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“Yes.”
“Uh, okay…” He couldn’t for the life of him understand what was going on.
She tilted her head to study him. “Once upon a time, there was a girl who fell in love with a prince, and they were happy for a while. But then he rejected her. Again and again.”
His muscles tightened. He understood what she was saying. He tried to interrupt her, but she shook her head and continued her tale.
“The princess tried doing several things to gain her prince’s attention, to make him realize they were meant to be together, but none of it worked. Then, one day, another prince entered the picture.”
Rohan shuddered. Oh God.
Jiya looked in the distance, her eyes softening. He turned to where she was looking and found Aditya standing by the railing, watching them. His heart cracked a little more. Everyone from the party was next to Aditya, watching Jiya and him.
Jiya faced him again. “This second prince, he was warm and kind. He was perfect in every way. Except…”
His heart beat faster. “Except what?”
She angled her head. “Except he wasn’t the prince the princess wanted. He was never the one for her.”
Rohan opened and closed his mouth, unable to believe what he was hearing. Dare he hope that…that…
“You see, Rohan, the princess had only ever wanted one man, the prince she’d fallen in love with from the very first time she’d laid eyes on him. She realized that her happiness lay only with him. But he, for reasons that he refused to share with her, was keeping her away. The princess had run out of options, and so she devised a plot to entrap her prince.”
He gulped. “What did you do, Jiya?”
“See, I realized that my happiness ought to come first and foremost in life. So, I was going to seize it with both hands. And my happiness is withyou. Thus, I was going to win you back, no matter the price I had to pay for it. When I was in Dubai, I bumped into Aditya. Janak had sent him there. He’d told him about my situation and roped him in to help me out if I was willing to accept it. Aditya outlined his plan, saying I could use him to make you jealous. I was sceptical, but he was there, offering me a chance to find out if you still felt something about me or if you’d really moved on. Being with him would be believable. He was Raashi’s friend and liked by the whole gang.”
She smiled. “Aditya was my chance to make my world right again. To be happy again. So, we put up an act that night at your mom’s auction and later at the nightclub. Everyone was in on it. Janak, your mom and dad, Rhea, Shauna, Nirvaan, and Akash. And today, Rithwik, Aisha, and Raashi too. They all helped with the charade.”
Unbelievable. His parents had helped her?! And the others… His heart expanded and then expanded some more. He was blessed and so grateful for all of them. While he had given up on finding happiness for himself, none of them had given up on him.
Jiya continued, “And it worked. You realized that you felt more for me, more than you’d ever admitted, possibly even to yourself. But it wasn’t enough, Rohan. You being in love with me was just the tip of the iceberg. You had your past demons to slay. Everything boiled down to that. I needed you to be rid of the past so you and I could be happy in our present and look forward to the future. You needed to find the courage to step out of the box you’d locked yourself into. And only you could do that. You had to choose to do that. You had to learn to fight not only for me, but for yourself as well. That was the only way forward.”
This woman…she’d done so much for him. At that moment, he believed that she’d go to the end of the earth for him if need be, and he was so honored by that. He’d taken time to realize that he could have a life with her, but this fierce, beautiful woman had never stopped believing in it. She’d never stopped fighting for them. He stared at her, at the love shining on her face for him. He was so proud and grateful that she was his, just like he was hers.
He swallowed through the lump in his throat. “I’m glad you pushed me away. Seeing you with Aditya opened my eyes. I hated it when he touched you. My heart burned when he touched your hair. Seeing you with him made me realize what a colossal fool I’d been. I figured that to get you back, I had to try and change. I had to learn to trust and to forgive. I had to give love a chance and play by your unsaid rules.”
“And you did that. I’m so proud of you, Rohan. You stepped out of your comfort zone for me. You tried to heal yourself. I know it may take time, but if you let me, I will help you every step of the way.”
His eyes burned. She palmed his cheek. He shifted his face to kiss the centre of her palm. And then, to his utter shock, Jiya dropped down to one knee and took his hand. His heart stopped for a whole second before it began thundering as the reality of what she was doing settled inside him.
“So, Rohan Bali, my one and only Prince Charming, you and I didn’t start with a forever, but we could build our forever together. Will you marry me?”
Happiness spread inside him, shifting and changing the landscape of his heart. There was no sadness, anger, or pain anymore. She’d filled all his cracks with her light. Now he only felt love, nothing else. Jiya was his. She’d always and only been his.
He raised her to her feet and cupped her cheeks. “I love you, Jiya. You’re the reason I wake up every morning. You’re the reason I breathe. I never knew my life was so lonely until you walked in, and suddenly, I wasn’t alone anymore. I’ve never felt like I truly belonged anywhere until you became my home. I know I was a first-class jerk to you. I’m sorry I didn’t realize what we had was special sooner. But know this, I will spend the rest of my life making up to you. I love you so much.”
A brilliant smile stretched on her face. “I love you, Rohan. You’ve been mine since the beginning.”
She lowered his mouth to hers, kissing him. He shut his eyes, drowning in her taste and in her scent. Finally, everything was perfect. His heart had found its home…with her.
Loud catcalls and whistles made his eyes pop open. He shifted from Jiya and stared at all the people watching them from the railing. Rithwik and Aisha were right at the front, clapping hard. Raashi and Sameer stood next to them. His parents and Janak stood to Rithwik’s other side, all of them looking delighted. His mom wiped a tear from her eyes. His dad beamed at him. He was blessed. He truly was.
More people stood behind his parents. He took in all the familiar faces of Rithwik’s friends—now his friends, too, he hoped.
“Let’s go meet them,” Jiya said happily.
He found Aditya whooping.
