is haphephobia?”

Immediately, I searched it on Google.

And the moment I read the meaning, realization hit me instantly.

Fear of strangers touching her.

My mind immediately replayed yesterday’s scene—

her stiffening body…

the anger in her eyes…

her raised hand stopping inches away from my face.

“So that’s why…” I murmured softly.

Maybe that’s why she was about to slap me that day.

For the first time, guilt slightly crept into me.

Closing the file halfway, I leaned back in my chair.

Despite everything…

despite all her struggles…

she still managed to reach here.

And reaching India’s number one tech company was not easy.

Not at all.

A strange feeling of pride rose inside me while thinking about her.

But then another thought struck me.

There was no mention of any illness in her family.

No serious medical condition.

Nothing that explained those leaves she took every month.

Then what exactly was her “personal problem”?

My gaze once again shifted toward the empty desk visible through the CCTV footage.

And for the first time in years—

I found myself genuinely wanting to understand someone.

Dharini’s POV

I came to the office after four days only to hear Netra and Nishant arguing once again.

For the past fifteen minutes, they had been roasting each other nonstop, and unfortunately, my head was paying the price for it.

“Will you guys just stop it?” I finally snapped.

Both of them stopped and looked at me for a second.

I thought I had finally succeeded.

Then, as if nothing had happened, they started their pointless argument all over again.

I closed my eyes.

God, give me patience.

Just then, Shesh walked toward my desk.

“Ma'am, sir has called you.”

The moment I heard that, my irritation shifted from them to someone else entirely.

Meanwhile, their argument instantly stopped.

Traitors.

I got up from my chair.

“Okay,” I replied to Shesh politely before heading toward the CEO's floor.

After reaching his cabin, I knocked.

“Come in.”

I pushed the door open and stepped inside.

And there he was.

Kartavya Singh Raizada was sitting in his chair like some king ruling over his kingdom.

A file rested in his hands, and a pair of glasses sat perfectly on his face.

I really didn't want to admit it...

but yes.

He looked ridiculously handsome.

The white shirt.

The glasses.

The calm confidence.

Everything somehow worked in his favor.

Aahhh... what am I even thinking?

I mentally smacked myself.

The moment I looked up again, I realized he was already looking at me.

Only me.

“Done?” he suddenly asked.

I blinked.

“Huh?”

“Done checking me from top to bottom?”

My eyes widened instantly.

“I wasn't checking you!”

“Oh really?” he asked lazily while standing up from his chair.

And then—

just like always—

he started walking toward me.

I seriously didn't understand his problem.

Why couldn't this man talk while sitting down?

Why did he always have to walk toward me?

“Yes,” I replied stubbornly.

He stopped only one step away from me.

“But I saw you,” he said. “You were checking me.”

I immediately looked everywhere except at him.

“There's nothing wrong with checking you, sir. Why are you assuming I was checking you?”

Then, before my brain could stop my mouth—

“In fact, Shesh sir is more handsome than you. If I had to check someone out, I would check him.”

The moment those words left my mouth—

a loud burst of laughter echoed through the cabin.

I turned around.

And finally noticed that we weren't alone.

Two men were sitting comfortably on the couch.

Not boys.

Men.

And both of them were laughing so hard that they could barely breathe.

One of them had practically fallen onto the floor holding his stomach.

The second one pointed toward Kartavya and laughed even harder.

“Did we just hear that correctly? Someone actually said you're less handsome than your PA?”

And then both of them lost control again.

My headache immediately returned.

First Nishant and Netra.

And now these two.

I marched toward them.

“Don't either of you have basic manners?”

Both instantly stopped laughing.

“Or were you never taught any?”

Now they were staring at me.

“Why did both of you enter without knocking? And more importantly, why are you laughing like this?”

I folded my arms.

“I didn't tell a joke.”

Both men exchanged a look before looking back at me with a mixture of shock and amusement.

“Now what?” I asked. “Why are you both staring at me?”

Neither answered.

I took a deep breath.

“Get out of this cabin.”

Both blinked.

“And come back after knocking. If sir allows you inside, then enter.”

The silence that followed was almost comical.

The two men looked genuinely stunned.

I closed my eyes and rubbed my forehead.

“And didn't you hear me the first time?”

Finally, both of them stood up and quietly walked out of the cabin.

Only after the door closed did I turn toward Kartavya.

The man had a smirk on his face.

That smirk.

God.

How badly I wanted to punch it right off his face.

But unfortunately, jail wasn't part of my career plan.

So I swallowed my irritation and asked professionally,

“You called me. Was there some problem with the file I submitted?”

Instead of answering immediately, he leaned casually against the table behind him.

“At four p.m., I'm going for a meeting.”

I waited.

“You'll accompany me.”

I frowned.

“Is it related to the project we're working on?”

He shook his head.

“No. It's a different meeting.”

Then he placed a file on the table and slid it toward me.

“This is the meeting file. Study it properly.”

I looked at the file.

Then at him.

Then at the file again.

I wanted to tell him that I already had project security work.

And another project.

And now he was adding a third responsibility involving a meeting I knew absolutely nothing about.

I wanted to protest.

I really did.

But the way he was looking directly into my eyes made all my arguments disappear before they could leave my mouth.

“Okay,” I muttered. I grabbed the file and immediately escaped from the cabin.

The moment I stepped outside, I saw the same two laughing men talking among themselves.

As soon as they noticed me, both looked up. I looked at them. They looked at me. And then I silently walked toward the lift.

As I moved away, both of them headed straight back toward Kartavya's cabin— without knocking.

Again.I shook my head.

“They'll definitely get themselves thrown out one day.”

Muttering that under my breath, I stepped into the lift and left.