Chapter 65
Sunlight and the muted sound of Arnav's voice outside the room woke Khushi. She sat up and stretched then smiled when she saw the single red rose resting on the pillow beside her. Khushi admitted to herself that she had been worried that their little fight last night might have had ramifications this morning but this gesture from Arnav hopefully meant that what happened last night was history. Getting out of bed, she knelt on the floor and began rummaging through the suitcases one by one until she found all that she needed. She gathered her things and went into the bathroom. About fifteen minutes later, Khushi opened the bathroom door and stepped into the bedroom just as Arnav walked into the bedroom from the poolside. He was wearing a black suit with a crisp white shirt and a blood red tie. The tailored suit emphasized the powerful lines of his body and his jet-black hair was brushed back in a conservative style that suited his strong bone structure perfectly. Khushi felt a slight shiver at the base of her spine as he came towards her. For several heartbeats they simply stared at each other and Khushi became aware of the heat generated by the powerful man in front of her and she began to feel the same sense of breathlessness that she used to experience when he would step out of the elevator at AR; the only difference was the he was her husband now. 'Good morning,' she said with a shy smile.
Arnav glanced at the Patek Phillippe watch on his wrist; it was only 7:30am but he had already been awake and working for three hours dealing with all the matters that needed his urgent attention. It wasn't even 9am yet, but Arnav had already had two international phone conferences in relation to AR's projects in America and Australia, signed off on a two million dollar expansion of one of their factories and spoken to his Lawyer about his now changed marital status. Whoever said that CEOs have an easy life had clearly never spent time with one. Squaring his shoulders, it was time to face the next challenge which was now on the doorstep; the media announcement would be going out in the next thirty minutes. But before that, he needed to give his new bride some of his undivided attention before the mayhem hit.
Arnav walked to where Khushi stood, 'good morning,' he said, his voice low and husky as he pressed a kiss to her cheek, 'did you manage to get some sleep?' he asked, Khushi nodded in response. His eyes swept over her, she was dressed in a pale pink anarkali, her long hair wet and lying over one shoulder, her skin was dewy with no hint of makeup making her look much younger and innocent. He pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her waist and pressed his body to hers as he enveloped her into a hug. Khushi placed her own arms over Arnav's shoulders hugging him to her as she relished the familiar feel of him. Pulling back slightly, 'Khushi, I think you are forgetting something..' he murmured. Perplexed, Khushi looked at him as she wondered what she was apparently forgetting. Arnav smiled, 'I thought we started a good morning kiss tradition yesterday. I kissed you yesterday... it's your turn today,' he said his voice low, smooth and laced with a challenge. She didn't disappoint him.
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They could hear the television in the lounge as they walked down the stairs. Arnav turned to Khushi, 'let see if we made the news Mrs Raizada,' he said with a wink. Khushi swallowed suddenly nervous; how could Arnav be so casual about this she wondered as she placed a hand on her tummy as if that would help it down.
Akash turned as he watched his brother and new sister-in-law walk towards them. Arnav raised an eyebrow as he looked at the clearly excited Akash; the same Akash who everyone called 'Fevicol' behind his back because of his permanent expression, except when he was angry, was now wearing an ear to ear grin. 'Bhai we're up 27% can you believe it! If I'd known this is what would happen when you got married, I would have pushed you down the aisle much much earlier myself !!,' he proclaimed in excitement.
Now completely confused, Khushi turned to Arnav who was busy rolling his eyes. Anjali who was silently watching Arnav and Akash laughed as she saw Khushi's expression. She stood up and walked to the newly-weds, 'Khushi-ji, don't worry this is a good thing, basically AR's share prices are up by 27% after the press release about your wedding. You see the thing is that investors tend to think that a married CEO is more stable and less of a risk taker than a single CEO so there appears to be a bit of a scramble to buy AR shares this morning. So Khushi-ji you can take credit for this because I've never seen AR's stock prices so high before,' she said with a big smile just as Arnav's phone began to ring.
It was Aman. Arnav listened intently and after a few ok's, he hung up. Turning to Khushi and his family, he spoke calmly,'well as expected, the media is rather 'excited' with the news and AR's phones are ringing off the hook. Looks like the media has decided to camp in front of the office and outside Shantivaan and wait for a glimpse of the new Mrs Raizada,' he said as he smiled at Khushi. NK clapped his hands, 'great, well looks like you get to spend the day with us at home Naanav,' he said in excitement. Arnav rolled his eyes yet again, 'are you kidding me NK - I'm going to AR as planned,' he said. Looking around at his family's confused expressions, Arnav smiled a smile that the Raizada's rarely had the pleasure of seeing previously but now were witnessing more frequently since his nuptials. 'Helicopter,' he said simply.
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Khushi had never been inside a helicopter and was holding Arnav's hand so tight that he was convinced that there was no way any blood was making it to his numb fingers. Wincing, he tried prying her hand slightly, 'Khushi, you need to relax. We'll be at AR in fifteen minutes,' he said as she thankfully loosened her deadly grip with an apologetic smile. They had decided that Akash, Khushi and Arnav would fly to AR Corp and Khushi would work from there today as she had a lot to do in relation to Jaleebi Junction as well as catching up on the work she had missed because of their trip to Sri Nagar.
A short while later the thei pilot set the helicopter down on the rooftop helipad on the AR Corp building. Akash had taken the stairs and Arnav and Khushi were alone in elevator as they came down from the helipad. Stealing a quick glance, Khushi smiled to herself as she admired the man standing beside her; she might have married Arnav but standing close to him inside this enclosed space still made her heart beat a million miles per hour just like it had done every other time she had been here with him. The chime of the elevator arriving at the executive floor broke the silence and they both walked out.
Mrs Jagtiani, Arnav's PA, stood up as she watched the handsome couple walk towards her. Mr and Mrs Arnav Singh Raizada; they were indeed a match made in heaven she decided as she brushed away a tiny tear. Ever since the news had been announced, Mr Raizada's phone had been ringing nonstop and a tsunami of congratulatory bouquets had also hit; there were so many of them that she was quickly running out of room. As the couple walked towards her, Mrs J saw Khushi look at Arnav as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear with a mehendi adorned hand an in return her young boss gave his wife a rather shy but adorable smile - oh how she loved being around people in love she thought as she smiled at the newlywedded couple.
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Khushi was promptly settled into the spare office right next to Arnav's by the super efficient Mrs J along with a hot cup of tea. As Khushi waited for the computer to boot up she couldn't help but stare at her very dark bridal mehendi; so much for the 'no work until the mehendi faded' tradition she thought wryly to herself as the log-on screen popped up and she got down to her work.
Both Arnav and Khushi worked furiously through the morning. Around midday, Aman who was working from AR Corp HQ arrived. Arnav and he had decided that this would be the best approach so that Aman could keep an eye on the media fallout and deal with any problems directly. Aman had a quick chat with Khushi before he walked into Arnav's office. The man himself was deep in concentration as he read something on his computer and didn't even notice his friend's arrival until Aman cleared his throat. Glancing at the visible screen, Aman raised an eyebrow as he sat down, 'reading something interesting?' he asked casually. Arnav looked at his friend as he loosened his tie and tried to look really casual, 'No...Just the usual,' he said lightly. Aman crossed one leg at the knee as he looked at ASR, 'Really? Usual stuff huh? Unless AR Corp has diversified into exclusive beachside resorts while I wasn't looking; I'd say pretty confidently that what you're reading has nothing to do with the business ASR,' he said with a self confident smirk. Sprung! Arnav shook his head as he looked at his friend over the rim of his coffee mug before smiling, 'honeymoon destinations,' he said with a smirk of his own. Aman nodded slowly, 'and how are you going to handle Khushi's business launch because I don't see you having a short honeymoon,' he said. Arnav drew his eyebrows together, 'Yeah, not happening until JJ is off the ground,' he said as he glanced towards the office where Khushi was working, 'plus I dont want her worried about delays to JJ if we were to go now,' he said as he turned back to face Aman, 'not to mention the fact that I practically have to take out a bank loan to afford you as Acting-CEO,' Arnav said dryly to his friend. Not one to give up a good verbal stoush, Aman instantly responded, 'yeah well that's probably because we pay you rather handsomely for the full time privilege. Good thing you're more than just a pretty face otherwise AR might be in a spot of trouble,' he said with a wink.
Turning the conversation to a more serious note, Arnav asked Aman for an update about the situation with the media. Just as Aman was about to respond, they heard Mrs Jagtiani shouting; panic was evident in her voice. Quiet. And then they heard Khushi. In an instant Arnav was on his feet as he raced towards her. Aman followed. 'Stop it, stop it... you get out of here right now!!!' they heard Mrs J shout as they both ran towards Khushi's office.
Just as Arnav ran in, he collided with a large burly man clutching something to his chest. Arnav's blood ran cold and instinct kicked in. He kicked the man in the shin and tackled him before pinning him down to the floor by resting his knee against the back of the man's neck. The intruder struggled but he was no match for Arnav who was clearly much stronger. They both struggled as Arnav fought to pry the object out of the man's hand; it was a compact digital camera. Arnav heard the sound of footsteps racing towards him and shortly Aman and his security team came into view. They quickly relieved Arnav of the man who was now shouting obscenties and was threatening Arnav with legal action for assault. The intruder was however the least of Arnav's worries as he spun around towards Khushi who was huddled in the corner of the office; she was clearly shaken up quite badly. He walked to her.
She had been concentrating on the computer screen and hadn't noticed an unidentified stranger silently slid into the passage way from the stairwell. It was only when she heard a click that Khushi looked up to find a strange man taking photographs of her. Her stunned shout brought Mrs J running and she had raised the alarm before Arnav had come racing in.
Arnav reached Khushi and she slumped against his body as he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close as he pressed his body to hers. Khushi placed her own arms over his shoulders, hugging him to her, savoring the familiar feel of him and instantly feeling protected. 'Khushi are you ok? Did he hurt you?' he asked slightly anxiously. She shook her head. Pulling back, Arnav stared at Khushi for a few seconds before he was satisfied with her answer. Khushi watched as he let her go and turned around.
Aman watched as fury darkened his friend's face and fire flashed from his eyes. He had never seen ASR react so instinctively and protectively towards another human being; he was literally vibrating with rage as he took measured steps towards the intruder. Arnav's voice was cold and dangerous and clearly reflected his fury as he spoke, 'call the police. I want this scumbag charged with everything you can think of,' he said. The intruder sniggered, 'if its not me, then it'll be someone else because right now your new wife is hot property Raizada and everyone wants to know what she looks like. There's 1 crore on the table for the first exculsive shot of her - and its going to be mine,' he boasted pompously. It took ever ounce of Arnav's self control not to turn this bufoon into unrecognisable pulp.
As security bundled the intruder out and everyone other than Aman left them alone, Khushi walked towards Arnav. She had never seen him so enranged. 'It's all right Arnav,' she said quietly as she placed her hand on his forearm. Khushi wasn't sure if he pulled her close or she made the first move but suddenly she was in his arms and he was kissing her as if his life depended on it without any regard or care that Aman was still present in the room. Arnav pulled back and cupped Khushi's face in his palms. 'No. It's not Khushi. I will not tolerate any threats to your safety or privacy. Just because you happen to be married to me doesnt make you public property all of a sudden and going to make sure this message gets through to them,' he said in a low, angry voice as he pulled her back towards himself. Arnav swore under his breath as anger, no rage, raced through him as he held her even closer to himself; he had promised to protect her and that's exactly what he would do.
Turning to face Aman, Arnav spoke slowly and calmly, 'I want a press conference within the hour. Get Nandini onto it and make it happen,' he said in a low and very cold tone.
Shit, thought Aman, calm before the storm. Bad sign.
happy new year my darlings!! I hope you are all well and have had a wonderful start to the year. I'm technically supposed to be on a break but couldn't resist writing a quick chapter. Thank you for all your messages -I'm sorry that I haven't had a chance to read them all at this stage but I promise I will get to them soon. In the meantime I hope this chapter provides some relief from the withdrawal symptoms that everyone is telling me about.
Lots of love
Naina
P.S. wrote this chapter on a tablet, so my apologies in case the formatting is a bit off - I shall do a cleanup when I get back to my trusted laptop... :)
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