-36-
After a few moments, she couldn't control herself, her hand reaching up to strike his face hard when she realized he wouldn't pull away from the kiss. The slap came as a surprise to him; his lips finally let her breathe as he stared at her with amazement.
She looked up, glaring daggers at him. "How dare you touch me without my permission, Raghav?
Who do you think you are to claim ownership over me?
Learn to listen to my words before taking any action, Raghav Hooda.
If you are so impatient, don't expect any explanation from me," she spat at him angrily, trembling with frustration.
No word came out of his mouth; he was looking at her as if she were some wonder.
She threw her phone onto his chest angrily.
"If you are so impatient to know what he messaged, check the messages.
Don't look at me like I am some cheater again.
My character is the most crucial thing to me.
I hate it when somebody looks at me with those questioning eyes," she spat out, moving past him, her shoulder hitting his without turning to look at him.
Raghav clutched her phone instinctively, his other hand reaching up to trace his face, which was still burning from the abrupt slap. The corner of his lip rose in a smirk. His Jannat did have a lot of strength and fire inside her. She wasn't as vulnerable as he had predicted her to be.
He followed behind her as she went back inside, sitting beside her Dadi, seething in anger with no thought of checking her phone—her words had been enough. Her Dadi looked at her with a questioning gaze but chose not to react just yet, though she knew something was up.
"Jayuu, you both aren't married yet. Showing this kind of attitude isn't right," her Dadi still spoke in a whisper, unable to control herself. Jayasvi couldn't help but give a look toward her Dadi, signaling that she didn't want to talk about it at the moment.
Raghav took his seat, the amusement clear in his eyes.
Jayasvi felt uncomfortable throughout the lunch when he wouldn't stop looking at her while continuing the conversation with her Dadi.
She didn't regret even a bit having slapped him.
He had no right to touch her without her permission.
If she had allowed it today, God knows how far he would go in the future.
When it came to paying, she was the first one to reach for the bill, but he snatched it from her hand rather smoothly, a charming smile still plastered on his face.
"Raghav, let us pay our share," she spoke, trying to be as proper as she could in the conversation when her mind was telling her to throw this jug of water over his head.
"That would be very improper for my woman to pay when I am there. Let me do the task," Raghav spoke, paying before she could argue further.
"It's not needed, Raghav. We don't want to be a burden upon you. You accompanied us here, that itself is a big help. Don't overburden us with your favors," her Dadi spoke softly, though she could see her beloved granddaughter was in good hands.
"You are also my family, Dadi. And I have always been taught, it's the men who should be paying.
That's the least we could do for our ladies," Raghav spoke, helping her get up gently.
Jayasvi made a face, mimicking his words—a gesture clearly noticed by him.
She couldn't understand from what sand he was formed. This guy had no shame.
As they exited the restaurant, he smiled at her Dadi.
"If you may allow me, Dadi, I would like to take Jayasvi for a drive after this.
We are going to get married soon. I think we should have a proper conversation and know both of our aspirations for a better future," Raghav spoke in a respectful voice.
Jayasvi frowned where she stood, raising her eyebrows almost mockingly.
She knew her parents wouldn't ever allow it.
"Of course, Raghav beta. Spend some time together," her Dadi chirped happily, and the very next moment, the color drained from Jayasvi's face. What was wrong with her family? Why couldn't they ever say no to him or his family? Did they do some kind of black magic on them?
Her face turned cold as they got into the car, fisting her jeans in her hand.
She wanted to smack her hand against the back of his head.
He was so damn irritating. She could feel her Dadi's gaze on her, daring her to react in a wrong manner.
But how was she expected to react properly when this guy was just finding ways to agitate her?
He dropped her Dadi off at her place. She waited for a moment as he settled back in, bringing the engine to life. She turned to look at him.
"I am going home," she announced, unbuckling her seatbelt.
"Didn't you just hear what I asked your Dadi?" he stated, almost losing his patience with how disobedient she always was about the smallest of things. Why was she affecting him in this manner? He couldn't understand.
"Ask her? I don't remember you asking me. And even if you did, my answer would be a big no. I don't want to go anywhere with you. So get that thing straight in your mind," she stated, making her point clear to him as she unbuckled the seatbelt.
"Jayasvi, I'll slap you so tight if you move even an inch," he almost growled out without thinking. She froze in her place, looking up at him with wide eyes—not with fear, but with anger.
"Slap me tight? Do you think you have the balls for that, Raghav Hooda?" she almost growled out, fisting her hands. How dare he try to scare her with those petty things?
"Don't talk to me that way, Jayasvi," he warned her, done with being the sweeter person every time. Why couldn't she just see he was changing for her?
"Oh yeah? You think I care how to speak to you?
Listen to me, and listen to me very carefully.
If you give such baseless warnings to me again, I'll slap you so tight.
.. so tight that the next seven generations of your family will have a hearing disability.
Don't think of me as one of those weak girls who will tremble at your filthy words.
I know how to retaliate very well. I am not going to be afraid of you," she growled, loud like a warrior going to war.
"You would be the one suffering with me if you slapped me so hard, after all, my next generations are going to be born from you," he spoke calmly, almost with a smirk, making her freeze.
From where did he bring all that nuisance?
She couldn't understand how to retaliate to that shameless comment while he started driving.
"Remember the last time we went on a long drive?
You were so sweet and shy throughout," he spoke, trying to live up the beautiful memories.
She had looked so pretty sitting beside him, turning pink at the smallest of words, speaking so elegantly and sweetly to every question.
Not like this little goddess ready to announce war against him at any moment.
"Ever heard? Women only return what you give them.
You gave me that coldness and I returned the same to you.
You can't expect me to fall at your feet for the shreds of your affection just because you mean to pretend you have changed.
It doesn't work that way, Raghav. A single day of care doesn't change the way you treated me for so long," she spat out in anger.
This shut him up quickly, the drive continuing silently through the same roads he had taken her before.
After another brief silence, he looked at her. "Why is that guy still trying to contact you?" he questioned her, but this time it was rather calm, his trial of being sweet with her.
"I don't know," she responded after a long pause. "He never stopped. He has used every single way possible to reach me. It's kind of frustrating how he never gives up, even when I told him I don't wish to continue the conversation," she spoke with a long, tired breath.
Raghav seemed to understand the depth of the situation now. It wasn't like she didn't try. Aahan wasn't giving up easily on her. And that itself was the root of all the trouble at the moment.
"Should I get his business bankrupt?" Raghav spoke, reaching for his phone immediately, thinking about every single business ally who could come in handy in the present situation.
Jayasvi froze, trying to wrap her mind around the sudden announcement before reaching to pull his phone away from his reach.
"What the hell are you doing, Raghav? This isn't the way to handle the situation.
You don't have to go to such extreme ends.
As long as he isn't approaching me, it's manageable," Jayasvi stated, making her point clear to him.
"Are you for real, Jayasvi? That guy isn't giving up on you.
You are going to be my wife. It's my responsibility to make sure you are comfortable.
And I am not letting any filth come near you, no matter what," Raghav asserted, unable to understand why she was still trying to protect this guy or his business.
He had made things difficult for her, and that itself was a reason big enough for Raghav to destroy him as soon as possible.
Jayasvi stared at him when he parked the car aside, looking at her, giving her his full attention.
"But this is beyond what is needed, Raghav.
That guy is troubling me, I understand. But I am ignoring him, and you should ignore it as well.
There are thousands of men out there; you can't just destroy their families just because they didn't get the right values," she responded, trying to make him understand why it wasn't the right decision to make.
She knew Raghav being concerned about this fa?ade was completely understandable. Any man would be. But taking such drastic steps just because he could, in a moment when he is angry, isn't correct according to her. Not yet.
He looked at her for a moment before looking ahead at the road.
"I want to take you somewhere," he spoke before starting the car again, moving toward this sudden mysterious place he was talking about. For all she cared, she could imagine him killing her on some dark street, but she also knew she was being excessive about everything at the moment.
She chose to stay silent for once, seeing the way he was driving—the unknown roads, the uncertain turns, everything was more and more unfamiliar to her. Just then, she saw the sign on the board beside her; he was taking her outside of Delhi.
"Where are we going, Raghav?" she asked when her phone started showing the roaming network of Haryana. What was going on in his mind?
"You'll know in 15 minutes," he responded, keeping his eyes fixed on the road, not looking at her this time, driving toward the uncertain destination.
She looked around as the surroundings turned more rural yet expensive.
A gigantic haveli stood in the middle of a gorgeous garden.
She hadn't seen such a luxurious place before.
Her eyes fell over the nameplate, which made her freeze: Virendra Singh Hooda.
Wasn't he his grandfather? The former prime minister of the country.
Her breath hitched. Did he just bring her to his village?
Like this? She panicked, looking down at her loose casual outfit.
What if somebody saw them here? What would they think about her?
She knew how questioning it was for a woman to come to her in-laws' place before marriage in her family, and she didn't want more chaos any longer. She wasn't up for more stress.
As if hearing her thoughts, he drove down another street further from the haveli. Why was he here? From all she read on the internet and through his interviews, he grew up mostly in London and Delhi. Why was he bringing her to his village now?
"You have studied in London, right?" she asked him out of nowhere.
"Many think I have. But I haven't," Raghav stated without pulling his attention from the road. She frowned. Now that she thought about it, he never spoke much about his education; that couldn't really mean he was uneducated.
"You might not have heard the name of the school. It isn't that famous," he continued, seeing her quizzical face. "They only admitted 15% of their total students from any one country."
"So you have studied in an ultra-rich school," she concluded. Then why did he bring her here suddenly?
"Nope, that school used to change its location. In winters, it would shift to a ski resort, and in summers, it would shift to be near a beautiful lake," he responded like it was the most normal thing available for everyone, which made her blink, turning to look at him.
Here, she used to cry about her school not having a proper playground fit to play serious sports, and this guy had lived a completely different life. But even in this, she couldn't understand why he brought her here out of nowhere.
The car finally came to a stop outside an old temple. She frowned. He brought her from Delhi to show her this? What was actually going on in his mind?