"She is a twin??" Aadesh asked still dazed after what he heard from his brother
He had been away for a day and he had come home to receive a shock
"Yes. A twin" Armaan confirmed
"And she is not Advi's mother??"
"No.Not biologically"
"And you are not angry at her???" Aadesh asked
"I was really angry when I came to know the truth. Then when I thought with a calm mind I realized she did it for Advi."
"Wow. Love really does change people doesn't it??" Aadesh asked and Armaan looked at him in shock
"What?? Don't look so shocked. You might have started seeing me only when you were five ,but I have known you since I was born. I know you very well" Aadesh said grinning
"Shut up Addy" Armaan chided at his brother's lame joke
****
Janani walked towards Armaan's study after putting the children to bed that night
"Armaan"
"Janani. You are still awake??"
"Um...can we talk???" Janani asked hesitantly
"Ofcourse" he said and led her to the terrace
There at the corner was a shaded area with two couches and a tea table. Janani had never come up to the terrace so she had never seen in before
"This is Addy's special place. He sometimes like to sit here and stargaze" Armaan said and he led her over to the couch
"Armaan... I..I want to apologise for my earlier behaviour. I know it was not fair of me. And I also apologise for lying to you.It was not my intention to deceive you. All I could think about was holding on to Advi as long as I could. I simply couldn't think past that. And when yesterday you implied that I would sell him for money ,I couldn't bear it. I know you have every right to be angry on me. I hope you will understand why I did what I did" Janani said in a breath
"I understand" Armaan said as he turned around to stare at the unseeing scenery of the night
"So what next??" She asked in the pulsing silence
"That's what we have to decide."
He was using the royal 'we'; she didn't think she would have much actual input into what happened next.
"Tell me how your sister got hold of your passport" he invited, startling her with that request.
"It happened by accident. The first time we met she showed me her passport because she had worn her hair long then too, and I got out mine and we were laughing and somehow our passports got mixed up"
"And??" Armaan prompted
"Saanvi only realised she had my passport when she was flying out somewhere abroad and she travelled on it because she didn't want to miss her flight."
"She lied" Armaan murmured without any expression at all. "She had already used your passport in her application to be the surrogate I hired. And the reason she lied was that she had several criminal convictions in her own name. She probably tracked you down quite deliberately. She set you up to steal your identity,Janani. Accept that."
Janani paled. She was remembering laughing with her sister as they compared unflattering passport photos.
"It was months before I found out about the...er...exchange and when I contacted her about it, she said she'd give it back when she returned"
"Only she never did" Armaan completed
"Obviously you think I'm very stupid" Janani said tartly, tears forming in her eyes
"No, I think you were scammed. She was a practised, confident trickster and she was your sister and you didn't want to accept the truth" Armaan said in a surprisingly uncritical tone.
"I loved her-I felt an immediate sense of connection with her."
"Scammers have to be attractive to pull people in."
Janani stared into the darkness.
"Why didn't you go to the police about your passport when she refused to give it back?"
"I didn't need my passport because I couldn't afford to travel at the time...and I didn't want to get her into trouble. For a long time she made excuses about why she wasn't returning it and I believed her" she admitted with a rueful roll of her eyes.
"I lashed out at you yesterday. I was angry."
As far as Armaam Verma is concerned, this is the most he could do for an apology ,Janani mused
"You have had complete responsibility for my son since he was only a few days old" Armaan pointed out.
"Yes.Saanvi went back to Delhi to work. She told me that she earned good money working in PR and I had no reason to doubt her. I continued my teaching job and they allowed me to bring Advi in.Saanvi didn't help with the expense and it was a challenge to afford it on my salary and my savings were soon gone. My parents were struggling too"
"You've made sacrifices to look after my son" Armaan acknowledged."And you have looked after him well. You adore each other"
"Yes"
"You love Ava too"
"I couldn't help loving them." Janani sighed.
"But they are not your children
Janani grimaced at that unnecessary reminder. "That didn't come into it for me. And you met my mother didn't you? She didn't give birth to me. That didn't stop her from loving me like her own"
Armaan continued to study her with brooding intensity. "My children may not be yours now but they could be..."
Janani stared back at him in bewilderment. "What on earth are you saying?" she framed uncertainly.
"I'm asking you to marry me to become my children's mother and my wife" Armaan said and winced inwardly as soon as the words got out of his mouth
This isn't how he planned to proceed
He was supposed to woo her and make her fall in love before proposing marriage
The threat of Vikram Thakur looming over his head prompted this proposal, he very well knew
Janani might not have any intention of getting back with the toad. But her parents still hope they will get married some day sooner. And Janani is one of those people who always chooses other's happiness over hers and she might even agree to marry that lying cheating bast**d for her parents happiness
Well!! Not when Armaan Verma is alive
Janani was in shock
Armaan Verma was asking her to marry him.
How is that possible?? She had joined him at the terrace to apologise and expecting him to tell her when she was to go back home. And instead he was proposing marriage. Her lashes fluttered down to screen her eyes
"Ava and Advi's mother??"
"And the mother of any other children that we might have together" Armaan slotted in smoothly, catching her startled upward glance and looking steadily back at her. "I'm talking about a normal marriage and a family. Be assured of that."
"But we are not in love with each other" she proclaimed bewildered and Armaan's lips thinned in annoyance
She is not going to believe if he professes his undying love for her after the way he accused her yesterday
"I like you. I respect you. And I will be loyal to you. Love can grow" he said smoothly
"Why me??" She asked badly
"Primarily you love my children and they loves you. I grew up without a mother and I want more for them"
"You could marry anyone" she cut in helplessly.
"But to any other woman Ava and Advi would always be second best once she had a child of her own. I don't believe you will react like that but many women would" Armaan fielded quietly.
"Yet you planned Advi's birth knowing you intended to raise your child without a mother" she reminded him.
"That was before I saw the strength of the bond between you and him and the happiness that gave him."
He was a manipulative bast**d, Armaan acknowledged himself. Who said people would change when they fall in love. If anything, he had become even more manipulative it seems
Having heard enough,Janani forced a smile and rose from her seat.
"I'm afraid the man I marry would have to want me for more than my child-rearing abilities" she told him stiffly, struggling to keep the little amused smile in place and mask the deep hollow of hurt opening up inside her.
Armaan dealt her a seething look of frustration and strode after her. "Janani"
Janani didn't turn her head, she just kept on walking away fast, unable to face any further dialogue. She was so hurt and she didn't really understand why.
Surely it was always a sort of a compliment if a man asked you to marry him? Even if you didn't want to say yes.
And at that point, she realised what was wrong. She wanted more. She wanted him to want her personally and that was downright silly as well as unlikely. So many more beautiful and sophisticated women would have snatched at Armaan's offer with two greedy hands.
"Janani...!!" Armaan exclaimed, closing a powerful hand round her shoulder to spin her round "You know very well that I want you for more than that!"
Janani sucked in a gulp of oxygen and almost lost it again as she clashed with blazing dark chocolate eyes. "Do I?" she slashed back in challenge.
"You do know" Armaan told her, crowding her back against the wall behind her.
"How would I know?" Janani flamed back at him. "The kids loves me and you think I'm good for them. That's why you're asking me to marry you."
"Janani..I"
"No..Your proposal made it clear that providing your children with a mother was your main motivation!"
"For heaven's sake... I was taking a conservative approach. I assumed you would prefer that!"
"Why would a woman want a conservative proposal?" Janani countered impatiently.
He let our a frustrated breath
"We kissed!! Remember?? You still think I want you only as a mother to my children " he asked
"You kissed me because you were emotional that night"
"I kissed you because I wanted to. I have wanted to kiss you and do more than that ever since the first moment I saw you" Armaan muttered huskily
Armaan planted his hands squarely on the wall either side of her head, his lean, powerful body effectively imprisoning hers.
Lowering his head, he brushed his lips almost teasingly against hers and then lingered to capture and suckle her lower lip, one hand sliding down the wall to close on her hip and jerk her into closer contact. His tongue eased between her readily parted lips and delved in unashamedly. Her breathing fractured as she came off the wall to wrap her arms round his neck, fingertips sliding into his long silky hair.
"So, is this a yes, sweetheart?" Armaan husked sexily against her swollen mouth.
"Are you always calculating the odds?" Janani complained, jerking her head back out of reach.
Armaan gave her a wicked grin that let loose a flock of butterflies in her tummy and left her feeling dizzy. "I don't switch off my brain very often" he admitted.
She could have him if she wanted him, Janani reflected on a heady high. And she wanted him-oh, my goodness, yes, she wanted him. But it would be crazy to make an impulsive decision based on the feelings of the moment. And her feelings just then were overwhelmingly physical and dangerously unreliable.
Close to Armaan, her body vibrated like a tuning fork. He made her want to drag him off to the nearest secluded corner. That awareness cooled her heated blood and made her take a mental step back to take stock.
"I have to think about this" Janani declared, ignoring the frowning slant of his black brows above his stunning eyes. "I need to be on my own for a while."
Armaan stared at her retreating figure and sighed
He need a very long very cold shower to cool down his heated throbbing body. And he will have to persuade her harder to agree to his proposal
A/n
How many of you expected him to propose marriage???
What do you think will be Janani's answer???
Pls do vote and comment
Love you all ❤