8

"Marry me," he declared.

What the hell is going on? Who does he believe he is? He said this as if I were obligated to do everything he said. Despite my racing heart from nervousness, I almost laughed at his nonsense.

He may be wealthy and handsome, but marrying him would be the worst thing in the world. Why would I want to marry him? I don't even know what this moron's name is or anything about him.

I am going to kill him!

I slapped him, and the force of my slap made his face turn right. And his eyes were no longer soft and gentle when he looked at me. He is glaring at me as if he is about to explode with fury, and I swear there is smoke coming from his ears, and his eyes are red with raw rage. My fingers had left imprints on his cheek.

"You fuck-" He did not finish his sentence, instead slipping his hand through my hair, causing it to fall, and grabbing a handful of my hair in a tight grip.

I yelped from the pain in my scalp. "Who do you think you are, slapping me again?" he asked calmly, sending chills down my spine, and I was now terrified of him.

He yanked my hair tighter, and a painful sob escaped my mouth. "You are going to regret slapping me," he said.

"I want you to marry me!" he roared.

"I would rather die than get married to your, psychotic ass!" I said, and he yanked on my hair.

"Uh-huh...Now you leave me with no choice. I believe you are aware by now that your brother works for me. Right?" When he mentioned my brother, I immediately stopped squirming in his hold.

"I will fire your brother, and I'll make sure he never gets a job. He will be jobless forever. And with the power I have, I'll make sure to ruin his life afterwards. I am sure you wouldn't want that." I looked at him with tears in my eyes.

"Please! I don't want to marry you! why would I? I don't even know you or anything about you! Don't do this to my brother; he is a very good man." I said I was crying, but he only looked at me with anger.

Why is this happening to me? What have I ever done to him? Haven't I suffered enough already? It's like God is punishing me for leaving my parents to die.

"You will marry me whether you want or not because I've taken a liking to you and decided to marry you. You'll live like a queen. My Queen." He said it with this sick smile on his face.

He removed his hand from my hair and started massaging the area where he grabbed it. He is trying to cure the pain he has caused. What is he doing?

He is insane!

"Think like this: You marry me-and your brother gets to keep the job, and I'll even increase his salary. I'm sure you don't want your brother to lose his job. How will he keep your little sister, Taara, happy and safe?" he said. He said the word safe slowly as if taunting me.

Oh god, please don't do this to me.

I looked at him. "I'm only 21 years old and I'm too young to marry. Please, you can find another person to marry you-someone who is willing to be your wife and, as you said, your queen." I told him, calmly praying to God, that maybe he would change his mind.

"Okay," he said very calmly, and he stood up, helping to make me stand.

I looked at him, confused. "Okay?" I repeated what he said.

Thank god-

"Yes, your brother-he is fired, and you're the reason for everything that is going to happen next. Be ready to face your brother." Saying that he turned to leave.

How will I face Bhaiya? How am I going to tell him that I'm the reason he will be unemployed for life?

"Stop."

He stopped walking and turned to face me. "I will marry you. Don't fire, Bhaiya." I said, and my voice came out low, and tears were falling down my cheeks. I kept my head down. He came forward put his thumb and index finger on my chin, and lifted my face, making me look at him. He was looking into my eyes, and there was a spark in them-a pleased one instead of his empty eyes.

"You made the right decision. You won't be able to find a man as rich as me in the entire country," he said in such a self-obsessed manner. I want to slap him one more time, but this time on his head. I fisted my hands to stop myself.

Oh god, save me from his stupid man. "Moron!" I muttered under my breath, not knowing he heard that.

"Darling, you need to stop calling me a moron," he told me.

"Why? You are a moron! Then you should stop calling me darling as well! I'm not your darling! I don't even know your name, for god sake, and you want me to marry you!" I said, frustrated. I then left the room to look for Bhaiya, and I found him pacing in the hallway with a concerned look on his face.

"Bhaiya, I want to leave, now!" I said that and walked past him, but he grabbed my hand, stopping me.

"Why what happened in there? What did Mr. Kapoor want to talk about? Tell me, Chandini!"

"Bhaiya, I will tell you on the way home but first we need to leave-" I was interrupted by the devil himself.

"Mr. Sehgal, my parents will be at your house tomorrow evening; be prepared," he said to Bhaiya, and he walked towards me.

He hugged me. I was about to push him, but "Don't move, darling, and don't even think about pushing me. Your brother is watching us," he said, breaking the hug. My entire body froze as his lips landed lightly on my forehead in a peck.

Then he went down the hall to the main room. "What was that, Chandini? Why did he hug you and kiss you? I'm not following anything here! You need to tell me!"

"Bhaiya! I'll tell you everything first; let's leave from here," I said, and we exited the venue. We got into the car, and Bhaiya started driving. Then I received a message from an unknown number.

Unknown: Don't even think about telling your brother; just tell him you want to marry me or whatever you feel is appropriate; that is all there is to it.

How did that moron get my number? That man is a psycho!

We reached home, I got changed, and I met Bhaiya in the drawing room. "Tell me, Chandini; I want to know everything. Why did he touch you and kiss you? What is happening?" Bhaiya asked in one breath.

"I want to marry him," I said, and Bhaiya looked at me like I had gone mad. Maybe I'm mad for agreeing to this stupid marriage.

I was startled because, suddenly, Bhaiya started laughing and said, "This is a very good joke! Nice, you got me, Chandini! Now tell me the truth."

When I didn't say anything, he stopped laughing and looked at me seriously. "Why do you even want to marry him? You don't even know him or anything about him!" he asked.

"He proposed to marry me—and I accepted. And there is no need to know everything about a person. He is rich and handsome; he will keep me happy. So, why not?" I replied.

"Chandini! It's not you! What is wrong?"

"There is nothing wrong; in fact, I believe everything is perfect right now."

"What do you mean, perfect? Please tell me! We'll figure it out together, just like we always do." Bhaiya took a step towards me, a worried expression on his face, but I backed away.

"Bhaiya, I can't find someone wealthy like him; think about it, right? And I, too, want to marry him. I don't see anything wrong with it." I said, shrugging my shoulders and averting my gaze. He opened his mouth several times to say something but said nothing; instead, he shook his head, staring at me in disbelief.

It hurts, and I hate myself for even saying things like that. I don't want to marry him or anyone after what happened with my ex. I don't think I can love anyone or find happiness. I am the worst daughter in the world who left their parents to die, who left them in their time of need. When they needed me, I left them. I don't deserve any happiness.

"Do you even love him? To marry someone, you should love them first. Isn't that what you said? There should be love in a marriage; otherwise, it's just two people living together." Bhaiya asked, making me rethink my decision.

If I didn't want to marry him or even see that face of his. But if I didn't, Bhaiya's career would be ruined for life. He worked for it, and I don't even want to think about Taara.

"Bhaiya, just listen to me! Okay!" My voice rose slightly, and I closed my eyes tightly.

"Okay..."

He sighed and sounded defeated. When I opened my eyes, he was on his way upstairs.

What do you guys think about this chapter? Let me know how you feel about it.

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