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Mythili's POV -

" Mr. Gaurav Malhotra, my wife is your nobody, just like all the other members of my family." Shivaay took two steps ahead of me, glaring at the man.

As I listened to Shivaay, my mind gradually processed the unfolding situation. The man before us was Shivaay's father.

"Shivaay, I expected..." he began to say, but my husband cut him off abruptly.

"Expected? What makes you think you can expect anything from me, Mr. Malhotra?" Shivaay's voice thundered, and I couldn't help but shiver at his intensity.

A wave of hurt passed across his father's face before he concealed it, regaining his composure.

"You're letting Anamika marry a woman? I will never allow that. This can never happen. Has your mother forgotten her roots, her traditions?" He questioned with such a stern tone that it sent shivers down my spine.

"My mother's traditions are always about love, acceptance, and understanding, not bigotry and discrimination. Besides, you hold no authority over me or my family. I would like to see you try and obstruct my family in their choices, and you will quickly realise the gravity of your misjudgment in meddling with anything that closely concerns them." Shivaay retorted, his words cutting through the air like a sharp blade.

" Shivaay." I moved a step closer and laid my hand on his bicep, hoping to calm the fire that was burning inside him.

" Not now Mythili." He breathed, his fingers tenderly enveloping my hand before slowly releasing it.

" My boy, don't be a fool." his father's words cut through the tension. Shivaay's entire being went rigid, his stance firm, and his fists clenched without conscious thought. His eyes, once ablaze with seething anger mere moments ago, now bore the heavy weight of a haunting past, as though the weight of his own history had etched itself into the depths of his gaze. They seemed to plead for words he couldn't find.

" See, this is why I had to beat this disobedience out of your mother and you. Something you inherited from her. You know, I wasn't wrong....." He continued, his words flowing like a relentless tide. "You know, I wasn't mistaken..."

This time, I couldn't let him go any further, and it was me who intervened to halt his words.

Enough. That's more than enough." I declared firmly.

Without hesitation, I moved forward and positioned myself in front of Shivaay. My hand sought his, our fingers naturally intertwining as a form of assurance that I was right here, with him. For him.

" Mr. Malhotra, I really don't appreciate the way you are speaking to my husband at the moment and I am extremely sorry to burst your bubble of arrogance but boasting about how you physically abused your own family hardly qualifies as a mark of true masculinity. You are a criminal and nothing more." I said, trying my best to keep my voice steady and confident.

"He can't even control his woman," he declared, his words ringing out loud and clear. I felt Shivaay's fingers tighten around mine, yet he remained as unyielding as a mountain.

"He doesn't want to control me. He doesn't own me. My heart, yes, but Shivaay doesn't possess me. Besides, what kind of a man are you?" I shot him a withering, disgusted glance, and he responded with a contemptuous sneer.

" Mythili, is it? I...." He began to speak, taking a measured step closer to me. I stood my ground, unwavering. However, in that moment, Shivaay's deep, nearly menacing voice reverberated through the silence.

" Try getting any closer to my wife and you are going to have a real problem Mr. Malhotra. I have long since shed the skin of that eight-year-old boy who couldn't shield his mother. If you so much as think about harming a single strand of Mythili's hair, you will not live long enough to watch the next sunrise." He thundered, coming to stand right by my side. His hand remained intertwined with mine, and the fire of his anger blazed once more in his eyes.

Upon hearing Shivaay's words, his father instinctively recoiled, retreating several paces away from us.

" This does not end here, my boy. I am going back to Mumbai and as long as I am breathing, I will not let my daughter marry another woman. I will not let her commit a sin." He warned before sitting in his car and drove off abruptly.

" We have to get back Shivaay." Were the first set of words that left my mouth as I turned to face him and in his eyes, I detected a gathering storm.

He didn't say a word as we walked back to the apartment. It was quiet, uncomfortably quiet. Shivaay, Maa and probably Anamika too were abused by the man who was supposed to protect them with everything he had and yet had proven to be anything but.

My family was broken, just like me and yet, never once did they let their trauma overburden mine. Hell, they never let me come close to it and Shivaay? He has been my salvation, my guardian, and now, my very existence. He had to endure this ordeal, a man as selfless and affectionate as he is, it was utterly unjust. He didn't deserve any of it.

" Mythili." His voice broke me out of my thoughts and I found myself looking at him as we stood in the middle of the living room.

I mustered the courage to lift my hands and caress both his cheeks, my thumb tracing the lines of his cheekbone. Leaning in, I brushed two kisses on his eyes, then his forehead, and finally, placed a soft peck on his lips.

" I am so, so sorry." I heard myself say as I joined his forehead with mine, my hands still cradling his cheeks and felt his arms gently encircling around my waist as he lifted me off my feet in a tight embrace.

He needed this and I did too.

We stood like that. It could have been a few hours or a few seconds. Time was a foreign concept to me when I was with him because he consumed my entire existence.

" I am sorry you had to see that, talk to that man. When he...." Shivaay started to apologise but I kept my hand on his lips, stopping him from saying anything further.

"Shhh. You've always been my protector, Shivaay. Moreover, I understand a thing or two about the pain of realising someone you've placed your deepest trust in becomes your tormentor, be it physically or emotionally." I whispered to him as we settled down together on the floor. He  wiped away tears that had streamed from my eyes, tears I hadn't even realised were flowing before he looked away from me.

" We should fly back home immediately. I don't want Maa, Anamika and Nupur to face that man. They need you." I said once again when he refused to meet my eye and I changed the topic. He would tell me whatever he wishes to let me when he wants to. If he needs space, he'd get it from me.

With a simple nod, his gaze locked briefly with mine, and he retrieved his phone from his pocket,  standing up before offering me his hand which I willingly took as he pulled me back on my feet while I made my way to the bedroom, collecting a little few things I had. The rest of our stuff was still in the hotel but I knew he'd sent someone to take care of it.

I was mechanically doing the stuff I had to, my mind still roaming around the happenings of the past two days and mentally, I was drained out after meeting Shivaay's father.

" We leave in an hour." I heard Shivaay's voice and found him standing by the door.

" Alright." I responded with a soft hum, tucking my wallet back into its place, and watched as he drew near to me and turned me around to face him.

" You couldn't even explore London...." He started and once again, I kept a hand on his mouth, stopping him.

" What makes you think that I'd be able to explore London after tonight Shivaay? My priority is our family, my priority is you. Anyway, since you got me here on the pretext of work, I did not get a chance to shop for a real honeymoon. Naturally, you'll have to whisk me away to another destination for the real deal later." I remarked with a casual shrug, aiming to lighten the mood.

He chuckled softly in response, and as I withdrew my hand, the sound of his laughter, that god damn sound made my heart skip so many beats I wonder how I was still alive.

" Well, you see, love, what you have before you is a man more than willing and prepared to be your personal travel guide, shopping assistant, the best honeymoon planner and anything you want me to be. And the capacity to bring you multiple orgasms in just a cherry on top, would you not agree?" His words caused my cheeks to flush a vibrant shade of cherry.

" I can't believe you just said that. How shameless can you get!" I exclaimed, whirling around and taking a step away from him, only to have him swiftly reach out and clasp my waist, pulling me into his embrace, capturing his lips into mine.

This kiss was a sensual, a dance of fire and ice unlike the gentle ones. Shivaay's tongue slipped into my mouth, a demand that left me breathless. It was a kiss that made me feel as if I was melting into him. As our lips collided, my fingers instinctively wove into his hair, urging us closer, our desire throbbing in every vein, hearts racing. It was a longing like no other, a craving like no other.

Shivaay guided me backward, and we found ourselves lying down. The weight of Shivaay's body on top of me was a feeling of being enveloped in his very essence. I breathed in the intoxicating blend of his shaving cream, his shampoo, and that extra fragrance that was uniquely him.

His lips were a taste of honey. His face, adorned with the faintest stubble, brushed against my skin. The sensation of his hands, exploring every inch of me, was an invitation for me to dive deeper into this intoxicating embrace as we stopped and then my head rested on his arm as we laid there with me tracing patterns on his arm.

He was, perhaps, trying to distract himself from tonight's events and I was perfectly happy to be that distraction but even I couldn't ignore the time. We had to leave soon.

" Shivaay...." I tried to tell him but he cut me off.

" I know. Just a minute more." He said, spooning me back into his arms, closer.

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Mythili's Look -

Boarding the plane was surprisingly effortless when it was our private one, I realized. It made the journey even more comfortable, to be honest.

We sat there side by side, watching as the London skies gradually vanished into a sea of nothingness. He held a glass of whisky in his hand, and part of me wanted to take it away from him, but I let him to keep it. Perhaps, at that moment, it was a necessary comfort.

It had been approximately two hours since we departed from London, and during this time, he hadn't uttered a single word to me. It seemed like he was engaged in a silent battle, trying to suppress something that was struggling to resurface within him and as much as I wanted to let him cope on his own terms, something within me told that he needed to talk.

But how could I ask? Ask anything without giving him that pain?

" I was seven when I found out what my father was doing to maa." He began, setting the glass aside. My gaze was fixed on him, my hand instinctively reaching out for his.

So, this was why he was drinking - to find the strength to open up and talk about it.

" Shivaay, you don't have to tell me. I know it hurts." It was difficult for me to say these words but I couldn't let him relive everything.

"I had just returned home from the park with Anamika on a Sunday. We used to go there every evening," he continued, shaking his head slowly in denial.

I remained silent.

"He was usually never at home on weekdays. Maa used to tell us he was working hard to provide for our family, but on the weekends, we would come back home and we would spend time like a regular, normal family, enjoying picnics, movies, and good food. But not that day," he paused once more, his hand reaching for the glass. I gently held his hand, preventing him from picking it up, and held both of his hands in mine, moving closer to him.

He paused for a few minutes, his eyes closed, and his head resting against the seat while I continued to tightly grip his hands.

" There she was with barely any clothes on her and her whole body covered in cuts, bruises and blood while his eyes were red, his steps all wavering. I asked Anamika to run out of the house to one of her friend's place before he saw us." I slowly felt my hands slipping away from his with every word he spoke.

" Then he saw me, let out a laugh and dragged me inside before he made me stand there and beat my mother in front of my eyes while she begged him to stop and I closed my eyes shut.

" Look at your maa, my boy. Such a pathetic poor woman who couldn't even get dowry for me." Were his exact words when tried to force himself on her right and threatened to cut her tongue out if I didn't open my eyes right there before passing out in his drunk state. I stood  there , frozen." I loud sob escaped me and tears rolled down Shivaay's eyes.

" That is what he called you again tonight, that phrase which would sound like an endearment." I whispered, at a loss for words. All I could do was gently wipe the tears from his face before closing my eyes, trying to collect myself to be there for him.

He dared to call him my boy, invoked Shivaay's trauma, that's why he reacted the way he did. Froze.

" He had lost his job that day. He was found embezzling money out of the company he worked for which was traced back to expensive hotels for his mistresses all week before he returned to us on weekends."

I had a broken heart, yes. A part which was always going to stay broken because of my family but tonight, another piece shattered listening to the pain in his words for Maa and what his own family could be.

No one deserved this, not my Shivaay, Maa or Anamika.

" Maa sold whatever jewellery she had the next hour while he was still passed out on the floor and collected enough money to put Anamika into a boarding school for a year because she didn't trust my father around her and that was when I found out that this was not the first time he had had something like this with her." He revealed, his voice faltering, breaking under the weight of those painful memories.

" Shivaay, you don't have to finish. Please." I almost begged to him but he disagreed.

" I need you to know Mythili. I need you to know what we will be dealing with. I need you by my side, as my team to keep that man away from our family." He affirmed, this time firmly grasping my hands in his.

I nodded.

" Over the next eight months, maa suffered two miscarriages and when I tried to protect her, he began to strike me.I endured his beatings because it meant he'd stay away from my mother for a while.He broke her bones numerous times and refused to see a doctor. People around started to notice her wounds and mine and someone finally reported about us to an NGO. They filed a complaint against him and took us in. Maa slowly rebuilt her life, completed her college education with the NGO's support, and secured a job. In a few years, we had a home of our own once more. I finished college and started this company, while my mother took charge of that NGO, expanding its resources. " He finished and the rest of it, I could figure.

" Do you know how incredibly proud I am of you, my husband?" I asked, locking eyes with him and gently kissing his tears away.

He lowered his head gently onto my lap, while I ran my fingers through the locks of his hair, trying to sooth him. In sometime, his breaths grew slower and more rhythmic, like a gentle lullaby, and he peacefully drifted into slumber.

This was perhaps the first time he had opened up to someone about everything in his past and it was evident how difficult it had been for him to do that but I was, in a way, happy that he did talk about it instead of keeping everything bottled up.

This man, my man, had gone through things I can never imagine and yet, he never once did let his past command his present. Never once did he let any venom of his past reflect his single action. If he isn't the biggest green-flag bearer of all times, I wouldn't know who was.

" I love you so much it hurts." I whispered before bringing my lips to his head and kissing it.

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We were at home at about one in the afternoon and Maa, Anamika, Nupur, Baba, Snowflake and Cooper were all in the living room, taking about something, probably wedding related.

" Shivaay? Mythili?" How are you both home so soon. You weren't supposed to be here till next week!" Maa stood up, so did the others as we made our way towards them and when I saw her, Shivaay's words rushed back to me. About everything she had gone through and I couldn't help but throw myself in her arms.

" Mythili, are you okay? Did Shivaay say something? Shivaay, I swear....." She started but I didn't let her finish.

" No Maa. He didn't do anything. I was just missing you all so much that I forced him to take me back home." I said, half lying about my real emotions and she gave me a what-do-I-do-with-this-girl look and then gave a I-have-such-deep-sympathy-towards-you look to Shivaay.

" You're stupid Mythili but it's okay! Like it's even better that you are here, Anamika is so weird and confused." Nupur complained and I laughed.

" Haww...look bhai Nupur is calling me confused." Anamika complained and ran to her brother and pulled him into a bear hug while Nupur clinged to me and we both walked to baba because she refused to leave me and then, the three of us hugged.

" I missed you so much baba." I said.

" I wish I could same Mythili but these two almost made me forget that you weren't here." He laughed and I pouted.

Maa then sent the two of us back to our room to freshen up before lunch.

" What if he comes here?" I asked Shivaay while he locked the door behind us.

" I am going to go and talk to my security person and the guards." He assured me and I nodded.

" I am going to go for a bath." I announced, making my way to the closet and then the washroom and found him following me.

" What?" I asked, turning around, raising a brow.

" I thought that was an invitation Mrs. Rathore." He side of his lips twisted into a small smirk and I, upon realising the meaning behind his words, hit his chest, pushing him out of there and closed the door on his face before my cheeks and ears could turn red once again.

" You are not being fair to me or the environment, love." He called out and I let a laugh out and heard his too.

It felt nice to hear that. I wish it never fades away. I will try my best to never let it fade away.

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