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**Chapter 26: A Calculated Heart**
The chilly London air carried a dampness that clung to Arjun's coat as he stepped out of the taxi. He glanced up at the glass building ahead—SageSphere's new co-working hub in Canary Wharf. It was his office now. It was his battleground.
But the real war wasn't in boardrooms.
It was for her.
Aanya.
And Arjun had no intention of losing.
He had spent weeks observing, from a distance. He knew her class schedules, her favorite café near campus, the park she often walked through when overwhelmed, and the quiet bench she sat on during weekend mornings, lost in her books.
Not because he wanted to stalk her. He just… needed to understand her rhythm. Her silence had become too loud. The distance too unnatural. It wasn't how a marriage was supposed to feel.
**If she won't come to me, I'll find ways to bring myself into her world.**
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**1. The "Accidental" Meeting**
Saturday.
Aanya was seated at her usual café, fingers curled around a cup of mint tea, her laptop open to an essay she couldn't focus on. Her mind had been drifting all week.
Arjun.
She hadn't seen him again since that random encounter outside her university. But the knowledge of him being in London haunted her steps.
She couldn't sleep.
Couldn't stop looking over her shoulder.
What did he want?
What was he planning?
The bell above the café door jingled, and her stomach twisted. She didn't need to look.
She knew.
He had a signature way of stepping in—like he owned the space around him. Like he belonged.
"Hey," he said, his voice soft, almost tentative.
Aanya looked up slowly, expression neutral. "Arjun."
"You come here often?"
"You know I do," she said bluntly.
He smiled, unbothered. "Then it's only fair I try their coffee. Mind if I join?"
"Yes."
He hesitated, then slid into the chair across from her anyway. "Thought so."
She narrowed her eyes. "This won't work. I know what you're doing."
"And what's that?"
"You're trying to insert yourself into my life. Piece by piece."
He leaned forward, fingers steepled. "Not trying, Aanya. I *am* part of your life. Whether you accept it or not."
"You don't get to manipulate this."
"I'm not manipulating," he said evenly. "I'm just… showing up."
She bit back her retort. Something in his tone unsettled her. He wasn't pushing like before. He wasn't angry. He was simply—present.
And it made resisting him harder than she expected.
---
**2. The Study Group**
The next move was subtle.
A week later, Aanya walked into her elective seminar and paused at the sight of a familiar figure sitting casually in the back row. Arjun. Dressed in a crisp blazer, scribbling in a leather notebook like he belonged there.
She blinked.
"What the—?"
Their professor smiled. "Class, we're lucky to have a guest audit today—Mr. Arjun Malhotra. He's here for a tech-entrepreneurship case study collaboration."
Aanya sank into her seat, her breath stuck in her throat.
He looked up, met her gaze, and winked.
Later that afternoon, the professor announced the study group pairings.
She wasn't surprised when her name was called alongside his.
"Must be fate," he whispered as they gathered their notes.
She wanted to scream. But a tiny part of her—a traitorous part—felt something else too.
Excitement.
---
**3. Conversations That Weren't About Pain**
They worked together on the project for the next few weeks.
Sometimes in public libraries, sometimes over coffee.
At first, their conversations were all business. Slides, reports, market analysis.
But then, one rainy evening, the conversation shifted.
"I still remember that day," Arjun said, watching the raindrops trace paths on the café window. "The one when we signed the marriage papers. You wore that pale blue kurti. You looked like you wanted to run."
"I *did* want to run," Aanya said without looking at him.
"I know," he replied softly.
She finally glanced up.
"And I still stayed," he added. "Because I believed we'd grow into it."
Aanya swallowed hard. "I didn't."
"I know that too."
There was no accusation in his voice. No anger.
Just quiet acceptance.
And that disarmed her more than rage ever could.
---
**4. Nikhil's Unexpected Visit**
What Arjun hadn't planned, however, was Nikhil showing up in London for work—and checking on his sister.
He met Arjun by chance outside the university.
"What the hell are you doing here?" Nikhil asked, arms folded.
"Expanding the company."
"Don't give me that. You're here for her."
Arjun didn't deny it. "I am."
"You know she wanted distance."
Arjun nodded. "I gave her that. I didn't contact her for weeks. I didn't force my way in. But I'm here now. And I'm building something—with or without her."
"You can't force her to love you."
"I'm not forcing," Arjun said calmly. "I'm just… reminding her what we can be."
Nikhil's scowl deepened. But he didn't argue further.
Because deep down, even he saw that Arjun wasn't being the overbearing man he once was.
Something *had* changed.
---
**5. The Crisis**
Then came the perfect opportunity.
One of Aanya's MBA classmates fell ill right before their big pitch.
The team panicked.
Aanya was near tears.
That's when Arjun stepped in.
"Let me fill in. I know the model. I helped build it."
The professor agreed reluctantly.
They rehearsed for hours. Arjun never raised his voice, never mocked her mistakes. He supported her. Quietly. Steadily.
And when they aced the pitch, the entire class applauded.
Later, Aanya stood beside him in the hallway, breathless.
"Thank you," she said, voice low.
He looked at her, not gloating, not smug.
Just present.
Like always.
"You don't have to thank me," he said. "I'm your partner."
"Business or marriage?"
"Whichever you'll let me be."
---
**6. Aanya's Conflict**
That night, Aanya lay in bed staring at the ceiling.
She hated how natural it had felt, working with him. Laughing. Winning.
He was everywhere, yet not suffocating. Present, yet not forcing. And that balance? It was more dangerous than any possessiveness.
Because it made her miss him.
It made her wonder.
**What if he really has changed?**
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**[End of Chapter 26]**