Shivaay and Annika start dating, but only in pretense. Slowly, the drama becomes a little all too real. Will they ever realize their true feelings?
(Cover by ImLilMissComplicated)
I'm here, as promised! Thankyou to everyone for all the love in the last chapter, and for all the birthday wishes too ❤ Love y'all!
Also, if you haven't already, check out Annika's look- I think there was some error which didn't make the picture visible in the last chapter.
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Enough preamble for now, let's get on with the story! Hope you all like this chapter, and do share your views😘
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Shivaay's eyes didn't leave Annika for a minute, following her around like they were starved for her sight. Even the constant snickering from his brothers who were seated beside him and were aware of his very obvious staring didn't deter him. She looked absolutely flawless, and he wanted her to be within his eyesight so he could make sure no man tried getting closer than necessary to her. He was absolutely bummed that they wouldn't be able to keep up the dating pretense here, or he would have gone and wrapped his arm around her very inviting waist, thus shooing away any interested man who thought she was available, including that Rohit who was seriously getting on Shivaay's nerves now by roaming within a few feet of Annika, always. Gripping a glass in his fist tightly, Shivaay stared over the rim as he watched Annika talking heartily with Rohit over something, before laughing over something he said. The damned man looked sickly proud of himself, and Shivaay could have gone and punched him in the face.
You see, being a man, he knew when he saw male appreciation in another's eyes for a woman, and he could now see the very same in Rohit's eyes for his Annika. Shivaay had always been a very possessive man when it came to the ones he deemed special, which had only included his family till now, but with Annika, it surpassed anything he had felt before. If only she hadn't been so adamant about not revealing her name to the world as his girlfriend, he would have gone and probably even kissed her senseless as Rohit would keep on watching. It took everything in Shivaay not to do so, as he saw Rohit offer her a sip of wine from his glass, the very glass he had been drinking from, and Shivaay's blood started boiling as he got ready to dash towards them. Thankfully, though, Annika refused, and looking his way, the radiant smile she threw at him calmed him down a bit. She then went off towards another table, and Shivaay had to strain his muscles to follow her with his eyes again.
"Oh God, stop it already, bhaiya!" Rudra whispered, loud enough for Shivaay and Om to hear. "The media will soon discover that your eyes are practically glued to Annika didi, and all this trouble of keeping her name a secret will blow in bits!"
Shivaay glared at his youngest brother at that, but knew that Rudra was right. Being the Businessman of the Year, and not to mention India's most eligible bachelor, Shivaay had the media lingering around him at all times. It made him feel suffocated, but years of being under the spotlight had prepped Shivaay to ignore them like they didn't exist. Shivaay refrained from flinching as yet another cameraman took a shot of "the lovely Oberoi family", flashing his camera in their eyes. Once he had left, Shivaay decided to take a walk. The others didn't need to be told that he was going after Annika, but thankfully, didn't tease him about it. He found her near the stage, asking the orchestra to change the music and play something a bit livelier rather than the soft music.
