✔️The single housewife (Completed)

The evening of surprises

Era's POV

"When did you start liking me?" I asked while sipping a cup of hot brewing coffee as he stared at my lips.

As soon as he saw me noticing the desiring look in his eyes, he looked away. After some time, he replied in a very low voice.

"Ummmm, since the day you had my great-great grandfather's ring. Agreed that I was just a kid like you back then; I felt foolish for letting go of his ring. So I once followed my uncle into the Council building, and when no one was watching, I started seeing you. You would go to school, dance with your friends, laugh and sing with your parents and the random moments like those fascinated me always. I would wait for the vacations so you could come to your uncle's mansion, and I could observe you from a distance." he confessed.

He then took the same cup of coffee that I had drunk and sipped the remaining coffee, never breaking his eye contact with me.

"My parents asked me not to come in contact with you else; I would risk letting the outside world know about the Cerulean city. My great-great grandfather's ring was very precious to me. So I would always try to spot ways to steal it back again when you aren't looking. But that never happened as you wore that ring like a batch and took good care of it. My parents told me to leave the prospect of returning the ring. But till then, I was already fascinated by your innocence and simplicity. For a long time, I used the  as an excuse to see you spending time in the mansion on every vacation." he said.

He took his hand and placed it on mine. I didn't take it away or object as I got lost into the abyss of his eyes.

"One day I realised that you got married. That was the worst day of my life. Thankfully Mihir and Nisha helped me to get out of the heartbreak. I focused my entire self on building a career. That year, I topped my college and opened my own office with the help of my family." he said.

"Things were going normal until I heard that your uncle was selling a mansion. And the new owner was no one but you. I waited for you to come to your new home, but you took your time to grace the mansion with your presence. " he laughed.

I looked down and blushed, looking at the sapphire ring that was adorned my finger. I couldn't look into his eyes without blushing. To remove my awkwardness, I put a piece of cookie into his mouth, and he laughed knowingly.

"That day, I saw you crying when you first came into the mansion. I wondered if you had a rotten mood, but that happened the next day too. I got worried and watched the videos of your day to day activities in the control room of the Council building. I realised you were going through the pain of impending divorce and infidelity from your husband. You were pathetic, and the only way to get you out of the rut was to get you inside this world. I asked Mihir and Nisha to help me prove your worth to be here. And you know the rest of the story." he smiled as he wrapped me with a warm blanket kept that he found in the drawer.

People had a habit of storing extra warm clothes in all kinds of public places since this world was wrapped by cold most of the year. Moreover, there was zero crime rate (therefore zero stealing), so people would be considerate enough to return those fabrics later.

"So you know a hell lot about me." I stated the obvious.

"So?" he asked, puzzled about why did I mind so much about the fact.

"I mean, it's scary. I am not used to so much attention and pampering." I finally spoke up.

"Well, that's how a real relationship works. Get used to it, dear," he asked as he casually chewed the last cookie.

"And I don't know much about you." I said.

"I know." he smiled. "I wanted to be close to you, but you hadn't moved on, and your divorce wasn't finalised yet. I waited for you to convince your family and get this thing done with. I made my move when I realised that now you are free from that emotional baggage." he smiled.

"But now you can take your time to know about me." he offered after a silence. I smiled. That sounded perfect.

I had a whole night to know him. I waited excitedly for him to lock the pub so we could go outdoors.