A tryst with fate - updated final chap 11

Jai Walia, whom we all love to see as a successful business tycoon and just can't help drooling over him…Jai Walia has all that materialistic world can possess, however he's not a happy man. Far from being happy, he is turned into a cynical, bitter, lonely and a miserable man and is in desperate need of being rescued by his charming princess.

We all know who we would like his charming princess to be, of course none other than Bani.

Bani, she is an epitome of all that is good in this world. Love, compassion, grace and honesty are not just empty words for Bani, these are the pedestals of her being, and these form the essence of Bani's existence and bring out Bani's true beauty, which cannot be achieved even with a million dollar cosmetic surgery.

Will his princess find him and rescue him from his despair?
Will Jai be able to recognize true love when it comes knocking on his door?
Will Bani know her destiny is standing in front of her when she sees him?
Will Bani ever be able to pass through his defenses and get to know the real Jai Walia?
Will Jai ever be able to open up his heart to another woman?

Come; let's travel together on this wonderful path to discover if these two wonderful souls are destined forever…


Chapter 1

The continuous heavy downpour can be merciless when the rain god decides to shower their unwanted blessings on Bombay. The rain-gods have no idea how much of a havoc their blessing were causing and wouldn't have welcomed the curse they was receiving from one person in particular.

Suffering from a severe headache, Jai Walia just wanted to get home as quickly as possible, however it wasn't to be so as he was stuck in a terrible traffic jam and the only best solution seemed right now was to direct his anger towards the god. Stuck in a jam for over an hour had taken a toll on Mr. Walia who was as it is quite short on temper and patience. He barked at the driver for the 100th time, cursed the govt and god too god only knows how many times before he caught a glimpse of this young lady who was standing across the street at the bus stop. It wasn't that she was extraordinarily pretty, but something in her eyes, in her expression seem to have caught Jai Walia's attention.
He just kept staring at her for what seemed to be an eternity. He had no reason to, he thought to himself, however he could not move his eyes from her as he realized there was something about her, she seemed lost in her own world, there was this sadness in her eyes, which he noticed despite the shimmering drizzle forming a barrier. All of a sudden he was bought out of his reverie by the honking of other vehicles and realized the traffic had started to move, though at a snail's pace, still it moved.

Bani who stood across the road still waiting for the bus had no clue that a stranger was watching her so intently and wouldn't have minded giving her more than a penny for her thoughts. Not too familiar with the ways of the city, she waited patiently for the bus and while Jai Walia was busy cursing God, Bani was busy praying to God for helping her out and her two sisters in this new city – hoping tomorrow wouldn't turn out as disastrous as today where none of the interviews yielded any positive results.

Do you think Bani's prayer will get answered the next?

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Chapter 2

The next day sees Bombay waking up to a sunny morning and Bani too hopes to see the silver lining that one finds at the end of a dark cloud. She dresses up in a pretty pink suit, which also happens to be her lucky color and is about to leave when her two sisters come rushing in to wish her all the best.

Sitting behind a classic mahogany desk and looking all regal and majestic, dressed in a pin-strip suit, Jai Walia, nonchalantly flips through the paper and on one of the pages comes across a quote, which brings an ironic smile to his face.

Immature love says, "I love you because I need you"
Mature love says, "I need you because I love you"

Love, he wonders, 'does this word hold any meaning at all or has it turned into one of those overused, sound good to the ears syllable? The so called love has always eluded me and definitely doesn't have a place in my dictionary or my heart.'

Just at that moment his P.A. beeps him to inform him it's time to take the interviews. Walks in one candidate followed by another and then another. After each interview Jai becomes more and more impatient as he finds none of them up to the mark. His phone starts to ring and finds Aditya is on the other line who wants him to come right away as there seems to be some kind of a crisis. He decides to call off the interview process and beeps his secretary to cancel all the other interviews.

Just minutes after issuing the orders, he hears, 'Sir, you can't do this' in a voice, which surely gives him a jolt and he looks up to see who has the audacity to come barging into his room and question him. Shocked, then surprised and then an unbelievable look seeps into his eyes as he stares at the stranger standing in front of him. Wonderstruck, he keeps on staring at her as if he's just seen a ghost and only when his secretary calls out his name for the third time that the voice seems to finally register in his ears and in his brains.

A little scared, his secretary, Mrs. Bakshi, just mumurs, 'Sir even before I could stop her she barged in.'

Jai: 'You may go Mrs. Bakshi, I'll handle this.'

Bani who still now was a mere spectator after that marching in fiasco, starts feeling a little apprehensive and wonders why did she take such an impulsive step, it's not like her. Initially Bani saw a hint of surprise in his eyes, but it seemed he could read her mind, because even before she could comprehend the meaning, she was rewarded with a hooded expression.

Jai: What the hell do you think you were doing by barging in like this? May I ask you who gave you the right to do this?

A little miffed and nervous, Bani responds, 'I know I shouldn't have entered in this manner but when you call people for interview, the least you can do is take their interview. How can you on just some whim cancel the interviews, some of us don't have jobs and when we go for an interview we go with lot of expectations. The right to give a job is yours, however we do have the right to be heard.'

While she babbles on, Jai gets another call from Adita, 'what's taking you so long, I'll thought you'll be here by now.'

Making sure that Bani overhears, Jai responds, 'There's this young lady here who insists on not budging without giving an interview, it seems I have done a great injustice to her. So just handle the situation for 10 minutes, while I wind up with this sticky situation here.'

Aditya: 'Challenging the great Jai Walia, maybe you should hire her.'

Jai: Shutup Aditya and he keeps down the phone.

Now Miss, ah ah….

Bani: It's Bani sir

Jai: Ms. Bani, you would agree with me this interview has not started on the best of notes and since you asked me for one chance. Fair enough I'll give you one chance with just one question and that would decide the outcome of the interview. Is this agreeable to you or would you like to again voice your opinion against this as well?

Bani, thinking to herself why this arrogant man has to be so sarcastic, 'Sir, I am okay with answering just one question, if that is what you want.' Bani had already resigned to the fact that she won't be getting this job.

Jai: With a cynical smile on his face, replies, 'Oh thank you so much for obliging me. Okay here's your question why should I give you this job?

Jai, already had a devilish smirk on his face and knew she would be giving one of those clichd answers of being hardworking, dedicated, blah blah blah…but he was surprised to be thrown a little off-balance, when Bani replies, 'Don't you think the fact that I barged into the office of Jai Walia to give him a piece of my mind holds for anything? I don't feel the need to prove anything else about myself.

Jai to himself: Ah, no one has ever dared to throw a challenge at him and knows he'll be getting into trouble if he gives her a chance because despite everything he can't help liking her a bit.

Another beep from Aditya reminded him of the urgency at hand…

Jai: Miss Bani like most interviewers; I would also like to just tell you right now we'll get back to you shortly. Hope this response is agreeable and fair to you by your lofty standards and if you would excuse me, I have to run.

Without waiting to hear a response, Jai rushes out of the room.

Bani thinks to herself, 'what the hell have I gone and done, this job is definitely out of my hands, no hope at all. But there was something about the high-handed Jai Walia that irked her to respond like this…'

She sees herself out and thinks of all the other interviews she can attend.

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Chapter 3

The next morning sees Jai Walia waking up to the constant ringing of the alarm clock. Though not an early riser, the demands of the materialistic world forces him to drag himself out of the bed. As he opens the door to his washroom, he remembers how Bani came barging into his room the previous day and his face breaks into a slow smile. The smile lingers on even while he boards the business class of Jet Airways flight to Delhi. He again lets his thoughts meander towards Bani as the aircraft taxies to take-off. Never a believer in destiny, he wonders is this a mere coincidence or a well-planned design by an omnipresent power.

Lost in his thoughts, it takes him a while to comprehend that the air-hostess was offering him a drink. He sips from a glass of orange juice and recollects in the past 24 hours how many times he has needed others to snap him out of his reverie. This was very unlike him and he discovered the reason was Bani as from the first glance he felt there was this invisible chord that linked him to her. Though he just met her twice and she was in the worldly sense a complete stranger, however this is not what he felt, he felt like he knew her and this was definitely not good news. He had come to a stage where things like relationships, commitment and marriages held no value for him. Just as the captain announced, they are about to land in Bombay, Jai Walia made a resolve of forgetting Bani once and for all.

A week passes by and Bani is still without a job. Though she knew the outcome of that fateful interview beforehand, she harbored a precarious hope in heart, maybe…

But why, she questions herself the very next moment. Who would enjoy working for a tyrant, definitely not her, then why does she feel so disheartened, and the fact this feeling does not arise from being rejected, but rather from not being able to see that tyrant of a man again. Surprised and astonished, she refuses to delve further as realizing one's true feelings can get a little scary at times. At such times, the security of handling daily chores is always a relief and busies herself with finding a new job among other mundane details.

Taking out a red sketch pen, she circles all the important prospects and likes one in particular, which is an opening with an event management company. After fixing up an appointment for the next day, she goes back to her thoughts and chores.

The next day, Bani finds herself waiting in the elegant reception area of the event management company. Dressed in a pink chiffon sari with just a thin strand of pearls draped around her neck, Bani hopes she does not return home disheartened.

After a wait of few minutes, the receptionist shows her the way to the director's room. Hesitantly she knocks on the door and is told to come in a voice which sounds distinctly differently to the thundering deep growl of Jai Walia. She's welcomed with a warm greeting and a pleasant smile by a man who introduces himself as Aditya. The interview starts with the perfunctory round of questions to which Bani replies aptly and in less than an hour she walks off from there smiling and jubilant, and with a promise of coming back the next morning.

Elated and overjoyed, she rushes back home to give her sisters the good news and all three of them decide to mark this special occasion by dining out at one of the classy restaurants.

Bani's hesitancy on spending lavishly is soon taken care by Pia who insists on paying for the dinner from the money she had received from her modeling assignment.

Excited and happy the three sisters dress each other up, hop onto a taxi and Pia tells the taxi driver to take them to one of the hottest restaurants in town. Beaming and grinning like a bunch of school kids, the three sisters enter the opulent lobby of a five-star hotel and are escorted by one of the bell boys to the open-air terrace garden restaurant. They are so engrossed in themselves that they become totally oblivious of the world around them and don't notice a stranger with a bemused expression keenly observing them.

Jai Walia is surprised at yet another coincidence and speculates if destiny is throwing him a challenge, then he's ready to defy and beat destiny at its own game. Jai who always believed in creating one's own destiny was not aware he would love to lose this particular game.

His eyes immediately scan through the crowd for the manager and a glance is all it takes for the manager to be at his side immediately. Jai's inaudible whispering results in an instant reaction as the next moment the three sisters are presented with a complimentary bottle of wine and informed the dinner is on the house. While Rano and Pia look absolutely elated, Bani has a questioning expression on her face and is immediately assured when the manager replies, 'Ma'am our hotel is celebrating its 10th anniversary and that's why all the visitors today are being treated as our special guests, hence this privilege, which is being extended to all. I hope you enjoy the champagne and the dinner,' saying this manager walks away.

'Wow, this is just so exciting, we couldn't have asked for anything more, come on Di let's raise a toast to your new job,' says a jubilant Pia.

'But you know I don't drink,' utters Bani, 'Di, please just this once, Rano please tell Di nah,' pitches in Rano, 'yes Di, let's raise a toast to your new job.'

Not the one to disappoint her sisters, Bani gives in and as the three sisters raise their champagne flutes and make a toast to Bani's new job, all of a sudden they hear a deep, sexy voice saying, 'Amen to that'. Bani immediately recognizes and turns around to confirm the owner of that unforgettable voice.

'Ah Ms. Dixit we meet again and if you don't mind, I would too like to raise a toast to your blushing cheeks. I hope you always blush and look this beautiful like the way you do right now.' Bani who till now couldn't get a word out is now absolutely dumbstruck, while her two sisters can't help, but stare at this charming stranger with admiration and awe.

Bani finally tries to make sense of her incoherent thoughts, 'Mr Walia you and here?'
'I am glad to see finally you found your voice and is there some kind of a cardinal rule that I can't be here,' retorted Jai who seem to love every second of this moment.
Bani fumbles, 'I am sorry, I did not mean it that way, I am just surprised to see you, that's all.'
Jai: 'Quite a contrast to the Ms. Dixit who came to my office that day and you have no idea how surprised I am to seeing you today.' Jai mutters to himself, 'You have no idea how hard I am trying to get you out of my mind and…'

'Did you say something,' asks Bani
'No, did you hear anything,' Jai passes back the question to her, which goes unanswered as they are interrupted by Pia, 'Will someone please enlighten us on what's going on here.'

Bani finally manages to get her voice back, 'I am sorry, in all this confusion, I forgot to do the introductions. This is Mr. Walia, a prominent figure in the business world and I met him few days back when I had gone to give an interview at his office.'

Rano who has been a silent spectator till now suddenly puts up a question for Jai, 'So Mr. Walia, wasn't our sister good enough to qualify for the job?'

Looking at Bani, Jai replies, 'No, nothing of that sort. In fact she was more than qualified for the job and Ms. Dixit proved that, didn't you Ms. Dixit', Bani can't help blushing again and nothing seems to miss Jai Walia's charismatic eyes, 'Did I say something wrong Ms Dixit?' asks Jai Walia in an innocent tone.

'To answer your question, that day, I had to leave in a hurry and somehow in that hustle I lost her resume and hence had not way of contacting her,' answered Jai, which was far from truth.

Realizing this is a good time to take his leave before he finds himself trapped in a web of sticky questions, he bids them goodbye and for one last glimpse of that blush, adds, 'I hope Ms. Dixit I get to bump into you real soon.'

Before Bani could mutter something, Jai Walia is already out of her sight. Pia can't seem to suppress her curiosity anymore and inquires, 'Di why didn't you tell us about him earlier, he's just soooo charismatic. Di you like him, don't you? I hope you get to meet him real soon.'

'Shutup Pia, I don't even know him and you are completely wrong, I have no such liking for him. He's arrogant, rude, sarcastic, disrespectful and a complete male chauvinistic pig,' says a confused looking Bani.

'Don't you think that's quite a lot of strong adjectives for someone you have met just once,' intercepts Rano.

Caught guilty, Bani changes the subject, 'Can you girls talk about something else, other wise I am leaving.'

Seeing this part of Di for the first time, Pia and Rano exchange a curious look among themselves and decide to change the subject.

Next morning Bani gets up early so that she can avoid the early morning traffic and reach office on time as it is her first day. She does manage to make it to office on time and one of the employees decides to introduce her to everyone in the office. Once she's settled, Aditya summons her inside and informs her later in the day the chairman would be coming to meet her and before she can asks his name, Aditya is interrupted with an urgent call. Beaming with happiness, Bani makes her self absolutely comfortable in her new surroundings and she's busy familiarizing herself with one of the projects encrusted to her, when she hears a very familiar voice, 'Ah I did not know my wish would come true so soon, what a yet another pleasant surprise Ms. Dixit, we meet again.'
Bani looks up to find herself staring at a pair of smiling eyes.

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Chapter 4

In the evening while chopping vegetables, Bani recollects the happenings of her first day in the office and again color creeps into her cheeks with embarrassment as she realizes what a complete fool she made of herself.

Seeing Mr. Walia looking down at her had butterflies flying in her stomach. She mused how could any man look so handsome and the fact that he was aware of the effect he had on women made him just a bit more irresistible. Knowing she was conscious of him, he sarcastically questions her, 'Do I seem to have a cherry on my nose or is it that you find me exceedingly dashing and can't seem to take your eyes off me?'

Realizing she has been staring at him unabashedly, Bani clears her throat as if that would even sort her muffled thoughts and replies, 'Don't be under any misunderstanding Mr. Walia, it is just that I am surprised to see you so soon. And while I am at it may I ask you what brings you here?' And before he can answer, she adds in sarcastically, 'Don't you think this is too much of a coincidence and under any other circumstances I would have thought you might just….' and her voice trails off leaving him to make the assumptions.

'My, my, Ms. Dixit, are you insinuating by any chance that I am carving out ways to cross your path intentionally. If you are you could not be farther from truth and rather than pointing a finger at me, I would say you are the one harboring misapprehensions,' retorts Jai in a mocking tone.

Boiling with anger and just when she was about to spurt out, how dare you, Aditya spots Jai, 'Hey Jai you are here, why didn't you come straight in?' unaware of the sizzling tension, he continues, 'do you know Bani'? With his unwavering gaze fixed on her, he replies, 'yes we have had the fortune of bumping into each other once or twice, haven't we Ms. Dixit?' Without waiting for a reponse, Adita smiles, looks at Bani and remarks, 'I am glad both of you have met each other, Bani remember I was telling you about the chairman, well good you have already met him, Jai Walia is the one.'

Not knowing where to hide her face, Bani gathers up the courage to look up and finds she is gazing into a pair of eyes, which taunts her, mocks her and dares her to try and challenge him again.

The next moment she watches him walk off from there triumphantly.


All of a sudden she feels a hand on her shoulder and turns to see who is it and realizes she has been lost in her thoughts for so long that she did not even know when Rano creeps into the kitchen.

'Di what's wrong with you? Now days most of the time you have a dazed expression on your face. Is something wrong? asks Rano with a worried look.

With a smile Bani reassures Rano, 'Today was the first day so I was just thinking about the office. Anyways you tell me how your day was?'

Rano just needed a cue to start off her tirade on the day's happenings as she did everyday, since Bani was everything to her, her best friend, her confidante and her mentor. While listening to Rano, Bani again drifts off for a moment and takes a vow of keeping her distance from one man, because if she is not careful, she is surely going to land herself into a cauldron of problems. With that resolve taken she again shifts her focus to her sister who is still on a rambling spree.

The next couple of days pass by comfortably without encountering any more shocking situations. On and off Jai Walia does drop into the office, however he does not make the extra effort of speaking to Bani after that fiasco. Bani who should ideally be glad is surprised to find herself a bit miffed and though reluctant to delve into the reasons for annoyance, she finally confesses to have fallen prey to the charms of one man she detests the most.

Unaware of the kind of affect he has had on Bani, Jai intentionally decides not to cross Ban's path though he watches her closely. Being Jai Walia, who has women drooling over him all the time, his pride could not digest the fact that Bani thought he was following her. More than his pride, he knew this allegation was not true at all, as all the three times he had actually met her by coincidence. What surprises him more is that he has never bothered what others have thought about him, but for some unfathomable reason it matters what Bani thinks of him. He decides not to dwell on feelings, which are going to lead no where and tries to reaffirm to his belief of relationships are a waste of time, however he finds his beliefs have turned into a bunch of hollow words.

One afternoon while having lunch with her colleagues, the topic of Jai Walia is bought into discussion and Bani who till then was participating in the conversation half-heartedly becomes conscious and aware as soon as she hears his name. She hears one of the girls remarking, 'Have you noticed lately Mr. Walia comes to the office so often, he never used to do that before, wonder what's the reason behind his sudden interest in this office.'

'Come on Maria, he's the owner, he has all the right to be here,' chips in another employee.

'I am denying he doesn't have the right to be here, but this company has been functioning for the past five years and he used to pay a cursory visit just once a month, so how come now he drops in every second day. Don't you find that odd?' replies Maria.
While another employee by the name of Karan adds in his theory, 'maybe there's a conflict between Aditya Sir and him and that's why he has decided to take back the mantle. What do you guys think?'

Bani who had been quiet till now decides to add in her say, 'I personally don't think there's any kind of a conflict between the two, they seem to be really good friends and more importantly they both know they make an excellent team.'

'So what other reason could there be?' asks Karan

'Do you want to hear the answer to that from the horse's mouth?' All of a sudden they hear a distinctive voice and it doesn't take a second to realize who the owner of that voice is.

'Why have you guys stopped, would you like me to answer your question?' inquires Jai in a sardonic tone.

'We are sorry sir, we were just…' chips in Karan a little courageously as others seem to have lost their voices.

'Just what, I don't think I pay you guys to speculate on when and why Jai Walia comes to office. I would suggest if you could put some amount of that speculation into your work, I am sure our company would do 1000 times better.'

'So if you are done with your lunch, I would say it's time for all of you to earn more revenue for the company, isn't it guys?'

In a chorus he hears a yes and extremely enjoys seeing them getting up hurriedly and moving towards their work stations. He then shots a quick glance at Bani, notices anger in her eyes and without saying a word turns around and walks off from there.

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Chap 5

The very same evening Jai gets into his Mercedes to drive back home, when it starts to rain heavily. He hopes just like that fateful day, he is not stuck in another jam as the next day he had an early morning flight to Goa and still had to study a few reports. However it does struck him the weirdness of all that has happened since the night he noticed Bani standing at the bus stop. How strange to think about a stranger and find that stranger in front of you the very next day. Jai marvels at this thing called life, which is definitely full of twists and turns and is way beyond the comprehending capacity of any human being. Just at that moment the famous notes of Ronan Keating's 'Life is a Rollercoaster' resonates within the car and at that very moment everything seems to fall into a certain pre-defined pattern.

As if the world's order has decided to connive against him as at the next instant, his eyes seem to spot a completely drenched Bani standing at the bus stop. He stops the car a little ahead of the bus stop to enjoy a moment of observing her beautiful face without her giving him the daggers. He notices unlike that day, she does not look worried or sad, rather she looks all fiery, angry and a bit irritated and he had a fairly good idea of who she held responsible for her present state of mind. Knowing fully well she will refuse his offer, he takes the car a little further and stops right in front of the bus stop, pulls down the window and sees a surprise pair of eyes staring at him, 'What you staring at me for, come on hop in, I'll drop you' Comes an immediate retort, 'No, thank you I wouldn't like to trouble the mighty Jai Walia, I prefer waiting for the bus, you please go ahead.'

Not the one to easily give up, Jai meets the challenge by stepping down from the car and quickly runs the little distance to go and stand besides her.

'What do you think you are doing Mr. Walia?' questions Bani. Rather than replying he looks sideways to this young girl who can't stop staring shamelessly at him with appreciation written all over her eyes. Knowing the power he has on women, he decides to make full use of it and sweetly serenades her with, 'Hi, could you please do me a little favor, could you please tell this lady that it's obvious I am not performing a bharatnatiyam, like her I am also standing at the bus stop.'

Absolutely dazed and wonderstruck, the teenaged girl just keeps on looking at him without even blinking an eyelid. Noticing this Jai just smiles and turns his attention to Bani, 'See what an effect I have on her, strange I don't have this kind of effect on you, maybe my charm is wearing off.'

Not the one to join in the amusement, Bani stands firm with, 'Mr. Walia you are wasting your time standing here, so I suggest you better leave. Btw you can't just force someone to go with you.'

Humor still glinting in his eyes, he replies, 'Ms. Dixit I wouldn't have given two hoots if you were not an employee in my organization. I am just doing this so that tomorrow you don't have an excuse of not coming to the office and thereby hampering the productivity. No employer would ever want that if an incident can be curtailed beforehand. I am sure you would agree with me on this now, wouldn't you?'

Without waiting for her response, he takes her by the elbow and gently nudges her towards the car, opens the door for her and then quickly walks to the other side to get in. But before he gets into the car, he looks across the car at the teenaged girl and rewards her with a sexy smile and a wink, which seem to work wonders as the girl's face breaks into a million dollar smile. Just before starting the ignition he gives Bani a amused look and can't help himself from adding a bit more fuel to the fire with his comment, 'Ms. Dixit is it just me who gets out the worse in you or have you always been like this since childhood?' To which he is obviously awarded with another fiery stare and he bursts out laughing.

Bani not the one to indulge in pleasantries and small talk, sits stoically while Jai comfortable maneuvers the classy sedan through the choc-a-bloc roads of Mumbai. Though Bani pretends to appear indifferent, she does notice Jai's tanned and muscular hands on the wheels, with his sleeves rolled up 3/4th and the black dial rolex in his hand and then she moves her gaze upwards towards his shoulders and notices how his hair curls around his shirt collar at the back and how is tie is casually tied and all this combined make him look just so irresistible and handsome. Just when she is about to stop herself from harboring such thoughts, she comes across another embarrassing moment, when Jai languidly comments, 'Ms. Dixit I am enjoying it, please don't stop,'

She looks at him with a baffled look and seeing the question in her eyes, Jai replies, 'You know for the past 10 minutes you have been closely scrutinizing every inch of me.' and then further adds, 'Do I pass the test.'

Caught unaware Bani is surprised and doesn't know where exactly to look and tries very hard to conceal the blush that swiftly creeps over her cheeks and noticing that Jai diffuses the moment by switching on the FM, but destiny had other plans as the song 'Rhimjhim ghere sawaan sulaag sulaag jaye maan' seem to add more to the sizzling tension present in the car.

Jai can't help pondering on what's gone wrong with him, after all he's a grown up man and Bani is so much younger to him, so then why is he behaving like a silly teenaged boy and what kind of an effect does Bani have on him. Before he could dwell further Bani speaks up to explain him the direction as they seem to be nearing her house. He brings a halt to both his thoughts and car right in front of Bani's house. Being a thorough gentleman, before Bani can open her door, he gets out and goes round the car to open her side of the door.

Bani steps out, looks at him with an embarrassing expression and offers her thank you to him and then invites him to come inside for a cup of coffee. Jai stares at her and notices that she expects him to say no, but then he surprises her by responding, 'Yes, I would love to come inside for a cup of coffee, in fact a cup of tea, after all yeah mausam aisa hai, I wouldn't mind tea and pakodas, if that's not too much trouble for you.'
Chapter 6

Taken aback a little, Bani is startled to see a different side of Jai and pleased too though she won't admit it to herself. A little hesitantly she invites Jai to her house and hopes that her sisters have left the house in order, otherwise what would he think of them. While standing behind her Jai amusingly watches her as she nervously fidgets with the house keys. Just when he's about to offer his help, she manages to fling open the doors to her house.

Stepping in, Bani takes a quick glance and can't help cursing her sisters as she spots scattered clothes everywhere, books and magazines strewn on the couch and on the center table and used tea cups and plates are left lying on the dining table. She compares the state of her home to Jai Walia's sprawling mansion, where everything is beautiful, graceful and kept in its rightful position, where the walls are adorned with beautiful paintings, the house is decorated with elegant furnishings and where at all times the properly laid out dining table is a graceful sight in itself. Infuriated, she tries picking up things in haste and slips over a shoe that sticks out from beneath the couch and a timely intervention from Jai Walia, saves her from falling flat on her face. Before she can even fathom what's happening, she feels the strong grip of his hands on her upper arms and the close proximity creates havoc within her. The faint smell of his expensive cologne does something funny to her insides as she feels partially intoxicated and just when she's about to remove herself from his overpowering grip, she hears him slowly whisper in her ear, 'Be very careful of your moves as one slip can result in a lifetime of regrets.' Unable to comprehend the meaning of this statement she looks up to meet a pair of smoldering eyes that reflected an emotion, which she was scared to name.

The next moment with a slight jerk Jai lets her free and wondered what it was that just happened between them. He had seen her losing her balance and was going to help her get on her feet, so what was it that just transpired between them? Why did he all of a sudden feel the overpowering need to hold her close to him and serenade her with his touch, his kiss and as he's about to delve further, he hears a cacophony of giggles and non-stop chatter emanating from the main door. All of a sudden the cacophony is broken by the barrier of silence as both Rano and Pia come to a standstill and blankly stare at the man standing in front of them.

'Hi girls, does this run in the family?' asks Jai smilingly.

Puzzled, they inquire the meaning, 'What?'

'Just like your elder sister, you two have the habit of staring like I have just stepped out of an alien space craft, is it just me or is this how you welcome everyone.'
Both the sisters, burst out laughing while Bani has a stony expression on her face, 'See your beloved Bani di, doesn't even find this funny, but I am glad she was kind enough to invite me for tea and pakodas,' and again looks at her with that too familiar amused expression.

Without uttering another word, Bani goes off to the kitchen, while Pia finally chips in, 'Mr. Walia we are just surprised to see you, after all we can't believe our eyes a person of your stature is here in our home.'

Rano never the one to be easily swayed by money and power adds in, 'Why Pia, isn't our house good enough for Mr. Walia? Why do you always have to judge a person by his or her economic stature? Don't you think it's high time you realized a person character is more important than how heavy his wallet is?'

Realizing this little squabble needed an intervention, Jai chips in and tries to calm both the girls, Pia gives Rano a dirty glare and marches off from there. Feeling a little embarrassed, Rano turns towards Jai and apologizes, 'I am sorry, that was uncalled for, however; I just wanted to make Pia understand it doesn't make a difference how small our home is or how rich our guest is, all it matters is how welcomed we make our guest feel. I am sorry for babbling like this, you'll think I am such a bore.'

Jai just looks at her admiringly and replies, 'You don't need to be sorry and I am surprised at this age you talk so sensibly. Believe me, when I say this I have met a lot of people and even though they may be way older to you, they too lack this kind of a maturity and understanding. I feel absolutely privileged in meeting such a charming young lady like you.'

Rano, who never easily got impressed by anyone, couldn't help blushing and just manages to utter thank you a little shyly. Bani who was till now standing at the kitchen door holding a tray of pakodas was surprised to see how easily Mr. Walia charmed her little sister and won over one more admirer.

'Now enough of talk, I can smell the pakodas and see your Di is just standing there holding the tray and I think she intends to torture us for some more time.'

Making a sad little face, Jai mocks at her, 'Ah Ms. Dixit, don't do this to two poor souls, actually three poor souls, I am sure the third soul won't be able to hold her anger for long.' And at this all three, Jai, Bani and Rano burst out laughing. At that moment Pia comes out, trying to still feign anger but failing miserably, 'I have come out just for the pakodas, not to talk to anyone' she says in a sulking mood. Pia gets to hear a second round of laughter and with that even her pretentious anger dies down.

Taking a cue from the joyful ambience, the rain gods decide to add in a bit more cheer with another round of heavy downpour. Inside the house, Bani seems to be content and happy watching her sisters enjoy and more than that watching a different side to Mr. Walia who regales his audience with anecdotes and funny incidents that occurred in his life, while he alongside also polishes off most of the pakodas, and later on a satiated stomach, compliments Bani, 'Ms. Dixit, I have never had such awesome pakodas ever.' The next hour or so sees all of four them talking, laughing and joking as if old lost friends have met after a long time. In between all the lighthearted banter and chitchat, Rano notices Jai and Bani sharing a few intimate glances and hopes those glances turn into something more.
After a while Jai gets up to take his leave and promises Rano and Pia to pay them a visit again, but just before going he does something which confirms Jai has charmed his way into their little hearts. From inside of his jacket pocket, he takes out a pair of keychain, which has a little podgy and an absolutely worn out Garfield attached to it. He carefully removes the keys from the key chain and hands it over to Rano and then looks up at all the three sisters adoringly, 'This is the first time I have come to your house and since I couldn't get anything, I hope this little token will do for now. I am sure you must be surprised to see an arrogant and chauvinistic business tycoon like me carrying a silly Garfield key chain, but this has been very close to me and believe me I have gone through great lengths to hide it from the public eye. I tremendously enjoyed my evening and this is just a little something to say thank you to all of you.' And then on a lighter note, he adds, 'I hope you'll take care of my little fella,' which is then followed by another round of laughter.

As the downpour still seems to continue, Bani goes and gets an umbrella from inside, while the two sisters stay indoors, Bani decides to walk him to his car. He takes the umbrella from her, opens it, holds the umbrella with his left hand to ensure they are at least partially sheltered from the rain he puts his right hand around Bani's shoulders. At that moment Bani looks up at him and they both share a heartwarming smile. 'Ms. Dixit we would need to do a little jog to get to the car, are you ready?' she signals with a nod and holding her close to him they both run to the car. On reaching the car, he opens the door to his side, passes the umbrella to her and wistfully murmurs, 'Ms. Dixit, I have spent a lot of evenings with a lot of women, this evening has been better than any date I have had till date.' Seeing her giving him a warm smile, he does something which shocks him and Bani both, he bends down and gives her a quick peck on her cheek. Utterly shocked and surprised, Bani stands their dumbstruck, while his car fades behind the portiere of the pelting rain.

********************************************************

Chapter 7

A week goes by since that fateful evening, but Bani's cheeks still turns a crimson red thinking about that day and this happens so often that everyone around Bani starts to wonder what's gone wrong with her. A little puzzled and worried, one evening Rano questions Bani, 'Di, is everything okay with you, it seems like there's something on your mind? Has Mr. Walia told you something?'

The next moment there's a shattering sound as little pieces of glass are strewn all over the floor and that gives the answer Rano was looking for. Directly looking at Bani, she softly mutters, 'I thought so' and goes away to get the broom. That night Bani lies awake like all the previous nights and replays each and every moment spent with Jai Walia, each and every look he gave her, each and every word he spoke to her and specially that moment when he left his imprint on her, even though it was just a peck on her cheek, but for Bani that was not something which could be easily forgotten. People may think of her as conservative and someone who possesses a small town mentality, but for Bani even letting a man come near her was not a small matter. Though she was 24, an age when most girls have had a string of boyfriends, Bani did not come close to even having one. It wasn't for the lack of attention from the opposite sex, but it stemmed more from the belief that true love came knocking on the door once and she was willing to wait till she found what she was looking for. Though Bani had lot of admirers, but none measured to the standards Bani had set for herself. Standards did not entail a big bank balance and good looks; in fact it was just the opposite. All she was looking was someone who would not consider honesty, compassion, trust and humility as just a set of good-to-look-at-words-but-not-to-imbibe-virtues.

Jai Walia possessed all the requisite trappings that society deems it necessary to lead a successful life in this world; however this was not the reason why Jai Walia managed to find a place in Bani's heart. She liked him because she saw a different aspect to Jai Walia, which was either kept hidden from the world's eyes or the world refused to delve deeper beneath the superficial layers of power, wealth and fame.

No other man had until now made an impact on Bani as Jai, who had the power to peep into her soul and find out what's hidden there. Possessing an almost magical and hypnotic power, all he needed to do was stare at her with his gorgeous brown eyes of his and she would find herself completely lost in it. That evening too, it just took one glance to cast a spell on her, which she had no chance of recovering from at least not in this lifetime, because just as the first rays of sun struggled to make their presence felt through the curtains, Bani too realized she would need to struggle to hide her love from the one man she had never thought she could ever fall for – Jai Walia.


A few hundred kilometers away, Jai Walia's sleep deprived body refuses to acknowledge the constant strumming of the alarm clock as the past couple of nights have been spent either working or thinking too much about one person in particular. His conscious mind finally relents as he groggily makes his way to the washroom. 30 minutes later, Jai Walia's personal assistant sees him enjoy a light breakfast of a toast and a cup of coffee at the Breakfast Room, which overlooks the wide expanse of the blue ocean. Oblivious to his surroundings, it takes a slight nudge from his P.A. to bring him back from his reverie and to give him a quick brief of the day's program. It doesn't take an instant for Jai to get back to his thoughts and a smile plays on his face as he for the 100th time recalls Bani's stunned expression after that impulsive, yet an unforgettable moment.

Even now he could not understand what overcame him at that instant because it was very unlike him to act on an impulse. But with Bani around, acting on impulse is turning into a regular habit. Bani had captured his attention from the day he had spotted her at the bus stop, as there was something very attractive about her which went way beyond just looks. He grappled for the exact words, maybe it was her innocence or her simplicity that made him get attracted to her. He remembers challenging destiny and not giving into it, but now he's no more sure if he's still challenging destiny or following the call of his own heart.

More than that he is not sure of how he is going to act around Bani anymore and what would be her reaction when he comes across her the next day in the office as today was his last day in Goa. was going in her mind after that rather courageous peck, after all it was Bani who he dared to kiss, Bani who was unlike any other girl he had known because girls wouldn't mind throwing themselves at him, but Bani was different. She did not follow the path, which the rest of the world did, in fact she believed in carving out a different path for herself.

He decides to snap himself out from the realms of his thoughts, in which if he tried to delve deeper, he would get into much more trouble and trouble was something Jai Walia avoided at all costs. So he again makes a resolve of not acting on an impulse anymore and to definitely keep his distance from Bani. He also finally confesses to himself his utter stupidity on trying to challenge destiny because this was one tryst he was very sure of losing to his fate. The rest of the day is spent solving last minute problems associated with the operational problems of opening a new chain of coffee houses, a concept which he borrowed from one of his business trips to Vienna. Vienna is known for its traditional coffeehouses which are a symbol of its rich culture and heritage; he tries to create something similar by imbibing important aspects of Indian culture in his coffeehouse through books, music and even encouraging cultural and literary interactions and discourses. He decides to experiment with Goa as it's a major tourist hotspot and after two years of rigorous hard work, the time has to come see how far he is successful in his new venture. After tying up all loose ends, later that night he takes a flight back to Bombay and reaches home to find out Aditya is down with typhoid.

Worried and annoyed that no one bothered to inform him about his best friend's ill-health, he almost gets up to blast everyone around, when Aditya reassures him, that on his request the rest kept quiet as he did not want to trouble him at such a crucial stage when they are about to launch their new venture. Jai refuses to leave his friend's side for a couple more hours and he even manages to extract a promise from him of taking complete bed rest and not worrying at all about the office.

The next morning while entering the office he contemplates on how he is going to react when he comes face-to-face with Bani, but is saved when he sees she's not yet reached office. However this relief is short-lived as he starts to wonder why she has not reached office yet. After a while, though not intending too he still gets impatient and starts pacing around and barking at everyone. He tries to rationalize his behavior and comes to a conclusion that he was looking forward to seeing her first thing in the morning and then slowly mutters to himself, 'Jai Walia where has your resolve gone now?'

After an hour Bani walks in to discover big boss is back and is definitely not in a good mood. She's about to settle down at her workstation when she's summoned to the lion's den. Elated, yet a bit apprehensive she walks in to be greeted by a sarcastic comment, 'Is this the time to come into the office?'

Bani just stands dumbstruck as this was the last thing she was expecting, 'Are you going to just stand at the entrance or do you plan to step inside as well?' Unable to comprehend, Bani slowly walks inside and can't believe this is the same man who she has been thinking of day and night.

'Just because I have a cup of tea at your home doesn't mean I have given you the liberty to come in late to office.'

Bani who was quite till now, is unable to control her anger anymore, 'Mr. Walia as an employee of yours I am completely aware of what my duties are. Just to get the record straight I did not invite you to my house for a cup of tea and secondly you were not here yesterday that I could inform you I would come late today.' Saying that she storms out of his room while Jai stands there with a shocked expression on his face. He himself is shocked with his behavior, but for a moment he just had this uncanny thought that maybe even Bani like other girls might try to take advantage of him.

But now he realizes that was a ridiculous thought and had already started thinking of ways to make up to Bani, when Bani knocks on his door and comes in, 'Mr. Walia, I am sure you wouldn't like to work with such an incompetent employee like me, so before you can tell me to leave, here's my resignation letter.'

Even before Jai could get in a word and apologize to her, she walks off from his room. Wondering what the hell has he gone and done, Jai immediately calls up someone.

Infuriated, hurt and angry, Bani finds it a Herculean task from stopping herself from bursting into tears. She finds it hard to believe the same man who was so caring and sweet could turn into such a nasty human being. Maybe her first impression of him being a tyrant was right, but still she had fallen for him and that hurt her more. She is busy clearing her desk when a delivery boy comes and gives her a single stem of white rose along with a card and leaves. She opens the card to read, I am sorry and at the bottom it was signed Jai Walia.

Chapter 8

Seething with anger, she walks into his room with the long stemmed rose and puts it on his desk while Jai who had a smile an instant earlier, looks absolutely baffled and lost the next moment.

Without saying anything she turns around to walk out of the door, when Jai gets up, quickly comes around and stops her by holding her elbow from behind 'Ms Dixit, what does this mean?' losing his patience, he utters, 'Dammit, answer me.'

Finally she meets his gaze, 'Mr. Walia it is quite apparent what I mean and what I am doing? I don't feel the need to explain to you anything, now if you could let go of my hand, I'll pack my stuff and leave.' She tries to free her elbow from his grasp, but he wouldn't let go of her without her hearing him out. Noticing hurt and sadness in her eyes, he momentarily softens his stance and apologizes to her, 'Bani, I know what I did was absolutely uncalled for and I am terrible sorry for lashing out at you. There's no excuse for what I have done, but sometimes we do things we ourselves don't understand. If you leave today, I'll always think you have not forgiven me.' Slowly he lets go of her and continues, 'If you still wish to leave I have nothing else to say.'

Slowly turning around, he walks towards his desk, thinking if Bani decides to still leave, he will never be able to forgive himself for his utter stupidity. Realizing how much she has started to mean to him, he sends a silent prayer to God.

Bani who had decided not to have anything to do with Jai Walia, succumbs to her heart's wishes when she sees guilt and apology written all over his eyes. She notices this is the first time he has taken her name rather than calling her Ms. Dixit and for some weird reason that gives her immense happiness. Rather than saying anything, she moves towards his desk, picks up the white rose and with a slight smile on her face turns towards him, 'Mr. Walia if it's okay with you I would like to go back to my desk and water this beautiful rose so that it doesn't whither.'

Surprised and elated, he turns around to give her the brightest smile possible like a little kid who has just been granted his wish. Bani comes out of his room, goes to her desk and lovingly puts the rose in a little bud vase and keeps the card within her purse.
However she still can't figure out if Jai's smile was an indication of him liking her or was it because he was freed out of his guilt? It has to be the latter, after all why would a man of Jai Walia's stature take such a keen interest in her? Just because she feels so strongly for him doesn't mean he would reciprocate with a similar feeling? But what if, Bani wonders and gives herself a little pinch to remind such fantasies don't come true in real life. Who else would know this better than her, who has sole-handedly taken the responsibilities of two sisters, when she herself was just a kid as well. She reminds herself, 'Bani Dixit come out of your day dreams and get down to do some serious work.' With that for the next two hours she immerses herself into the various spreadsheets opened on her computer to check and cross check everything was being carried out meticulously for the opening of the coffee house in Goa. After all the opening was next week and she knew the next day itself Jai and Aditya would be leaving for Goa and would be requiring the data.

However destiny had other plans as the next moment she's again given a buzz and summoned inside to Jai's cabin. She wonders what now and is surprisingly taken aback when Jai informs her, he would like her to accompany him to Goa as Aditya has still not fully recovered. Even after few minutes of him giving her this news, when she doesn't respond, he sardonically questions her, 'Are you by any chance scared of accompanying me to Goa?'

Knowing fully well, this would result in an instant reaction, he teases her little more, 'Ms. Dixit I would like to assure you that you have nothing to fear at least not from me, after all we are going on an official purpose.'

Immediately it dawns on her his insinuation and she's quick to retort, 'Mr. Walia you are highly mistaken, I have no such qualms in coming with you and I am completely aware this is just professional. To the contrary, I would think of this as an opportunity to get a first-hand experience of how to carry out an event successfully.'

'Then what other reasons do you have for your apparent unwillingness to say yes?'

'Those reasons are completely personal' replies Bani

'Care to elaborate Ms. Dixit? Maybe together we can find a solution to them?'

After a moment of reluctance on whether to discuss this issue with him, she finally tells him, 'Pia is out of town on a modeling assignment and I wouldn't want to leave Rano alone. This is the reason for my refusal to your offer.'

'Is that the only problem? You make it sound like I am giving you a marriage proposal and you are leaving your sister for ever and going away somewhere else. For a moment I thought you had a secret such as a hidden boyfriend or better still a husband who wouldn't want his beloved to even be out of his sight for a moment.' He replies with a smile in his eyes as if he derives some kind of a sadistic pleasure seeing Bani seething with anger. He had never spoken to anyone like this before and had no idea why he behaved with Bani like this, all he knew he enjoyed goading her immensely and the other reason being he wanted to extract as much information about her as possible. Bani was the only privileged one to receive this much attention from Jai Walia because he was never interested in knowing much about all his other women in so much detail. He had always been a no-strings attached person and had hope to continue that till the day he breathed his last word. But somehow he was not to sure if he still wanted to continue that practice anymore, in fact lately his thoughts on lot of things have been changing drastically. He was realizing his folly in challenging fate was after all not such a good idea. Coming back to the present he decides to goad Bani a bit more and even take her mind off her worries by proposing a solution, which she would not be able to refuse.

'Ms. Dixit if this is the only problem, consider it's taken care of. Your sister can come and stay in my house and she's not going to be alone there. Dadi, my sister Jigyasa, Aditya, my nephews Sahil and Ranveer are all there to take really good care of her.'

'But Mr. Walia I wouldn't like to impose on you and your family's kindness.'

'Ms. Dixit you are in no ways imposing on me or my family's kindness, I am only doing this because I need my employee with me there and I need the employee to be absolutely tension-free. So please do not harbor any such thoughts and as an employer I need you with me and wouldn't like to give you any option to back out.'

Bani winces at his statement of her being just an employee and realizes he apologized to her because he wanted to free himself of the guilt of retrenching an employee for a silly reason. How foolish of her to think otherwise, she wonders to herself. What Bani doesn't realize is that Jai wants her by his side because this coffee house has been his dream and she's the only person with whom he would like to share the achievement of this dream. Only if Bani knew his true intentions, which surprisingly even Jai was unaware of consciously.

Without much ado, Bani comes straight to the point, 'Okay Mr. Walia when do we have to leave and when do I bring Rano to your house?'

'That's like my girl' Jai murmurs to himself softly and then in his business like cool baritone, he adds, 'I will have my PA make all the necessary arrangements. My driver will come and pick Rano and you tomorrow morning at 8clock sharp, so be ready.'

With this the conversation comes to an end and Bani comes out of the door fuming and fretting and pretending to regret on changing her decision of staying back, as this arrogant man has the capability of driving her insane in a matter of minutes. How would she cope with him day and night for complete three days she wonders?

The next morning Bani and Rano are all packed and ready to go and though Rano seemed a bit reluctant, she acknowledges the fact this is important for her Di's career and agrees to go. At sharp 8, the doorbell rings and Jai Walia's driver is there at the doorstep to pick them up.

With the early morning traffic still not very heavy, they reach the Walia Mansion within 30 minutes and are completely taken aback to see a sprawling garden and beyond that a towering white villa which stands out against the backdrop of the azure blue sky. It looks a lot like one of those Greek white homes that one gets to see in the hot-shot travel magazines.
Taken aback, both the girls give each other a dazed look and Rano comments, 'Di, they call this home, this looks more like a bloody fortress.' Bani and Rano both have a look of awe in their eyes and feel a bit of trepidation as they are shown the way by Jai Walia's personal butler Tony.

Standing in the middle of the huge circular drawing room, they find themselves completely lost and not too sure of what to do next. Everything around them seems to be precious and expensive and they keep on looking at everything around them in wonder. Just then from somewhere Bani hears Mr. Walia calling out her name and she sees him coming down the stairs. For the first time she's surprised to see him dressed in a smart and expensive, yet a casual attire of a baby blue shirt with sleeves rolled up three fourth and matched by a pair of off-white Dockers. Saying he looked extremely handsome was an understatement as Bani keenly watches him coming down the steps and extending his hand to greet her.

'Hello Ms. Dixit, Hi Rano, I welcome both of you to my humble abode.'

Bani who was about to reply to him with a sarcastic comment, stops herself when she sees a smiling old lady coming towards them.

'Oye Jai, you did not tell me we have two pretty girls in our house, are they actresses?'

Jai just looks at Dadi and can't help himself from smiling, 'Dadi you and your movies' and putting his shoulder lovingly around her, 'Dadi this is Bani and Rano, Bani works in our organization and since she's coming with me to Goa, Rano would be staying in our house.'

There's a twinkle in Dadi's eyes, 'Oye, that's good news, while you two can have your fun in Goa, Rano and I will sit and watch movies whole day long. What do you say Rano?'

Rano just smiles at this adoringly cute dadi and her trepidation of staying without her Di subsides a little. Bani too feels relived that at least Dadi is there to take care of Rano. Meanwhile rest of the family also comes out and Jai introduces them to the rest of the family. After half an hour or so they are enthusiastically seen off by the whole family as they get into the luxurious sedan to go to the airport. On the way to the airport Jai finds Bani to be extremely quiet and keeps on throwing cursory glances towards her from beneath his dark sunglasses. Bani on the other hand notices him staring at her intently and refuses to return his stare and keeps on looking the other way.

Jai who has never been a man of many words is surprised to find himself wanting to engage Bani in a conversation to know as much as possible about her as he's curious to get beneath the enigma that Bani is.

'Ms. Dixit, I hate to tear you away from your engrossing sight-seeing of Bombay slums and traffic, however I would be grateful if you could please oblige me for a moment by hearing me out.'

In reply to his sarcasm, she just gives him a dirty stare, which doesn't seem to affect Jai at all and he continues to goad her, 'Since we would be spending the next three days in quite a close proximity, don't you think it's a good idea if we got to know each other a bit more.'

Knowing very well he's trying to provoke her, she simply asks him, 'What is it that you would like to know about me Mr. Walia?'

At first he just asks her the run-of-the-mill questions like hobbies, favorite food, favorite place, favorite color etc. After a while he finds it difficult to maintain his curiosity which was dying to know the answer to one particular question and in his impatience he finally blurts out, 'So Ms. Dixit, I have one more question for you. Have you ever had a boyfriend?'

Bani who could not anymore stop herself from giving into his provocation, replies a bit too rudely, 'I don't think my having or not having a boyfriend is in anyways going to have an impact professionally or otherwise.'

'Ouch that hurts, so Ms. Dixit does have a past after all. And if I want to find out something rest assured, I will find a way of finding out.' Replies Jai to Bani.


Chapter 9

Later that day while getting refreshed in her room at one of the luxurious Walia hotel suites, Bani replays the verbal duel she shared with Mr. Walia on the way to the airport. She later realizes the folly of having responded so strongly to Jai's question as she knew he had provoked her intentionally to receive such a response. Looking at herself in the mirror she wonders what he would have thought if she had told him he was the first person she has come close to falling in love and though she'll never be able confess this to him, she surely would have given anything just to see the expression on his face. Pretty confident of what his response would be she's calls herself crazy to even thinking of such a ridiculous idea. She's about to move out of the room when she hears a sudden knock on her door. Quickly picking up the baby pink dupatta from the bed to take it over her pretty white and pink suit, she goes and opens the door of her room and is surprised to find the man of her thoughts standing in front of her in a navy blue suit. With his wet hair swept backwards, he looked like he's just out of shower and Bani can't help wondering, how can a man be so annoying and handsome at the same time. She can't help herself from running an appreciative gaze from head to toe before she naively utters, 'Mr. Walia what are you doing here?'

'Don't you think that's a pretty silly question Ms. Dixit, considering this hotel belongs to me?'

A little irritatingly Bani replies, 'I did not mean it that ways.'

Standing against the door, he leans a little towards her and amusingly mutters, 'I would definitely like to know what exactly is it that you meant. But unfortunately that would have to wait for now as we have to hurry to the conference hall.'

Heaving a sigh of relief, Bani goes in picks up her files and her pretty white handbag and steps out while Jai makes himself comfortable at the door frame and keeps on watching each and every move of hers intently. They both walk down the long corridor towards the elevator when Jai surprises Bani and makes her cheeks turn beetroot red by remarking, 'By the way Bani thanks a ton for shamelessly admiring me or should I say ogling at me, and what more can I say that I enjoyed each and every moment of it.'

Embarrassed to the core, Bani almost misses a step when Jai Walia comes to her rescue by holding her from the waist and before letting her go, he comes dangerously close to her and softly says, 'Bani are you intentionally making it a habit of falling over me or do I detect someone who in all probability is falling for me.'

Shocked as how close he came to guessing her true feelings, she quickly regains her composure and in a very sweet sardonic tone gives it back to him, "Mr. Walia, I thought you could do better than that. I guess I was wrong in giving you credit for your intelligence. You just turned out to be like all the other ordinary mortals. You surely disappoint me.' With a smile as cheeky as her comment, she steps on to the elevator to ride down to the lobby while Mr. Walia is seen uttering under his breath on 'what the hell was that'.

Surprised at the manner she behaved, she's unable to digest the fact that she actually tried flirting with Mr. Walia and succeeded in defeating him at his own game. However, she also knows she has to be very careful as he's surely going to get back to her; after all he's definitely not the man to take it lying down.

She enters the brightly lit conference room, which is swarmed with people from the press, all fighting to get the perfect spot for themselves and behind the buzzing of camcorders and cameras was a sitting arena followed by a podium for the dignitaries. She goes and takes her place at one of the front rows in the sitting arena, while Jai grapples to pass through the herd to get to the stage. Once reaching the stage, he quickly runs his eyes to locate Bani and as if she in cue she lifts her eyes to meet his gaze. He immediately gets down from the stage and walks over to her, 'What are you doing here?'

In a defiant tone, she replies, 'What do you think I am doing here Mr. Walia?'

'Ms. Dixit I am definitely not in the mood to play games right now, all I have come to tell you is this is not where you belong, you belong there on the stage next to me,' and then seeing the questioning look on her face, he quickly adds, 'as an employee who was bought here with the intention of assisting me, it's fair that you should sit there, right?'

As he adds this comment, he's quick to notice the disappointing look on Bani's face and for a second feels gleefully happy that maybe, there's a slight chance she may like him too. He quickly extends his hand towards her and though at first she's on the brink of refusing to take his hand, but changes her mind when she sees at least a dozen eyes are focused on them. A little hesitantly she accepts his hand and walks with him to the podium. Once the executives and board members take their place, the conference starts off. Mr. Walia makes a small presentation which is followed by the round of questions from the press. The conference comes almost to an end and there's time left for only one last question, when one of the journalist decides to throw a personal question at Jai Walia, 'Mr Walia on such an important occasion, do you have anyone in your life, you would like to share this special moment with?'

A little taken aback, he's almost on the verge of saying no comments when from the corner of his eyes he looks at Bani and decides to change his mind, because though she tried very hard to hide her curiosity, he noticed she was looking forward to hear him say something on his personal life. He shifts his gaze to the journalist, 'I usually do not particularly enjoy speaking about my personal life, however I'll make this an exception since today is a very special day for me. Yes I do have someone who is very close and dear to me and though I wouldn't like to disclose if she's here with me or not, but she's always there in my heart right where she belongs. With this I would like to end the conference, however I would like you guys to be the first to enjoy a cup of your favorite brew at our coffeehouse.'

The rest of the morning is spent in conducting more PR exercises and mixing and mingling with all the right kind of people. Bani gets busy in making sure there are no hiccups and in organizing the themed party for the following evening. However, in between she does grab few free minutes for herself to think over Mr. Walia's answer to the last question as she was surprised to hear him give such an earnest answer. She never expected him to be serious about anything least of all relationships, so it definitely comes as a surprise to know maybe there's someone in his life and if that's the case she should be happy and relieved. However, that's not how see feels and it doesn't take her more than a second to realize she's turned into a green-eyed monster and is extremely jealous of whoever that person is in Mr. Walia's life. But then why would he show so much interest in knowing what goes on in her personal life and decides to think over this later as right now wasn't the time for luxuriously lingering over thoughts that would lead no where. She snaps back and is busy supervising the staff when someone from behind taps on her shoulder and she turns around to see a smiling face.

Chapter 10

'Oh my God, I can't believe it after so many years,' spurts out Bani delightfully while she reaches out to get a hug from the stranger.

Once the initial excitement of surprise subsides a bit, the stranger looks at her with an appreciative glance, 'Okay now let me look at you, and I must say I am impressed ah, you have turned into a graceful swan.'

Playfully Bani retorts, 'Look at you, the little grubby fellow with a constant running nose has now girls eyeing for his attention and I see quite a few around me giving me envious glares.'

'Ah what can I say, I am after all a lady's man.'

'You self-boasting pig get off your high horse and tell me what you are doing here'

'I am here to cover the great business magnate Jai Walia's newest venture story.' answers the stranger.

'So Mr. Kapoor has turned into a hi-fi journalist, not bad, not bad at all.'

'What can I say, writing is the only talent I seem to possess. Hey by the way during the press conference I saw you sitting next to him. Do you work for him? If you do, maybe you can introduce me to him.

'No ways, forget it. I am doing no such thing and yes I am working at one of his event management companies' Replies Bani, just then from behind them Bani hears another familiar distinctive voice.

'Yes Bani why not, I would be glad to help your dear friend here.' Replies Jai who had a smile on his face, but his eyes betrayed the smile he wore. Until now he was a silent, yet an angry spectator eagerly looking at this engaging scene from a distance. The anger was still there but with years of practice he managed to camouflage it beneath the garb of sophistication and suaveness.

'Bani have you left your manners at home, aren't you going to be the good girl and introduce me to your dear friend,' added Jai sarcastically. Bani who till now seemed a little taken aback, hastily makes the introductions, 'Pushkar this is Mr. Walia and Mr. Walia this is Pushkar.'

He extends his hand towards Pushkar, 'Nice meeting you and I am sure I have no qualms of helping you out with whatever information you are seeking, after all you seem to be quite close to Bani.'

He moves his gaze from Pushkar to Bani and sarcastically challenges her, 'Am I right Bani?'

Unaware of the sizzling tension between Jai and Bani, Pushkar puts his hand around Bani's shoulders and lightheartedly remarks, 'Yes, Mr. Walia that you are definitely right about, Bani is a very dear friend and has been one for quite many years.'

Seeing this, Jai can't stop himself from prodding further, 'I guess now I have the answer why Bani gets so touchy whenever I ask her about her boyfriend. You guys seem to be pretty close and correct me if I am wrong but both of you look like you are deeply in love with each other.'

Pushkar looked a little embarrassed by this comment and was quick to retort, 'Oh Mr. Walia you are mistaken, we are just good friends.' Bani who till now looked a little intimidated by the whole situation glares at Mr. Walia and is quick to add a little too sharply, 'Pushkar I am sure we don't need to clarify anything to Mr. Walia.'

'Don't worry Bani, I have no intention of prying into your private life. So good luck and Pushkar any time you need any information, don't worry, I'll be happy to help you out with it.' With that he gives a quick look to Bani, who for some unfathomable reason seems to be angry and he walks off from there. He later replays the way Bani seemed so happy on seeing Pushkar and how she flung herself on to him, which further adds fuel to his jealousy.

Later that afternoon Bani too replays the whole scene and can't help getting envious at the thought of Jai Walia going out with some other woman. But rather than brooding over it she decides to go and fetch for a suitable dress for the evening gala. She was never much of a party animal and hated attending such social events, however she feels relieved at the thought of Pushkar being there to give her company. All of a sudden meeting Pushkar out of the blue bought back all those happy memories and she experienced a feeling of joyousness and excitement as she again met her childhood friend after years. However, one thing which constantly bugged her was why Mr. Walia's mood changed from being warm and kind to someone cold and guarded. She was about to let herself out when there was a knock on her door and a smartly dressed young lady carrying a couple of dresses with her came inside the room. Ma'am, Mr. Walia of Room No. 606 has sent these for you.' A little surprised, she's about to pick up her cell to dial his number, when her cell starts ringing and she immediately recognizes the number, 'Yes Mr. Walia I have received the dresses and I refused to wear any one of them.'

'M. Dixit are you by any chance insinuating that I have given those dresses to you as gifts. If you are I must say you have very high pre-conceived notions about yourself.'

Not the one to surrender to his taunts, she gives him back, 'Mr. Walia, sorry to disappoint you but I have no such high notions about myself and I know you have sent these dresses for me to wear in the evening as you wouldn't want one of your employees to cause you embarrassment. Am I right in thinking so?'

'My, my, someone seems to have developed a sharp tongue all of a sudden. Well in a way you are right Ms. Dixit, after all this is a big event and I want everything to be just perfect, if that even includes taking care of an employee's wardrobe, then be it. But Jai Walia at no cost is going to tolerate any kind of a mistake. Have I made myself clear Ms. Dixit?'

A little hurt, Bani replies in a firm yet a little subdued tone, 'Yes sir you have made yourself very clear and I can assure you as an employee of Walia group of industries, you will not the in the least be disappointed.' Seething with anger she keeps the phone down and in a very unladylike manner curses and abuses him to let off some steam. She then turns her attention towards the three dresses lying on the bed and can't help admitting to herself that they are absolutely gorgeous and way, way beyond her budget. All the three dresses were formal evening gowns, which Bani had never ever worn in her life and if it wasn't for the themed gala, she would have refused to wear them even today. Knowing she rather wear one of these gorgeous gowns than let her pride suffer at the hands of Mr. Walia, she picks up a mint silky satin evening gown with a draped neckline and a low cut back. Though it was a bit too revealing from the back, she found it to be better than the other two among, which one was a short black number and the other seemed more like a golden sheathe.

With his hair gelled back and dressed in an immaculate black tux and looking drop dead gorgeous, Jai Walia adroitly makes his way through the long corridor leading to Bani's room. On the way he does encounter some charming glances from the opposite sex and graciously acknowledges them. Surprisingly Bani is the only exception on whom his charms seem to have no effect at all. Even if he did manage to make an impression, it was all washed off with her dear friend Pushkar coming in between. How he was jealous of seeing Bani so comfortable with him and the carefree smile playing on her lips that made her all the most adorable and beautiful. Though he did not understand earlier why he felt this strong pang of jealousy, now he exactly knew the reasons behind it and he had made up his mind come what may, in the end Bani has to belong only to him and no one else. With that resolve taken he quickly makes his way towards Bani's room and gently knocks on the door to be taken aback a moment later by the ravishing beauty standing in front of him and utters the first words that comes to his mind, 'You look absolutely gorgeous.' Hearing him say this, Bani feels elated and without giving it a thought she unguardedly utters, 'You too look stunningly handsome'.

Noticing this is the first time she has praised him, Jai can't help himself from teasing her a bit, 'Wow, this is the first time Ms. Dixit you have paid me a compliment. What can I say I feel absolutely honored.'

Instantly, a blush creeps into her cheeks and she invites him to come inside into her room, while she applies the last touchup to her overall appearance. She quickly applies a blush on to her cheeks, puts on a luscious creamy lip gloss and is about to hook up the pearl necklace around her neck, when Jai comes from behind to help her out, 'May I help you out with that.' Even before she can say yes, his fingers were already at her nape trying to fix the stubborn clutch of the necklace. Though his mind tells him to move from there, his gaze remains transfixed on the woman standing before him, a woman who captured his attention from the first moment and what he was not ready to admit to himself earlier, he realizes now that this woman has become an important part of his life, a part without which he can't even think of living for even a single day. As soon as the realization hits him, he swiftly removes his hand from her nape and as if on a afterthought murmurs to her, 'Should we go.' Hypnotized by his deep penetrating look, she feels a warm sensation spread through her whole body and a giddy feeling in the pit of her stomach and slowly realized what she had tried to deny for a long time. Then looking straight into his eyes, she gives her hand to him and allows him to lead her to the ballroom.

Decorated in the warm and bright hues of red and orange, the ballroom resembled more of a magical dreamland that couldn't wait to cast a spell on each of the guests. And it did manage to cast an enchanting spell on everyone present there, which was later evident as the soft glow of the lights added to the overall magical ambience and made everyone present there shed their inhibitions and surrender to the moment. Though outwardly Jai seemed composed and calm as he went about meeting everyone, from inside his heart was thumping at an abnormal rate because every few seconds his eyes would impatiently search for the most beautiful woman present their in the party, the most beautiful woman who would one day completely belong to him and would be called his Bani. As again after few seconds he turns his gaze towards Bani, he finds her trying to escape from the company of one of those persistent perverts, who think of a woman as their personal property. Seeing this, he swiftly cuts across the crowd to reach her side and though he's on the verge of giving that slimy fella a blow of his lifetime, he restraints from doing so and firmly puts his hand around Bani's waist and maneuvers her towards the dance floor.

Bani who though was very thankful to Mr. Walia, felt frightened at the close proximity between her and Mr. Walia and in an effort to get some space between them, she quickly utters, 'Mr. Walia, you need not continue this anymore, since he seems to have left and I don't think he'll return anymore.'

'Ms. Dixit for once just shut up and do as I tell you, just dance.' Issuing this command, he pulls her closer to his body and Bani just decides to relent and enjoy this moment. Jai holds her very possessively and their eyes communicate to each other what the words could never do for them. They both dance for what seems like an eternity and are reluctant to let go of each other even when the song ends. For Jai and Bani the rest of the evening is spent in a blur as they keep on reliving that moment in their mind and hearts. After a couple of hours Jai decides he has done enough as the host of the party and decides to spend the rest of the evening in the company of the only woman he's been so smitten by in a long, long time. He's about to make his way towards Bani when he spots her dancing with Pushkar and from a distance it looked like she was having the time of her life.

Thundering with anger on seeing both of them cozying up to each other, he quietly goes to the bar, picks up a bottle of wine and a flute and walks out to the beach. Though from a distsance it looks as if Bani is enjoying Pushkar's company, on a closer inspection her faade deceives her eyes, which are busy scanning the crowd for one particular pair of brown eyes. Noticing Bani seemed a little too preoccupied, Pushkar gently remarks, 'Bani, you know how insulting it is for a man when the woman dancing with him is busy thinking about someone else.'

'What, are you silly, I am not thinking of anyone else.' She gently chides him.

Pushkar gives her one of those 'I know you very well looks' and tells her very gently, 'You love him don't you?'

Bani refuses to look into his eyes as she knows he will guess the truth and tries to avoid the question, 'What rubbish are you talking Pushkar, I think you have had too many drinks.'

Then looking right into her eyes he asks, 'Bani I am your best friend and though you may speak the lie, but your eyes never lie.' Then letting go of her slowly he tells her to go and find him. Bani finally looks up at Pushkar, gives him one tight hug, says a silent thank you and gives him a smile that reaffirms all that Pushkar said and leaves from there.

Unable to spot him inside the ballroom, she enquires from few people and finds out that he's gone out to the beach. She slowly makes her way towards the beach and spots a solitary figure staring at the deep blue expanse of the ocean. She slowly walks towards him and notices the notes of one of her favorite songs 'Strangers in the Night' floating through the pleasant sea breeze and adding just a bit of magic to the near perfect scene. When she enters the realm of his sight, he looks up at her and murmurs, 'Have you come looking for me?' She feels herself being drawn towards him and just when she's about to give in to that feeling, a reckless thought in her head tells her to turn around and run as getting close to him can get a little too dangerous for her own good. She just makes a signal with her head no and is about to turn around and leave when she hears him say, 'Don't leave on my account.'

Pretending not to hear him, she starts to walk off when from behind when all of a sudden she hears him say, 'Bani, come here and sit with me for few moments, please.' Unable to resist the pleading tone in his note, she turns around, takes few hesitant steps and gently plops herself next to him. She takes out her shoes and can feel the soft tingling of the sand beneath her feet and she revels in the thought of sitting next to the most important man in her life and just for once she imagines the universe conniving together to make these two souls unite even if it's just for a moment. Without saying anything these two feel the warmth and closeness and the unison of being together for just once. Jai offers her his glass of wine and prompts her to take a sip, though at first she thinks of refusing, but on second thoughts takes the glass from him and has a sip, realizing this may be the only time when Mr. Walia and she will come close to sharing anything. As soon as the song 'Love Is All Around Us' starts to play, Jai asks her to dance with him, 'Bani will you do me the honor of dancing with me.'

A little surprised, she gently asks him, 'Mr Walia here on the beach.'

Looking amused and happy, Jai just relents, 'Yes Bani, here on the beach' and then he just takes her hand, holds her really close to him and they both surrender to the magic of the evening. The stars shine brightly over them, the waves crashing on the rocks sprinkle them with the cool droplets like god himself is showering blessings on them and the cool breeze provide just the barrier that stops Jai from looking directly at her eyes. He gently removes the hair from her face and gives her a little peck on her forehead. Unable to resist, his gaze slowly travels to her beautiful moist lips and at first a little hesitantly he plants a gentle kiss on them. For Bani it was literally like heaven itself stepped on earth as she feels the warm touch of his lips on hers and instinctively puts her hands around his shoulders. After what seemed like an eternity, reluctantly they both end the kiss and Jai gives Bani the most heartwarming smile ever.

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Chapter 11

Reluctantly Bani stirs from her sweet slumber to stop the persistent ringing of her phone and is about to spurt off all the curses available in the English dictionary when she hears a sexy drawl from the other end, 'Morning, sleepyhead and before you decide to curse me for life, let me just remind you it's past noon and we are ought to be leaving for our scheduled meeting within the next 30 minutes.'

Murmuring an incoherent apology and with a promise to meet him in 15 minutes at the coffee shop, Bani hurriedly rushes to the bathroom to get ready. As she looks at herself in the mirror, she realizes she's not the same Bani anymore. Instantly her index finger moves over her lips as if to reconfirm his imprint on her lips and she can't help blushing and re-living that special moment again – a moment that changed her life forever. She knew even if she never laid her eyes on him again, he would still be the only man in her life, the one who touched her deep inside and the one who showed her what love is all about. But one little nagging thought broke into her bubble of dreams to remind her that her dreams may just be confined to romantic illusions and nothing more. After all, Mr. Walia had already said someone special existed in his life and this may just be a casual fling for him and nothing more. How foolish it was for her to think a magical moment spent together would make Mr. Walia fall in love with her. For all you know he might be regretting last night and she definitely could not bear to see regret written over his face today morning. But then again, his tone did not suggest a hint of regret when he called up to wake her. Oh how confused she was, and even though Mr. Walia may not regret it, she knew there was no way they could be together, after all they came from completely different strata of society.

With thoughts still floating in her heart and in her mind, she gets ready and starts to muse on how she would confront him and what would she tell him. She walks to the coffeeshop and her eyes traverse around the room trying to spot the one man who seemed to have occupied her mind of late and as if sharing some kind of a strange telepathy, she finds her gaze locked with his when she spots him at the extreme corner of the room. She dreams of running up to him and hugging him really tight and confessing her love for him, however she opts for a more professional demeanor and decides to walk across the room as if the previous night was just a figment of her imagination and nothing more and she decides to make it clear to him as well.

'Good morning Mr. Walia and I am sorry to having kept you waiting for so long.'

'Not a problem,' 'I am sure you must be famished, after all last night also you didn't get to eat much.' Hearing him mention last night had Bani blushing all over again and for the first time ever the hard-nosed business tycoon Mr. Walia seemed at loss for words and to cover the awkwardness he used food as his refuge.

'Since we are not left with much time, I took the liberty of ordering some cheese sandwiches, cutlets, croissants and some fruits. I did not know what else to order, if you want something else,' before he could continue further, Bani politely reassures him that there's enough food to feed an army and that she is perfectly happy with the cheese sandwiches and croissants. Food becomes their saving grace as both fumble to speak out their feelings. Bani tries to gauge his expression and comprehend what's going on in his mind, but fails to even come close to what he's really feeling and mistakes his hooded look for regret, 'Mr. Walia please forget whatever happened last night, as it was under the influence of alcohol that we got carried away.'

Jai, who was till now grappling on how to make his feelings known to Bani felt like a bucket of cold water was poured over him when Bani very conveniently blames their intimacy on alcohol. 'If that's what you think it was then I have nothing more to say.' The next instant Jai surprises both himself and Bani by putting his cup of coffee down, getting up to come around to where she's sitting and then bending down to drop a passionate kiss on her lips, 'Now Ms. Dixit, what influence would you blame this on? He walks off from there leaving a perplexed Bani gazing into nowhere.

But what goes unnoticed is a person sitting at the other extreme corner of the room, absorbing the scenario intensely through the zoom in lens of his camera, while a mysterious smile plays on his lips. As soon as they leave he quickly goes to the reception and makes a call.

The spectacular countryside fails to deter the two obstinate souls inside the luxurious sedan who prefer maintaining a cold silence over communicating their thoughts to each other. They reach the venue just in time and attend the conference, which lasts over 2 hours and at the end of it Jai is invited to give a short speech on the booming travel industry and what new can be done to capitalize on it. Though Bani was physically present, but her heart was somewhere else as all through the conference she kept on wondering on why Jai kissed her again and exactly what was he trying to prove to her. Before she could even come near to finding an answer, the conference had ended, the usual round of greetings were over and they were about to step outside onto the lobby when they are stopped by a stranger. He comes and hands over a bouquet of pretty pink water lilies to Bani and on enquiring who it is from, he simply informs her it was delivered by one of the local florists. Both Bani and Jai look at each other surprisingly as Bani takes out the little note hidden between the flowers to read 'Yours Forever' and wonders who is this mysterious person. She turns towards Jai who looks equally astonished and wanders who else it can be besides him. Maybe this was his little way of ending their little cold war.

With a quizzical smile playing on her lips, she tells him, 'Mr. Walia you are definitely an actor par excellence, you seem to give a look as if you had no clue about all this.

'Ms. Dixit, if you think I am going to bestow flowers on you after what you said in the morning, then all I can say is you overestimate yourself just a tad bit too much. Believe me when I say this that no man in his saneness can ever be so nice to a woman after she blames him for kissing her not because he wanted to but because he was under the influence of alcohol. That's the most derogatory line I have ever heard of.' He storms off from there leaving her behind to follow him.

Bani is again surprised and wonders what the hell did she tell him to suffer his wrath like this and why is he getting so angry on the alcohol thing, after all wasn't he who regretted it last night. Or did he really regret last night or was it just her figment of imagination that she mistook it for regret. What exactly did he mean by saying he wanted to kiss her and what was he trying to tell her by kissing her in the morning. Does that mean she was completely wrong in misunderstanding her and Mr. Walia also felt something for her, just the way she did. Oh how foolish she was to misunderstand everything and to top it off she even annoyed him. She simply follows him to the car and tries to avoid his glaring stare and all through the way she fumbles on how to say sorry to him. But even before she could gather the courage to apologize to him, they reach the hotel where another surprise waits for them.

Along with the electronic key card to the room, Jai is also handed a beautifully wrapped box and is informed a young man came to deliver this. An astonished Jai opens the rectangle box to expose a bottle of Mmm Cordon Rouge Champagne encased in an elegant claret and gold gift box along with two long-stemmed red roses on each side of the bottle. There was even a note at the base of the bottle which read 'Let's raise a toast to us at 7 pm at the Fort Aquada Resort.'

As Jai took out the note to read, Bani couldn't help leaning towards him to read the note and is surprised and furious on who must have sent him this note. Her mind goes back to the day when during the opening he had mentioned about someone special being in his life. Oh how jealous she was and what she wouldn't give to know who this woman was and in all her busy thoughts she did not realize she had just muttered her thoughts loud.

'What would you give to know what Ms. Dixit and if I am not wrong you have already expressed a disdain over what transpired between us yesterday. So why this curiosity all of a sudden to know about my private life or was your morning behavior a camouflage for something else?' He enquires with raised eyebrows.

Not the one to even accept a blow to her false pride, she refutes his statement, 'Mr.Walia it doesn't make an iota bit of difference to me who you want to meet or what you wish to do in your private life.' With that she picks up her key card and walks off from there before he could get to know she was lying through her teeth. However Jai Walia is not fooled by her cool demeanor as he's now completely sure that Bani feelings towards him were also in the affirmative. Though right now what preoccupied his mind more was who this mysterious person was and why was he/she sending mysterious gifts to them. Going to the fort in the evening was the only way of finding it out and he knew if Bani got to know he had gone to the fort; she would definitely become more jealous and he was exactly hoping for that as that was the only way he could get her to confess her feelings for him.

At 6:30 someone comes knocking on his door and tells him there's a car waiting for him downstairs. While going he deliberately knocks on Bani's door and when she opens it, amusingly he informs her, 'Ms. Dixit I am going to meet my lady love, I thought I'll tell you incase I get late don't worry too much about me,' he winks at her and leaves. For the next 15 minutes Bani is found furiously pacing in her room and wonders why she is going mad with jealousy. After all it's natural for a man of Jai Walia's stature to have woman hovering over him and it's not that she wasn't aware there was already a woman in his life. Even though he may have enjoyed kissing her doesn't mean he has committed to her. In her world kissing maybe all about love and commitment but that doesn't imply it means the same in his world too. After all it wasn't a big deal now days to share a physical intimacy with someone without being committed to that person. So why is she feeling so miserable and angry and hurt, knowing completely well a relationship between her and him is out of the question.

In real life not everyone has a Cinderella story and she's always been a very practical and a sensible person, so why all of a sudden is she behaving in such a childish manner? She herself was not acquainted with the Bani she's turned into these past two days. But more than her unpredictable personality traits, what bothered her more was who this woman is in Jai's life and she had to find out what the relationship was between two of them. The next instant she calls the lobby to arrange a car for her and is seen getting into the car by the same man who observed them from a distance in the morning.

Two hours later Bani returns to the hotel and goes up straight to her room, where the image of Jai holding the other woman in a passionate embrace and kissing her keeps on flashing in front of her eyes. Oh how gullible and innocent she was to believe a man like Jai Walia would ever fall for her. She was right, he's just a flirt and nothing more and since he was all alone that day he used her. How she had gone and fallen in love with him and he in turn broke her heart in the worse possible manner. She couldn't spend another moment in his company anymore; in fact she had to leave immediately. She quickly packs her stuff and is about to call for the bell boy when there is a loud knock on her door. She opens the door to find Jai standing there who straightaway walks and as soon as he sees her suitcase, he asks her, 'Care to explain Ms Dixit why are you in such a hurry to leave?'

'Mr. Walia I don't care to give you any explanation and if you are asking as an employer then let me inform you, I wish to no longer work with you.'

She's about to pick her suitcase and march off from there when Jai grabs her by her upper arm and stops her, 'Oh no Ms. Dixit you won't be let off so easily. No one ever dares to walk out on Jai Walia.'

Angrily Bani retorts, 'Oh how clumsy of me to not think about hurting the great Jai Walia's magnanimous ego after the kind of pain Jai Walia has inflicted on someone else'

With anger lacing his voice, he inquires, 'Care to elaborate about which pain you are referring to?'

'Oh please Mr. Walia don't act too innocent and why the hell are you wasting your time with me when I am sure you have better things to do and better people to go back to.'

'Oh I am not acting innocent and if I tell you the real reason on why you are leaving, I am sure you are not going to like it at all. So don't play games with me Ms. Dixit, I am warning you yet again.'

'Oh really, if that's the case Mr.Know-it-all, then please enlighten me what the real reason for my leaving is?'

Holding her from her upper arms he brings her dangerously close to him and looking directly into her eyes, he tells her in a thick gruffy voice, 'Ms. Dixit you are fighting a lost battle and you know it too. Why don't you just admit it to yourself and to me that you get jealous when you see any other woman near me and that you have madly fallen in love with me.'

'No you are completely wrong, I feel nothing for you Mr. Walia, nothing at all' replies Bani.

'Liar' and he passionately holds her face and pierces her eyes with his strong gaze, 'If you really don't love me, then please tell me what were you doing following me to the fort? If you do not love me then please tell me why do you tremble whenever I touch you? If you do not love me then please tell me why do your eyes search for me even in a crowded room and why do your eyes lit up whenever you see me?

'Answer me Bani, answer me right now?'

Tears trickle down her face and she finally admits to him, 'I love you, I love you more than life itself and that's why I was leaving because I know you don't love me and I can't bare to see you with another woman.'

'Are you a crazy woman or what?' replies Jai in an incredulous voice.

'Do you think I go on kissing every woman I come across? I had an inkling you would be jealous and maybe even follow me to the fort, so when I saw you there, I pretended to lean towards that woman and kiss her. The second reason I went there was to unravel the mystery behind who this person is who's trying to send us gifts, because I am very sure this person is playing tricks on both of us simultaneously.

'And yes I do agree I wanted to make you jealous as hell because I have gone through that hell time and again,' adds Jai in a mischievous tone.

To answer the puzzled look on Bani's face, he elaborates further, 'Haven't you realized how jealous I was when I saw you with Pushkar and when today in the afternoon you received that gift. At that time I could die of jealousy. I got you to Goa with me just because you are a very special person and I wanted you to be by my side when I inaugurated the new chain of coffee shops. Remember when the press was asking questions about someone special being their in my life and I meant every word I said because that special woman in my life is you, Bani, only you.

Bani carried on sobbing and staring at him while he continued declaring his love for her, 'Sharing such a magical evening with you on the beach was one of the most beautiful moments in my life and just when I was about to confess to you my true feelings you ruined everything by blaming it on alcohol.

Between her sobs, Bani adds, 'I am so sorry for misunderstanding you, I just thought maybe you might be regretting the next morning'

Listen to me and listen to me carefully. I have wanted to make you mine since the day I laid my eyes on you at the bus stop drenched from head to toe Bani Dixit, though that realization dawned on me later. At first I thought this is a mere coincidence when you came to my office for the interview the next day, but then fate had a different plan for both of us.

So Ms. Dixit, does this clear all your false notions once and for all and now do you think you are up to spending the rest of your life with this crazy man who promises to love and cherish you for the rest of his life.

Through her teary eyes, Bani just smiles and hugs him tight and in his shoulder she utters a muffled yes. She still wanted to know about who was behind all the mysterious gifts and the invitation; however she decides to ask him that later as being in the arms of the one man she loves most in her life is the most important thing right now. Just when they are about to seal their lifelong commitment with a kiss, they hear the phone ring and though they decide to ignore it, but the persistent ringing force them to pick up the phone. The receptionist informs them there's a woman waiting downstairs for them and she wants to meet both of them urgently.

Both of them are surprised on who is this person who's trying to play games with them and finally decide on finding out once and for all the mystery behind all the strange happenings. They go down to the lobby to find out that the woman has already left and gone towards the beach. The receptionist tells them which side she's gone and they try to follow her. For the next 15 minutes they walk along a secluded part of the beach and find no trace of a woman, in fact they find not even a single human being on the beach. It's already past 11 at night and Bani starts to get a little panicky and worried, while Jai reassures her he's there with her and there's nothing to worry about. Bani insists on going back to the hotel when they see a beautiful white canopy shimmering under the soft glow of candles and the moonlight. Holding each other's hands they both walk into the cozy little setting where they are surprised to see a table strewn with white and pink rose petals, a bucket with a bottle of champagne, two champagne flutes and a small red velvet box. Jai opens the velvet box and is surprised to find his mother's beautiful diamond ring in there.

He takes out the ring from the box and tells Bani to come close to him, 'Bani this is my mother's ring and I have been waiting for this day when I can present it to love of my life.

'But how did this ring come here?' asked Bani

'Shhhh, we'll talk about that later,' says Jai in a cajoling tone and then bends down on one knee, 'Dear Bani, I loved you the day I saw you and I promise to love you and always be by your side till my last breath. My wealth doesn't lie in the millions I earn but in the drowning depths of your eyes, my happiness doesn't depend on achieving fame and name but in the sweet and innocent smile of yours. Would you please make me the most happiest and the wealthiest man in this world by consenting to be my wife, my friend and my lover for now and forever?'

With tears of happiness rolling down her cheeks, Bani excitedly utters, 'Yes, yes and yes and the next moment she finds herself hurled in a tight hug. But what surprises them the most are the round of claps and sheer delight they see on everyone's faces around them, who till now were discreetly huddled behind the canopy. Rano comes running towards Bani and hugs her tight, 'Congratulations di, I am soooo happy for you' and then she turns towards Jai and teases him, 'Now I can officially call you Jiju, right jiju, today you are definitely the luckiest man on earth, after all my di has agreed to marry you.'

Dadi, maasi, Aditya, Ranveer, Rashi and even Jigyasa come and congratulate the two love birds. And then Bani enquires from Jai if he knew about this big surprise. When Jai agrees to knowing about the plan partly, Bani dawns a mock-angry look on how everyone made a complete fool out of her. Jai then goes on to explain that he too was not a part of it till this evening when he had gone to meet the mystery woman there. Once he reached there, he was surprised to find Rano waiting there for him. Then she fills him up on all the things that have occurred that day and as they both see Bani coming, they pretend to kiss each other.

'But I am so confused, how did this all happen and why did it happen?' asks Bani.

Aditya comes forward and explains to her the whole plan, 'I know my friend Jai Walia very well and whenever he spoke of you, his eyes would light up like a little boy who's been given his most favorite toy in the world. Somehow I knew he had a soft corner for you and my belief became stronger when I saw the photograph of both of you at the press conference meeting. I decided to give you guys a surprise and flew down the evening of the big gala event. Since my flight was a bit late, hence I reached the party late as well and couldn't find both you love birds there. By chance I met Pushkar and came down on the beach and found you two completely lost in your own little world. I did not want to intrude and spoil your fun so I decided to wait till the next morning. However when I saw Jai storming off from the breakfast room, I decided to do my bit to make both you egoistic fools realize what you are losing out on. That's how I hatched the plan of making both of you jealous, hence the flowers for you Bani and the bottle of champagne for Jai. And thankfully rest all worked out just the way I planned. So here you have the whole story Bani, now are you still angry with us.'

'No, I am not angry anymore, but still Mr. Walia should have said something to me.' 'Come on Bani, he's not your boss anymore, he's going to be your husband, stop calling him Mr. Walia now at least,' says Aditya in a teasing tone. Jai too joins in the fun of teasing Bani and the poor girl is finally rescued by Dadi and Maasi who end up teasing Jai and Aditya. The next few hours are spent in joyful banter, frivolity and in planning the wedding and it's almost morning when the family decides to get some sleep. Jai and Bani spend their early morning hours on the beach to watch the sunrise together as not only it heralds a new day but also a new beginning for them.

WOW. you write very well.... 👏 i'm the first one to replyy!!!

Pia actually sounds intelligent for once in her life! i am gonna follow this ff for sure 😊

👏
very well written
part 3 made me 😳
please continue soon

Awsome Part.... 👏
the way he's trying to forget her...but can't ....its very well written...
there are plans written for this encounter... 😳

i loved the way he walks up to her at the resturant n raises a toast... 😳
continue soooon...🤗
Poo

superb part.love the way you write.just too good. 😊

OMG wot a brilliant ff ! 👏
u have to cont soon 😳

That was amazing. Can't wait till the next part.

welll done!!!!!! fantastic!! do continue plz!!

👏

Great part.... loved it.... pls do cont soon