Chapter 12
"STOP FUCKING AROUND" I said as I noticed my grandfather's Right handed Man stalking me and Ruhi for few days.
Yes, I have regain my memory. Not long ago but when I was admitted in the hospital. I remember how Ruhi's soft hand helped me how she lied to doctor about being my wife so that I can live.
I narrowed my eyes at the man standing before me, his stance rigid yet cautious. He had been shadowing us for days, thinking I wouldn’t notice but I did. I always did.
“Tell him you haven’t found me,” I said, my voice low, sharp as a blade. The man flinched, his lips parting as if to protest, but one look from me shut him up. “Do you understand? Not a word about Ruhi. Not a word about where I am.”
He shifted uneasily under my glare, his hand twitching by his side.
I stepped closer, close enough for him to feel the weight of my words.
“I know my grandfather sent you. And I know he’s desperate to drag me back.
But listen carefully you will go to him, and you will say you searched everywhere, yet there’s no sign of me. ”
The man’s jaw tightened. “Lorenzo… he raised you. He deserves to know—”
“I know exactly what he deserves,” I cut him off, my voice rougher than I intended.
A muscle in my cheek ticked, because the truth burned deep in my chest. My grandfather…
he wasn’t just the head of the family, he was the man who carried me on his shoulders, who taught me how to fight, how to stand tall, how to survive.
The man who became father and mother when I had none.
And yet right now, he couldn’t know. Not about Ruhi. Not about the life I’d begun to build away from blood and fire.
I exhaled sharply, dragging a hand through my hair.
“I love that man more than my own life. But if he finds me, he’ll take me back to that world.
And if that happens…” My eyes flicked toward the street where Ruhi’s laughter still lingered in the air.
My chest tightened. “She won’t survive it. I won’t let her get hurt because of me"
She saved my life, and now I Belong to her,my heart belongs to her. My wife.
The man swallowed, glancing away, his silence enough of an answer.
I gripped his shoulder firmly, my tone final. “Tell him nothing. Let him believe I’m still lost. That’s how you’ll serve him best by giving me the chance to protect her.”
For a long moment, the only sound between us was the distant hum of the bazaar. Finally, he gave a short nod, his expression torn, but obedient.
As he turned to leave, I muttered under my breath, words meant more for myself than anyone else “I’ll come back to him one day. But not now. Not when my heart finally belongs somewhere else.”
I pushed the encounter out of my mind as I made my way back home, though my blood still pulsed hot with tension. Every step reminded me of the weight of the decision I had made to defy my grandfather, to keep Ruhi hidden in the fragile bubble of peace we had carved together.
When I opened the door, the scent of spices wrapped around me immediately warm, earthy, comforting. It was nothing like the sterile air of my old life. Instead, it smelled like home. My jaw unclenched without me realizing.
Ruhi was in the kitchen, her dupatta loosely draped as she stirred something in a pan. A faint smile played on her lips, her hum soft, unknowing of the storm I had just walked away from.
For a moment, I simply stood there. Watching her. The light caught her hair, the curve of her cheek, the way she moved with an ease that made everything inside me settle. My chest tightened, but not with anger, not with fear this was something else. Something I could never afford to lose.
I walked up behind her silently and slid my arms around her waist, pulling her against me. She gasped softly before glancing back, her eyes widening at my sudden closeness.
“Lorenzo… you scared me,” she whispered, though her lips curved upward.
I buried my face in her shoulder, inhaling her scent, needing the grounding warmth of her presence. “I needed this,” I murmured, my voice low, raw. “You don’t even know how much.”
Her hand stilled on the spoon, but she didn’t push me away. Instead, she placed her palm over mine, gentle but steady. “Bad day?” she asked softly.
I let out a bitter chuckle against her skin. “Bad life. But you…” My lips brushed the edge of her neck, a silent confession in itself. “You make it better. You make it worth it.”
Ruhi turned in my arms then, her eyes searching mine with concern, but I didn’t let her ask. I kissed her forehead, firm and lingering, before nodding toward the food.
“What’s for lunch?” I asked, forcing a smile into my tone, even though my insides still burned with secrets.
Her eyes narrowed slightly she knew I was hiding something but she didn’t press, not yet. Instead, she answered quietly, “Paneer curry. Your favorite.”
I chuckled, tightening my hold on her waist before reluctantly letting go. “My favorite,” I repeated, softer, though I wasn’t talking about the food anymore.
Let her believe I didn't regain my memory, let me be her perfect husband.
I sat at the table, watching her move around the kitchen with a calm grace that didn’t belong to this cruel world. She hummed under her breath, her anklets making the faintest chime every time she stepped closer to the stove.
It was maddening how easily she had woven herself into the fabric of my life. How she belonged here, in my heart , as though the universe had always intended it.
But the thought that clawed at me, tearing me apart inside, was this what happens when she learns the truth? That I remember everything. The blood. The betrayals. The empire that waits for me to return.
And the darkness in me.
I clenched my fist under the table, nails digging into my palm. If she knew who I truly was… would she still look at me with those soft eyes? Would she still let me hold her the way I just did?
“Lorenzo,” her voice broke my thoughts. She placed the curry in front of me, along with warm roti, her smile shy but genuine. “Eat before it gets cold.”
I forced a smirk. “Are you trying to fatten me up, wife?”
The word wife made her blush instantly, her eyes dropping to the floor. And just like that I was undone again. No matter how many sins I had committed, no matter how many enemies I had buried, here, with her, I was just a man who wanted to keep his woman safe.
I tore a piece of Roti, dipped it into the curry, and took a bite. My throat tightened unexpectedly God, she had even learned how to cook my favorite meal exactly the way I liked it.
[ I don't like tofu , but she does. So now it's my favourite]
“Perfect,” I muttered, my eyes fixed on her instead of the food.
Her lips curved, and she sat across from me, fiddling with the edge of her dupatta. “You’re staring again,” she said, her tone soft but teasing.
I leaned forward, my gaze never wavering. “Get used to it. I’ll never stop.”
Her breath hitched, her fingers stilling. She didn’t understand this wasn’t simple admiration. This was an obsession carved into my bones. She was mine , my destruction, my everything.
I swallowed hard, gripping the glass of water to stop myself from blurting the words I wanted to say.
I remember. I remember who I am. I remember everything. But I’m keeping it from you because I can’t lose you. Not now, not ever.
Instead, I leaned back, a lazy smile spreading across my face, masking the storm inside me. “After lunch, we’re going out,” I said suddenly.
Her brows furrowed. “Out? Where?”
“You’ll see.”
Her laughter spilled into the room, sweet and unguarded, and I felt the tension in my chest loosen just a little. For now, she didn’t know. For now, she was mine in this fragile bubble I’d created.
But I also knew one thing secrets don’t stay buried forever.
And when the day comes that she finds out I’ve been lying… God help anyone who tries to take her away from me.
Because I won’t just fight for her. I’ll burn the whole fucking world.
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