40) Why do you care?

*locks you all in a soundproof room before you start screaming*

Enjoy ;)

*runs away*

Kiara's POV

The elevator dinged open and I made a run for my room. I hadn't even crossed the lounge of the suite when a hand enclosed around my wrist and spun me around swiftly, my chest colliding with Arjun's.

How did he come here so fast?

"I was calling you." He was close, too close.

Gulping down my emotions, I stared back at him unfazed. "And I decided to ignore you."

His face turned dark, his fingers tightening around my wrist, almost to the point where it pained and he pulled me closer, his abs pressing against my stomach. I winced and his hold immediately loosened on me, the rage in his eyes simmering down to a dull anger.

"What happened to you all of a sudden? You were alright before."

His words spiked my anger and I struggled against him. Arjun left my hand and I immediately took a step back, pushing him with all my might. "Are you kidding me? I should be asking that question to you. You were the one who wanted to leave the party. What happened to you?"

His jaw clenched, accentuating his sharp jawline as he avoided my eyes. "Something important came up."

"I am not a fool, Arjun. I saw you with that girl." His surprised eyes snapped to mine and I stood there with a blank face, arms crossed over my chest.

He cursed loudly, running a hand through his hair and glaring at the floor like it was the floor's fault that we were fighting.

"I... I am sorry. I shouldn't have talked to you like that."

I looked away, not letting the surprise on my face show at his apology.

We both fell silent, neither of us saying anything when my phone beeped and I went to pick it up from the table beside Arjun but he beat me to it.

His gaze roamed over the phone screen and he stilled, darting his anger filled eyes to me.

Shit.

The texts!

"You're getting threatening messages?" His voice was low, a dangerous undertone to it that sent chills down my spine.

My eyes widened and I advanced towards him, trying to reach for my phone. "Give it to me."

But he took a step back, fixing me with a hard glare.

"Arjun!" I warned him, a slight tremor in my voice.

"Answer my question first." He spoke firmly, stressing on each word and I shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.

There's no way out now.

"Yes." I finally said, giving up. "Yes, I'm getting such messages for the past 3 days. So?"

He stepped towards me, keeping my phone back in its place. "You didn't even think of informing me once? What if something happened?"

"Why does it matter?" I shot back at him.

"Why does it matter?" He scowled, his face furious. "Of course it matters."

And I lost it.

This weekend had taken a toll on me, all my emotions were haywire and after the tantrum he just threw, I couldn't contain it anymore. So, I finally let it out.

"Why does it matter to you if I'm getting threatening messages? Why does it matter if something happens to me?"

I was yelling at this point.

His eyes turned a shade darker and grabbing hold of my arms, he pulled me to him roughly.

"BECAUSE YOU MATTER TO ME!"

"IT MATTERS BECAUSE I CARE FOR YOU."

My heart skipped a beat.

For a moment, I stood still, my breath faltering as those words replayed in my mind. But the very next second, the magic spell around me broke and I was brought back to the harsh reality. I was too angry and hurt to react to his confession.

Letting out a sarcastic chuckle, I clapped. "And all of a sudden, you care."

His face became furious at my words as his brows furrowed together, his lips pressing in a straight line.

"Care to tell me why, Mr. Arjun Singhania?"

I scoffed, mocking him. "Why do you care? And that too for a fucking nobody?"

I was pushing his buttons, I knew. But he needed a reality check. He cannot lash out on me whenever he like and pretend like nothing happened the next second.

It seemed like my words flipped a switch in him as his hold on me tightened to the point where it became unbearable and he yanked me towards him with a harsh force.

Before I could protest at the way he manhandled me, he slammed his lips on mine.

And all my senses went out of the window.

I froze and my brain effectively shut down, my heart hammering in my ribcage wildly.

The irrational part of my brain, a major part of my rational brain and my whole body were screaming only one thing at me.

KISS HIM!

So, I packed caution and my sanity in an air-tight jar and threw it in the ocean as I kissed him back.

Believe me, I tried. I tried very hard to resist my desire but my mind lost control over my body and I moved my lips against his, clutching the lapels of his suit and hoping that years of reading those romantic novels that Arjun seemed to hate so much might come of some help today.

Had I thought this through? No.

Was I going to be in trouble? Maybe.

Would I end up in a mental asylum after this? Probably.

Was I crazy? Definitely.

My response encouraged him further as he let out a growl against my mouth and one of his hands snaked around my back, pulling me impossibly closer to him. I wound my arms around his neck and his other hand held the nape of my neck, his fingers curling around my hair. Pressing his lips firmly against mine, he grazed his tongue against my lower lip and I let out a soft moan at the inexplicable feeling.

I had often imagined how kissing Arjun would feel like. But nothing could have prepared me for this.

I felt like I was floating in air, oscillating between dream and reality.

He was both fire and ice at the same time.

Those sinful lips were enough to create a havoc in my body, setting it on fire while the way he was holding me caused goosebumps to arise on my skin. I shivered, leading him to press himself to me until there wasn't even an inch of gap between us.

Colours burst behind my eyelids as his rough lips caressed mine with such tenderness that I literally melted in his arms.

I couldn't believe he was the same guy who was so rude to me in the beginning and was now holding me as if I was a delicate glass doll.

Jolts shot through my body when his teeth dug in my lower lip and an embarrassing whimper left my lips.

With a last tug on my lips that almost felt like a tug at my heart, he pulled back and I held onto him tightly, well aware that if I loosened my hold, I would fall straight on the floor.

I didn't dare to open my eyes as he pressed his forehead to mine and I took large gulps of air, my heart on the verge of giving out.

"Is that a valid reason?" He asked softly, his voice hoarse that made my knees wobble while I snapped my eyes open, too stunned to react.

I tried to calm my ragged breaths, my cheeks flaming in embarrassment as I saw desire pooling in his charcoal orbs.

"Is this... is this a dream?" I licked my lips, my voice coming out as a small whisper and Arjun chuckled.

If someone could pinch me right now.

"I don't know. But if it is," He bumped his nose with mine, our breaths intermingling. "I don't want to wake up from this dream. Ever."

His words almost made me cry and blood rushed to my ears, my head feeling extremely light.

I wasn't aware of my surroundings, the only thing that tethered me to reality was Arjun's hold on me.

His hands left my body and I reluctantly unwound my hands from his neck, blinking in a trance.

"I'm sorry for what I said earlier. I never meant to hurt you."

I looked up at him and he had a sincere expression on his face. "You know I have anger issues and I lose my temper quite easily. Something... happened this evening and I couldn't handle it. I shouldn't have vented out my anger on you. I'm sorry."

This wasn't fair. How can he expect me to make sense of his words after kissing the daylight out of me. I wasn't out of my la la land yet. My lips were still tingling after our mind-numbing kiss.

Although, my mind registered the word 'sorry'.

"So.."

"Am I forgiven?"

I stared at him dumbly, my poor brain unable to process his apology.

On receiving no answer from me, he placed his hands on my waist, tugging me towards him and my breath hitched in my throat, his closeness not helping my case. At all.

If he continues doing this, I will faint anytime.

"Am I?" He probed, squeezing my waist lightly.

Only if he will shut up so that I can collect my scattered thoughts and form a sensible response that doesn't make me sound like an imbecile.

"What if I say no?" I cleared my throat, my voice barely above a whisper.

How I managed to utter those five words without stuttering was still a mystery to me.

He cocked his head, a sly smirk adorning his lips that had my heart running a marathon. "I have my ways of persuading you."

My knees turned into jelly, heat crawling up my neck as I bit the inside of my cheek.

He laughed merrily as I avoided eye contact with him and I playfully slapped his chest, silently pleading him to stop teasing me.

His laugh died down to a soft smile as he gazed at me but his expressions turned serious soon after. "We still need to talk about those messages."

I sighed, groaning mentally.

He wasn't going to let it go, was he?

"What's there to talk about?" I half-whined.

Fixing me with a glare, Arjun took out his phone and dialed a number. "Samantha?"

Who's Samantha?

"I'm sending you a few numbers and I want full details on their owners. If I don't have them by tomorrow morning, don't bother to show up in office. I will send your resignation later."

Ouch.

He cut the call without waiting for her answer while my lips tugged down in a slight frown at his harsh behavior.

Sensing my questioning stare on him, Arjun explained to me. "Samantha is our company's private investigator."

A freaking private investigator?

"That was a bit extreme." I said slowly, gauging his reaction.

His frown deepened further as his cold eyes glared back at me. "Doesn't matter. I am not going to compromise your safety."

8 words. 8 words was all it took and my heart was already doing somersaults in my chest.

And as I stood there, my heart fluttering like the wings of a hummingbird, realization dawned upon me.

I'm falling for my husband.

Warmth blossomed in my chest, a red hue forming on my cheeks.

Arjun busied himself with my phone while I utilised my precious time in ogling him shamelessly. A minute later, he returned the phone to me, yawning and I cracked a small smile. He looked extremely adorable doing that.

"I think we should sleep now."

"Yeah. It is quite late and we have a flight tomorrow."

I began to walk towards my room and Arjun fell in step with me.

"You are walking me to my room?" I exclaimed dramatically, placing a hand on my heart and acting as if I was going to faint. "I never knew I would live to see the day."

I met his blank eyes with my mischievous ones as he crossed arms over his muscular chest.

"If you haven't noticed till yet, my room is just beside yours."

Oh.

Passing him an awkward smile, I speed-walked to the other side of the longue, eager to go inside my room and Arjun followed me. I was still dazed with tonight's events and wanted nothing more than to lay down and over-analyse everything.

A perfect sleepless night.

Don't forget to note and highlight the sarcasm here.

Opening the door, I glanced back at my husband who was standing there, tapping his foot and looking everywhere, except me.

Suppressing my grin, I stepped inside my room and turned around to face him. "Arjun?"

He was still standing in front of my door, acting as if he wasn't actually waiting for me to go inside.

"Yes?"

Holding the lapels of his suit, I tugged him towards me and pressed a quick kiss to his lips. Before he could react, I pulled away while he was still crouched in the same position, stupefied.

His wide eyes flashed in surprise as he blinked. "What was that for?"

"I guess it makes us even now."

"Who's keeping count?" He rose his perfectly arched brow, his lips threatening to break in a smirk.

"I am." I announced with a cheeky smile.

"Goodnight." I was going to close the door but Arjun placed his palm on the door, effectively stopping me.

"By the way." He stepped forward and leaned down to my ear. "I prefer the black one." He backed away slowly and winked, a smug smirk plastered on his face while I stood there perplexed.

Black?

"Goodnight, princess." He went to his room and I closed the door, pouting and wondering what he meant by it.

My eyes strayed to my bag kept in the open cupboard, a black lingerie lying carelessly near it.

.

.

"Should I wear this?" I asked Arjun, holding a black lingerie in my hand.

.

.

Shit!

Oh god.

I face-palmed.

I'm never, ever going to get drunk again in his presence again.

My embarrassment was put to an immediate stop as another image popped at the back of my head.

My fingers trailed to my lips and my heart beats raised again as I suppressed the urge to scream like a maniac.

We kissed.

We kissed!

I plopped on the bed with a wide, dreamy smile on my face and then jerked upright a second later.

We kissed!

I smacked a palm against my gaping mouth.

Oh my god. What did we do?

The adrenaline rush from before wore off and the realization of the situation sank in.

That's when I started hyperventilating.

And a panicking Kiara is a rambling Kiara.

"Oh my god. I can't believe we did that." I paced around my room, biting my nails. "What am I gonna do now? What was I even thinking?" I cried out and then pursed my lips in anger. "It's all his fault. That stupid, idiotic, hot, sexy specimen of a male. Who asked him to dress up in that tuxedo? That is the only reason I couldn't keep my hands to myself." I muttered in a condescending tone, trying to strangle an imaginary throat. "And that muscular chest and that godly face with those piercing, black eyes and that damn smirk and oh God, those lips." I groaned, throwing my head back and running a hand over my face.

I laughed to myself, raising hands in mid-air. "Look at me, I am a pervert now."

"Hot males with those perfect dimples should be banned from smiling. Even better, they should be banished from Earth. They are a threat to the survival of the female species."

"Okay, calm down, Kia. It was just a kiss. Perfectly normal. People kiss, they move on." I breathed deeply, trying to smile but my lips dropped down the next second as I wailed loudly. "Oh my god, what did I do?"

"I just wish he hits his head somewhere and loses his memory."

"You know," A loud, amused voice interrupted my monologue, shocking me half to death as I let out a deafening screech. "Since your room is next to mine, I can perfectly hear you!"

I looked at the ceiling.

Why are you doing this to me?

*

"Ugh!" Turning in my bed for the hundredth time, I groaned, muttering curses to no one in particular.

Picking a pillow from my side, I covered my head as I tried to block the inappropriate thoughts that filled my mind. Whenever I closed my eyes, my mind would replay the kiss like a slide show.

Giving up after 15 seconds, I sat up abruptly, my hair sticking out in different directions. It was 2 AM and I hadn't even got a wink of sleep.

I need chocolate, I thought as I got out of bed.

No, you need Arjun.

Okay, please stop.

Rubbing my eyes, I trudged my way to the kitchen with slow steps and decided to make hot chocolate.

"Can't sleep?" A voice asked from behind as I was looking for milk in the fridge and I screamed hysterically at the sudden intrusion, jumping in air.

Two hands settled on my waist, the familiarity of the touch calming my heart as I sighed a breath of relief. "You're still as clumsy as before."

My head snapped to the tall figure behind me, the face that was haunting my dreams.

"You!" My voice came out as a high-pitched squeak as I scrambled away from him, whirling around to face him.

Don't think about it. Don't think about it. Don't think about it.

Act normal.

"No. It's Chris Hemsworth." Arjun replied with the most monotonous face in the history of monotonous faces and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.

"What are you doing up so late?" I asked as I took out the ingredients, purposely avoiding his eyes.

What if he reads my mind?

"Couldn't sleep." He shrugged.

"Why? Were you dreaming of me?" I nudged his shoulder with mine, wiggling my eyebrows.

"Yes. I was making plans on how to get rid of you before we reach home."

"Haha. Very funny." I deadpanned and proceeded with my work. "I am making hot chocolate. You want some?"

He eyed me uncertainly and I could read the question in his eyes. Do you know how to make hot chocolate without burning down the kitchen?

Even if I don't know how to cook, I have learnt to do a few things on my own. Granted, I did burn my kitchen once.

Minor details.

"Don't worry, I won't set the hotel on fire." I muttered.

"Fine then. I'll have it."

"Great! Go and put on some good movie."

"I think I will stay here until you finish. I don't want you to blow up the hotel."

This time I gave in to the urge of rolling my eyes.

"Come on. I'm not that clumsy. I ca- Oww." I yelped as I accidentally burned my finger and immediately pulled my hand away from the stove.

Rushing to the sink, I opened the tap and poured some water on my hand.

Arjun stood there, his lips pursed in an amused half-smirk as he gestured his hand to me. "Look at you. You are a walking disaster."

I huffed, giving him a stink-eye.

"What?"

"Why are you standing there like a statue? Bring some ice."

I shook my head as he made his way to the refrigerator.

"If there was someone else instead of you, they would have personally tended to my burn." I muttered loud enough for him to hear.

He returned with the ice cubes. "Too bad I am the devil."

Ignoring his smug face, I applied ice on my burn and flexed my fingers.

He shook his head, chuckling lightly. "It's a miracle you don't spontaneously combust into flames when you walk."

Grabbing two cups from the counter, he shooed me away. "I think it will be better if you sit down and let me do it."

I swatted his hand away. "No. I will do it on my own."

He sighed and let me pour the hot chocolate in the cups, knowing very well that I wasn't going to budge. When I was done, Arjun picked the cups and walked out with me trailing behind him.

We settled on the sofa and he handed my cup to me, resting his feet on the coffee table. I mimicked his actions, switching on TV and cheered when Harry Potter came on.

Arjun took a sip of his drink and I waited with bated breath like a contestant of MasterChef waiting for the judge to taste the recipe.

His face reflected astonishment and I knew he liked it.

"It's good."

"I know." I winked, focusing back at the movie.

"Do you know who sent those messages?" Arjun asked after some time and on instinct, I clutched my cup tightly, the action not going unnoticed by him.

Darting out my tongue to wet my lips, I exhaled a heavy breath. "Yes."

I could feel his burning stare at the side of my head but my eyes were determinedly focused on my lap.

"There was a guy." My throat clogged up with emotions as the old memories flooded back and I swallowed harshly. "He, uh, he was my friend. He liked me, I didn't. We decided to stay friends. But he became obsessive after some time."

Obsessive is an understatement.

He was a control freak.

"He wouldn't let me talk to other guys and would get mad if I didn't respond to his text or call. He started acting like a controlling boyfriend."

Why was I sharing this with Arjun? I had no idea.

"I was done with his shit. So, I decided to tell him off and break our friendship. He made a huge fuss, obviously. But thankfully dad got a promotion and we had to shift to other side of the city since it was closer to his new office and my school. Since then, I have never seen him and surprisingly, he had never tried to contact me either. Till yet."

What Arjun didn't know, what I didn't tell him was when I went to talk to him, he had hit me. I had taken self-defense classes in the early summer but he was too strong and I hated myself that I couldn't stop him. He had slapped me so hard that my lower lip had split open.

I still have nightmares about that day.

No one except my family and Anushka know that.

"What's his name?" Arjun's voice broke my chain of thoughts and I looked up startled, shuddering. I blinked furiously and rubbed my eyes, trying to get rid of the blurriness due to my unshed tears.

Arjun's eyes were trained on the table, his knuckles had turned white due to his tight grip on the cup. The way he was clenching and unclenching his jaw, anyone could tell how hard he was trying to contain his anger.

"Dhruv." I whispered, the lump in my throat getting bigger. "Dhruv Thapar."

"I, um," I continued talking, not wanting to go down the lane of memories. "I used to have anxiety attacks after the incident. But they eventually stopped. I haven't had one in a long time."

His concerned eyes took in my anxious face. "When was the last time you had an anxiety attack?"

I bit my lip. "On the day of our engagement."

My voice was a mere whisper but judging by the silence prevailing in the hall, one could swear it felt like I had screamed the words at the top of my lungs.

Arjun froze in his place and the swirling rage in his eyes was instantly replaced by guilt.

"Kiara, I.."

"It's okay. You don't have to apologize again."

He let out a string of colourful words, raking a hand through his hair and messing them.

Rubbing a hand over his face, he looked at me. "Fuck. I am an idiot, ain't I?

I gave a small chuckle, wanting nothing more than him to forget about it. It was in the past and I didn't want him to feel guilty. He had already apologized for it before.

I was glad when he changed the subject. "Your parents. Do they know?"

"They know about Dhruv. But not about my panic attacks."

"I don't know what he wants now." I whispered helplessly. "I... I am scared."

Somehow, I didn't feel odd sharing my secret with Arjun. It almost felt... natural, as if a huge weight had lifted from my shoulders.

"I won't let him come anywhere near you. I promise." Arjun's face was solemn as he spoke.

"I know." I smiled gratefully and then put on a smirk, his signature smirk. "Since you have been appointed as my devil with the red horns, it is your duty to protect me."

"I thought it was the job of your knight in shining armor."

I leaned to his side and whispered conspirationally. "Devils are the new fashion."

He grinned as I laughed merrily and we diverted our attention to Harry Potter who was searching for horcruxes. All the while, I couldn't let go of a nagging thought at the back of my head.

Curiosity was eating me alive and I wondered how Arjun would react if I asked him.

"Who was that girl?" I finally blurted out when I couldn't contain it any longer.

Since he had asked me a question, it was only fair that he answers one, too.

We were tip-toeing on thin ice. One wrong move and we would be back to square one.

Arjun stiffened, his face hardening but answered nonetheless. "My ex."

I thought about it for a moment. "Meera?"

His eyes flickered to me, scanning my face for any emotion. He nodded, facing the TV again.

"Do you, uh, still love her?" I couldn't ignore the pang of hurt and disappointment that shot straight through my heart. Even the thought of it made me restless.

"No." Arjun answered almost immediately. "I never loved her. Neither did she. She was cheating on me. She was only with me for money." He scoffed.

Should I feel bad that I felt extremely happy when he said that?

"Meera was one of the reasons I developed anger issues." He said. "And then, mom's... death worsened my case."

"Oh."

I never thought he would open up about himself to me.

There was an awkward silence in the room, at least from my side. Arjun was deep in thoughts and I felt like I was invading his privacy and shifted my gaze to the television screen where Hermione and Ron were kissing. That reminded me of our own kiss a few hours ago and I turned beetroot red.

All previous sinful thoughts came rushing back to me like a bursting dam.

Arjun must have noticed the discomfort on my face as he asked. "What is it?"

And when I am under pressure, I blurt out the truth.

"We kissed!" I exclaimed and my voice dropped to a low whisper as if I was confessing about committing a crime.

He looked taken aback for a second but masking his expressions, he scrunched his brows. "We...did."

"What if things go awkward between us?" I voiced out my concern.

"Where ever you are concerned, things will go awkward."

My face fell. "How is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"It's not. I am just telling you the truth."

I pouted.

"Princess," He called out softly. "We are adults. Whatever happened, it happened with our consent and we liked it. It won't be awkward unless you want it to be."

Screw him for making sense all the time.

I was happy with my self-doubt and constant worrying. Why did he have to make it so simple?

Wait.

"You liked it?" I asked, surprised.

"You didn't?"

Uh... It backfired.

"Y-yeah, I mean it was...okay." I gave a careless shrug, trying to play it cool and hoping he didn't notice the stutter in my voice.

If okay means 'so-good-that-I-couldn't-breathe-or-stand-for-the-next-few-seconds-due-to-shock', then it was definitely okay.

My conscience rose a mocking brow.

Fine! It was my-wig-got-snatched-and-I-nearly-expired-to-heaven good.

"Right, of course." Arjun nodded, clearly not convinced with my poor attempt at lying.

I averted my eyes from his smug face, planning his death in my mind.

That cheeky bastard knew that I loved the kiss and he was enjoying it way too much.

"It was your fault." I spoke in an accusing tone, throwing him an angry glare.

"Excuse me?"

"You kissed me."

"If you didn't like it, you could have pushed me away."

"That's the problem. I didn't want to push you away." I smacked a hand against my mouth as soon as those words left my lips and then glared at him. "See! This is what I am talking about. You drive me to the edge and I blurt out everything in nervousness. You mess with my mind. Even now when I cou-"

I couldn't complete my sentence because Arjun had kissed me, rendering me speechless, both literally and figuratively.

Before I could push him away...only to straddle him and kiss the hell out of him, he pulled back himself.

What? No!

"You talk too much." He whispered, his eyes roaming on my face.

I sat there paralyzed with eyes as wide as saucers, my heart beating into overdrive.

"Princess?" My round eyes snapped to Arjun. His face held a slight tinge of concern at my dumb expression and lack of response.

He can't expect me to talk after that.

"It's okay. We liked it, we did it. Don't stress that brain of yours."

I was still frozen in my place, gawking at him.

His forehead creased and he looked sincerely worried for me. "Are you alright?"

I gave a single nod, still lost and his lips twitched in amusement.

"Can you speak?"

I shook my head.

"Looks like I found a new way to shut you up."

A weird sound escaped the back of my throat.

Arjun inched closer, whispering like he was telling some secret. "Don't worry, I won't tell Thor anything."

Winking at me, he leaned back with a smirk.

I swear to god I'm gonna hit him with a lamp if he continues smirking like that.

"Shut up and watch the movie." All that came out of my mouth was a breathless wheeze.

"Nah. I would rather watch you getting flustered."

My cheeks heated in embarrassment and I could feel blood rushing to my ears, their tips turning red.

He didn't even bother to hide his amusement as he let out a hearty laugh, his eyes crinkling at the sides and his dimples on display.

I was captivated by the scene, my lips curving in a smile but then I remembered that the object of his entertainment was me and I scowled. Turning away from him with an angry huff, I faced the TV and pointedly ignored him for the rest of the movie.

Somewhere between the movie, I suppressed a yawn, struggling to keep my eyes open. Harry was almost going to defeat Voldemort when sleep overtook me and I fell in a deep slumber, my head lolling to a side.

When I woke up, I found myself snuggling more into my bed as arms tightened around me.

Wait. Since when do beds have arms?

My eyes opened with a jerk as I tried to sit but something weighed me down and I landed on a hard chest. My gaze travelled up and I swallowed a gasp as I saw Arjun sleeping. He was lying on the sofa, his head on the armrest while I was sprawled on him. Blushing like a tomato, I carefully removed his arms from my back and slid away.

I was going to walk away from there when his face caught my attention. His mouth was slightly open, a few locks falling on his forehead and I nearly awwed at how innocent he looked.

Tip-toeing to my room, I grabbed my phone and hurried back to the hall. Clicking a picture of him, I grinned evilly and bent down near his face, leaning towards him.

"Morning!" I yelled in his ear and Arjun woke up with a start, nearly falling off the sofa.

I burst out laughing as he immediately sat straight, glancing around hysterically and trying to recover from the initial shock.

"Morning, hubby." I smiled sweetly as his dilated eyes focused on me and realization dawned upon him, his face turning comical. I couldn't resist myself and ended up clicking another hilarious picture. His expressions became murderous as he stood up with the speed of lightening and I ran away from there, squealing and laughing at his enraged face.

*

"No way!" I gasped, trying to stifle my loud giggles.

We were at the airport but our flight was late due to some technical problem and we had to wait in the lounge.

Arjun smirked at my shocked face as he sat there with his legs crossed, ankle over his knee while I was sitting beside him, his coat draped over my front.

No, it wasn't one of those cute moments where I was shivering and Arjun being the gentleman he isn't, offered his coat to me. I had very graciously stolen it when he was busy on a call, partly because I wanted to annoy him and partly because I was actually feeling a bit cold. He didn't object when he saw me cuddled up in his jacket and I was too warm and comfortable to give it back to him.

"I can't believe Sid did that."

Since we had nothing better to do, Arjun was recalling the number of times Sid had gotten in trouble.

"Sid has always been adventurous. He was the one who insisted me to try jet-skiing."

I smiled as Arjun talked about Sid. No matter how much he acted like Sid irritated him to the core (which he actually did), he was really fond of him.

Talking about jet-skiing, this trip definitely had been a memorable one.

"I enjoyed this trip a lot. Thank you." I leaned forward to kiss his cheek but Arjun chose the exact moment to turn towards me and I ended up brushing my lips against his. A jolt of electricity ran through my body and I pulled back, gasping.

We both looked wide-eyed at each other.

Arjun is right. Trust Kiara Singhania to make any situation awkward.

My face turned blank while a teasing smirk spread on his lips, amusement glittering in his black orbs.

"I know you were dying to do it."

I let out a tortured groan, hiding my face in my hands. "It was an accident."

"I think," His arm went around my shoulders. "you couldn't stop yourself."

I could feel his breath near my ear when he spoke again. "Wanna try it again?"

I elbowed him in the stomach, cursing him under my breath and he laughed.

I can handle Angry Arjun, but this mischievous smirking Arjun is a hazard to my poor heart.

"Sir, ma'am?" I looked up on David's voice as he stood in front of us. "It will take another hour before the plane takes off. Can I get you guys something?"

"Yeah, I need a black coffee."

I scrunched my face at Arjun as he said that.

Who in their right mind drinks black coffee?

"No, wait." I interrupted. "Cancel the black coffee. Bring two chocolate frappe instead."

David's eyes trailed to Arjun, asking for his confirmation while Arjun just shrugged in response, awarding us with his famous full eye-roll. "Fine. Get us what she said."

I saw a hint of smile on David's face. "Okay, sir."

"On second thought," I stood up, wearing the coat properly and pulling Arjun with me. "you don't need to go anywhere David. We'll get our frappes ourselves. In fact, we will bring something for you too."

Holding Arjun's hand, I dragged him away from there while he grumbled something about me womanhandling him but I didn't miss the stunned look on David's face.

*

"I think you should reconsider your decision."

"No, I am not tagging David along with me. And it's final."

"Fine. But if you notice anything suspicious, you call me immediately." Arjun's eyes left the road momentarily to focus at me.

"Yes, sir." I gave him a mock-salute and he rolled his eyes.

We came back home at 10 last night and I had to attend college today.

Arjun was driving me to college and he wanted David to accompany me to my classes because of the text incident but I straight away discarded the idea. Samantha had called yesterday and she told us that the numbers from which I have been receiving texts belonged to different people. She was still working on finding more about them.

Although I managed to convince Arjun that I didn't need a bodyguard, he had declared in his no-nonsense tone that either he or David would be driving me to and from college.

The car reached to a stop as my college building came into view and I slung my bag over my shoulder, ready to step out when Arjun's voice halted me.

"You are forgetting something."

I turned to look at him with a bewildered expression as he cocked a brow.

Was he asking for a... kiss?

Isn't this what usually happens when the guy says something like this?

I couldn't believe he chose this moment to be cheesy when we were parked near my college, surrounded by so many students.

"Arjun!" I admonished him lightly, my cheeks flaming in embarrassment as I looked around. "I can't... we can't kiss here." I hissed at him, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear.

"What?" He looked at me like I had declared I won't eat chocolates for the rest of my life.

Why was he looking at me like I had gone bonkers? He was the one suggesting such a scandalous idea.

"I was talking about your phone." He pointed towards the dashboard.

Oh.

Will you like to drown yourself in hot water or will ice cold water be just fine?

"What is wrong with you?"

"I thought..." I bit the inside of my cheek, wanting to slam my head on the dashboard.

"Uh, I...bye." I hurriedly exited the car, not having the courage to face him.

"Stop reading those books." Arjun shouted as I almost ran away from there.

"Stop talking in riddles." I yelled back at him, making way towards the building.

I had just entered the classroom when a heavy book came flying towards me along with a shrill yell.

"Oh my God, someone is trying to kill me!" I screamed in response, ducking at the right moment and avoiding the book by mere inches.

See. You should have listened to Arjun and brought David with you.

Peeking from between my fingers, I found three pairs of excited eyes staring at me. My hands dropped down as I saw the three idiots bouncing on their toes in excitement.

"Are you crazy?" I shrieked. "You could have killed me."

"Sorry, got a little excited." Saumya passed me a sheepish smile, her expressions nowhere near apologetic.

"You bitch!" Maahi screamed cutting Saumya off, her face threatening to split into two due to the wide smile on her face. "Explain!"

"Explain what?" My brows pulled together in confusion as I stood up slowly, dusting my clothes.

"Really?" Saumya crossed arms over her chest. "Drop the act, Kia. We all know what happened."

"And we want details." Nandini squealed in joy, clapping like a small child.

"I don't understand. What are you guys talking about?"

"Of course, you are too busy daydreaming about Mr. Grumpy." Maahi teased, poking my cheek.

Huh?

Maahi rolled her eyes at my puzzled face and thrusted a magazine in my hands, propping hands on her waist.

My confused eyes fell on the cover of the magazine and I felt my heart stopping for a second.

What the fu-

It was a picture of me and Arjun. Not just any picture, it was from the airport when we had accidentally kissed!

Shit.

And they finally kissed! Woo-hoo! *squeals and jumps around her room, throwing confetti all over the place*

I hope you liked the chapter.

Till next update, love me some Arjun.