The Rathore's Family

Is it confession?

He looked at her with a slight smile, making her feel both confused and curious. Was this a statement? A question? Unsure, she nodded innocently, her naivety making him chuckle.

With tenderness, he cupped her face in both hands, his eyes warm with an affection she’d never quite noticed before. His gaze held a depth of unspoken words, a message he was finally ready to reveal. “Not just months,” he murmured, “but years.”

She blinked, surprised. “Years?”

He nodded slowly. “Yes. I never thought I’d tell you about this, but I need you to stop comparing yourself to others and understand what you mean to me. That’s why I’m telling you now…you’ve been part of my life not for months, but for years. Since the day I first saw you at that temple.”

Her eyes widened in shock and confusion. She’d always thought she was thrust upon him, an outsider. Yet he was saying he’d known her long before she believed he did.

Moving closer, he looked deeply into her eyes before placing a soft kiss on her forehead. Her eyes fluttered shut at the touch of his lips, feeling the warmth and sincerity of his gesture—their first real kiss, and it was a kiss of reverence.

But as she savored the moment, a question stirred in her mind. If she hadn’t been forced into his life, if he had genuinely cared about her all this time, why hadn’t he told her sooner? Why had he acted so distant, as though she meant nothing to him?

Seeing the confusion clouding her expression, he leaned back against the headboard, pulling her closer by the waist. She glanced at him, surprised by how perceptively he noticed her thoughts. Could it be that she had been the only one imagining things?

“Have you read books?” she asked, breaking the silence. He looked at her, puzzled by the sudden change of topic.

“You think I run a business without reading?” he replied, a teasing edge in his tone.

“Not those kinds of books…you know…” She stumbled, struggling to find the right words.

A playful smirk danced on his lips as he drew his hand in slow, teasing strokes across her waist and back, leaning in. “So, what kinds of books are you talking about, Mrs. Wife?”

Her cheeks flushed as she avoided his gaze. “You know…in those romance novels where the hero confesses on the first night that he’s been in love with her for years…” She trailed off, unable to meet his eyes, feeling silly for even bringing it up.

He chuckled softly. “No…I haven’t read those kinds of books.

But tell me…until yesterday, you barely knew me, and then suddenly we were married. Sure, it’s great for me, but what about you? Would you think it’s love if someone proposed to you without sharing any real moments or feelings first? Would you say yes to that?”

Her words caught in her throat, but he gently placed a finger on her lips, silencing her.

“Yes,” he said, his voice softer now. “My approach to giving you time may have been wrong. I thought if I stayed close to you suddenly, you’d feel overwhelmed. I never considered how my distance might make you feel. And you…you accepted that distance without ever trying to bridge it yourself. You never tried to take a step forward in our relationship.” He withdrew his finger, giving her space to speak.

But she couldn’t form a single word. Here she was, thinking he didn’t care for her, when all this time he had been thinking about her. Her heart felt heavy with guilt.

“I thought…” she managed, voice barely above a whisper. “I thought you didn’t like me. Dadi used to say things, so I believed it was true. I thought…we’re married now, that part isn’t in my hands, but I didn’t want to become a burden on you.” She looked down, embarrassed, pouting slightly.