Akansha stepped inside the Secretariat taking a deep sigh. Finally she is gonna get the much needed approval for Phase - 1 extension. All these days, she bore hell at work. The committee members kept discouraging her, pointing how getting an approval from Shaurya is so hard, if he doesn't get convinced the very first time. Especially Mrs. Arora and Samuel gave her a tough time, only Mr. Khanna kept encouraging Akansha motivating her to give her best, though she could see some doubts in his eyes too, if Shaurya would be convinced or not. But since she knew the reality, she was unfazed by their comments, she knew Shaurya was purposely delaying the approval, he got convinced in their first meet itself. Finally she will slap the approval papers on Mrs. Arora's desk shutting them up. She is also glad that she didn't have to face Shaurya Or meet him frequently here after.

If someone told her a few months ago, that she would be waiting in a cue to meet Shaurya, or would be lining up to schedule an appointment with him, she would have declared that person delusional and mad but here she is on her way to his office.

Shweta greeted Akansha with a stiff smile and she is quick to guess something is amiss as Shweta was always polite and a sweet lady, she smiled at her sweetly everytime she visited there, but now she didn't look normal. She looked conflicted and deeply torn apart.

"Are you alright Mrs. Gupta  ?", Akansha asked what would normally be asked by Shweta.

"Yes Dr. Dixit... Usually that would be my question", Shweta made a light remark to show everything is alright and Akansha got her attempt.

"Didn't know you had got copyright on that", Akansha answered with a smile which Shweta reciprocated. The two women weren't friends but they both were of high morals and knew they could trust each other when a woman needs another woman.

"Sir will be free in another 5 minutes, you can go in then", Shweta said and Akansha nodded resisting the urge to sigh. Shweta gave a concerned look to Akansha and she needed to ease her worries.

"My work will be done today, now I won't be eating your head for appointments anymore", Akansha said with a smile and Shweta mentally sighed in relief but that wouldn't have any impact on the decision she made. Shaurya made a woman feel unsafe and no matter what, she wouldn't work for a man of that sort.

"Good...", Shweta said and turned to look at the home minister with his assistant and DGP walking out. "Ms. Dixit, you can go now", Shweta added, Akansha gave a polite nod and headed towards Shaurya's office, the usual anxiousness Shweta saw on Akansha's face everytime she neared Shaurya's office made it's way, but this time there is relief too that she doesn't have to meet him after today. The same relief that made Shweta feel that she worked for the wrong person all this time, Shaurya wasn't the man she thought him to be, maybe it was all his facade of respecting women, and when the right time and a woman of his interest knocked in, he didn't wait even a minute to make her feel unsafe.

Akansha knocked on the door and entered with the necessary files after 2 minutes. She saw Shaurya massaging his temples, taking deep breaths looking at the documents. That's what he does when he is extremely pissed about something.

"This is utterly stupid Sharma, this is not why people chose us", Shaurya said in frustration.

"For now, we can't do much Sir... It's better to stay silent, elections are around the corner, you can think about it after that", Mr. Sharma suggested, he is sure Shaurya will be the one to come to power again, they just have to see by what majority since Dev and his party has gotten strong in the past 5 years.

"I'll play politics only during elections Mr. Sharma, it's a known fact to all... And there's still a few months for that, so until then, duty it is", Shaurya said, his tone turning extremely cold and stern indicating he wouldn't protect a spineless man who has endless corruption cases against him just because he is one of the largest funder of their party.

Akansha's feet halted at the door hearing his stern tone holding conviction. This is what that always attracted her to him, his commitment to people, Shaurya is not stupidly committed to his values, he knew how to turn tables around to play the game his way, he not only holds a beautiful and selfless heart but also a bold one to play those who play the innocent. But this is all for Shaurya, the chief minister. She has absolutely no opinion about Shaurya, the husband.

Shaurya looked at the door to see Akansha waiting patiently at the door to finish his discussion with his principle secretary. He knew she couldn't hear his conversation except when he chose to raise his tone. He also knew that's the reason she stayed at the door to give them privacy. Mr. Sharma's eyes followed Shaurya's gaze...

"Dr. Dixit, could you please allow us 5 more minutes? We'll just wind this up", Mr. Sharma requested.

"Sure... I'll wait outside", Akansha said and is about to leave when Shaurya interrupted her.

"That's okay, take a seat there, we're almost done", Shaurya said dismissively as if it didn't matter if she stayed or left but in reality his actions meant a lot, and Mr. Sharma knew the criticality of Shaurya's one gesture, it proved how much he trusted Akansha if he allowed her to be in the same room when they discussed such paramount issues.

"Sir, so should I ask the DGP to resume investigation on 'Balram Constructions'", Mr. Sharma asked

"Resume ? No, if it's paused then don't resume it now, instead take a note of all those responsible for pausing this investigation and Sue them on the first day of my second term", Shaurya said shocking Mr. Sharma

"Sir... All of them ?", Mr. Sharma fumbled

"Was I speaking Arabic ?", Shaurya sounded pissed.

"Sir, there might be some big names involved, some might even exist in your cabinet", Mr. Sharma this time made it clear about his point.

"They won't be a part of my cabinet again, don't you worry, now if you are done, let's push other things for later, Dr. Dixit is waiting", Shaurya said, his tone indicated how much he hated making his wife wait and this displeasure didn't go unnoticed by Mr. Sharma.

"Okay sir", Mr. Sharma said and walked away "Thank you Dr. Dixit", He added on his way out, Akansha gave a polite smile to him and walked towards Shaurya.

"These are the papers for phase 1 extension, if you do not have any further queries, then please sign these", Akansha said, purposely avoiding addressing him as 'Sir'. She knew that would piss him off and he might delay the signatures.

"Will sign them, but first of all take a seat", Shaurya offered softly, forwarding his water glass to her. She left a deep sigh mentally before taking a seat in front of him, but politely denied having water that too from his glass.

"So, how are you planning to adjust the timeline for the rest of the phases? Do you think you would be able to complete these before elections ?", Shaurya grilled

"I have already shown you the timeline I have planned for the rest of the phases, after discussing thoroughly with the other committee members. We are doing our best to stick to those timelines for now, but since a larger share of this involves inputs from multiple agencies and also the final results of the research committee, things are expected to get slightly delayed. But even then we'll be able to do it before the elections, but I suggest you not to rush it, as a part of your election campaigning, as this would have an impact on the future generations of the state, thorough planning is required before implementing", Akansha stated her opinion but it hurt him... Did she think so low of him? According to him, it's his wife who knew him more than anyone in this world. But because of all the mind games he played with her for his retribution, she no longer saw him with her heart, even before she could spot him, her brain alerted her of the destruction he is capable of, and that reality shook him.

"I play politics during elections so that I could help people for the next 5 years, not the other way around", he said looking into her eyes while she looked around. She could hear the ache of her mistrust in his tone but she chose to ignore it. 

"I don't need to hear what you do or what not, sir... You are far from reach to even seek an explanation", Akansha said politely, but her words cut through him deeply...

"You do, only you do, I don't help people for votes, I'm not that kind of man...", he said softly, still looking into her eyes, desperate to make her believe that he maynot be a good husband, in fact not even close, but he wasn't an equally bad leader, he genuinely tried to do justification to his role... Hearing his pleads and the desperate need in his tone, she wondered did her opinion really matter to him ? Or if he is acting then why ? His retribution was completed 5 years ago, what would he get by fooling her again ? Also, this time, if he involves with her, he has more to lose than gain... then why would he do it ? That meant he genuinely wanted her to see the real leader in him, an honest man, but why ? Why did her opinion matter to him ? Her heart has all the answers to her questions, its just that she didn't want to believe it or even let her heart answer them. Instead she preferred the uncertain yet careful and cautious answers by her head. 

"Sir... Sign please", Akansha said breaking her reverie of thoughts.

"Stay for 5 minutes please, I won't ask for a minute more", Shaurya asked, staring deep into her eyes. She kept avoiding his gaze as she couldn't afford the squeeze her heart felt at their eye contact, she didn't understand how he was able to look into her eyes after doing so much to her, maybe the guilt and regret he is showing is all again an act... "Every second spent looking into your eyes was a dagger at my heart, the number of tears I gave your poor eyes will kill me for the rest of my life, my shame wouldn't let me rise my head in front of you, let alone looking you in the eye, but my heart didn't know either shame, nor pride, it only loved you from the day it was set on you", Shaurya said making her look into his eyes but soon she stood up with a jerk.

"These lines were enough to fool Akansha Dixit, 5 years ago, but now, no... So, don't waste your time, as I can see, you have better things to do, focus on them", Akansha said coldly.

"These weren't enough then too... She was a very tough woman... I had to bunk my assembly sessions to pursue her, it took me 3 months to have my first conversation with you, remember?", Shaurya said, Akansha rolled her eyes...  "It took exactly 92 days 5 hours and 16 minutes for you to finally acknowledge my presence", Shaurya said and her eyes turned wide at his claim. She knew he remembered all the significant dates to them but didn't know he kept count of such minute details...

He first saw her when he visited her college for the charity event. He was the youth wing leader and was also an MLA then. Despite being the son of opposition party leader, Shaurya has quite some popularity among the young generation of the core supporter families of the then ruling party, given his charismatic personality and excellent people skills, he was easily loved by all.

That's when he met her, Akansha Dixit, a Ph. D student, also working as a junior professor in the same university. She was Dev's sister's professor, and since she liked Akansha's way of teaching a lot, Shaurya wanted to have Akansha home tutor Dev's sister, Aakriti. Dev was against this idea, but when Aakriti sets her mind on something, she would make sure Shaurya fulfills it.

"Hi... I want to meet Akansha Dixit, pursuing Ph. D in your university", Shaurya said walking to a bunch of Professors who instantly greeted him with respect.

"I am Akansha's mentor, Dr. Shashikant Gill, you can speak to me in case of any complaints or issues regarding her work", Mr. Gill politely pointed out to Shaurya.

"Um... Complaints? No, not at all... In fact, it's the other way around, I have heard a lot of good things from students for her, I want to personally praise her efforts", Shaurya said sounding convincing.

"Oh! Ms. Dixit would be glad to hear your kind words, Thank you, She is currently not here, but will make sure this reaches her, sir", Mr. Gill said politely

"I would like to meet her Mr. Gill... Personally", Shaurya said, his tone confident, indicating he wasn't going anywhere without meeting her.

"Um... She said she would be leaving for home...", Mr. Gill said and Shaurya's expressions turned cold. Mr. Gill had to defend Akansha's actions "And since she is an associate professor, she wouldn't have to take part in these events, still she helped us organize all this, she is a very dedicated student and teacher", He completed seaping praises for his favorite student.

Shaurya didn't say a word, just waited if he would be able to meet Akansha and as if luck is on his side, she came there to greet her mentor.

"Sir... I'll be leaving now, I am already late... You know...", Akansha started before Mr. Gill interrupted her.

"Arre Ms. Dixit, we were just talking about you... Mr. Shekhawat... This is Akansha Dixit you were asking about...", Mr. Gill introduced them looking at Akansha, signaling her to wait for a few moments and talk to Shaurya but she is in no mood to entertain anyone as she had to take her father to the hospital. She was already getting late for the appointment.
"MLA Saab is all praises for your work, okay you guys keep talking, I'll just come", Mr. Gill politely excused himself making Akansha curse him in her head, she was so occupied in cursing him that she wasn't in a condition to even fake a smile at Shaurya.

She looked at her phone to see any messages or phone calls from her mother about how bad of a daughter she is, and Shaurya utilized these moments to study her beautiful features. Akansha is a striking woman despite her hair bangs which are out of place and sticking to her face due to working long hours in hot sun, the sweat drops on her face and neck, her eyes tired of everything yet there is a spark of determination to go and get the world, the unlimited energy she possessed to do everything people expected of her, the eyes that showed frustration, those lips she was biting badly due to her mother's distraughting texts and her own condition she was stuck in. Everything glued Shaurya's eyes to her. He waited for her to get out of her own problems and greet him but what she did left him shocked.

"Excuse me, I have to leave", She said and walked away in a hurry, not even glancing at him even once, while he was staring at her as if she is the only woman left on earth. His gaze followed her till the end of the ground where she disappeared out from the gate after exchanging a wide smile with the watchman and that didn't go well with him. Was he so bad that she didn't even give a glance to him.

He was desperately waiting for her to rise her head and see him because he knew how woman reacted after seeing his handsome face, he was an extremely good looking man but never enjoyed the attention it brought, but for the first time, he wanted to see how a woman thought about his features but Akansha royally ignored him.

For the next few days, her tone and features disturbed him, her ignorance too did but not for long, as he got busy in his job. And surprisingly Aakriti too stopped pestering him to get Akansha as her home tutor, which got Shaurya a little surprised as she was a very stubborn woman and if she wanted something, she would get it no matter what, Dev tried to change her attitude a lot but Shaurya's pampering always was a hindrance. Even when Shaurya talked about hiring Akansha as her tutor, Aakriti expressed sudden dislike and abruptly left from there.

Only after a few weeks did Shaurya and Dev realized the actual reason behind Aakriti's sudden hatred for Akansha, and this didn't go well with both the men. They formed a plan to let the lady taste her own medicine after what she did to their sister, initially it was Dev who was supposed to trap Akansha considering Shaurya's 0 flirtous nature with girls, but some how, Shaurya took up the task, Dev thought it was because of his love for his sister, but only later did he realize his friend's feelings for Akansha Dixit.

It took the next 3 months to actually get her attention. Shaurya always visited her university but she was always in a hurry. Every time he came there, she was finishing her last lecture and then rush out of her class and the building. Once Shaurya even tried to stop her, in the pretext of talking to her, he introduced himself as one of her students' brother, he was sure she wouldn't know he is an MLA considering how she didn't bother to glance at him the other day. He thought she would at least give him her time if he posed as her student's family but she surprised him again.

"Look sir, I am just an associate professor, I can't help you with any of your queries, please get in touch with any of the permanent faculty", she said not looking at him AGAIN and rushed past him. Her students looking at her as if she is an alien for ignoring a man like Shaurya.

It took her 3 months to actually realize that Shaurya was stalking her as she found him wherever she went often. When she saw him outside a hospital when she and her brother went for her father's usual checkup, she lost it.

"Take papa home, I'll be back with medicines", She ordered her younger brother. Shaurya knew she saw him and now she would definitely come to talk to him.

"But why ? We could go together, the medical shop is right at the corner of our home", Akash protested not knowing his sister didn't have the patience to deal with him, like always. Akansha is a short-tempered woman and Shaurya's presence irritated her more now.

"Go home, NOW", She shouted, giving a hard slap on Akash's head. Shaurya's eyes widened at the wild cat in front of him. For a second his motive was all forgotten, he was genuinely scared of dealing with this woman all his life, but a corner of his heart would loved the idea of dealing with her all his life.

"PAPA...", Akash whined to his father, who just sighed at his son and nodded.

"Come home soon beta", Akansha's father told her softly.

"No, will roam around the city tonight and reach home in the morning", Akansha's witty replies got a smile on Shaurya's face, he felt a strong urge to make this woman's mood better. Not just now, but every time her mood is off, he wanted to make her feel better. He wanted the sole job of turning her frown into a wide smile for life.

Akansha's father and brother sensing the volcano of bad mood she was having, quickly left from there, after which Akansha stormed towards Shaurya. But before she could say something, he interrupted her.

"Were you the eldest child of your parents  ?", Shaurya asked seriously

"So your stalking reached my personal details as well, huh", Akansha expressed her displeasure.

"Oh, this has nothing to do with my stalking, it was a calculated guess, looking at your temper and how your family feared you, including your father, there is a large possibility you could be the eldest daughter", Shaurya said with a smile. She so wanted to wipe that smile off his face.

"Why the hell are you stalking me ?", Akansha asked in a loud tone.

"Lower your tone, I am an MLA. People would get a wrong impression", He told her but she rolled her eyes not believing him.

"First you introduced yourself as one of my student's brother, and now you say you are an MLA, what's next, that coffee shop owner ?", Akansha asked him with a disgusting expression on her face.

"Coffee shop owner ? Not a bad profession at all, would you be visiting that regularly ? If so, I don't mind owning it", Shaurya said in all his seriousness, surprising himself at his flirting skills. But when it's this woman in front of him, these things came naturally, he was insanely attracted to Akansha Dixit and there is no doubt about it.

"SHUT UP... I know rogues like you... If you don't stop stalking me, I will have to involve police", Akansha said and Shaurya gave her his signature smile which did got her attracted, but just for a second. He sure is a charming man but she wasn't one to be charmed so easily.

"Look! I am really an MLA. If you don't believe me, look at the vehicle and my guards at your right corner", Shaurya said and this time she looked around and found everything he was talking about. She looked at him with wide eyes, she quickly opened her phone and typed 'who is the MLA of...' in google. She cursed her internet which is so slow but when the answer and images appeared, it snatched the ground beneath her.

"Now you believe me?", he asked peaking into her phone to see the results of her search.

She cursed herself for being in so hurry the other day that she didn't even bother greeting an MLA when her mentor introduced them. Her mother's venom-filled texts did play with her sanity all the time, they made her forget the world around her, made her feel unnecessarily guilty and irresponsible all the time.

"I am sorry but...", Akansha started but Shaurya interrupted her.

"No problem, That day you were too busy in your phone to notice me... But I guess you won't forget me now", Shaurya said with a flirtous smile.

"Look sir... I apologized for the other day where I ignored you, that shouldn't have happened but that wouldn't change the fact that you are stalking me for the past few days... I am not interested in knowing why... Just stop this please", Akansha said and is about to leave when Shaurya held her wrist but quickly left it seeing her death glare. "Don't touch me. I don't like it", she warned, Her guts surprised him, no one talked to him in that tone after knowing who he is. That explains why he is so badly attracted to this wild woman.

"Okay sorry... But you just can't dismiss me like that... I am stalking you for the past few months, not days. And what do you mean by you are not interested in knowing why ? It's your right... And let me tell you Ms. Akansha Dixit, you intrigue me a lot, you look special, you sound special and even your touch is special, I would like to know you better, wanna date you... Make you mine in all senses, so give me a chance", Shaurya said, her eyes widened when he said 'Make you mine in all senses'. Even he was shocked at his choice of words, but that's what the woman in front of him does to his heart, he loses his control. Doing all this wasn't in their plan, their plan was to date her, pursue her and break her heart brutally, showing her a mirror of what she did to their sister, but every time, Akansha is in front of his eyes, he made an upgrade to his plan weaving himself in that web along with her.

"I will just pretend I didn't hear anything you said just now... Don't show me your face again", Akansha warned and walked off from there. Whereas Shaurya kept staring at her with a stupid smile on his face.

She didn't care if he was an MLA anymore. He didn't have the right to say all those stupid things and the part she hated was how her body reacted to his statement of making her his, in all senses. His tone and the numerous emotions in his eyes reminded her that she is a woman and the jitters in the pit of her stomach created want in her which she labeled as crazy and was determined to stay away from the idiot man. But who knew his determination to win her would be much stronger and it would soon break her resolve.

------------------------------

"Yes, she was a very tough woman, but your determination to destroy her made you pursue her relentlessly, huh", Akansha asked, this time looking into his eyes. He didn't know what to feel, should he be happy that she finally started expressing her hatred, or should he die in guilt of hurting the one woman he loved so passionately.

"That was the determination to make her mine that made me pursue her relentlessly", Shaurya said, Akansha didn't care to react to his baseless claims now, she waited for him to sign so that she could get the hell out of there. "I loved you Akansha, I still do", Shaurya said looking into her eyes. His confession in his throaty voice always got her goosebumps, no matter the betrayal, she was forced to believe in those words, and she realized that didn't change even today. She glared at him strongly. His love confession got all her old wounds bleeding once again... And the pain made her want to hurt him the same if not more.

"If you think you could destroy me again with these stupid claims, then you are very much wrong Mr. Shekhawat. You are the last man I would ever like to hear these words from... Your confession 6 years ago left a bitter taste on my mouth till date, that was the worst day of my life, I regret accepting you in my life, every moment with you was a lie and I was stupid to cherish that lie even after knowing your betrayal, I hate the fact that I dated a man like you, and please don't get me started with my marriage to you, that was a disaster, I am glad it all ended, I am glad I ran away, I am glad I don't have to see your face for 5 long years, you don't know how happy I was all these years, but looks like your determination to snatch my happiness was always powerful, it started to ruin me, but this time, I won't let your presence nor your thoughts effect me, my life is mine alone and I am determined to live it the way I want to...", Akansha said, she didn't know what all she spat but the hurtful expression on his face acted as a balm on her wounds. She wanted to hurt him badly and now she did.

She knew how much the day he proposed her mattered to him, she knew he truly loved her, despite knowing his betrayal later, she believed he loved her truly, his hidden care proved it every time, no matter his claims for retribution, he never tainted that one day where he confessed how much he loved her, with his betrayal. That was a very special moment and no matter the differences and misunderstandings between them, there was an unsaid rule that none of them would regret that day, none of them would taint that beautiful day with any sort of negative emotions, but today she claimed to regret the very same day. She knew she didn't mean it, heck he too knew she didn't mean it but those words from her mouth managed to stab his heart. His eyes welled up, and he didn't mind concealing them, if his pain gave her peace, then so be it. If he had to balm her wounds with his tears, he would be happy to do all his life. She mattered to him more than anything, she is his everything, Akansha Shaurya Shekhawat, the woman he loved the most, and would keep loving till his last breath.

He signed the extension papers, his tear drop fell on the paper. Akansha noticed it and her heart ached badly. She couldn't see him in pain, the ache in her heart proved no matter the hatred she managed to built in her heart against him, the soft corner would never go, but this time she would carefully conceal those walls.

He forwarded the paper, she snatched it from him and stormed out of his cabin.

Akansha walked to the washroom and took some time to cool off, before walking to the education department wing to carry forward with her work. After reading the shocking faces of Mrs. Arora, Samuel and every other person in the committee, she understood how they underestimated her. It had upset her but she didn't let it rule her head for much time. She started her work with everyone when Mr. Khanna approached her. He sat beside her, she gave the elderly man a small smile before resuming her work. 

"Great job in convincing CM sir... I appreciate it", Mr. Khanna said, Akansha gave him a small smile, but it didn't reach her eyes, because of her earlier argument with the man of the discussion now. "Our lack of confidence in you might have upset a lot, but that's not because we have any doubt in your capabilities, in fact, it has nothing to do with you but Mr. Shekhawat's reputation. If he makes up his mind, it's hard to change his opinion, when he kept postponing the approval, we all understood he was against the extension, and we know he is a tough boss to please, specially when it comes to certain things determining our future generations, he believes in building a strong community of students, which could build a strong nation, and he works in that direction always, so, we expected him to reject this proposal but surprisingly, you managed to convince that stubborn head", Mr. Khanna said, there was surprise written all over her face hearing Mr. Khanna curse Shaurya. The elder man laughed looking at her expression... "No matter how much I admire Mr. Shekhawat, at the end of the day, he is my boss and none likes their boss no matter how good he is and Shaurya isn't even that good when it comes to work, he sucks blood", Mr. Khanna said and Akansha laughed... She didn't know how would Mr. Khanna react when one day he gets to know that he badmouthed his boss in front of his wife... WIFE ? Akansha's heart halted at her thoughts, she so wanted to bang her head to a nearby wall to get her thoughts straight. One heartful 'I Love You' from that man and her thoughts started shaking? 

She gave a small smile to Mr. Khanna and both of them got back to their work, and after getting done with it, Akansha left for the day, determined to stay away from Shaurya and after today, he would make sure to stay away from her too, at least for some time. She knew how much hurt she caused him, and it would at least take a few days for him to cope up with that deep ache and she just hoped it should give her some time to put together her thoughts and sort her feelings for that man. Her uncontrollable and impulsive feelings for him destroyed her once, she didn't want them to destroy her once again, because this time she wasn't alone. What if one day, Shaurya gets to know about Siya ? How long could she hide her from him ? Especially now that he knew about her existence and they both are such good friends ? Keeping Siya and Shaurya away didn't come to her naturally now, there was this unknown guilt everytime she looked at either of them, especially her daughter... Did she deserve it ? What if her daughter questioned her in the future for keeping her away from her father ? Technically, Shaurya didn't deny taking Siya's responsibilities, it was all in her head, but again his actions spoke louder and she wasn't in a situation to let Shaurya know that she was pregnant then.

"Here...", Akansha's thoughts were interrupted by her brother who is staying at her place for the night. 

He observed his sister's lost face throughout the dinner, her gaze shifted to Siya once every few seconds and her welled-up eyes gave him a hint about her upset mood. 

"Thanks...", Akansha accepted the cup and he sat beside her with his cup of coffee...

"You said thanks to me, that means your mood is terrible...", Akash said earning a glare from his sister. 

"You just don't deserve to be treated as a human, Forgive me for forgetting it always", Akansha said and Akash laughed at his sister's remark. 

"Now tell me, what's wrong with you ?", Akash asked his sister...

"Will Siya blame me in the future like we blame Ma-Papa today ?", Akansha asked her brother. 

"Di... Our case was different, In fact, Ma-Papa were different with me and Suman didi, but with you, they were bad, very bad, they never behaved like your parents, they exploited you always pushing their responsibilities on you... You are supposed to blame them di, they deserve every bit of your complaints, it's your kindness that you never said anything to them... You were the best daughter they could ever have, and the best parent Siya could have, you were not like our parents, not at all like them, so there is no reason Siya would blame you for anything", Akash said but Akansha shook her head. 

"Papa was always there for us Akash, his only fault was he couldn't open his mouth in front of Ma, otherwise he was a great man, but look at us, we ignore all his traits of a good father and punish him today for his few mistakes, what if Siya chooses to be heartless like me one day and ignore all my love and blame me for my one mistake ?", Akansha asked her brother. 

"Papa was always there for us di, but he wasn't there for you, maybe he was, but when it came to choosing between being a father or a husband, he conveniently chose the latter, no matter how much you needed a father... and you weren't heartless di, you were just protecting yourself from all the wounds your own people gave you... I understand your fears, but you are doing what is best for Siya at the moment, don't ruin your peace by thinking about future... Let things shape their own turn, Siya knew her mumma loves her the most and she would cherish this truth forever...", Akash said side hugging his sister. "I wasn't much aware of parents' love di, they did love me more, but their love never seemed like parental affection to me, yours did... Whenever I think of getting settled in the future, I think of showering my kids with the same love you showered upon me... For me, you are my parent, the things you have done for me and later jij...", Akash stopped abruptly, when Akansha's face paled. "Sorry, But whatever Shaurya did for me, it wasn't a part of betrayal di, he did it genuinely, and I will be forever grateful to him, but I wouldn't forgive him for what he had done to you...", he said and Akansha gave a small nod. 

"I gave him an earful today...", Akansha shared with her brother, no matter how much she tried, she couldn't get Shaurya's tear-filled face out of her head. 

"You did ?", Akash sounded surprised, Akansha nodded. "That's fantastic, he used to be someone easily approachable before, but in the past 5 years, that man got so stubborn and hard to deal with, he is the same soft, and compassionate man to people's pain, for everyone else, he is a demi god, but he shows hell to the people who works closely with him... He carries that 'dangerous aura' around him, it was only for people who works for him, he is so difficult to please, no one dares to say anything to him, you know ? But, hearing you gave an earful to such man, I can't stop my heart from bubbling with happiness... I love you for this", Akash said and Akansha laughed seeing her brother's happiness. 

"He seemed to be a good boss in the start, but looks could be deceiving huh... This is the second time I'm hearing how a** of a boss he is", Akansha said

"Oh! you have no idea", Akash said making his sister laugh... "That man literally calls at 2:54 AM at night to know the progress, he is the sole reason I don't have a girlfriend... He took that stupid promise of his too seriously di", Akash said and Akansha stifled her laughter knowing what her brother was talking about...

"Stay for 5 more minutes, please... I just need you in my arms", Shaurya said tightening his grip on her waist...

"I was sitting in your lap for the past 45 minutes, Shaurya... Let me go now... Akash will be here anytime now", Akansha said, trying to get up from his lap...

"I didn't know I have to handle your 3rd wheel of a brother more than you in this relationship...", Shaurya groaned...

"Shut up... He has to study here, and don't forget he is the main reason I have accepted this favor of yours", Akansha said

"Favor ? Akansha... it's my responsibility to look after you and your family... Don't call it a favor and hurt me like that", Shaurya said making her roll her eyes at his drama. 

"then fulfill your responsibility properly, if you romance his sister like this, my brother would never be comfortable in studying here, so stay away", Akansha said, getting up and settling beside Shaurya, making sure to keep some distance. 

"I swear, whenever he decides to get a girlfriend, I'll make it so difficult for him that he gives up on the idea itself", Shaurya promised.

"Jiju yaar... Why are you blasting my love life even before it started huh... Take back that 'bheeshma pratigna' of yours right away", Akash whined, walking in... And there started the headache for Akansha. Usually her boyfriend and brother got along very well, but on a few topics, when they start their bickering, it wouldn't end up well for her. 

"Why do you pick up his call at such odd times ?", Akansha questioned her brother...

"Oh! madam... I'm not in some private sector to ignore work calls after 7 PM, I have to pick up my calls even on death bed, and my boss is the governor and I report to the chief minister, so excuse me for the lack of privileges", Akash sounded pissed

"You worked hard 15-17 hours a day, to work hard 24 hours a day... I don't understand the logic behind this", Akansha teased her brother who glared at her like he would kill her the next minute, but of course, poor him, didn't have enough courage. He is scared of his sister, and he knows she is the only woman who can scare his boss as well. 

"Okay, it's late, sleep now", Akansha told her brother, taking the cups away. 

"Can't... there's a lot of work to wind up, Can you please get me one more coffee", Akash asked

"Okay", he heard his sister, and that's exactly when his phone rang with Shaurya's name, Akash groaned before picking up his call cursing his ex-brother-in-law for ruining his peace. 

"How is the winding up going ? I hope you remember to finish it off by next week", Shaurya said

"Yes sir, will be done... have wrapped up most of the things and done destroying all the papers as well, saving the data in hard drive", Akash replied.

"Should I make the coffee stronger Akash ?", Akansha yelled from the kitchen... Akash cursed, sh*t now he would have known he is at his sister's place. 

"You are at her place or she is at yours ?", Shaurya asked 

"I'm at hers", Akash answered.

"What is she doing awake at this time ? It's late and she needs to sleep", Shaurya said and Akash so wanted to bang his head, yes it's late and 'EVERYONE' needs to sleep...

"We are talking... Sir, will meet you tomorrow at your office ?", Akash asked politely wanting to hang up now, before his sister realized who he is talking to and upset her mood.

"Okay, but don't hang up now... take the phone to the kitchen, I want to hear your sister for some time", Shaurya asked, Akash opened his mouth widely...

"Why ? Weren't you satisfied getting an earful today ?", Akash couldn't help asking

"She told you that ?", Shaurya asked and Akash hummed, Shaurya was surprised, she would even speak to her brother about him, that fluttered his heart... "What did she say ?", he probed further

"Not much, just that she got so frustrated with you and gave you an earful", Akash said and Shaurya smiled, he was a bit embarrassed but the feeling of getting scolded by his wife is good, and getting teased by your brother-in-law on that is a wonderful feeling of embarrassment, if it's in his hands, he would wish for more such embarrassments, but not this distance from his wife. 

"Oh! Now answer before she blasts your...", Shaurya's words were in the middle when Akansha came there and hit Akash on his head. 

"Are you deaf ? Can't you answer me ? Now have it, I have made your coffee so bad that it would ruin your night and the whole day tomorrow", Akansha said and then noticed he was on a call... Her eyes widened, thinking his colleagues might have heard her, she was guilty she embarrassed her brother. So, Akash showed the contact and she sighed... Thank god, it's Shaurya, but then again, it stiffened her posture, technically, she should be worried as he is the chief minister and she just ruined her brother's image in front of his boss, but the fact that she wasn't worried brought her more distraught. She didn't want to give any leverage to Shaurya, not even based on their past connection. 

Akansha signed her brother to have his coffee and left to her room calmly. There is silence everywhere. Shaurya didn't speak a word knowing what might have happened. He could feel his wife's coldness from even miles away. 

"Will see you tomorrow, Akash", Shaurya said and hung up. Despite all that she told him in the afternoon, his craving for her didn't die, if any it increased more, if she said those words to him, if she could call their most beautiful night, the night he confessed his love for her a mistake, a regret, then he could understand the amount of pain she might have gone through all these years. She never regretted that night before, not when she got to know about his betrayal, not when he forced her to marry him, not even when he hurt her the most... But, she did it now, he couldn't even imagine her struggles, her pain and the kind of things she faced in these 5 years that got those words out of her. 

Akansha guessed it right, if he was the old Shaurya, he would have definitely stayed away from her for at least a few days, until his ache lessened, until his hurt caused by her words disappeared, but that Shaurya did not exist anymore. These 5 years without his wife changed him, if he gets to stay with her all his life, any amount of pain is welcome, his craving to hear her voice now proved it. Now, he had that unlimited and unconditional love she once wished from him, a kind of love for which he could ignore her every mistake but she didn't get it then, but now he had it, but is she ready to accept it now or she is too broken to even think about him and his love anymore ?

Shaurya welcomed the sun rays with his open eyes, he couldn't get a wink the previous night. The disgust he saw in Akansha's eyes kept him awake and this continued for a week more. He tried his best to get her to meet him, but she resisted hard. He asked Shweta to block his calendar every day and Shweta knew for what. Akansha worked in the same building and Shweta did see her efforts to avoid Shaurya and this didn't go well with her. 

"Sir... I need to talk to you about my relieving, I want to rejoin the administrative wing, if you would allow, I'll shortlist some candidates for my replacement", Shweta said, Shaurya rubbed his forehead, his head was pounding with headache, it's been a week since he got a wink of sleep, and the restlessness he felt on not seeing his wife/ex-wife acted as an added bonus. 

"Mrs. Gupta... I already told you, continue till the elections, we'll discuss about the issue after that, if you still don't want to continue, then we can look for your replacement", Shaurya said, he barely called her Mrs. Gupta, that should explain his mood to Shweta but now she doesn't want to compromise, she didn't want to work for Shaurya anymore, and she is determined about it. 

"Sir... I'm not comfortable working here... Please understand", Shweta finally said it and Shaurya frowned...

"Wait! Did someone make you uncomfortable ? Damn! Shweta, why didn't you tell me this earlier ? What is wrong ? Tell me, trust me I won't let your name out, I'll handle this my way... Don't be afraid", Shaurya said getting up from his seat, if a woman who directly reports to him is not safe at her workplace, then how the hell is he gonna ensure the women of his state's safety ? He felt ashamed...

Shweta gave him a look filled with surprise, all this concern, understanding, and chivalry can't be a facade, or can it be ? After all he is a politician. 

"I'm sorry sir, but I wasn't comfortable with your behavior with Dr. Dixit, I... I maybe wrong here but... I saw Dr. Dixit getting uncomfortable every time she was supposed to meet you... I... Sir... You always made sure to make every woman that worked for you comfortable, but seeing you behave...", Shweta trailed, Shaurya gave her a strong and stern look. He didn't like how she accused him of something which he wouldn't even think of doing it, even after all he did to ensure women's safety, after seeing him with women that worked with him, around him and for him for 5 years, Shweta dared to say something like this ? But again, that's what made him choose her as his assistant, her strong character and moral values. He knew if he wanted to create a corruption-free environment, he should have like-minded people around him, so he had to do a lot of poaching to get Shweta as his assistant. The very same strong values and character promoted her to speak against him as well today, because she thought he is wrong. If it was someone else he wouldn't have tolerated it but since it's Shweta and she was talking because she was concerned for his wife, he thought of excusing her for this once. 

"Did you discuss this with anyone else ?", Shaurya asked Shweta to which she shook her head. "Have you at least confirmed with Dr. Dixit, if it's true?", he asked

"I asked her many times, but she denied anything of that sort, but I feel she is hesitating to...", Shweta trailed

"If a man makes her uncomfortable, or even tries to do so, Dr. Dixit wouldn't hesitate to point it out, she wouldn't wait a second before breaking his bones, doesn't matter if he is the CM or even a PM, that is Akansha Dixit for you... Or should I say, Mrs. Akansha Shaurya Singh Shekhawat", Shaurya said, Shweta's eyes widened hearing What he just said. 

Precap - Old Flame, Jealousy and old wounds... Siya - Shaurya... and the truth. 

Note - Chapter - 18 is now available on scrollstack. Below is the link.

https://sammurty.stck.me/chapter/431383/CHAPTER-18