Chapter 10
My first day at Vertex Solutions felt strangely peaceful.
No one stood up nervously because of my surname.
No one whispered Mrs. Malhotra every five seconds.
No one treated me like glass.
For the first time in weeks,
I felt normal.
The office was modern and elegant, but warmer than the cold intimidating environments owned by Dhruv.
People smiled naturally here.
My team introduced themselves casually.
And despite Armaan Khanna being the billionaire CEO, the company atmosphere somehow didn't feel suffocating.
By lunchtime, I was exhausted but happy.
Actually happy.
I sat down quietly in the small pantry area and opened the lunchbox I'd asked the mansion staff to pack for me in the morning.
But the second I opened it,
My smile disappeared.
Empty.
Completely empty.
Except for a folded note.
Confused, I picked it up.
And my stomach dropped instantly.
"Girls like you should remember their place."
My fingers tightened around the paper.
Another line underneath.
"The Malhotra mansion is not a charity center. Cook for yourself if you want food."
No name.
But I already knew.
Dhruv's aunt.
Of course.
My chest tightened painfully.
Not because of the food.
Because somehow they always found new ways to remind me I didn't belong there.
I quietly folded the note again before anyone nearby could notice.
Then slowly closed the empty lunchbox.
It's okay.
I could buy something outside.
Not a big deal.
I reached into my bag for my wallet.
Nothing.
My smile faded slightly.
I checked again.
Still nothing.
Then panic slowly crept in.
No wallet.
No phone.
My eyes widened.
I had left both at home while rushing in the morning.
Perfect.
Absolutely perfect.
I sat there frozen for a second while people around me chatted and laughed normally.
I could ask someone for money.
But embarrassment crawled up my throat instantly.
It was my first day.
And technically,
I was still the wife of one of the richest men in the country.
How humiliating would it look asking coworkers for lunch money?
I quietly checked my bag again desperately.
Files.
Pen.
Lip balm.
And then,
A tiny folded note in the side pocket.
I pulled it out quickly.
A hundred rupees.
My eyes literally lit up.
"Oh thank God."
I almost hugged the note.
Honestly at this point that hundred rupees looked more beautiful than luxury diamonds.
I quickly left the office before luck changed its mind.
...
The streets outside buzzed with afternoon life.
Traffic.
Street vendors.
Office workers.
The smell of food everywhere.
Unfortunately my stomach now hated me aggressively.
I hadn't eaten dinner yesterday because I came home late.
Missed breakfast this morning because I did not want to be late on the very first day of job.
And now lunch drama.
At this point even plain rice would've tasted five-star.
I finally stopped near a small dosa stall.
The smell alone nearly made me emotional.
"One masala dosa please."
The vendor nodded.
A few minutes later, he handed me a warm plate.
Golden crispy dosa.
Coconut chutney.
Sambar.
Actual happiness.
I sat quietly on the small roadside bench and picked up the first bite.
And then,
A tiny voice interrupted nearby.
"Didi..."
My hand froze.
I turned slightly.
Two little children stood near the stall.
A boy and a girl.
Maybe six and eight years old.
Dirty clothes.
Barefoot.
The little girl clutched her stomach while crying softly.
The boy tried acting brave despite obvious hunger in his eyes.
"Please food..." he whispered.
My chest physically hurt.
God.
No.
I looked down at my plate.
Then at them again.
The little girl kept staring at the dosa like it was treasure.
I swallowed slowly.
My stomach growled painfully in protest.
I hadn't eaten properly in almost two days.
But those children looked starving.
Actually starving.
The decision still came instantly.
I stood up quietly and walked toward them.
The little boy immediately stepped back nervously like he expected scolding.
Instead, I crouched slightly and held the plate toward them.
"Take it."
Their eyes widened.
The girl looked stunned.
"For us?"
I smiled softly.
"Yeah."
The little boy stared at me like he couldn't believe it.
Then slowly took the plate carefully with both hands.
The little girl immediately sat down near the footpath and started eating quickly.
Too quickly.
Like she was scared someone would take it away.
Something cracked painfully inside my chest.
I quietly handed the vendor the remaining money.
"Can you give them water too?"
The vendor nodded silently.
I smiled at the kids one last time before turning away quickly.
Because suddenly,
The smell of food hurt.
My stomach burned painfully from hunger now.
But somehow,
Watching them eat still felt worth it.
I walked slowly down the road, hugging my empty bag closer.
Trying not to think about food.
Trying not to think about how dizzy I suddenly felt.
And then,
A familiar black Rolls Royce stopped across the street.
My footsteps slowed instantly.
No.
No way.
The tinted window rolled down slowly.
And there he was.
Dhruv.
Of course.
Black suit.
Sharp jaw.
Cold eyes.
The same terrifying billionaire aura even sitting inside a car.
But this time,
He wasn't looking at me.
His gaze remained fixed behind me.
Toward the children eating the dosa.
Toward the empty spot where I had been sitting.
Something unreadable crossed his face.
Then his eyes slowly shifted toward me.
And for the first time since marriage,
Dhruv Malhotra looked genuinely disturbed.
Not angry.
Not irritated.
Disturbed.
Like his brain couldn't process what he'd just witnessed.
I froze completely.
Because suddenly I realized something horrifying.
He had seen everything.
The empty-handed girl from the richest family in the country giving away her only food while clearly starving herself.
Silence stretched between us through the busy street.
Then slowly,
Very slowly,
Dhruv opened the car door and stepped out.
The atmosphere around us shifted instantly.
People nearby started whispering immediately.
But he ignored everyone.
His dark eyes remained locked onto me as he walked closer.
One step.
Two steps.
Three.
Until he stood directly in front of me.
Towering over me.
Dangerously quiet.
His gaze dropped briefly toward my trembling hands.
Then back to my face.
And when he finally spoke,
His voice came terrifyingly calm.
"When exactly were you planning to eat?"
I looked away awkwardly.
"It wasn't a big deal."
His jaw tightened instantly.
Not dramatically.
Just enough for me to notice.
His dark eyes moved toward the dosa stall again.
Toward the children still eating hungrily.
Then back to me.
"You gave away your only food."
The way he said it sounded less like a question and more like accusation.
I swallowed softly.
"They were hungry."
Silence.
Dhruv stared at me like my answer physically irritated him.
And honestly?
Maybe it did.
Because in his world, people protected themselves first.
Survival first.
Emotion later.
Meanwhile I had just handed away my only meal with seventy rupees left to my name.
His gaze suddenly narrowed slightly.
"You didn't eat breakfast either, did you?"
Oops.
I stayed silent.
Bad decision.
Because his expression darkened immediately.
"Riya."
God.
Why did my name sound terrifying coming from him?
I sighed softly.
"I was late."
Another silence.
Then suddenly,
Dhruv reached into his pocket, pulled out his phone, and calmly said:
"We're eating."
I blinked.
"What?"
"You clearly won't survive independently for more than three business days."
I frowned instantly.
"I survive perfectly fine."
His eyes slowly moved over me.
The empty hands.
The exhausted face.
The slight dizziness I was trying to hide.
Then he spoke flatly.
"You're literally starving."
Okay wow.
That sounded rude even for him.
Before I could argue further, he turned toward the nearby restaurant across the street.
"Come."
I didn't move.
Dhruv looked back immediately.
"I'm not repeating myself."
My stubbornness flared instantly.
"I don't need pity lunch."
Something flickered across his face then disappeared too quickly.
"This isn't pity."
The answer came quieter.
Stranger somehow.
Before I could understand what he meant,
A loud ringtone suddenly interrupted.
My eyes widened immediately.
My manager.
Oh no.
OH NO.
I answered instantly.
"Hello sir?!"
"Riya where are you?" my manager sounded stressed. "Mr. Khanna called for an urgent meeting. Everyone's waiting."
My soul left my body.
"I'M COMING."
I hung up immediately in panic.
Dhruv watched my entire breakdown silently.
"I have to go."
His brows furrowed slightly.
"You still haven't eaten."
"I'll eat later."
Lie.
Completely lie.
But there wasn't time.
I quickly started stepping backward toward the office building.
"Riya."
I stopped reluctantly.
Dhruv stared at me for a second.
Then suddenly held out his black card toward me.
The movement caught me off guard.
I blinked.
"What?"
"Take it."
My eyes widened instantly.
Absolutely not.
"I don't want your money."
His expression immediately hardened.
"It's not charity."
"Then what is it?"
Silence.
For one strange second,
Dhruv actually seemed unable to answer.
Which honestly shocked me more than the card itself.
His jaw tightened faintly.
Then finally..
"Emergency convenience."
That was the most billionaire answer possible.
I almost laughed despite the situation.
But I shook my head anyway.
"I'll manage."
His eyes darkened slightly.
"You keep saying that right before creating another disaster."
Okay rude.
True.
But rude.
Before he could force the issue further, I quickly smiled awkwardly and stepped away.
"I really have to go."
Then before my courage disappeared,
I ran back toward the company building.
Leaving Dhruv standing there.
Still holding the untouched black card.
Still watching me.
And somehow,
That unreadable look in his eyes followed me the entire way upstairs.
...
The meeting lasted forever.
And by forever,
I meant actual psychological torture.
Presentations.
Reports.
Corrections.
New responsibilities.
Armaan Khanna himself sat at the head of the conference table while discussing expansion plans.
And unfortunately,
The man noticed everything.
Including the fact I looked half dead from hunger.
At one point during the meeting, his eyes briefly narrowed toward me.
"You alright?"
Twenty executives immediately turned toward me.
I nearly died.
"Yes sir."
Armaan didn't look convinced.
But thankfully didn't push further.
Still,
The way his gaze lingered thoughtfully for two extra seconds made me nervous.
Very nervous.
Because powerful men noticing things always complicated life.
Especially when one terrifying billionaire husband already existed.
By the time work finally ended, it was already dark outside.
Very dark.
I checked the time.
9:17 PM.
My stomach physically hurt now.
I still hadn't eaten anything.
Amazing.
Absolutely amazing.
The office slowly emptied while I struggled figuring out bus routes home.
Unfortunately,
Vertex Solutions was much farther from the mansion than my old office.
And after missing two buses already, I stood completely lost near the road holding my bag helplessly.
The city looked unfamiliar at night.
Too many roads.
Too much traffic.
I sighed tiredly.
Guess walking it was.
...
By the time the Malhotra mansion gates appeared ahead of me,
It was almost 10 PM.
My feet burned.
My head hurt.
And honestly?
I was one inconvenience away from collapsing dramatically onto the road.
The guards quickly opened the gates seeing me.
Inside, the mansion looked quiet.
Most lights were dimmed already.
I stepped inside slowly,
And froze.
Because Dhruv sat in the living room.
Waiting.
Again.
Black sweatpants.
Dark grey t-shirt.
Laptop open beside him.
One hand resting against his jaw.
The giant television played muted business news in the background.
But the second I entered,
His eyes lifted toward me immediately.
Like he'd been alert the entire time.
The atmosphere shifted instantly.
His gaze slowly scanned my exhausted appearance.
My slow steps.
The way I held my stomach slightly.
And then,
His jaw tightened sharply.
"You walked home?"
I blinked tiredly.
"Couldn't find the bus."
Silence.
Dangerous silence.
Dhruv slowly closed the laptop.
The sound echoed through the massive room.
Then he stood up.
And something about the way he walked toward me made my heartbeat stumble nervously.
Intense.
Always intense.
He stopped directly in front of me.
Close enough for me to notice he'd probably showered already.
Close enough to smell expensive cologne.
His eyes stayed fixed on my face.
Then quietly,
"When was the last time you ate?"
Oops.
I immediately looked away.
Big mistake.
Because Dhruv already knew the answer.
The room became unbearably silent.
Then suddenly,
He laughed softly.
A cold dangerous laugh.
Not amused.
Angry.
Actually angry.
"This is unbelievable."
I frowned slightly.
"What?"
His eyes locked onto mine sharply.
"You spent the entire day hungry because you gave your food away."
Another step closer.
"You refused money."
Another.
"You walked home alone again."
His voice lowered.
"Do you genuinely have no survival instincts?"
Okay wow.
I got irritated instantly despite exhaustion.
"I was managing."
"Stop saying that."
The words came out harsher than expected.
I froze slightly.
Because for the first time,
Dhruv genuinely looked frustrated.
Not cold.
Not detached.
Frustrated.
Like watching me struggle physically irritated him somehow.
Silence stretched heavily between us.
Then suddenly,
Dhruv reached for my wrist.
My breath caught instantly.
His hand wrapped firmly around it before I could react.
Warm.
Strong.
Dangerously steady.
And then,
Without another word,
He started walking towards the dining table with me.