CHAPTER 3:- ARRANGED DESTINY...
2502 Words
THE NEXT DAY....
AARADHYA'S POV!
The living room felt too small for two families carrying too many expectations.
Sweets. Flowers. Tea cups.
Smiles that were too polite.
And me… sitting in the middle, trying to look composed while my heart thumped like a drum.
Valeria Moretti (Lorenzo’s mother) sat next to Meera maa, admiring the decorations.
“Your home is warm,” she said kindly.
Her Hindi was broken but cute.
Maa’s face lit up instantly.
She already adored her.
Meanwhile, Alessandro Moretti Lorenzo’s father sat stiff, like a king evaluating a treaty.
His eyes kept scanning the house, the people, everything.
It made me uncomfortable.
And then there was Nonna…
Sweet smile, sharp eyes.
Her gaze kept flicking between me and Lorenzo as if she already knew something dangerous was forming.
Suddenly Papa cleared his throat.
“We were thinking… if both families agree… perhaps we can keep the engagement next week?”
My breath caught.
Next week.
That soon?
Before I could process, Lorenzo spoke for the first time since arrival.
“I agree.”
His voice was calm.
But his eyes were on me.
Direct.
Firm.
Unmovable.
I looked down quickly, fingers gripping my saree.
Marriage talks continued wedding dates, rituals, mandap designs, guest lists.
It all sounded blurrier and blurrier.
I was nodding politely…
But inside, everything was trembling.
Until I stepped away to bring more tea.
That’s when Lorenzo followed me.
I didn’t hear him.
Didn’t sense him.
Just turned around
and collided with his chest.
Hard. Solid. Warm.
The tray wobbled, but he caught it… and my wrist… at the same time.
His fingers wrapped around my skin.
Warm.
Firm.
Possessive.
I froze.
He looked down at me, eyes darker than before.
“You’re scared,” he said quietly.
I didn’t answer.
Couldn’t.
His thumb brushed my wrist barely a touch but it sent a shiver up my spine.
“Don’t be,” he murmured. “If you marry me… I take care of what’s mine.”
What’s… mine?
My heart skipped.
His face was so close I could see a faint scar near his jaw.
His breath brushed my cheek warm, minty.
I whispered, “I don’t even properly know you.”
A ghost of a smirk touched his lips.
“You will.”
LORENZO’S POV
She smells like jasmine and monsoon.
Soft. Innocent. Fragile looking.
But there’s steel under her fear.
When I caught her wrist, she tried to step back but only for a second.
Then she lifted her chin slightly.
Bravery in small doses.
Adorable.
Her eyes kept darting away from mine.
I leaned a little closer.
“You don’t have to like me today,” I said softly. “But you won’t regret choosing me.”
Her lips parted in a small, nervous breath.
She whispered, “I didn’t choose you.”
My jaw tightened for the first time.
I stepped closer just enough to trap her between the counter and me.
“No,” I murmured. “But fate did.”
Her eyes widened.
She wasn’t used to men who didn’t hesitate.
Men who didn’t pretend.
Men who didn’t hide interest.
I lowered my voice even more.
“And I don’t let go of what fate gives me.”
Her heartbeat was loud enough that even I could feel it against my chest.
Then Kabir suddenly shouted from the hall—
“Aaru! Maa is calling!”
She jumped slightly, and I let her go slowly… deliberately.
Her eyes stayed on me for one more second before she ran out.
But the moment she left, Matteo (my brother) appeared in the doorway.
He raised an eyebrow.
“Getting attached already, fratello?”
I ignored him.
But he smirked, walking past me.
“Careful, Lorenzo. Attachment is weakness.”
Maybe.
But as I watched Aaradhya disappear into the hall full of family and laughter…
I didn’t feel weak.
I felt alive.
TIME SKIP....
AARADHYA'S POV...
Wedding preparations weren’t supposed to feel like… this.
I always imagined chaos, laughter, screaming cousins, dancing aunties, jewellery boxes spilling everywhere.
But instead...
my house was filled with Italians, bodyguards in black, and my brothers watching them like hawks.
Naina loved it.
Meera Maa was stressed.
Papa stayed silent, his eyes too thoughtful.
Veer… was two seconds away from choking Matteo.
And I...
I was caught somewhere between fear and a strange curiosity.
The boutique smelled like roses and expensive silk.
I was standing on a platform while the tailor pinned my lehenga.
Ruby red, hand embroidered, heavy.
Meera maa clapped.
Naina squealed.
Even Kabir looked impressed.
And then...
the glass door opened.
Lorenzo walked in.
Everything stopped.
He was wearing a black shirt, sleeves rolled, tattoos peeking, eyes immediately finding me.
The poor tailor literally stepped back.
“Why… why is he here?” I whispered.
Naina leaned in, giggling.
“To see his bride. Duh.”
My cheeks heated.
He didn’t say hello.
Didn’t look at anyone else.
He walked straight toward me, each step slow and deliberate.
When he reached, he stopped just close enough that I could feel his breath.
His voice was low.
“Turn.”
“What?” I blinked.
“Turn,” he repeated, softer.
I swallowed and slowly turned.
His eyes scanned me carefully.
Not shamelessly.
Not lustfully.
But intensely.
As if memorizing the embroidery, the drape, the jewels…
and the girl wearing them.
A beat passed.
“It suits you,” he said finally.
Maa melted.
Naina squealed louder.
I… forgot to breathe.
Then he leaned slightly closer.
His breath brushed my ear.
“I prefer the red,” he murmured. “It feels… yours.”
My cheeks burned.
The tailor almost fainted.
LORENZO’S POV
She looked like a bride already.
My bride.
Her hair pinned softly, her eyes downcast, her hands clutched nervously at the lehenga.
The red brought out something fierce in her a fire she didn’t even know she had.
Her brothers glared at me from the corner.
Let them.
I kept my gaze only on her.
When she turned, the dupatta slipped a little from her shoulder.
I caught it before it fell.
Her breath hitched..
tiny, soft, but it hit me like a blow.
“Careful,” I murmured.
Her eyes lifted to mine.
Brown and nervous.
So expressive.
So easy to read.
“Do you like it?” she whispered.
A strange warmth spread in my chest.
“It’s perfect,” I said. “You’re perfect in it.”
Her lips parted in surprise.
God save me.
This girl would ruin me.
meanwhile with Aaradhya....
After shopping, the house turned into a workshop.
Jewellers came.
Decorators argued.
Pandit ji sat with charts.
Women discussed haldi colours.
Kids ran around with laddoos.
Typical Indian wedding madness.
Except…
The Moretti bodyguards stood at every corner, turning my home into a fortress.
And Lorenzo?
He was sitting on the sofa with Papa, discussing rituals like he had done this a thousand times.
Papa explained mehendi.
Lorenzo listened seriously.
Papa explained haldi.
He nodded, asking questions like a schoolboy.
Then Papa mentioned saat phere.
Lorenzo glanced at me across the room.
Our eyes met.
My stomach dropped.
He said quietly, “I want all seven.”
The way he said it…
as if each vow was a promise he already intended to keep.
I looked away quickly, heart racing again.
I was setting diyas in the courtyard when someone took the lighter from my hand.
I turned sharply.
Lorenzo.
Of course.
“You’ll burn yourself,” he said.
“I’ve been lighting diyas since childhood,” I replied.
He raised an eyebrow.
“And yet your hands shake.”
They were.
I didn’t even notice until he said it.
He crouched down beside me, lighting the diyas one by one.
His fingers brushed mine once.
Just once.
But the spark went through my whole arm.
“You’re nervous,” he said quietly.
“It’s my wedding,” I murmured.
“No,” he corrected.
“You’re nervous because it’s me.”
I inhaled sharply.
“Don’t be so sure.”
He didn’t smile.
He looked… honest.
“Aaradhya,” he said softly,
“If this marriage scares you...I will slow down.”
A pause.
“But if it comforts you...
I will not stay away.”
He lit the last diya and looked up at me.
“Tell me which one you want.”
My heartbeat felt too loud, too fast.
I whispered,
“…maybe don’t stay too far.”
His expression shifted.
Something fierce.
Something intense.
Something he tried to hide but couldn’t.
He stood slowly.
“As you wish,” he said. “I won’t.”
LATER....
Rajendra Sharma was in the living room, surrounded by wedding files, cost estimates, decorators’ brochures, and pure confusion.
Then his phone rang.
One glance at the screen and his spine straightened.
“Ma calling…”
Everyone froze.
Veer raised an eyebrow.
Kabir mouthed, “We’re dead.”
Meera fixed her saree, nervous.
Aaradhya swallowed.
Rajendra answered.
“Namaste, Ma.”
Dadi’s sharp, authoritative voice blasted through the speaker.
“RAJENDRA! I heard my granddaughter is getting married and NO ONE told me?”
Everyone flinched.
Rajendra stammered, “Ma… we were going to-...”
“Chup! You city people think I don’t matter? I raised YOU! How can Aaradhya’s wedding happen without her Dadi there?”
Meera whispered to Aaradhya, “Now things will change…”
And they did.
Dadi continued,
“The wedding will NOT happen in Jaipur.”
The whole family gasped.
Aaradhya’s heart skipped.
Rajendra blinked. “Then where?”
“In our village.
Where your father married your mother.
Where our ancestors lived.
Where traditions still breathe!”
Even Veer looked shocked.
Papa tried weakly, “Ma… the groom’s family is Italian—”
“SO? They will learn our culture! They want our girl, they will follow OUR rules!”
Kabir coughed to hide a laugh.
Dadi continued with full dramatic power..
“Haldi, mehendi, sangeet, pheras—EVERYTHING will happen here. In the old haveli. Under my roof. Decide whatever you want… but the wedding is not happening anywhere else.”
She didn’t wait for a reply.
She disconnected.
Silence.
Aaradhya whispered, “Village wedding…?”
Veer stretched his neck. “Well… this will be fun.”
Kabir smirked. “Imagine Lorenzo in the village… buffaloes, dust, loudspeakers-..”
Naina nudged him. “DON’T scare her!”
Papa sighed deeply.
“We have to tell Lorenzo.”
Aaradhya’s stomach flipped.
Oh god.
Would he agree?
Would the mafia family accept this?
Would he…?
TIME SKIP....
WEDDING SHOPPING IN LOCAL MARKETS...
To distract themselves from Dadi’s storm, the family decided to go shopping in the old Jaipur markets.
Chaotic. Loud. Crowded.
But perfect.
Aaradhya felt better instantly.
Her dupatta fluttered as she walked between stalls of bangles and lehengas.
Meera held her hand tightly.
Naina was bargaining aggressively.
Kabir was already eating golgappa.
Veer was walking behind Aaradhya like her personal bodyguard.
And like a movie scene—
A black SUV slowed beside them.
Tinted windows.
Gunmetal shine.
It stopped.
Veer tensed.
The door opened.
Lorenzo stepped out.
Black shirt. Rolled sleeves. Sunglasses.
Looking completely, ridiculously out of place in a traditional Indian bazaar.
Aaradhya’s breath caught.
Kabir whispered, “Is that… our groom or a Netflix mafia hero?”
Veer hissed, “Shut up.”
Lorenzo removed his sunglasses slowly.
His eyes immediately found her.
“Aaradhya.”
The way he said her name made Naina grin and Meera blush.
Aaradhya tried not to look dazzled. Failed.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
He offered the faintest smile.
“You weren’t answering your phone.”
“I…I left it at home.”
“I know,” he said simply.
Her stomach did something strange.
The family moved ahead.
Lorenzo walked beside Aaradhya, trying to act casual… failing adorably.
He looked around like he was analyzing the whole world.
“Is it always this… crowded?” he murmured.
“This is light,” she teased.
His eyes widened.
She giggled.
A bangle seller suddenly grabbed her hand.
“Madamji! Chudi! Red bridal! Try try!”
Aaradhya panicked slightly, but Lorenzo stiffened instantly.
He stepped between them, voice low.
“She doesn’t like being touched.”
The seller backed away instantly.
Aaradhya’s heart fluttered.
They walked ahead.
She pointed to a stall.
“That dupatta is pretty.”
He didn’t even look.
“If you like it, we get it.”
“That’s not how shopping works!”
“How does it work?”
“You compare… bargain… argue… fight…”
Lorenzo blinked.
“…I am not good at that.”
She laughed softly.
“I know.”
And he watched her laugh like it was the first time he’d heard the sound.
The family ended up in a small local restaurant.
Steel plates.
Roti.
Dal tadka.
Paneer butter masala.
Lassi in clay cups.
Lorenzo sat beside Aaradhya.
Matteo (forced by Veer) sat far away.
Meera served Lorenzo like he was her own son.
“Beta, eat more!”
“Aunty… this is already a lot.”
She placed more on his plate.
“You’re a tall boy. You need strength.”
Aaradhya nearly choked laughing.
Lorenzo accepted every roti and every spoon of dal without complaint.
When she wasn’t looking, he leaned slightly toward her.
“This is… new.”
“You don’t like Indian food?”
He looked at her.
“I like everything you like.”
Her cheeks heated instantly.
Veer coughed loudly, glaring.
Kabir grinned.
Naina almost screamed internally.
After lunch, Papa called Lorenzo aside.
Aaradhya followed softly.
Rajendra cleared his throat.
“Lorenzo… my mother has a condition.”
“Condition?” Lorenzo asked calmly.
“She wants the wedding… in our village.”
A long pause.
Lorenzo didn’t react.
Rajendra rushed, “It’s far. Traditional. No luxury. No hotels. No-..”
Lorenzo raised a hand gently.
“Is Aaradhya okay with it?”
Aaradhya’s breath stopped.
“I… I don’t mind,” she whispered.
Lorenzo pressed his lips together, then nodded once.
“Then the wedding will be in the village.”
Rajendra blinked.
Aaradhya stared.
Naina squealed silently.
Kabir whispered, “Bro said yes to buffalo land!”
Papa almost cried.
“But your parents-..?”
“I will handle them.”
Aaradhya asked softly, “You… really don’t mind?”
Lorenzo looked at her.
A long, deep look.
“Aaradhya,” he said quietly,
“I will marry you anywhere.
In a palace or in a mud house.
Your comfort matters.
Not the location.”
Her heart melted.
Just a little.
to be continued...!
(the next part is already uploaded....use background music for better experience!!)
- Writer
