Arranged marriage was an age-old story that Khushi, the youngest of the infamous Gupta family, who revolutionized and dominated the trading market for generations, knew well.
For it was the only thing she heard growing up.
But that neither prepared...
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Arnav stared at the face that had plagued him relentlessly for almost a month now, a face that he had once refused to acknowledge, a face that he had now grown to love beyond anything else.
Khushi looked beautiful, her raven black hair cascading neatly down her back, her warm face shining under the iridescent lights of the hotel room, her soft pink lips tantalizing his very core... god, how much he had missed her!
It had taken every last ounce of self-control in the past three weeks to not meet her. Save for a bouquet of roses –which he couldn't help but send in a futile effort to gauge her reaction– he had maintained his distance. She had very specifically told him that she needed time and after everything he had put her through, he knew he owed it to her. After all, it must not have been easy watching his ex-flame barge into their apartment that day, announcing that she had been carrying his child not too long ago.
It was the truth he had been brushing under the carpet, knowing that no matter what Khushi had said about being "okay" with his past, she would one hundred percent be affected by it. And he had been absolutely right.
Khushi was shaken. He could see it that night when she stormed at him in the hospital and he could see it now, when she stood in front of him, abnormally stoic, very determined not to let emotions get the better of her. It was marvelous how she could do that, how she held herself together no matter what came her way.
Arnav wished he could be like that; it would have saved him so much heartbreak!
As the minutes ticked by painfully slow, Arnav realized grudgingly that she wasn't going to be the first one to speak. She was going to make it hard for him, as she had every right to.
He cleared his throat. "Hi."
She stood still, no change in her blank expression.
"How are you?" Arnav continued, trying to keep his voice light.
There was still no answer.
"Khushi?" Arnav called, tentatively taking a step forward. "Can you hear me?"
His movement seemed to have jolted her out of her thoughts. She blinked several times, as though she was struggling to find words.
Eventually, she finally settled for: "What are you doing here?"
Arnav's shoulders fell in disappointment. He had hoped that these past few days would be enough for her to forget the resentment Myra's arrival had caused. But perhaps, he had been expecting too much.
"Isn't it obvious?"
She pursued her lips, knowing the answer but refusing to acknowledge it.
"I came to see you Khushi," he replied. "Why else would I be here?"
She stubbornly crossed her arms. "And how did you know that I was coming to Agra?"
Did she really plan on wasting time talking about useless details? Didn't she know him better than this?
