Sanskar never expected Kavita would arrive to his party uninvited , even lucky his cousin wouldn't have made such a blunder and yet here she was standing before him with a smile . He had expected to feel a tinge of emotion at seeing her after all he was supposed to have married her but all he felt was confusion and worry for Swara .

        
" I am sorry Sanskar ,I Know it was quite a surprise but when I heard about the party from my dad .I had to come you see to apologize in person " She spoke up and he understood how she found out about the party as her father was a shareholder in Maheshwari industries ,he must have received a invite as well .

         
" It fine Kavita , I am really happy that you chose to follow your heart " he answered back truthfully , because trapped in a marriage when she was in love with someone else wouldn't have been good for either of them.  His words must have reached her finally that she hugged him in relief. 

           
" Oh thank god ,I had been feeling so guilty for leaving you like that . After all it no fault of yours " She was still speaking but Sanskar eyes has found his wife looking shocked at the scene before her ,he quickly let go of Kavita once he became aware of the curious glance of everyone around them. 

           
Sanskar wanted to rush towards his wife and assure her but if he ran towards her in an hurry ,his movements could be misinterpreted as someone guilty  so with a great effort he stood where he was and silently willed that Swara would be strong enough to walk towards him .

              
And he left a sigh of relief when she walked towards him ,and it was time for him to put the doubts in her mind to rest ,so he smiled and held out his hand to hold her close to him , if she was uncomfortable with the proximity he would apologize later but it was needed when they were being watched by almost everyone in the venue .

        
" Swara ..This is .." Sanskar began to introduce Kavita , in an formal way as a friend . And introduce Swara as his wife thus establishing that his loyalty belongs to his wife . And it would have helped if Kavita kept silent throughout the introduction rather than blurt out words that froze everyone in the venue .

       
" Of course I met Swara in our wedding " Kavitha words made Swara flinch slightly ,he didn't know if others noticed it but he did due to the close  proximity between them , he had been accomdating enough of Kavita arrival so far but this one crossed the line that he glared at her until she realized the mistake she commited .

   
" So Sorry Swara ,I didn't mean it like that .I just meant we already met " Kavita apologized to Swara but still the damage was done as few people already began to murmur between them in hushed voices.  

       
" It okay Kavitha . We are just thrilled that you accepted our invite today " Swara answered back surprising him by her words . He knew Kavitha gatecrashed the party but by announcing she was invited Swara had laid the rumours to rest and he had to admit it worked yet he looked at Kavitha hoping she didn't contradict Swara and make it complicated again .

            
" And we hope to be invited to your wedding " Sanskar answered back trying to change the conversation into safer grounds  , when she called before she told him,he already knew about her wedding yet  he mentioned it  again because it would help to keep the gossips to a bare minimum if they realized this meet was no reunion of sorts between the two of them . 

             
  " Of course , Dilip is thrilled about the marriage and dad is slowly softening towards him , another thing I have to thank you for because dad told me it has been you who convinced him to give us a chance " Kavita answered back and Sanskar was relief that the topic was diverted towards her upcoming marriage .

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Swara had never been put on the spot before like tonight , when she saw Sanskar hugging his ex fiancee every impulse in her demanded she leave the garden and run back inside and yet she stood her ground because of him .

       
When he finally noticed her ,he didn't look guilty but concerned and that when she noticed everyone in the venue looking at them ,she understood how it would look and decided to help him by not acting like a jealous wife even when she felt close to crying especially after hearing the cruel words of his employees few minutes ago .

        
And she didn't expect to feel such relief when Sanskar spoke about kavita upcoming marriage , it helped a long way to soothe her concerns about them together and it helped to lessen the insecurities she felt earlier,  by the time kavita left  Swara was fully recovered by the presence of his ex fiancee who seemed quite harmless now that Swara knew her heart belonged to someone else .

           
  " Thank You " he spoke up surprising her after Kavita left and she understood it was for not freaking out at the sight of her ,they were married without each other full consent and we're still practically strangers but to the world they are married and it wouldn't have looked good if Swara had thrown a jealous fit in the middle of her wedding party . 

            
" I had been worried that Kavita had misgiving about not marrying you and you felt the same as well . Truthfully I believed that I had been standing in your way for reconciliation when she called last time and wondered if you regret marrying me in haste " Swara whispered those words to him not wanting anyone else to overhear but unable to wait any longer to talk about it either .

         
Her insecurities were acting up making her worry about everything ,she never was someone who had let others words get to her but her relationship with Sanskar was so new that it was hard for her to keep a rational mind. And she was slightly relieved at his surprised face because it meant those thoughts never crossed his mind .

         
" I am sorry Swara ,I knew she was getting married to her boyfriend and i should have told you sooner rather than let you wonder, but promise me if you had any doubts or misgivings you would ask me immediately and not keep it to yourself " he answered back and she could only nod her head in answer because Ajay had chosen that moment to approach them .

              
Swara realized both of them were too caught up with each other that they failed to realise it has been getting late and they haven't eaten yet ,but when Ajay walked them towards a table for two away from the other guests ,she had to laugh at Laksh antics . Unlike Sanskar who has been furious .

         
  " Does my cousin have no brain ,we will eat with others as well.  Seriously do you think either of us would be comfortable sitting here when everyone eyes were focused on us .And tell your boss that I am perfectly capable of taking my wife for a date that he should stop his antics " Sanskar spoke up and Swara could only smile at the complete shock in Ajay face the poor guy was wondering if his job was secure and yet Sanskar words warmed her heart especially when he addressed her a his wife and talked about their future dates .

       
" Sorry" he spoke up once they were seated with others and Swara thanked him for not subjecting her too an awkward dinner , they have been married for few days and yet she wished her first date with her husband was not something arranged by his cousin . So was relieved that Sanskar cancelled on his cousin plans . 

         
The relief she felt at being seated with others were short lived because she has happen to look at others who continued to whisper amongst themselves ,they may have been talking about sometime totally unrelated to them.  Their words from before made her wonder about how many of them present in the venue thought she got lucky to marry Sanskar .

       
" Hmm ,lost in thoughts " he spoke up when she had been silent for a long time .

       
" Nothing Sanskar " She answered back even though few minutes ago she had promised him to share everything , she would talk with him about it soon but not at the moment . 

     
  By the the party ended Swara had been relieved to return back home to the safety of the people she knew than strangers . She knew Sanskar aunt was happy with Swara and so was Laksh who had went out of his way to help them.  At least the knowledge she was accepted by his family without judgement made her content for the moment .

     
The walk back to the car was longer than she anticipated and the weather had turned colder that she has began to shiver a little until she felt Sanskar coat wrapped around her by him . He simply rushed off to get the car after the thoughtful gesture and she waited for him feeling bit better about the day until his phone vibrated from his  coat pocket .

   
And her heart stopped to see the caller ID " Tara ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️" flashed across the screen . She didn't like this version of herself questioning everything and by the time Sanskar car got near her ,she took the phone and gave it to him .

  It didn't help that he got out of the car to answer the call and made sure she was out of ear shot as he spoke to the person . She felt like she was at crossroads whether to trust the man she knew in the past few days or hold on to her distrust caused by events she didn't fully understand . 

     
But when he made his way towards her and drove the car without a word she had her answer ,she trusted him because even without explanations from him she somehow knew beyond doubt that he would never be disloyal towards her .

     
And the fact he didn't come up with a explanation meant he didn't harbor any secrets to hide , he had asked her to ask him if she had doubts and yet she didn't want to come across as someone who isn't incapable of trusting him ,because she trusted him and believed in him ,she didn't ask any question that night .

           
As they drove back he ,Swara realized her reason for doubts stemmed from within and her insecurities rather than her lack of trust in him ,she didn't think Sanskar would be disloyal towards her with Kavitha but rather if he would prefer Kavitha over her ,she trusted him to uphold their marriage vows because in just few days she knew Sanskar was incapable of being anything less than good .

      
            
" Do you regret marrying me ?" Was the question that haunted her as they drove back home ,she wanted a equal partner and she still had no clue what he expected from his partner for life and she felt a bit of regret at her self centeredness for not asking him earlier .

             
But the moment she stepped down from their car ,her worries about them ceased to exist because infront of their house stood her aunt's car . She began to panic at the thought of coming to face with her aunt in this dress . Sanskar must have noticed her panic ridden face as he asked her what was the matter but all she could blurt out was few words .

        
" Aunt ..Won't ..like ..dress " She somehow managed to convey the reason inspite of all the stuttering .

         
" Swara ,this isn't her house and trust me I won't let her say anything about it " he told her as his hands grabbed hers in an comforting support ,she never panicked about her aunt wrath before but she panicked today because she didn't cherish the thought of being disciplined in front of Sanskar and his family .

              
Sometime our worst fears do come true ,because within seconds of entering the house .Her aunt had been the first to spot them and in just few choice words she had made Swara feel horrible just like she predicted until she heard Sanskar speak up .

              
" Aunty with all due respect I can't remain silent any longer , Swara is my wife and I have no objection to her choice of dress since I brought it for her . I understand your reservation as you pointed out that Swara behaviour was not according your wishes but I object to the fact that you spoke up on behalf of me and my aunt because as far as I am concerned this is Swara house and she can wear anything she likes and she need not worry about my approval because she always will have my support " Sanskar finished speaking up making her aunt stop insulting her any further but Swara knew it must have made her aunt furious that Sanskar had supported her .

    
" Sorry I didn't know she can be this rude " Sanskar answered back as soon as her aunt left them and marched straight upto Ragini room . She heard the apology in his tone even when it hasn't been his fault.

      
" It okay Sanskar . I am used to it by now " She answered back truthfully but tonight had been different whenever her aunt or uncle found any fault with Swara or her sister ,her mom always asked them to change according to their wishes rather than supporting them and for the first time someone supported her over her aunt decision and that made tonight all the more special .

            
Swara didn't know that night if she was Sanskar ideal choice of an bride but he had proved himself to be someone who would always treat her as his equal and in Swara world that was something she had never seen often that it made her happy that Sanskar was someone who would always have her back .

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  P.S :" That it for now .Let me know your thoughts and Feedbacks. Hit the votes if you liked it "

Juanita Reid