Abhimaan' s pov

As soon as we arrived, my mother told me to go and freshen up, and to have lunch here today.

Usually, I would have declined and stayed in my penthouse, but today was different. I couldn't miss the chance of being close to Prajakta, even if it meant enduring my father's presence. So without a second thought, I said yes and headed up to my room.

As I walked into my room, fresh from the shower and wearing nothing but a towel around my waist, I was taken aback by the sight in front of me. Prajakta standing in my room, Our eyes met and for a brief moment

She fidgeted with her fingers and closed her eyes tightly,. 'I'm so sorry'She  turned around, apologizing profusely. I couldn't resist taking a step closer to her, enjoying the way she squirmed under my gaze and admiring her petite figure and the way her hair fell on her face. I couldn't help but smirk at she is  unaware of my feelings for her. 

A smirk crept up on my face. Seeing her flustered and red-cheeked only made me want her more.' It's okay, Prajakta,It's not like I mind having you in my room,' I said, again smirking , I couldn't hide the desire in my tone.

She looked up at me, surprised and confused. I could see the questions in her eyes, and it took all my self-control .I couldn't help but smirk at her nervousness. She was so innocent and unaware of my feelings for her. I took a step closer to her, enjoying the way she squirmed under my gaze.

'Why are you so nervous around me?' I asked her stepping closer to her.while she was moving backward looking at me and shooking her head.and then ran away from there saying sorry again.

So fucking innocent

After getting ready i heard a knock .'Come in,' I called out,The maid entered and informed me that my mom was calling me for lunch. I'll be there in a few minutes,' I replied

I went downstairs. As I entered the dining room,  Sarah was there, as well as my mom,  But my eyes were immediately drawn to Prajakta, who was sitting at the table with a smile on her face, talking to my mom and sarah.

As I took my seat, I noticed everyone's gaze shift to me. I met Prajakta's gaze, but she quickly averted her eyes and stared at the floor as if it held some interesting thing.

'Abhimaan, you come, take your sit,' my mom said.I sat down, but my mood suddenly changed when I saw my father entering the room

I clenched my fist under the table, trying to control my anger.

'Why didn't you tell me he was joining us for lunch?' I asked my mom, i was annoyed .

My mom avoided my question and Sarah chimed in, 'Let's just eat. I'm starving!'

'When you are not???' I said  rolling my eyes .

'Hawwww! Mom, did you hear that?' she complained to mom.

My mom just rolled her eyes As we sat down to eat, I was silent, barely eating and just listening to Prajakta and sneaking glances at her.

After lunch, my father called me to his study, saying that he had something important to discuss with me.

'I don't want to,' I replied, not wanting to talk to him and ruin my mood. But he just gave me a tight-lipped smile and said, 'You know you have to.'

I gritted my teeth and followed him into the study knowing that this conversation was not going to end well.. He reminded me once again about the deal and I snapped, 'you don't have any girlfriend and i know that. Do you really think you can lie to me?', 'Don't forget, I'm your father.' My father's words only fueled my anger.

'I already told you to not interfere in my life and here you are, doing exactly that,' I said through gritted teeth.

'I am your father, Abhi. It's my responsibility to guide you and make decisions for your future,' my father replied.

'you have no right to meddle in my personal life,' I argued back.

My father's expression turned serious as he replied, 'Your behavior towards me today has changed my decision. I am giving you two months now to get married, either marry or get ready to lose everything.'

My anger knew no bounds. Without another word, I clenched my fists and stormed out of the room, slamming the door loudly.

___________________________

Prajakta' s pov

We we' were talking after the lunch.  I feel an instant connection with sarah .We discovered that we are in the same college, and Sarah is in her first year while Im in my second.

We exchanged numbers and promised to meet each other every day in college. It was the first time I felt like I had made a true friend in this city.

But then I received a call from my mother, and I had to leave. I tried to excuse myself, but aunty insisted that Abhimaan would drop me home.I politely refused, saying that I could manage on my own. But aunty was determined,

After five minutes of waiting, I could hear footsteps coming down the stairs. I looked up and saw Abhiman storming out of the house without even acknowledging anyone. I could feel the tension in the air.

"Abhimaan''aunty called him by his name

He stopped without turning back.

Aunty asked him to drop me home. he nodded his head and Said " come" then motioned  me to follow him as he headed towards the car. I bid goodbye to Mrs. Khurana and Sarah, and followed Abhiman to his car.

As we drove, I could feel the tension in the car. It was awkward, to say the least.

Abhimaan' pov

I noticed two or three vehicles following us closely.I quickly sped up the car, hoping to go away from their sight. but the most annoying thing that is happened is the traffic signal turned red And i stopped the car. I saw them. The paparazzi. They were taking photos of us, I could feel my blood boiling with anger. How did they know we were here? and I cursed them in my mind. 

I turned towards Prajakta, who is now looking at me with confusion written all over her face.I went close to her, to hide her face from the cameras, making it look like we are going to kiss. It is the only way to protect her from the media's prying eyes.

'What are you doing?' Prajakta asked, in a trembling voice as she pushed me away.

. I could feel her heart racing and her body was covered in sweat.

'I'm not doing anything. The paparazzi are following us. If they see your face, you'll end up on the front page of the newspaper with some made-up story. I replied in a hushed tone.

Prajakta's eyes widened in shock.I could hear the paparazzi clicking their cameras relentlessly. I had to act fast before they captured her face.As I moved closer to her, she started trembling even more and I could see the fear in her eyes.I placed my hand on her cheek,  then I felt her body trembling with fear. 'Are you okay, Prajakta?' I asked in a concerned voice.

But she didn't reply, and her trembling only increased.she started gasping for air, and before I could do anything, she fainted. Fuck what's happening??? These fucking paparazzi I will make sure to teach them a good lesson afterwards.

I saw the traffic signal turned green Without wasting any more time, I reached for my phone and called my men to handle the paparazzi. I didn't want Prajakta to go through this horror any longer. I then drove the car in full speed, A few minutes of driving, and we are on the side of the road. I stopped the car, and as soon as I did, I turned to Prajakta and called out her name loudly. I took a bottle of water from the backseat and sprinkled it on her face. She finally opened her eyes, and I let out a sigh of relief. she is looking pale.

Are you okay?' I asked, still worried.

Prajakta slowly nodded her head and I could see the fear still lingering in her eyes. I didn't say anything.I drove her to her house and made sure she was safely inside before heading back to my own.

___________________________________

Next day at office

What the hell were you all doing?' I spat in anger. 'Didn't I give you one simple task - to handle the paparazzi? And yet, here we are." I shouted at them.i show someone entering into the room . WTF!!!

'Can't you knock?' I snapped at him, not in the mood for his usual antics. My friend, who also happened to my bussiness partner walked in with a knowing smile on his face.

First stop shouting, Abhimaan! My eardrums will rupture,' he replied with a chuckle, completely unfazed by my anger

"You go, remember we are not over yet" i tell them  and they left after nodding and greeting  samarth .

'Stop scaring your employees!' my friend chided me.

You don't tell me what to do!' I retorted, unable to contain my frustration any longer.

But he  just rolled his eyes and went straight to the reason for his visit. He showed me some news on his phone with a dramatic headline and  screamed, 'Abhimaan caught red-handed with mystery woman!'

Billionaire Abhimaan caught kissing mystery girl.'

'Who is this mistery girl?'

I groaned and rubbed my temples, already feeling a headache coming on. 'These fucking employees are good for nothing. I told them yesterday to take care of the event and handle the paparazzi. And look at them now!' I fumed. 'This is fucking annoying.'

And then my phone rang and I saw the name of my detective flashing on the screen. I answered the call,

"Sir, I have some information about Prajakta sharma. She is working on a project.it's a team project there are 5 members in each team .there are three girls and two boys in thier team." he said i raised my eyes

"Sir one is swagat Mishra and another one is Aryan.He is a Playboy and quite famous around the college". He said

"Anything else I should know?"I asked him gritting my teeth

they have been spending a lot of time by working together in the college library,' my detective informed me.

"Sir as you said I send some photos of her."

"You better  Keep close eye on that guy and report to me every single thing about Prajakta,' I barked into the phone.

    The detective stuttered, 'Yes sir, I will make sure to find out everything. I will keep you updated.' I saw my phone and look at the photos my blood boiled seeing the photos. That fucker Aryan boy keeping his hand on her shoulder she is looking uncomfortable to me. In second pic she is trying to move his hand from her shoulder. I slammed the phone down.

I got into my car and drove to her college. As I stood in the parking lot, my eyes searched for her among the crowd of students.I couldn't believe I was here, looking for her. I not a fucking stalker but i felt like one now.And then, I saw her. walking with the boy named Aryan and another two .i have seen them before yes these two are with her at the party . My blood boiled with anger as I watched her laughing and talking with that aryan. This Aryan boy I'll see him later.I couldn't take it anymore.

'Prajakta!'Without a second thought, i called out her name loudly.

Prajakta turned around, shock evident in her widening eyes. She walked towards him after saying something to her friends.

"Mr khurana? What are you doing here?'' she asked, her voice full of shock.i asked her to come with me, and i'll drop her off at home. prajakta told me she would go by herself.

That's when my  temper rose. I couldn't understand why she is throwing tantrums to me. 'Listen,' i said in anger, 'I am offering to drop you, so just come with me.'

But Prajakta refused, and this only made me even angrier. That's when I saw Sarah walking towards us. asking what I was doing here. I gave her a sharp look, not wanting her to know that I was here to see Prajakta.,  I forced a tight-lipped smile and told her, 'I am here to pick you up today.She gave me an odd look and then said teasingly, 'Is there something I'm missing, Bhai?'

I gave her a glare and then replied, 'Nothing that concerns you. Now, let's go.' and  opened the door for her and gestured for her to get in. Sarah moved her eyes and saw Prajakta, who was standing at a distance, looking confused.

'Hey, Prajakta,' Sarah shouted near my ear. ' 'Don't shut'i told her in a cold tone.

'Why don't you come with us? We'll drop you off.' she asked prajakta.

Prajakta hesitated, unsure of what to do. But Sarah convinced her, saying, 'Come on, don't be silly. We can all go together.' She grabbed Prajakta's hand and dragged her to the car. Prajakta sat in the backseat while Sarah occupied the passenger seat. I couldn't help but steal glances at Prajakta through the

rearview mirror.

________

2261 words!!!!

I hope you guys like the chapter. ...