he woke up

At eight in the morning the next day, Deepa took Jhalak to the old mansion to visit Ahit's mother, Meera Rajvansh .

The whole Rajvansh family was in the living room when Jhalak arrived, and she proceeded to greet and serve tea to each family member.

Meera looked pleased with Jhalak's manners. An obedient child would be easier to control.

"How did you sleep last night, Jhalak?" asked Meera .

Jhalak's cheeks flushed as she said, "Quite well."

"How was Ahit? He wasn't a bother, was he?"

Jhalak recalled Ahit's handsome but unresponsive face and said sympathetically, "He didn't move at all. It didn't bother me."

He might have been unmoving, but his body was warm. While she was deep in sleep, she held him like a pillow.

She was startled when she woke up in the middle of the night and realized what she was doing.

"I have something for you, Jhalak," Meera said as she opened up a purple gift box and passed it to Jhalak. "This bracelet complements your skin tone. Do you like it?"

Jhalak did not dare to reject the old woman in front of the whole family and immediately accepted her gift.

"I do. Thank you."

"I know things are hard for you, Jhalak. With Ahit the way he is now, he can't treat you well. However, there's a way for you to benefit from all of this," said Meera as she began to reveal her plan. "Ahit is running out of time. He was always busy with work and never had the time to date. He didn't even have the chance to have a child of his own…"

Jhalak stiffened upon hearing Meera 's words.

A child of his own?

Was Meera thinking of having her give birth to Ahit's child?

"I'd like you to give Ahit a child and continue his bloodline," Meera finished.

Jhalak was stunned, and everyone else in the room had an equally shocked expression on their faces.

"Mother, Ahit has been sick for a while. It's possible that he's infertile," said Ahit's eldest brother, Mahir Rajvansh .

Ahit was not dead yet, but everyone already had their eyes on his estate.

Meera chuckled and said, "I have a trick or two up my sleeve with the doctors, of course. With Ahit's vast estate, how could he not have an heir? I'll have Jhalak give Ahit a child. Even a daughter will do."

At that moment, everyone's eyes immediately fell on Jhalak.Jhalak felt restless and uneasy.

"You're still in school, right, Jhalak? Your studies will be affected if you get pregnant now," said Mahir's wife.

Mahir immediately agreed and said, "That's right! Jhalak is still young. I doubt she's willing to give up on her studies and raise a child at home!"

Meera knew what her son and daughter-in-law were thinking. This was also the reason why she was adamant about ensuring Ahit had an heir.

"Are you willing to have Ahit's child, Jhalak?" Meera asked Jhalak. She did not hold back. "You should know that you and the child will inherit all of Ahit's estate in the future. It's a fortune large enough for you and the child to live a comfortable life."

"I'll do it," Jhalak responded without hesitation.

She was willing to try anything to ensure Kabir did not get a dime of Ahit's money.

Besides, even if she was unwilling, the Rajvansh family was powerful enough to force her into it.

Meera beamed from ear to ear after hearing Jhalak's answer.

"That's wonderful! I knew you were different from the other stupid women out there. They thought that they wouldn't be able to benefit if Eliot was dying! Ha!"

Once tea was over, Jhalak walked out of the old mansion and prepared to return home.

Kabir stopped her before she could leave.

The morning sun was shining, and the cicadas were chirping.

Jhalak felt sick to her stomach at the sight of Kabir's face.

"Please take the gifts home first, Deepa ," Jhalak said.

Deepa nodded, then walked off with the gifts.

Kabir made sure no one was around, then said, "You're breaking my heart, Jhalak! You never let me touch you the entire time we were dating, but now you've agreed to give birth to Uncle Ahit's kid!"

"Giving him a child means getting his estate. Why wouldn't I do it?" Jhalak snickered as she deliberately chose words that would hurt him.

Sure enough, Kabir was agitated.

"It's not a bad idea, but you can have my kid instead and say it's Uncle Ahit's. It would still be a Rajvansh . Even if my grandmother gets angry, she would never make you abort it."

The sneer on Jhalak's face instantly vanished.

"It's good to be ambitious, Kabir, but ambition without brains can be a dangerous thing," Jhalak warned. "I heard that the people by Ahit's side are a ruthless bunch. As long as he's breathing, his minions will be waiting for him to wake up. Do you really think they'll let you go if they find out that I was pregnant with your child?"

Jhalak's words were like a wave of ice-cold water, chilling Kabir to his core.

He knew better than anyone how heartless his uncle's people could be.

They kept a low profile after Ahit's accident, but it did not mean that they were gone.

"I'm just kidding! Whether it's his or mine, the kid will still be a Rajvansh . When Uncle Ahit dies, I will definitely treat his child like my own," Kabir said as he desperately tried to defend himself.

Jhalak sighed, then said, "Your uncle's child would be your cousin."

Kabir looked like he had just swallowed a fly.

"Let's not fight about this now, Jhalak. We'll talk after Uncle Ahit's dead."

"What if he never dies? Will you wait for me forever?" Jhalak retorted.

Her question left Kabir speechless.

Seeing him speechless, Jhalak chuckled mockingly and said, "I'm off. Your grandmother's sent a doctor to see me to your uncle's place."

...

When Jhalak returned to Ahit's mansion, she was immediately taken to the hospital for a medical checkup by two doctors.

If she was ovulating, they would extract the eggs from her body. Otherwise, they would give her a shot to stimulate ovulation.

"There's no need to worry, Mrs. Rajvansh . This might hurt a little, but once you give birth to Mr. Rajvansh 's child, your position in the Rajvansh family will be secured," consoled one of the female doctors.

Jhalak lay on the bed as her heartbeat quickened.

"How long will it take to make that happen?"

"It's hard to say. If we're lucky, it would take three to four months. Otherwise, it might take forever," said the doctor.

She paused, then added, "You're young, so I'm sure this will go smoothly."

Time flew by in an instant. An autumn shower later, fall had arrived in Mumbai.

Jhalak emerged from the bathroom after a shower.

She sat by the bed, took out the new face cream she had bought that day, and massaged it onto her skin.

"Hey, Ahit, do you want me to put some of this on you? The weather has been dry lately," Jhalak said as she walked over to Ahit's side.

She sat on the edge of the bed, then spread the cream on Ahit's face with her fingers.

Ahit's eyes suddenly shot open. His eyes were a deep shade of amber, and they shone like gemstones.

The sparkle in his gaze shocked Jhalak so much that her breathing turned heavy.

It was not unusual for her to see Ahit open his eyes every day, but she was still startled every time it happened.

"Am I rubbing too hard? I'm not using that much pressure, though!" Jhalak said as she continued to gently massage his face.

At the same time, she began to mumble to herself.

"I read online that the reason you've never had a girlfriend before must be because of your body… But I don't think you're that bad! You have strong arms… and these muscular legs…"

Once she was done putting the cream on him, she tapped her hands on Ahit's arms and legs.

Her touch was light and was not enough to get a reaction out of anyone.

However, Ahit's reaction made her eyes instantly widen.

This was because… She thought she heard the sound of a man's voice.

"Was that you, Ahit? Did you say something just now?" Jhalak exclaimed as she sprung off the bed. Her almond-shaped eyes fixed themselves on him in an intense stare.

Ahit stared back at her.

There was something different about his gaze. When he used to open his eyes before, they were lifeless and empty. This time, the eyes staring at Jhalak had emotion in them, even if those emotions bore a hint of anger, hatred, and suspicion.

"Deepa !" Jhalak cried as she rushed downstairs like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. "Deepa , Ahit's awake! He just spoke! He's really awake!"

Her cheeks were flushed, her heartbeat was irregular, and her chest rose and fell rapidly.

Ahit was awake.

jhalak was sure that he was awake. Not only were his eyes open, but he had also spoken to her.

Even though his voice was husky and he spoke slowly, it was threatening.

Ahit had asked her who she was.