Kartavya's POV

After dropping Dharini at her apartment, I drove back home.

The entire drive, only one thought kept replaying in my mind.

How the hell did all of this happen?

I was asking her to marry me.

A faint smile tugged at my lips before my mind drifted back to where it had all started.

---

Four Days Ago

Shesh had just sent me Dharini's address.

I was on my way to meet her when my phone rang.

Maa Calling.

I answered immediately.

Before I could even speak, her anxious voice came from the other side.

"Come home immediately. It's an emergency."

The call disconnected before I could ask anything.

Without wasting another second, I turned my car toward Raizada Mansion.

The moment I entered the living room, everything became clear.

The Singhania family was sitting with my parents.

Great... another marriage proposal.

The moment Mr. Singhania noticed me, he smiled proudly.

I looked at Maa.

She returned my gaze with a warm smile that clearly said, Behave yourself.

I walked over and sat down.

"This is my son, Kartavya," Maa introduced.

Then she turned toward a girl sitting beside Mrs. Singhania.

"And Kartavya... this is Deepali. The girl I told you about yesterday."

I gave the girl a brief glance before looking away.

A few moments later Maa smiled sweetly.

"Why don't you both go to the garden and talk?"

I looked at her.

She glared at me.

The message was loud and clear.

Don't ruin this.

Suppressing a sigh, I stood up.

Deepali followed me into the garden.

The moment we were alone, I didn't waste time.

"I don't want to marry right now."

She looked at me quietly.

"So... you can simply tell your parents no."

To my surprise, she smiled.

"But I want to get married."

I rubbed my forehead.

"Look... I love someone."

"My girlfriend."

"So it'll be better if you refuse this proposal."

Instead of looking disappointed...

She calmly replied,

"If you don't want to marry me, you can tell everyone yourself."

She shrugged.

"But if you don't..."

"I'm perfectly fine adjusting."

"As long as your mistress stays outside the house."

For one second...

I couldn't believe what I'd just heard.

My blood boiled.

"How dare you?"

My voice came out far louder than intended.

She instinctively stepped back.

I took one step toward her.

"Watch your words."

"She isn't my mistress."

"She's my future wife."

"And let me make one thing very clear..."

"If I marry..."

"I'll never have another woman besides her."

Without waiting for a reply, I turned around and walked away.

The moment I reached the hallway, I called Shesh.

"Upload the video."

"Immediately."

"Yes, Sir."

Within minutes...

The video was everywhere.

I walked back into the living room.

Maa looked at me.

"What happened?"

Without saying a word, I unlocked my phone and placed it in front of Mr. Singhania.

His expression changed instantly.

Mrs. Singhania gasped.

Deepali froze.

One by one, everyone watched the video.

Deepali slowly turned toward the young man standing beside her family.

The anger on her face said everything.

Papa stood up first.

"I don't think this alliance should continue."

Mr. Singhania didn't argue.

Within minutes...

Their entire family quietly left.

I leaned back against the sofa.

Finally...

The drama was over.

Maa sighed.

"I really thought she was a nice girl."

Before I could reply, my sister-in-law laughed softly.

"It's Kalyug, Maa."

"Nowadays almost everyone has two or three boyfriends."

"Making out isn't considered a big deal anymore."

Maa immediately shook her head.

"No."

"I want a daughter-in-law..."

"Not someone who makes out with random men."

I decided it was the perfect time to disappear.

Without another word, I walked upstairs toward my room.

About half an hour later...

There was a knock on my door.

"Maa?"

She entered quietly and sat beside me on the bed.

For a few moments she remained silent.

Then she looked at me.

"I'm sorry."

I frowned.

Moving closer, I gently cupped her cheeks.

"Hey..."

"Why are you apologizing?"

"It wasn't your fault."

She lowered her eyes.

"It was."

"I should've checked the girl's background properly before bringing the proposal."

Then she smiled hopefully.

"But don't worry."

"I've already found another girl."

The moment those words left her mouth...

I slowly removed my hands from her cheeks.

"Maa..."

"Another girl?"

She caught my hand before I could move away.

"Trust me."

"She's much better."

I sighed.

"It's not about that."

She narrowed her eyes.

"Then what is it?"

I ran a frustrated hand through my hair.

"Maa..."

"I'll marry when I find the right girl."

She folded her arms.

"I want you to get married now."

"But Maa—"

"What?"

Her warning tone instantly stopped me.

Without thinking...

The words slipped out.

"I have a girlfriend."

Silence.

Complete silence.

"What...?"

She blinked.

"I... have... a girlfriend."

She stared at me as though I had suddenly grown two extra heads.

Then she grabbed my wrist and pulled me down to sit on the bed.

Standing in front of me, she folded her arms.

"Tell me one thing."

I nodded cautiously.

"Is she mentally stable?"

"Maa..."

"What?"

"No normal girl would agree to date you."

"So tell me..."

"What kind of girl is she?"

I buried my face in my hands.

"Maa..."

Before she could ask another question...

Her phone rang.

She looked at the caller ID.

"I'll talk to you later."

And just like that...

She walked out.

The moment the door closed...

I let out the biggest sigh of my life.

How the hell am I going to convince her now?

I rubbed my forehead in frustration.

How the hell am I supposed to convince her now?

Taking a deep breath, I walked downstairs.

The moment I entered the living room, every single pair of eyes turned toward me.

The atmosphere felt... strange.

Before I could ask anything, Maa smiled brightly.

"There he is! The one who has been hiding his girlfriend from us."

I froze.

What...?

She had already told everyone.

Bhai looked at me in disbelief.

"You seriously didn't tell us you're in a relationship?"

"How long has it been?"

I hesitated for a second.

"Two months."

"So she's a foreigner?" he asked immediately.

I raised an eyebrow.

"You were in Africa for almost two months," he continued. "So I assumed..."

I shook my head.

"No."

"She's Indian."

"She had come to Africa for an official meeting. That's where I first saw her."

"Later I found out she works in my company."

Bhabhi gasped dramatically.

"You mean..."

"Office romance?"

I couldn't help smiling.

I simply gave a small nod.

What else could I even say now?

Just then her phone rang.

"I'll be back," she said before walking away to attend the call.

Bhai's expression became serious.

"You know what kind of life we live."

"Does she know about our family... and everything that comes with it?"

I shook my head.

"No."

"And I don't plan on telling her right now."

"I need some time."

Both Bhai and Papa nodded in understanding.

Papa leaned back in his chair.

"If you really love her..."

"When are you planning to marry her?"

"Not this year."

I answered honestly.

Before Papa could say anything, Bhai sighed.

"If you don't, Mom will get you married to someone else."

I looked at him in confusion.

"Why is she suddenly so desperate to get me married this year?"

Bhai exchanged a glance with Papa.

Then he spoke quietly.

"Because of Kulguru."

My brows furrowed.

"He told Mom that if you don't get married before turning twenty-five..."

"There is a high chance your lifespan will be shortened."

I stared at him.

Seriously?

"You know how much Mom believes in his predictions."

I closed my eyes for a brief moment.

Everything suddenly made sense.

Papa smiled faintly.

"Then introduce your girlfriend to your mother."

I nodded.

"I will."

---

The memory faded.

I looked at the passenger seat.

The marriage contract was still lying there.

"Damn..."

I had forgotten to give it to Dharini.

Without wasting another second, I turned the car around and drove toward her apartment.

After reaching the gate, I rolled down the window.

"Excuse me."

The security guard immediately recognized me.

"Yes, Sir?"

"Which flat does Miss Dharini Shekhawat live in?"

Before answering, he smiled.

"Sir, she and her friends just went to Das Uncle's pani puri stall."

I thanked him and drove toward the nearby stall.

The moment I reached there...

I spotted her.

There she was.

Standing between her two friends.

My Dhani.

I folded my arms against the car and quietly watched her.

She was eating pani puri from a roadside stall.

Seriously?

When I had asked her earlier, she claimed she had no appetite.

I decided not to interrupt.

Instead, I patiently watched.

"Extra spicy," she told the vendor.

I frowned.

One plate.

Finished.

Then another.

And another.

Her friends tried stopping her after the second plate.

But Dharini ignored them completely.

Her eyes gradually turned red.

Tears gathered in them.

Her nose had become pink.

Even her ears were red from the spice.

Still...

She continued eating.

Every few seconds she hissed,

"Isshhh... isshhh..."

Yet she refused to stop.

Something inside me tightened.

I wanted to walk over.

Take the plate away.

Hold her hand.

Tell her to stop hurting herself.

But I didn't.

I stayed where I was.

Quietly watching.

Finally, after the last plate, she paid the vendor and turned around.

The moment our eyes met...

She froze.

Her friends followed her gaze.

One of them immediately stepped forward.

"Hello, Sir!"

"What are you doing here?"

I smiled politely.

Then looked at Dharini.

"I need to talk to Miss Dharini."

Understanding immediately, both her friends excused themselves.

Now it was just the two of us.

Leaning casually against my car, I raised an eyebrow.

"I thought you weren't hungry."

She pressed her lips together.

For a second I thought she was searching for an excuse.

Instead, she folded her arms.

"Meri marzi. Tumhe kya? Mera mann kiya toh khaungi. Nahi kiya toh nahi khaungi."

(My choice. Why do you care? If I feel like eating, I'll eat. If I don't, I won't.)

I couldn't stop the smile threatening to appear.

There she is...

"My dramatic Dhani."

"Why are you here?" she asked.

Without replying, I opened the passenger door and picked up the contract file.

Holding it out to her, I said,

"Sign it."

"And give it to me tomorrow."

She looked at the file.

Then at me.

Then back at the file.

Finally...

She accepted it.

"Okay."

She turned to leave.

Almost instinctively...

My hand reached out.

I gently caught her wrist.

She stopped.

Slowly turning around, she looked first at my hand...

Then into my eyes.

For a brief second...

Neither of us spoke.

Those large brown doe eyes...

Still slightly watery from the spicy pani puri...

Held mine without blinking.

She looked so unbelievably innocent that I almost forgot what I wanted to say.

Clearing my throat, I finally spoke.

"You shouldn't eat so much junk food."

"Especially something this spicy."

She continued looking at me.

Then gave a tiny nod.

"Okay."

Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Tomorrow..."

"Don't come to the office."

"Take leave."

"I'll text you the time."

"We're going shopping."

She simply nodded again.

Without realizing it, my thumb gently brushed over her wrist in slow circles.

Only when she looked down at our hands did I realize what I was doing.

She looked back at me.

"Anything else?"

I blinked.

Then immediately released her hand.

She gave me one last quiet glance before turning around and walking away.

I stood there...

Watching her until she disappeared from sight.

Raizada Mansion

The cool night breeze brushed against my face as I stood on the balcony, a cigarette resting between my fingers.

Usually, smoking helped me clear my mind.

Tonight...

It wasn't helping at all.

Because every time I closed my eyes...

I saw only one person.

Dharini.

My Dhani.

A small smile found its way onto my lips.

Her wide brown doe eyes whenever I caught her off guard.

The way she dramatically reacted to almost everything, pretending she wasn't affected while unknowingly exposing every emotion on her face.

The way her eyebrows furrowed while reading the restaurant menu as if she were solving a research paper.

The way she stuttered whenever she became nervous.

The way her eyes sparkled after tasting the shrikhand...

And the tiny, satisfied hum that escaped her lips.

I closed my eyes.

Damn...

Every little expression of hers had somehow engraved itself into my mind.

I had met countless beautiful women in my life.

Yet...

None of them had managed to stay in my thoughts the way this dramatic little girl had.

A vibration pulled me out of my thoughts.

My phone was ringing.

Without checking the caller ID, I answered.

"Hmm."

A deep voice came from the other side.

"Find out everything about Shivansh Reddy."

"I'll do it."

There was a brief silence before the caller spoke again.

"I heard you have a girlfriend."

"So... it's true?"

A faint smile appeared on my face.

"You'll know soon enough."

The man chuckled softly.

"If you're serious about her..."

"Marry her as soon as possible."

I frowned.

"Why the hell is everyone suddenly so concerned about my marriage?"

His tone immediately became serious.

"Because if she's important to you..."

"She'll become your biggest weakness."

I quietly listened.

"You know your enemies."

"If she isn't under your protection..."

"They'll use her against you."

His words settled heavily in my mind.

For the first time...

The thought genuinely frightened me.

Not because of myself.

Because of her.

"I understand."

I ended the call.

The caller was none other than Anubhav Rajvansh...

My mentor.

My boss.

And someone whose instincts had never been wrong.

I looked at my phone for a long moment.

Then opened Dharini's chat.

My fingers quickly typed—

Be ready tomorrow at 12:00 PM. No need to come to the office.

I stared at the message.

Then frowned.

"No..."

Twelve was too late.

I wanted...

No.

I needed to spend more time with her.

Without another thought, I deleted the message.

A new one appeared on the screen.

Be ready tomorrow at 10:00 AM. Don't come to the office. We'll go shopping.

I read it once.

Twice.

Then pressed Send.

Within seconds, the message showed Delivered.

I slipped the phone back into my pocket and looked up at the moon.

A smile escaped me.

"Dhani..."

"You have absolutely no idea..."

"How badly you've managed to occupy my mind."

Taking one final drag of the cigarette, I crushed it into the ashtray.

Tomorrow...

Would be another interesting day.

___________________

I had been waiting outside her apartment for almost half an hour.

It was already 10:37 AM.

She still hadn't shown up.

I called her.

The moment she answered, she said casually,

"I'm getting ready. I'll be there."

And then she hung up.

I looked at my phone in disbelief.

Seriously?

I leaned back against the car, letting out a frustrated sigh.

Waiting was something I absolutely hated.

If this had been anyone else from my office, they would've received a warning on the first call... and probably a termination letter by the second.

But this wasn't just anyone.

This was...

My little squirrel.

And somehow, all my anger disappeared the moment I thought of her.

Ten more minutes passed.

Still no sign of her.

Now my patience had officially reached its limit.

I dialed her number again, fully prepared to scold her the moment she answered.

Before I could speak, her voice burst through the phone.

"Arre! Baar-baar har paanch minute mein phone kyun kar rahe ho? Bola na, aa rahi hoon! Bas thoda wait karo!"

(Hey! Why are you calling every five minutes? I already told you I'm coming! Just wait a little!)

The call disconnected.

Again.

I stared at the phone for a long moment.

Then I laughed softly.

I'm finished.

I've fallen for this girl... and I've fallen hard.

Normally, nobody dared cut my calls.

Yet she had done it twice.

And instead of getting angry...

I couldn't stop smiling.

At 10:57 AM, I was about to call her again.

Just then...

She walked out of the apartment building.

For a brief second...

Everything around me faded.

She was wearing a light pink top with a white skirt.

Simple.

Elegant.

Beautiful.

Her long hair flowed freely behind her as the morning breeze played with a few stubborn strands that kept falling across her face.

Every few steps, she'd tuck them behind her ear...

Only for them to fall right back again.

A smile unknowingly appeared on my face.

As she came closer, her features became clearer.

Those dark brown doe eyes...

In the sunlight, they looked almost honey brown.

For a moment, I forgot to blink.

I was so lost looking at her that I didn't even realize she had stopped in front of me.

"Sir?"

No response.

She waved her hand in front of my face.

"Sir... are you okay?"

I blinked and finally returned to reality.

"No."

She frowned.

"What happened?"

A mischievous smile spread across my face.

"How can I be okay when you're looking this pretty?"

The moment the words left my mouth, I watched her jaw tighten.

She closed her eyes briefly, took a deep breath, and ignored the compliment completely.

"I think we're getting late."

I chuckled.

"Yeah."

Walking around the car, I opened the passenger door for her.

She looked at the door...

Then at me...

Clearly surprised.

Without saying anything, she quietly got in.

I took my seat behind the steering wheel.

She was already reaching for the seat belt.

I leaned slightly toward her out of habit.

Immediately, she looked at me with wide eyes.

"Wait! I can do it myself."

She hurriedly pulled the seat belt across and buckled it before I could move another inch.

I couldn't help smiling.

Her reactions were becoming more adorable every day.

Starting the engine, I gently placed her hand over mine on the gear lever, just as I had done before.

She didn't protest.

Instead, she quietly looked out of the window.

Every now and then, her eyes drifted toward our joined hands.

My thumb absentmindedly traced slow circles over the back of her hand.

It felt...

Comforting.

Peaceful.

Much more peaceful than I was willing to admit.

Suddenly—

"Stop! Stop!"

I immediately pulled the car over.

She looked at me sheepishly.

"I didn't have breakfast."

She placed a hand dramatically over her stomach.

"Aur mujhe bahut zor ki bhook lagi hai. Main breakfast karne jaa rahi hoon. Tum aa rahe ho?"

(And I'm extremely hungry. I'm going to have breakfast. Are you coming?)

I looked at her in disbelief.

"You skipped breakfast?"

She nodded innocently.

"Fine."

"We'll have breakfast first."

I was about to drive toward a restaurant when she suddenly opened the door and stepped out.

"Dhani?"

"Where are you going?"

She pointed toward a crowded roadside stall.

"I'll eat here."

I followed her gaze.

Two men were making dosas and parathas at lightning speed.

The place was packed.

People were practically standing shoulder to shoulder.

I frowned.

Seriously...?

There wasn't a trace of hygiene.

No gloves.

No proper serving area.

And yet...

The crowd was unbelievable.

Before she disappeared into it, I quickly caught her hand and gently pulled her back.

She immediately slipped her hand free.

"What are you doing?"

"Mujhe bhook lagi hai!"

(I'm hungry!)

I sighed.

"Really?"

"You want to eat here?"

I pointed toward the stall.

"Just look at them."

"No hygiene."

"No proper serving."

"We'll go somewhere decent."

She folded her arms stubbornly.

"Dekho... tumhe nahi khana toh mat khao. Mujhe bhook lagi hai, aur main yahin breakfast karungi."

(Look... if you don't want to eat, then don't. I'm hungry, and I'm having breakfast right here.)

I looked at the crowd again.

Then back at her.

"Dhani..."

"Look at that crowd."

"People are literally pushing into each other."

"There's barely enough space to stand."

"How are you even planning to eat there?"

"We'll go somewhere else."

She remained exactly where she was.

Completely unmoved.

Then she looked me straight in the eyes.

"Mujhe yahin ka breakfast karna hai. Matlab yahin ka karna hai. Chhodo mera haath. Ab tak toh main order bhi de chuki hoti."

(I want to have breakfast from this stall. This one, and no other. Leave my hand. By now I would've already placed my order.)

I closed my eyes for a second.

God...

Why does she test my patience every single time?

The moment she tried walking toward the crowd again, I gently pulled her back.

She turned around with an annoyed expression.

"Ab kya hai?"

(Now what?)

I surrendered.

"Fine."

"You want breakfast from here?"

"I'll get it."

She blinked.

"You'll bring it?"

I nodded.

"What do you want?"

She looked at the crowd and then back at me.

"Agar tum lane jaoge na, toh agle do ghante tak mujhe breakfast nahi milega. Rehne do. Main khud le aati hoon."

(If you go, I'll get my breakfast after two hours. Forget it. I'll get it myself.)

I smiled faintly.

Not happening.

Holding her hand again, I gently stopped her.

"Just tell me."

"What do you want?"

She sighed dramatically.

"Dosa."

"And a paratha."

Then she pointed a finger at me.

"Das minute mein le aana. Warna main khud lene aa jaungi."

(Bring them within ten minutes. Otherwise, I'll come and get them myself.)

"As you command."

Then I took a deep breath...

And marched toward the battlefield disguised as a breakfast stall.