"Princess Nandini is not in the palace."

It took some time for Manik to digest the information but when it did, his fingers clenched into fists and he ran up the stairs leading to her suite room. He debated for a split second about barging in the room but he decided against it. He tried to push open the door but it was locked from inside. He knocked loud and to his relief, he heard Princess Nandini's voice from inside "Please Don't disturb me... I need to rest for a while". He looked at his phone for a while, still the location is the same, the city fair.

Hauling back, he looked at the door for a minute and not bothering to take his coat, he ran down the stairs . He understood her plan by now. She has an alibi in her room, probably a palace maid and the voice that he heard was recorded too. He don't want to barge into the room and scare the shit out of the maid. He has to find Princess Nandini soon. He cannot break the trust that the Rajasahab and CM. Prince Abhimanyu has on him. He cannot let anything wrong happen to the princess even if it costs his life. He rushed to the door and swung it open, hopping into his car.

The entire street along with the grounds of the fair were filled with about thousands of craftsmen offering the most amazing variety of their creations for sale. Hundreds of local retailers, service providers and vendors has put on stalls displaying their wares at the fun-filled festival. Great food and drinks, entertainment for all ages, fun surprises, games filled the grounds and Manik ran past the crowd following the direction his GPS is showing. At last, he noticed a small crowd of palace maids in a corner with some filling mehendi in their hands, some taking photos in a photo booth and some checking the clothes. He took a deep sigh of relief finding them, but the real task is to find Princess Nandini. Everyone is dressed to the same and if he tried to remove their veil, it can lead to a riot for sure. Having left with no other option, he closely followed the palace maids and looked at their each and every action without getting noticed.

A familiar sound of giggle filled his heart and mind and he looked at the direction to see a few palace maids enjoying gola. His lips mould into a slight smile and he walked to them. Grabbing the hand of one of the lehenga worn girl, he whispered in her ears "chup chap mere saath chalo.. I don't want to create a scene here". She looked at him through her veil and nodded her head before walking along with him. His grip was tight on her hands till the time they reached his car.

The entire car ride to the palace was silent. Once inside the palace, Manik followed her upstairs to her suite room. She removed her veil the moment she entered her bedroom and gave a faint smile to Manik..

"Get that girl out" Manik said seriously. The maid was out of the room in no time and Manik closed the door. Nandini tried to walk to the balcony to escape from him but he caught her by her wrist.

"Why... Why Princess" He asked. His eyes radiating fire.

Nandini shuddered hearing the anger in his voice and said in a whisper "Woh.. I wanted to see the fair"

"U must have told me, Princess..." Manik said sternly

"I don't need any help...I have my own ways..." She reciprocated . Listening to her, Manik's anger crossed all its limits... He grabbed her by her shoulders angrily and asked "Is this one of your ways... goddamn it. u were risking your life.. Don't u understand"

A small smile crept on her face seeing his concern for her. She looked straight to his eyes before asking "Who knows how long I will live..Do u know Major.. I want to enjoy some small moments of my life to the fullest till I live..."

"Princess... Try to understand..." His voice became calm.

"Major... I understand... I will not do these stunts in future... Nandini Promise..." She said while removing his hands from her shoulders.

"Ok.. I trust you..." He said moving bit far from her. Both felt uncomfortable for being so close to each other. However, She wanted to ease the situation.

"BTW, how did u identify me..." She walked out to her balcony and asked him

He took her hand in his and pointed to the beautiful diamond and emerald studded bracelet that adorned her wrist "This... A common palace maid can never own this....got it, Princess..."

"But..." She raised her eyebrows in confusion

"I know U tried to hide it with the glass bangles..., but it caught my eye.." He explained

"Hmmmm..." She just nodded her head and asked "Would you like to have coffee with me..."

"Any more pranks left to do..." He asked leaning to the railings in the balcony

"Hey...Major chill.... No more pranks... I am serious... " She laughed out loudly...

The days passed on as fast as it can.. Nandini and Manik became more like friends than the Princess and her bodyguard. Manik got amazed seeing such a carefree Princess full of life. He discovered her expertness in rifle shooting and golf. Her ever sweet culinary experiments in the royal kitchen always won his heart. They even discovered their common likeness for books and music. He is a pro in musical instruments while she is a pro in singing. A combination worth to explore. They talked for hours about various authors and different genre of music. He never thought that a Princess can be this simple, sweet, caring and understanding. She is The Princess who is as beautiful as moonlight and her heart as pure as a diamond, The more you polish it, the more beautiful it became. She is everything, just perfect. He never felt her as a puzzle, instead he always found her a smooth and straight flowing stream of water, so pure and serene. He is aware of the growing feelings he has for her. But he knows, he has to control his mind and feelings. She is a princess, heiress of the Mewars, something that will be always beyond his dreams. She is a beautiful dream which he can never have in his life. After all, he is a common man and she is the Princess. 

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Thank u all for the wonderful comments you have given.. I wanted to reply for each and every one personally, but I am too busy to do that now... But I thank u all from the bottom of my heart... Will reply u all soon... 

So how was the update... let me know dears...