Page 35 of Born in Ruin

“My level?” he asked, his voice dangerously soft.

“Farhad Adajania and his drunken habits are well known.” Shantanu snorted. “He gambled away everything while swigging straight from a whiskey bottle. I’m surprised he’s still alive. Would have thought his liver would have given way by now.”

Ishaan had assumed the same. Unfortunately, it seemed his father’s body didn’t want to live by their timeline.

“You’re nothing but a cheap upstart son of an alcoholic gambler. Your money, my boy, is so new it hasn’t even lost its shine as yet. You’re not fit to wipe my daughter’s shoes. You did all this because you wanted her, right? Guess what, you can’t buy love. And my daughter will never love you. You think she wants her children to end up the way you did? Homeless and dependent on the charity of your betters?”

Ishaan’s gaze went to where Mayukhi was sleeping, the loose folds of her co-ord set wrapping around her body. Had he done all this because he wanted her? No. Did he want her nevertheless? God, yes. But none of that was anything he planned to share with her father.

“My betters?” he asked, keeping his voice low so he didn’t wake the snoring Kraken with the sexy dreams. “Would that be you? The man who lost his company to a cheap upstart by sheer negligence? My money might shine but it still bought your non shiny shit from right under your nose.”

He stepped around the other man, shouldering his way past without another word. He nodded once to her mother who was still looking shell shocked but made no move to go tosee her daughter. And then he was finally out of that stifling, judgemental home.

He’d just gotten into the car and started it when a message from Virat lit up the group chat he shared with the guys – The Big Dicks. He put the car back in park and opened the chat thread.

Virat: Guys, I have news.

Amay: We know. We saw the news article.

Ishaan: Technically, I saw it first. Also, Goody okay?”

Amay: Sleeping. Mayukhi?

Ishaan: Passed out. Vir, where are you? Let’s meet for drinks tonight? My place?

Virat: If you two have finished gossiping, could I tell you my news?

Amay: It’s not the news article?

Virat: Fuck the news.

Ishaan: You’re telling us to fuck the news? You? Mr. Information is power?

Amay: Mr. I have a spider web of news that will destroy empires.

Virat. Are you two done?

Ishaan: I’m never done.

Virat: I found the girl in the photo.

And just like that, Ishaan was done. For now.

TWENTY

Mayukhi

Mayukhi slipped on her sunglasses, bundled her hair into a messy ponytail, cast a cursory glance at her short, white chikankari kurta and blue jeans and decided it would have to do for the day. Her hangover wouldn’t tolerate anything else. She grabbed a bottle of water from the kitchen and almost made her escape when she ran into her parents having breakfast in the hall.

“Yukhi, I want to talk to you.” Her father’s curt voice stopped her from skirting them and making for the door.

She sighed and walked back to where they sat. “Yes?”

“I don’t want that fellow’s horrible influence to ruin you,” her father said, gesturing to her to take a seat. “You must be careful.”

“That fellow?” she asked, not taking the seat he was pointing to. “You mean your future son-in-law? The one you’re forcing me to marry?”

Her mother’s normally expressionless face looked mildly disturbed. “Don’t be like that, Yukhi. Your father is doing his best to get you out of this. He’s talking to his lawyers and accountants every day. He missed lunch also yesterday because he was in a meeting with them.”

---