Office Romance

Chapter 1 – The First Handshake

The conference hall at The Oberoi in Mumbai had that polished, intimidating kind of charm that only five-star hotels managed to pull off. Spotless marble floors, crystal chandeliers, an endless spread of tiny sandwiches and coffee cups that were somehow always full—everything screamed corporate networking event.

Sana Kapoor hated corporate networking events.

She balanced her cup of cappuccino carefully, trying not to spill a drop on her cream blazer. A blazer, by the way, she had ironed twice this morning because, apparently, creases loved her more than her ex ever had. She exhaled slowly, scanning the sea of name tags around her.

Strangers in suits. Forced smiles. The occasional fake laugh that echoed too loudly in the acoustics of the hall.

God, why am I here again?

Oh right—because her manager insisted. "A great opportunity to meet cross-branch colleagues," he had said, which was corporate-speak for mingle, pretend to be friendly, and don’t embarrass us.

Sana adjusted her blazer sleeves, forcing her mouth into that polite half-smile she had perfected over three years of office life. She hated small talk, but she hated being seen as unfriendly even more.

That’s when she heard it.

“Sana Kapoor?”

The voice was deep. Confident. The kind that made you straighten your posture without realizing it.

She turned.

And paused.

The man standing in front of her looked like he’d just walked out of one of those glossy management magazines. Tall—easily over six feet. Broad shoulders that filled out his charcoal suit in a way that had to be deliberate. Black hair styled in that annoyingly perfect balance between effortless and expensive.

And his eyes—warm brown, steady, and unhurried—were fixed on her like he had all the time in the world to read her.

“Yes?” Sana managed, quickly pulling her professional smile back into place.

He extended a hand. “I’m Arjun Malhotra. From the Delhi branch.”

Oh.

Right.

The Arjun Malhotra.

She’d heard his name before. In meetings. In whispers around the coffee machine. The rising star of the Delhi office. Sharp, ambitious, with a reputation for delivering impossible projects on impossible deadlines. And apparently, also for being “dangerously charming,” though Sana had dismissed that as pure office gossip.

But now… standing in front of him, with that hand extended and that calm smile—she wasn’t so sure anymore.

Her fingers slipped into his grip. Firm. Warm. Just the right amount of pressure. None of that limp handshake nonsense, none of that aggressive bone-crushing either.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Malhotra,” she said, her tone even.

“Arjun is fine,” he corrected smoothly, with a faint curve of his lips. “I believe we’ll be collaborating on the client integration project next quarter.”

“So I’ve heard.” She gave a small nod, pulling her hand back and tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’m sure it’ll go smoothly.”

One eyebrow lifted. “Do you always sound this confident before a project even starts?”

Sana blinked.

Was he… testing her? Already?

She tilted her head, not missing a beat. “Do you always test people in the first five minutes of meeting them?”

His smile widened just a fraction—controlled, measured, like he wasn’t used to people pushing back but wasn’t annoyed by it either. In fact… he looked amused.

“Touché,” he murmured.

For a moment, neither of them said anything. The hum of conversations around them filled the space—the clinking of cups, the rustle of papers, someone laughing too loudly at something clearly not funny.

But his gaze lingered. Not in an inappropriate way. Just… steady. Like he was cataloging her, assessing her, filing her away in some mental folder labeled Sana Kapoor.

And she hated how aware she was of it.

Before she could come up with something witty—or at least neutral—to say, a colleague passed by, calling his name.

“Arjun! They’re starting the presentation.”

Arjun gave Sana a small nod, professional but—was it her imagination or did his eyes soften for just a second?

“See you inside,” he said, his voice low, before turning away.

Sana exhaled, realizing only then that she’d been holding her breath.

She lifted her cup of cappuccino again, trying to focus on the comforting bitterness of coffee instead of the way her pulse had just tripped over itself. She adjusted her blazer sleeves for the third time, silently cursing the air conditioning for being too cold.

But then—out of the corner of her eye—she saw it.

Arjun.

Already halfway across the hall, blending seamlessly into a small cluster of suits. Laughing at something one of them said, nodding along, every bit the polished professional.

Except—

For a fraction of a second, he glanced back.

At her.

It was quick. Barely there. A flicker. But unmistakable.

Almost like a check.

Almost like curiosity.

Almost like—something else.

Sana blinked, gripping her coffee cup a little tighter.

Don’t overthink it, she told herself firmly. It was nothing. Just… nothing.

Still, as she walked toward the conference room, her professional smile back in place, she couldn’t shake the thought.

Maybe it was nothing.

Or maybe—just maybe—it was the start of something.