“Do you know Jai? When I met my Bhai-sa for the first time after my marriage, I got emotional. I know how much these two had been missing each other.”
Said Maa-sa, a smile formed on my lips, hearing her and witnessing this in front of my eyes. I moved forward when the two of them parted and said something to each other.
Maa-sa came forward with me and gave Katha the Pooja thali, and I hugged Raja Abhay, who returned it happily.
“You’re most welcome in Vajrajanapur, Ranaji. I hope you didn’t face any problems coming here.”
“No, Maharaj, there were no problems on our side, everything was fine.”
Katha came forward, put Tilak on his forehead, and did the aarti, then proceeded toward a man who looked old and was dressed in simple clothes to do the same. I guessed that he might be the Raj Guru.
I moved along with her, and she said,
“Welcome to Vajrajanapur, Guruji,” As we bent to touch his feet, I saw the way he blessed Katha, by keeping his hand on her head, but didn’t do the same with me; he just ignored me and looked behind me. I furrowed my eyebrows and moved my eyes where his eyes were, and he was looking at my Guruji, both of them exchanging death glares.
My Guruji moved forward and stood beside me, facing Katha’s Guruji,
“Toh, humne tumhein galat sabit kar hi diya Prakashanand. Humare Rajya ki Rajkumari ne apni buddhi ki shakti se tumhara munh band kar hi diya.”
“So, I have indeed proven you wrong, Prakashanand. The Princess of my kingdom has silenced you with her intelligence.”
He said with a smirk, and I couldn’t understand how these two knew each other. I looked at Katha, then at Raja Abhay, Ratan, and my mother, all of them looked confused.
Suddenly, my Guruji said,
“Toh tumne inhein itna kushal bana kar bheja hai Dhananand, vastav mein galat sabit kar hi diya tumne humein. Jo bhi ho, bahot hi acchi tarah se Rani hone ke saare gun diye hain tumne Maharani-sa ko.”
“So, you have sent her so well-prepared, Dhananand, and you have truly proven me wrong. Whatever the case, you have given the Maharani all the qualities of being a great Queen.”
“Kya tumne apne Maharaj ko woh gun diye hain jo humari Rajkumari ke takkar ke ho? Kya Maharaj Mrityunjay kewal shareer se hi takatwar hain ya inmein humari Rajkumari jo ki ab tumhari Maharani hai uske layak banne ke gun bhi hain?”
“Have you given your Maharaj the qualities that can rival our Princess? Is Maharaj Mrityunjay powerful only in body, or does he possess the qualities to become worthy of our Princess, who is now your Maharani?”
Right now, he wanted to test my worthiness.
“Yes, I ha-“,
Guruji was cut in between when Raj Guru Dhananand shifted his attention to Katha and said,
“Katha, is your husband, the Maharaj of Vajrajanapur, worthy of you? Does he deserve you? – And answer keeping aside all the affection you’ve for him.”
I looked at Katha with curiosity, and she said,
“Yes, Guruji, whatever I know about him till now is proof that Maharaj is worthy of me.”
I looked at him and he nodded, but my Guruji’s voice caught everyone’s attention, his voice angry,
“You trust her more than my words?”
“Of course I do, she is not driven by societal norms and is my true student, so yes, I trust her more, and it would be better if you do too, for she is your Queen now, who has a mind that is not male-dominated, unlike yours.”
There was a cold war going on between the two, and both of them were looking at each other with angry eyes. To lighten the mood, Maa-sa said,
“You all don’t need to stand outside like that, please come in.”
Just as both Rana Abhay and Guruji entered the palace, I noticed one more man who was partially dressed in royal attire, he was a strongly built man and quite tall.
He gave Katha a full-blown smile, and she returned it happily. I looked between the two, and it was as if they were talking to each other using their eyes. As far as I know, Katha doesn’t have any other siblings at all. Who is he then?
He gave her a full-blown smile, and she returned it happily. He came forward and didn’t say a word. I took long steps and stood beside Katha while she passed the thali to an attendee.
“Greetings, Maharaj, it’s my pleasure to meet you.”, said the man, and I just nodded.
I cleared my throat and looked at Katha, who said,
“Hukum, this is Daksh, Guruji’s great-grandson, Bhai-sa’s advisor and best friend since childhood.”
I nodded and held her hand in mine, “I think we should go, I have some work with you. We’ll see you later.”
I said the last part to Daksh, turned around, and walked with Katha, passing all the galleries which were adorned with paintings. We finally reached the open terrace area, which is marked as part of our chamber, and no one can enter without our permission.
We finally stopped when we reached our bedroom, and Katha asked me,
“What’s happened, Hukum? Why did you come here in such a hurry?”
“Why was he smiling at you like that? I did not like it. Even you were smiling, fully seeing him? Why?”
“Oh, Hukum, we were smiling at each other because we met each other after almost a year. He couldn’t even attend our wedding because of some work regarding trades. You know Hukum, you don’t need to be jealous of Daksh, he is not the one I like, I have my eyes only for you. As for him, he is just like Bhai-sa for me, who used to buy me toys and spoil me or tease me along with Bhai-sa while I was growing up.”
Katha said, and relief washed over me. Shen then moved forward, standing extremely close to me and keeping her hand on my heart, asked,
“What would you have done, Hukum, if Daksh had been someone I liked, if he had been someone I had my eyes on?”
She said in a seductive tone and hissed when I pulled her braid, making her body collide with mine.
“Aap janna chahti hain ki hum kya karte? Hum bhool jaate ki aapko humne koi vachan diya hai, aur aapko itna anand dete ki aap humare atirikt kisi aur ke vishay mein vichaar bhi nhi kar paati.”,
“You want to know what I would’ve done? I would’ve forgotten that I had promised you something, and would’ve given you so much pleasure that you wouldn’t have been able to think about anyone else.”
Her eyes widened when she realized the true meaning behind my words, and she said,
“Apna vachan todkar aisa anand dene ka sahas aur taakat rakhte hain aap?”
“Do you have the courage and strength to give such pleasure by breaking your promise?”
“Anumati deti hain toh aapka hafton tak bistar se uthna dushvar kardein? Tab aapko humare sahas aur humari taakat dono ka andaaza ho jaayega.”
“If you allow me, then should I make it difficult for you to get out of bed for weeks? Then you will get an idea of my courage and strength.”
I said with a smirk, but the next moment, I was left shocked.
She captured my lips with hers and sucked hard, bringing her other hand up, she wrapped it around my neck. I lifted her a little, threw her on the bed, and hovered over her.
“You’re very naughty, Katha.”
“I know Hukum.”
She said and kissed me again, I returned the kiss with equal passion. I swept my tongue on her lower lip. The moment she opened her mouth, I slipped my tongue inside it and kissed her passionately.
I encircled her waist with my hand and pulled her a little up, arching her back. After what felt like an eternity, she tapped my shoulder when she felt out of breath. I parted immediately and left a peck again.
