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Vihaan ~

Aside from the occasional rustle of papers and the gentle hum of the air conditioner, the workplace was quiet. I looked at my watch as I was walking down the hall. It was about time for midnight. My day had been long, filled with meetings and negotiations, but I couldn't shake off the nagging thought that something felt off.

I had finished reviewing the latest reports and was heading out, I spotted a sliver of light peeking from beneath Shivanya's office door. It was odd. She was known for her efficiency but it was highly unusual for her to be working at this hour.

I knocked lightly before pushing the door open. Shivanya sat at her desk, stacks of papers and documents were scattered around her and her brow furrowed in while she kept staring at her laptop screen, with a pencil pressed to her lower lip. er hair, which was usually tied back neatly, had fallen loose and now framed her face, with a few strands slipping down over her cheeks. She didn't seem to notice or care.

I leaned against the doorframe and watched her for a few seconds. There was something about seeing her like this—so focused, yet so obviously exhausted—that made me hesitate.

I decided to break the silence. "You look like you're about to strangle your laptop."

She was startled, the pencil slipping from her lip and landing on the desk with a soft thud. She blinked, her gaze darting up to meet mine, and for a split second, I saw something in her eyes—fatigue, maybe, or frustration—but it vanished as quickly as it appeared, replaced by her usual guarded look.

"Sir," she said, her voice steady but edged with exhaustion. "What are you doing here? It's late."

I stepped further into the room, glancing at the clock on the wall. It was almost midnight, and she had clearly been at this for hours. "I could ask you the same thing. You've been here since morning. What are you working on that's so urgent?"

"I'm still working on the Bhatia Enterprises case. There's a mountain of documentation to go through, and I'm trying to get it sorted before Friday."

Bhatia was a client we had taken on recently, a conglomerate caught in a litigation after a poorly handled merger. It was a complicated case, of course it got assigned to her.

"This is a complicated case Miss Chopra," I said, my voice softening slightly. "But you know we have until next week till the next hearing. There is no need to kill yourself trying to get it all done in one night."

She rubbed her temples, clearly frustrated but too stubborn to admit it. "I know," she muttered. "But there's so much to go through. If I don't get a handle on it now, it'll pile up."

I sighed, knowing well enough that she was not going to listen to me and there was no chance I was going to leave her alone with all of this and so, without saying anything further, I walked over to the chair across from her desk, pulled it out, and sat down.

Shivanya ~

Mr. Birdbrain's voice cut through the quiet of the room while I was working, making me jump slightly. I hadn't even realized how tense I was until I heard him. The pencil slipped from my lips, landing softly on the desk as I looked up, blinking.

He stood in the doorway, watching me with that calm, steady gaze of his. He looked different—relaxed, but still powerful. His suit jacket was slung casually over one arm, and his tie was loosened, the top few buttons of his shirt undone. His sleeves were rolled up to his elbows, revealing the strong lines of his forearms. It was a side of him I wasn't used to seeing—the man who was always so composed, always in control, now looking a little undone.

Yet, there was something about it that made him seem even more commanding. Even when he wasn't trying, Vihaan always managed to take up all the space in a room.

He asked me what I was still doing here and when I told him, he walked ahead and took a seat opposite to me.

I blinked, momentarily stunned. He's staying? Why is he staying?

No, this was not going to happen.

"Mr. Raichand, I can handle my work on my own." I told him, trying to take back the file which he had just grabbed. But didn't even flinch as I tried to pull the file back from him. His grip was firm but casual, making it clear that he wasn't planning to let go.

I stared at him, momentarily at a loss for words. His eyes were focused as he started flipping through the file, casually, as if this was just another day in the office.

I wanted to protest. I should protest. This was my work, my case.

I crossed my arms, refusing to back down completely. "Mr. Raichand, I don't need anyone babysitting me. I can manage this case just fine."

He didn't even look up from the file. "I am not here to babysit you, Shivanya. This is the firm's case, and as your boss, it's not just my right, it is my responsibility to step in when I think it necessary."

I bit my lip, frustrated but unable to argue with him. I watched as he started making quick notes on the rough papers scattered on my desk, his focus completely on the case.

But it hit me again just how good he was. Vihaan Raichand wasn't just the my boss, he was the best lawyer in the country. Watching him work like this, it made sense why.

"Your main issue here," he said after a few moments, his voice cutting through the silence, "is the language in Clause 14 of the merger agreement. It's deliberately vague."

I leaned forward, peeking over at the page he was pointing to. I'd read that clause at least ten times, and while I had sensed something was off, I couldn't quite figure out why.

"It leaves too much room for interpretation," he continued, glancing at me. "That is the second party's legal team has been able to exploit it so effectively."

I pressed my lips together, feeling a wave of frustration wash over me. It wasn't like me to overlook something so important, Shivanya buckle up!

How could I have missed something so critical?

But I wasn't about to let him see that it rattled me. Not him.

"You're right," I said, forcing my voice to stay steady. "I should've caught that sooner."

Vihaan glanced up, his gaze meeting mine. There was no judgment in his eyes, just a calm certainty, but that almost made it worse. I wanted him to say something—anything—that I could push back on. His silence, his understanding, it was more infuriating than if he'd been condescending. At least then, I could argue.

"Don't beat yourself up," he said, his tone still maddeningly composed. "This is why we work in teams. Another set of eyes can always spot what one person misses."

I raised an eyebrow. "And here I thought you preferred working without a crowd."

A small, almost imperceptible smirk tugged at the corner of his lips, but he didn't reply to my quip. Instead, he leaned forward, pointing to another section of the document. "We need to highlight this part in our arguments too. It ties back to Clause 14. If we get some good command here, it makes their argument weaker."

"So, what do you suggest we do about it?" I asked, leaning back in my chair, forcing myself to look him in the eye. It wasn't easy asking for his input, but there was no room for pride when the firm's reputation—and mine—were on the line.

"We are going to dissect this clause line by line. We need to lock down its interpretation so there's no room for alternative interpretations left. I am also going to check for any similar loopholes throughout the rest of the contract." He explained, his eyes drifting from the documents to me back and forth.

He continued to explain while I scribbled down notes. We continued discussing the facts till I was done preparing half the rough drafts for my arguments for the hearing.

It was almost two in the morning, and I stifled a yawn that was trying to escaped me. I rubbed my eyes, trying to refocus on the documents in front of me, but failing spectacularly.

He glanced up from the file he was reviewing, his eyes narrowing slightly as he took in my obvious fatigue. "You need to go home, Shivanya."

I straightened in my chair, refusing to acknowledge how exhausted I really was. "I'm fine. There's still a bit more to go through, besides —"

"You're not fine," he interrupted, his voice steady but firm. He stood up from his chair, slipping on his jacket as if the conversation was already over. "You're exhausted, and there's no way I'm letting you drive home in this condition."

I rolled my eyes. "Mr. Raichand, I can manage. I've driven home late plenty of times before. I'm not some—"

"I am not arguing about this, Shivanya," he said, cutting me off with a look that made it clear I had no choice in the matter. He took a step closer, his presence somehow even more imposing. "You are too tired to be driving. I'll drop you home."

I shook my head again, frustration bubbling up inside me. "I appreciate the concern, but I have my car. I can handle it. You don't need to play chauffeur."

His expression didn't change despite me addressing him as chauffeur to rile him up, his gaze steady as he stared me down. "You're not driving," he repeated, his voice firm. "Either you get in my car, or I will carry you out of here myself."

I froze, narrowing my eyes at him. "You wouldn't."

He didn't even blink. "Try me, again."

For a moment, I considered pushing back but the fact that he looked completely serious about carrying me made me think twice. I let out a long, frustrated sigh, realising I had no way out of this.

"Fine," I muttered, grabbing my bag. "But I'm only agreeing because I don't want you to pull a stunt like that again."

A small, satisfied smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Miss Chopra."

I shot him a glare as I followed him out of the office,  too tired to put up much more of a fight. As we walked to his car, the cool night air washed over me, and I realized just how heavy my eyelids were. Maybe he was right. Maybe I was too tired to drive.

Vihaan opened the passenger door for me, and I slipped inside without a word. He got in on the driver's side, and soon we were pulling out of the parking lot, heading toward my apartment.

I glanced at him from the corner of my eye as he drove, his focus entirely on the road ahead and then I looked away from him, focusing my trying to stay awake.

But after a few minutes, I broke the silence. "You didn't have to do this, you know. You're not earning any brownie points here from me."

His gaze flickered toward me briefly before returning to the road. "I know. But I was not going to let you fall asleep behind the wheel."

I sighed, leaning back in the seat. "You're overbearing sometimes, you know that sir?"

He didn't respond right away, but I could see the hint of a smile tugging at his lips. "I'll take that as a thank you."

I rolled my eyes, though a part of me was thankful to him because there was no way I could have driven properly with how sleepy I was.

Before long, we arrived at my apartment building. Vihaan parked the car and turned to me, his gaze softening slightly. "Get some rest, Shivanya. I'll see you tomorrow."

I nodded, suddenly feeling a wave of exhaustion hit me now that I was home. "Thanks for the ride," I mumbled, opening the door and stepping out.

He watched me as I made my way inside, only driving off after I was safely inside the building.

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The next morning, the sun had barely crept through my apartment blinds when my phone buzzed with a reminder for a morning meeting. I groaned, wanting to stay in bed but that was not going to happen!

By the time I got ready and made my way to find a cab, a company car was already waiting for me to take me to work and honestly, I was thankful for that because finding cabs at this hour in Mumbai was something close to an impossible task.

Shivanya's Look ~

"You are good, Mr. Birdbrain. I will have to give you that." I muttered, slipping in the backseat of the car and in about forty five minutes, I was there.

The moment I opened the door to my cabin, I froze.

Everything was neat. Perfectly arranged.

The desk, which had previously been covered with an ocean of scattered papers and documents, was now clean, with each sheet neatly put into piles. The laptop, which I had left open and running, was closed, and the pens, which had been rolling around aimlessly, were now returned to their holder.

And there, in the centre of my desk, was a fresh cup of coffee.

I blinked, slightly taken aback.

I slowly approached my desk, my eyes narrowing as I spotted a small piece of paper tucked under the cup. Another note. Hesitantly, I picked it up as I read the simple words written in Vihaan's familiar, bold handwriting.

You can fight me all you want, but you looked stunning while fighting yourself to not fall asleep.

- V

I stood there, staring at the note in disbelief, my fingers tracing the bold letters of his handwriting. The nerve of him. He cleaned up my desk, got me coffee, and left me this?

A part of me wanted to crumple the note, toss it in the trash, and pretend it didn't make my heart race for a second. But instead, I found myself slipping it into my drawer with the other notes he'd left. Why? I had no idea. Maybe because I didn't want to admit how much his small gestures were starting to get under my skin.

I sat down, sipping the coffee, which, annoyingly, was exactly how I liked it—strong, with just a hint of sweetness. How does he even know? Probably because he's a control freak and notices everything.

As I opened my laptop and started reviewing the documents we'd worked on last night, I couldn't help but think about how he had stayed with me, helping me, even when I tried to push him away. Most people would've taken the hint, left me alone, but Mr. Birdbrain.

No, he stayed. He sat across from me, calmly going through every line of the merger agreement as if he had all the time in the world.

It was infuriating, but it was also... comforting in a weird way.

I caught myself smiling at the thought and immediately stopped. What was I doing? This was Vihaan Raichand, the man who didn't care about anything except winning his cases and looking intimidating in perfectly tailored suits while doing it. And here I was, getting soft because he bought me coffee and organised my desk?

I needed to get a grip. He is not winning this wager. No.

As the morning wore on, I forced myself to focus on work. But every now and then, my eyes would drift to that drawer where I'd stashed his notes. And no matter how hard I tried to ignore it, I couldn't help but wonder what he would do next.

By lunchtime, I was in a better groove, finally feeling like I had a handle on the case. I stretched, my muscles stiff from sitting for so long, and decided to take a short break. I grabbed my phone, intending to check in on Radhika, but before I could dial her number, there was a knock on my cabin.

I quickly straightened up and the door creaked open before I could even respond, and in stepped the man himself.

I masked my surprise and arched an eyebrow. "Something you need, Mr. Raichand?"

His lips curved ever so slightly, a fleeting hint of amusement crossing his features. "Just checking to see if you're awake and functioning."

I clenched my jaw, trying not to let him get under my skin. "As you can see, I'm perfectly fine. Thanks for the coffee, by the way."

"It is a small price to pay for keeping you functional during the day, Miss Chopra." he regarded me with that sharp, assessing gaze of his.

"Wow so considerate of you." I said, giving him a sarcastic smile.

"And how's the Bhatia case looking this morning?" he asked, smoothly shifting the conversation back to work. He didn't miss a beat, of course. I shuffled some papers around on my desk to avoid meeting his eyes. It felt like a losing battle trying to act unaffected when he could see through everything.

"Better," I said, trying to sound nonchalant. "Your notes were helpful."

"They usually are." He didn't miss the chance to throw in a little arrogance, which was so very him.

I could not believe his smugness but couldn't suppress the small smile tugging at the corners of my mouth either. "Glad to hear that. I'll make sure to keep that in mind the next time you decide to drop unsolicited advice."

He raised an eyebrow, the corner of his mouth curving up slightly. "Unsolicited? I distinctly recall offering help after you had already been working yourself into the ground."

I leaned back in my chair, crossing my arms. "And I remember clearly asking you to leave me alone. Funny how you choose to ignore that part."

His smirk widened. "You're welcome, by the way. You would've been much worse off if I hadn't stepped in."

I leaned forward, giving him a mock-serious look. "You know, for someone who's always so work-focused, you sure have a lot of time on your hands to play the hero."

"Only for you, Sunshine. Only for you." He replied before leaving a file on the table and walking out of my office, leaving me alone to deal with the rest of my work.

But yeah, he was going to lose, one thing I could guarantee.

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