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Tears pool in my eyes.

“Please don’t say so.”

“Why not? You gave him that right. You broke every trust we had between us and you chose him.”

“I didn’t.”

“You did.” She strongly meets my gaze, closing the distance between us. “You chose the powerful side just like our other clients are doing at the moment. But I never expected that from you.”

I am speechless for a moment. Jaya wants to intrude, and help me settle this matter, but I had strictly warned her not to. So, despite being mad at Daadi for not letting me explain, she is quiet.

“Aarav forced me to marry him,” I say, wiping my tears. If I don’t clear my stand today, no one else will. “He tricked me, Daadi. He knew how much you, Mohit and Jaya mean to me and he was ready to hurt you all if I didn’t agree to marry him.”

Daadi’s expressions soften as she tries to assimilate her thoughts.

“He has been trying to make me his wife ever since I have returned to India. My only mistake was that I never took him seriously and ignored sharing whatever nuisance he created with you and Mohit as I didn’t want to stress you more. You both were dealing with the business problems and the mortgage issue of this mansion. For the first time, I hid something so grave from you two and I am repenting for it already. Please don’t punish me so badly.”

I grab her hand.

“Please forgive me. I am still at your side. I want you and Mohit, not Aarav. I want to stay with you both, not him.”

“Really, Jaan?”

That voice of the man himself is enough to prickle my skin even before I can meet his eyes. He is here? Aarav Raichand is here? Daadi looks behind me and all that sympathy I had seen in her eyes for me seconds ago vanishes. She shrugs my arm and strides to Aarav.

“How dare you step your filthy foot into my house?” she barks.

I turn around. Strangely, Aarav is not bothered by his grandmother, but his eyes are pinned to my face instead.

“Jaan, I am sorry to come this early to pick you up. You know I can’t stay without you for a single minute. So, wind up the ritual quickly and let’s go back home.”

“What ritual?” I shout.

“Pag Phere,” he answers with a grin on his face. “After marriage, every bride visits her Mayka and spends some time with them. Isn’t that what you are here for?”

My teeth clench on their own, as I know Aarav is purposely doing this to turn things more bitter between me and Daadi.

“Just get out of my house,” Daadi shouts. “Both of you.”

I rushed to her. “Daadi, please don’t listen to him. He is lying. I came here to sort things between us.”

“Just leave my house, Jhanvi.” Daadi scolds me again. “And never come back here.”

I don’t care even if she throws me out but I won’t leave on my own until she hears me out.

“Time’s up, Jaan.” Aarav grabs my arm. “They don’t want you here, nor can I tolerate you having people like them in your life. Let’s go.”

I try to shrug him off but he drags me to the door.

“Aarav, leave me. I am not going anywhere with you.”

He doesn’t listen to any of my pleas.

“Daadi, please listen to me, I am innocent.”

I keep shouting, but she doesn’t even look at me. The moment I am out, with Jaya screaming at Aarav to leave me, I finally bite his hand to set myself free, something I had done before and wouldn’t mind doing it forever if he keeps annoying me like this.

Aarav’s grip on me loosens, and I utilize this opportunity to get away from him.

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