Fighting Fire with Fire Link T2 pg 147

Posted: 11 years ago
So I joined IF a little while ago and decided why not? Let's write something! Khushi did a lot of detective work to find her Arnav-ji, so why not make her one in this story? And what if Arnav and Khushi work together to take down Shyam? How epic would that be?
Please read, I promise that it'll be different!
INDEX
Chapter 1- below
Chapter 2- below
Chapter 3- page 5
Chapter 4- page 9
Chapter 5- page 13
Chapter 6- page 18
Chapter 7- page 24
Chapter 8- page 31
Chapter 9- page 38
Chapter 10- page 46
Chapter 11- page 56
Chapter 12- page 65
Chapter 13- page 75
Chapter 14- page 85
Chapter 15- page 97
Chapter 16- page 107
Chapter 17- page 121
Chapter 18- page 134

Link Thread Two
Link Thread Three


CHARACTER SKETCH


Arnav Singh Raizada- The 27 year old CEO of AR Design. He's cold, and indifferent to everything except his family. His family is his main priority (no matter what he says), and he will do anything for his Di. His parents were good friends with the Rathod Family, and it was their wish to see the children of the family marry. Arnav hates marriage (and Khushi) with a passion. (But we all know that this isn't true) These two rivals must put aside their differences for the sake of a loved one.


Khushi Rathod- She's 25 years old and the youngest Special Task Force Commander for the CBI. She loves her family but isn't afraid to speak her mind. Marriage is not in her future anytime soon, but her parents are pressuring her to do so. She has been a lifelong friend of the Raizada Family, and considers Anjali and Akaash very close to her. Her parents wanted her to get married to someone in that household to solidify relations. She comes from an old, rich family, much like the Raizadas. Circumstances put her in juxtaposition with Arnav ' the man who she has despised (and liked) since childhood.


Vivek Rathod- Khushi's father, and founder of Rathod Inc. - the top manufacturing company in Asia and Europe. He was once good friends with Arnav's parents. He's open minded and supports his daughter Khushi fully. He secretly wants her to get married to Arnav.


Aparna Rathod- Khushi's mother and the best friend of Arnav's deceased mother ' Saroj. Though she supports Khushi's career, she doesn't think that any potential suitor will accept it.


Everyone else is the same, but the Guptas are not related to Khushi. Shyam is just sneakier and much more ruthless.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHAPTER 1

Raizada Mansion...8:34 A.M


"Di! For the last time, I am NOT getting married!" Arnav Singh Raizada yelled at his sister who regarded him with a cool expression. The rest of the family watched in amusement at this verbal tennis match. It was the fourth time in a week that Anjali had brought up the topic of marriage. Needless to say, Arnav wasn't exactly happy.


"Chote..." She began in a warning tone.


"No Di! I'm twenty seven, not forty seven! My career is the most important thing to me at this moment and I can't waste it doting over some woman!"


Anjali smirked. "Aha! So that means that you will dote over the woman you choose?"


Arnav stared at her incredulously. "Di, I love you, but don't use my own words against me. I'm saying that a woman will be an unnecessary distraction. One day, maybe, I'll get married. But that day won't be anytime soon. Not today, or tomorrow, or in two months. Please, just accept this fact." Arnav let out a sigh. He was exhausted after these verbal volleys with his sister.


Of course, she would never back down. She was a Raizada through and through, stubborn to the core, just like him. Once she set her mind on something, she wouldn't rest until whatever was troubling her had been resolved. In this case, it was her brother's future.


Akaash, seeing another argument coming from his elder sister, decided to intervene. "Di! Bhai, Payal, and I have to go to work, we're already late. Can you guys pick this up later?" He didn't flinch when both Arnav and Anjali shot identical glares at him.


"Akaash! You're already married! You should be convincing Chote to do the same! Tell him about all the benefits of married life! It's already bad enough that the youngest married before the eldest!" Anjali chastised Akaash who grinned at his wife of three months ' Payal Gupta Raizada. She blushed and turned away much to Nani's amusement.


"Honestly Di, Bhai's two years older than me. In this day and age, what difference does it make when anyone gets married?" Akaash retorted. Frankly, he was just happy that he had married the girl he loved. He was so happy that Payal had agreed to work in the office with him. Now that the excitement of his wedding was over, all the attention was focused on brother dearest which Akaash was fine with. Call it divine retribution for all the times that Arnav had mercilessly teased him about Payal.


He only hoped that his future bhabhi would be one hell of a woman to keep someone like the great ASR under her thumb.


Akaash was right. His future bhabhi was definitely one hell of a woman.


She was a woman who even hell was scared of.


So it was rather fitting that she was going to marry a raakshas.


Though neither of them knew this yet.


Someplace not so far from Raizada Mansion...8:34 A.M


"For the last time Maa I am NOT getting married!" Khushi Rathod shouted at her mother who was currently glaring daggers at her. Her father stood in the background, determinedly not interfering in womanly issues.


"Khushi beta, please try to see reason. You're a twenty five year old unmarried woman!" Aparna Rathod said only to have her daughter scoff at her derisively.


"Maa, I've twenty five, not forty five. I'm not ancient. Main jawaan hoon maa! I'm still young! Why are you trying to marry me off so early?"


Aparna sighed in exasperation. "Beta, we are not trying to 'marry you off'. We just want you to start thinking a bit, you know, meet with some families. So many boys want to meet you! Nothing will be finalized until you say yes."


And once they meet you, they'll run away with their tails tucked between their legs. Her mother didn't vocalize that particular thought.


It was Khushi's turn to sigh. "Maa, my career is in full swing now. I'm respected and rising in the ranks. I don't need a man in my life. He'll only distract me."


And she was right. Being in the CBI was no joke. Any form of a distraction could cost someone their life.


"But beta..." Aparna tried to say before Vivek Rathod, the man of the house, cut her off. "Aparna, what Khushi is saying has some merit. She is still quite young. Zamana badal gaya hai. We should respect this. She is right you know, her career has just begun, and she is already in such a high post. We still have some time before she gets married. Besides, we need to find her a man who will accept the career she had chosen for herself."


"I can find myself a man too you know." Khushi muttered under her breath. Thankfully, her parents either ignored her or didn't hear her.


She looked at the time and smacked herself. Devi Maiyaan! Her mother was making her late for work! Quickly, she kissed her mother and father on the cheek and sprinted out the door to the already waiting car.


"Bye Maa! Bye Papa! Don't wait up for me tonight. I'll be home late." Or not home at all. She thought as she got into the car.


Vivek simply shook his head. "I don't know where she gets all that enthusiasm from."


"It's from your side of the family of course." Aparna huffed. "It's no wonder she's chosen to be what she is. She needs someplace to relieve all that pent up energy."


Vivek smiled indulgently. "Like father, like daughter."


"I swear, at this rate, we'll never find a man who can both accept her career and tame the wild girl."


Once again, Khushi's father smiled. "I wouldn't be so sure Aparna. She's our daughter after all, she might just surprise us all."


"One can only hope." Aparna sighed wearily. "One can only hope."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arnav stared at the files on his desk, his mind too distracted to actually comprehend what the files contained. At this moment, only one thought was going through his mind: his Di.


More specifically, his Di's husband, Shyam Jha.


That cheating, lying, scumbag! How had he deceived all of them? How? And how had Arnav not seen it? Four years ago, when Shyam had come into their lives, it was a blessing to their family. Di was still grieving over her broken wedding and their mother's death that had taken place some years prior. Arnav was in the process of building his empire. Then Shyam had come and become everything that Arnav could never be to Anjali.


Arnav had trusted his jijaji, looked up to him even. Shyam had helped in some legal affairs and had given pointers on how best to increase revenue. He had become an older brother figure. When the man had once and for all asked for his sister's hand in marriage, Arnav had actually hugged him! Yes, Arnav Singh Raizada had hugged him...voluntarily. And now, now he was regretting every positive thing he had ever said about Shyam.


Two months ago, he had discovered upsetting details about his perfect jijaji. It turned out that the firm that Shyam worked for went bankrupt, yet instead of telling the family, Shyam kept on going out, keeping a pretense that he still had his job. Arnav wouldn't have found this detail out if he hadn't seen Shyam's laptop one day. Emails, probably ones that Shyam should have deleted, detailed how the firm had collapsed and what would happen to its members. They were to be relocated to the sister firm in Mumbai.


Arnav had never confronted his jijaji about this, and he regretted this now. He did start watching Shyam more closely from now on, and noticed things that he had never seen before. For example, Shyam would scowl at Anjali behind her back, he would come home at odd hours at the night, his clothing ruffled, he shot Payal lustful glances, and so on. Arnav was shocked at how blind he was to everything.


Furthermore, he had discovered that money was appearing out of nowhere into the Jha account. Through a myriad of sources, Arnav found out that the money was from an offshore banking account that deposited thirty lakhs per month into the Jha accound. And still, Arnav couldn't call Shyam out on any of it because all the evidence that he had was purely circumstantial. Who knows, Shyam could have been engrossed in a new business venture. However, that didn't negate the fact that he was a liar and a cheating scumbag.


To make any accusations against Shyam, he needed proof, and for proof, he needed...her.


Arnav groaned and slid his head into his hands, not caring who saw him. No, he really didn't want her, but he had no choice. She would infuriate him, taunt him, piss him off to no extent, and he would reciprocate. This is how things had always been between them. He would say something that would make her mad, she would kick him, and then they would end up brawling. Was she even a woman?


No she definitely was a woman with those curves that accentuated her tiny waist which flared to full hips. She was a beautiful woman, something which was painful to admit.


Sometimes, she fit in like one of the guys and at other times, she and Anjali would giggle about the hot Bollywood actors ' Salman Khan in particular. Every time that happened, it felt like someone was churning his insides, almost like jealousy.


Of course, it wasn't jealousy...no it was probably acidity or something of the sort.


She confused him so much...made him feel things he didn't want to feel. But at this moment, he had no choice, she was unfortunately, his only option.


"Aman! Come here!" Arnav yelled causing the poor man to stumble. The other workers in the office including Akaash and Payal looked at him sympathetically.


"Looks like Bhai is in a bad mood today." Akaash whispered to his wife who snorted.


"When is he not?" She said rhetorically to which Akaash smiled.


"Sir?" Aman asked carefully, not wanting to accidentally set off his boss's anger. His boss was currently turned around in his chair so Aman couldn't see his face.


"Aman." Arnav still didn't turn around. "Give me Khushi Rathod's number." Slowly, the chair turned, showing a very sadistic looking Arnav.


Aman couldn't believe his eyes...was that...a...yes...that really was a smile! Only it looked very twisted and maniacal. All of a sudden, Aman couldn't help but feel very sorry for this Khushi Rathod person and whatever she had done to piss Arnav off.


Oh Aman, you are so naive. Little do you know how much Khushi Rathod will turn your boss's life inside out and upside down within the next twenty four hours...



Please like this buddy me for PM's!!!!😉 Edited by vedu22 - 11 years ago
Posted: 11 years ago
awesome start...good to see ur ff posted in ipk forum
Posted: 11 years ago
Yay u posted it here :) hope u get more viewers now :D 
Posted: 11 years ago
Bahaha! This is so interesting, and you've definitely got me hooked!! Please PM me and continue!
Posted: 11 years ago
Great start! Please PM when you continue.
Posted: 11 years ago
AMAZING!
Lovely writing skills and a lovely concept. Please do PM me when you update. :)
Posted: 11 years ago
wow first chapter and i already feel addicted.😍. such a beautiful and mysterical    one 😊 it's seriously very beautiful... cute adorable stunning mast and well the list goes on... thanks a lot for writing it.. please continue soon and yeah please pm me if you can .. 

Posted: 11 years ago
Chapter 2

As Khushi stepped into the building, she was met with greetings of "Good morning Ma'am." She smiled and said hello to each agent individually before going to her office and plopping down in her chair. A new day has begun, she thought and got up to make herself a cup of coffee.


Khushi leaned against the counter and sipped her coffee, watching the agents in the precinct go about their daily business. Men far outnumbered women here, but to those women who worked for the CBI, they were given respect. Everyone knew how strenuous training was, and only the best women joined. It was for that reason that Khushi was so adored by the agency.


Becoming the youngest Special Task Force Commander for the agency that was equivalent to Interpol and the FBI was no easy feat, especially not for one so young and a woman to top it off. It had taken hard work and tenacity, but she had gotten where she was on her own merit, not because of anything else. At the tender age of eighteen, she had helped solve a double homicide when she was only studying Criminology and Forensic Science in her University at this point. From then on, her superiors had noted the efficient, no nonsense way she worked and had made her work even harder.


They had made her include a degree of Criminal Justice in addition to her existing majors. Within two years, she had finished her required courses and was a Police Head Constable, bypassing the other ranks. The director of the CBI had seen her work and was very impressed. Instead of continuing in the police force, he had invited her to join the CBI as a junior agent. In less than a year, she had solved twenty seven successful cases. From that point she was made a senior agent though she was only twenty one years old. Just last year, the agency had promoted her to STF Commander.


She was ruthless in her work. Her life was dedicated to putting criminals behind bars. Of course, she could delegate work to her subordinates, but arresting people was something she loved to do. For a woman in a man's world, she did exceptionally well for herself.


There were downsides to her job of course, the main one being having no social life. Sure she had friends, but she couldn't go to the bar or clubs with them very often. The last party she had been to was thrown for a couple celebrating their fiftieth anniversary. She had even missed Akaash's wedding due to a case!


With a great sigh, she went back to her desk and picked up the Singhania file and lazily flicked through it. A simple robbery gone bad resulted in the murder of Mrs. Singhania. All the evidence pointed towards the robbers killing the woman, but Khushi knew that she had to look underneath the underneath for this case. There was something a little more sinister at hand here. Mr. Singhania's statements didn't add up, and neither did his behavior that night. When they had questioned him, Mr. Singhania didn't show the proper stages of grief. He was already in the last stage which led Khushi to believe that not only was this homicide pre-meditated, it was planned by Singhania himself.


"Atman-bhaiyya!" She called to her right hand man. Agent Atman Kulkarni sauntered into the room and grinned at her. He was a nice man, ten years her senior and had been the big brother figure that she craved. When she first got here, it had been scary, but he had shown her how to maneuver through this jungle. In her rookie days, he had always made it a point to help her no matter what.


"Khushi, what is it?" He asked lazily sitting in the chair in front of her desk. Khushi rolled her eyes at his relaxed behavior. If it had been anyone else, she would have berated them for acting so casual in front of a high ranked official.


"Bhaiyya, can you take a couple of men and go to the Singhania house? I know that we already combed the place through, but take a closer look, especially in Mr. Singhania's room."


Atman's expression turned serious and he nodded. "Will do boss. I'll be back in a couple hours."


Just as he was about to leave, another agent came rushing in. "Ma'am! A phone call came for you!"


Khushi raised her eyebrows but held her hand out for the phone. "Who is it, Joshi?"


"Arnav Singh Raizada, ma'am. He says it's urgent." Joshi quickly handed Khushi the phone and sprinted out of there after seeing the murderous expression on his boss's face.


Atman's grin widened and he too left the office, not wanting to hear the verbal bashing Khushi was about to give to the poor man.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arnav anxiously held the phone to his ear, waiting for Khushi to say something. He wasn't very surprised when she cursed loudly and said "Raizada!" In that husky tone of hers.


He smirked, pleased that he could irritate her over the phone as well. "Hello Rathod, it's been a while."


On the other end, Khushi controlled the urge to throttle the phone in her hand by reminding herself that she was in the office. "What the hell do you want, Raizada. If this is a social call, don't waste your precious energy hitting the end button, I'll do it myself." It was her turn to smirk as she heard his pathetic scoff.


"Please Rathod. Why the hell would I make a social call to you? Why would I call you in the first place? No, I'm calling you for a personal matter, and it concerns you as well." Though Arnav couldn't see it, Khushi was hurt by his blunt words. It was always like this between them, no love, only hate. And the occasional time they did show affection for each other, it never lasted long enough. However, as soon as he had said that a problem concerned her as well, she was on full alert mode.


"Arnav, what's going on?" She asked. He could hear the seriousness in her voice. It had been a good idea confiding in her, but he couldn't tell her this news on the phone. They needed to meet face to face.


"Khushi...do you think you can come to my office right now? It's urgent." And it really was. His Di's life was at stake.


Khushi frowned, confused by Arnav's tone. He sounded worried. Had something happened? Why did he need her?


"Arnav..." She said tentatively, putting aside the negative feelings she held for him. Now she was even more convinced that something terrible had happened.


Back at his desk, Arnav suddenly felt very weak. The reality of what he was going to do to his sister hit him. If Khushi was successful, then the love of his sister's life would be gone and his sister would be broken.


"Khushi." The way he said her name shut her up. He was desperate and pleading all in one. The last time he had sounded like this was when his mother died and he had cried for the very last time on her lap.


"I'm coming Arnav. Just tell me that you haven't changed buildings and I'll be there in fifteen minutes." She picked up her purse (which had her gun) and walked out of her door. "Joshi! I'll be gone for a couple hours. If Bhaiyya comes back just tell him I'm at Raizada's building!" She called behind her not waiting for his response.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

True to her word, she arrived at the AR building fifteen minutes later. It was majestic, Khushi admitted grudgingly. No matter how many times she had seen it, it still took her breath away. Arnav had done very well for himself. But then again, so had she.


Truth be told, she was excited to come here. It had been many months, nearly a year since she had seen any of the Raizadas. She was eager to meet Akaash and his new bride Payal. Nani and Anjali called her regularly to keep her updated on what went on in the Raizada house, but there was nothing like having a good old face to face chat. She wished she had brought Akaash and Payal's wedding gift with her. Hm...maybe it was time to pay a visit to Shantivan. Seeing the people she considered family always lifted her heart.


She walked into the building and went up to the reception desk. A woman whose name tag read Pam was sitting there, typing away at the computer. "Excuse me." Khushi said politely, yet firmly. The woman glanced up at her and started typing away again.


Khushi was more than slightly miffed. Her job demanded respect from other people. She wasn't used to getting blown off by this...nobody


"Excuse me!" Khushi said a little louder. Pam sighed in a theatrical manner. "What?"


Khushi hid a smirk. She was going to have to tell Arnav how his employees treated guests. She was guessing by the next time she visited, this Pam wouldn't be here anymore.


"I'm here to see Arn...Mr. Raizada." Khushi caught herself just in time. No need for his employees to think there was anything other than a business meeting between the two.


"Mr. Raizada is busy. Why don't you have a seat and I'll let you know when he's done." Pam said condescendingly.


Khushi was very tempted to pull her badge out and show this woman exactly where her place was, heck, she may even take out her gun. However she refrained from doing so when she found a very familiar face looking at her curiously. Her classic smirk appeared.


"I'm sorry, but I'm a very busy person as well, and I need to see Mr. Raizada now!" Khushi said, completely ignoring Pam's incredulous look as she stormed into the work area.


Quite comically, the entire place fell silent. Khushi reveled in the power she had in making dramatic entrances. The people at AR didn't know how to react to any type of intrusion of this sort because they were drab and boring...most of them. Like boss like employees.


It was Akaash who broke the silence. "Khushi!" He yelled and swept her into a hug that lifted her off of her feet.


"Akaash!" She said giggling. "Put me down!" He complied but kept staring at her, and even pinched her just to make sure she was real. When she slapped him on his shoulder, he grinned. Without another word, he led her to a very pretty petite woman, oblivious of the looks of the other workers who were currently wondering why boss number two was hugging this woman in front of his wife.


"Payal-ji, this is Khushi, Khushi Rathod, the ever elusive woman and my best friend!"


Khushi looked at Payal who, to her amusement, looked slightly jealous of Khushi. Payal really was quite pretty though, with large brown eyes and soft features. She was the perfect complement to Akaash.

Khushi smiled at Payal who tentatively smiled back. To Payal's surprise, Khushi pulled her into a hug.


"I can't believe that our Akaash is finally married! But seriously Bhai, after three months of marriage, you're still calling her Payal-ji?" Khushi teased him and Payal who blushed in unison.


"Khushi, what are you doing here?" Akaash asked her after glaring at Khushi.


Khushi's smile vanished slightly. "Your idiot of a brother called me here."


The people around her gasped at this woman's audacity. She had called Raizada sir an idiot? If he heard this, she would be dead. Even Payal was stunned at her callousness.


"Bhai?" Akaash asked confusedly. "But why?"


Khushi shrugged. "I'm not sure really, he called me a little while ago and said it was important. I really should go though. You know how he hates waiting." She laughed slightly. She didn't notice the footsteps coming down the staircase and stopping right behind her. She did feel the hairs on her back standing up though, and knew who was close to her.


"Well if you know how much I hate it, then why aren't you in my office yet?" A voice that never failed to draw shivers from her said from behind. Arnav. Just his voice did wonders to her body. She controlled her emotions and turned around, putting on what she hoped was an indifferent expression.


He stood there, handsome as ever in his three piece suit, arms crossed across his chest, staring at her with such an intense gaze that would have melted a normal woman. Khushi Rathod though, was made of sterner stuff. She wouldn't succumb to him, no matter what. These two had known each other since...forever. She could read him like a book, and he could do the same to her. He was tense.


"Arnav." She said in an exasperated voice. "I was just on my way. I haven't seen Akaash in ages and I even missed his wedding! Give me a break."


"A break?" He walked forward, expression never changing. "Khushi, we had important matters to discuss. Akaash can wait. Plus, you called me an idiot. So excuse me if I'm just a little angry." His voice got progressively lower as he came closer and closer. They were only a foot apart now. They glared at each other fiercely, neither backing down. The people around them watched in fear as their boss and this unknown woman had an intense staring contest. Their eyes were shooting invisible lightning bolts at each other.


Akaash sighed at their antics. "Bhai! Khushi! Please don't start! For once, can't you two have a civil conversation?"


Both of them spared one glance at Akaash who flinched under the combined pressure of their gazes. It was like two Arnavs put together.


"No."


"Never."


Without another word, Arnav grabbed Khushi's arm and dragged her all the way to his office.


Those in the workroom stared at Akaash as if demanding an explanation.


"That was Khushi Rathod?" Aman asked his other boss. "The one that Sir wanted to see?"


"Yep, That's our Khushi." Akaash said nostalgically. "The only one who could control Bhai's anger as well as raise it to very high levels."


"He looked as if he wanted to kill her when he asked me to call her." Aman said truthfully, fully aware of what would happen to him if Arnav found out what they were talking about. ASR hated gossip.


"Was it that creepy smile?" Akaash chuckled slightly. "Because if it was, then that's a completely normal face when it concerns Bhai and Khushi. She hates that face of his, she has since we were kids."


"You're childhood friends then?" Payal asked quietly. Akaash grinned at her.


"Oh yes! She's my age, so she and I were always very close, like siblings. NK Bhai and her had a very interesting relationship. She loved to manipulate him. He pampered her so much, and she let him. And then there's her and Bhai. Since the beginning, those two were like fire and ice, never mixed but somehow remained compatible. They fought constantly, and Di would have to come in and be the peacemaker. She's like our sunshine, the person who even Bhai will smile for...though, now that I think about it, Bhai smiles about her when she's not in the room.." Akaash mused to himself, lost in the memories of happier times.


It was then that Akaash realized that he was still in the office and that he had the full attention of these gossip mongers. They were like hungry dogs looking for more food.


"What are you all doing! Get back to work!" He barked. Akaash may not have been as terrifying as Arnav, but he was still a Raizada. And for the most part, a Raizada could scare the living daylights out of anyone.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Arnav stared at Khushi as she made herself comfortable in his office. She hadn't changed one bit. Not from the proud tilt of her chin, to her kissable pink lips, to her straight nose, to her hazel eyes, to her perfectly straight hair. She was still the beautiful woman who he loved to hate. But as his eyes traveled lower over her body, he couldn't help but notice the things that he never wanted to notice. Like how her blouse was cut low enough so he could see a hint of cleavage, or how it didn't hide the soft curves that he knew she had. She might know how to kill someone without blinking an eye, but she was still all woman, something that he couldn't deny no matter how much he tried.


"Arnav." Khushi snapped her fingers in front of his eyes. He had a glazed look, something that he had never had before. Things must be really bad. "Arnav!" She shook him slightly which made him glare at her.


"What?" He snapped. She looked at him in disbelief.


"Excuse me? I come to your office on a split seconds notice and you have the gall to not talk to me?" She nearly yelled.


He had the decency to look slightly sheepish. He couldn't tell her that he was checking her out. It would mean a lifetime of humiliation. "Khushi...sorry."


She gaped at him. Had he really...said sorry? Gently, she reached over and placed her palm on his forehead. "No fever." She muttered. "Are you feeling alright?"


Arnav shot her an angry look which made her back down. When Arnav was like this, he just needed to vent. But the anger dissipated to what looked like fatigue. She noticed the circles under his eyes. Had he been sleeping properly? There was a tick to his jaw. He was irritated...and anxious. Khushi got up and went to sit on his desk so she was right in front of him. Her proximity startled him.


"Arnav." She said in that tone that always calmed him down. "Talk."


For the first time in a long time, Arnav Singh Raizada averted his eyes from the person who was talking to him. Instead, he got up and paced around the cabin, aware of Khushi's burning gaze.


She was patient, letting him take his own time.


"You were at Di's wedding, right?" Arnav finally said, though he already knew the answer.


"You know I was." Khushi chided gently, gesturing for him to continue.


He looked at her, holding eye contact for a long time. "Did you ever find anything...odd, about...jijaji?"

Khushi stood up straight, not liking where he was going with this. "Arnav, are you saying what I think you're saying?" What he was implying was not something she liked in the very least.


He wearily nodded and sat back down, his back to her.


"So when you said that this problem concerned me...you meant that Di might be in danger and you need my help?" Khushi concluded slowly.


All of a sudden, a patronizing smirk appeared on Arnav's face. It was one she knew very well. "Oh good, I was beginning to think that you forgot that you solved crimes for a living."


Usually, this would lead to a big fight between the two of them, but not now, not when Di was in danger. "Arnav, just stop. I'm not in the mood for this. Tell me everything that you suspect, and don't leave out the slightest detail." She pulled out a notepad from her purse and he could glimpse the gun she held in there. If Arnav had any doubt she was a cop, it was gone now.


So he told her, all of his suspicions, Shyam's odd behavior, the money, everything. She paused him every so often to ask a couple more questions.


"Arnav...has he ever...you know...hurt her?" Khushi asked quietly. If that monster had, she would rip him apart limb by limb.


Arnav turned around so fast, she thought he might fall. He had a wild glint in his eye. "He wouldn't dare."


Khushi got up and put her hand on his shoulder. "I know, but I had to ask." She let her hand linger on his muscled arm, drawing in his heat, and he let her. It felt comfortable.


"Di's happy." Arnav growled. Khushi didn't move, not even when he got up and grabbed her. "She's happy with the man who is most likely stealing from her, cheating on her, and ruining her life! He... He...!" Arnav couldn't go on and Khushi didn't urge him to. He stepped even closer to her, invading her personal space, smelling her scent, letting it fill him. Roses and gunpowder...that was Khushi, unique to only her. It was an odd combination that seemed to work, sweet and musky. If he leaned even closer, her head would fit right under his chin...


No! He stepped away from her in the next instant, trying to rid himself of these pesky thoughts. He didn't think of Khushi in that way...did he? Whatever the case, he had to get her out of his head. They were here for Di and Di only.


Khushi sensed the turmoil withing him and couldn't help but pity him. "Arnav, it's good that you called me. What you said about the money appearing suddenly in his account made me think of a case from a couple weeks ago. Someone was embezzling funds from a research company, and the money was being deposited in the West Indies. Though the situation is different, perhaps we can connect some dots. I'll have my people look into it."


Arnav was enthralled by the way she chewed her pen, signaling her anxiousness. Yet that was the only sign of her discomfort with the situation. Now, she was in her 'zone' as NK had always called it. Once Khushi focused on something, she could never be deterred from it, much like himself. She loved his Di as much as he did, and he knew that she would do anything for her. Anjali had always been there, cheering everyone up, breaking up the fights, sacrificing her 'me' time for those younger than her. The very thought that her own khushi was being threatened hit both of them hard.


"It's my fault." Arnav admitted softly. Immediately, Khushi knew what he was talking about and tousled his hair lightly, just like she used to back in the day. It didn't exactly have the same effect because his hair was laden thick with gel. However, it elicited the response she wanted from him: annoyance.


"Seriously yaar, that has always been your problem. You blame yourself for things you have control over! Not everything that goes wrong is your fault, Nav." That was the first time in years she had used his childhood nickname. Those were also the same words she had used when his mom had died.


He must have recognized it because his head snapped up. She gave him a smile, a real one this time. "Don't be so glum, Arnav! I'm going to help you...she's like my Di too you know. I can't stand the thought of anyone hurting her, especially not jiju. Should I even call him that anymore? What should I do? I mean I can't just pull my gun out and shoot him right? Argh!"


Arnav shook his head at her mindless chatter and stood up. "Come on, let's go back down so those idiots I call employees don't think that I called you here so I can have my way with you." Arnav gave her a naughty grin to which she couldn't help but blush. She smacked him on the arm.


"Oh shut up."


They got out of the office and made their way downstairs, walking in companionable silence for the first time in decades.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Akaash saw them first and blinked...once...then twice...and then thrice. Bhai and Khushi...together...not shouting...not even scowling at each other? This...it's a miracle! Just what were they doing in Bhai's office? Could it be...were they... No Akaash...don't have thoughts like that. That's your best friend and your brother, the two people who can never get along. I'm sure there's a good explanation for this...


Arnav walked Khushi to Akaash's desk. Akaash grinned at his Bhai and Khushi. "What's this guys...no fighting, no split lips, no bruises. Khushi, where did all of your fighting spirit go?"


Khushi laughed and ruffled Akaash's hair. "See Arnav, this is hair that I can mess up. Lose the gel next time I come and visit."


Arnav scowled at her while Akaash's eyebrows rose at what she had just implied. Bhai let her touch his hair...and didn't kill her?


"Thankfully Khushi, there won't be a next time."


Khushi just smiled mysteriously. "Don't be so sure about that Raizada." With a quick hug to Akaash and Payal, she turned around and started walking towards the main entrance. Just as she was halfway there, Arnav's voice stopped her.


"Oi Khushi!" His shout made the entire place quiet down. He watched as she turned, an annoyed look on her lovely face.


"What, Raizada?"


"You're coming to dinner tonight." He said authoritatively, using his ASR voice and knowing that it would never work on her. Though, he really should revert back to his ASR personality when dealing with his stupid employees who all were gaping at their boss. It was annoying!


Although he wouldn't admit it, he wanted Khushi to get started right away on putting Shyam behind bars so Di would be safe. What better way to get Khushi to come over than dinner?


Khushi knew exactly what he was doing and complied. She wanted to look at Shyam with fresh eyes. Hopefully he would be there, and plus she would see everyone again.


"Same time as usual?" She asked. The Raizadas always ate at 7:30 sharp, no exceptions. Even when Arnav was working late, dinner was always out at that time.


"What do you think?" He retorted.


"Fine by me. Now I can give Akaash and Payal their wedding gift too!" Khushi exclaimed. She guessed what he was going to say next and stopped him. "Don't worry about sending a car Raizada. You're not the only one who has cars and people to drive them." She turned around again, concealing the smile on her face at his flabbergasted expression.


As she passed the reception area, she caught sight of Pam's frozen face. Khushi smiled sweetly at the woman. "See, I told you Arnav wanted to see me." Khushi watched in satisfaction as the woman gulped. She was feeling particularly vindictive at the moment so she added, "And the next time you deny me entrance, you will be fired." Khushi smirked when Pam frantically nodded her head.


The last thing she heard as she existed the building was, "Bhai, are you staring at Khushi?"


Which was followed by a vehement denial. For some reason, that just made her smile much wider.


Please comment/like and buddy me for a PM😉

Edited by vedu22 - 11 years ago
Posted: 11 years ago
that was Wicked! Omg u had me glued! Plz plz plz pm me with the nxt update? Thanku
Posted: 11 years ago
This was wonderful! Kept me glued :P Please continue!

Related Topics

No Related topics found

Topic Info

238 Participants 1088 Replies 643180Views

Topic started by vedu22

Last replied by amus5

loader
loader
up-open TOP