IPKKND FF:Justice Comes At A Price[Epilogue Upd!] - Page 22

Arnav came back from his morning workout, grimy and covered in sweat. All he wanted to do was take a nice long shower and get rid of his fatigue. He was about to climb up the stairs when Khushi came along and bumped headlong into him. The orange juice she had in her hand spilled all over his pristine, white Nike sweat shirt. He was not in a very good mood as it was and this girl just had to make it worse!

"What the hell! Watch where you're going Khushi Kumari Gupta!"

He was a little taken aback to see a lost, faraway look in her eyes rather than the angry defiance he was accustomed to. She muttered a vague apology and walked passed him. He was left looking after her, wondering why she was behaving like this.

After breakfast, Arnav could feel a sense of guilt creeping up on him. Khushi had been very subdued throughout the meal and he couldn't help wondering whether he was the cause behind it. He was fighting with himself throughout the morning on whether he should go and apologise to her. In the end, the apology won over his anger and he trudged out of his room in search of her.

He scoured the entire house and finally heard her lilting voice from the garden. He frowned, wondering who she was having such an animated conversation with.

As he approached the bench, his jaw clenched and his fists balled together. She was sitting with NK laughing away as if nothing was wrong in the world. NK had always been a hit with the ladies - his charming ways, pleasant demeanor and humorous nature made him highly appealing. And there he was spouting random jokes while Khushi's tinkling laughter followed. He didn't know why but he felt a murderous rage overtake him and he marched back into the house - all thoughts of apologising driven away after witnessing her flirting away with his best friend.

...

Khushi had spent an amusing morning with NK. She didn't know him too well but after this morning's chat, she realised that he was really good company. Honestly, why were all of Arnav Singh Raizada's friends so nice? Both Lavanya and NK seemed to be really sweet people which was a big contrast to him. He was so arrogant and judgmental. But he wasn't a dishonest man and he loved his family dearly. And no one could deny that he was handsome. She sighed heavily as her thoughts automatically wandered away to him. If only he had behaved a little better with her then maybe something could have happened between them. She had never found a man attractive before and Arnav was her first crush, if you could call it that. But then he had gone and squashed all her fantasies with his harsh words and bloated ego.

She was looking for her brother when she heard Parvati's voice, sugary sweet and dangerously flirtatious. That was the voice she reserved for when she spoke to young and eligible men. She hoped that the spoilt brat wasn't hitting on her brother. She peered in, a little sympathetic towards Parvati's target, when her eyes landed on Arnav.

Parvati was literally hanging around his neck, stroking his cheek and trying her best to get his attention. Anger blazed within her as she watched the entire scene enfold in front of her. A small part of her told her that Arnav wasn't responding but the larger part was overpowering her senses and she didn't realise when her shaking hand had knocked over a brass vase.

The clanging noise broke apart the scene and Arnav watched in bewilderment as Khushi shot him a menacing look and stomped off.

Pushing Parvati away roughly, he ran out after her.

"Khushi! Wait! Listen to me damn it!"

He continued yelling at her but she just wouldn't stop to listen. He finally caught up with her near the poolside by his room. He grabbed her forearm and yanked her towards him.

Khushi gasped in surprise as she collided with his broad chest. Her outraged eyes met Arnav's furious ones as he continued to hold her in a vice grip.

"How many times do I have to tell you, don't walk away when I'm talking to you!"

Khushi was in no mood to listen to his barrage of angry words.

"Oh I'm sorry. I didn't realise I was interrupting a private moment back there. That's why I decided to leave you two alone!"

"What? Private moment? Khushi, it's not what you think! I wasn't-"

"Save it Mr. Raizada. I know what I saw."

"Oh really? And what were you doing this morning?"

"Me? What does this have to do with me?"

"Oh don't act innocent! I saw you flirting away with NK in the garden!"

Khushi eyes grew wider as she wondered what in the hell was wrong with the man in front of her.

"Firstly, I wasn't. And second, even if I was, why does it matter to you, huh?"

"What the -? Of course it matters to me! You were flirting with him for God's sake!"

"That's none of your business. I can flirt with anyone I want! I can go out with anyone I want! I can kiss anyone I want! And it has nothing to do with you!"

"It has everything to do with me damn it! And kiss? Did you kiss NK?"

"What? Of course not! Why would I kiss NK? And why are you so bothered anyway?"

"Because only I have the right to kiss you!"

And with that he planted his lips on hers in the most captivating kiss ever. Khushi was completely lost in it and forgot everything else in the world, as his lips moved over hers. It felt like they were meant to be there - against her own. She gripped the hair at the back of his head and deepened the kiss.

Arnav felt like he was in heaven. He had been having dreams about doing this for some time now but never had he imagined it would feel this magical. His grip around her arms slackened as his hands made their way upwards and cupped her face.

They finally broke apart when the need for air was beyond control. The glazed look in each of their eyes conveyed to the other that the electrifying feeling had been mutual. Khushi looked away as a blush started forming on her cheeks. Arnav noticed this and marveled at how the faint color made her look even more beautiful. Something he hadn't thought possible.

They both walked away in different directions, trying hard to not think about the magic moment a few minutes back but failing miserably to do so.

...

Anjali went through the cupboard once more. This was the third time she was doing this but she couldn't help herself. It had just dawned on her that the file of the case Shyam had last been working on would come in handy for the Inspector. But after going through all his things as well as hers, she just couldn't locate it. Panic slowly started to seize her as she wondered what had happened to it. She wondered if the Inspector would accuse her of misplacing it willfully. Things were bad enough as it was. She really didn't need this right now.

...