"We don't need to photograph this set. Just model it... specifically for me."
Divya stared straight into Rahul's eyes, her tone commanding yet undeniably tinged with a soft plea.
Wearing this sharp, dark outfit, Rahul looked exactly like her ultimate ideal type. He had the unconventional, slightly dangerous aura of a young mafia boss—a true 'bad boy'!
Seeing Divya's reaction, Rahul couldn't help but think to himself: Does an intimidating Ice Queen like Divya secretly harbor a weakness for 'bad boys'?
It actually made perfect sense. The colder a woman's exterior and the more dedicated she was to the crushing pressure of her corporate life, the more her heart often yearned to break convention. Emotions that had been locked away for years were suddenly demanding release. A high-powered CEO like her was bound to have a massive contrast in her private personality.
"Alright, Miss Divya. You're the boss, you call the shots."
"Just call me Divya," she whispered. "Can I... give you a hug?"
Since the boss had made the request, what else was there to say? Rahul smoothly opened his arms, and Divya dove straight into his embrace.
Leaning her head against his solid chest and listening to his steady heartbeat, she slowly closed her eyes. In this fleeting moment, Divya shed her thick, defensive armor and allowed herself to just be a woman leaning on a man.
Meanwhile, being held by such a stunning, powerful beauty, Rahul couldn't help but feel his own heart rate pick up, thumping rhythmically against Divya's ear.
After an unknown amount of time, Divya proactively lifted her head, her cheeks dusted pink.
"Let's head back out. Can we take a few photos together?"
This time, she didn't use her authoritative CEO tone; instead, her voice was filled with a rare, infinite tenderness.
"Let's go. I'll support you, take it slow."
When Rahul helped Divya hobble out of the VIP fitting room, the staff and photographers on site let out another collective gasp.
"Look! The model's vibe has completely changed again!"
"This time, he looks exactly like the mafia boss from that Thai drama KinnPorsche! No, wait... he's even more handsome than the lead actor!"
"Our Director looks so incredible standing next to him. They're such a perfect match!"
Hearing these whispers, Divya maintained her neutral expression, but internally, she was practically glowing with pleasure.
As the photographer snapped several photos of them together, Divya rarely showed such a delicate, dependent side in public. This led the surrounding staff's group chats to absolutely explode with speculation that their unapproachable Ice Queen was finally falling in love.
After the impromptu shoot ended, Divya had the head photographer set aside this specific series of joint photos.
"Rahul, do you have the Line app? I'll send these to you once the photographer finishes retouching them."
Rahul shook his head. "I don't use Line, but I can download it."
He connected to the studio Wi-Fi and downloaded the app right in front of her. At that moment, Rahul couldn't help but wonder why the whole world didn't just use WhatsApp. Wouldn't it be far more convenient to manage his global encounters on a single app? If I go to South Korea next, I'll probably have to download KakaoTalk, he thought with a mental sigh.
"Alright, added." There was a distinct hint of joy in Divya's voice. "We've been shooting all afternoon, you must be starving. What do you want to eat? I'll take you out."
Rahul glanced down at Divya's swollen ankle and said with genuine concern:
"Your foot is injured; it's better if you stay off it as much as possible. Go home and get some rest tonight. Let's make a proper date for tomorrow when you're feeling better."
Looking at Rahul's serious expression and hearing his unprompted words of care, Divya felt a profound wave of warmth in her chest.
Indian men really do know how to care for a woman, she thought. If it were a typical wealthy Bangkok playboy, they wouldn't have cared about her ankle the second they heard they could have dinner with her.
At this moment, Divya couldn't help but pray for her ankle to heal overnight so she could have that dinner with him tomorrow!
Just then, the executive secretary walked in and reported:
"Director, Mr. Rahul's 6 million Thai Baht payment has been successfully wired to his Indian bank account. Fortunately, our corporate account has a direct international portal, so the transfer cleared instantly."
Divya looked up. "Rahul, check your phone to see if the funds have arrived."
Rahul pulled out his phone, opened his banking app, and indeed saw a fresh notification.
The balance shown was a staggering ₹1.5 Crores!
Seeing so much money suddenly sitting securely in his bank account, Rahul felt like he was living in a simulation. A few weeks ago, he was sweating over a suburban mortgage; today, he was a multi-millionaire. It was hard to believe!
Divya's voice interrupted his shock. "I'll have my driver take you back to your hotel to rest for today. We'll have dinner tomorrow."
"Okay, sounds perfect." Rahul snapped back to reality. You're the boss paying me a Crore, whatever you say goes!
He turned to head back to the fitting room to change into his normal clothes, but Divya stopped him.
"Rahul, take all the clothes you tried on today back with you to the hotel. They belong to you now. And... if we're meeting tomorrow..."
Rahul caught her drift immediately. He pointed to the sharp, dark polo outfit he was currently wearing and flashed a charming smile.
"If we're meeting tomorrow, I'll wear this exact set to see you!"
Those words hit Divya right in the heart. A radiant smile broke through her icy facade, and her eyes were filled with warmth as she watched him.
After changing, Rahul grabbed the massive garment bags, said his goodbyes, and followed the secretary out to the underground garage. Watching his broad back disappear, Divya unconsciously began to hum a soft, upbeat melody—an action only a young woman in the first flushes of a crush would make.
The secretary drove a luxurious Toyota Alphard and dropped Rahul off right in front of his hotel.
However, Rahul didn't go upstairs immediately. He walked down the street to a small, vibrant roadside food stall. He ordered a massive plate of Pad Krapow Gai (Thai basil chicken and rice). The unique, fragrant aroma of the holy basil and the lethal spicy kick of the bird's eye chilies made Rahul sweat profusely as he ate, sweeping away the exhaustion of a long day of modeling.
While he was eating, a stunning "girl" dressed in an incredibly tight, skimpy dress with legs for days strutted past the stall. Seeing Rahul's movie-star looks, a look of wild surprise appeared on her face, and she boldly turned to walk into the stall to strike up a conversation.
Rahul looked up, caught sight of her thick, sturdy, decidedly masculine knuckles, and immediately felt the hair on his arms stand on end.
He hurriedly threw some Baht on the table, grabbed his camera, and power-walked back to his hotel without looking back. A Kathoey might not bite, but getting ambushed mid-meal is definitely a shock to the system. It seemed he would have to wear his mask whenever he was eating alone in Thailand.
Once safely inside his hotel room, Rahul didn't even bother showering before eagerly dialing Kabir for a video call.
Kabir picked up almost instantly.
"Rahul Bhai! How's Bangkok? You haven't run into any scam compounds yet, have you?"
"No danger at all," Rahul laughed into the screen. "Guess what kind of insane luck I walked into today?"
Hearing this, Kabir's eyes widened. "Tell me! Stop building suspense, bro!"
"You might not believe it, but I literally just got scouted as the global spokesperson for a massive Thai fashion brand. Between the shoot and the endorsement fee, they paid me 6 million Thai Baht!"
"You don't have to worry about your job anymore; I can easily afford your salary now!"
Kabir froze, his brain doing the math. A few seconds later, he let out a guttural howl.
"HOLY SHIT! That's almost 1.4 Crore Rupees! Bhai, I absolutely hate you!"
"What's wrong?" Rahul teased mercilessly. "Afraid your brother will starve in the streets, but even more afraid he'll buy a Range Rover?"
"I want my salary! I want it right now, Godfather!" Kabir yelled, laughing.
After a bit more banter, Rahul shifted to business. "I'm uploading all the raw footage from today to the cloud drive. Hurry up and edit it. The fans back home are probably worrying about my safety in Thailand. Let's get this episode out so they can see I'm doing better than fine."
"Leave it to me, Bhai!" Kabir promised, already booting up Premiere Pro.
But when Kabir opened the first video file and saw Divya's breathtaking, elegant face on his monitor, he let out another agonizing howl.
"Bro! She's an absolute goddess! How is it always you?!"