Happy Reading.💛

______

With the sun rays peeking through the clouds, it was yet another beginning of a new day with new hopes. While Nandini was fast asleep along with Manik whose head was covered with her long, brown tresses. She was the first one to wake up but as soon as she woke up, all she did was scream while holding her head in both her palms making Manik immediately get up.

" Hey, hey. It's okay. It's just hangover." He said soothingly as he rubbed her temple with his fingers.

" Manik, bohot dard ho raha hai." She sniffed a little.

" I'll ask the butler to get something okay? Don't worry. I've got you." He said as he kept cradling her in his arms. He immediately called up the kitchen intercom and asked the butler to get a glass of lime juice and aspirin tablets immediately while she kept snuggling more into his chest as he kept caressing her hair with his free hand.

" Here. Have this. Bottoms up okay?" He said as he handed over the glass of lime juice to her along with the pain killer which she obediently gulped down.

" Better?" He asked as he wiped her mouth with the sleeve of his tee to which she nodded slowly.

" This was the last time you're drinking. I'm not letting you go near alcohol ever. Understood?" He said sternly to which she made a puppy dog face and nodded sadly.

" Go freshen up now, then we'll go out for some time." He said to which she nodded with a smile.

" Manik, mein naa aaj tumhare bathroom mein nahaungi." She said excitedly.

" Kis khushi mein? Aur bhi bathrooms hain ghar mein." He said with a confused face.

" Ohooo. Haan hain. Par aaj mein tumhare bathroom mein nahaungi and that's final. Okay byeeee." She squealed as she ran out of his room to fetch her clothes.

" This girl is impossible." He said as he chuckled a little.

~~~

She entered his huge lavish yet the best bathroom which automatically gave her a natural feeling. There was a huge white tub along with a long black granite one with an open window shower on top making her squeal with happiness. Life is never about finding happiness, it's about creating it. Though it was just a mediocre shower, but all that mattered were her thoughts which were in sync with it.

After a long shower of an hour she came out dressed a casual grey sweat shirt along with black jeggings. As soon as she came
She came out just to find Manik sitting on the bed with his palms covering his face which immediately alarmed her.

" Manik, hey. What's wrong?" She asked worriedly as she cupped his cheeks with her hands.

" Nandini, something's wrong in office. Someone is messing with our database. I don't know what to do. It's 9PM right now in India, the staff is long gone. I can't call Cabir, he's gone to visit Navya's parents. God." He sighed.

" Manik, don't worry. We'll handle it. I'll handle it. Just wait for sometime." She said frantically.

" Nandini, I'm sorry that we won't be able to go out." He said with a guilty face.

" Manik Malhotra, everything else in this world can wait but not this. I promise that I will fix it." She said as she held his hands in hers to which he nodded softly.

She immediately went to her and came back with her laptop, as they settled themselves on the long couch.

" Rahul, block all the systems of our office. Right away. All of them." Nandini said as she connected to the manager of their office on video call.

" Okay now, the funds forgery can only happen from Manik's computer right? That means that someone has hacked into the computer. Manik, you need to freeze all the funds immediately. Because only you can do that. We won't incur any loss, don't worry." Nandini said as she turned towards Manik.

" Okay. Give me a second." Manik said as he dialled a number in his phone and asked the person to block all the funds.

" Done." Manik sighed after a couple of seconds.

" But hacking into my computer is not easy. I have a triple firewall cover." Manik expressed his doubts.

" Oh shit. Manik that means it's someone from our office who's been doing this. Rahul, show me all the CCTV footages. Right away." Nandini said as Rahul connected her to the CCTV control room.

" Nandini, there's a hidden camera in my cabin which is password protected. I think we can get something from that." Manik said immediately as a small smile formed on his lips.

" Voila! Manik, tell me the password." Nandini said she got the signal from the hidden camera.

" It's 4192." Manik said as Nandini entered the password.

" Finally!" Both Manik and Nandini sighed as they got access to his cabin's video footage.

" Oh my god." Nandini said as she saw the video.

" Nandini, who is it? Tell me fast." Manik asked in a loud voice.

" Harshad." She slowly whispered as she noticed the arm tattoo which Harshad has since his face was covered with a hoodie.

" This man is so dead." Manik said angrily and immediately picked up his phone.

" ACP, Jai Singhal, Manik Malhotra speaking. I want Harshad Saxena under arrest for fraud activities in my office. I'm sending you all the proofs, I want him in your custody as soon as possible. I'm out of country right now, I want you  to look after it." Manik said in a curt angry voice which got him a positive reply.

" Manik, it's done. Don't worry. Everything is okay." She said as she rubbed his shoulders.

" Nandini, but this is all my fault. I should've been more careful. It's a failure for me." He sighed in defeat.

" Manik, har jo cheez iss duniya mein galat hoti hai uske liye tum apne aap ko responsible nahi thehra sakte. Yeh uss Harshad ka failure hai. Tumhara nahi. Please stop blaming yourself." She said as she kept her head on his shoulder with her arm wrapped around his bicep.

" Thank you for always being there for me." He said with a smile .

" You don't need to thank me. Ever." She whispered and softly pecked his cheek making him close his eyes in pure ecstasy.

" I think I'll go for a walk." He said suddenly.

" Manik, do you realise that it's three in the afternoon? It's gonna be warm outside." She said as a matter of point as the previous couple of hours went by in sorting out the mess and getting the much needed confirmation of Harshad being behind the bars.

" Doesn't matter. I just need some fresh air. I'll be back soon. I promise." He said to which she smiled and nodded.

" I need to sleep anyway. Good night." She said as she yawned a little making him chuckle.

" Nandini, kaise matlab kaise? How can you sleep so much?" He asked her while laughing.

" I don't know, bas needh aajati hai. Sleep is my second love after food." She said with a toothy grin.

~~~

Manik came back home after a long stroll in the pleasant weather. Just when he entered Nandini's room, he witnessed her the same way he had left her - sleeping. It was almost 4.30, and he knew that if she doesn't wake up she's gonna crib at night. He softly caressed her hair as he sat beside her making her move a little.

" Nandini, wake up." He softly said to which her eyelids gave no response.

" Nandini utho naaa." Manik said as he shook her from her shoulder.

" Manik kya hai, stop. Tum bhi sojaao. Aao." Nandini said in a sleepy eyes with her eyes still closed as she pulled him by his hand making him fall beside him.

" Sleep now." She said in a low voice as she rested her head on his chest and snuggled more into him making a light chuckle escape his lips seeing her babyish antics.

" Okay." He said as he kissed her hair numerous times making her smile in her sleep.

While at the same time Manik kept thinking how his life changed, how he changed ever since Nandini entered his life, one thing was for sure that he wouldn't let go of her at any cost. He was blessed to have her right by his side, supporting him in every situation. The best kind of people are always the ones who come into your life and make you see the sun, where you once saw only clouds. She was a bright ray of sunshine, warming every cell of his body and giving them a new meaning altogether. While he kept thinking how his life took a 360 degrees turn, sleep took over him.

Nandini woke up around 5.15 just to find Manik sleeping with his head dug deep into her neck with his warm breath fanning all over her neck and his arm clutching her waist tightly which made her chortle a little. She slowly brushed away the soft, lucky bunch of his hair away from his forehead with her fingers doing the precious magic which made him smile in his sleep. She kept absorbing his Greek god like facial features, a perfect yet sharp jawline which could slice through sheets of paper and a pair of soft pink lips making her think that how would his lips feel on hers? Chucking away all her high thoughts which she shouldn't be thinking of, at least now. She decided to wake him softly, she shook his shoulders a little as she called out his name making him immediately snap out of his slumber.

" Nandini yaar, tumhaari wajah se mein bhi so jaata hoon." He cribbed making her laugh.

" Aww. It's okay. Tumhari 'walk'  kaisi thi?" She said while emphasizing on 'walk'.

" It was okay. But ab kya karein?" He asked.

" Hawan karte hain." She said with a wide grin.

" Kya?" He asked in disbelief.

" Toh aur kya? Mujhe kaise pata hoga jo mujhse puch rahe ho tum?" She said with a bad face.

" You know I have a better option." He said with a smirk as he moved close to her to which she raised her eyebrows asking 'what' and involuntarily moved backwards making her trap between the wall and him.

" Let's.." He whispered in her ear with a smile making her gasp.

" Let's..?" She said with her eyes closed as he brushed his lips over her cheek.

" Lets..play Xbox." He finally whispered and burst out laughing making her scowl.

" Go to hell, Manik Malhotra." She said angrily, trying her best to hide her embarassement as she pushed him away.

" Accha sorry sorry. On a serious note, let's do something different. Kuch alag jo humne bohot time se na kiya ho." He said enthusiastically.

" Let's play ludo!" She said excitedly making him make a 'what' expression.

" Arrey haan. Trust me, bohot mazza aayega." She said with a smile.

" Par I don't remember the rules." He said with a bad face.

~~~

They settled themselves on the huge brown rug with the ludo board open in front of them. Nandini explained the initial rules to him, and soon they started the game. After an hour or so, they were done playing the game with Manik jumping and pushing out Nandini's pawns, him getting so many 6's on the dice, Nandini's grumpy faces, but ultimately it was her who won the game ~

" Yay! Wohooo. See I told you na I'll win. Manik is a loooooserrrr." She jumped around like a baby who had just got permission to go to the amusement park.

" Anything for you." He whispered to himself and the catch was that he deliberately lost to her, why? Just to see that bright, shiny, million dollar smile on her face. A petty game wasn't anything, even if she asked for his Audi R8 as long as it made her happy, he would've happily handed over the keys to her. He was changing. His heart was changing. And he knew that there was no going back now.

" Bass. Enough jumping. Saans toh lelo." He said as he made a panting Nandini sit beside him, as he rubbed her back a little and gave her a glass of water.

"Jackpot nahi jeeta tha tumne. Itna hyper hone ki kya zarurat thi? Pagal ladki." He said as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

" No masti now. Am I clear?" He said sternly making her bob her head innocently.

" Manik, I'll just call mom. I'll be right back." She said after a while as she picked up her phone to see her mother's missed call while they were playing, to which he nodded understandingly with a smile to which she moved towards her room.

~~~

" Manik, Maniiiiikkkk?" She came back after talking to her mother for over fifteen minutes just to find him nowhere.

" James, did you see Manik anywhere?" She asked the butler.

" Yes ma'am. Sir has gone towards the swimming pool in the basement." The butler replied.

" Alright. Thanks." She said and moved towards the swimming pool.

Just when she entered the vast swimming pool area, she saw him swimming with his body flexing completely through the water making his back muscles, the way he swam through the blue water made her senses go for a holiday. She was a woman after all, which immediately reminded her that her boss, also known as her, 'best friend', was sinfully hot and hence the most desirable man in the country too. She unknowingly started moving towards the side where he was resting with his head thrown back and eyes closed. She softly massaged his temples from behind with her forefingers making him immediately recognise and relax under her touch.

" Bohot thak gaye ho hm?" She asked while still rubbing her fingers over his temples.

" Hmm. Thoda sa. But it's okay." He said with a sigh.

" Manik, stop blaming yourself please. Jo hona tha hogaya. You weren't at fault." She said making him smile thinking how well she knew him.

" I know. But it feels as if I was at fault, if I would've been more careful then this wouldn't have happened." He sighed as she turned around and held her hand making a current pass through her spine, making her hypnotised under the spell of his gorgeous brown orbs, after which he slowly pulled her towards him, holding her a little high from her waist, making her enter the pool where the water was slightly warm making her body adjust to the temperature immediately,which made her snap out of her beautiful reverie.

" Don't be this hard on yourself." She whispered as she placed a soft kiss on his wet cheek making him close his eyes in pure bliss.

" Let's swim." He said with a smile to which she nodded her head in approval.

They completed the last lap together after splashing lots of water on each other like little kids with the loud sounds of their laughter echoing in the whole area. They climbed out of the pool, making Nandini look at his well toned body all over again, making her come back to square one as pushing away all the thoughts about him didn't turn out to be pretty successful to which he smirked a little seeing he effect he had on her. He moved towards her as he wrapped a towel around his waist while rubbing his hair with the other one. He softly held her waist and pulled her towards him making his bare chest touch with her blue tee which was sticking to her body like a second skin making her breaths shallow and her beat at an unusual speed. He handed her over the towel with which he was wiping off his hair with which she took without asking any questions. Just when she was about to wipe her face with the towel, he held her wrist as he took a 'tch' sound from his mouth and guided her hand towards his face which had water droplets running town from his hair towards his chin, asking her through his eyes to wipe them off while his artsy fingers kept drawing soothing circles on her waist. She softly wiped away the water droplets as she dabbed the towel over his face, still maintaining the ever lasting intense eye lock which not only talked volumes but spoke out their hearts. Her hands were no longer in her control, when she wiped of the water from the length of his neck making him release a sigh in contentment after which he slowly took the towel away from her hand and wiped off her face and hair softly yet lovingly making her eyes shine a little.

" I don't want you to catch cold. Let's go." He said as he pecked her forehead to which she softly smiled.

~~~

They changed themselves into comfortable, warm clothes to sleep. None of them spoke a single word, their silence spoke a thousand words. A thousand feelings. Just when she was about to leave for her room, he tugged her wrist from behind as he moved towards her, with her back still facing him.

" Don't go." He softly whispered as he hugged her from behind to which she turned around and smiled a little.

" Let's sleep." She said with a smile to which he nodded as they lied down with an inch's distance between them, when suddenly sheturned her face towards the other side, making her back face him. Just a minute later, she felt his warm breath on her neck with his arm clutching her waist tightly from behind as he pulled her into an impossibly close distance to him.

" You are my peace, Nandini." He whispered huskily as he nuzzled into her silky, soft hair.

" Just don't ever leave me. I won't be able to fill that void. What I have with you, I don't want it with any damn person. Ever." He whispered softly making her softly turn around to face him.

" I won't. Ever. I can't." She softly replied back with a smile making him smile too.

" Your smile is literally the cutest thing I've ever seen in my life." He said as he chuckled a little to which she formed and annoyed cute little pout to which he just slid his hand under her tee, touching her milky soft waist with his cold hand, making her suck a sharp audible breath.

" Manik..." She said almost in a whisper as she closed her eyes.

" Shh. Don't spoil it." He whispered as his nose brushed her cheek.

" Sleep well." He said as he softly kissed her hair to which she snuggled more into his chest.

" You too." She said with her eyes closed while his hand still rested on her bare waist. Her mind knew it was wrong, but her heart whispered, 'You're safe.'

~~~

" It's amazing how someone walks into your life someday and you can't remember how you ever lived without them."

______

A super long update, not proof read. Please ignore the crappy update/mistakes. Do drop in your reviews. Thanks a lot for you patience. A big bear hug.❤️
Love, V.