"Now, before you fall into my charms, I'd like you to change into some comfortable clothes. That wardrobe is newly installed just for you. Wear whatever you like." He said and pointed in the direction of the bathroom.

"Ananya did this too?" She asked as she walked in the direction of the said wardrobe.

"No, my PA did. Ananya informed her about your preferences and size." He said and walked towards his side of the wardrobe to change into comfortable clothes.

She wondered who this woman was. After a pause, she finally asked him as she picked a maroon top and blue trousers.

"She didn't come to the function?"

"Who?"

"Your PA."

"Why would she come? She is not family." He answered casually.

"But, she is your friend."

Viraj couldn't stop the chuckle from escaping his mouth.

"What makes you think she is my friend. She is my employee, that's it." He stated.

Sneha's brows narrowed on his reply.

'Shut up, Sneha. No need to talk to this arrogant king.' She told herself.

She changed in the bathroom and got fresh while Viraj changed in the room.

When they both were out, Viraj grasped her wrist again and guided her toward the balcony.

"I have a surprise for you." He said and pulled her along.

Sneha followed him like a calf and stepped outside the glass doors.

She took a sharp breath when she analysed the surrounding. The balcony was huge...almost half of her entire house. At the centre of the balcony, there lay a beautifully decorated tent-type arrangement, enlightened by fairy lights. A dozen aromatic candles burned, releasing a beautiful fragrance in the air. By now, it was already dark and calm. At the height that they were, there was practically no noise from vehicles whatsoever.

It was a perfect spot for a romantic date night with your lover, she concluded.

"Did you like it?" She heard him whisper from behind her and directly near her right ear, startling her.

"What is this for?" She asked in a straight tone, not wanting to tell him that she liked it. The light breeze played with her hair and he totally loved how they swayed to and fro.

"Our first date as fiance and fiancee." He said and then grasped her wrist again to pull her towards the illuminated tent.

As she approached the spot, she noticed a basket and a metal box placed at the centre of the mattress. The basket had a wine bottle and two wine glasses. She had no idea about the content of the metal box, though.

Viraj removed his slippers and stepped on the mattress to sit in a comfortable position. He then patted the spot near him.

"Sit." He gestured.

She wanted to remind him about how late it already had been and that she had college tomorrow, but she also knew he won't listen...or understand. He was just concerned about his wishes.

So, she removed her slippers and got on the mattress to sit beside him. Viraj literally pulled her by the waist such that their legs grazed each other and shoulders touched intimately.

"I thought over your question." He started while ignoring her racing heartbeat. He was after all sitting so close to her. She dared not turn her head in his direction or they'd literally kiss!

"Which question?" She asked in a slightly shivering voice.

"About how I like you but not Natasha, despite you two being similar." He recalled.

Sneha's brows narrowed. Was he still thinking about it?

"Okay?" She urged him to continue.

"It is because you are soft." He said, confusing her more.

"Soft?" She asked, thinking he was referring to her skin or hair.

"Yes, you are soft at heart. You may argue with me, but there is an emotional part in you that also understands me as no one has ever." He said and decreased the distance between them further. When she still looked at her lap, he lightly placed his hand on her chin and slowly made her face him. However, her eyes remained downcast.

'Has he gone mad? When did I even try to understand him?' She wondered, unable to think about their past. The distance between them was not helping her either.

They were only inches apart when he continued.

"And this appeals to me a lot. You have the magic of bringing me out of my comfort zone and making me go against my own values. But, I cherish it too...as much as I resist it." He said and came closer. She knew what was going to happen soon if she didn't stop him.

She couldn't really understand on what reference was he saying all this.

"For once, you make me reflect on whether what I am doing is right or not...because, I don't want you to think low of me." He said and their noses touched.

"Look at me, Sneha." He whispered in his deep voice and it came as a command.

And, she did. Looking at him with wide eyes, she waited for his next action. However, within seconds, her eyes lowered because his intense eyes were too much for her to handle.

"Sneha." He said but the demand was clear in his tone. So, she forced her eyes to uplift and look at him. She couldn't help but blink periodically.

He gazed into her mesmerizing eyes and gulped hard as he felt his arousal rising. For him, she truly was a seductress.

With his left palm, he cupped her face and grazed her cheek with his thumb.

"You bring out the best in me." He whispered and finally closed the gap between them. Closing his eyes, he placed his lips on hers and kissed her upper lip.

Sneha's heart felt like it would blast anytime but the words of Natasha and Priya flashed through her mind. Her sister's concern and advice to her to quickly bring Viraj out of this infatuation, and Natasha's words on how a man would stop demanding physical advancement once he has received his fill, made her change her mind about pushing him away.

So, she closed her eyes and let him suck on her lips. Unlike other times, she realized that he was being very gentle as if she was a delicate flower and would get crushed if he applied more pressure.

Viraj felt himself to be in heaven as he felt her lips under his after so long! The terrible wait was however, worth it. And, the best part was that she wasn't resisting. It gave him more confidence and to satisfy her, he continued sucking her soft lips seductively.

As he turned his head in the other direction to deepen the kiss, he grabbed her left hand and pulled her closer.

She didn't know how much time had passed as they remained like this, him kissing her lips...slow and steady...at a constant pace.

Finally, he stopped kissing and slightly backed away to look at her. The sight entranced him as usual. She had her eyes closed with lips partly open. Her hair waved with the breeze and some fell on her temple while some tapped on her cheeks.

If it was in his hands, he would have laid her down and had his way with her right here, right now. But he had rules that he was to follow. He couldn't have sex with her before marriage. And, now that he thought about it...the rule sounded too silly.

He caressed her cheeks lovingly before softly rubbing her lower lip. Sneha opened her eyes to look at what exactly he was doing.

"Why don't you kiss me back?" He asked, almost desperately. He wanted to feel her kiss him...he wondered how it would feel to be loved!

"How can I?" She whispered her insecurities. However, he took her quite literally.

"It's easy. Just copy me and follow my lead." He said and was about to kiss her again to give a demo when she interrupted.

"I didn't mean that."

"Then?"

"How can I kiss you when I don't know anything about you?"

"Why do you want to know about me to kiss me back?" He asked in confusion.

Sneha wanted to smack his head.

"It doesn't work like this with women. We can't kiss any random man about whom we don't know anything!" She replied.

Viraj thought over it for a moment before taking a deep breath. With a small smile, he looked at her again.

"Okay. So, what do you want to know about me?" He finally asked.

Sneha's brows rose as she wondered where to start. And, most importantly, why should she ask him about him?

"Hmm?" He urged her to ask when she simply looked at his shirt.

When nothing came to her mind, she asked about the first person in his family that came to her mind.

"Your mother?" She asked. The curiosity of knowing about her was in her mind the day she heard about her infidelity from Ananya's friends. And unconsciously, she had framed a very bad image of her in her mind. But, on meeting her today, she only found her to be a sweet lady who was a little too much in love with her son. She wondered what kind of person she really was, even though she had nothing to do with her life.

"My mother?" Viraj asked in surprise. He had thought that she'd ask about him...his favourites or his likes and dislikes. But she had to prove him wrong. She chose a very sore and equally pleasant part of his life to know about...his biological mother. But, how did she know about her, he wondered.

'Ananya?' He concluded in his mind.

"Yes, I talked to her today and I was wondering how she is." She said and sat straight to maintain a proper distance. In the daze, he left his hold on her.

Viraj remained quiet for a while. He understood that she was referring to Meena, his mother's sister. And, he wondered if he should tell her the truth, despite it being ugly.

'She deserves to know, Viraj. She will be your wife. You can trust her.' He consoled himself.

Finally, he laid on the soft mattress and straightened his arm for her to lie down as well.

"Lie down, Sneha. It is something that I have never told an outsider." He mumbled and pulled her by her arm.

When he had made her lie beside him successfully, he began while looking at the dark sky.

"The woman you met today is not my mother." He said and as he had expected, Sneha turned to look at him in shock.

"But..."

"She is my mother's sister." He elaborated.

Now, Sneha couldn't be more confused.

Viraj took a deep breath before explaining.

"My father fell in love with my mother at first sight. But, my mother didn't want to marry him when he took the proposal to her parents. At that time, my nana (maternal grandfather) had a small auto-rickshaw that he had taken on rent from a landlord. Some days after my father's marriage proposal was rejected, some street gangster broke and burnt my nana's auto-rickshaw. Thus, he fell into debt as the landlord insisted on having either the money or the little house they lived in. My mother was then promised to someone else and as the custom was those days, my nana had to also arrange the dowry. So, under pressure, nana took a loan from the mafia leader at that time...that is my father. Since my papa loved my mother, he promised to help them monetarily and even give them more such benefits if only they would give him their eldest daughter, that is, my mother. So, my mother married my father and thus, I was born. My mother soon found out that it was my father who made those gangsters ruin her father's auto-rickshaw. Since then, their relationship had only been ruined and they continuously fought with each other over even silly issues. I grew up seeing that. At that time, I actually thought that it was a normal thing between parents until I started going to school and saw other parents who were not like my parents. I was almost five years old when suddenly my mother left me and ran away with another man. I never knew until then just how much I loved her and missed her. Thankfully, my father brought my mother back almost a year later, and I saw my sister for the first time. My mother used to tell me that Ananya was my sister but my father used to say that she wasn't. I didn't understand why my father said so until later I understood that Ananya was from the man with whom she had left. Their fights and arguments continued and I again got used to them...in a way. I was content that at least they were together and I had both my parents. However, in my selfishness, I never realized that my mother's health had started deteriorating and she started behaving weirdly. She would scold me but cherish Ananya. Once she slapped me so hard that I went unconscious instantly. I don't remember what I did but I do remember the hatred in her eyes. Father had strictly told her that he'd let Ananya live if she remained with us. But, one day, her body didn't support her and she left us forever." He lived the past briefly.

Sneha didn't know what to say.

"So, your father...married your mother's sister?" She asked.

"Hmm. Although he says that he married my maasi (mother's sister) to punish my mother for leaving us, I know that he did so because no one in the world could take care of us as my maasi could. And, she didn't prove us wrong. My maasi took care of us as her own children. That is why we both call her ma because she deserves it."

Even though Sneha had nothing to do with his family, unknowingly, Meena had gained supreme respect in her mind. It was indeed a huge sacrifice!

"Your maasi didn't deny marrying your father?"

"No. She accepted it because she knew that Ananya was safe only with her. Father loved me and thus, he won't do anything to me. But, Ananya...My father gets reminded of my mother's infidelity whenever he sees her."

"You still didn't answer my question." She mumbled while wondering why was she even interested to know about him. Was it plain curiosity or something else?

"What?"

"How was she? Your mother?"

"I don't have many memories with her. But whatever I remember, I want to cherish it till I die... She was beautiful...had beautiful eyes, soft hands, a gentle voice and a very strict mother. But she loved me a lot. Her health might have played a trick on her at the later stage, but she loved me a lot. She would tell me some moral stories...some tasks to do when I'd grow up...and, how I shouldn't continue in my father's footsteps. I understood only half of her teachings but she tried to tell me a lot of things. She used to love my paintings a lot and so, I painted almost every day to get praised by her. She was the one who had asked me to paint Ananya someday. And, I finally fulfilled my promise to her on her birthday."

Sneha fell silent for a while. He appeared so normal right now. It didn't feel like she was talking to the mafia boss of the state...or a criminal. It felt like she was talking to a stranger who was telling her about his past to lighten the load of his heart.

"I am sorry for asking you this. I didn't know your childhood was..."

"It's okay. I am glad that you asked. I feel better now that I have shared my suppressed emotions with someone whom I can trust." He said and smiled at her.

Trust.

The heavy word hung in the air.

'Does he trust me? But why?' She wondered. Breaking his trust, if he had any for her, would be a terrible thing, she knew.

'Should I tell him the truth? He seems to be in a good mood...Sneha...try?' She consoled herself but he suddenly turned on his side and looked at her expectantly.

"I never asked you...how is your ideal husband?" He asked excitedly after a short pause.

And, the question took her off-guard. Thinking on it for a while, she got the perfect answer...something that would indirectly tell him that she didn't want to marry him.

"Everything that you are not." She answered.

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(Hey all!

Well, Viraj is going to get hurt, again!

And, why am I feeling bad about it!

Anyway, coming back to real life...I'll try to update next Friday, but then again, there is no guarantee! I am so sorry about it! I really am...

I will post the spoiler on Instagram soon.

Till the next update...

Stay blessed!!!