The Indian Tycoon's Marriage Deal (16 page)

What a night it was turning out to be. And the celebrations had only just begun. He only hoped that KD had for once restrained his impulse to go in for loud, kitschy entertainment.

He saw it then—a light in KD's office. Had someone forgotten to switch it off? No! Someone was in there. At this time of the night? He could see a figure moving. A flash of something bright glinted in the dim light. Something sparkling—it was a woman's outfit. He stormed into the hall and spotted Rani serving snacks to the guests.

He pulled her aside. ‘Where's your
Bhabhi
?'

Rani looked around the hall, bemused. ‘
Yahan nahin hai?
She's not here?'

* * *

Maya's heart banged away as she looked through the filing cabinets. She'd been here for fifteen—maybe twenty—minutes. KD would definitely be in a celebratory mood and there would be a lot of toast-raising, mutual back slapping and congratulatory speeches. But she knew she couldn't risk being away from the party for much longer. Krish was bound to notice. In her haste she fumbled, dropped a few files and wasted a few precious seconds in retrieving the papers from the floor.

There seemed to be tons of files and projects, but nothing on the lavender rose project. Sheetal was right—it was a mess. They had probably thrown away the old files. And even if they were somewhere in here, it would take hours to sort through it all.

It had all been in vain. There was no evidence of anything that linked KD with her father's failed project. Tears of frustration pooled in her eyes as she desperately scanned the files. She fumed inwardly at the sheer injustice of it all. It had taken all her resolve and grit to sneak in here, only to find out that it had all been for nothing.

Venting her frustration, she banged the drawer shut. On the verge of giving up, she nevertheless decided to check the last drawer before calling it quits.
Please, God! Let there be something!
But it was stuck. She pulled hard, it opened a few inches but was still jammed. She reached inside—her fingers closed around a dusty, dog-eared file that had wedged itself between two drawers. As she pulled it out, the file ripped. Her heart almost stopped. It was labeled ‘Lavender Rose Project'.

She choked the cry that rose from her gut.
Could this be it?
There were only a few pages inside and, as she flipped through them, one name leapt at her—Subodh Shome. She'd found it. Her prayers had been answered. She could have wept with joy but she needed to get out.
Now.
She collected the papers that had fallen out of the torn file and thrust them into her pocket.

As she stepped out and locked the main door behind her, her mind raced. Would the documents help her nail KD's fraud? What if they were just details of some obscure project? The thought almost made her stop in her tracks. She'd never once considered what would happen if she didn't find the evidence that she needed to nail KD. Would she find it in her heart to forget the past? Or would she become as embittered as Papa, who had wasted away in his hatred and misery? She shuddered at the thought as she rushed down the path to the mansion.

The party was in full swing and she could hear the music blaring out. She hoped, prayed that Krish hadn't noticed her absence.

She slammed into a hard, muscular chest…that could belong to only one man.
Krish!

CHAPTER TEN

M
AYA'S BREATH CAUGHT
in her throat—her worst fear had come true.
Just my blasted luck!
She clutched at Krish to save herself from falling headlong into the flower bed. Fear and adrenaline made her blood pump faster. He scooped her in his arms. ‘Easy! You are in one hell of a hurry. Everything all right?' Krish's steely voice was making her even more edgy.

Calm down, Maya!
She pulled away from him. ‘Yeah, fine. I didn't see you coming.'

‘What were you doing in KD's office?' Krish's eyes were dark and impenetrable.

Her brain buzzed, trying to find an answer. ‘Oh…I went to pick up my mobile…I left it behind this afternoon.'

Krish's eyes narrowed. ‘Really? You couldn't wait till tomorrow morning to retrieve it?'

Maya took a deep breath, desperately trying to quieten her racing heart. ‘I guess I could. But I needed to text my number to Mike. I just can't seem to remember my new number.'

His voice was sharp and cold. ‘Mike? So, you have started exchanging phone numbers with him as well.'

Maya inwardly squirmed. How she wished there was some way in which she could insulate Krish from the consequences of her actions. ‘I didn't realise that would be a problem.'

His eyes narrowed. ‘Mike is not just a friend or an acquaintance. He is a business partner. There is a certain level of formality involved and I don't want you to give him the wrong impression.'

For a moment she was completely taken aback. And almost instantly indignation flared. ‘Wrong impression about what?'

‘There is no need to lose your cool. There is a certain business protocol that needs to be observed and you should be aware of it.'

She felt distracted as confusion tore through her. Part of her wanted to run, shut herself away and go through the documents that were burning a hole inside her pocket. Another part of her wanted to trust her instincts and blurt out the whole sordid story to him. She exhaled, reeling with her wayward thoughts. ‘You don't have to worry. Mike and I were talking about landscaping and he happened to mention some friend of his who has come up with a new rooftop garden innovation. I thought it could be useful for the resort. I asked him to text me the number of this innovator. That's when I realised I had left my mobile behind in Sheetal's office. So, no need to be paranoid!'

He inclined his head and stared at her. She felt as if he could see through her lies, deep into her soul. Her face flushed in agitation. ‘If you are done with your interrogation, maybe I can skip the rest of this party?'

There was a glint in his eyes that she couldn't quite fathom. ‘Actually, the party has only just begun and you need to stay through to the very end.'

He jerked her into his arms, taking her breath away. ‘Looks like you need a little refresher course on the terms of our contract.'

Desire rippled through her.
Why don't you stop talking and just kiss me?
His eyes held hers in a dark hypnotic gaze, his breath warm on her face as his stubble-dusted chin grazed her cheek. Before he could press his lips down on hers, she heard someone clear his throat.

‘Sir…excuse me…'

Embarrassment flooded over her as she pulled away. Krish dragged his hand through his hair, giving her a tortured look before turning to face Rohan. ‘What is it?'

Maya turned on her heel and dashed inside. Rushing to the washroom, she looked at herself in the mirror. Her cheeks felt hot against her cold palms. She bit down on her lower lip, trying to quell the desire that still throbbed within her. One minute she was afraid that Krish would see through her lies and the next she wanted to lay bare her heart's true desire.

She turned the tap, snatched a hand towel off the rack and wet it with cold water. Squeezing it dry, she wiped the back of her neck with the cool towel and felt the tension ease somewhat. She couldn't believe how she had managed to improvise on the spot. True, Mike had told her about his friend's landscaping innovation and he had promised to share more information with her. But that was it—he had not asked her for her mobile number, nor had she volunteered to give it to him.

She was amazed at how easily she had lied. What an irony it would be if in her quest for revenge she became more and more like KD—deceitful and manipulative! She rubbed her temple, trying to erase her self-doubts. Deep down, she knew that, no matter how she justified it to herself, she was about to betray Krish's trust. She was on the verge of throwing away any chance that she had of making a life with the only man she had come to love so completely. But what choice did she have? Could she really tell him the truth? And expose herself to his contempt? The truth of the matter was—she was damned if she did and damned if she didn't!

* * *

Krish barged into KD's den to deal with the new crisis on hand. But Rohan's warning had come a little too late. He watched as a fuming Viren stormed off. KD was far from perturbed. He steered Krish towards the buffet tables. ‘
Oh, jaane do ussey.
Let him go,' he said dismissively. ‘Viren needs to cool off. Come now, as hosts of the party we can't keep our guests waiting.'

Frankly, Krish had enough to worry about and had no wish to play mediator between KD and Viren. Watching Maya hurrying out of KD's office had come as a nasty shock. The thoughts that had whizzed through his mind had been uncharitable, to say the least. And he had been tempted to judge her without giving her a chance to explain. Maya was right—he was really becoming paranoid. If he didn't watch out, he would end up like KD—wrecking every relationship, alienating every single person he came into contact with. Ever since his adolescent years, he had instinctively avoided his father, almost as if he'd known that his negativity would pull him down, cast him in his mould. It wasn't just about proximity—after all, you could never tell when your genes would kick in.

‘You Devs really know how to throw a party,' Mike marvelled as he tucked into his food. ‘These are the most succulent kebabs I have ever had in my life.'

‘I will pass on your compliments to the chef.' Krish grabbed a plate and piled some kebabs on it.

‘By the way, Maya gave me some invaluable tips on gardening. Your wife is quite a talented young lady.'

As soon as Mike mentioned her name, Krish's hackles rose. His jaw tightened ever so slightly. He sneered, ‘Now that you have her cell number you can call her any time for more landscaping advice.'

‘Man, I have no idea what you're talking about.' And then, as if it dawned on him, Mike gave him a nudge and a wink. ‘She's got you wrapped around her little finger. Watch out, mate!'

Mike's joke slashed through him like a knife slicing open his gut. If he hadn't been so furious at himself he would have laughed out loud. Here he was, only minutes ago agonising over doubting Maya, but it seemed as if he should have paid more attention to his gut feeling. His desire for her was clouding his judgement and that was unacceptable.

Turning away from Mike with a muttered excuse, he snapped open his BlackBerry and speed-dialled Maya's mobile number as his eyes scanned the hall for her. She was nowhere to be seen. And she wasn't picking up the phone either. He felt a tightness in his chest as questions burned through his consciousness. What was she hiding? How deep did her lies go?

* * *

For a while Maya circulated the party, smiling and airkissing acquaintances, being the perfect hostess. But she was on tenterhooks; dying to get back to the cottage and read the documents. The longer she stayed, the more she fretted.

Finally, she seized the moment and slipped away. The scents of the night wafted in the breeze that cooled her overheated skin as she hurried down the path. In the dark, she stumbled on the porch step and winced in pain. Rani had forgotten to switch on the light.

A sudden childhood memory flashed through her mind. Ma had entrusted her with the task of switching on a light in the veranda of their home every evening. ‘A dark home is an invitation to evil spirits,' Ma would admonish her whenever she forgot her task. Over the years, it had become such a habit that, even on that fateful evening when she was leaving for the hospital—full of hope about Papa's recovery—she had instinctively reached for the light switch as she'd stepped out. Only to see the bulb fizz and explode. It had seemed like a bad omen but she had chided herself for reading too much into a fused bulb. In hindsight, it did seem as if some force out there was trying to warn her, prepare her for what lay ahead.

The memory wafted away as she flicked on the porch light, pushed open the door and stepped across the threshold. Normally, Baloo was the first to greet her. But today Rani must have left him with Hari at their quarters. She felt a strange sense of foreboding, returning to a dark, empty home.
Home.
Since when had she started associating this place with home? she wondered.

She rushed to her room, switched on the table lamp and spread the documents on the desk. She speed-read the pages, glancing over random details about various projects that Papa had been assigned to in his role of Consultant Botanist to Dev Horticulture Pvt. Ltd. There was a technical paper—handwritten in his distinctive scrawl—which listed in some detail the process of growing a new hybrid variety of lavender roses. Attached to it was a typed copy of the same document and a letter from the Patents Office. Her heart skipped a beat as she read the official notice granting ownership of the patent to one Manish Agarwal, Ph.D. at Mansarovar Agricultural College. The residence address listed was the same as the Dev mailing address.

She stopped reading as things began to fall in place.
So this was KD's scam!
Papa's technical paper, containing drawings and process details, had been merely copied, given a new title and patented in Agarwal's name, who was probably some junior flunky in KD's office. Papa had probably trusted KD enough to share with him his original designs and technical processes. The handwritten paper was proof of that. And in return for his trust, KD had cheated Papa of his rightful claim, lodged a false complaint against him and had him thrown in jail. She paced the room as her mind processed the probable scenario. Another piece of paper fluttered to the floor—an affidavit on a judicial stamp paper signed by her father. It read:

I hereby withdraw all claims to the hybrid lavender rose innovation and regret that I falsely claimed ownership of the same which is Manish Agarwal's work and is currently patented in his name. I forfeit any future claims to the innovation.