Deceiving Veils

Chapter- 65{And It starts}

Walking to Aashi, Nandini kissed side of her head as biding her a good morning and then walked to her father who was busy pretending writing something very important. 

As she peeped in to see what he was doing, she saw him drawing letter 'N' in beautiful fonts. She smiled at how her name was the only thing he knew.

"Nandini," He murmured as she sat on arm rest of his chair. 

"How are you, Papa? Slept well?" She asked wrapping her arms around his shoulders. 

"Yes," He answered briefly and then got busy in his important work. 

A soothing silence prevailed as they all soaked in sunlight. Aashi had a trace of peace on her face finally, Nandini sighed in relief. 

"It's my first day at office today, Papa," She murmured. Mr Murthy stopped doodling and that was his way of telling how he was listening. 

"You have built me quite a legacy and I don't know if I am capable enough. I would need you at every step. Please be with me," She said and her clutch around her father's shoulders tightened. 

"Nandi...ni," Mr Murthy replied looking at her. He smiled warmly at her and she knew she had got what she needed. She rested her cheek against his temple as he again dived into his ramblings. 

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Nandini asked the charioteer to stop the wagon as she saw a secluded cottage down the vale. It had taken every ounce of her patience to figure out where Manik was living in that giant villa. Her mind might have been cluttered with so many things but heart was always with one man. That one man had all the might to drive her mad with kind of behavior he exhibited.  Nandini carefully walked down the valley through those slippery stairs. She could hear sound of hammering as she neared the wooden cottage. It was surrounded by the pine trees while a huge area was covered with lush green grass. She could see smoke coming out of chimney. 

She turned around to see two guards standing near the wagon. She needed to talk to Veer about all these unnecessary adornments.

Door churned as she opened it. She could see a small room with a messy bed. Creases on bed sheet didn't smooth as she touched it. Bed was cold. She already felt like home as she gazed the rough pattern of walls. The small kitchen was smelling of soup as one of utensils was steaming over the burner. 

She walked towards a door which opened in backyard of cottage. She opened it and saw him cutting the wood vigorously. His arms went up and his muscles flexed. The ax hit the wood and it cut open in two pieces. His torso was bare and drenched in sweat. Sawdust was sticking to his skin and he looked so engrossed in his favorite work. 

"I don't get it," She said aloud and he looked at her in no time. 

His intense face transitioned into relaxed one he saw her standing there. 

"I thought you would be giving me preference over your favorite past time finally," She said sarcastically as she walked towards him. 

His lips formed a mischievous smile listening to her. 

"You have no idea about my preference list, Nandini," He replied dropping the ax on the ground. He picked up the cloth from the wooden log and wiped his sweaty body. 

He reached her in no time and stood just an inch away from her. She was bathed in jasmine. Her white dress was flowing with mild wind while hair were just trying to brush her angelic face. 

His hands held her waist lightly and she raised her left brow. 

"No leeway this time," She said trying to remove his hands off her waist. He kept gazing her intensely while she kept trying to remove his hands off her waist. He never budged, did he?