Madiha Shah, a young woman from a middle-class family, finds her life unexpectedly entangled with the illustrious Zafar Shah Abraar, a prominent business magnate in India and the elder brother of her betrothed, Zahid.
As fate would have it, unforese...
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On the day of the walima, three women arrived to get Madiha ready. They did her hair, makeup and also draped her copper saree which looked so expensive Madiha had not even bothered looking at the price tag.
After they left, she went to the closet to bring out the diamond necklace that Almaas had gifted her for this function. Wearing that, she gave herself a final look when Zafar walked in the room. His spotless shoes echoed against the hard marble as he took each step with precision, his eyes refusing to leave his bride's. The crisp Armani suit he was wearing complemented his personality, making Madiha sigh. She would never get used to how gorgeous her husband was.
"Are you planning on killing me?" He asked. His voice was laced with admiration.
She raised her hand to correct his crooked tie. "I should be the one saying that."
He exhaled loudly. "Let's go before I use this saree to tie you up to this bed and have my way with you."
She giggled, but pulled them both out of the room.
The venue of the walima was a seven star hotel. The entrance was laced with paparazzi. Every guest attending had an area dedicated for them to pose for the cameras. The bride and groom were no exception. This was Madiha's first exposure to the media and naturally, she was nervous. But the firm grip of Zafar's hand on her back kept her from shivering.
The gigantic banquet hall was filled with almost eight hundred guests who had arrived from different parts of the world. Ministers, actors, business delegates, distant relatives, everyone was present to be a part of the first public appearance of Zafar Shah Abraar's wife.
An hour into the function, Madiha was already tired of fake smiling to people she didn't know or care about.
"This is so tiring." She muttered after they got free talking to one of Zafar's business associates and his wife.
Zafar caressed her waist. "Do you wanna leave?"
She gave him a look. "This is our function. We can't leave."
He shrugged nonchalantly. "You can do whatever you want."
She smiled and was about to gush at her adorable husband but a voice interrupted them. "Congratulations to the couple!"
A man in his late twenties walked up to them with a bouquet in his hands. Madiha sensed Zafar's body language changed, but she took the bouquet nonetheless. "I am sorry I didn't recognize you.."
"My apologies." He kept a hand on his chest. "I am Ruhaan. Ruhaan Shaaf Khan."
Madiha recognized the surname. The Khans were another very influential business family of the country.
"I am sorry baba couldn't attend." Ruhaan said, "He was busy with work."
"At least you came," Zafar spoke, "all the way from Mumbai."
Ruhaan smirked. "I wouldn't have missed it for the world." The teasing in his voice made the hair on Madiha's neck stand up.
Ruhaan was the son of Karim Shaaf Khan, the business rival of Zafar's. While Karim was somewhat manageable, his son, Ruhaan, was an absolute shark of the business world. Now, Zafar loved a good challenge in work and Ruhaan provided him with just that. But Zafar absolutely did not want that man anywhere near his family. In fact the only reason he had sent an invitation to the Khans was just out of courtesy, he had not expected Ruhaan himself to show up.
"Bhai, Maa saheb is calling you both." Ziya made her presence known, unaware of the tension going on between Zafar and Ruhaan.
"We will be there. Leave." Zafar ordered immediately. He wanted Ziya out of the prying eyes of Ruhaan. But it was too late. Because the naive 20 year old had caught the attention of Ruhaan. He amusingly watched Ziya scrunch his nose at her brother's dominating tone, but she went away without making a fuss. His eyes followed her till she got lost in the crowd.
"Well," Ruhaan looked back at Zafar, "This was eventful. I will take you leave then. I have to get back to Mumbai."
Zafar gritted his teeth. "I am glad you could make it."
Ruhaan smirked. "See you in the meeting, Zafar Shah Abraar." The meeting in which it would be disclosed who had bagged the tender that both the companies had been fighting for.
"Sure you will, Ruhaan Shaaf Khan."
A few seconds of eye stare later, Ruhaan padded off the place.
"What was that?" Madiha finally spoke.
"Nothing I can't handle." Zafar looked at his wife and all his anger melted away. "Come, Maa saheb was looking for us."
The night wore off normally. After dinner, the host requested for a dance by the couple. Madiha thought Zafar would say no, but to everyone's surprise, he guided his wife to the center and danced while romantic music played in the background. Almaas looked so happy for her children. And so did Madiha's parents. Given the circumstance the wedding took place in, they were glad that their children had accepted each other.
In the limo back home, Madiha took off her heels and sighed loudly in relief. "I swear to God, the person who invented heels hates feet."
Zafar kept his phone aside and brought her feet on his lap. The red marks where the straps of the heels were made him mentally wince. With soft hands, he started massaging her feet and ankles. She discreetly clicked a picture of the moment, or she thought she was discreet. Because without missing a beat, he said, "If you plan on uploading that on social media, you know the rules."
She rolled her eyes. "Yes, your face won't be visible."
Zafar hated social media, and Madiha loved it. She insisted on putting cute stories of their moments together. He was strictly against it. But after several fights and kisses later, he had agreed, as long as his face wasn't directly visible.
Madiha cropped his face out of the photo and edited it a little before putting it on her story, with the caption, "Husband duties." Ever since she had started posting about Zafar on her profile, her followers had increased a hell lot.
Upon reaching home, Zafar wordlessly carried Madiha to their room and helped her get out her saree. It took him immense self-control to just help her change and not dwell into some other activities. But she was visibly tired and needed to sleep. After he changed as well, she climbed on top of him. Cuddling close, they both called it a night.
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I have not had the time to upload everyday, I am so sorry.
But please let me know how are you guys liking the story! Because I have gotten a little less engagement than usual on the last few chapters. Is that because of my inconsistency or you just don't like the storyline? Help me figure it out please.
