Shopaholic V/S Workaholic - Thread 4 (Reposting)

No freaking way.

This cannot be happening. Or did I hear it wrong?

He should be arguing instead of agreeing!

Khushi stared at Arnav with naked horror. He could not be agreeing with her! But he was half-smiling at everyone, nodding in amusement.

What the hell?

Oh crap! Now I'm sounding like him? Argh!

"Sorry, Arnav? You mean-" Eric splutters, the first to come out of the shock.

"She's right! Khushi is absolutely right! In fact, personally, the investors do deserve that windfall. I think they should get it."

He glanced at Khushi who was still gaping at him, wide-eyed and he actually cracked a smile at her. her eyes widened a little more and she clamped a hand on her mouth. He was smiling! Arnav Singh Raizada was smiling, and that too in public, in front of cameras, in front of the zillions of people who were watching the debate.

He Devi Maiyya! She was going to faint...

***

"Khushi!"

She froze, her eyes still mile wide. He came from behind her. Her head jerked towards him to see that he was still smiling.

"Congrats," she heard him say.

"Thank," she nodded uneasily. "You pulled back..."

He chuckled with a careless shrug. "I had to, I argued so well."

Khushi shook her head, her eyes narrowing in disbelief.

"I mean it, Khushi," he suddenly turned serious. "I had come here with the intention of making you lose, but you showed me my place."

She couldn't help feeling a little pride rising in her heart but just then, he was called. Arnav replied he was coming before he turned to her.

"Listen... about this windfall... I needed to discuss to you, but I'm busy right now. Are you free tonight?"

***

"Khushiii!" Anjali was yelling when her friend was getting down from the taxi. "You did it! You were awesome, man!"

She locked Khushi in her tightest embrace and when she pulled back, the latter was choking in desperate need for air.

"You did it!" Anji shouted again excitedly while Saira came forward, her eyes brimming, to hug Khushi.

"Thank you... You save my honour," she sniffed loudly and began weeping. A few minutes later, when Anji and Khushi were alone in their apartment, they sat beside each other on the couch, relishing the slient satisfaction of having achieved something.

"Hey!" Anji jumped up suddenly, as if she had remembered something. "Shyaam had called earlier, right after your interview on TV. He said to congratulate you. He's busy this afternoon but he had gto tickets for this ballet... what was it? Oh, yeah, Swan Lake! And he wanted you to go with him! Isn't that exciting? It's tonight!"

Khushi gave her a hazy, uncertain smile. "Anji..." Okay, how should she say this? How could she tell that the Arnav Singh Raizada she had criticised so cruelly for so many days had asked her on a date, tonight itself, and as a great duffer, she had accepted it.

"Anji... Actually..." she cleared her throat, her head throbbing as she felt her face blush deep red. "I've... I've got a date tonight..."

"Huh?" Anjali stared st her like she had lost it. "With who?"

"Arnav Singh Raizada," Khushi sputtered hurriedly. Seeing, Anjali's horrified look, she quickly added, "But it's purely business, I swear! He... he errm... he wants to discuss about the wind fall!"

Anjali narrowed her eyes, in deep thought, then she smirked playfully at her friend. "You accepted his date?"

Khushi nodded, highly embarrassed and her friend raised her brow inquisitively. "I thought you hated him. Weren't you just badmouthing him... say, a few hours back?"

"Anji! I told you it's purely business!" Khushi blushed darker and threw a cushion at Anjali's face.

"Ok, baba! But what will I tell Shyaam?" Anji's face fell while she thought of her sweet cousin. "He'll feel bad."

For a second, Khushi felt guilty too, but then, a fantastic idea struck her. "Anji! I can't go, but you can!"Anjali started shaking her head in refusal but Khushi urged her. "Oh, c'mon! You love ballet! Go!"

The girl sighed. "Fine! Let's decide what we'll wear? Chal!"

***

Five hours later, Khushi was striding inside St Ermin's Hotel, her chin held high though her heart was performing a series of somersault that she could swear even the best acrobat in the world would be unable of doing. A man in black tuxedo led her to a private corner of the restaurant where Mr Raizada would be waiting for her. She mentally checked her clothing.

Following Anji's advice, she had worn one of the few sarees she had brought with her. It was simple, not meant for business meetings, but as she was going to a very prestigious hotel, this would be very classy. Besides, Khushi always looked really good in sarees and Anjali had insisted on it. Her friend was decided on it, arguing that she would completely slay Arnav Singh Raizada. She didn't wear a lot of jewellery, just her gold-plated watch with matching bracelet that had been a gift from Shyaam and a pair of jhumkis she had borrowed from Anjali.

She sighed and quit biting her lip. She was not nervous. She was not scared of the Raizada freak.

Freak? He was certainly not. Especially then, when she entered the private area, and he turned slightly to look at her. Khushi felt like her breathing had stopped. The tux man had left them alone already but she did not notice. She saw a small smile touch the lips of the ruggedly handsome man who stood before her, dressed in a dark maroon two-piece suit with a dark brown shirt underneath. His eyes darkened as he prowled lazily towards her so that she had to look away. He strongly reminded her of a lion on the hunt.

"Khushi," he had reached her, not too close, but not too far. She dared herself to look up in his coffee-coloured eyes. "Sit down."

***

He sighed as he stared at the list of desserts. "What will you-?"

He frozed as soon as his eyes fell on her and bit back the smirk which wanted to surface. She was ogling at the menu card greedily and he could easily guess she wanted all. The way she bit on her lower lip was cute and at the same time, he found it sexy. As if she was not beautiful enough. Since she had stepped in - that nearly transparent gossamer saree wrapped around her, red, his favourite colour - he had desperately wanted to sweep her off her feet, kiss her senseless.

But the little he knew about her was enough to hold him back. He knew that though she wore western, lived in London and all, she still was a normal Indian girl at heart. He called the waiter and she looked from the card at him, blushing a pretty shade of crimson which made him want her even more. Her eyes were on him, as he ordered. One of each, he said, and her eyes widened, the same cute way he liked it. He looked at her only when the waiter had left.

"I hope you don't mind, I ordered just one of each 'cause I'm almost completely full. So, we'll eat that half-half?"

"What did you order all of that for?" she stuttered.

He gave her a disarming grin. "You wanted to taste all of them, am I right?"

"Mmm," he groaned. "This is really good!" he said pointing at the pineapple crumble.

"Are you kidding me? This chocolate mousse is the best!" she mumbled her mouth full.

He put down the verrine with a smirk. "So, Miss Gupta likes chocolate?"

"Love it!" Suddenly she realised her behaviour was a bit off-tracks, too at ease and she put her bowl down too. Khushi cleared her throat and squared her shoulders. "So... we... we haven't talked yet."

Arnav tilted his head to one side, an eyebrow raised and a small smile played on his lips. "What do you want to talk about?"

"What did you call me to talk about for?"

He smiled. "The windfall?"

She stared at him, her chin high and her face unsmiling. "Yes."

"Okay... So what did you want to say about that?"

"Excuse me?" Khushi's mouth fell open. "You called me here! You wanted to talk about it!"

Arnav leaned forward with and amused expression. "You came. That means you wanted to talk too!"

She narrowed her eyes and he lifted his hands in defeat. "Okay, okay."

Khushi took a swig from her glass of water. "After what you said on the interview today," she asked slowly. "Did it get you into trouble?"

As he nodded, she felt a pang of guilt hit her hard on the head. "Did you... did lose everything?"

He chuckled. "No, but it took a lot of time and effort to explain to the other clients. You don't usually sink your own clients, right?"

She gave him an adorable, perfectly kissable pout, without even knowing it, while she mulled over what he had said. "I guess them should respect you! You sided with the truth, right? That's not very easy!"

Arnav grinned at her. She certainly was an amazing thing. His personal eighth wonder of the world. He wondered what good thing he had done in his life to meet her. And then he realised, it wasn't any common relationship or friendship that he wanted from her. He wanted her always to be there.

"So..." she continued meekly, as he noticed her eyes reflected guilt. "You're not ruined, are you?"

"No, I'm not ruined," he smiled and narrowed his eyes. "Just a bit... I could probably say I might be on my knees right now, but don't worry. Nothing keeps Arnav Singh Raizada on his knees for long."

She rolled her eyes. Arnav Singh Raizada and his ego... Would they ever go for a divorce? He looked down at the brim of his glass. "Khushi, I'm sorry... for what happened at that lunch the other day... I didn't... treat you with the respect you are due," he finally said, frowning.

She stared at him silently. If he was expecting her to smile and tell him it was okay, he was dead wrong on this! She was still hurt. Her wound was not closed yet. He and his girlfriend should have had a good time laughing at her.

"The article I wrote had nothing to do-"

"I know," he interrupted calmly before he looked up in her eyes. He was solemn, she realised. He meant it. "I just wanted to apologise. And that phone conversation... I shouldn't have said that too. It was... defensive... You had us all on the hop that day, you know?"

Khushi felt a little smile creeping up her face. "Really? Even Fakhreen?"

"As fast as her stilettos would allow her," he replied and she broke into delightful giggles.

"Good!" then she caught herself and straightened her face.

"The only reason I didn't fire her that day was because she handled to many clients for AR Communications and if she left, we would have to look for an extremely competent person who could handle the burden."

She bit her lip as a question rose in her mind, bubbling on her lips. She watched her finger run on the edge of her glass. "And you? Did I have you on the hop too?"

Arnav leaned closer, his smile gone. "You've had me on the hop for a while, Miss Gupta," he said quietly. Khushi's heart thudded erratically while his eyes glittered. He smiled slowly at her, so slowly her heart was close to burst. "There was something I wanted to do for quite a while too, but I think..." he glanced at his watch, his eyes narrowed calculatively. "We still have time," she heard him tell himself.

He was on his feet within the blink of an eye, her wrist imprisoned in his iron-grasp, he was pulled her up. He settled her bill quickly without releasing her, turning deaf to her anxious questions. Maybe he had lost his mind after losing the debate earlier, she wondered. As he walked her to the parking lot, he whipped out his mobile.

"Yeah, Todd? No, no! Don't worry, I'll go myself."

He pushed her against the door of a sleek cherry red 3 Series convertible BMW and gestured her to get in.

"What?" she spluttered but shut up at his expression. He really was going mad.

"Get in, dammit!"

***

"Where the hell are you taking me?" she asked in a small voice, clinging to the carseat while he zoomed across the city.

"Won't tell you!" he said emotionlessly.

"Do you realised you've practically abducted me?"

He blinked a few times, glanced at her, then laughed heartily. "Maybe. But I still won't tell you until we reach our destination. You might open the door and throw yourself out of my car even as I am speeding like this on the highway."

Khushi stared at the road ahead, grumbling some incoherent words.

***

"Why have we come here?" Khushi exclaimed as she got down. She stared incredulously at the building. London Heathrow Airport? He had already abducted her across the city. What the hell was he planning now?

"Are you coming or not?" he asked, his brow raised. Khushi walked after him hurriedly.

"Why are we here?"

Arnav stopped under a streetlamp so they could see each other through the darkness. His expression was at the same time amused and quizzical. Khushi frowned up at him, causing him to smirk maliciously.

"I want you to meet my girlfriend," he said after long minutes of silence, before turning his back to her and walking in.

What. The. Hell.

She stared at his retreating back, her jaw hanging open. He wanted her to meet his girlfriend? Right now?

Okay, she could confirm it. Arnav Singh Raizada mad! Completely!

Jerk!

***

She watched him pacing in the waiting area, his patience wearing out. What did this faint heartburn mean? Was she jealous? Khushi shrugged. She shouldn't care, right? She was she to him?

"Ah, there she is!" he told her, grabbing her hand and pulling her forward. Her eyes widened. He was going to hold her hand right in front of his girlfriend?

Well, he had done that before. Taking another girl to shopping for his girlfriend. And he didn't care. Neither did the grilfriend. But had he once thought about Khushi? She did care. It did do something to her...

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She shouldn't think about this. She felt nothing of the sort for him, right? She stared ahead at the woman who was walking towards them. Khushi had to admit, she was beautiful. Tall, slim, dark hair, designer clothes... except she wasn't Indian... But did she care? It was Raizada's girlfriend, not hers!

Her eyes followed the woman, who surprisingly walked past them. Khushi frowned.

"Where are you looking?" she heard Arnav's voice. when she looked up at him, he was grinning, almost laughing, and there was this evil glint in his eyes. "That's my girlfriend!"

Khushi looked in the direction he was pointing, and her eyes almost popped out of their orbits.

"What the-?"

"What the-?"

He looked at her, stunned for a moment. Had she just used his words to voice out her surprise? It made him smirk. All of it. Her wide, shocked eyes, her O-shaped mouth open in disbelief, her way of saying 'what-the'. Everything.

Well, he told himself. Let's see how Miss Gupta reacts to this.

***

Damn!

Khushi's jaw dropped when she saw the woman he was pointing. She was incredibly beautiful, she had this aristocratic essence about her, just like him. There was something which made Khushi respect and like her at once. The lady walked towards them, smiling pleasantly though there seemed to be a question mark in her eyes. She wore a carnation pink lace saree and when Khushi looked closely, she did recognise the suitcase she and Arnav had chosen that day at Harrods.

The woman stopped before them, and in a jiffy, Arnav was standing by her side, swooping down to kiss her cheek before he took charge of the trolley.

"Hey," he said cheerfully, bending to kiss the other cheek. "How are you?"

She smiled. "Hum theek hain. Aap?" (I'm fine and you?)

"I'm fine. And, uhh... this is-"

The lady shook her head with a gentle laughter. "Khushi?"

Khushi's eyes widened as she looked at the woman first, then at a grinning Arnav. He had told the woman about her? That was... unexpected... kind of... Khushi unconsciously folded her hands together.

"Namaste," she stuttered.

"Uhh, actually..." Arnav added. "She's the one who helped me choose your suitcase."

The lady smiled at her. "Hum jaante hain." (I know.)

"And, Khushi," he continued with a devilish smirk. "This is my girlfriend."

She flinched as the woman reached up to smack his head. "Toh Chhote ne aapse yeh kaha? Badmaash ladka! Hum Devyaani Singh Raizada hain, Chhote ki Dadi, girlfriend nahin!" (So this is what Chhote told you? Devil! I'm Devyani Singh Raizada, Chhote's grandmother, not girlfriend!)

***

"To aap bhi Lucknow ki hain?" (So you are from Lucknow too?)

Khushi smiled shyly at Arnav's Dadi and nodded. Arnav came in with three mugs of piping hot tea and handed one to each of them. He tried to smile at Khushi but she ignored him just as she had done since they had left the airport. Dadi saw that and decided she should leave the pair alone to sort out their differences. As it was, she already liked the girl and if her grandson would ever dare to marry her, she would be very happy. They did make a beautiful pair.

"Chhote?" Devyani said gently. "Hum thak gaye hain, aap humein humaare kamre tak lejaaiye." (...I'm tired, show me my room.)

Khushi stood up hastily. "Haan, humein bhi chalna chaahiye. Namaste, Dadiji." She turned towards the door but Dadi placed her hand on her shoulder to stop her. (Yeah, I should leave too.)

"Khushi Bitiya, aap rukiye, Chhote aapko ghar chhod denge." (Khushi, you wait, Chhote will drop you home.)

Arnav stared at his grandmother for a while, feeling Khushi's surprised glare on him. For the first time in his life, Arnav Singh Raizada stammered.

"Uhh... yeah... o-okay..."

***

"Chhote?" Dadi stopped by the door of her room to look at her grandson. "Aap inse pyaar karte hain na?" (You love her right?)

His eyes grew wide. "What? No!"

Devyani laughed. "Aap maante nahin, par aapki aakhon mein saaf dikhta hai." (Maybe you don't accept it, but it's clear in your eyes.)

Her doubts were confirmed when she saw him blush a slight shade darker while his eyes went towards the living room where they had left Khushi.

"Dadi... You think..."

She cupped his cheek affectionately. "Chhote, hum jaante hain, aap shaadi mein vishvaas nahin karte... Magar yaad rakhiye, har aurat aapki ma jaisi nahin hai... Aap jitna samay lena chaahein lijye, par humein pata hai, aapki pasand laakhon mein ek hai. Isse haath se jaane mat dijye."(Chhote, I know you don't believe in marriage... But remember, every woman is not necessarily like your mother... Take however much time you need, but I know that your choice is the best. Don't ever let go of her.)

***

"You don't need to!" she hushed as soon as he was back.

Arnav raised his eyebrows at her. "Don't need to what?"

"Drop me home," Khushi rolled her eyes and went on washing the used mugs.

He smiled to himself. Inside, though his heart was somersaulting like mad, he felt at peace. He drank in the image she projected as she stood in his kitchen, washing up. Especially as she wore that bright red saree. It did something to him.

He could definitely get used to that. Get used to a woman in his house, somebody to love and live with. But, it hit him, he didn't just want any woman, he wanted this one in particular.

Khushi Kumaari Gupta. His eighth wonder of the world...

And he had sensed his Dadi like her too. His parents had met her, and they also liked her. Not only she was now related to Ulka, but they were good friends. Just then she wiped her hands grimly and went for the door.

"Where are you going?" he asked, grabbing her wrist as she passed in front of him.

Her eyes widened and she glanced at the corridor where Dadi's room was. "Leave me!"

He just smirked at her and pulled her closer. "Are you upset with me? Because I lied to you about the girlfriend thing?"

Khushi clenched her jaws and looked away. "Should I be?"

"Maybe," he whispered mischievously. "I think you were just getting jealous."

She looked at him and gave a snort of laughter, sarcasm dripping from the mere sound of it. "Jealous? Me? Are you out of your mind?"

"So you wouldn't get jealous if I had a girlfriend?"

"No."

"Okay, well, I need one," he shrugged. "This one is too old for me, right?"

"Why are you telling me?" she snapped in a chipped tone, though she would not admit she was feeling a little fiery monster growing up her stomach.

"Help me find one?" he suggested teasingly, while his hand traced patterns on her bare waist.

Khushi stifled a gasp when his burning hot hand came in contact with her chilled skin. "Why don't you find one yourself?"

"Hmm," he grinned suggestively and she bit her lip hard, nervous. "I found one, the perfect one, I think. But she's a bit angry with me. I hoped you'd help me win her over?"

She stilled. "What do you mean?" she managed to squeak.

Arnav rolled his eyes. "You still don't understand?"

Her eyes were innocent and wide, he couldn't help but fall deeper for her. Khushi shook her head naively. He just sighed, his shoulders hunching.

"I'm asking you to be my girlfriend, Khushi."

He looked down, slightly embarrassed, then, though he kept his head bent, he lifted his dark coffee gaze childishly and looked at her straight in the eyes. Khushi just stared back, her mouth hanging open in awe.

Arnav sighed and took her hands in his.

"I know you deserve more than that, Khushi. Much more than being my girlfriend. But I want to be true to you, I need time. I don't want us to rush things up and then land in a horrible mess. I hope you'll understand..."

He tightened his hold on her hands and sat down on the nearest sofa, pulling her with him. Khushi saw the sadness in his eyes and that made her frown a little.

"I don't believe in marriage, Khushi, but since I met you... I thought things could be different. For me marriage was always just a waste of time because I had seen one falling apart ever since I was born," he paused, the pain obvious in his eyes. "My parents had met once, just once, and they had fallen in love, or that's what they had thought at that time. A month later, they had already gotten married and within two months, I was already on my way in their lives. But even before I was born, things changed. They started hating each other. They stayed together just for my sake. My dad loved me a lot, and I think he still had something for my mother back then, even if she really hated him."

Subconsciously, she found her hands clench his as his eyes filled with tears.

"My mom didn't care. Neither about dad, and nor me. She always preferred her parties and all... When I was nine, she left us, without a word. Dad told me she had taken a holiday and she would return. I used to believe him, until a year later, I learnt she had actually sent him the divorce papers... I loved her so much, Khushi... Even if I was a burden on her, even if she never really was a mother to me... She told dad she had found someone. Dad gave her the divorce and I'm sure he was relieved to be free from this relationship. But I still loved her...

Sometime later, I learnt she had moved to New York. She had not bothered the least to meet me. Yet, I loved her. And you know what? She had moved out on the day I was turning nine... She didn't wish me... She had completely forgotten about it... Would you think I'm mad if I told you I still love her?"

Khushi bit on her lower lip, her own eyes tearing up. She shook her head in negation.

"She's your mother," she whispered to him. "It's not madness."

He raised his head slightly to be able to see her better. "You think so?"

She nodded with a sad smile. "She did come back for you, didn't she?"

Arnav's eyes darkened. "No, she never even called. I never met her again since she left home."

"But..." Khushi's frown deepened. "Hadn't I met her at the restaurant the other day? And she was at the wedding too, right?"

He stared at her for some time, studying her to understand what she was saying, then his expression cleared, and he smiled brightly at her through his tears. "Oh! Pavitra Ma's not my mom. I mean, she's my mother but... Ah... Okay, when my real mom left, some five to six years later, my dad got married again. Then, she raised me like her own son... She was more of a mother to me..."

Khushi smiled at him. "She did seem very nice."

"I'll take you to meet her again if you want. She really likes you, you know?"

"Really? I'd love to meet her."

"Is that a yes, Miss Gupta?"

She held back a smile. "I don't quite understand..."

Arnav narrowed his eyes and slipped an arm around her shoulders to pull her closer to him while the other hand remained clasped in hers. "To my question."

"What question?" she asked, playfully pretending to have forgotten.

He just glared at her in mock anger before he started tickling the breath out of her...

***

She woke up to a comfortably pleasant warmth in unfamiliar surroundings. She could not open her eyes yet but she did feel a heaviness on her stomach. Struggling to open her eyes, she tried to push the weight off only to be pulled against the rock hard source of heat. Khushi stopped breathing.

Her eyes snapped open at a low grunt of disapproval. His eyes had opened at the same time, so that she drowned instantly in their dark depths. He half-smiled sleepily at her.

"Hi," he huskily drew her closer, watching her blush a pleasant shade of red. His favourite colour. Man, she was so beautiful he could literally feel himself fall for her all over again each second. "Slept well?"

Khushi nodded shyly. Arnav sighed and released her to sit up. "I'll go shower and start getting breakfast ready. Dadi must already be up."

She got up too and, as naturally as if it were something she had done her whole life, she started making his bed, hitching up the sweatpants he had lent her, as they slipped down, being a couple of sizes too large for her. She smiled to herself stupidly.

The previous night he had tickled her halfway to death before they had remembered his grandmother's presence in the penthouse. Instead of dropping her home, as his Dadi had said, Arnav had proposed her to stay back there for the night before he was too tired to drive all the way to Fulham and then back here, or that's what he had made her believe.

So, he had lent her a sweatpant and a pale grey T-shirt which she changed in to sleep. He had walked to her, his gaze smoldering on her. He had hugged her tight and moments later, she found herself encircled in his arms, both laying on his bed, while he caressed her hair, lulling her to sleep. They had slept till late, she realised as she saw the time in the bedside clock. It was already nine thirty.

Suddenly, she froze. Nine thirty.

Khushi made a grab for her mobile phone and panic numbed her brain. It was Monday, nine thirty. She checked the date. Shit!

Crap! Crap! Crap!

Her meeting with the bank manager!

She had completely forgotten about it!

Colour drained from her face. The meeting had been scheduled for nine that day, and she was sure she would never get another chance from that man. She bit hard on her index finger. She was such an idiot. He Devi Maiyya! What to do now? Right then, Arnav opened the door and pocked his head inside the room.

"Khushi? The bathroom's free, you can use it. I'm making pancakes for breakfast. That's okay with you?"

For a moment, she completely forgot about her worries. Pancakes? Like hell! The guy cooked? Seriously? He knew how to make pancakes? He was such a... 'macho-seeming' businessman, for God's sake!

He grinned at her baffled expression. "They're safe, don't worry. One of the few things I've learnt to make so that I don't starve."

She stared at her mobile phone for long after he had left. What should she do? Finally, she sighed and dialled the bank. If luck was with her that day, she might just get spared this once.

She had been sprawled in bed, still asleep, when he had called her. Khushi jumped into a sitting position, her hair in a mess and her eyes wide. Then, she had answered his call with a huge yawn.

"Now you're getting up?" he grinned to himself.

"Hmm..."

It had been five months now since they were dating and he loved waking her up every morning, as soon as he did. Arnav didn't even wait to get out of bed to dial her up. He just snatched his phone from the bedside table and called her.

"You always wake me up," she grumbled in mock indignation.

He chuckled lightly. "How are you doing?"

"How can I be after you wake me up?"

Arnav sat up and leaned against the headboard of his bed, his eyebrows raised. "You're flirting with me, Miss Gupta?" he teased, making her blush furiously.

"Don't you have to go to work, Mr Raizada?" she giggled.

He sighed when she reminded him of work. If he could simply take the day off to be with her, he would, but she refused. She had her own job, and he had a business to handle too which was gradually becoming more and more popular, hence increasing his workload. But then, at times, she would complain that he was becoming such a workaholic he was not getting enough time for her. And during those times, he would reckon she was mad. His eighth wonder of the world...

His BlackBerry beeped loudly at that precise instant and he looked at it silently. He knew he needed to see what it was about but he wanted to talk to Khushi too. Was it about the report he had asked Aman the previous day? Khushi smiled. She had heard the bleep too and understood his plight.

"Go! I'll meet you tonight."

"You sure?" he mumbled half-heartedly.

"Perfectly! I have to get ready too, haven't I?"

Arnav chuckled again. "So, tonight at my dad's place?"

"Yeah. Okay, bye."

"Bye."

Khushi sighed after she had disconnected. She always hated when he had to leave her for his work but she understood he had to. She rubbed her eyes as she got down from the bed.

"Letters on the table for you, Khush!" Anjali shouted from the bathroom.

Groggily, she walked up to there and looked at the letters. They had probably come in yesterday while she was at work but Anji had not been able to give them to her as she had been out late. One of them was from the bank. Khushi smiled remembering how she had escaped problems with the same bank so narrowly five months ago. But she had been able to deal with it tactfully, without missing the first breakfast her first boyfriend had made her.

She had called up the bank manager as soon as she had remembered, the gears working fast in her mind. She was almost unable to find a valid excuse. Then, she jumped on the one which popped up first in her mind, even if she thought it was the lamest one could come up with. Khushi sniggered as she remembered the bank manager's gullible weakness when she had invented a dog of hers which had gotten unexpectedly. She had been forgiven her lateness and she had repaid three thirds of the debt with the money she had earned from her article. Then, the rest had been filled up in monthly instalments and Arnav had not needed not know anything of it.

"So, where were you last night?" she asked casually as Anjali came out of the bathroom, her towel slung on a shoulder.

She failed to see the blush which tinted Anjali's cheeks. "Oh... nothing that special... just a movie... with Shyam."

Khushi nodded absent-mindedly. She was thinking about the night which was about to come, smiling to herself. Pavitraa, Arnav's mother, liked her a lot and sometimes, she even made her forget that she was an orphan and that Garima, the only other woman she could look up at as a mother was miles away. Arnav's father was very warm to her too.

Both of them always took an immense pleasure to tell her about her boyfriend's childhood, even if it bothered him a bit. When they were alone once, Arnav had admitted he was quite embarrassed of himself as a child because of the follies he had but Khushi found them really amusing and she could not help but anecdotes of her own early years, which she either remembered or had been told about.

This was what she liked best. At times, his parents would even start imagining how it would be if Khushi and Arnav got married and had kids, and her eyes would automatically go to him to find him staring back. And he would look at her for a long time, his eyes dark and thoughtful, until she would tear her gaze away...

***

"Khushi?"

"Hmm?" she looked away from the scene outside the car while he drove her back home that night after a wonderful dinner at his parents'.

"What say about a weekend in Cardiff? Just you and me..."

Her eyes widened immediately, causing him to grin devilishly.

"I promise I'll behave!" he laughed.

***

"Ah... Khush? There's a problem..."

She frowned as she sat in the passenger seat beside him. "Now what?" she groaned suspiciously. She was sure this had something to do with his first wife.

Arnav did seem quite embarrassed as he started the car and drove off the curb. "Uhh... I'm really sorry, Khushi... A meeting came up for tomorrow... I couldn't refuse..."

"What?" Khushi spluttered. "What? But you said-"

"I know!" he shook his head reegretfull. "But the clients are going to be here for this weekend only! And they won't be back this soon! And I always wanted to meet them, you know, like... face to face!"

She clenched her jaws together, glaring at the road ahead. "You said this weekend was just you and me!"

"I know, Khush... I'm really sorry!"

Khushi sighed. "Stop the car! I said stop the car, Arnav!"

He halted in an empty parking place by the road and looked at her in surprise.

"What the-?"

"Don't you 'what-the' me, Mr Raizada! You know what? Go to that stupid meeting of yours! I'm heading back home!"

She got down, her cobalt blue pumps clicking loudly on the pavement. "Can you believe it? Meeting clients on Sunday when you should be with your girlfriend? What does he expect me to do? Bloody workaholic!"

"Khushi!" Arnav had gotten down from the car and jogged to catch up with her. "Wait! Listen, I'll cancel it, okay?"

She turned to him in confusion. What was he talking about? Surely not the meeting. Mr Arnav Workaholic Singh Raizada would never ever cancel anything when it came to business. Then what? Their weekend plans? How could he do this to her?

"The meeting," he explained gently, seeing the torment on her face. "I'll cancel it."

She watched in pure shock as he whipped his BlackBerry out and dialed a number. Her hand shot out to snatch it from his hands.

"No!" she shrieked, cutting the call at once. "I won't let you do that!"

***

"By the way," she asked innocently once they had left the outskirts of London for the green countryside. "Were you really calling your clients to cancel things?"

Arnav smirked at her, mischief brimming his coffee eyes. "Were you really going back home on foot?"

Khushi gasped, her jaw falling in indignation. She crossed her arms on her chest gruffly, looking away from him, even as his laughter rang in the car.

Khushi waited in the lobby all alone, tired and bored to death, not to forget that she was as hungry as anything. She glanced at her white Ice-Solid watch and sighed in frustration. Where the hell was Arnav Singh Raizada?

"I'll meet you at six thirty," she mimicked his voice before she downed her eight cup of coffee. It was almost nine and she was starving. Her stomach gurgled loudly to prove her point.

The last time she had seen him that day was early in the morning, at around seven, when she had just woken up. Arnav, on the contrary, was already ready in his dark blue Kors three-piece suit and in the process of tying his scarlet Hermes tie which looked great against his impeccable white shirt. He had been yelling orders at his assistant, urging the poor man to ready some papers for the meeting, which is in fact what had woken her up. After he had finished eating Aman Mathur up alive, he had excused himself quickly and promised to meet her at six in the evening at the Grey Gosling restaurant where he had already made reservations for them.

Arnav had wrapped her in a tight bear hug before sealing his promise with a gentle kiss on the forehead, then he had left as if his feet were not fire. Khushi smiled for an instant as she thought of her 'boyfriend'. So far, he had been the perfect gentleman, understanding her shyness. He had not done anything to come closer to her which she might not like. Anjali had even found it absurd when Khushi had confessed that they had not even kissed yet, even after five months of dating. On the other hand, Arnav understood she was not ready for such a relationship yet, just like she understood he was not ready for marriage.

"Khushi!" a shrill voice startled her. Oh crap! Not Sucker again!

Fakreen Sukhmani hopped into the seat opposite to her, right where Arnav was supposed to be sitting and having dinner. Khushi held back a wince with some difficulty as the woman gave her a mocking faux-smirk, her voice sickly sweet but sounding more like nails raking on a blackboard.

"Good evening, Fakhreen," she forced herself to say out of politeness, wondering why Arnav refused to sack the bitch. Khushi usually didn't quite let herself think this way about people but Sukhmani was an exception. She had given her wounds that would never heal completely and even her behaviour was disgusting.

But now that Khushi gave it a thought, she could be thankful enough to Fakhreen because if that day she had spoken to Arnav on the phone, perhaps she wouldn't have written such a crushing article which compelled him to come on the show. And if they hadn't met on the show, he would never have asked her out in the first place, she would never have met his Dadi and right now, they would not have been in a relationship. And anyway, Fakhreen held no importance in her life, did she?

"You are here with Arnav? Aw, it's such a pity he doesn't have enough time for you!"

Khushi narrowed her eyes but Sukhmani ignored her.

"And I think it's good afterall, you're getting the practice. To live without your boyfriend? Because Arnav's going to New York, right?"

Fakhreen registered the shock on Khushi's face immediately and clapped her hands on her mouth.

"Did I just spit that out? Oh shit! I'm so sorry! Just forget I said that! Forget you even saw me, okay?"

Swiftly, she slid off the chair and disappeared, but Khushi didn't care the least. Instead she sat there in front of the empty chair, frozen in horror. Arnav was going to New York? Why hadn't he told her anything? Just then, minutes after Fakhreen had left, the object of her thoughts appeared before her, having his hand in front of her face to bring her out of her daze.

"Kya hua tumhein? Order karein? Sorry I'm late, voh meeting-" he started to explain.(What happened to you? Shall we order?...)

But she interrupted him without listening. "Arnav?"

"Yeah?" He seemed quite uncertain. Khushi was acting odd.

"Why did you bring me here?"

Arnav frowned and smirked, both at the same time. "Why? Because I wanted to spent some time with you. I have the right, don't I?"

She forced a smile on her face, her eyes examining his face, searching sincerity. Which she did find in his eyes... Maybe, she ardently hoped, maybe Fakhreen was lying. She and Khushi weren't best friends after all and it was obvious she envied ASR's girlfriend...

***

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Nothing," she shrugged.

Arnav gripped her upper arms and pulled her tight against him. "No, there is something wrong with you, Khushi. You've been acting strange since last night. You're angry with me for the meeting, right? Hey, I told you I'm sorry about turning up late! See, I'm spending the whole day with you today!"

Khushi shook her head. "It's okay, I understand."

"Then what is it?" he thought for a bit, then she felt him go stiff all of a sudden. "Did you meet Sukhmani yesterday? Did she tell you something?"

She felt herself blush deep but the defensive edge in his voice arose her suspicions. She lifted her chin slightly and looked at him attentively.

"No, why? Should she?"

He sighed - in relief? - and shook his head. "Just asking, I know you hate her. I'm sorry for that too, but she's particularly good at handling these clients of mine. She absolutely had to come, but assure yourself, I made her leave this morning itself," he grinned, slowly enveloping her in his warm embrace.

Yet, there was no smile on Khushi's face. It worried him because he had seldom seen her beautifully drawn lips he so desperately wanted to kiss dropped at the corners. His Khushi really seemed unhappy.

"Khushi, what's wrong?" he near pleaded.

Arnav watched her tilt her head to one side and look at him.

"Do you love me, Arnav?"

He frowned at her. "Of course, silly! Would I be here with you if I didn't?"

Maybe his way of abandoning her for the meetings too often was upsetting her. He had to take the gloominess away, to bring back his Khushi, his eighth wonder of the world out.

"You want to know how much?" he asked, suddenly getting an idea. Her eyes widened. "Jitna kabhi Dilip Kumar ne Madhubala se kiya hoga," he said, mimicking the actor way of speaking. Khushi broke into a smile. This fun side of Arnav was so rare. (Like Dilip Kumaar would have loved Madhubala...)

"Aur jaisa Devdas ne kabhi Paro se kiya hoga," he tried again, this time imitating Shah Rukh Khan in the movie Devdas, also enacting the part where he lifted his arms, then nearly let himself fall over Khushi in a mock-drunken stupor. (And like Devdas would have loved Paro...)

She flattened her hands on his broad chest and laughed, her head thrown back. "Stop it!"

Arnav chuckled and held on to her. She was one girl who could light up his whole world with that great smile of hers, and she was also the one who had the power to throw him into darkness if she was sad. His face buried in her sweet apple scented hair, he found himself in heaven...

***

Khushi let herself slide into the midnight blue suede couch in the living room of the apartment. If she believed the note Anjali had left, she was out shopping for Shyaam's birthday which was round the corner. In less than a week, in fact.

She grabbed the remote control and switched the TV on, feeling extremely bored. After a few minutes of futile zapping, she sighed and turned it off and grabbed the latest copy of the Tatler magazine, which most probably Anji had bought. She flicked it open and devoured several fashion articles she would die for before she finally stumbled on a pair of coffee-coloured orbs, staring at her out of the magazine.

She smiled in amused confusion at Arnav's face. Strange thing, he hadn't told her he had done an interview for the Tatler. Khushi rolled herself up to sit in a foetal position and drank in the words that were written on the following pages. The interview had most likely been after Arnav had won the Businessman of the Year Award. She stopped cold on reaching the Slambook section.

Relationship status: Single.

"Sorry Khushi, sir has just left the office. He said he had some important work to attend to. You'll leave a message?" the secretary asked sweetly. Sickly sweet.

But nothing could douse her fury. She politely thanked the lady and disconnected fuming. Arnav Singh Raizada. If she could have her hand on him, she would have killed him. Literally. Killed. Him. She tried his mobile again, and again, it went on voicemail. But this time, Khushi took a deep breath. Whether he took his phone or not did not matter. And anyway, she didn't want to hear his voice. he just was a gross, fat liar. He thought he'd time pass with her, and then drop her and she would remain silent?

Sorry, Mr Arnav Singh Raizada! But Khushi Kumaari Gupta was no fool!

"Mr Arnav Singh Raizada! You get this well," she hissed in the calmest voice she could manage. "I am no airu-gairu-fattu girl you can trap in your sweet talks, then walk out as if nothing had happened, okay?" she tried sounding firm and stern but it was impossible. She felt cheated. She felt horrible. She wanted to hate him, but she had already fallen in love with him. Every moment she had given him flashed in front of her eyes and the tears came up and her lower lip wobbled. She felt an ache creep up her throat. Plus, she had forgotten what to say.

"And... and if... if you are single, I'm single too! And if you're going to New York, then I... I... I'll go to... to... to Peru! Yes! To Peru! You get that? And... and I'm not giving you the right to d-d-dump me! In fact... I will b-b-break up with you! Did you hear that, Mr Raizada? I'm breaking up with you right now!"

She cut the call and threw the mobile on the couch before she fell to her knees and began sobbing.

***

Thirty minutes, half a tub of chocolate flavoured ice-cream and a bucket of tears later, the door bell rang. Khushi wiped her face and sniffed as she got up to answer it. Anjali, most probably. But when she opened the door, there was a statue representing the epitome of the darkest of furies one could ever have, staring her down with his dangerous brown eyes.

She blinked a few times, both shock and scared. What could he want now? Ah! She knew it! his ego was harassing him right? That she had had the guts to dump him before he could. Tears stung her eyes again but she stood up to him defiantly to him.

"What do you want?"

A vein was throbbing dangerously in his neck and his jaw was clenched together. He did look pretty dishevelled but it did nothing to reduce the charm. Was it really possible for someone to look so handsome even as he was this angry? She had only read about that in books. He raised his hand and she cringed but all he did was press a button on his mobile, without breathing a single word. Khushi winced as he played the voicemail recording she had left.

"What the f**k does this mean, Khushi Kumaari Gupta?" he finally spoke up after the recording was over, a deadly calm looming in his voice.

She felt herself blush while the tears sprang up, making her throat hurt like hell.

"Is this a composition for a stupid rap song?"

She stared at him silently. Khushi could not trust herself to speak because she knew that if she did she would end up crying and she did not want to cry in front of this pitiless, arrogant monster who had stepped up closer to her.

"Khushi! I'm talking to you! Answer me, dammit!" she jumped at his sudden shout but there was no stopping him. "If this is a f**king joke, Khushi, then let me tell you, it completely sucks! And if this is true, I'm going to..."

"What will you do?" she finally whispered. A tear escaped and rolled down her cheek. Arnav sighed, his eyes closed, then he opened them and caught the drop on his thumb before it stained her salmon-coloured silk blouse, which he realised was already wet with, doubtlessly her own tears. She had been crying?

"What's wrong, Khushi?" he asked her gently.

She slapped his hand away. "Everything!"

"What?" he cupped her cheeks in his hands to make her look at him. Then he gave her a tiny smile. "Your nose is red."

Khushi looked away, feeling more tears flow down and heard him sigh again. "Come," Arnav held her by the shoulders and steered her inside the apartment. He made her sit in the nearest sofa before he knelt down in front of her. "Now tell me, what happened?"

She stared at the magazine which was still open on his slambook section on the coffee table. He took the hint and snatched it. When he looked up again, he looked surprised at first, then he sniggered, making her angrier.

"What?" she mumbled.

"This is what upset you?" he laughed.

Khushi scowled at him angrily. He was making fun out of her?

"Khushi? You believed this stupidity?"

She dug her fingernails into her palms. "They took your interview! And you told them you're single!"

"That's not true!" he chuckled, holding her hands tight. "When they asked me about it, I refused to tell them about us, so maybe they thought I'm single! It didn't quote me right?"

Her heart thrummed madly. He was right. "Why did you refuse to tell them about us? Are you that ashamed-" she asked with a childish pout.

"Shut up!" Arnav reprimanded her sternly. "I'm not ashamed of being with you, dammit! It's just..." he sighed. "Khushi, do you want to wake up every morning, unable to leave home, because a hoard of journalists and paparazzi are stalking you from the moment you step out?" he asked slowly, as if explaining something to a two-year old. She shook her head. He gave her that now-you-understand? look. Khushi sniffed and threw him an accusatory glance.

"But you did tell the media when you were dating those other girls?" she demanded, going redder with slight jealousy. Arnav chuckled.

"Khush, I didn't, those girls did it themselves! Not everyone is like you, you know? They wanted publicity, which you don't care about!"

She gulped guiltily. She was so stupid! How could she have doubted him? But she remembered the New York thing Sucker had told her. "Now explain this New York thing to me!"

He lowered his head and took a deep breath. "I was going to tell you about it," he had dulled suddenly, and it immediately scared her. Something pretty serious was coming up, she just knew it. He was really leaving her for New York? "Believe me, I was..."

Khushi sniffed loudly to fight back her tears.

"I've decided to expand, I want to open a branch there, which means I'll have to be there for a long time... Maybe six months, maybe a year... I don't really know, Khushi..."

She stared at him silently, her heart breaking with each second. He was looking back at her with a solemn expression, as if waiting for her to speak.

"S-s-s-so y-y-you'll... you'll l-l-leave m-me?" she stammered with a sob. Arnav gave her a tight, sad smile and nodded. Khushi felt herself weaken from the inside, as though everything was shirivelling up and a cold feeling was seeping in. Six or twelve months without him? She'd rather die... And without realising it, she had begun crying and he wrapped his arms around her to pull her on his lap.

"Hey, Khushi!" he soothed her by caressing her long silky hair, but she buried her face in the crook of his neck. Arnav pulled back. "Hey! Listen..." he wiped away her tears and brushed her hair back with a low chuckle. "Tumhaari," he nudged her nose with his finger, "naak laal hogayi!" (Your nose is red!)

She bit her lip while his smile grew wider and wider. "To maine tumhe finally bewakoof bana hi diya!" he smirked, causing Khushi to frown in confusion. "I'm not going there without you, stupid! You think I'll live without you? Tum mere saath aaogi, even if you don't want to. Do you get that, Miss Gupta?" (So I finally fooled you! ...)

Her jaw fell open in surprise and he continued, "I didn't tell you before because I was not sure how you'd take that. But I spoke to your parents and Tanishq and when I got the permission from them, I thought I could talk to you but... I wanted to surprise you but I see someone has already spilled the beans."

Arnav shrugged, flashing a disarming grin at his girlfriend but she was a little bit too angry to fall for that. Khushi began punching him on the chest, her tears falling afresh. "Don't you dare ever do such a crappy joke on me, Mr Raizada! Else I won't ever speak to your sorry ass again!"

He laughed and tackled her to the ground, her wrists imprisoned in his iron grip above her head. She hiccupped and sniffed under his gaze and slowly, his smile evaporated as he bent to kiss the wet paths her tears had traced on her cheeks. Khushi's eyelids fell closed, her heart going madder than ever. His hand slid away from her wrists onto her face to trace the contour of her parted lips. Breathing hard, he leaned in to kiss her. Their first kiss...

But the fraction of a second before their lips met, the apartment door crashed open and in came a madly giggling Anjali Jha.