I Belong With You part 30 updated (Arsh ff) - Page 24

loved shona and her antics
awesome parts
its lil bit wierd muskaan is shilpa's mum & nikki armaan's 😆

Awesome update
loved it
sad they shilpas dad has another family
love the realtionship armaan shares with his mom
con soon
thanks 4 da pm

awesome update abner

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaw......that was sooooooooooooooooooooooo sweet..................

hey....... sorry for late reply ............ anywaz the part was as usual .......... good n beautiful ....... n felt nice reading abt ARSH after watever iz happening in da serial ............ pls continue soon ......... i hve feeling rohan iz gona create a problem .......... hope he doesnt ...n loved armaan n muskaan 's interaction ........... anywaz take care ......... love aish .............😊

part 26

When Armaan and Nikki arrived at Shilpa's house, they were greeted by Sapna's laughter and a softer one, Shona's.

"She woke up in a very good mood today," Armaan chuckled as he helped his mother take off her jacket.

"Armaan?" he heard Sapna calling from the living room.

"That's me!" Armaan announced and led his mother into the living room.

Shona was sitting down on the floor in Sapna's arms, with the illustrated books she had received for Christmas and some of her toys.

As she turned to look at Armaan, Sapna saw the unknown woman. She stood up and as Shona saw Armaan she let out a squeal.

"Did she just squeal?" Armaan looked confused at the two women.

"I think she did," Sapna laughed.

Armaan took Shona from Sapna and tossed her up in the air a few times, making her laugh harder. "Was that a squeal, Baby Shona?" he asked her, cradling her into his arms.

Shona smiled and hid her face in his chest.

Armaan laughed at her, kissing her. "Sapna, this is my mother. Nikki," he said, introducing his mother to Sapna.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Malik," Sapna politely shook her hand.

"Please call me Nikki," Armaan's mother smiled. "And this is Shona," she said turning to the baby.

Recognizing her name, Shona lifted her head and looked at the unknown person, whose voice she didn't know.

"Hey," Nikki smiled at her. She wanted to take her hand, but as she got too close to her, Shona whimpered and hid her face in Armaan's chest again.

"She's shy," Armaan excused her. "Didn't I tell you that?"

Nikki chuckled and shook her head, "I think you forgot to mention that."

"She is shy. Or she just plays shy until she gets to know that person better," he explained. "Oh and she also stares. I think that's how she makes impression about people."

"I will be patient then," Nikki agreed.

Armaan lifted Shona in his arms, so that she could sit upright and went to sit down in the couch. "Why were you laughing?" he asked Sapna.

"Honestly," Sapna started laughing again. "I was laughing of her laughter, but I am not sure what she found so funny. We were just watching over some pictures with animals and birds."

"See?" Armaan looked at his mother. "She's special."

Sapna and Nikki smiled at each other knowingly and as Nikki sat down next to him, she patted him on leg. "I would be worried if I was you."

"We don't really know what happens in a baby's mind, although we were babies once too," Sapna admitted.

"Did she have dinner?" Armaan asked Sapna.

"She did and surprisingly she stayed calm and let me feed her with the spoon," she said. "I think she sees how she stresses us with the mess and that's why she does it. But if you stay calm and ignore her habit, she stops."

"We're about to turn into a spoiled baby, aren't we?" Armaan said to Shona. As he looked down at her, Armaan smiled and elbowed his mother. "See? She stares at you."

Nikki smiled at Shona, but her smile slowly started fading as she noticed how intense her blue eyes were staring. "That kind of intimidates you," she muttered.

"Doesn't it?" Armaan chuckled, kissing Shona.

Nikki had to shake her head to be able to tear her eyes from Shona. "But she's beautiful," she smiled at her Armaan.

"She is," he nodded smugly.

"Shona is Shilpa's only child isn't she?" she asked Armaan.

"That's right,"

"You should be careful then. I don't know Shilpa, but I know you and you tend to spoil the children," his mother warned him knowingly.

"They are spoiling her," Sapna cut in. "But only by good means. Dinner is ready if you're hungry. I'll gather a little bit around here and then I'll leave if you don't need me today."

"We're good now. Thank you," Armaan nodded.

Sapna was about to reply when, looking at Shona, she saw her shyly trying to touch Nikki's arm. She smiled and motioned for them to look at Shona.

When she saw all the eyes on her, especially Nikki's, Shona quickly pulled back whimpering and hid her face in Armaan's chest.

"That's ok. I don't bite," Nikki said to her, laughing and trying to take her hand.

Shona pulled her hand away and hid it as well.

Nikki was now visibly worried. "Why doesn't she like me?"

Armaan and Sapna chuckled knowingly. "Don't worry. She didn't like me either at first," Sapna wanted to reassure her. "I almost didn't get the job because she started crying when I took her in my arms."

"And Shilpa was quite paranoid at that time," Armaan added.

Soothed by Armaan's loving caresses and not having all the eyes on her anymore, Baby Shona had the courage to look up. She looked at Armaan – who was cheerfully talking to Sapna and Nikki about Sapna's first day as Nanny- , then she looked at her Nanny and then at Nikki. Her stare stayed on the new face. This time, she leaned forward and her tiny finger touched Nikki's arm with more courage. Shona started slapping her and laughing, carefully looking for Nikki's reaction.

Nikki felt the light touch and saw Shona's new friendly attitude. "Do you want to be friends now?" she asked her.

Armaan took Shona's hand and waved it saying in a baby voice, "How can we be friends when I don't know your name. This moron that holds me didn't make the introductions."

Nikki laughed and nodded. "I came to meet you but I ended up by meeting your Nanny. I am Grandma Nikki," she said, gently taking her hand and shaking it.

Shona looked at her hand and then up at her before she decided to be friends and start laughing.

"Do you want to come and sit with me now?" Nikki asked her, holding out her hands.

Armaan put her onto his mother's lap and Shona didn't complain. In the meantime, Sapna finished gathering Shona's book and she was ready to leave.

"Will you be in town for a while?" she asked Nikki.

"Only until tomorrow in the afternoon," Nikki said.

"I'll see you tomorrow, I guess,"

Nikki nodded. "Most probably I will be around."

"Ok. I am leaving now. Good night, Shona," she said to the baby, waving at her.

While Armaan walked Sapna to the door, Shona stayed in living room with Nikki, who was admiring her blonde curls. "You have blonde curls and blue eyes. You're a very pretty girl," she started talking to Shona. "You might even look a little bit like Armaan. He has curls just like you."

"Doesn't she?" Armaan chuckled, overhearing his mother.

"Armaan, what are you to her?" she asked her. "I mean, when you talk to her and when Shilpa talks to her about you, what are you? Armaan or Daddy?"

Armaan didn't like the question as he knew he had an answer she wouldn't like. He just smiled and walked over to them, picking Shona into his arms.

"Do you want to see her room?" he asked her, avoiding the answer.

Nikki shook her head disapproving his answer, but she stood up, ready to follow him upstairs. "I brought her a present," she remembered and quickly turned to the couch, where her bag was. She fumbled through it and took out a plastic bag.

Out of the plastic bag, she took a knit-wear out. "I made it," she smiled, showing him a red pajama, with a rabbit design on the stomach.

"You knit?" Armaan started laughing, surprised with the present.

"I've started a while ago," his mother nodded. "I made it with a rabbit as design because you told me so much about her favorite blanket. I only knit small things though. I also made her some bootees," she said, looking inside the bag and taking out a pair of red knitted bootees.

"Won't your other grandchildren be jealous?" Armaan chuckled, taking the pajama.

"I made something for everyone," she answered. "Is she my granddaughter, Armaan?"

"Mom," Armaan gave her a pleading look.

"You know what I mean with this question," she said.

"I know," Armaan sighed. He turned and slowly started walking out of the room, carrying Shona in his arms and being followed by his mother. "You can sleep here tonight. Shilpa won't mind," he said.

"Ok," Nikki answered, but continued waiting for an answer.

"You should consider Shona as your granddaughter," he said while they walked together in Shona's room. "You introduced yourself as Grandma Nikki," he pointed out.

Nikki sighed, giving up. "Just be careful, ok?"

Armaan kissed her and nodded. "Shilpa and I are just building our relationship. We've grown a lot as couple lately."

"As long as you're not trying for Shona," she said.

"It's not for Shona. Only. It's true that I fell for the baby at first, but Shilpa is beautiful, smart and strong despite of her childhood and despite of her life from the past years."

Nikki didn't doubt that, feeling something in his voice as he said those words. It was the same tremble he had when he talked to her about Shona. She just smiled and let Armaan show her the room and some of Shona's favorite things such as the blanket.

"Isn't a little bit too late for her to be awake at this hour?" Nikki asked Armaan after they had played with Shona for a while.

"I think this has turned into a custom. She doesn't go to sleep until Shilpa is home. The minute we got her ready for bed, she falls asleep," he answered, smiling while brushing Shona's hair with his fingers. "We have some trouble when Shilpa is on-call at night, because she refuses to go to sleep."

"You say she understands when you talk to her. Did you explain to her the situation and that her Mommy will be back in the morning?"

"I did, but she still cries," Armaan sighed. Shona let out a yawn and sleepily put her head on Armaan's chest. "Time for bed, Shona?" he asked her softly, rubbing circles on her back.

Shona looked up at him and then at Nikki and around her. She yawned again and looked at Armaan with questioning eyes. Armaan smiled lovingly at her, knowing that look. "Let's put the pajamas on and then we'll ask Grandma Nikki to tell us a story."

"You just told her you're getting ready for bed. I don't see her complaining," she said, not understanding why Armaan said he had trouble putting Shona to sleep while Shilpa wasn't home.

Armaan smiled and motioned for her to watch him. As he walked over to the table where he and Shilpa were changing Shona's clothes and from the moment Armaan put her down on it, Shona started whimpering. At first, she whimpered, but when Armaan put the pajamas next to her and he started undressing her, Shona started crying from the top of her lungs.

"See?" Armaan smiled at her mother. He started talking to the baby then, but his voice was hardly comprehensible. He changed her diaper and then her clothes and only when he took her into his arms, she started calming down a little bit.

"She has healthy lungs," Nikki muttered, already deafened by Shona's crying.

"I got used to it," Armaan sighed and carried Shona to her favorite spot, in the rocking chair. The rocking movements didn't help much as Shona knew what he was trying to do.

"Maybe you should call Shilpa and let Shona hear her voice," Nikki suggested.

Armaan sighed and shook his head. "We tried this once, but she got frustrated because she couldn't see the person and kept crying."

"When Sapna first started as Nanny here?" she asked and Armaan nodded. "That was a long time ago, Armaan. Shona has grown in the meantime and maybe now she will react differently."

"We could try," Armaan agreed. He looked for his phone and called Shilpa. He hurried to explain the situation to Shilpa before she could freak out with reason and just then he put the phone on speaker so that Shona could hear Shilpa.

"Hey there, Shona," Shilpa said in the phone. "Can we hear me, sweetie? It's mommy."

Shona stopped from crying and as she had done the first time, she looked around her.

"That's mommy talking to you on the phone," Armaan said, showing her phone.

"Shona?" Shilpa asked again.

For the first time, Shona noticed where her mother's voice was coming from. She looked confusedly at it and then at Armaan.

"Mommy is talking to you. Do you want to talk to her?" Armaan said.

"Mommy can't be there with you to put you to sleep, Shona," Shilpa started talking. "I will be there in the morning when you wake up. Now let Armaan put you to bed, ok? It's late and little girls like you need to sleep at this hour."

Shona was no longer crying. But at this point she had an obvious frown on her face. She kept watching the phone while her mother talked to her, until she started hitting it with her tiny fist.

Armaan chuckled at her reaction. "I think she either doesn't like your new look or she doesn't like what you're saying to her. Say good night to mommy now, Shona."

"Sleep well, baby. I will see you in the morning," Shilpa said.

"Ok, I am going to try again. She looks… calmer now," Armaan said, still worried because of the frown that Shona was showing. "I will call you later, Shi."

"No," Shilpa said quickly. "Let the connection on. I want to hear her and make sure she is calm now."

"Shilpa," Armaan sighed, smiling at his mother- who had stayed aside in all this time.

"Armaan, I am not arguing with you over this," Shilpa said sternly.

"Don't you have a life to save?" he asked her and right in that moment he heard her pager. "It sounds like you do," he chuckled.

Shilpa groaned. "I'll call you later. Don't go to sleep."

"I won't. Mom is here and we're going to stay and talk for a little while. I hope you don't mind if she sleeps over," he asked.

"I don't mind. Call me back if she refuses to go to sleep," Shilpa demanded.

"I will. Bye," Armaan said and hung up.

"Don't call her back. I don't think she'll be able to focus on her job if she knows her baby is restless," Nikki chuckled as she recognized the type of mom Shilpa was.

"I won't," Armaan laughed. "Besides, it looks like Shona is calm now," he said, looking at Shona, who was sleepily resting her head on his chest and sucking her thumb.

"I don't want to imagine how it will be when she will start having teeth growing," Nikki stated.

"Me neither," Armaan chuckled.

"Do you think you can handle her now?" she asked him.

Armaan smiled smugly. "Mom, I have done this before."

Nikki chuckled, rolling her eyes. "Do you want me to tell her a story?"

"No," Armaan shook his head. "I don't think she needs other distraction right now."

"Ok," she nodded. "I'll go make something to eat."

"See what Sapna made for us. She is a great cook," he said.

Left alone with Shona, Armaan sat back down in the rocking chair and lay Shona into his arms, gently cradling her. "See? You can go to sleep even if Mommy isn't home. I am not that scary. Actually, I think I am quite charming," he chuckled and leaned down, kissing her on the forehead. The conversation he had had with his mother about Shona came back into his mind. "We're in a very complicated situation right now, Baby Shona," he sighed and smiled down at her. Though sleepy, Shona was curiously looking at him. "You know, I am sort of a father to you. This means that I do what Daddies usually do, but I don't care if you call me Daddy and Armaan. I am sure you love me like a Daddy. Can I tell you a secret?" he whispered. "You already are Daddy's little girl. My little girl," he whispered against her forehead and kissed her.

As he looked at her, Armaan saw her smiling at him. "And I keep telling everyone how smart you are," he chuckled. He started rocking her slowly and in a matter of seconds, Shona was asleep. Armaan kept rocking her, although he knew she wouldn't wake up again too soon. He watched her sleeping, smiling proudly at his little girl.

Nikki Malik was an early and very active woman, so she didn't linger for too long in bed once she woke up. The light was dim outside, as she could see through the closed curtains. She pulled her robe on her and slipped in her slippers as she stood out of bed. The house was very quiet at that early hour, when she walked out of her room. Armaan's bedroom door was half-open, same as Shona's. Nikki wondered what hour Armaan needed to be up, but she assumed he was getting for work already.

She slowly walked in Shona's room, wanting to check on her, and was surprised to hear her prattling and giggling in her crib. As she walked over to her crib and looked down, Nikki was greeted with a smile from the baby. Shona had one toe in her mouth, while she was holding her blanket with the other hand.

"Good morning, Shona," Nikki smiled, carefully picking her up from the crib. "Why are we so quiet? You didn't tell anyone you were up?" she started talking to her, pacing with her in the room.

Shona let out a whimper and fixed her stare on Nikki.

"Why are you staring at me again?" Nikki asked, confused. "I thought we met already."

Shona let another whimper out and looked down at her crib.

"You want back down? You're still sleepy?" she asked her, trying to understand what Shona wanted to say.

Shona looked at her and whimpered again. Then she looked back at her crib.

"I don't know," Nikki admitted, defeated, and put her back down in her crib.

Shona swung a little and reached for her blanket, taking it in her tiny fist and giggling at Nikki.

"You wanted the blanket?" Nikki laughed and picked her up again, this time wrapping the baby into the blanket. "You need to give me some time to get used to your language, ok?" she chuckled and gave Shona a kiss. "You really are a sweet baby. And very pretty too. You have these beautiful eyes, just like your mommy's," she said, while picking up the pace again. Just then she spotted one of the photos Shona had on one of the shelves. Nikki took a photo of Shona and Shilpa and looked better at them. "You don't look much like your mother," she noticed and then she looked at Shona. "Your puffy cheeks remind me of someone," she said thoughtful, trying to figure out who exactly Shona reminded her of. "It must be one of my children," she concluded. "Babies look alike most of the times.

Shona liked to stare but she didn't like to be stared at. She whimpered and hid her face in Nikki's shoulder.

Nikki smiled and gently patted her on the back.

"Let's see what Armaan is doing, ok?" she gave Shona a kiss and walked out of the room. Nikki decided to check first if Armaan was in his room. She knocked once and pushed the door open, peaking inside.

Armaan was lying in the middle of the bed, sleeping deeply. His mother shook her head and smiled at Shona. "What do you say about him? He was supposed to be up before you."

Shona looked up at her and then she continued playing with her fingers.

As Nikki didn't know what time Armaan needed to be up and get ready for work, she walked inside, ready to wake him up herself. When she was about to touch him, Nikki saw the alarm was still set on. Shona bent in Nikki's arms and whimpered as she tried to touch Armaan. Though her whimper was loud, Armaan didn't flinch. "Let's give him a few more minutes," Nikki whispered to Shona. "He must be exhausted."

Though she kept looking after Armaan, Shona didn't argue when Nikki took her out of the room. "Let's see what we can give the baby to eat," Nikki said. They had just reached down at the bottom of the stairs when Nikki heard a key into the latch and immediately saw Sapna coming in. "Good morning, Sapna," Nikki came greeting her. "You're very early."

Sapna smiled, pinching Shona's cheek, and then she looked at Nikki. "I woke up earlier than usual this morning, so I decided to come here. Did you sleep well?"

"Very well," Nikki nodded. "I don't believe Shona cried last night."

"Oh she's over that phase already," Sapna chuckled. She hung her jacket in the closet and rubbed her hands to warm them up. "She sleeps through the whole night. Shilpa says she rarely wakes up and asks for something."

"I noticed she's very quiet too when she wakes up. For instance, I just found her in her crib, giggling and playing by herself," Nikki said.

"She does that all the time," Sapna confirmed. "She only cries if she's hungry or wet, otherwise you wouldn't know if she's awake yet."

The two women went together in the kitchen and Sapna was surprised to see that Armaan wasn't there. "Armaan had to leave?" she asked, confused.

"He's still asleep," his mother said while she put Shona in her highchair. "Stay here while we prepare the breakfast, ok?"

"I'll make a milk formula," Sapna said. "She likes eating solids now, but she needs to have some milk too."

Nikki agreed. "And I will make the coffee for us and something to eat. Tell me please," she said, hesitating a little in front of the refrigerator. "How do Armaan and Shilpa get along? I mean, as couple?"

Sapna smiled and didn't mind being asked about them. "As far as I could see, they make a perfect couple; a perfect family, actually. I was surprised when I found out that Armaan wasn't Shona's biological father."

Nikki hesitated again before she put the next question. She took the milk and some eggs out of the refrigerator first. "Do you know anything about Shona's father?"

Sapna smiled apologetically and shook her head. "It's not my business, but if anyone asks me, I say Armaan is her father." She could read some worry on Nikki's features and she guessed the reason for it. "I don't think Shilpa will ever go back to that man," she said quietly and glanced discreetly at Nikki, checking how inappropriate her statement was. Nikki was watching her, waiting more. Sapna took a deep breath to get more courage and looked at her. "I mean, I can see how much she loves him and how attached Shona is to him. Even if that man comes and asks to meet his daughter, Shona would stay in Shilpa's custody and live with her and Armaan. I think she already knows who her father is. Isn't that so, Shona?" she asked Shona.

Shona frowned and let out a whimper, fussing in her chair.

"I don't thinks she's interested in hearing us talking about her Mommy's personal life," Nikki chuckled. She looked at Sapna and smiled gratefully, "Thank you."

Sapna nodded once. "That's just how I see the things," she said.

While the women were cooking, Shona started becoming more restless and at one point she started crying. She was hungry now, so no more Ms. Nice.

Sapna pulled a chair next to Shona and checked the milk's temperature before she gave her the bottle. Shona had calmed down when she saw Sapna coming to sit with her and looked confused at the bottle as if she was seeing it for the first time. She frowned and slapped it when Sapna brought it to her mouth and then she started crying again.

"Maybe she doesn't like the position," Nikki suggested.

Sapna agreed with her and put the bottle aside, standing up to take Shona from her chair. She placed her onto her lap and then she tried giving her the bottle again. Shona refused firmly.

"Is there something wrong with the milk?" Sapna asked herself, unable to understand why Shona was refusing the bottle. "Baby, you need to have some milk too. You'll get solids later, I promise."

Nikki chuckled as she thought she might know what Shona wanted. Armaan had said she was special. "Maybe she expects to eat from her bowl. Maybe she wants to eat like a big girl now."

"You know, you're right," Sapna said and put Shona back into her highchair. "I don't think they bought her a cup yet," she said, looking through the cupboard. She took out a small cup, the one she thought it was the most proper for a baby. She opened the bottle and poured some milk into the cup. "Let's see now," Sapna showed Shona the cup. "Here's your milk."

Shona looked with a frown at the cup and her lips stayed pressed together. Sapna didn't panic, thinking that once she had the cup against her lips, Shona would open her mouth. Shona stayed firm with her decision. She didn't know exactly what that strange object was, so she didn't trust it.

"Let me try," Nikki said and took the cup from Sapna. "Here, baby. Aren't you hungry? We have milk in here," she let the cup lower so that Shona could look inside.

That seemed to attract her more. Shona put a finger inside and then she took it to her mouth, tasting it. She giggled and put her whole hand inside.

"She likes it," Nikki laughed and now she tried to make her drink from the cup. Exactly when she leaned the cup, Shona whimpered and turned her head away, making the milk pour on her pajamas and on her blanket. "And she's soaked." Nikki stated and sighed, defeated.

At this point, Shona couldn't stand it anymore; she was hungry, she was soaked and she was stressed with the two women's struggles to feed her, so she started crying from the top of her lungs.

Sapna grabbed some wipes to clean Shona, while Nikki cleaned the milk from the table. "This reminds me of the time when Armaan called me asking for my help, because Shona didn't like any type of milk formula," Nikki said and took Shona in her arms. "Baby," she started talking to her and showing her the bottle. "Don't you remember this? This is for drinking milk with it."

They heard some booms coming from out of kitchen and soon Armaan ran inside, stumbling, half asleep and panicked. "What happened?" he asked desperately, quickly looking for Shona. "Why is she crying?" he asked and took Shona from his mother, slowly rocking her.

"She doesn't want the bottle, Armaan," Sapna explained. "And she needs to eat some milk too."

Armaan groaned, rolling his eyes and put Shona back into her chair. Shona screamed and clung on him, refusing to sit there. Armaan didn't listen to her and let her stay in the chair while he sleepily looked for something in the cupboard. He took Shona's bowl and then he looked for her spoon. He brought them to the table and looked at the two women. "Didn't you think about trying this?" he asked them and poured milk into the bowl.

"Do you want to give her the milk with the spoon?" his mother asked, almost not believing he could come up with that idea.

"No. One of you will do it, because I need my brain to chill out," he said and held out the bowl so that one of them to take it.

Sapna took the bowl and everyone watched how she tried to give Shona the milk with the spoon. Shona stopped from crying as she saw her bowl, but she kept sobbing. She looked with a glare at everyone around her while she ate from Sapna.

"This isn't normal, Armaan," his mother disapproved. "She'll turn into a spoiled child."

"Why? Because she wants to eat from a bowl?" Armaan retorted. "Weren't you saying how hard it was for you to make us give up on the bottle when we were little?"

Nikki sighed and didn't reply to that.

"This will take forever," he muttered looking at how Sapna was feeding Shona. "Maybe we should try with the bottle again."

He took the empty bottle from the table to go and prepare more milk, but as Shona saw it, she started crying and throwing her fist towards him, refusing firmly the idea of being fed with the bottle again.

"That's called tantrum," Nikki pointed out.

In the meantime, Shilpa pulled the car in front of her house. The sun was moving up on the sky and the light was becoming brighter as the sun reflected in the snow. Shilpa drew in some fresh air and let the stress of a night shift out. It had been a busy and exhausting night, unfortunately the last one for one of her patients. Shilpa tucked the jacket around her body and walked towards her house. She unlocked the door and let herself inside. From the doorway she could hear Shona's crying. She shut the door and ran to see what was happening to her baby. She stopped at the entrance and looked at all the people gathered around Shona.

"What's going on here?" she demanded, walking over to the table to check on her baby.

Hearing Shilpa, Armaan knew they were in serious trouble; nobody was allowed to mess with Shona's nerves. Armaan smiled and pulled her into his arms before she could pass past him.

"Hard night?" he asked her, holding her hair to back and trying this way to distract her from whatever thoughts she had in that moment.

When Shona was crying like that, Shilpa couldn't be distracted. "Yes," she glared at him and pushed him away, walking over to the table to get her daughter.

Baby Shona calmed down just a little bit once she was in her Mommy's arms. "What's going on here? Why is she soaked?" she asked the others as she ran her hand over Shona's stomach, soaked of milk.

"She doesn't want the bottle, Shi," Armaan answered. "She only eats the milk with the spoon."

Shilpa sighed and smiled at Shona while she patted her gently on the back. "She just woke up and she's full of energy. She only takes the bottle in the evening. You should give her the milk in the evening."

Sapna sighed and nodded as she understood that Shilpa was right. "I'll make her something else to eat."

Shilpa just smiled at her and put Shona back in her highchair. "Be patient, ok?" she said to the baby.

Frowning, Shona stuffed her fingers into her mouth and reached with the other hand for the bowl. Nobody paid any attention to her as Shilpa was too tired and she took a seat down at the table, resting her forehead against it and as Sapna was preparing something else for her to eat while Armaan took his mother aside for a private chat. Being alone with her bowl of milk, Shona stopped from crying. She kept putting her fingers into the milk, stuffing them into her mouth then. She looked at the grown-ups as if she wanted to tell them she could feed herself too. Shona found the act of eating very entertaining; she was definitely proud of herself. She started giggling and slapping cheerfully the bowl. As the bowl was from plastic and it didn't have much milk in it, Shona's light slaps easily hit it and overthrew it.

Shilpa was having her eyes closed and she was trying to back out the unsuccessful cases she had had over the night, when something light hit her and felt warm liquid pouring in her hair.

Everyone turned at the noise, at first shocked to see the Shilpa's wet hair and then all of them tried to hide their smiles.

Shilpa noticed their amusement immediately. She was tired, her night hadn't been easy, her daughter had greeted her with a deafening crying, so she couldn't stand their smiles. "I've never felt this humiliated in my life," she muttered under her breath. She grabbed a rag for wiping her forehead and stood up from the table. "Thank you," she said dryly to the baby.

Shona looked up at her Mommy when she stood up, with her finger in her mouth, and as Shilpa talked to her, Shona threw her hand in air and giggled.

Shilpa wasn't mad with her daughter, she just felt too tired. She sniffed at the other grown-ups and turned on her heels walking out of the kitchen.

"She had a rough night," Armaan excused her to the other women.

Nobody disagreed. Nikki went to clean the mess Shona had made with the milk and Sapna hurried to finish the food for Shona. "I will go cheer her up," Armaan stated. He leaned down and planted a kiss on Shona's head, ruffling her hair. "Behave yourself," he winked at her, smiling and left her alone with her nanny and her grandmother.

"Babies are so unique," Nikki stated, saying to Sapna. "Each of them has its own personality and habits. After I raised five children, I thought I knew everything about them; I thought I understand them perfectly."

Sapna nodded in agreement. "I spent my entire life surrounded by children and I completely agree with you."

Determined to feed Shona, Nikki took her into her arms and sat down at the table with her. "Shilpa has a lot of patience with her," she noticed, bouncing the baby on her knees in attempt of distracting her from hunger while Sapna finished the cooking.

"She was shooting deadly glares towards us, though we were innocent," Sapna chuckled. She mixed the food in another bowl and brought it to the table. "Do you want to feed her?" she asked Nikki.

Nikki nodded gladly and took the bowl from her. Shona was either too hungry or too thrilled with what she had done to her mother, so she ate without giving them any trouble. Sapna stayed and cleaned the kitchen, while Nikki took Shona upstairs to change her diaper and her clothes.

As she walked past Shilpa's room, she stopped for a moment only as she thought she had heard giggles. Giggles and moans were coming from inside. Nikki smiled at Shona, shaking her head. "He does know how to cheer her up," she chuckled. She took Shona into her room and placed her on her hip as she prepared everything she needed for Shona's toilet. A loud thud followed by a laugher, made Nikki startle. "I don't think you need to hear that," she said to Shona. She looked around the table, trying to find something. Luckily, she spotted an interesting toy that might made sounds too. She took a teddy bear and pressed on its stomach to see what its abilities were. Nikki was lucky because she found a singer toy and not a talking one. Shona smiled and held her hand out for the toy. Nikki put it beside her and let Shona slap it while she started stripping her pajamas off.

"You're a very good baby, did you know that?" Nikki said to Shona, smiling at her. "Not many babies stay so nice when they have their diaper changed. Armaan was horrible when he was little; he was fussing and crying. He was so bad that nobody was really willing to go and change his clothes." Shona grabbed her foot and giggled cheerfully. "He was dirty," Nikki stated with a chuckle, making Shona giggle again and threw a fist in the air. She picked her up and lay her on her stomach so that she could clean her.

As she did that, Nikki noticed a spot on Shona's back, close to the waist. "Look at this. You have a birthmark," she said at first, chuckling. But looking better at it, Nikki noticed something else. "This looks familiar" she mused. "I think Armaan has one too. It's not the same I am sure, but it looks similar."

Because Shona didn't like the position she was sitting on very much, she started fussing and whining. Nikki shook her head, clearing it from the thoughts she had and lay Shona onto her back again. While she put her a clean diaper, Nikki stayed thoughtful. Something was with this little girl and she couldn't understand what that was. Her hands froze on the diaper as a thought struck her. Could Shona be Armaan's daughter?

She shook her head. That wasn't possible. Armaan would have admitted his paternity; he wouldn't have hid it. Besides this, Nikki gave a second thought; Armaan didn't have any birthmark; but then, why was Shona's birthmark looking so familiar to her? She was sure she had seen it to someone else. She just couldn't remember to whom.

Nikki couldn't think about it any longer as the door opened and Sapna walked in. "Oh good. You're muffling the noise," she chuckled as she heard the song the teddy bear was singing.

Nikki laughed and nodded. "Are they always like this?" she asked Sapna.

"No," she shook her head. "There's always one with me and Shona when they're home. Probably they decided to get off the routine now that they have enough help with Shona."

Nikki smiled, shaking her head disapprovingly. "I would have preferred not to hear that."

"I know what you mean," Sapna laughed.

"Hey, did you notice Shona's birthmark?" Nikki took Shona into her arms so that Sapna could see it.

Sapna walked over to them and touched gently Shona's back. "I did. Shilpa says she got it from her," she answered.

"Oh," Nikki seemed to have understood, though she still knew she had seen it to someone else. Or maybe she didn't. She shook her head and put Shona back on the table to dress her.

"Do you want me to dress her?" Sapna asked her.

She shook her head, smiling at Shona. "It's a pleasure to dress a nice baby like her."

"I know," Sapna laughed. "I will go wash some of her clothes then."

Nikki was with Shona in the rocking chair, swinging slowly and playing with the teddy bear when Armaan walked in.

Nikki looked up when she heard the door and chuckled knowingly as she saw Armaan. "Don't you have to work today?" she asked him.

Armaan narrowed his eyes as he walked over to them, checking what his mother's chuckle had meant. "You heard," he mumbled, raising a brow.

"Even the teddy bear heard you," she said, muffling a laugher. She shook her head as she read his embarrassment.

"When you see Shilpa, pretend like you didn't hear anything earlier," he asked. He knelt in front of her with a big smile on his face as held his hands out for Shona.

Though she liked her new grandma, Armaan was still Shona's favorite person. He scooped her onto his arms and kissed her. "We're determined to make a bad impression to Grandma Nikki, aren't we?" he started talking to the baby. "First we cry after mommy and then we want to eat milk with the spoon and we spill food in mommy's head. What will grandma think about us, huh?" he tossed her up in the air, making her giggle delightfully.

"I think she might try to eat the soup with the fork like you did when she will grow bigger," Nikki laughed, standing up from the rocking chair. She kept laughing at his amusement. "I am not kidding. You were a difficult baby," she said.

Armaan grinned at her and planted a kiss on her cheek, "But you still loved me."

Nikki smiled lovingly as she ran her fingers through his hair.

"You've been here for long?" they heard Shilpa's panicked voice as she sneaked her head inside. She gave a questioning look to Armaan and walked inside hesitantly.

"No," Nikki reassured her. "We just came here to take some toys for Shona."

"Oh," Shilpa sighed with relief and smiled.

"I have to go to the hospital now," Armaan stated. He kissed Shona and gave her a hug before he handed her to her mother.

"Now now?" Shilpa asked him, looking at him pleadingly. She had liked his mother the previous evening, but only because they talked for a minute.

"Now now," he laughed and kissed her, whispering. "Shona likes her." That didn't seem to encourage Shilpa so much. "I will see you later, mom."

"You're not eating anything before you go?" his mother asked him.

"No," Armaan chuckled. "I woke up too late this morning." He cringed as Shilpa elbowed him between ribs. "Be nice to Shona today," he told them as he ruffled Shona's hair.

As Armaan left them alone, Shilpa found herself in uncomfortable silence, smiling nervously at Nikki. "I want to spend some time with her before I get some sleep," she said, hoping she would spend less time alone with Armaan's mother.

"Sure," Nikki nodded. She easily could see how uncomfortable Shilpa was feeling around her, but she was determined to talk to her for at least a few minutes. "I won't keep you long."

Shilpa automatically faked a smile and swallowed a lump down her throat. She turned her back on Nikki as she stepped out of Shona's room, feeling closely Nikki's steps behind her.

"Armaan told me about the way you met," Nikki said as they walked into Shilpa's room. "It must have been terrifying to you," she added conversationally.

Shilpa crawled in the bed and leaning against the headboard she put Shona onto her lap, holding her hands to help her stay upright. She hadn't given any answer to Nikki yet and she felt her looking at her expecting.

"It was very terrifying," Shilpa finally answered as she kept playing with Shona's soft hair.

Nikki smiled and came to sit down on the bed. "You're not feeling comfortable with my presence," she pointed out, keeping her voice calm and gentle.

Shilpa looked at her and smiled. "I am just very tired," she tried to excuse herself. She was indeed tired, but she was also uncomfortable with Nikki; not that for the reason that she was Armaan's mother. She really liked Armaan's mother. It was rather the fact that Armaan's mother knew Rohan and it was also because of the secrets she and Armaan were keeping from her.

Nikki smiled knowingly. She could read her better than that. "I know it's not Armaan's baby and I am still glad to see Armaan happy."

Shilpa looked up, surprised with her statement.

"Now tell me more. I don't get to hear about women giving birth into a car very often," she said.

Shilpa giggled. "It was very terrifying; so terrifying that I even let a stranger took care of me and my baby. It was like… I was expecting to die anyway," Shilpa started telling her about the way she felt that evening when she first met Armaan and her daughter.

"You were lucky for finding someone to stop the car and check on you in the first place. I don't know how many people would have stopped and stayed there with you; especially on Seattle's rainy weather," Nikki answered.

Shilpa nodded. "And I was just coming from the hospital that evening."

"Oh," Nikki looked at her curiously. "I hope you don't mind me asking but… did you work until the due day? I mean, you didn't take a maternity leave before the birth?" she asked Shilpa.

Without thinking better at the question, Shilpa answered started telling. "I did have a short maternity leave before the birth, but that day I went to sign the contract with the Chief. I wasn't supposed to give birth so quick; I had had one week left until due date."

"I see," Nikki nodded, but something from Shilpa's statement aroused her curiosity. "You're in your second year as doctor and first as resident?" she asked her, though she knew that already.

Shilpa nodded. "That's right," she answered and as she didn't feel as uncomfortable with her as before, she went on telling her more, "I finished my first year to New York Presbyterian, but then I …" just then she realized she shouldn't have mentioned that. "I had to move here," she added quietly, avoiding Nikki's eyes now.

Nikki didn't reveal her interest and pretended not to have found anything quite interesting in the fact that Shilpa had moved from New York to Seattle. "Armaan told me you grew up here," she said, smiling. "You brought your daughter home."

Shilpa nodded, a little more hesitant now.

Nikki knew Rohan work at the same hospital Shilpa used to work. Armaan had told her Shilpa and Rohan didn't know each other, which was obviously a lie as Shilpa and Rohan were both surgeons. She kept acting as nothing unusual had been said. "That's quite interesting, actually," she chuckled, causing Shilpa's heart to start. "Armaan left that hospital a year before you started there. You could have been co-workers there, but now you're co-workers here. Fate," she added with another chuckle.

Shilpa chuckled nervously, afraid that Rohan would come into their talk. But Nikki's mind was in complete haze at that moment. She stayed composed and continued the flawless conversation. "Shona is an adorable baby," she said, smiling as she took Shona's hand. Shona just smiled at her. "I can sense some trouble with her when she will grow up," she added, laughing.

Shilpa laughed too. "I don't know why, but I have the same feeling; especially if she has started throwing things already."

"Exactly," Nikki nodded. "You need to take some precautions and keep the breakable things out of her way." Shilpa agreed with a nod. "She's addicted to you," Nikki said.

"I am addicted to her too," Shilpa said, gently bringing Shona into her arms and hugging her. "I won't mind that much when she will be spilling food in my hair," she giggled and kissed her daughter's soft cheek.

"Doesn't it feel great?" Nikki smiled, and she wasn't talking about the food throwing.

Shilpa nodded as she knew what she meant to say. "It feels… complete."

"Yes," Nikki chuckled, nodding. "I think that's the right word." She took Shona's hand and gently ran her thumb against her tiny, delicate palm. Shona looked at her and smiled, pulling her hand back and stuffing it into her mouth as she rested her head against Shilpa's chest. Nikki had a thought about who Shona's father was and she wasn't sure if she wanted to accept that thought. Maybe she was wrong. Without letting Shona out of her sight, Nikki hesitantly asked Shilpa, "Why did you move back here?"

Nikki felt her heart sinking as she heard Shilpa swallowing a lump.

Words ran through her head and Shilpa managed to build a sentence as answer, "I… talked to the Chief Gupta and he convinced me to come and finish my residency at Seattle Grace. This is also the place where my mom did her residency," she explained.

Armaan had told his mother about how independent Shilpa was and how much she hated being compared to her mother or receiving favors for being the daughter of Muskaan gupta. Nikki still refused to accept that thought, although she was very sure now.

"I am going to be a little indiscreet now," she said, looking at Shilpa. She could read the panic on Shilpa's face. "What if her father wants her back?" she said, talking about Shona.

"He won't want her back and he won't get her back. He…" Shilpa wanted to say, but Nikki completed the sentence for her.

"He gave up to his parental rights. I know. Armaan told me, but still… what if?" she asked her.

"He lost any chance," Shilpa answered, with such determination in her voice that Nikki was sure she wouldn't accept him back into her life.

"Would you let your daughter without a father?" she asked then.

Shilpa was getting slightly annoyed with the topic and she even forgot about the embarrassment of lying to Armaan's mother. "I grew up without a father. Besides, a father is the one who raises the child, not who conceived it."

Shilpa was surprised to see Nikki smiling. It wasn't a smile of satisfaction; it looked rather as a comfortable smile.

"Armaan loves you so much. He absolutely adores Shona," she stated.

Guilt washed over again and Shilpa swallowed a lump. "It looks complicated, I know."

"It just looks?" Nikki asked her. "How does it feel?"

Shilpa looked down, staring blankly at Shona. "Complicated," she muttered.

Nikki nodded knowingly. "Do you think there's a way to make it feel less complicated?"

Shilpa shrugged her shoulders. "I am not sure," she answered quietly. She felt the mattress shifting as Nikki stood up.

"I will let you get some rest now," she said. "Do you want me to take Shona?" Shilpa shook her head, without looking up at Nikki. "I guess I will see you later then," Nikki nodded. As she walked to the door, she kept glancing at Shona. She stopped in the doorway and said to Shilpa, "Talk to Armaan and find together a way of making it feel less complicated."

Shilpa looked at Nikki and Nikki smiled at her. Shilpa answered with a nod only after she had closed the door.

She let out a sigh and lay down in the bed, putting Shona beside her. The baby watched her mother, smiling as she lifted her foot and tried to stuff it into her mouth. "Do you think she suspects something?" she asked Shona. Shona continued keeping herself busy with her foot, wriggling an arm beside her. "Should I worry less?" she asked, trying to find an answer in her daughter's gestures, although she knew she wasn't talking to her for real. Shilpa let out sigh and put a big pillow next to Shona, blocking any attempt of rolling over. She ran her hand across the baby's forehead and planted a kiss on it. "You should turn into a smarter woman than me," she said to her daughter, before she brushed her cheek against her head and closed her eyes.

Shilpa couldn't tell exactly how long she had slept, when she felt Shona's whimper and her warmth leaving her side. Her eyes fluttered open in an instant and frowned as she saw the person in her room. "What are you doing here?" she demanded, letting out a yawn and sitting upright on the pillows.

nice part ......... plz cont.soon

awesome update

Awesome part Abner, loved Nikki and Shona bonding....

Sheena may be maybe not can never say