Love On The Edge

26 | Rule twenty-six

•SAMEER•

| THE ROYAL MANSION |

“Shanvi, wake up… we’re about to land,” I whispered, gently tapping her cheek. I hated waking her because she looked so peaceful sleeping in my arms. A small smile crept onto my lips as she snuggled closer to me. “Come on, Mrs. Shekhawat, wake up…” I murmured, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear.

She fluttered her eyes open and looked up at me. In an instant, her sleepy eyes widened as she quickly pulled away. I instantly regretted waking her up. She licked her lips and glanced away. "Uh... what? What's happening?" she mumbled.

I forced a smirk, masking my disappointment. "We're about to land, darling. Put your seatbelt on," I said with my usual flirty tone, trying to hide my real feelings. I'm not in love, I know that, but I can't help being in awe of her. I'm attracted to her and I admire her, and it frustrates me to no end.

She’s the woman who managed to make me hate her and be fascinated by her all at once during our first meeting. She’s a beautiful disaster that everyone should avoid, yet here I am, married to this beautiful disaster, and I’m not complaining. Honestly, I’m actually enjoying it.

I always thought my type was someone shy, introverted, calm, and sweet. Oh boy, was I wrong. Turns out, my type is a woman who’s grumpier, more ambitious, fierce, and sarcastic than me. She’s basically my personality in the opposite gender, and I’m all for it.

She fastened her seatbelt and glanced my way before turning her attention to the annoying guy she brought with her. Honestly, I don't care that this druggie is tagging along; what bothers me is how close he's getting to my wife. My wife... It sounds amazing.

I followed her gaze and saw the druggie fumbling with his seatbelt while the flight attendant helped him. God, he's such a flirt. I shook my head and looked back at my wife. She turned to me, gave a tight smile, then fixed her hair and looked straight ahead.

The pilot’s voice crackled over the intercom, announcing that we were about to land. Shanvi’s hand shot out, grabbing mine tightly. She closed her eyes, her knuckles turning white as she clung to me.

“Relax,” I whispered, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze. Despite the turbulence in my own emotions, I wanted to comfort her.

She nodded slightly but kept her eyes shut, her grip on my hand not loosening. I glanced out the window, seeing the ground come closer.

I leaned in closer to her. “Just a few more minutes,” I said softly.

She took a deep breath, her fingers still wrapped around mine like a lifeline. I couldn’t help but feel a surge of protectiveness. Whatever our complicated feelings, at that moment, all I wanted was to be there for her.

The plane touched down with a slight jolt, and Shanvi’s grip on my hand tightened even more before finally starting to relax as we taxied to the gate. She opened her eyes and looked at me.

“Darpok,” I teased with a smirk.

“I'm not,” she replied, finally letting go of my hand but giving me a sharp glare that made my heart skip a beat. Oh! I love her feistiness.

As we walked towards the exit, I extended my hand to help Shanvi climb down the private jet stairs, but she ignored me and instead held onto Daniel's arm. A pang of jealousy shot through me, but I tried to brush it off with a small smile.