Surprise!!! hehe.😝

Zeeshan’s POV

If only I had known that saving her from falling would make our lips touch, I would have been more cautious.

However, if not for the mop falling, I feel I would have stayed there, completely lost. Highly unlikely, considering the fact that, as a CBI officer, I was trained for worse. But I guess none of my training was useful in front of her.

“A-are you okay?” I stuttered. I could not, for the love of God, look at her. Heat crept onto my face, I could feel it.

She stood there quietly, looking at the floor. My heart raced in fear. What if I had made her uncomfortable? What if she wanted to stay away from me after this?

Shaking my head, I called her again, putting a full stop to my thoughts. “A-Aayat?”

She seemed to come out of her thoughts. “U-uh, yeah, I am fine,” she stuttered. I couldn’t speak, so I just nodded, clearing my throat.

Before I could muster the courage to say something to her, she ran away, saying she was going to cook for Ritika and Vidit.

I knew she wanted some time to process whatever had happened, and I think I needed it too. So I just…waited.

After an hour, when I was sure she was not cooking anymore and was just avoiding me, I called her. “Aayat?”

“Y-yeah?” she replied. She was nervous, I could feel it in her voice.

“Can you come here, please?” I asked, my heart thudding loudly.

She walked in within the next few seconds. “Yes?”

“We need to talk,” I said, softly yet firmly. Her eyes visibly widened and her cheeks flushed a beautiful shade of red.

“Sit here,” I said, making her sit in front of me on the same sofa where we, well…fell.

Focus.

My eyes followed her every action. The way she looked down with flushed cheeks, the way she bit her lips nervously.

It was so innocent, yet the hottest thing I had ever witnessed. I didn’t know what to say to her. All I wanted was for time to freeze so that I could watch her getting shy over a simple touch of our lips.

“Zara se touch se itna sharmaoge aap?” I whispered, leaning slightly towards her.
(You got shy by just a mere touch of your lips?)

She didn’t reply verbally, but her cheeks and her closed eyes said more than she ever would. They turned the darkest shade of red, and her eyes remained shut as if she was trying to hide from me.

“I-” she stuttered.

“Jis din kiss karunga uss din toh aap dikhoge hi nhi mujhe pura din.” I teased, trying to make the situation lighter.
( I don't think I could see you for the whole day when I would actually kiss you.)

“Aisa nahi hai,” she exclaimed, loud enough for me to hear even though it was just the two of us.
(It's not like that.)

“Try karke dekhlu fir?” I questioned teasingly. Obviously, I wouldn’t do something like that.
(How about I try and find out about it myself?)

Our first kiss had to be special and memorable for both of us. I wouldn’t want it to be like this, especially when she was extremely nervous and clearly not ready for it.

“W-what?” she asked, her eyes widening in disbelief. I couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

“You are so bad,” she whispered, punching me softly. I laughed even more at her cute punches and pulled her into a hug.

“I am sorry,” I said, chuckling at her cute glares, the ones she threw at my biceps because she could only reach that far, making her even cuter.

“I wouldn’t even look at you if you were uncomfortable with me looking at you, Aayat. Everything else is secondary for me. Poori zindagi jee lunga aise hi bas aapke saath,” I whispered, leaning forward and gently resting my forehead against hers.

Pulling away, she smiled, the same smile that stayed with me when we decided to part ways.

Soon, Vidit and Ritika returned. After helping them settle down properly, we took our leave, giving them some space after a chaotic hospital stay.

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” she whispered as we walked hand in hand towards her car.

“I don’t want you to go,” I muttered, tightening my hold on her hand.

“Dhyan se,” I exclaimed as she walked backwards, looking at me with a serene smile.
(Careful.)

“You are here to protect me,” she said, carelessly walking backwards, very close to her car.

“Always,” I whispered, pulling her closer to me when she almost touched the car, causing her to land against my chest with a jerk. Her eyes automatically closed due to the unexpected pull.

“Open your eyes,” I whispered softly. My voice came out slightly husky.

Her breathing quickened due to the closeness. My heart wasn’t doing well either. It raced uncontrollably at a pace that could give anyone a heart attack.

I waited patiently for her to comply, only for my heart to skip a beat when she opened her eyes at a painfully slow pace.

“Would you mind if I kiss you on your forehead, Aayat?” I couldn’t help but ask.

“Haq se karoge toh kabhi nahi,” she whispered softly as a gust of wind passed, causing a strand of her hair to fall on her face.
(I won't if you will kiss me with authority.)

I wasted no time, gently tucking it behind her ear, I leaned closer and kissed her forehead, pouring all the love I could into that kiss.

My lips lingered there for a few seconds before I pulled away with a content smile.

I love you, I thought, because now was not the right time to confess. I wanted to confess when everything was over and it was just us, with our unspoken but deeply felt every time our eyes met kind of love.

“What are you thinking?” she asked softly, pulling me out of my thoughts.

“Hum tum ek kamre mei band ho, aur chabhi kho jae..agle saath janam tak,” I whispered teasingly. She chuckled, pushing me away gently.
(Both of us are locked in a room and the keys disappear..for the next seven births.)

“Being this cheesy won’t take you anywhere,” she said, shaking her head.

“It will, close to your heart,” I replied, bringing her hand close to my lips and gently kissing it, without rushing.

“Let me go,” she whispered, taking a step back.

“Never,” I whispered, softly taking her hand and making her walk beside me.

Opening her car door, I let her get in. Once she settled properly, I leaned closer, pulled her seatbelt across, and fastened it.

“Text me when you reach home,” I whispered, placing a soft peck on her forehead before pulling back.

She nodded, her cheeks flushed with a soft shade of red.

Once she started her engine, I sent a message to our security guards to ensure she reached home safely.

Then I walked inside, where my family was already asleep except for my sister and my niece.

Well, more precisely, my niece, because my sister was knocked out, leaning against the headrest of the sofa while holding her protectively.

I quickly washed my hands and walked quietly towards them. My niece cooed loudly on seeing me, making me smile.

“Hey, little one,” I whispered, gently lifting her from Di’s arms.

Di stirred but fell asleep again when I placed a pillow between her hands. My niece, on the other hand, was busy grabbing the chain around my neck.

“Hi, Raya,” I cooed, sitting on the sofa and making her sit on my lap. She giggled cutely.

“Are you not sleepy, my little heart?” I asked, softly touching her nose. She laughed adorably.

“Ma-mma,” she tried to say.

“Yes, your mumma is sleeping. You made her run after you all day, didn’t you?” I said, tickling her softly. She giggled loudly.

As I rotated my ring on my finger so that it wouldn't hurt her, her eyes stayed glued to my rings and then she laughed adorably, making me chuckle. “You like it?”

“You know your mami made me wear it. Isn’t it so beautiful, my little heart?” I said softly. She gasped, unaware of what I said, but listened keenly.

“Exactly. Isn’t your mami the best thing to ever happen to your mamu?” I cooed. She waved her hands and legs in excitement.

Her attention stayed fixed on my face, waiting for me to say something, so I of course continued talking, “You know, Raya, mamu missed so many things about you. But I promise to spoil you always, because look at you, being such a happy baby.” She laughed adorably, pulling my collar.

Picking her up, I gently removed her hands and she rested her head on my shoulder with a sigh.

After a few minutes of silence, she let out a soft yawn and closed her eyes. I gently patted her back and whispered, “Sleep, baby. Mamu is here.”

Walking around the room, I kept patting her gently until she finally slept, her hold around my neck loosening.

Turning to Di, I saw her sleeping in an uncomfortable position. I gently adjusted her, causing her to wake up with a start.

“I-what happened?” she asked frantically.

“Relax, nothing happened. She’s sleeping. Go to your room, your neck will hurt like this,” I explained, steadying her.

“Thank God she slept. Aadir couldn’t sleep the whole night because of her yesterday, so I came here to put her to sleep, but it was so difficult today. Thank you for helping, Zeeshu,” she said, smiling gratefully.

“It’s okay, Di. Go and sleep,” I replied, handing Raya to her gently.

After bidding her good night, I returned to my room and checked her message, which she had sent fifteen minutes ago. Quickly replying to her and telling her that Raya loved the band on my ring finger, I freshened up and lay down on my bed with a content sigh.

My eyes closed on their own as the tiredness of the day took over, and I drifted off to sleep, not before saying good night to her, who had already fallen asleep by then.

Author's POV

“Welcome to India, our lovely passengers. Thank you for flying with Indian Airlines. We hope you had a great time flying with us.” the pilot announced.

Karan, who'd been anxiously waiting for the plane to land, sighed in relief, even though he's disguised completely and no one could tell that he's Karan Reddy.

He wanted to quickly reach his hotel so that he could travel to his ancestral home without getting recognised. But what he didn't know was that Ayesha and Zeeshan had an arrival gift already planned for him, actually two gifts.

As soon as he got his SIM card, he called Abhir, asking him about the hotel details as he was the one who suggested he'd do all the bookings for him.

Abhir, who'd been waiting for the exact moment, informed him about the hotel details. Karan along with his two men boarded a taxi to get to the hotel safely.

As they reached, they grabbed their luggage and went to the reception to check in.

“I am sorry sir, there's no booking in the name of Mr Abhir, you must be mistaken.” The receptionist politely explained.

“How is that possible? I just talked to him, he said he'd booked two rooms in the same hotel. Please check once again.” Karan said, confusedly.

“No sir, I think your relative must've been confused.” She replied, smiling apologetically.

Karan excused himself and dialed Abhir but to his utter badluck, the calls went straight to voice mail, even Abhir's assistant was not answering the calls either.

Karan didn't know if he should take the risk and book the room himself with his fake credentials, of course.

According to him, he was completely stranded in his own country with no help whatsoever because he cannot contact any of his men or family here, they would snitch on him for sure to get the money the government had offered as a reward on his judicial custody. Neither could his men do anything about it since they were sailing on the same boat.

So he waited.. on the streets, along with his two men with shit ton of luggage with them.

They roamed around the city, took shelter in the pungent waiting room of the nearby railway station and ate from small street vendors who do not care about your ids or credentials and even got a bag full of clothes stolen during the night.

All in All, Karan Reddy went through things he'd never imagined himself doing. And not just for an hour or two but for three whole days.

On the fourth day when he had enough and was planning to go to his ancestral home, he got a call from Abhir.

“WHERE THE FUCK WERE YOU, YOU ASSHOLE?” Karan shouted, as soon as he picked up the call.

“I have sharp ears, either you talk to me like a human to me or you can stay on the streets for the rest of your life.” Abhir warned, having enough of Karan's attitude.

Well, Karan needed him more so it was only fair that he fought back for the disrespect against him.

“Abhir, you are crossing your limits.” Karan warned, calmly this time.

“And you will crash out if you do not hear what I am about to tell you. Oh well, you are going to crash out either way.” Abhir said, smirking as he took a generous sip of his whiskey.

“W-what happened?” Karan stuttered. He was clearly not ready for anything else.

“Someone set your Phuket’s warehouse on fire. I received the news the day before yesterday” Abhir replied, speaking as if he was serious about it.

“And why am I being informed today? Why didn't you tell me on the same day?” Karan asked frustratedly, he was completely blank at this point. He didn't know what to say or do anymore.

“Because I was working on it. Trying to find the person behind it and figuring out the losses you must have faced,” Abhir replied.

He was clearly lying but there's a saying  ‘desperate time calls for desperate measures’ and it clearly applies to Karan because he had no option left but to believe Abhir and that's exactly what he chose to do.

“S-so what do we do now?” Karan asked, he had no idea how he was going to repay or complete the orders because he'd lost goods worth hundreds of crores in a matter of weeks.

“About what?” Abhir asked, acting as if he was the most clueless person there.

“About everything, Abhir. Fucking use your goddam brain.” Karan shouted, frustratedly.

“If you are going to use this tone, then you are on your own. I do not allow you to be disrespectful towards me specially when you are at my mercy. Do you understand, Karan?” Abhir warned, gritting his teeth in anger.

If Karan was in front of him, he would've smashed his head on the nearby wall but alas, much to Abhir's bad luck, some things aren't always possible.

“Yes.” Karan gritted out.

“Good. Now go pack and fucking leave for your ancestral home.”, Abhir said, ending the call without waiting for Karan's response.

Karan who was fuming in anger almost threw his phone against the wall in front of him but stopped on realising that he cannot buy another phone here.

On the other hand, Abhir called the person he could call his family or you can say his ex-family.

Sreedha Kapoor, Zeeshan Kapoor's step mother and Abhir's..well, mother.

“He is back in India. Do not contact me again. My work was done when I sent that text to you about his departure. Since you requested, I am informing you about his arrival too,” Abhir said and ended the call without waiting for a response.

Sreedha Kapoor, who had been drinking her evening tea with her current husband, almost choked if not for her husband looking at her strangely.

“What is wrong with you?” He asked, glaring at her.

“Nothing” she replied, taking a deep breath trying to not make the shock she'd received just yet, visible on her face because she didn't want him to know that he's back in India and that she's in touch with..well, her elder son.
Thankfully, her husband went back to his magazine, and her secret was safe once again.

But for how long?

Because Zeeshan Kapoor had not just been busy being a lover boy, he had also been digging into everything his father had done along with Karan Reddy, including his relationship with his stepmother.

And let me assure you, whatever he had found would shock you just as much as it shocked Zeeshan. Because, “What the actual fuck,” was the only thing he could say after finding out everything.

Okay, so first things first, I’ll try to wrap up the villain portion of the book within the next 4–5 chapters. I know you guys must be getting bored at this point.

And secondly, how do you think Karan is related to Sreedha, Zeeshan’s stepmother?