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He watched the way her body responded to him, how she pressed closer, needing more, silently asking and silently receiving. It wasn’t hurried. It wasn’t rushed.

Words had abandoned her. All she could do was hold onto him, her body arching into him as waves of sensation rolled over her, building and crashing as he brought her closer to that edge she hadn’t known she needed so badly. When she moaned his name in that moment, Shaurya murmured something soft and reassuring against her skin.

Nandini was lost in another world as his fingers kept working magic inside her. She had never let anyone this close before. Had never gone this far in any relationship. Not emotionally. Not physically. She had never wanted to. But with Shaurya, it felt right.

‘He’s the only one who’s ever seen me like this. The only one who ever will,’ she promised silently to herself.

She didn’t second-guess her feelings. She was falling deeply in love with Shaurya Ahuja. And for the first time, Nandini wasn’t afraid of how much she was falling. Because she wasn’t falling alone. He was right there with her.

Suddenly, it was too much.

The sensation hit her like a slow, molten wave she hadn’t braced for. Her vision blurred as her back arched helplessly into his hand, her breath caught somewhere between a gasp and a moan. Every muscle in her body trembled, overwhelmed by the surge of heat that started low and then bloomed outward like fire under her skin.

Shaurya held her through it all. His arm wrapped around her head, anchoring her as if he knew she was coming undone in his arms. Her fingers clung to his bare shoulder, digging in, grounding herself as the last tremors of pleasure rippled through her. When it finally subsided, all she could do was collapse against him, breathless, spent, and entirely his.

Their breathing hadn’t evened out yet when Shaurya withdrew his fingers from inside her and leaned in to kiss her again.

When they finally pulled away, her lips still tingling and her fingertips tracing his jawline, Nandini whispered, breathless, “I know it’s too soon… and maybe I want time to slow down, just so I can savour every second with you. But there’s another part of me that just wants to hit fast forward—like 2X speed—because I can’t wait to see where this goes.”

He gave her a puzzled look, and she smiled, cupping his cheek, letting her thumb brush over the stubble.

“I mean... I can’t wait to build a life with you, Shaurya. I can’t wait to have your babies.”

She hadn’t meant it to sound that raw, but it was the truth, and she thought maybe it would make him smile. But it didn’t.

She watched it happen like a slow countdown. From ten to one, his eyes changed. First with surprise, then alarm, and by the time she finished palming his cheek and saying, “Start thinking of baby names, Mr. Ahuja,” he was already pulling away like he’d touched a live wire.

“Shaurya?” she asked, her brows furrowing as he abruptly got up from the bed.

He didn’t meet her gaze. Didn’t answer. He just stood there breathing unevenly, like he had seen a ghost.

“Hey…” she sat up, confused as she tugged her dress back over her shoulders. “What happened? Why are you looking like that?”

Still nothing. Only a pained shake of his head.

She stepped forward, reaching for his arm. “You’re scaring me, Shaurya. Did I say something wrong?”

His body flinched at her touch. “No,” he rasped. “It’s not you. It’s just… this can’t happen.”

Her chest tightened. “What can’t happen?”

Shaurya turned away again, as if facing her would undo him completely. “This,” he said bitterly, pulling on the T-shirt lying on the bed and sliding it over his head. “This whole thing… us. It’s not possible.”

Before she could speak again, he moved towards the door, but she stepped in front of him, blocking the exit with trembling hands.

“No. You don’t get to leave like this. Not after everything we shared. Tell me what’s going on. What do you mean it’s not possible?” Her voice trembled, her confusion growing into panic.

His eyes looked tormented as they met hers. But he still didn’t answer.

“You were right here with me. Just minutes ago, we were… dreaming of our future. Almost living it.”

“Future,” Shaurya finally snapped. “We don’t have a future together, Nandini.”

The words hit her like someone had dipped her face into a bucket of ice water.

“What do you mean we don’t have a future?” She blinked, confused and stunned at the choice of his words. “We were just—” She dragged her fingers through her hair, exasperated. “Shaurya, these last few weeks… what were we doing then? If not building something? If not heading somewhere together?”

Shaurya’s jaw clenched and his eyes were stormy, but he didn’t respond again. That silence was worse than any argument.