A smile curled his thin lips, a smile so gentle that it seemed more frequent after meeting the particular someone now in his embrace, who, fortunately for his destiny, was now his legally wedded wife.
He couldn't resist the magnetic pull as his face dipped to her neck. "Wh-what?"
Goosebumps spread over her skin as his warm, woody breath fanned her nape. Her chest rose and fell with accelerated breaths, while her wrist wriggled behind her back. His throaty, raspy voice whispered, "Shreeman se sambodhit karengi aap hume." (You will address me as 'Shreeman'.)
Frowning subtly, she brought her face back, their faces mere inches apart as their eyes clashed. Her attention shifted from his sharp, manly features to his thin lips amid the unruly beard as they moved huskily. "Karengi na, Shreemati Ji?" (You will, won't you, Mrs.?)
____________
Sura Nandini Basu never imagined that her decision to explore a dreaded village, where even locals feared to tread, would entangle her in a lifelong dilemma. Her intent was merely to vlog and maintain her daring facade for her audience, but fate had other plans.
Now, she finds herself married to a man revered and feared by the villagers-a man she had encountered only thrice before he became her unexpected saviour. He had broken a decade-old vow for her, drawn by the flutter of his heart for this petite woman. They call him 'Bhai Ji', a name that resonates with authority and commands respect-the formidable Dev Manik Singh Rathod.