Behind The Shadows

Prologue

Mumbai, 3:00 AM

The city of lights never sleeps, but tonight, the darkness weighed heavier than usual. The neon signs and glittering billboards advertising the latest Bollywood blockbusters were a stark contrast to the suffocating silence that blanketed Ishita Verma's penthouse. Up here, far above the noise and chaos of the streets below, she should have felt safe. Untouchable. But safety was an illusion in her world—a world where fame was a cage and power came with a price.

Ishita stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows, her hazel eyes scanning the horizon. The reflection staring back at her was nothing like the glamorous superstar the world adored. Her makeup had long since smudged, tears carving invisible trails down her cheeks. Her heart pounded in her chest, the weight of the secrets she carried pressing down like an anchor. She was one of Bollywood's biggest stars, but even her fame couldn't shield her from the darkness creeping into her life.

She felt the tension in the air before she heard his footsteps.

Arjun.

Her bodyguard.

Her protector.

Her forbidden desire.

His presence was an unspoken promise of safety, but it also ignited something more dangerous—a yearning she couldn't afford. She had seen him fight off threats with his bare hands, watched his stoic face harden as he stood between her and danger. But tonight, something had shifted between them. The tension that had been simmering for months now threatened to consume them both.

Ishita didn't turn as he approached, though every nerve in her body was on edge. She could sense his warmth, the quiet strength that radiated off him in waves. His dark eyes, always sharp and alert, softened when they met hers—just for a moment—before he masked his emotions behind his stoic exterior.

"You shouldn't be here," she whispered, her voice barely audible.

"I'm always here," Arjun replied, his voice deep and steady. "That's my job."

She swallowed hard, biting her lip. "That's not what I meant."

Silence stretched between them. The tension, once a quiet hum, now felt like a storm on the verge of breaking. Ishita's hands trembled as she clutched her silk robe tighter around her body, a poor barrier against the heat between them.

Arjun's voice dropped to a dangerous whisper. "You know the rules, Ishita. We can't cross this line."

But the line between them was already blurred, smudged by stolen glances, forbidden touches, and the growing fire that consumed them both. They were bound by the unspoken truth—what they wanted could never be. He was her bodyguard, sworn to protect her at all costs. She was his client, a woman untouchable in more ways than one. Their love was a crime in the world they lived in, forbidden by the rules of society and haunted by the shadows that trailed their every move.

Ishita's heart hammered in her chest as she turned to face him. His face was as hard as ever, chiseled and perfect, but his eyes betrayed him—dark, intense, and burning with the same desire that had been driving her mad for months.

"Do you ever think about it?" she asked, her voice soft but trembling with vulnerability. "About us?"

Arjun's jaw clenched. "Every damn day."

The words hung between them, heavy and dangerous.

A shiver ran down her spine, and for the first time in a long while, it wasn't from fear. It was from the undeniable pull between them—the kind of connection that couldn't be ignored any longer. But as she stood there, inches away from the man who made her feel more alive than any audience ever had, she knew their story would never be a simple one.

Because in her world, love was dangerous.

And forbidden love? That was a death sentence.

...

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