note : So this was supposed to be the last chapter , but I was emotionally blackmailed to write atleast 2 chapters more ..
I have negotiated it to 1 more chapter and an epilogue
also this chapter is dedicated to those who wanted a heart to heart convo ...and hope you like moments here, so here we go


XXX
Chapter 22
She looked at him wide eyed ..surprise slowly changed into suspicion as she stepped backwards from him ..
"What ring is this ? and why are you carrying it with you and why would anyone want to kill me because of this?"
He deftly put the ring back in his pocket before pulling her back in his arms .. locking her arms behind her
"Uff Laddoo ..saans lo saans..(take a breath)   and dare you move away from me..."
She tried to wriggle out protesting something about fairness and how her will was important ..her last coherent words were that he was insensitive , before they were drowned by Shaurya laying complete claims to her lips and effectively blocking her rant.
She pushed him back and he pulled her forward ..the tug of war resulted in them falling on the bed , she on top of him.
Mrs Khanna ..I did not know that you liked being on the top .Shaurya's eyes twinkled with mischief . His lop sided smile which could trigger a million hearts was back in full force . Mehak was not immune to it .
She needed to move away from this man soon else she would be lying in his feet melted like, a puddle of perfect ,mush.
SHaurya please ..mujhe jaane do..( let me go)
Shaurya had very different ideas... he rolled her so that now he was on top of her and intertwined her fingers with his , pulling her arms above her head..
She panicked ..this man was again bulldozing his way in her life and she was again losing control. Her own heart was her biggest traitor .
Her eyes welled up thinking of how helpless her situation was ..
"Sh..Shaurya.". his name sounded like a sob from her choked throat...
"Shaurya please ...please..I have already lost everything ..do not play with me, do not trip me with your riddles .. I understand whatever happened between us was equally my fault..
I accept my mistake and am trying to move on "
His eyes suddenly lost their twinkle and his smile vanished ...
His voice was frozen..
"What mistake Mehak ...do you think falling in love with me was a mistake?"
She could sense the change in his body language , though he still kept her trapped , his eyes suddenly did not seem that warm
" Nnnoo Yyess,...I mean No no "
She stuttetered ..
"I knknow that you love me in your way ..and you want me to be a part of your life ...but I wanted this relationship somewhere else Shaurya ... "
She could not stop now that she started ...
"And trust me I do not blame you for it ..it was my fault ..I assumed ..I presumed ..I was looking at things through my own lenses .. I played the biggest gamble of my life the night we decided to take our relationship to the next level ,my love got better of my conditioning ..I could not see you broken then and I was trying to heal you.
I gave up everything, I had Shaurya, just to realize that while it was welcome it was not as special for you .
In the harsh morning light things seemed different and I could not accept the relationship where it was ..I cccouuld not let it continue..
But I know it was not your fault..you had not promised me anything..infact you had asked me whether I was sure , and it was I who could crossed that bridge "
The sob that she was trying to control finally broke free , accompanied with tears.
His face softened .He always knew how it would have seemed to her , but hearing her speak of her heartbreak made him wince . He never wanted her to go through this . He had again scratched her wounds and though that was not his intention , he knew he was guilty .
He let that crying fit subside , before he gently wiped her tears .. with his one hand , still keeping her other hand locked .
He was not yet ready to take that risk of letting her free.
"Do you kknow Shaurya , she spoke again ..I do not know what I would have done had my sheer luck not brought me here
I just could not face you ., I just did not know what I would do if you came in front of me .. I tried so hard to hide from you almost like a thriller movie "..inspite of herself a small giggle escaped ..thinking of the lengths she went to keep her location hidden .
He smiled , seeing her giggle but the next moment she was again melancholic.
Pata hai ..the fool I was ..on one hand I was trying to hide from you the other hand I was calling up Shankar bhaiyya just to find how you were,...
"yeah Shankar and Manju told me everything " he said quietly as he slowly rolled away, moving his arms to her waist and pulling her closer..so that they could now lie side ways her head on his chest ..
She was so surprised by that confession that she did not even realize as she snuggled in closer
" I still could not let you go ..you were there everywhere in my thoughts , in my dreams, and of course in my memories "... her voice had again started faltering "but I have to be st..strong and I have to move on ..because I do not want to live a life of co..compromise ..of constantly trying to negotiate between my upbringing and my future ..my value systems and my feelings ..I am not cut out for that... pe..perennial conflict..."
She finally gave in her to tears .. her head on his shoulders ...his shirt drenched .
His grip on her waist grew tighter as he cradled her face with his other arm
Mehak was too emotionally drained to realize the irony of her situation ..she was seeking comfort in the arms of the man ,who had been the source of all her woes, but that is how love is , illogical , impractical and having a will of its own.
Her sobs were breaking his heart ...but he knew that she had to let it flow out of her system...
When she started hiccupping , he knew it was enough and he had to get back in control other wise this girl , this foolish, emotional, sensitive girl who had ended up falling in love with someone as hard headed like him will end up having a complete breakdown.
"Why do you think we want different things   Laddoo...? " he began quietly
"Are you telling me you do not want this ", he was kissing the long line of neck "or are you telling me you do not want this ," he gently bit her earlobe ...
She heard her heart racing at his sensuous touch and she gripped his shirt even tighter in response .."
"Are you telling me that if I was in your dreams , you were not in mine?"
"Do you know how long have these 4 months been ... Sweetheart you are right , you presume a lot of things , ..do you know how I struggled to sleep in these past months ..I did not have this lap to fall asleep ..these fingers .." he kissed each one of them ..." To massage my ache away"
She looked at him ..his pain of what he had gone through shown through his eyes ..and she immediately felt guilty ..had she judged him too fast?
He closed his eyes as he gathered his emotions and his thoughts
Her sensitive heart immediately wanted to take that pain away and she found herself kissing both his eyelids
He opened his eyes and found her blushing...
He smiled and gently tucked her hair falling on their faces, behind her ears..
Mehak ..do you know how it feels like , when the one things that you have found after years of searching is threatened to be taken away from you ..when all your achievements accomplishments ..matter nothing because the center of your universe is being displaced ..
"You are, my center of universe... Mehak Sharma and get that in your tubelight brain" ... he tapped her temple
She made a face at being called a tubelight , but her face had started reflecting the glow of the hope that had started to take root in her heart
She evaded eye contact with him by hiding her face in his chest , but he was not having any of that
He forced her to face him , by bringing up her chin ..and said ..do you know after whom I named my latest venture L'Arome ..
"yes " she said in a small voice " it means Mehak in French "
"Wow I am impressed Mrs Khanna"
That address did not seem so out of place to her now
Mehak being Mehak ..was honest as ever .."Yes Nehal told me "
He threw back his head and laughed " yeh bhi Nehal ne bataya ..meri tubelight " ( even this Nehal told you ..My tubelight)
She playfully started hitting him on the chest..
You know I hoped that without even being in touch I could communicate to you how much I love you , through this name ..what you really meant to me .."
Par tum ho na tubelight ..."
She now stuck out her tongue at him and he again rolled on her top ..
"You need to be punished for this ... you know that ...he said in mock anger...for thinking so ill of me .."
"My good for nothing Mama came to know of our relationship, he realized that If I get married and have a child he will never get the control of the property ...
His voice tightened ...Baby he threatened to kill you ..and I had no option but to give in atleast for some time till I could get better of him. I blamed myself for exposing you to this danger . So when I realized you were going away , I let it happen because you were safe if you were away and Mama thought we had broken up.
He held her tightly as if reassuring himself that nothing had come out of that threat . His Laddoo was safe in his arms.
"I told you why I fell in love with you , yes you are attractive ..hell you are bloody sexy ..." she grew red hearing that "but do you think that is enough to hold me ?..I love your simplicity..I love how easily you carry your amazing talent with no arrogance , how much you care about others ,and above all you love me ..with all my flaws ... and yet you can show me my right place ..you care about me as a human being while every one is obsessed with Shaurya Khanna the successful businessman . Do you think I am stupid that I would not realize what I have , and try to secure it forever ."
" But you never tried to find me ." she said in a small voice ,,,she had still the last remnants of her hurt lurking inspite of her faith getting restored bit by bit
" Baby I deliberately wanted you to be away from me ,,,I knew I did not know where you were which also meant Mama did not know ehere you were ... I was going to come after you once I had fixed Mama"
"that means you did not know I was in Goa .., she asked "
No Baby..I did not ..i think it was the universe conspiring to give me you .."
"BTW do you realize my shock at seeing you in Brian's house with his dog. I would have killed him, " He gritted his teeth..
She giggled " Shaurya you are crazy ..he is just a friend...Sandra is like a sister to me ..How can you be jealous of Brian, he is such a sweetie pie . They both helped me so much through these 4 months.He was not expecting me there . He himself was shocked . Sandra had send me to take care of Buzz who was not well ,and I was anyways looking for a place to hide till you left the farm"
Hell ..Mehak..I was jealous of that bloody dog too ..who had privilege of having his head on your lap ..just the thought that somebody else can share your life and not me ,...drives me crazy and listen no more sweety pieing Brian "
He told her sternly ..
She giggled even more ..Her macho man was throwing tantrums like toddler ..
She pulled his cheeks .. "Buddhu .. ( stupid )" she said lovingly

"Accha and what about you ..meri tubelight .. he feigned anger "
"You are the one who needs to be punished ,",she teased him
"Theek hai ..let us pretend you are punishing me ..."
He held both her wrists pulled her arms behind his neck...
His arms moved to the small of her back bringing her close enough to realize his need.
"Shaurya .." her cheeks flamed
"Baby you know the reaction you have on me"
"The night you had played the biggest gamble of your life .you had won sweetheart ..that is if you consider me to be a good enough prize" ..he smiled.
"I too had wanted to take our relationship to where it really belonged..which is why I had bought this "
He again took out that ring . It sat sparkling like a star in its red box.
He moved away from Mehak and stood up on the floor.
He gently pulled her to stand in front of him and then went on his knees..
"Mehak Sharma till I met you , I felt I had everything . I felt I could a conquer whole world and never need anyone . When you walked in my life , you made me realize how lonely it had been till now. The happiness that I searched for in my deals , in my so called success craved for a soul mate with whom I could afford to be just me . You are my strength Mehak that can shield me form my own vulnerabilities .You are my weakness that makes me stronger by loving you . My failures do not matter if I have you , my success does not count till I can share it with you . Will you share my whole life with me Mehak . Will you marry me ?

They were interrupted by a loud banging on their door...


tibs092017-04-08 12:57:38