Sidharth's POV

We both were standing in that lift alone and having to be in a closed box with her for the first time felt weird. A good kind of weird. Shehnaaz had invited me to visit her office as her way of extending gratitude for the help I did for her company event. I couldn't deny her, so here I was with her in her office lift.

I gave awkward smiles at her occasionally, perhaps not knowing what to talk or was I just paranoid, I couldn't understand myself. She was unusually silent. I wanted to break the silence and make a small talk but then the lift reached the floor and door opened with a ding sound that startled me for a second.

The escalation to her office suite that was on the 27th floor took rather less time or so I thought because I felt like spending more and more time with her.
We walked out of the lift that connected straight to the waiting lounge in front of her suite. I hadn't entered this floor though I had visited the same building earlier due to work, strangely I felt glad that my first time in this floor was with Shehnaaz.

The lounge itself was so classy as if it was a First class business lounge at an European airport. My eyes roamed around as I observed the interiors keenly, it looked spic & span as if cleaned and dusted every few minutes. The neat carpet, leather couches, a reception counter at the corner, a huge LED Tv that displayed Pioneer Corp Ltd. and its logo gave such an elite look.
As i walked behind her, noticing the ambience around a voice grabbed my attention.

"Good noon Ma'am, should I send in almond milk for you?" Rosy, the receptionist asked politely as i walked forward.

"No Rosy, I'm good. Thank you. Just don't send anyone in for next 15 minutes" Shehnaaz said platonically and walked off as the girl nodded in response while I wondered what could she possibly talk to me, that too alone.

Rosy nodded and agreed to what Shehnaaz said with a meek smile.

We entered to another spectacular space that was Shehnaaz's office suite. It was very spacious, walls painted in subtle peach colour, a designer table that had an Apple desktop and a high end MacBook, a high raise chair and two chairs opposite to the table was situated on one side of the room while a sofa set with a glass teapoy was placed to the other side of the room giving ample space in between the two. Shehnaaz walked swiftly towards her high chair and sat gesturing me to take my seat in front of her and I did so like an automated robot.

"Drink some water Sidharth, you'll need it" Shehnaaz said casually but that sounded cryptic to me. I felt her demeanor completely changed to what I had seen in past few weeks. She seemed rather quiet,stoic & very businesswoman like.

"No, Thanks, I'm fine..." I mumbled.

"Hmm... Sidharth let me get straight to the point kyunki zyada time nai hai mere paas & I'm sure apke paas bhi. Aapke mann mei sawal bohat honge na? Meine apko kyu bulaya voh bhi office mei phir aise kyu behave kar rhi hu jaise mei apko janti nahi phir meine bola kissi ko andar na bheje and all those questions. But usse pehle aap suniye mei yeh bolna chahti hu ki I want us to date" Shehnaaz said as nonchalantly as possible while she flipped open the MacBook infront of her as if what she just uttered was an everyday thing for her.

I couldn't decipher if I heard her right or if i was hallucinating so I just took the glass of water infront of me and took a sip to buy time. Shehnaaz gave a soft smile seeing me do that and said "See, I told you already that you'll need to drink some water"

I was kinda baffled at how effortlessly she could carry her platonic demeanor. I kept back that glass on the table and was about to ask her but then she spoke again!

"Yes Sidharth, I said what you heard. Aap hallucinate nahi kar rahe the. I want us to date but your willingness & acceptance does matter. Only if you say Yes and there's no force of whatsoever sort from my end" Shehnaaz said with ease looking straight into my eyes. Damn her confidence!

Yes, I was baffled for sure by what she said. I wasn't expecting this but I'd love to date her. Who wouldn't? I was happy to hear that, In fact ecstatic to know that the girl whom I had started admiring was herself asking me to date her. But, I couldn't lose my senses for these reasons and just agree to whatever she said.

My instincts said there was more to what it seemed.

"Shehnaaz,but Why? Yeh out of the blue kya bol rhi ho? I honestly have my doubts but I'm sure if you're saying this then you must have your own reasons. Par yeh "I WANT US TO DATE" ka kya matlab hai? Janti kitna ho tum mujhe? Pata bhi hai mein tumse kitna bada hu? I'm way too old for you sweetheart" I said promptly as i leaned back on the chair.

"Yeah Sidharth, you must have doubts. Agar bina kuch puche khush hokar accept kar lete aap toh apki shakal kabhi na dekhti. But aap dusre laundon ki tarah nahi hai jo mujhe date karne ke liye desperate hai. Yeh kaafi hai mere liye, rahi baat humari age difference ki mujhe sab pata hai. You're 39 & I'm 26. Well, to answer your main question, for starters let's just say that I'm kind of attracted to you."

My eyes softened and a sly smirk adorned my face.

"Attracted? huh?" I asked looking into her eyes.

Shehnaaz got up and walked till the front of the desk and sat on it right opposite to me. She leaned forward and held my suit collar in her fists with zero pressure. My breathe hitched but I couldn't show it on my face or did I?

"Yeah... attracted. Aren't you?" Shehnaaz said looking again straight in my eyes. Damn the eye contact!

"Yes... I am" I blurted as if I was hypnotized.

"I know..." She winked and let her hands leave my collar and sat back on the desk.

She'd casted her spell on me for sure, but I wasn't such an easy nut to crack for her. I composed myself & smiled a bit at her.

"Attraction... It's vague. Kapdo se,khane se,cars se sab se attract ho sakte hai. Tell me when you're ready to express more, Shehnaaz" I said and got up to leave.

Shehnaaz sat there on the desk without any movement or expression, the same blank face was looking at me as i took few steps ahead, I knew this, I could see from my peripheral view.

"Why would I express more? Toh aap mere liye attraction se zyada kuch feel karte ho?" She questioned, I stopped walking and turned to her "It's you who WANT us to date Shehnaaz. The reason you gave isn't convincing. So, you better express more IF you want us to date"

I said with a smirk and she stared at me. After a pregnant pause I continued, "That doesn't mean the attraction will fade till then, it's here to stay sweetheart..." and I winked at her.

She was visibly red now, I could see her crimson face and her palms that pressed on to the table tightly. Phew! Thank god I could make her respond. I was wondering if she would pull off her stoic face even when I'd flirt with her.
I smiled at her, sans smirk this time, a genuine smile for the girl who'd begun to walk the path of stealing my heart. I turned and walked away swiftly not wanting to bear more of Shehnaaz dose!

I drove back to my office from there with hundreds of questions & a messed up mind. I sat on my chair and smiled profusely recalling the moments that I spent with her. The sudden proximity between us when she held my suit felt surreal. I'd be lying to myself if I say I wasn't blown away by her sudden offer to date. She was so straight forward, confident with so much clarity but she chose the wrong way in expressing her feeling. She surely was smitten by me but she declared her wish just like she would want a business contract.

I surely admired her but I couldn't understand what made her choose relationships like business without any strong emotions. I wanted to see what would she do now that I clearly told her to express more of her feelings if she wanted to date me.

With these thoughts on mind, I began to check files of the new cases that i had to close soon.

******
Shehnaaz's POV

I wished to give him a warm hug when he outright said that I needed a vaild reason to date him. I was always around men who would be ready to throw themselves on me, some even try to go overboard with flirting but never had I come across a man who would talk sense, be logical, wouldn't take advantage even though I gave him a chance but be a thorough gentleman.

Though I maintained a stoic, tough demeanor with him, he didn't fail to make me blush just by his choice of words.

I liked this man. Whatever I knew of him, I could safely say he'd be the dream man of many girls. He was a Real Man, differed from other creatures called men.

While I was engrossed in thinking about Sidharth, the door clicked open and Shehbaz appeared in front of me.

"Hey motto!" He chimed as he walked ahead and slumped on the chair near the desk.

"Shehba, tu office lyi ki karan aaya hun?" I enquired, smiling at her.

"College khatam huyi tan ki karda? Aithe aa gya tenu miln lyi hor ki?" He said nonchalantly but i knew he just didn't want to go home.

"Changa kitta! Pizza order Kara?" I asked making my eyes big with a broad smile on my face. I knew how to change my little brother's mood.

"Haaaa!" Shehbaz agreed equally excited. I got up from my chair to pull his hair while calling up my personal chef in the office to quickly prepare our food.

"Motto... Not my hair please!" he whined taking my hands off his head.

"Hehe acha bas kar I'll tell Satnam to make Cheese burst Margherita?" I asked.

"Yessss...! With Coke aur Choco lava cake bhi!" Shehbaz exclaimed.

"Theek ah sir ji" I mimicked and informed the same to our chef satnam.

Within some time our food arrived and we both hogged on it like our life depended on it. We loved pizza and always relished it in our own way enjoying our quality time.

After our pizza party, I sent Shehbaz home and immersed myself in work. There was too much on plate considering that I took over the company recently.

It was almost 10pm when I was winding up for the day when I received a call from Sukhwinder mama.

"Hello mama... All okay? Nana nani theek ah?" I asked being concerned.

"Ha puth,sab changa si.. I knew you'd be slogging at office even now so I called to chase you home..." he said playfully.

"Oh please mama... There's hell lot of work, you know it" I chided.

"I do Sana but I also know that you need rest. Your mom must be waiting for you..." He cautioned.

"Arre Haan, She did call me in the evening to ask what time I'll be back home. She doesn't sleep till I get home kinni vari samjhawan ki wait na kari mere lyi..." I complained.

"Sana, voh twaddi maa si. She might not shower her love on you openly like I do but she cares for you putt, she's worried for you..." He as always tried to bridge the gap I had with my mother.

"Hmm...jee mamu. I'll go spend some time with her before sleeping. Tussi tension na lo. Anything else?" I asked as I took my laptop bag and left the suite.

"Hmm what about that boy whom you told me about? Gal ki ohde naal?" mama ji enquired and that reminded me of Sidharth & of our incident that day.

"Umm uh... mama pehla toh he's not a boy he's a man" I giggled "acha ji" mama ji joined me too and I continued "I did talk mamu, voh sab ton changa Munda si. He said he needs a valid reason from me, for him to say yes to date me..." I said with a blank expression on my face as I entered the lift.

"Well, now that's suprising... He seems to like you genuinely. Sana you need not do this if you're not sure puth. You can't ruin him by entering his life without love" mama ji said being concerned.

"Mamu, mein mere lyi osnu chaudi ah. I need him. You just see, Sidharth Singh Ranawat will be mine and how..." I said confidently.

"Uh, I'll just say in between all this do not lose yourself sana. Take care puth.. Good night"

"Jee mama... Khyal rakhi. Good night" I wished and disconnected the call, by then I reached the basement and my driver was already awaiting for me in my swanky BMW.

"Thank you Meher di..." I mumbled and got into the car's front seat.

She smiled at me and ignited the car to vroom into the city lights of Mumbai as I fondly looked at her recalling how I had met her.

Yes, my driver was a woman. Meher di was in her mid thirties when I had met her a couple of years ago in Kerala at an art exhibition. She had a stall put up that sold women safety equipments/things like pepper spray, safety knives, location tracker device etc.

I was intrigued and had a talk with her to find out that she served the Indian army as a soldier and took up voluntary retirement when she was injured in a combat against few naxalites in a remote village in Tamilnadu and was deemed to be unfit to serve the army anymore.

So, she started educating women on self safety precautions by doing workshops, putting up stalls etc. However, her income wasn't sufficient to raise her 10 year old daughter conveniently as her husband had divorced her and denied any responsibility of her daughter. So, I hired her as a women welfare & safety head at Pioneer head office, but she chose to drive me around too as an additional chore since she felt I was being very considerate for her and she wanted to see my safety too.

As I had slipped into my thoughts I didn't know when I fell asleep leaning on the window. After about 40 mins, Meher di woke me up as we had reached home.
I thanked her and bid her goodbye for the day. I walked inside the dark silent mansion with dim light appearing from the God's abode. I turned on a light and walked past the hall towards my mother's room where she lied on the bed reading a book.

"Oh, aa gyi. Go have dinner. Garam karke kha.. If you come at odd times like this our house help won't be there to serve you..." Mom said looking at me, rather taunted but I cared any.

"Ha amma I will... Khana kha liya tussi? Aur papa?" I enquired sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Ha" she replied curtly.

"Hmm... Shehbaz slept?" I asked.

"Yes, I think so. Room ch kuj kar rha" mom replied with the same nonchalance.

"Hmm... Ki mei tuade pairan di massage Kara amma?" I asked slowly taking her feet onto my lap.

"It's ok, pehla khana kha" she budged.

"Khawangi amma..." I said in a whisper, pressing her feet with little pressure.

"Shhshhh... Jaa hun" she said while pulling back her feet.

I nodded reluctantly and walked inside the kitchen, washed my hands, heated up some rice & dal. I sat on the dining table alone and ate my food. This was my routine every night when I reached home. The same dialogues, the same reactions... Mom loved me, cared for me more than anyone in the world but she wasn't expressive & her depression would mostly bring out the meanness in her.

In fact all the four of us, we loved each other a lot but lacked in expressing the same openly. We were a dysfunctional family in many ways.

I finished eating, checked on my dad who was sound asleep in another bedroom and reached mom's room again. Yes my parents slept in separate rooms & it was better that way.

Mom was still reading some book and I sat on the edge of the bed again doing the same as I did before. I massaged her feet and spoke about my day excluding my story with Sidharth of course. She listened patiently, scolded me for some of my hasty decisions, guided me how to go about few other things at work etc as per her knowledge.

After some time I left to my room to find my Shehbaz sleeping like a baby curled up into the comforter. I caressed his head and pecked his hair.

I headed to my room,then changed into my night clothes. I was dead tired to do my night skincare so I just removed my makeup and sprawled on the bed.

Sleep was far away, but I had dreams that I saw in front of my eyes being wide awake. One of which was to convince Sidharth to date me. He was needed for me, by hook or crook I wanted him to be a part of my life.

I started reading a novel, an attempt to draw some sleep.

**********

While Shehnaaz drifted off to sleep this time, there was Sidharth on the other side of the city trying hard to sleep. His thoughts were filled with Shehnaaz and sleep refused to come near him. He was anticipating what she would do next. He was craving to spend more time with her... He searched & browsed all the details of Shehnaaz Kaur Bhalla which were available on the internet. After a mental argument, he decided to send her a follow request on instagram and heaved a sigh.

Shehnaaz was building dreams in her sleep with Sidharth, unknown to him but known to her... Dreams of life with him but without him too...
Was that possible?

**********
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Well, how was this chapter?
What's Shehnaaz hiding along with her mama ji?
Why is she behind Sidharth?

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Much love,
Avni