Page 70 of One Hellish Desire

I look at her hand, then meet her eyes, completing our handshake. I’m dead sure Mom is going to kill me for marrying Maahi, but I can handle her. And Dad will have mixed feelings. He’ll be thrilled at first, thinking he can now conquer Devki Estate. But when he finds out I’ve signed such a deal with Maahi, denying any business on that land, he’ll be furious. That’s when I’ll have to take charge and handle the pressure.

CHAPTER 20

VIKRAM

As I drive us back to Ratna Mahal, Maahi is silent, seemingly lost in thoughts about our future together. I'm in my own world too, almost hallucinating about all the desires I have to fulfill with Maahi once she's my wife. When we arrive, Dad, Mom, and Daadi are all in the living room. I like seeing them together, even though none of them are speaking to each other.

“Daadi, what are you doing down here? You should be resting in your room,” Maahi scurries to her.

“I was resting all day, so I asked the nurse to bring me down. Vanraj and Meera were here, so I thought I'd join them.”

I glance at Mom, who looks perplexed about what Maahi and I are doing together. Dad wears the same expression.

“Where do you go these days, Vikram? We don’t see you very often,” Dad taunts.

“We were at Leela Mahal,” I say aloud, making it clear where I was and with whom.

Maahi glares at me, as if she doesn’t want me to reveal anything yet. That’s when Dad speaks again.

“Did Ajay call you?” he asks. Ajay is my personal assistant in the US office.

“No,” I finally check my phone, which I had forgotten about for the past few hours. I see Ajay’s missed calls and messages. “I think he did, yes.”

I quickly open the messages, but Dad explains before I can grasp the situation from them.

“Your presence is required back there, Vikram. We have some deals that need your attention.”

The very thought of leaving for the US again pricks my heart. I turn to Maahi, who looks equally shocked.

“Let Ajay know when you’re ready to fly,” he adds. I glance at Daadi, who doesn’t seem happy either.

“I will be here for some time to look after Maa.”

Daadi lets out a sigh. “You are staying here for other reasons, Vanraj, but you don’t have to wait longer. Maahi is here to look after me. You both should get back to work. I don’t want you to lose business or money.”

“If not thankful, you should at least be happy that your son is interested in staying a few more days with you,” Mom interrupts. “Please don’t hurt him like that.”

“Oh,” Daadi smiles. “I said this for your sake, Meera. I know you don’t like being here. If you all are happy away from me and Ratna Mahal, that’s all I desire.”

Daadi then turns to Maahi. “Can you take me back to my room, Maahi?”

Maahi and I both rush to help her get up. Dad was about to help but stops when he sees us. We take Daadi back to her room, and she decides to rest until dinner.

*****************

Back in my room, I make calls. Ajay updates me about the deals that are close to being finalized. My presence would make things smoother, but I’m not prepared to leave yet. A knock at the door breaks my focus. It’s Maahi. She has never willingly come to my room before, but now, seeing her at the door, I feel like pulling her inside and giving her a hug. She wants to marry me and stay with me forever after all.

“Can we talk?” she asks, entering and locking the door. I swallow as she turns back to me.

Maahi taking the lead like that is more than welcome.

“You’re leaving for the US?” she asks.

“Have to.” I nod. “Dad isn’t lying. My work there needs me, and it's been quite some time since I’ve been here. I initially thought Dad was pushing me back to handle the Devki Estate matter alone, but that’s not true.”

“When? When do you need to be there?”

“Next week,” I snap.

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