Marriage preparations
The entire dining hall fell into a strange silence.
Only the soft clink of cutlery echoed through the enormous room.
At the head of the table sat Rajmata.
Regal.
Commanding.
A woman whose words had guided generations of the Thakur family.
Everyone respected her.
Everyone listened to her.
Everyone.
Except...
At this moment...
One grandson silently challenged the very air around her.
Devyani had fallen asleep.
Curled peacefully against Rivan's chest.
One cheek rested over his heartbeat.
Her soft breaths rose and fell in perfect rhythm.
Completely unaware of the discussion unfolding around her.
One tiny hand had unconsciously fisted the fabric of his shirt.
As if even in sleep...
She refused to let him go.
Rivan hadn't moved for nearly ten minutes.
His dinner sat untouched.
One arm supported her back.
The other rested protectively around her waist.
Not once had he adjusted her position.
Not once had he shown the slightest discomfort.
He simply...
Held her.
Like she weighed nothing.
Like she belonged exactly there.
Rajmata watched the scene quietly.
A faint crease appeared between her brows.
"This is not right."
Her calm voice echoed across the table.
"A daughter-in-law has responsibilities."
family members instinctively straightened.
They knew that tone.
Rajmata wasn't angry.
But when she spoke...
Everyone listened.
She looked toward Rivan.
She never finished the sentence.
Because...
Rivan slowly lifted his head.
His eyes met hers.
The world seemed to stop.
There was no anger.
No disrespect.
No raised voice.
No rebellion.
Only...
A look.
Cold.
Steady.
Absolute.
His dark eyes carried a message so unmistakably clear that no words were necessary.
Not her.
Not today.
Not while she's in my arms.
The atmosphere changed instantly.
The warmth inside the dining hall disappeared.
The air itself felt heavier.
Even the servants standing along the walls instinctively lowered their heads.
Rudraksh quietly looked at his plate.
Payal stopped eating.
Aradhya slowly reached for her glass...
Then thought better of it.
No one moved.
No one breathed too loudly.
They all knew this version of Rivan.
The underworld king.
The man who negotiated with criminals without blinking.
The man whose silence often frightened people more than his rage.
Yet...
Today...
His intimidating presence wasn't directed at an enemy.
It was protecting someone.
Rajmata continued looking into his eyes.
For a long moment...
Grandmother...
And grandson...
Spoke without speaking.
She saw it.
The fierce devotion.
The unwavering promise.
The quiet desperation of a man who had once lost the woman sleeping in his arms...
And would never risk losing her peace again.
Slowly...
Rajmata exhaled.
A long...
Quiet sigh.
The sternness left her expression.
Her shoulders relaxed.
She looked at Devyani sleeping peacefully against him.
Then back at Rivan.
Without saying another word...
She simply nodded.
The unspoken battle ended there.
Not because she had been defeated.
But because she understood.
Rivan didn't offer an explanation.
He didn't defend himself.
He didn't justify his actions.
He simply adjusted his hold.
One arm slid beneath Devyani's knees.
The other supported her back.
With effortless ease...
He lifted her completely into his arms.
She didn't wake.
She merely sighed softly.
Instinctively burrowing even closer.
Her face disappeared into the curve of his neck.
One tiny hand tightened around the lapel of his black shirt.
Her eyelashes fluttered once.
Then became still again.
She trusted him so completely...
That even being lifted in her sleep...
Didn't disturb her dreams.
Rivan looked down.
His expression softened almost imperceptibly.
A tenderness that existed for no one else.
He brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face with the back of his finger.
Then...
He looked up again.
This time...
His gaze swept slowly across the entire dining hall.
Virendra.
Yashodha.
Reyansh.
Rudraksh.
Payal.
Aradhya.
Every member of the Thakur family.
Every servant standing nearby.
No one escaped that calm...
Terrifying...
King-like stare.
When he finally spoke...
His voice was low.
Smooth.
Controlled.
Yet every syllable carried unquestionable authority.
Silence answered him.
Possessive.
Certain.
His gaze shifted toward Rajmata.
Never challenging.
Never disrespectful.
Only honest.
A brief pause.
Then his voice became even quieter.
"But..."
The words settled heavily inside the hall.
No arrogance.
No defiance.
Only conviction.
He looked back at Devyani sleeping peacefully.
A tiny smile almost appeared...
Before disappearing again.
When he spoke next...
His tone turned into velvet wrapped around steel.
Another pause.
His eyes slowly travelled across every face.
"Is that understood?"
Not a single person answered.
No one needed to.
The silence itself was agreement.
Rivan gave one respectful nod toward Rajmata.
Then turned.
Without haste.
Without waiting for permission.
He walked toward the staircase.
Each step echoed through the mansion.
Steady.
Measured.
Certain.
She looked impossibly peaceful.
Completely unaware...
That an entire room had just witnessed the quiet promise her husband had made without ever saying the words aloud.
He would face traditions.
He would face the world.
But no one...
Not family.
Not fate itself...
Would be allowed to steal her peace again.
Behind him...
The dining hall remained frozen.
Only after he disappeared upstairs did anyone finally breathe again.
Rudraksh slowly exhaled.
"...Remind me never to wake Bhabhi from a nap."
Payal nodded immediately.
"Agreed."
Aradhya whispered,
"I think even the alarm clock resigned."
A few soft chuckles spread around the table.
Even Virendra smiled behind his teacup.
Rajmata watched the empty staircase for several thoughtful seconds.
Then a faint smile appeared on her weathered face.
"He has become dangerous."
Yashodha looked at her curiously.
Rajmata's smile deepened.
"No..."
She corrected herself softly.
"He has become a husband."
And somehow...
That was far more powerful than the king the world feared.
Rivan pushed open the door to her bedroom with his shoulder, stepping into the quiet, dimly lit space.
Moving with absolute grace, he carried Devyani toward the soft king-sized bed and carefully lowered her onto the mattress.
Even as her back hit the plush sheets, her small fingers remained tightly tangled in his collar. A soft, subconscious whimper escaped her lips at the sudden loss of his warmth, her brows furrowing into a tiny, distressed knot.
A tender smile softened Rivan's dark features. He gently unclasped her fingers one by one, pressing a warm kiss to the inside of her wrist before settling down on the edge of the bed beside her.
In the soft glow of the moonlight streaming through the sheer curtains, Rivan simply sat and looked at her.
Gone was the ruthless kingpin who had just silenced an entire dining hall with a single look. Here, sitting beside his sleeping wife, he was just a man hopelessly, irreversibly in love.
He leaned down slightly, his long, calloused fingers gently pushing back a stray lock of hair that had fallen across her forehead.
His eyes traced every single detail of her face the long, dark eyelashes resting against her cheekbones, the slight flush on her skin, and the ridiculously adorable panda hood still framing her face.
She was his absolute weakness and his greatest strength. In a world full of shadows, chaos, and bloodlines, her innocent, unfiltered love was his only true sanctuary.
He rested the back of his knuckles against her soft cheek, brushing over her warm skin with a reverence that bordered on worship.
How did I get so lucky? he thought, a soft, breathless laugh quiet in his chest. I would burn the entire world down just to keep her smiling like this.
As if sensing his intense gaze, Devyani's long lashes fluttered open.
Her dark eyes were cloudy with sleep, unfocused as she blinked slowly up at him. She looked around the dark room, then back up at Rivan's sharp face, her mind slowly catching up to reality.
Then, as the memory of being dragged
downstairs, standing in front of the entire family, and climbing straight into his lap hit her sleepy brain—her eyes widened into huge saucers.
"R-pati ji?" she rasped out, her voice raspy and cute from sleep.
"Hmm?" Rivan murmured softly, a playful glint dancing in his eyes as he leaned closer, resting his hand beside her head on the pillow. "Good evening, sleeping beauty. Or should I say... sleeping panda?"