Gauri pressed the doorbell of the apartment.

Situated in an upscale neighborhood where visitors require appointments to meet residents, this was a place where exclusivity met elegance.

She had come to meet one of her clients, a man seeking to revamp his home's interior design.

"Hello, sir, I'm here but I can't seem to locate your house..."

"Look for the blue-colored house."

"Yes, sir, I've found it. Is this your house?"

"No, no. Next to it, there are two white houses. The one on the right is ours. Hurry up, Ms. Podder; I need to leave for the office."

The man said and ended the call abruptly.

Gauri gazed at the white houses, momentarily confused by the two identical structures.

"Which one could it be...?"

She muttered to herself.

"Wait, let me check."

Gauri approached the bell of the rightmost white house. A guard opened the door.

"Whom do you wish to meet?"

The guard inquired.

"Mr. Singh...?"

The guard, who was not Bengali, nodded.

"Yes, he's inside. Come in. The boss informed me that a new girl is coming for work."

Gauri followed him inside.

"Mukesh... Take her inside."

The guard instructed another servant, who nodded and led Gauri further into the house.

Gauri marveled at the interior design—luxurious and breathtaking. She had never seen anything like it; this was her first time experiencing such opulence.

"Ma'am, please sit here. When the boss calls you, you may enter."

Gauri looked around and took out her phone to capture a picture of the design.

As she aimed to photograph a decorative flower vase, a strong, muscular man suddenly snatched her phone from her hand.

Startled, she released her grip, and the phone fell to the floor.

"It's not appropriate to take photos of my house without permission, Miss."

The man remarked with a slight smirk on his face.

Gauri retrieved her phone from the floor and apologized for her actions.

"Apologies, sir. I was merely curious about the design and took the picture. If you prefer, I can delete it."

She attempted to open her phone to delete the photo but noticed the screen remained unresponsive.

"Sit there, Miss."

The man said and took a seat on a sofa. Gauri sat on another sofa across from him.

"Tell me, what can you create...?"

He asked nonchalantly, taking out his phone, likely to call his secretary to complain about the quality of the food sent to him.

**"Sir, I don't think you need any de-"

"Shut up and tell me what type of food you can make."**

He interrupted, massaging his forehead as he wasn't feeling well.

The weather had been affecting him, and he hadn't had proper homemade food since he had just moved in a day ago. His secretary had arranged everything according to his preferences, but finding a cook... that he hadn't done.

"Fo-od...?"

Gauri asked, confused.

"Come with me."

He said. Gauri followed him and saw him entering the kitchen, where everything was freshly prepared.

"Sir, why are we in the kitchen...?"

Gauri inquired.

"Because I don't trust words. I assess people's qualifications myself. So, you're going to cook a dish for me, and after that, I'll decide whether to offer you the job."

"But, sir, I mean, what needs to be cooked? If you want to know about my qualifications, you should see my work..."

Gauri spoke. The man finally looked at her. He glanced at her lips, then at her eyes, which he must have seen somewhere before.

"Sir...!"

Gauri called him, noticing he seemed lost in thought.

"Cook whatever you make best and serve me within 30 minutes."

He said and walked out of the kitchen, not knowing where.

Gauri looked around, then decided to cook for him.

As a struggling interior designer, she had faced worse situations. Once, a client had asked her to place their bedsheet cover on the bed to assess her cleanliness, and another elderly woman had mistaken her for a paid maid and asked her to mop the floor. So, cooking for this man must be better than those experiences.

She removed her dupatta and tied it around her waist properly. Her hair was already in a braid, so that wasn't a problem.

Now, her dilemma was what to cook.

"I will make simple rice and dal... I can cook this much in 30 minutes."

Gauri spoke to herself.

After 30 minutes, a maid came to inform her that their boss was sitting in the dining area.

Gauri took the dishes with the help of the servant and placed them on the table.

The man looked at her.

"You just cooked these simple dishes."

He asked.

"Sir, simple is always best. Let me serve you."

Gauri served him.

He looked at his plate, then at her, who appeared a little nervous but wasn't showing it.

**"If the food teast -"

He took the food and ate it with a spoon. He smiled, feeling a homely vibe from it.

He finished the food. Gauri was standing there, thinking of telling him about her ideas to make his house beautiful.

He washed his hands and returned to the living room, where he met her. She was doing something with her phone.

"Umm"

He cleared his throat.

"Oh, sir."

"Yes, Miss... wait, what is your name...?"

He asked, taking his seat.

"Umm, sir, it's Gauri Poddar."

"Are you Bengali?"

"Yes, sir."

Gauri answered.

"Then you can't work under us."

He clarified. Gauri frowned, confused by his sudden statement.

"Why, sir?"

"Because we are vegetarians."

"Sir, I don't understand what you're trying to say... I mean, does me being vegetarian have anything to do with interior designing your house?"

Gauri asked.

"Interior design?"

He asked in confusion.

"Yes, sir, I'm here for that, right!"

Gauri asked.

"But aren't you a cook?"

He asked.

"Cook??"

Gauri was confused.

He raised his eyebrows.

"You are Mr. Singh, right?"

"No, it's Mr. Hriday Singh Shekhawat."

He said.

Gauri looked at him in confusion.

"But I thought you were Mr. Singh who called me for his house interior design."

Gauri said. Hriday looked at her in confusion.

"What are you babbling to yourself? Speak freely."

He said.

Gauri didn't answer anything and walked out from there, while Hriday looked at her in confusion.

"The audacity of this girl; without my permission, she walked away."

Hriday said.