277 A girl's heart

Thinking about it, Shaurya couldn't help but give a short bark of laughter, causing the people around him to be surprised.

Realising the inappropriateness of his action, he immediately smothered his lips into a straight line but couldn't escape Gayatri's next set of words, "Feeling really smug, aren't you? But it's a bit early for any celebrations."

Shaurya wanted to shout loudly that he was not interested in any woman in this entire country but he had learnt his lesson previously and held back his tongue. Nope, he wasn't going to react to any sort of provocation. It was just a matter of a couple of days more.

Persevere Shauryaveer!! Hang in there...

Despite claiming otherwise, Ahilya was back really soon. As she entered the chambers, her face held an unusual flush and she seemed a bit preoccupied because of which she failed to take in the visibly tense atmosphere in the room.

"Everyone, get out," she commanded.

Shaurya was on his guard as he saw the attendants filtering out, one after another. He was really wary of what the princess wanted to talk about, with no-one in the room. Was his body in danger? If he wasn't mistaken, hitting a royal carried a capital punishment. He was feeling like a damsel in a wolf's lair. Damn...

Finally, it was only Gayatri, her and Shaurya in the room. Unknown to Shaurya, it was Gayatri who was feeling the maximum palpitations. Till now, Ahilya had held her feelings towards Veer in check. But blatantly calling him here, what was the purpose?

Her relation with Ahilya wasn't what it had been just a few days ago and as a result, she couldn't stake a claim and ask her about it outrightly.

"What are you waiting for, general?" Ahilya asked Gayatri with a raised eyebrow.

Blood drained out of Gayatri's face when she realized that Ahilya meant to have her chased out as well. She was going to have a private conversation with the guy in her personal chambers. Since childhood, this privilege had only belonged to her. A self-mocking smile appeared on her lips as she mumbled an apology and hurried out of the room.

A flash of pain flitted across Ahilya's face before disappearing quickly. She turned to finally face the man who stood against the light streaming in from the window.

A pair of thin lips which she knew could be cruel and mean were stretched in a polite smile. She hated seeing this expression on his face. When she saw him the first time, he hadn't held back the sneer and arrogance, making her instantly feel attracted towards him.

But since then, he had started putting up a courteous and indifferent mask over his face which she hated.

"Sorry to have kept you waiting. The king summoned me unexpectedly," she started.

Her fingers had reached the space between her eyebrows and were pinching the area, as if fighting the weariness there.

He shook his head but didn't say anything else, looking politely somewhere at a point on the wall behind her.

"My original intention of bringing you here was to offer an apology on behalf of my mother for her unjust treatment of you. I had no idea that she would misunderstand the whole situation. I know that offering a royal bath and breakfast is poor compensation but I didn't know how else could I make it up since I believe that you are not a materialistic person who would covet jewels and gold coins," her words seemed to have some hidden layers to it but Shaurya chose not to delve into them.

"The princess doesn't owe me any apology. As a mother, the queen was worried about you and that's fairly understandable. You do not need to fret on behalf of an insignificant person like me. But I thank you for the hospitality. If that is the case, I won't take up more of your time. Have a great day, Princess," Shaurya felt relieved and patted his back for coming up with that impromptu speech.

"You seem to be in a hurry to escape from here. I wonder if you are scared of me," her question was rhetorical.

Shaurya's expression was deadpan but, in his heart, he was cursing her. Of course, he was scared of her. She was a weird woman who seemed to have designs on him.

"I apologise if I have offended you in any way with my actions," he spoke up.

Ahilya threw her head back and laughed.

"Look at you being so politically correct and cautious. An apology is always hovering around your lips these days," she mocked him.

But he had learnt a hard lesson and refused to take the bait.

"Like I said, my original intention was to apologise to you but then I was summoned by my father before coming here. I am afraid now I have a favour to ask out of you," she said, her tone was indifferent, almost arrogant but there was a tinge of nervousness and excitement suppressed underneath.

Shaurya stood with his hands loosely clasped in front of him, waiting for the princess to make her point.

"I need you to marry me," she said.

What?

Shaurya thought that he had heard wrong and was just about to ask her to repeat her words.

"My father knows about the deal that I am making with your queen. I had tried my level best to keep it from him till the last minute, hoping that he wouldn't cause me any trouble. The issue is that if this goes through successfully, I would defeat his son and as a result, I would be announced as the next ruler of Himprayag. Unfortunately, this is something not palatable to my father despite his claims otherwise and he has come up with a new condition this morning. As per him, I won't be accepted easily by the royal court and the people of the country purely on my qualifications. I need to show my mature side by having a sensible and qualified man beside me who would help me in running the country," her voice trailed looking at the expressions on Veer's face.