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PROLOGUE

New Year’s Eve – 11:52 PM

Gated Villa Community: Serene Meadows (Delhi)

Shaurya Ahuja had never stormed away from a party before. He wasn’t the kind of man who let emotions dictate his actions. Composed, controlled, and calculated—that was how he functioned. But tonight? Tonight was different.

His polished shoes struck the pavement with measured fury as he strode toward Villa No. 11, his personal abode inSerene Meadows, a villa surrounded by passive-aggressive neighbours. The grand, elite gated community of villas was known for its peaceful surroundings, but for him, peace had been a distant concept ever since he moved here six months ago.

All thanks to one man.Keshav Raichand.

Or as everyone here affectionately called him—Grandpa.

Shaurya scoffed at the irony. The elderly man was adored by the entire community, worshipping him like a wise sage with endless stories and old-world charm. But for Shaurya, he was the one persistent thorn in his otherwise meticulously organised life.

And tonight, Grandpa Keshav had gone too far, crossing an invisible line.

Standing before an audience at the Serene Meadows Clubhouse, the centre of the community’s New Year celebration,the old man had looked Shaurya dead in the eye and declared,“A man like you can never understand love. That’s why your wife left you.”

Laughter had filled the space. Some awkward, some nervous, some outright amused, but Shaurya had only heard the weight of the insult—the cruel, deliberate jab at the one thing he never let anyone discuss.His divorce.

He remembered the humiliation, the betrayal and the sleepless nights spent drowning in anger. It had taken him months to push it all into a locked box inside his mind.

And yet, one sentence from a 75-year-old man had clicked open the lock in seconds.

His fists clenched at his sides as he reached his villa—a sleek, modern structure of clean-cut lines and glass, devoid of unnecessary sentimentality. In short, his villa was a reflection of himself. He pushed open the door only to realise it was already unlocked. Strange.

Had he forgotten to lock the door before leaving? He vaguely recalled being distracted by a phone call from Varun, his closest friend, who had insisted on sending a blind date to his house tonight. Shaurya had firmly forbidden it, nipping the idea in the bud itself. He wasn’t interested in forced socialising, let alone dating. Not after everything he’d been through.

Frowning, he stepped inside his home. The moment he did, the lights flickered once before going out, plunging the house and the entire Serene Meadows into complete darkness.

A muscle ticked in his jaw. This was just what he needed. He wanted to forget everything. All he needed now was a drink and some peace before the year ended and the new year began.

Sighing, Shaurya loosened his tie and tossed it onto the console table. Just as he reached for the top button of his shirt, he felt it.

Something was off.

The room wasn’t empty.

His gaze flicked to the darkened corners of the villa, his senses attuned to the subtle shift in the air.

And then… he sawher.

A silhouette, faintly illuminated by the streetlights, filtered through the floor-to-ceiling glass windows. A woman sat perched on his dining table, legs elegantly crossed, looking completely at ease inhishome.

His irritation spiked.

“Unbelievable,” he muttered, stepping forward.

Varun! That foolish man had done it. He had sent the damn blind date despite Shaurya’s clear refusal.

He was about to send her away, to tell her she was wasting her time when Grandpa Keshav’s words came rushing back like a slap to his already wounded pride.

“No woman would ever fall in love with a man like you.”

Shaurya had spent months convincing himself that the past didn’t define him, that his divorce was nothing more than a closed chapter in his life. But the truth was, it wasn’t just Grandpa Keshav’s taunt that stung, it was the fear buried beneath it.

What if the old man was right?