Chapter 53: Come Close

A gloomy look came over his face, and his voice softened to a near whisper. "She is no

more," he answered shortly.

“Oh. I didn’t know that. My condolences,” Sheharzaad replied gently, not knowing the

weight of the topic she'd stumbled upon.

Haseeb leaned in, his expression serious. “Never ask him about his mother,” he warned in a

low tone, giving her a look that spoke volumes. “Just… don’t.”

She frowned in confusion, her curiosity piqued. “Why?” she asked, her voice cautious.

Haseeb shook his head as if brushing the question away. “Just don’t. Trust me.” Trying to

divert the topic, he added, “So, how long have you been working here?”

“Only a few weeks,” she replied.

“And you’re already calling him names?” he asked, raising a brow in mock accusation.

“Um… I’m not,” she said, biting her lip nervously. “Please don’t tell him.”

“Relax,” he chuckled. “I wouldn’t dream of it. But if I did, you’d be done for.”

She rolled her eyes, but her lips curved into a grateful smile. “Thanks for that.”

Haseeb noticed her frustrated expression as she stared at her laptop. “What are you doing?”

he asked, peering over her shoulder.

“Just digging up my grave,” she muttered, looking hopelessly at the screen.

“Why?” he asked, tilting his head.

“He gave me a task, but I… I wasn’t exactly paying attention when he was explaining it, so

now I’m sitting here with no clue how to do it. And if he checks my work and finds out… I’m

in trouble.”

Haseeb smirked, amusement dancing in his eyes. "Oh dang. Girl, you're in trouble."

She looked at him, a hint of desperation in her eyes. “Can you help me?”

He hesitated, glancing over at Shehryaar, who was engrossed in a quiet conversation with

Dua. “Did he say you could get help?”

She shrugged, not entirely sure. “I just… I just want to finish this and go home,” she replied,

sighing.

After a moment, Haseeb nodded. “Fine. I’ll take the risk. He’s busy talking to Dua, so maybe I

can help you out before he notices. Let’s just hope we don’t catch his attention.”

He scooted closer, trying to sneak a peek at her laptop screen. He read through the garbled

notes she'd made, frowning. “What have you written here? This is… nonsense. He’ll fire you

if he sees this.”

Oh, how much I wish he would, she thought, suppressing a groan.

“Look, just delete all this,” Haseeb advised, “because if he reads this mess, you’re going to

get an earful. And believe me, he’s great at scolding people. You’ll end up in tears. It’s better

to have nothing than whatever this is.” He gestured to her haphazard notes.

She didn’t need to be told twice. She gave a quick nod and swiftly erased everything on the

screen.

“Okay, here’s what you need to do,” Haseeb said, lowering his voice as he guided her

through the task. “First, open the file for year one. Look for any highlighted points—there

should be net profits and annual income figures mentioned somewhere. Highlight those if

they aren’t already.”

Before he could continue, a voice interrupted. “Haseeb, let’s go,” Dua called, standing beside

him with Alizeh, who was tugging at her hand impatiently.

“You go ahead. I don’t want to go yet,” he replied, his attention still on the laptop.

Dua’s eyes narrowed as she looked between Haseeb and Sheharzaad.

“What are you doing over here, Haseeb?” she asked suspiciously. “Let the girl do her work. I

heard you whispering about incomes and profits and whatnot.”

Both Haseeb and Sheharzaad froze, caught in the act like deer in headlights.

“I wasn’t telling her anything about her assigned task,” he blurted defensively, inadvertently

drawing more attention to his interference. Sheharzaad nearly slapped her forehead; he’d

practically confessed to helping her.

She glanced up at Shehryaar, who appeared to be engrossed in typing on his phone. She

wasn’t sure if he’d noticed or not, but the tension was enough to make her heart pound.

“Let’s go, Haseeb,” Dua said firmly, her tone leaving no room for argument.

“Fine, fine,” he muttered, getting to his feet reluctantly.

Dua waved goodbye to her brother. “We’re leaving now, bhai. Bye,” she said. Alizeh,

however, had other plans. She skipped over to Shehryaar, tugging on his sleeve to bring him

closer. He bent down to her level, listening as she whispered something in his ear.

“She’s really pretty,” Alizeh murmured, casting a sly look in Sheharzaad’s direction.

He smirked, amused by his little cousin’s remarks, “Who?” he asked, playing along.

“The girl who was laughing at you. Bring her to the haveli next time too,” Alizeh insisted.

A hint of a smirk played on his lips. “Deal?” she asked, extending her tiny hand.

He clasped it gently. “Deal,” he murmured back.

“Thank youuu! And bring me lots of chocolates too!” Alizeh chimed before skipping off,

satisfied with her newfound ally in her little plans.

"Okay," he replied, straightening up, and soon they left his office. Dua sent Haseeb to

retrieve the car while she stood on the porch. She dialed a number, and it was picked up two

rings later.

"Yes? Are you fine?" the other person answered.

"I feel like he suspects us. We need to do something."

There was a moment of silence between them when he spoke, "Next week. Come to my

home. I have a plan. We can't live like this anymore."

She contemplated and then answered, "Okay," and cut the call as Haseeb brought the car,

and she sat in along with Alizeh, driving away.

......

Silence prevailed between them as soon as the door was closed. She looked at him, and after

a few seconds, his eyes detached from his phone and he looked at her.

"Come here," he said ever so darkly.

A series of goosebumps rose on her skin. Her chest suddenly rose up and down.

Up and down.

"Me?" her voice wavered.

"Come here," he said again, which had her stand up and move towards him. "With that

laptop."

A sigh of relief escaped her throat. She thought he was calling her for some other reason, but

thankfully, it was related to work. She was thinking that she might have done something

that didn't settle well with him.