Taara watched on as her dad absorbed in all the facts that she had narrated to him.

"So you're telling me that, you were dating a stranger!" He remarked.

"Papa." She whined. Was that all he heard? 

"Taara, Stranger? Seriously? What if.."

"Oh Papa, you know me. I have got both yours and mom's qualities. You seriously think I am gullible? He was nice and ..." Taara shrugged. 

"Oh my," Mr.Manish Mittal sat back in his chair looking at her amused. "Your mom would go speechless just like this... the same way, when she used to speak about me you know..."

Taara smiled looking at him. "He's a nice guy, Papa. I know he's rich and all. And you may judge him for that. Trust me if I knew he was The Rathore, I would have totally judged him at first go too. In fact, I had all my walls up until he proved he could be given access." Once again Taara's voice trailed off dreamily.

Her father smiled, before he could say anything his phone rang. He picked it up and said "yes, yes."

"Now, tell me how do I convince mom. It's been a while she has been so cold to me. This is not good." 

"Speaking of cold, she's permanent winter for me. " he chuckled.

Taara huffed. "Papa, please.. but see she was wrong to have read my chats and..." Taara stopped speaking when she heard the door behind her creak and saw her father's gaze drift from her. She turned slightly to look at the door and was stumped. What on earth was "he" doing here? 

"Welcome Aayush! Please sit, meet my daughter, Taara." Aayush's gaze immediately landed on her and his eyes widened a wee bit and then he smiled. Taara would've admired that curve his lips made, if she wasn't in a flabbergasted mode right now.

"You know him?" She turned looking at her father. Her father grinned with a twinkle in his eyes. "Why didn't you tell me before?" She hissed leaning on the table so that Aayush couldn't hear them. 

Her father smiled, "I never thought my daughter would be interested in a serious businessman type of guy." He whispered back. 

"I didn't mean that way...I meant like minutes back when I told you?" Taara whisper yelled.

 "I was getting at it when he was here. So, I thought why not do a joint meeting?" He chuckled. 

Taara sat back on the chair, and turned to meet his gaze. He was dressed in a three piece suit and looked like the epitome of perfection. He unbuttoned his coat and sat on the chair taking a deep breath. Darn, she could smell his amazing perfume. Taara stiffened slightly sitting straight, realizing her father was in the same room.

"Aayush, so Taara's been telling me about you." Her father began. Taara cringed in her mind at the wya her father started the conversation. 

"I hope it's all positive." Aayush smiled formally, glancing at her. She eyes him thoughtfully. This was turning to be very weird for her.

"Very positive." Her father threw her a gaze, with twinkling eyes.  Taara gave him a tight lipped smile that clearly meant please-stop. Aayush was already so full of himself. His father was just adding to his pride. "So..?" Her father spoke as he switched his gaze between the two.

Aayush turned to Taara. She looked at him and gave a small formal smile. "Papa, " she said, looking at her father.

"Are you sure you guys are dating?" Her dad enquired running a watchful eye between the two. 

"What do you mean?" Taara shot her question, staring at her father. Just minutes back she had told him in clear words that she was seeing Aayush Vikrant Rathore.

"I mean stop looking at each other like it's the first time you're meeting." He replied and Taara blinked awkwardly in response. She heard Aayush chuckle. She turned to glare at him.

"I understand, that Taara's mother is upset about her lying." Aayush began. Taara hit his thigh under the table and he stopped what he was saying and turned to face her, as causally as he could make it seem. 

Taara gave him a secretive disapproval gaze. "I didn't lie to her." She smiled at him through gritted teeth. He nodded looking back at her father who had been observing the two.

"Taara, quit making it sound better." Her father chuckled. "Now, the only way to make up to your mother is make her meet him." Mr.Mittal pointed to Aayush. 

"She will roast him." Taara blurted her thoughts aloud. From the corner of her eyes she noticed him flinch. "I mean, you know her Papa, she will find the world's most intricate faults in him. Plus, she has a liking for that Vivek guy. I don't understand why is she so obsessed about getting me married suddenly."

"Taara, she is your mother. She is worried about you." It was rare that Mr.Mittal took his ex-wife's side. But when he did Taara knew he respected her for it. 

"I don't even know where she is. She could have at least told me where she's going." Taara muttered.

"Exactly, how she would have felt, perhaps even worse, when you lied to her about where you're going." Mr.Mittal argued. Seeing his daughter worried he sighed. "Just login to her email id you'll know where she is. If you don't remember password look in your old emails she would have sent it to you in her so called personal cryptic writing." 

Taara stared at her dad, "really?" She muttered springing into action. As she scrolled she realized her mother had indeed sent her the password just in case she forgot. She quickly logged in to her email account and saw the latest mail from Uber. Woah, her dad was smart. Her mom had gone out for a movie, because the drop off location was R.K.Cinema Hall. She sighed in relief. "It worked."

"Did you think twice before logging in to her email account?" He asked her sitting back in his chair.

"I was worried." Taara quickly defended her act, realizing where her father was about to go with this.

"So was she, when she checked your phone." Her father pointed out smiling. Taara couldn't help but smile. Over years she had learned from her parents that- love wasn't staying together, but love was still caring and fighting for the other even when no one was looking. Did they never think of getting back together? 

Aayush looked on impressed. He had always been a fan of Mr.Mittal's manipulative and diplomatic ways. He looked at Taara. There was something in her eyes. Something. He cleared his throat to make his presence known to the room. 

"Right, so take him to your mom, that's the solution. And don't you dare mention that I know him from before or that you met me here with him and this problem. She will blindly refuse to even judge him, directly out!" He chuckled. Taara rolled her eyes. 

"Thank you, for your time." She got up and walked around the table to his chair. She  kissed his cheek and gave him a hug. 

"Anytime, sweetie. Take care of the old lady hitler. And buy kulfis on the way back home. It's easier to melt her with little things you know." 

Taara stared at her father. Why didn't he then? Why was still an ice wall standing between her parents?

She walked to the door realizing Aayush was still seated on his chair. She cleared her throat for his attention. He turned to her. She arched her eyebrows. 

"Umm, we had a business meeting scheduled." He stated. 

She blinked and then nodded. "Right!" 

Giving him a smile she walked out. Only to hear the two men chuckle once she shut the door. What was up with the two? Should she stay and listen?  No way, certainly not when her father's assistant Mrs.Jha stared at her like she was an alien. He sat there staring at her like a cat in boredom. Taara gave her a smile and walked towards the exit. Her father mentioned him to be a serious businessman type. Well, perhaps because it wasn't her father who read their chats. She smiled to herself.

There was one thing that she learned. No matter what, a part of her father still loved her mother. It was a bittersweet fact, she could do nothing about.

Love couldn't be undone!  Surprisingly, the thought tagged along the image of a man who ruled her mind now.

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