Aryamann's POV:

"But this is comfortable," she said with a frown on her face.

"There will be paparazzi out there, Ms. Basu. I can't take you out in this," I said, pointing at her dress.

"Seriously? What I wear should not be their concern, Mr. Mehrotra. I should wear what is comfortable for me," she said, annoyance clear in her voice.

"Listen, Ms. Basu. I don't have time to fight with you. Come on. Let's get going," I said and walked out without waiting for her response.

She hurried after me, talking all sorts of rubbish about personal choices and wishes. I simply ignored her and got into the car, with her following me with a huff of annoyance.

I drove straight to my mother's personal designer's boutique.

"Why are we here?" She asked me as soon as I stopped in front of the boutique.

"For your makeover," I said in a monotonous voice.

"I don't need a makeover, Mr. Mehrotra," she said angrily, and I rolled my eyes, got out of the car, and dragged her along with me.

"Mr. Mehrotra, it is such a pleasure to have you here," a salesgirl, who might be in her mid-twenties, greeted me with a sickeningly sweet voice. An obvious attempt to flirt.

I saw Bhumi rolling her eyes at the woman's behaviour.

"Call your designer," I said coldly, without sparing that woman another glance.

"Sure, Mr. Mehrotra," she said again with that sickening smile.

Can't she take the hint?

I am here with a girl in my arms for crying out loud.

She walked away to call the designer.

"Seems like you have quite a number of fans, Mr. Mehrotra," Bhumi murmured, audible enough for me.

"Jealous?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"You wish," she said with a scoff.

"Aryamann, darling," Natalie Sinha said, coming towards us with a smile.

The woman in her mid-fifties is a close friend of my mother. She had been around since I was young.

"Hello, Aunt Natalie," I greeted her with a kiss on both of her cheeks.

"Who is this lovely girl?" She asked, smiling at Bhumi.

"I am Bhumi," she said, flicking her hair in attitude, and Aunt Natalie looked at her with an amused expression on her face.

"Aunt Natalie, meet Ms. Bhumika Basu. My girlfriend. And sweetheart, this is Natalie Sinha. A very famous fashion designer. Also, Mom's closest friend," I said, making the introductions.

"Aww, she is a pretty little thing, Aryamann," Aunt Natalie said, and Bhumi grinned.

"Aww, thank you, Mrs. Sinha. You look stunning. If you are this beautiful at this age, I can't imagine how you would have looked when you were of my age. You might have been the little heartbreaker of your time," Bhumi said, winking at Aunt Natalie, who laughed out loud in response.

"That I was. Until I met my husband. And sweetie, call me Aunt Natalie."

"Sure, Aunt Natalie."

"Aryamann, she is a keeper," Aunt Natalie told me.

"I know." I said, mentally rolling my eyes.

"Now tell me, darling, what can I do for the lovely couple?" She asked.

"A dress for her. I am taking her out on a date. And I want you to do your magic on her," I said, waving at Bhumi.

"Are you insinuating that I am not looking pretty now?" Bhumi asked, narrowing her eyes at me.

"Of course not, darling. I just didn't want you to feel left out," I said without skipping a beat.

"Okay, come on, let's find a dress for you," Aunt Natalie said and dragged Bhumi inside.

After around forty-five minutes, the trial room door opened, and the sight I saw knocked the air out of my lungs.

There she stood, wearing a soft green cocktail dress that complemented her pretty eyes, hugging her body perfectly in all the right places. Her hair is done in a messy bun with a few strands let loose.

She looked deliciously hot!

But she looked more beautiful in her simple skirt and top, without an ounce of makeup on her face, my heart whispered.

Seriously? What is wrong with you, Aryamann? My mind taunted me.

"Come on, let's go. We are getting late," I said and walked out with her following my steps.

"Why are you frowning?" I asked, seeing the frown on her face.

She looks cute when she smiles.

"Try walking on six-inch high heels. You will know why!" She retorted furiously.

"What's wrong with high heels?" I asked in confusion.

All those women I had been involved with in the past never went out without wearing high heels.

"I don't like it. It is uncomfortable," she said, pouting.

"It is still of no use. You haven't even reached up to my shoulders, even after wearing the high heels," I said.

"Are you telling me that I am short?" She asked with a deadly glare.

"Isn't that obvious?" I asked back, enjoying irritating her.

"I am not short. I am cute-sized, okay," she said, crossing her arms across her chest like a child.

"That doesn't change the fact that you are short," I said, and she again glared at me.

"What? Cat got your tongue?" I asked, and she walked ahead of me towards the car, shooting another deadly glare my way.

Did I just leave the little firecracker speechless?

Bhumi's POV:

How dare he?

How dare he call me short!

That arrogant prick.

"Will you stop frowning?" He asked me in an annoyed tone.

We are in the car now, on the way to some five-star restaurant.

"I am not frowning, okay!" I retorted, equally annoyed.

"Whatever. We will reach there soon, and I don't want to see your frowning face in the tabloids tomorrow," he said coldly.

"Even I don't want to see your scowling face in the tabloids tomorrow. So try and smile, Mr. Mehrotra," I said, and he clenched his jaws.

Seems like I hit a nerve!

That you always do, Bhumi, there is nothing new in that!

Soon we reached the restaurant, and he opened the door for me like a gentleman.

How the hell did he get out of the car so soon?

I raised an eyebrow at him, seeing his gentlemanly act.

"Just for the show," he said, shrugging.

Of course! Public appearances.

"Let's go in," he said, intertwining our hands together.

I looked at our intertwined hands and sighed.

"Let's get this show on the road," I said.

We walked inside the restaurant and were greeted by a waitress in tight clothes looking at Aryamann, batting her eyelashes.

Seriously? Am I invisible to her?

"Good evening, Mr. Mehrotra. What can I do for you?" She asked in her honey-coated voice.

Seriously? Doesn't he get bored with these girls? This is the second one within an hour.

What do they even see in him?

Okay! He is hot. Seriously hot.

But his attitude is a big turn-off.

"Table for two, please," he said, without paying any attention to her antics.

Table for two!! That's when she noticed me with him. And she had the nerve to glare at me.

Seriously man!! She is the other woman here trying to get my man's attention, and she is looking at me as if I stole her favourite candy.

"Honey, come let's have a seat. I am tired of standing for long," I said extra sweetly, looking at Aryamann and turned to the waitress, smirking at her.

She faked a smile at me.

"Sure, ma'am. Let me lead the way," she directed us to a table with the best view of the city.

"Mr. Mehrotra, are you ready to order?" She asked, looking at Aryamann with that stupid smile on her face.

"Red wine for me and Bhumi?" He asked, looking at me.

"Water, please," I said.

"Yeah. Red wine for me and a glass of ice water for the lady," he said.

"Sure, Mr. Mehrotra. Anything else?" She asked, bending a little, showing off her cleavage.

Seriously?

"No thank you," I said a bit loudly to gain her attention, and she looked at me with a glare.

"And make sure to send someone else to take our orders, or I will have to talk with your manager regarding your behaviour with my boyfriend here, Ms. Kent," I said, the last part looking at her name tag, and she looked at me in horror.

"Sorry, Ma'am. That won't happen again," she said and scrambled away from our table.

I turned towards Aryamann to see him looking at me with his eyebrows raised.

"What?" I asked.

"I didn't know you were this possessive about me. Are you falling for me already, Ms. Basu?" He asked, and I chuckled.

"Very funny, Mr. Mehrotra. I am just playing my part. I have decided to act alongside you. And I will give my best performance. Alright?" I asked with an attitude.

"Of course," he said, rolling his eyes.

Soon we were approached by a friendly-looking waitress, and Aryamann ordered food for both of us.

His nerve!

He didn't even ask me what I wanted.

But then I don't care as long as I get food, that too free food!

Soon, the food was brought, and I looked at him in disbelief.

"Did you order this food for some kid?? This won't even fill half of my stomach," I said, pouting.

"Bhumi. This is a five-star hotel. People won't order a large amount of food," he said, looking annoyed.

"Then we could have gone to some local food stalls. We could have ordered as much food as we needed, and no one would have cared," I said, stating the obvious.

"God!! Why did I have to choose this annoying girl to be my wife," he muttered under his breath, but unfortunately for him, I heard it well.

"Serves you right," I said, and he glared at me.

"Listen, I am going to propose to you after having dinner. So you have to look surprised and excited, okay," he said as if he were talking to a small child.

Propose?? What the hell is running through his head?

"Is it necessary? You can simply tell them that I am your fiancée," I said, not wanting to be a part of a public proposal scene.

"No. Now shut up and eat," he said, and I looked at the pasta in front of me.

We had our dinner soon, and the friendly waitress came back.

"Would you like to have some dessert?" She asked, and I grinned at her.

Dessert!

"Yes," I said excitedly, and she chuckled.

"What would you like to have, ma'am?" She asked.

"Chocolate lava cake," I said, and she wrote it down on her notepad.

"For you, sir?"

"No thanks," he said curtly. She nodded and left.

She came back with my chocolate lava cake soon.

"Here, ma'am," she placed the dessert in front of me, and I thanked her.

OMG! Chocolate lava cake.

I dug into my chocolate and took a bite of it.

Heaven!!!

"Bhumi,"

I was so much into my chocolate that I was startled when he called me from my side on his knees.

When did he come here?

I looked at him in disbelief.

He could have just given me a signal before kneeling down in front of me.

Now I would be looking like a stupid with the spoon in my mouth and my eyes wide open.

I blinked twice and took the spoon out of my mouth and kept it in the bowl.

"Smile. Look excited and happy," he whispered.

I tried to put up my best smile on my face.

"Bhumi, darling, will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?" He asked, raising his right hand with a ring held tightly in his fingers.

Wow!! I stared at the ring in awe.

It was a gorgeous piece. With a Sapphire solitaire in the centre with diamonds studded around it.

"Yes," I said, looking straight into his eyes.

He took my left hand and slipped the ring onto my ring finger. Then he took my hands towards his lips and kissed on my knuckles.

And there I felt it.

Something strange. I don't know what it was?

I have never felt it before.

Is that what they call the feeling of butterflies in the stomach?

Because I don't know how it feels to have butterflies in my stomach!

Oh god, Bhumi!! This is all an act. A show for the public. Stop thinking about stupid butterflies.

A/N

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SF❤️