Aarav turned toward her and crossed his arms.

“Mrs. Goenka,” he said slowly, a teasing smile on his lips, “she was just cleaning.”

He tilted his head slightly.

“Are you jealous?”

Siya immediately frowned. “I am not.”

Aarav chuckled softly. “Oh really?”

She turned her face away, refusing to look at him.

“Fine,” he said casually. “But then why are you here?”

“Nothing,” she replied quickly.

Aarav stopped the treadmill and stepped off it.

Aarav slowly walked toward her.

Siya looked at him, suddenly aware of how close he was getting.

Her heartbeat began to quicken.

“I don’t believe that,” he said quietly.

Siya quickly tried to think of something.

“I… I am gaining weight,” she said. “That’s why I came to the gym.”

Aarav’s lips curved into a smirk.

“But you don’t need the gym,” he said.

She frowned slightly. “Why?”

He leaned a little closer, smiling.

“Because I’m already doing the gym for you.”

Siya sighed in frustration, but her cheeks turned slightly pink.

“You and your words,” she muttered.

Aarav smiled.

Then Siya suddenly became serious.

“But you are working out here without any stress,” she said.

He raised an eyebrow. “Why would I have stress?”

She looked straight at him.

“Because three partners just broke their contracts with your empire.”

Aarav smiled faintly.

“Yes,” he said calmly.

Then he stepped closer to her.

The distance between them shrank.

“How do you know that?” he asked softly.

Siya paused for a second.

Aarav’s eyes locked onto hers, sharp and searching.

“I… heard dad talking about it,” she said quickly. “And it’s in the news too.”siya immediately said.

Aarav smirked slightly.

Siya’s heartbeat was already racing.

Without realizing it, she took a small step back.

But Aarav stepped forward again.

“Why are you coming closer?” she asked nervously.

He didn’t answer.

He just kept walking toward her.

Siya’s back suddenly hit the wall behind her.

She froze.

There was nowhere left for her to step back.

Aarav stopped right in front of her, placing one hand on the wall beside her.

The closeness made her breath uneven.

“Why are you nervous?” he asked softly.

“I am not,” siya replied quickly.

Aarav tilted his head slightly, studying her face.

“Really?”

His gaze dropped to her hands.

“They’re shaking.”Aarav said

Siya quickly clenched her fingers.

“It’s just because you’re standing too close,” Siya said.

A faint smile appeared on Aarav’s lips.

Aarav said “So now my presence makes you nervous?”

Siya glared at him. “Don’t overthink.”

He leaned a little closer.

“Then tell me something,” he murmured.

Her heartbeat pounded loudly in her ears.

“How did you know about our partners so quickly?” he asked, his voice calm but probing.

Siya forced herself to stay composed.

“It’s business news,” she replied. “Anyone could know.”

Aarav’s eyes stayed fixed on hers.

“Hmm.”

He didn’t move away.

Instead, his gaze softened slightly.

“You’re a very bad liar, Siya.”

Her breath caught.

“I’m not lying,” she insisted.

Aarav smiled faintly.

“Then why do you look like you’re hiding something?”

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

The silence between them was heavy.

Siya could feel his breath near her face.

Her heart raced faster.She hate that her body reacts like this.

“Move,” she said quietly.

But Aarav didn’t move.

Instead, his voice lowered and he said.

“You know what I think?”

She looked at him reluctantly.

“I think you’re far more involved in this business war than you pretend to be.”

Her eyes widened for just a fraction of a second.

Aarav noticed.

His smile deepened.

“There it is,” he said softly. “That reaction.”

Siya immediately pushed his arm away.

“You’re imagining things,” she said quickly.

She stepped aside pushed him and walked toward the door.

Before leaving, she stopped for a second ,turned to him and said.

“Focus on saving your empire, Mr. Goenka,” she said calmly.

“Not on me.”

Then she walked away without turning back.

As she walked down the corridor, her mind raced.

Maybe Aarav is starting to suspect something.

She exhaled slowly.

“Whatever,” she murmured to herself.

“I just have to be more careful now.”

Her eyes hardened slightly.

Because this war was far from over.

Aarav sighed softly.

“All I want is for you to be safe,” he murmured.

A faint smile appeared on his lips as he remembered how she had shouted at the maid earlier.

“Mrs. Goenka,” he said quietly to himself, “you do care.”

His smile deepened.

“You’ll accept it… soon.”

He wiped the sweat from his face with a towel and stepped back onto the treadmill, starting to run again but he was smiling thinking about her.

It was afternoon.

Siya changed her dress and walked downstairs.

She went to Kavita.

“Mom, I’m going out,” she said.

Kavita nodded. “Alright.”

Siya left the house.

After a while, she reached a small, cozy restaurant.

She walked inside and sat at a table.

A man was already sitting across from her.

Siya looked at him calmly.

“So,” she said, “how much have you found about the Mittals?”

The man leaned forward slightly.

“And to stabilize the Goenka empire,” Siya continued thoughtfully, “I might personally propose a deal to Raghav.”

The man nodded.

“Sir will arrive next week, ma’am.”

Then he opened a file.

“Ma’am, Raj Mittal’s father’s name was Abhishek Mittal. He died twenty years ago.”

Siya listened carefully.

“Everyone believes it was a natural death,” the man continued.

“But it wasn’t.”

Siya’s eyes sharpened.

“Someone murdered him.”

Siya paused for a moment.

“Abhishek Mittal…” she repeated slowly.

The man nodded.

“He had one sister,” he said.

“But strangely, there is almost no record of her identity. No name, no photographs… nothing.”

Siya frowned slightly.

“As if,” the man added quietly, “the Mittal family erased her existence.”

Siya leaned back in her chair.

“Where is she now?” she asked.

“No one knows, ma’am.”

Siya sighed softly and said

“This is getting more complicated.”

The man hesitated before speaking again.

“Ma’am… there’s another problem.”

Siya looked at him.

“Mittals may be suspecting that someone is spying on them.”

Siya froze for a moment.

Then she lowered her voice.

“Be careful.”

“I will, ma’am,” he replied.

She nodded.

“Take care of yourself.”siya said

“Thank you, ma’am.”he replied

Then the man added seriously,

“The Mittals are criminals.”

His expression hardened.

“I want them to suffer.”

Siya’s eyes turned cold.

She nodded slowly.

“They will.”

Siya reached her old mansion.

She stood at the entrance for a moment, taking a deep breath.

The place was quiet… almost frozen in time.

Memories flooded her mind as she slowly stepped inside.

Everything looked the same.But once it was filled with her and veer laughter now empty.

She walked straight toward her father’s study.

The moment she entered the room, a wave of emotions hit her.

Bookshelves… the large wooden desk… the familiar chair where her father used to sit for hours.

Her eyes softened.

But she quickly composed herself.

“I have to find that diary,” she murmured.

Just then her gaze fell on the locker placed beside the bookshelf.

She walked closer.

“Papa always kept important things in this,” she whispered.

The locker had a password.

Siya frowned slightly.

“I need the password.”

She looked around the study and started searching.

She opened drawers, checked files, and scanned through books one by one.

Minutes passed.

Dust rose from the old shelves as she searched everywhere.

Finally, after a long time, she found something hidden between two thick books.

A small diary.

It was covered with dust.

She carefully wiped it with her hand.

Her eyes softened immediately.

It was her father’s diary.

She slowly opened it.

Inside were several notes… numbers… and passwords written in her father’s familiar handwriting.

Her fingers gently traced the letters.

“Your handwriting is so beautiful, Papa,” she used to say.

And her father would always reply proudly,

“Of course. I was a topper.”

A small smile appeared on siya lips.

“My topper Papa,” she whispered softly.

For a moment, she simply caressed the pages of the diary.

she flipped through the pages again.

There were many passwords written… along with small notes about payments, salaries, and business details.

Siya walked toward the locker again.

She looked at the password panel.

Then she glanced back at the diary.

“Let’s see what you were hiding, Papa…”

She started trying the passwords one by one.