The Indian Tycoon's Marriage Deal (14 page)

Krish glanced at her quizzically. ‘Is everything okay?'

She bit back the bile that rose to her throat. ‘I'm fine. I was just thinking about the working arrangements in Delhi.'

‘You can use Sheetal's office. She is the manager of the horticulture division.'

‘And where would that be—in the DGE office in Connaught Place?'

‘No, KD's office within the farmhouse complex.

Sheetal can also show you around the greenhouses if you would like that.'

The implications of the working arrangements hit home. She would have access to KD's office. The horticulture division was where she would find whatever she was looking for.

She tried to collect her thoughts as she replied. ‘Great…but won't KD mind if I…you know…just land up in his office?'

Krish's patience ran out, already stretched very thin by KD's machinations. ‘Stop behaving like some overanxious intern on her first day at work. It will be fine.'

Maya bristled. ‘I don't want to step on any more toes than I have to. I would rather keep out of his way.'

‘You needn't worry about that…He will be busy with a business delegation from overseas.'

‘That's settled then.' She pursed her lips and looked away.

As the car ate up the miles, the distance between them grew steadily. Maya knew that she should be elated by the opportunity that had just been handed to her. And yet the thought of following through on her plans filled her with dread. Once she took that road, there would be no looking back.

It was with relief that she saw the Doon airport come into view, if only to get away from the conflicting emotions that threatened to drive her crazy.

Rohan escorted them to the tarmac, where a private jet was ready for take-off. Krish handed over the car keys to him. ‘Who's driving my car back to Delhi?'

‘KD has deputed his personal chauffeur for the job.'

A smiling air hostess took over from Rohan and showed them to their seats inside the plush private jet. It could have been a lavish conference room, complete with a large flat-screen TV, wide comfortable seats covered in cream-coloured leather upholstery and pull-out desks for notebooks and computer gadgetry. As soon as the aircraft took off, the hostess was back with refreshments.

Krish was at his politest best with Maya, though his body language made it clear that he would be happier if he didn't have to breathe the same air that she did. After the plates were cleared away, the hostess reappeared with a chocolate truffle cake.

Maya stared in shock at the frosting on the cake: ‘Happy Birthday Krish!' She sucked in her breath sharply. Cold fingers clamped around her heart like a steel vice. If she needed any proof of just how unimportant she was in Krish's life, this was it. Her eyes stung with unshed tears.

Krish looked irritated at the fuss that was being made but went along with the cake-cutting ritual in as businesslike fashion as possible.

Rohan turned to her, all bright-eyed and eager. ‘Maya, you must feed him a piece of cake.'

Hurt ricocheted through her and her mind protested at this mockery of a celebration. She moved closer to Krish and whispered in his ear. ‘Happy Birthday! It would be best if you give me a list of important dates like this one in future. Or else people might get the wrong idea about us.'

If looks could kill, she would definitely be dead!

‘Rohan and I have some business matters to discuss,' he said in an icy-cold voice. ‘You might like to rest in the adjoining cabin. If you need anything, the hostess will help you.'

Summarily dismissed!
His rejection slammed through her like a body blow. Forcing her stiff limbs to carry her towards the cabin, unshed tears shimmered in her eyes. She dropped into the soft cream cushions, resisting the urge to let the tears flow, to let her pain out. How had she got it so wrong? The thought of his tenderness last night felt like a knife stab deep within her. She'd been so desperate to believe that what they shared would be just as important to him—that theirs was a meeting of the mind, body and soul.
How pathetic was that!
Brushing away her tears, she wrapped her arms around herself, sinking into the velvet-soft seat. That was when the realisation hit her and she reeled from the pain as if someone had punched her in the gut.
She had fallen completely and irrevocably in love with her enemy!

* * *

Krish pushed away the laptop and leaned back in his seat. This wasn't what he had planned for his thirtieth birthday and it sure wasn't how he had expected things to turn out. He'd been looking forward to spending time with Maya, showing her the sites and taking her to Sunrise Point. This morning, she'd seemed like the perfect birthday present that had happened to him. And he had meant to tell her that. But the best laid plans often went completely and utterly wrong—especially when KD had his fingers stuck in the pie.

He was also concerned about his plans for SHVP. He might as well forget about them for a while. This was the big deal that KD had been preparing for—if he could pull off this proposed joint venture deal with the UK-based Cosmo International, it would give wings to his global ambitions. No wonder he was keen to get Krish on board. Despite his irritation at KD's imperial summons, the upcoming negotiations would have at least one positive side-effect. It would bring back some much needed balance to his relationship with Maya. He was thinking far too much about her for his peace of mind.

Determined to act on his resolve, he stabbed the keys on his computer and focused all his attention on the presentation.

* * *

On their return from Deovan, Maya went out of her way to avoid Krish. She'd occasionally catch a glimpse of him at the poolside, playing with Baloo, or zipping off to work in his Prius. And that was enough to cause her aching heart to yearn with longing. Krish made sure he never once crossed her path. It was for the best, she reminded herself sternly.

But, try as she might, in the privacy of her room she could not hide the fact that she was miserable. That she craved him with a ferocity that made her feel sick to her very bones. But she was determined not to wallow in self-pity. No matter how much it hurt, she knew that there would never be any future for her and Krish. They were never destined to be a couple—and even their marriage was always meant to be in name only. Her unrequited love wasn't going to change anything between them. She needed to get out of Krish's life and fast—the sooner the better. Preferably before Krish had any inkling of what she was going through. Unrequited love she could deal with; his pity would absolutely kill her.

But, for now, she wished she could just blank off all emotion, empty her mind. And there was only one way to get relief, even if it was for just a short while. She strapped on her dance shoes, put a CD into the music system and closed her eyes. As the music flowed over and into her, her mind began to relax and her body moved to the pulsating beat. Soon, she was immersed in her dancing and, as she let herself go, she revelled in the stillness of her soul that only dance could bring.

* * *

When Maya swept into KD's office the next day, she was greeted by the affable and efficient Sheetal Mal-hotra, who ushered her into a bright, spacious room overlooking the lawns. Her temporary work station had everything that she needed—laptop, photocopier and printer and a freshly brewed steaming cup of coffee. Her first priority would be to finish the SHVP designs for Krish.

After the first few minutes when she struggled for concentration, she was soon immersed in her work. As the concepts that she'd shared with Krish began to morph into designs, she created page after page of drawings. Each stroke of the pen felt like a soothing balm on her aching heart. She soon lost track of time until Sheetal knocked on her door to inform her that Natasha was waiting for her in the lobby. Krish's bubbly cousin had decided to pay her a surprise visit—to see how the new bride was doing.

Sitting across from her, she gave Maya a long, incisive look. ‘Dark circles under the eyes don't suit a “glowing” bride!' And then she added with a wink, ‘Or should I say it's obvious that you two love birds haven't found any time for shut-eye?'

Maya laughed. ‘Don't you know about the JV deal that Krish is working on? I haven't seen him at all since we got back.'

Natasha rolled her expressive kohl-lined eyes. ‘Oh, you poor girl! It's amazing how stupid my brilliant cousin can be! Let me call him right now.'

As Natasha frantically dug into her bag for her phone, Maya caught her hand. ‘Hey, Nats, I was planning to head out to the greenhouses. Want to join me?'

Natasha perked up instantly. ‘That sounds fun. I haven't been to the greenhouses in years.'

Over the next couple of hours, Maya was given a guided tour of the climate-controlled greenhouses with Sheetal rattling off facts and figures about cut-flower exports, sales growth and the fierce competition, while Natasha filled her in on family anecdotes.

On Maya's request, they stopped at the rose greenhouses. The sight was breathtaking, with lines of pots bearing roses in an astonishing range of colours extending as far as the eye could see.

‘Our roses are the most sought after.' The pride in Sheetal's remark was unmistakable. ‘We grow some of the most exotic hybrids.'

‘Do you also grow lavender roses?' Maya asked, trying not to let her voice betray her anxiety.

‘The ones that we grow are purple roses. Lavender roses, technically, should have both the scent of the lavender and rose. We haven't quite mastered that yet.'

‘Oh, but I do remember Suvarna Aunty would have fresh cut lavender roses in her room every single day,' Natasha piped up. ‘I can never forget the scent, though it has been so many years since I actually held one of those roses.'

Maya felt a jolt of shock hit her as Natasha elaborated, ‘Now that you mention it, there used to be this botanist who worked here in those days. And, after he left, the lavender roses also disappeared.'

‘Do you remember his name?' Maya asked as she fisted up her suddenly clammy palms and stuck them in her trouser pockets.

Natasha frowned in concentration as she tried to remember. ‘He was a Bengali man, wore these big round glasses…Sinha…maybe Shome, or something like that. I vaguely remember there was some kind of scandal.'

Maya felt her blood turn cold. She waited with bated breath for Natasha to continue.

‘We were so young then. All I remember is that he was a very gentle, kind person. He'd call me Naughty Baby. You see, I'd be the one who'd get Krish into all kinds of trouble.' Natasha laughed at the memory. ‘Anyway, it was all so long ago.'

Maya smiled even as her eyes threatened to water. ‘A pity you don't grow lavender roses any more. They are the most majestic.'

Natasha nodded. ‘Suvarna Aunty would say there is nothing more mysterious or enchanting than a lavender rose.'

‘She was right. Sheetal, if you have any documentation on the lavender roses, could you please send them to me?'

‘I remember coming across some documents about a lavender rose project when we were computerising our records last year,' Sheetal said as they drove back to the office. ‘If I find anything on it, I will definitely send them across to you. Of course, if they are more than ten or fifteen years old, they would be in the store room. But let me warn you, most of the stuff there is in pretty bad shape.'

The greenhouse visit had completely unsettled Maya. She recalled the lines from Papa's diary:

The most ill-fated moment of my life was when I met KD and agreed to work on the lavender rose project.

Would she find the documents that she was looking for? Would she finally be able to hold them up to KD and demand answers from him? Nervous tension coiled inside her as she realised that she couldn't waste any more time fretting over her stalled relationship with her so-called husband.

Her cellphone pinged as a message hit the Inbox. It was from Krish:
‘Party tonight @ KD's. 8 p.m.'

Maya's fingers flew on the keypad as she couldn't resist returning a jibe:
‘Yes, Master!'

Later, in her bedroom, Maya threw open the wardrobe, eyeing the row upon row of designer evening dresses. Well, she didn't need a fairy godmother. Krish had already paid for a closet full of designer-wear that would make Cinderella go green with envy…and he was now demanding his money's worth. Why quibble when she'd been fully aware of the terms of the contract? But, instead of sticking to them, she had gone and messed it all up for herself—by losing her heart to him.

She picked an ensemble that would make her look like the diva of the party. Tonight she would fulfil all her promises to Krish. She would be the glamorous wife that she'd signed up to be. And perhaps, for the only time in their marriage she would not be playing the role of a head-over-heels in love woman but actually living it. Her heart fluttered painfully at the thought that never again would she be so close to Krish. Never again would he look at her with something akin to tenderness—even if it was only for display—and that was all she could have. Tonight, she would also keep her promise to herself. It was the aftermath that would haunt all of them—the Devs as well as her. There would be time for regrets and she would get there soon enough. Now, it was time to deliver on her promise.

CHAPTER NINE

A
FTER ALMOST ROUND
-the-clock negotiations, Krish had pulled off one of the biggest joint venture deals in the country. Steering DGE and one of the top brands in the hospitality industry worldwide—Cosmo International—into a win-win partnership was no mean feat. It definitely was one of the toughest assignments of his career and he had closed the deal in record time.

And yet the thrill of success eluded him. He usually was not averse to celebrating his hard-fought-for success, but this time round his heart was not in it. Frankly, if it was left to him, he'd give tonight's party a miss. But he knew KD would not stand for it—and this was one celebration that would definitely be over-the-top even by his father's hard-partying standards.