Chapter 10
MEHER
“ N o!” Samrat and I yelled out in unison, staring at each other in horror.
“He is the last man on earth I’d ever date. Not even then,” I said angrily.
“Likewise,” snapped Samrat.
I glared at him with all the hatred I could summon within me, almost wanting to shove him off the terrace. How dare he say such a thing?
“Good!” I bit out.
“Great!” he shot back.
“So it’s settled,” said Shivina with gentle insistence. “Since the two of you are mature adults who value the work you do, and not angry toddlers incapable of looking at the bigger picture, you both agree to do this. Right?”
Damn it, when she put it that way, I did feel like a toddler throwing a tantrum. But…
“Well, he started it,” I blurted out, and then bit my lip in embarrassment.
“Way not to sound like a toddler,” drawled Samrat. “Shivina, that does sound like a good plan. Or it would have if the other party in this scenario wasn’t a treacherous, fickle woman who shall not be named.”
I drew myself up to my full height and turned to Shivina as calmly as I could.
“Babe, do me a favour, and lend me that gorgeous Durga sword you used on the Goels. I need to slay a demon. I swear I’ll have it professionally cleaned afterwards,” I requested politely.
My friends tried to hide their smiles at what they thought was a joke, but I was dead serious. One way or another, I was going to murder Samrat Singh Deora tonight. I didn’t care if I went to jail afterwards.
“Fine, I know where it’s kept. I’ll take it myself,” I said, heading indoors.
“No!” They all screamed, and someone tackled me to the ground.
A hard, powerful body covered mine, and I froze at the familiar smell that enveloped me. I glared up into Samrat’s eyes, but before I could speak, he covered my mouth with one hand and leaned forward to whisper into my ear.
“Do not make a scene here, you little idiot. Do you want to get us both ostracised from society?”
In response, I brought his hand even closer to my mouth and bit down hard. He yelped in shock and drew his hand away hastily.
“Get off me, you oaf, before I knee you in the balls,” I hissed.
“Guys, great way to not make a scene. Rolling around on the floor like horny cats…good job,” said Shivina sarcastically, while Isha and Diya kept a lookout for the other guests.
Luckily, this terrace was in Ranvijay and Shivina’s private wing, which was why we’d had it to ourselves for so long.
But that could change any minute, and we’d be in a lot of trouble if Samrat did not get off me immediately.
He leapt off me and held out a hand to help me up. Obviously, I ignored it and got up on my own steam and brushed off my clothes without looking at him.
“I’m sorry, but she was about to do something very stupid. How would it look if she chased me around your palace with a sword? We’d never be invited anywhere ever again. And her luxury safari idea would end up being just a really great concept.”
“First of all, you worry about your own situation, army boy. I will make a success of my business, no matter what. And secondly, if I got my hands on a sword, I wouldn’t have to chase you around at all.
I’d have you filleted and laid out like a tray of sushi before you knew what hit you,” I growled.
“Ewww! Don’t ruin my favourite food in the world, Meher,” complained Isha.
“Are we done with the toddler tantrums?” demanded Ranvijay. “You guys seem to forget that we live in a world of high-definition phone cameras, and all it will take is one viral video to put paid to all your dreams.”
“Fine,” I said huffily, crossing my arms over my chest and sulking.
“Meher, I know it seems wild, but this is actually the quickest way to get what both of you need right now. Promise me you’ll think about it. And you too, Samrat,” said Shivina.
“This is ridiculous,” he complained. “Everyone knows Meher and I haven’t seen each other since that night.”
“How?” asked Veer.
“Excuse me?”
“How are people supposed to know what goes on in a couple’s life?
Do the two of you have cameras live-streaming every move you make?
People can assume what they want, but that doesn’t make it true.
If anyone asks you about it, just tell them it’s none of their business.
You’re together now, and that’s all that matters,” explained Veer.
“And you guys thought I married him just for his looks,” teased Isha.
“Who thought that?” demanded Veer, throwing his arms out in challenge.
“Dude, you’re the ugliest creature I’ve ever seen in my life. I can safely say I never thought Isha married you for your looks,” said Diya, and Veer ruffled her hair in reply.
“That’s a nice thing to say to your only brother,” he chided.
“Well, I agree with everything you said just now. Which is a surprise,” she replied, rolling her eyes.
I was used to this bickering, but Samrat was starting to look impatient.
“What Veer means is that you and Meher have a very strong history. So it won’t be too surprising to our acquaintances if you take up with each other again after all these years. Second chance at love and all that,” said Isha.
“And it’s all for show. You don’t have to speak to each other in private if you don’t have to,” said Dheer.
Diya nudged him in the ribs, and he let out a sharp exhale of protest.
“Of course, you have to spend a decent amount of time together in public to make it look authentic. But I’m sure you can do that without killing each other,” she added hastily.
“I’ll hide the Durga sword just in case,” said Shivina, with a grin. “Seriously, though, this is the perfect solution for both your problems, and I deserve an award just for thinking about it.”
“Let me make this perfectly clear to all of you,” I said firmly. “I don’t care how perfect it sounds. I will not spend one minute more than I need to with this man. I don’t like him. I don’t respect him. In fact, I have nothing but the utmost contempt for him.”
They all went silent at that, and a muscle ticked in Samrat’s jaw as he stared at me. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say he was hurt by my words. But I did know better. I knew he did not care about what I thought of him.
“That’s a little harsh considering I’ve done nothing to hurt you, whereas you …well, we won’t discuss it anymore. All I can say is that this plan will not work,” he replied curtly.
“Umm, Meher, I’m not sure you realise this, but you practically pitched your business plan today to several people.
I know at least three people at the party whose lands border the same leopard reserve that yours does.
How are you going to feel when they start the same kind of luxury safari that you’re planning, and you see people flocking to their hotels because they were smart enough to maintain social relationships with the people who matter?
” asked Shivina. “You have the first mover advantage right now. Don’t lose it because your ego cannot take a backseat to your intelligence. ”
That one statement of hers stung a lot more than it should have.
This wasn’t about my ego. Far from it. This was about my heart, and the fact that Samrat had stomped on it and smashed it to pulp eight years ago, and instead of apologizing for his actions, he was doubling down and making it look like I destroyed our relationship.
I wanted nothing to do with him because in the course of just one evening, he had ripped open all my wounds, and every conversation felt like he was rubbing salt into them.
He had undone eight years of healing with just one accidental touch.
How the hell was I going to survive an extended fake dating charade without getting completely destroyed in the process?
“I’ll do it,” Samrat said suddenly, and I turned to him in shock. Was he out of his mind?
“What?”
“You only have your safari at stake, Meher. I have a lot more at stake,” he said grimly.
“During my last operation before I retired from the army, I lost my best friend and second-in-command to an ambush, and I finally have the chance to avenge his death. My ego doesn’t matter more than my mission.
I don’t care who I work with, as long as the job gets done.
Because that’s what we will be doing. Working towards our different goals, but together. ”
He sounded so indifferent to me that it actually put me on my mettle. If Samrat could be indifferent to me, then I had to show him that I was even more indifferent to him. He wasn’t as important as he liked to think. I had moved on long ago.
“This relationship is only for show?” I clarified. “I don’t ever want to be put in a position where I’m forced to marry him.”
“Heaven forbid,” Samrat muttered, and I narrowed my eyes at him.
Every part of my brain warned me not to do this.
It practically rang sirens through my skull to say I was headed for danger.
But there was a stubborn part of me that refused to let him have the upper hand.
If he was willing to use me despite almost hating the sight of me, I could do one better.
I was going to use him right back. And I was going to show him his real place in my life.
I was going to show him that he meant nothing to me.
And in the process, I was going to heal myself once and for all.
The Samrat I remembered used to worship me as much as I worshipped him.
He was the great love of my life. It wasn’t easy to forget the man who had given me nothing but love ever since he entered my life.
But this Samrat? He was an obnoxious jackass, and there was no chance I’d ever fall in love with him again.
This was my chance to remove him from all the shadowy corners of my heart where the memories of our time together were still hiding. Be warned, I told my heart silently. I am in full pest control mode, and Samrat is the vermin I’m going to decimate from my memories.
I was not scared of the past anymore. I was going to face it down and secure my future.
I held out my hand in challenge.
“Bring it on, army boy,” I snarled. “I dare you.”
But when Samrat gripped my hand hard, a tremor went down my arm, and I wondered if I had bitten off more than I could chew.