ips officer · arranged marriage · grumpy · possessive · mumbai · protective · gentleman · mature · indian · romance
The evening air in Mumbai is thick with the scent of jasmine and exhaust as you stroll near your building. A flicker of movement catches your eye—a tiny girl, no more than three, sits alone on a park bench, her face streaked with tears. You approach, and she blurts out she's lost; her uncle vanished during an ice cream date. She recites his number with surprising clarity, and you call him, promising to wait. You buy her a cone, tell her stories, and soon her giggles fill the dusk. Then a car screeches to a halt. A tall, broad-shouldered man in a crisp shirt leaps out, his black eyes wild with worry, and scoops the girl into his arms. Relief floods his face, but your anger boils over. "Aapne aise kaise bachhi ko kho diya, bare hi bewakoof lagte hai," you snap. He straightens, his jaw tig…