Page 5 of When Love Trespassed
Even if it meant ignoring the way her pulse jumped every single time those stormy-dark eyes turned her way.
Some things were worth fighting for.
Even if the enemy was unfairly gorgeous.
**************
The next morning, Nandini made her way to the Serene Meadows Clubhouse, a charmingly vintage yet well-maintained community space where residents gathered for events.
Sunlight poured through the large windows, illuminating the long wooden table where a group of women and a few younger residents sat, deep in discussion.
They had all assembled here to discuss the preparations for the much-awaited New Year’s Eve party.
As soon as she stepped inside, Priya Mehra, her childhood friend and Mrs. Mehra’s daughter, rushed toward her with an excited squeal.
“Nandini! Finally, you’re back! And just in time for the best event of the year.”
Priya hugged her tightly before dragging her toward the group.
Mrs. Mehra, the unofficial queen of event planning in Serene Meadows, beamed at her.
“Nandini beta! It’s so good to see you! We’ve been missing a creative mind for planning this event, and now that you’re back, we have just what we need.
We’re a little short on helping hands to arrange everything and make this year’s party even more happening than the last.”
“I figured,” Nandini said with a smile. “So, what’s the plan? How extravagant are we going this time?”
Mrs. Mehra clapped her hands together. “This year, we’re keeping it private, elegant, and cosy.
The party will be in the clubhouse garden—fairy lights all around, live music, a warm, cosy bonfire, and of course, games followed by gift exchange for the kids.
And at midnight, we’re adding a wish lantern release. ”
“Oh, and don’t forget the dance floor!” Priya chimed in excitedly. “We’re getting a DJ this time.”
Nandini nodded, impressed. “Sounds perfect! Who’s handling the food?”
“The caterers are already booked,” Mrs. Bhalla from Villa 3 replied. “Now, we just need to finalise the guest list, seating arrangements, and contributions from each villa.”
Nandini scanned the table. At least one person from every villa in the community was here. Almost. Only one was missing.
She frowned. “Shouldn’t someone from Villa No. 11 be here too?”
The room fell silent for a second before Mrs. Mehra sighed. “Shaurya Ahuja is the only resident there, and well… he’s busy. He told me to just text him the final plans, and he’ll do what’s necessary.”
Mrs. Bhalla scoffed, shaking her head. “He’s always busy. I’m sure he is just finding excuses to ignore the party. Mark my words, he won’t even show up.”
The younger women at the table, especially Priya, exchanged disappointed looks. Nandini instantly caught on.
“Oh my God,” she whispered dramatically, leaning toward Priya. “Are you guys swooning over him?”
Priya flushed. “You would too if you see him. I mean… you have to see him, Nandini. He’s ridiculously hot.”
“But he’s always so… composed,” Kavya from Villa 7 added dreamily. “He usually attends the community meetings, but he hardly ever glances at us. And those suits? My God, the man looks like he stepped right out of a billionaire CEO calendar.”
“He does look dashing and intense, with or without suits,” Mrs. Bhalla said with a wink.
Nandini’s jaw dropped. Not just the young girls but even the middle-aged women of their community seemed smitten with Shaurya.
“Once, I dropped my groceries near his driveway,” Priya confessed as if sharing a secret. “And he just… picked up my bag, handed it to me, and walked away. No words. Just… effortless dominance.”
“Ugh,” Jyoti sighed. “The ‘mysterious, brooding’ type is always the most irresistible.”
Nandini blinked, feeling a strange twist in her stomach. What was happening here? So many women were already fawning over her neighbour? Seriously? Was she… jealous ?
Nope. Not at all.
That was ridiculous. She had no reason to be jealous, even if the entire Serene Meadows community finds her neighbour hot and irresistible.
She forced a scoff. “Well, I saw him yesterday and trust me, there’s nothing that attractive about him.”
Priya and the others stared at her like she’d lost her mind.
“You should see him shirtless. Maybe then you would change your mind,” Priya teased.
“What?” Nandini was confused, although she did get the visuals of a shirtless Shaurya as soon as Priya mentioned it.
“C’mon, everybody,” Mrs. Mehra, Priya’s mother grinned. “Stop spilling all the beans at once. Nandini is just back. Give her time to adjust to her new neighbour and his hotness.”
Mehra Aunty too? Nandini thought she would go mad.
“Hotness, my foot,” she retorted, lifting her chin. “I witnessed his fight with Daadu, and let’s just say he’s as arrogant as they come. Like a very angry man with too much money. That’s it. I’ve seen men hotter than him in Mumbai. He’s no match for them. Like he doesn’t even count.”
The women exchanged knowing glances. Nandini crossed her arms, knowing she was lying. Because her brain was still very much replaying the entire scenario—the image of him shirtless by the pool, his muscles flexing, sweat dripping down his back…
Mrs. Mehra cleared her throat, snapping Nandini out of her wild thoughts. “Nandini, he’s gained a lot of female fan-following in our Serene Meadows despite all the trouble he’s given your grandfather. But anyway, now that you’re back, how are you going to handle this ‘tree war’ with Mr. Ahuja?”
“Handle it? Oh, oh, I’ll do a lot more than that.”
She flicked her hair back dramatically as she stood up from her chair and stepped back, ignoring Priya’s sudden panicked expression and Mrs. Bhalla’s widening eyes.
“That man thinks he can bully Daadu into cutting down a tree that has been standing tall for decades? That too, because of a few leaves in his precious swimming pool? Please! He has no idea who he’s dealing with.”
“Nandini…” Priya murmured, trying to stop her.
But she was on a roll.
“So far, he was only dealing with my grandfather. But now that I am here, I will shut down his baseless threats, his legal notices, and most importantly, his superiority complex.” She gestured wildly, taking a step back.
“In fact, I’ll make sure the tree doesn’t drop just leaves and rotten fruits but thick branches straight into his fancy pool.
Let me see what he does then! Can you believe he actually had the audacity to ask Daadu for pool maintenance charges? The nerve of that man—”
A sudden hush fell over the room as her back collided with a solid frame.
Startled, she recalled there wasn’t any wall behind her. Then?
Everyone’s eyes widened. Priya frantically gestured for her to turn around. Nandini, still fuelled by righteous rage, huffed and turned around, only to nearly choke on her own breath.
Because standing right behind her, dripping wet and wearing nothing but a towel slung dangerously low around his hips was her sexy neighbour, Shaurya Ahuja.
What the actual f*ck!
His hair was damp, rivulets of water trickling down his sculpted chest. And his arms? Good Lord! His arms were now crossed over his broad chest as he stared at her with an amused yet utterly unimpressed expression.
“So,” he drawled, “ you are Raichand’s granddaughter?”
“I—you—I—” she stammered, her eyes locked on his face, refusing to look further down south.
“What were you saying just now?” he probed. “Something about dropping thick branches into my pool?”
Nandini swallowed nervously, but she didn’t miss the way his gaze dipped to her throat, catching the reaction before returning to her face.
“Please go ahead. Don’t stop on my account. I’d love to hear what other indecent things you have planned for me here on.”
The room erupted into silent giggles and awkward coughs as Nandini gawked at him, her brain short-circuiting.
“Indecent?” she scoffed. “You strutting around in a towel in front of a room full of women isn’t indecent?” she huffed, crossing her arms.
He took a step towards her, making her instinctively step back, feeling intimidated. Yet, Shaurya’s eyes never flickered from her face.
“I wouldn’t have been parading myself in a towel had your grandfather agreed on cutting down that tree. You can’t expect me to take a dip in that dirty water every day, can you?”
Nandini folded her arms, her irritation mounting.
“Just because a few leaves and fruits drop into your pool doesn’t make the water dirty.”
“It definitely makes it unfit for swimming.”
“That’s completely untrue,” she countered, her voice firm, her academic background kicking in. “Mango leaves and fruit are completely organic. They don’t release toxic chemicals or anything remotely harmful to human skin.”
Shaurya arched a brow, clearly unimpressed. “So you’re saying I should just enjoy swimming in a pool full of floating leaves and fruit chunks?”
Nandini rolled her eyes. “No, I’m saying the presence of mango leaves or fruit in water doesn’t make it unsafe for swimming.
If anything, mango leaves are known for their antibacterial and antifungal properties.
In fact—” she took a step forward, tilting her chin defiantly, “mango leaf extracts are used in several organic skincare products for their detoxifying benefits. So technically, if a few leaves fall into your pool, you should be thanking nature for giving you a free spa treatment.”
A muffled snicker came from Priya and the others, but Nandini wasn’t done.
“And don’t even get me started on chlorine,” she added, narrowing her eyes at him.
“That chemical-laden water you swim in is more harmful for your skin than a couple of harmless leaves. But sure, go ahead and blame the tree for all your problems.”
Shaurya’s jaw ticked, his stormy gaze locking onto hers. “Fascinating,” he murmured, taking another step toward her, closing the distance between them. “So by your logic, I should be grateful that your family’s sacred tree is blessing me with its divine skincare properties?”
Nandini refused to back down, even though his proximity was making her pulse skitter.
“Glad you finally understand,” she shot back sweetly.
Shaurya let out a low chuckle, his gaze dropping to her lips for the briefest of a second before flicking back up.
“Stop being impossible, Miss Raichand.”
“And you, Mr. Ahuja, stop being so dramatic.”
Shaurya gave her one last glance, then turned and marched out of the room with an infuriating amount of confidence for a man wearing nothing but a towel.
As soon as Shaurya disappeared from the room, a collective sigh rippled through the women gathered in the clubhouse. Their excitement had nothing to do with the New Year’s party and everything to do with the nearly naked man who had just walked out in nothing but a towel.
“Oh. My. God.” Priya whisper-screamed, grabbing Nandini’s arm. “That was—”
“Intense,” Mrs. Bhalla finished for her, fanning herself dramatically. “Beta, I have lived in this community for fifteen years, and never ever have I seen an argument this… electrifying.”
“Did you see how close he got?” Mahira, one of the younger women, giggled, nudging her friend. “For a second, I thought he was going to kiss her just to shut her up.”
Nandini’s eyes widened in horror as the room burst into laughter.
“What?” she snapped. “That man is impossible! Annoying! Arrogant! Completely full of himself!”
Priya raised a brow. “And yet, you’re the one standing here, looking completely flustered.”
Nandini’s cheeks flamed. “I am not flustered. I am fuming.”
Mrs. Mehra chuckled knowingly. “Beta, fuming and flustered often look the same.”
Another wave of laughter erupted as Nandini crossed her arms and huffed.
What was wrong with these women? Were they all so blinded by his ridiculously sexy body that they failed to see what a menace he was?
“You all do realise he was half-naked, right?” Nandini hissed.
“Oh, we realised,” Priya smirked. “Trust me, we realised.”
Nandini groaned, rubbing her temples.
It was her first day back, and she had already declared war on the most desired man in Serene Meadows.
And worst of all? Somewhere in the back of her mind, no matter how hard she tried to fight it, she couldn’t stop reliving the image of him—fresh out from the swimming pool, muscles taut, water trickling down his chest… and that damn towel draped low around his waist.
Nandini exhaled sharply. She needed to purge these thoughts. Immediately .