Chapter 1 : The Forbidden Confession
The rustle of heavy silk and the distant sound of glass cups ringing drifted up from the grand party hall below.
But out on the dimly lit terrace, the silence felt sharp and heavy.
Dhruv stood near the stone balcony, his fists clenched so tightly inside his clean suit pockets that his knuckles turned pure white. He took a sharp breath, his voice cutting through the soft background music with a desperate, heavy weight.
"Sister, may I have a moment with you? I need to confess something," Dhruv said firmly.
Roshni stopped moving, her fingers smoothing the neat folds of her navy-blue dress.
She turned toward him, her dark eyes narrowing a bit as she looked at his stiff body and the sudden, scary seriousness on his face.
"Now?" she asked, her voice sounding a little impatient.
"The engagement party is about to begin.Can't this wait until later?"
"No," he answered.
The word dropped like a heavy stone.
A few guests standing near the open glass doors turned to look at them.
A quiet, shocked silence spread through the people nearby.
Roshni saw the staring guests and quickly put on her calm, professional mask.
Hiding her annoyance, she gave the guests a tight, perfect smile and grabbed Dhruv by the arm. Her grip was strong—a quiet warning for him to control himself.
"Alright, fine," she muttered under her breath.
She politely excused herself from the guests around them and led him further out onto the empty terrace, far away from listening ears.
The cool night air hit them, smelling faintly of rain and sweet flowers.
As soon as the heavy glass doors closed behind them, hiding them in the shadows, she turned around and faced him, standing straight and strict.
"What could possibly be more important than your own engagement, Dhruv?" she demanded, her voice dropping into that cold and powerful tone.
Dhruv looked around nervously, his eyes darting toward the dark garden below as if he thought someone was hiding in the bushes. Sweat beads rolled down his forehead even though the evening air was cool.
"I'm sorry," he stammered, his voice shaking under the heavy stress he had hidden for weeks.
"I... I should have told you this a long time ago. I tried, but every time I looked at you—"
"Stop keeping me in suspense," Roshni cut in, stepping closer, her sharp eyes searching his pale face.
"Tell me exactly what happened."
"Why are you apologizing to me right before you walk up to the altar?"
Dhruv swallowed hard, his throat dry, his jaw tight as he struggled to force the scary words out of his mouth.
"My dad... my dad has gone crazy, Sister."
"He... he wants to marry you."
For a long, suspended second, the words hung in the cold night air.
Then, Roshni let out a soft, incredulous laugh, shaking her head as if he had just told a poorly timed joke.
"Seriously? Have you had too much to drink before your own ceremony?"
"Or is the stress of the takeover finally getting to you?"
She shook her head, her face softening into a mixture of mild amusement and exasperation.
"Come on, let's go inside. Mr. Agarwal is probably looking for you, and the engagement ceremony is about to begin."
She reached out, giving his shoulder a firm, reassuring pat, and turned on her heel to walk back toward the light of the ballroom.
"I didn't drink!" Dhruv shouted, his voice breaking as it echoed across the quiet terrace.
Roshni froze mid-step.
The raw, desperate anguish in his voice slammed into her like a physical force.
Slowly, deliberately, she turned back to face him, her smile vanishing completely, replaced by an impenetrable wall of icy suspicion.
Dhruv took a shaky, ragged breath, running a trembling hand through his hair as his chest heaved.
"I swear on Sanaya's life, I'm not lying," he whispered, his eyes wide with an absolute, terrifying sincerity.
"It didn't start yesterday, Sister. It didn't start when he returned from abroad."
"It all began six years ago....." ~
**********************
Flashback ~~
The grand courtyard of the Agarwal estate was draped in fairy lights and white lilies for a high-society wedding.
Every corner showed great wealth, but the moment Roshni Singhania—A ruthless corporate empress of Singhania Co. with an icy gaze and an iron will stepped onto the marble path, everything else seemed to fade. Wearing a dark navy-blue designer dress that fit her perfectly, her presence made everyone look at her with respect.
Beside her walked her younger brother, looking neat and smart in a traditional suit.
As she walked toward the main stage, the sharp ring of her phone broke her focus.
Looking at the screen, her forehead wrinkled in deep annoyance. She declined the call right away, but the phone buzzed
again...
and again.
With a heavy, annoyed sigh, she stopped.
"Vihaan, wait here for me. Don't go anywhere," she ordered, her voice turning firm and serious.
Leaving her brother near the main seating area, she stepped away toward the quiet, dark paths of the big backyard to finally answer the call.
At that exact moment, the heavy wooden doors of the main entrance opened wide.
Arnav Agarwal—CEO of Agarwal Limited and Founder of AA Dawn—entered the party. Wearing a custom dark grey suit, his tall posture and sharp eyes carried a cold, strict power. Dhruv walked respectfully beside his father.
Before Arnav could take ten steps inside, his own phone vibrated in his jacket pocket.
Checking the screen, he excused himself, stepping into the cool night air of the backyard to take his business call privately.
A few feet away, hidden behind the neat bushes, Roshni brought her phone to her ear, her voice dripping with sharp anger.
"What is wrong with you? Don't you understand why someone keeps rejecting your calls?!"
A low, familiar voice echoed from the dark shadows behind her. "Turn around."
Roshni froze, instantly cutting the call.
She turned around quickly, her dark eyes locking onto the man standing under the moonlight with pure disgust. "Veer."
"Baby... long time no see," Veer said, showing a sly, arrogant smile as he stepped closer.
"Stop wasting my time and get to the point," Roshni snapped, standing up straight and cold like a wall of ice.
Ignoring her cold mood, Veer walked forward quickly and suddenly pulled her into a tight, hard hug.
Not far off, Arnav came around the corner with his phone pressed to his ear.
His sharp eyes immediately saw the two of them hugging near the rose bushes.
"Kids these days..." Arnav muttered under his breath, turning around without another thought and taking a different, longer path through the garden to give them privacy.
