24

"What....What are you doing here?" I stammered.

"For dinner, of course." He said shrugging his shoulders while pulling out his mobile from his pocket and placing it on the table.

Putting up a fake smile on my face, I stood up slowly as I spoke, "I think I have come to the wrong table. So sorry Mr. Ru- Sir. Have a great night. See you tomorrow. Goodb-"

Before I could even attempt to run away, he grabbed my wrist and pulled lightly, making me sit in the same place again.

I looked at his sparkling eyes glistening with amusement. He looked like he was having fun.

Maintaining eye contact, he leaned back, clearly relaxed, and spoke, "Ria. You are at the right table and with the right person. Stop freaking out."

I stared at him and gulped. I was at a loss for words.

He is the guy my parents choose?

Advik Aggarwal, my current boss.

I can't believe it.

I don't know what my parents saw in him.

He is anything but perfect.

Are you sure?

Didn't you develop a little crush on him a few days back? My heart mocked.

Shut up!

"Here," he said, pouring water into the glass and extending it towards me. I glanced at his outstretched hand and swiftly took the glass, so as not to look dumb.

As our fingers brushed, a flutter of butterflies stirred in my stomach.

Ignoring that, I came back to reality and cleared my throat looking at the person who was calmly seated on the chair and staring at me with amazement in his eyes, oblivious to my distress.

"So, You are Dhruv Uncle's Son?" I asked silently praying that he say no.

Say No.

Please say No.

Despite my brain hoping for him to say no, My heart was silently screaming for him to say yes.

"Yes." He replied, without taking his eyes off me.

I went silent trying to search for the questions to ask him in this situation.

Unfortunately, my brain seemed to stop working.

I don't know what to ask.

I broke the eye contact and glanced outside. I looked at him again and opened my mouth to speak but words didn't come out. So, not to look awkward I poured the water in the glass and started drinking. My hands trembled slightly as I drank.

"Ria. You and I both know why we are here. Stop behaving strangely."

I put the glass down, and leaned forward, meeting his gaze, "Look, Mr. Advik. This is weird. There is no match between you and me. We both have a different personality. Our worlds are different. You are my boss, and I am your employee. We can't be in a relationship. We can't marry. I'm not good enough for you." I spoke all in one breath and he watched me like he was already expecting all this.

He sighed.

Putting his elbow on the table, he leaned forward and asked with a calm expression, "Done?"

I nodded my head.

"Now, Can I speak?" He asked.

I gulped and nodded again.

"I think you are right. You are not good.... " He paused, and I felt a wave of disappointment covering my heart. He continued, "You are the best match for me...."

I stared at him with my eyes widened at his boldness.

Before I could open my mouth, he added,"...... that's what my father told me."

I released a deep breath and leaned back, looking away.

Of course, what else could it be?

He doesn't like you. He is just obeying his father's order.

His parents might have pressured him like my grandma did to me.

I glanced at him, and cleared my throat, "You knew about this?"

He nodded, unfazed by the situation, "Yes. I figured I should give it a chance."

My heart raced hearing his words.

Wait! He is supposed to reject me.

I put my elbows on the table, and began speaking, "Look, You don't have to do anything coming under pressure from your parents-"

"No one can force me into doing something I don't want. You know that."

I pressed my lips into a thin line at his sentence.

What does that mean?

That means he wants to marry you.

I never thought he would consider this proposal.

What did he even see in me?

There is nothing about me that could interest him. I am just an average girl.

Neither pretty nor filled with humor.

I am just boring-

His voice interrupted my thoughts, "Besides that, we get along well at work, don't we?"

"But there is a huge difference in professional and personal life," I replied coldly.

He studied me for a second, and asked softly, "What's the reason?"

"What reason?" I questioned dumbly while staring down at my hands on my lap.

"Why are you rejecting me?"

"I...I already told you."

"Okay, first, I need you to forget the past and the fact that you're my employee for a moment,"

"Huh?" I lifted my head to meet his gaze.

"You heard me."

"But what's the point of that?"

"Because earlier you said you won't marry me since I'm your employer. So, let's set that aside for now." His gaze was intense, as he leaned forward, "Now tell me, where's the problem?"

I tucked the strands of my hair behind my ear.

"I have a boyfriend." I blurted out, coming up with a lie on the spot.

I don't know where that came from. But I hope after hearing it he will reject me. My grandma won't allow me to reject him, so I have to find a way to make him reject me.

The shocking expression that I was expecting didn't appear on his face, instead, the corner of his lips turned into a small smirk.

"Oh Really?"

"Yes, we have been in a relationship since...umm...almost 8 years 2 months." Wearing a serious expression, I tried to sound confident.

He didn't seem like it affected him even a bit, instead, it looked like he was trying hard to hide his smile.

"I don't care." His voice came shattering my plan into pieces.

I was stunned.

So, he understood that I was lying.

Great.

But Why is so interested in me suddenly?

Or who knows if he is just playing with me?

Yeah, that could happen. I can't trust anyone easily.

I tried to think about something else. He knows me too well. I don't think there was any other way to make him reject me. Thus, I reflected on his earlier question. Apart from work, I've never reached out to him. It's been solely about work, work, and work.

My brain started searching for his flaws. I could say I don't like his rude behavior, but then realized, I don't know how he actually is in real life. Judging him on that basis doesn't sound good. Being a businessman, he had to be strict. The corporate world is not so easy after all.

I looked at him, "So what do you think about this whole idea?"

He leaned back, his gaze warm and soft, "I believe that it's worth exploring. Our elders want the best for us, and who knows? We might discover something special." The sincerity could be seen clearly in his eyes as he spoke. It made me rethink about all the decisions I was making. As I considered his words, a mix of excitement and curiosity bubbled inside me.

I let out a deep breath, and gave him a small smile, "I get it. But I just didn't expect to be discussing marriage with my boss."

He chuckled making my heart flutter.

"Neither did I."

The waitress approached, interrupting our conversation, she was a bubbly young woman wearing a bright smile. She stared at Mr. Rude for a little too long which made my stomach churn.

"What would you like to order?" She asked in a playful voice, and leaned slightly closer to Mr. Rude, making my smile faltered for a moment. The jealousy crept into my veins as I observed the waitress attempting to catch Mr. Rude's attention, who was completely unaware of her efforts. He didn't even glance her way, too busy reading the menu, it made a feeling of relief spread within my heart.

No, I shouldn't get jealous over such a small thing. Nothing has started yet.

I cleared my throat and tried to focus on the menu.

"Ria? What would you like to order?" He asked softly, raising his gaze to meet mine.

After taking the orders, the waitress walked away, and I let out a deep breath focusing on him.

His phone started ringing, and he glanced at it, passing me an apologetic look, "Sorry, I have to take this."

I passed him a reassuring smile, "Sure."

He answered the call without going anywhere and started speaking, it looked like it was his father by the way he spoke.

I stole the moment to look at him as he glanced out at the sky and conversed. He was looking devilishly handsome in the white shirt he wore which fit him perfectly, accentuating his muscular build.

My eyes went up to his face. And I can't help but admire his striking features-his dark hair, piercing ocean blue eyes, and the way his smile lit up his face as he talked. I realized it's been so long since I had a proper look at his features. His long eyelashes, thick eyebrows, the perfect jawline, everything was enhancing his beauty. I stared for a little too long, captivated by how handsome he looked.

I can watch him all day—

He turned his face towards me, and his blue eyes met mine, making the blush spread across my cheeks. I hope he doesn't catch me staring at him shamelessly.

He set his phone aside and focused his attention on me, "So... what's your answer, ma'am?"

I smiled, "Mr. Advik, I —"

He cut me off, "I told you, forget for a while that I am your boss. It's Advik."

"Um...Ok. Advik."

His name sounded strange rolling out of my tongue.

Mr. Rude is fine with me.

I looked at him, "I...I don't know...but maybe.." I shuttered stupidly.

"Relax Ria. You are free to speak your thoughts."

"I know. I'm...I think it's too early to decide anything. Maybe we should know about each other...more." I blinked looking at his calm face.

He nodded slowly, "I totally agree with you."

I passed him a genuine smile. Thankful that he respected my decision.

So, you are considering marrying him?

No.

It's just a matter of a few days, I am sure he will do something that will upset me, and I can say no to his face.

Why does this sound stupid?

"Just wait and watch, how this turn to yes at the end." He said with a grin. His dimples popped out which made him look cute.

I smiled and watched as the same waitress came with food, making my smile fade.

"Here you go!" She settled down the food with a flirtatious smile, and continued, "We have the chefs special, especially for you." She winked at him, making me press my lips in a thin line. The way she was ignoring me, made me feel like I'm invisible.

He thanked her without glancing at her, his famous unreadable expression covering his face. I don't know but for the first time, his blank expression brought a different kind of peace to my heart.

Getting disappointed, she left, leaving us alone.

He looked up at me and smiled gesturing me to start.

"Tell me, what do you want to do in the future?" He asked, breaking the silence.

I smiled, "I want to do everything I haven't done and experienced till now."

His smile stretched, "That's great."

"Yeah, What about you? You are already a successful billionaire, Do you have any dreams ahead? Any wishes?"

He nodded slowly, his blue eyes staring into mine, "I do have a lot of dreams that are yet to be achieved. And about my wish, it's already getting fulfilled in a way I never expected."

My eyebrows raised at his reply.

I looked down at my plate, registering his words.

Wait, Don't think too much. You are not his wish. He is talking about something else. There is no hidden meaning behind that.

Yeah. Right.

I glanced at the chef's special dish which the waitress had brought, it was placed in front of me.

I stretched my hand to take it, but Mr. Rude's voice stopped me.

"Wait, I think it has peanut butter in it."

Then, he tasted the food, nodding his head, "It definitely has peanut butter."

I blinked twice.

"So?" I asked.

"Don't you have an allergy to peanut butter?" He said casually furrowing his eyebrows.

Realization hit me.

"Yeah," I murmured.

I do have an allergy to that.

How can I forget about this?

Thank god, he reminded me.

But....

I narrowed my eyes at him, "How do you know?"

He stared at me, his mouth slowly chewing the food as he replied, "I just.... guessed it."

I raised my eyebrows at that, and he averted his gaze from mine.

How can a person guess things so accurately, unless...

"I'm sure you are an alien," I spoke.

The corner of his lips turned into a broad smile, and he let out a hearty chuckle.

After that, the time passed.

He chatted casually like he had known me forever. And I... I was just lost in him.

As much as I wanted to hate him, I couldn't. There was something that was pulling me to him. Maybe because he was attractive?

Nope.

It was his heart.

In real life, he was totally in contrast to what he actually is in office.

Who knows if he is pretending to be nice? My brain spoke out.

But he seems....real.

Whatever. But don't trust too easily. My brain reminded

Shut up brain and let me enjoy my day.

I thought to ignore my negative brain completely and just enjoy the moment.

That night, I saw the real man behind the facade he wore. And I don't know why but I felt happy being with him. It all felt like a dream. If it's a dream, then I never want to wake up.