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“Don’t lie. You cannot be fine when he is around. I know it. What is going on? How did he even enter this place? Where is Jaya?”

“Daadi, I said I am fine.” I shout this time to get her full attention. I know she’s panicked and worried for me. “Aarav is staying with me here because this is where he belongs. We are giving our marriage a chance.”

It takes a minute for Daadi to process what I just said.

“That can’t be true.” She denies accepting the fact which irks me even more.

“Why can’t it be true? He came here to woo me and now I have accepted him as my husband.”

She clutches my arm.

“You are doing this for us, aren’t you? He must have told you that he is taking over the DG Group and he’s forcing you to stay with him so that you can save it from happening.”

“No,” I shout back. “I am not staying with him to save anyone, but because I love him. Aarav has proved what I mean to him and how far he can go to win me back.”

My love confession for Aarav stuns Daadi. She steps behind in shock.

“You can’t love him. No. You can’t.”

She stumbles and flops on the couch behind. I turn to Aarav who’s more than annoyed by Daadi’s sudden entry and more than that he doesn’t like me proving my love for him to her. But I read it in his eyes. He will not stop me from taking care of this situation.

“I’ll go take a shower.” He says, walking back inside the house after shutting the door, giving a cold shoulder to Daadi.

As soon as he leaves, I sit next to Daadi on the couch.

“How can you team up with a man who wants to take revenge on me? I haven’t trusted my grandson Mohit with his decisions, but with you Jhanvi, I know you will do nothing that’s against us. How could you take such a big decision by yourself?”

She’s in clear shock, but again, I’ll not let her rub the salts on my already easing wounds. I grip her arm.

“I always thought marrying Aarav was the worst decision of my life. But now I realize it was my best decision so far. I just wanted to know one thing, Daadi. Did you always know that my father had chosen Aarav for me?”

“That’s not the point,” she argues.

“I need to know.” I snap. “I have a right to know this because my father was involved in this decision. So now tell me, did you always know he had chosen Aarav for me?”

Daadi looks away. “Yes, I knew, and I also knew that he was making the wrong choice.”

I am shocked at her miserable thinking.

“Wrong choice? Only because Aarav was not your favorite grandson? Because he was forbidden and you banished him from owning every title of your family?”

“You know why, Jhanvi. Don’t ask me that.”

“I know it, Daadi, but I don’t understand why? Why can’t you accept that you cannot change what has happened? Aarav has every right over each and everything that belongs to Raichands. That belonged to his father and his grandmother, just like Mohit has. It is your silly ego which has tagged him as forbidden when the truth is,he isthe legitimate son of your family.”

Daadi stomps her foot and rises.

“I am done with your lessons. I didn’t come here for that. I was here to apologize for proposing Mohit and your marriage despite knowing he is having an affair with his Ex. I thought Mohit’s betrayal and my rudeness would have made you cringe. I was wrong. You have already moved on and..” she pauses to stare at my face. “And Aarav has made you his completely, didn’t he? He’s not just controlling your thoughts, but your body too. You are nothing but a weak woman dancing on his fingers now.”

“ENOUGH.”

We both hear Aarav’s strong voice.

Aarav is here and he probably never went to shower. He was listening to this entire conversation and with the rage in his voice, I can tell he will not let Daadi walk out of this house without giving her an earful.

He’s in a blue T-shirt when he storms out and stands beside me, pointing at Daadi.

“One more word against my wife and her dignity and I’ll forget how to treat an old woman who’s never had control on her mind and tongue.”

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