QUERENCIA

20.STAY TONIGHT

Nodding his head he went away.

"Client?" Annika asked, teasing her.

"Well, I can't tell them, unless I know where you are taking me." he said, winking at her and she laughed while listening to his lame excuse.

"You are saying as if I am kidnapping you." she said, controlling her laughter.

He settled in behind her and chuckled. "Well, 'kidnapping' might be pushing it, but let's hope the ransom is budget-friendly. I wouldn't want to break the bank for an impromptu road trip," he remarked, adding a dash of sarcasm and humour to the banter.

"Trust me, after this ride, your bank account is going to need a serious therapy session," she said with a mischievous grin, revving up the Bullet before they zoomed out , leaving behind the echoes of laughter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey why did you stop here?" Shivaay asked, looking at a supermarket in front of him.

"I don't really want us to starve, so I need to buy something for us, as I gave my cook a leave for today. And this is the best supermarket in our locality." she said while taking out her helmet.

"But I can't stroll in looking like this; there's a chance someone might recognize me, and you know how they can turn a molehill into a mountain." he remarked, glancing at his full black suit with a mixture of concern.

Annika looked at him, she knows he is right if someone spots them it will be a great mess. She pondered for a few seconds, and her eyes sparked getting an idea to tackle the situation. She quickly grabbed her bag and took out two surgical masks and gave one of them to him.

"Here, wear this no one will really recognise you and give me your coat jacket. I will keep it in my bag." she said to him while wearing one of the masks herself.

Soon they went inside the supermarket.

Annika was putting all types of biscuits and chocolates packets inside the trolley, while Shivaay shaked his head.

"Are we going to eat oreo and bourbon for dinner?" he feigned enthusiasm.

"Why not? We'll just call it a 'biscuit banquet.' Classy, right?" she responded with a grin, keeping it light and straightforward.

"Don't worry, I'll make sure we have more than just biscuits on the menu." She proposed, injecting a hint of humour into the assurance.

Soon Annika got them a few packets of lays for them, two cans of coke and a big packet of maggi. Thankfully no one recognised them, and soon they came out of the shop.

"Are we seriously going to eat maggi, while you promised to lift up my mood?" he grumpily asked her.

She chuckled listening to his rant, "Well maggi is a really amazing option when we are extremely hungry." She wore her helmet, "And now you Mr Oberoi get ready as now this bullet is going to convert into a jet." she said when Shivaay sat behind her. And soon they zoomed out.

"Annika...Annika slow down, we may get into an accident." he tried to make her understand.

"Just be at the moment Shivaay!!", she exclaimed, her voice carrying a mix of encouragement and a touch of exasperation.

While Shivaay struggled to maintain his balance, with no other choice, he instinctively gripped her waist when she slammed on the brakes unexpectedly as a stray dog crossed the road.

She looked at him, feeling his warm palms on her waist making her flutter. He quickly took his hand back "Ahm..sorry I was about to lose my balance." he said awkwardly.