Chapter 16
The next morning, Meghna sat patiently as her hair was clamped, pulled, and stretched through a curling iron. She watched in the mirror as the stylist picked up a newly formed curl, turning and twisting it into place. Meghna flinched when yet another bobby pin slid uncomfortably against her scalp.
“Sorry,” the stylist said, her voice muffled by the bobby pins between her teeth. “Almost done.”
Meghna thanked her, sneaking a peek at the other bridesmaids. All of them were ready and dressed and once Meghna was done, Julie would be the only one left. Though the whole experience could have been awkward, Julie and her friends had welcomed Meghna into the fold, asking her questions about what Seth was like in college, begging for information about the special song he had been working on, and sharing funny stories about their dating lives.
“My lips are sealed,” she said when Beth, the maid of honor, asked again for a hint about the song. “I don’t want to ruin the surprise.”
Julie laughed. “I’m sorry they’re bothering you so much about it. But it’s shocking that Seth has managed to keep this a secret for so long! He always shows me what he’s working on. It’s like he can’t help it.”
“He doesn’t just show them to you,” Beth said. “Remember when he played ‘Angel in Red’ for us? You told him to change the whole second verse and he listened to you. He basically rewrote it because you said so.”
“Not at all,” Julie said, waving a hand dismissively. “I just suggested moving it to the end. The real difference happened when he made that key change.”
Meghna froze.
“And when he added that new chorus, remember?” Beth added.
“Oh, yeah. That line about how ‘her words are like poison and I’m drunk on her lies’? I love that one. I met this girl at the studio the other day and she’d gotten it tattooed on her arm. I took a picture for Seth and he couldn’t believe it.”
Goose bumps prickled on the back of Meghna’s neck. That was her line. They were talking about her line. And the key change? That had been her suggestion too.
“Did you …” Meghna’s voice came out high and squeaky. She cleared her throat. “Did you help him with that second verse at all? The one you told him to change?”
Julie flushed with pleasure. “Did he mention that to you? That’s so nice. I mean, we were just messing around with it. I ad-libbed a few lines while he played it and he ended up using a few of them.”
Meghna swallowed. He’d never mentioned that. Meghna had seen several drafts of the song. And though the second verse had changed a lot, he’d never said that Julie had helped him with it. He’d let Meghna think those changes were all his.
And the changes Meghna had made? She’d offered those freely. As his writing partner. As his friend. She’d known that the songs were his at the end of the day, but she hadn’t realized that he had pretended he’d come up with everything on his own. That he’d lied about all the help Meghna had given him. That he’d taken credit for Julie’s words.
A lick of anger shot up her spine.
“Julie, can I talk to you for a second? Outside?” The words were out before Meghna could reel them back in.
Julie’s eyes lit with surprise. “Yeah, um, sure.”
Meghna followed her out of the room, down a hallway. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. She was so angry. At Seth. At Karthik. At herself.
Karthik had been right. Seth had been taking advantage of her. He hadn’t looked at her own writing for months. And he expected too much from her. Expected that she’d drop everything to answer his questions, take his calls, provide feedback. Their writing partnership had somehow become all about him. Part of her had known that, but it had happened so slowly. She hadn’t been able to fully accept it. Especially because … it was Seth.
Seth, who’d read her work and encouraged her when no one else would. Who’d listened to her. Who’d made her feel seen and valued. Who’d broken her heart.
And now Karthik knew that too. Her face heated as she remembered the way he had thrown that accusation at her. Like a grenade. And at the time, she hadn’t known how to respond. She wasn’t sure whether she had ever really been in love with Seth. This … this couldn’t possibly be love. But she had felt something for him, and knowing that Karthik had figured that out … She wanted to sink into the floor.
Julie raised an eyebrow, and Meghna hesitated. She didn’t want to mess things up for Julie. Not on her wedding day. Maybe she had wanted that a few months ago. Had secretly hoped that the wedding wouldn’t happen. But she didn’t want that anymore. Meghna faltered for a moment, wondering if she should even bring any of this up. But if she didn’t say it now, it’d be too late. Julie was set to marry Seth in a few hours, and she deserved to know the truth before then. She deserved to go into the relationship with her eyes wide open. To not be strung along or used for her talent.
“Julie,” she started. “That song you were talking about? I saw what the second verse looked like before. It was … It was completely different. If you made those changes, I think you deserve songwriting credit.”
Julie laughed lightly. “That’s so sweet, but really the lines I gave Seth were lines I cut out of one of my own songs. Lines I hadn’t planned on using anyway. I’m glad they worked for him, but it wasn’t a big deal.”
A sneaking suspicion crept through Meghna’s mind. “Did you do that on other songs?”
“Yeah, some. But I mean, Seth’s helped me with my music too. He always listens to my stuff and tells me what’s working and what’s not.”
“But Julie, that’s not the … If you’ve been writing parts of …” Meghna stopped, taking a deep breath. “Those lines you were talking about? Back there? Those lines from ‘Angel in Red’? I wrote them.”
Shock splashed across Julie’s face.
“I know you may not believe me or think I’m just making it up, but … I texted those lines to Seth. I meant for them to just be a suggestion. I didn’t think he’d actually use them. Though when he did, I mean, it wasn’t that surprising. He’d done it before. And it was just a couple lines. He always made it seem like it was no big deal because the rest of the song was his. But if you’ve been … If some of this has been yours …”
“Not on that song, but …” She bit her lip. “Did you do anything on ‘Eyes on You’?”
“Some work on the bridge.”
Julie’s mouth dropped open. “Me too! He told me he wanted to change the rhyme structure. So, I helped him rewrite it. Except for the last line, but that must have been …”
Meghna nodded. “That was mine.”
“He never said … He never said anything about you writing any of it. I mean, I knew you were writing partners. Seth’s always said how thankful he is for you and that you’ve helped him so much, but he never said …” Julie trailed off, her eyes blank and unfocused.
Meghna’s mind whirred, pieces of lyrics running through her head. How many of the words she’d once attributed to Seth’s “genius” had really come from Julie? How many times had Seth lied to her? Taken credit for something that wasn’t his?
Anger churned low and heavy in her gut. She wanted to go find Seth. Confront him. Ask him how he could do this. She almost suggested it, but when she saw the expression on Julie’s face, the words died in her throat.
Julie looked so lost, her gaze distant. There was a tiny tremble in her lower lip.
“What do you want to do?” Meghna asked gently. Even though she knew exactly how she wanted to handle things, she wasn’t the only one wronged here. And this was still Julie’s wedding day.
“I don’t know,” Julie whispered.
“Okay. That’s okay.” Julie needed more time. And so did she. Meghna could get in Seth’s face and have it out, but then what? She needed to think things through. What could she ask for? And how could she hold him accountable? She needed to make a plan.
“Why don’t you finish getting dressed? I’ll try to figure something out, but I won’t say anything to Seth until you’re ready, okay? Want to meet downstairs in an hour?”
Julie sniffed, but nodded, offering a small, sad smile. Then she left, heading back to finish her hair and makeup. And put on her wedding dress.
“Meg, you all done?”
Meghna blinked, looking at the man standing in front of her. The man she’d thought she’d known so well. She blinked again. It was like there were two of them. Seth as he was now, and a holographic image flickering on top of him. The perfect Seth she’d created in her head. The one who listened to her. And supported her writing. The person she had thought she was supposed to end up with.
And what hurt the most was that she hadn’t entirely made that version of Seth up. At one point, Seth really had been her friend. Whenever she’d been tempted to give up on her play, to give up on writing once and for all, he’d encouraged her. Whenever she’d doubted herself, he’d told her how much he believed in her, how talented she was, how one day she’d succeed. At one point, he’d really cared for her. Maybe not in the way she’d wanted, maybe not in the way she’d cared for him, but there had once been something real between them.
Sure, he’d been blunt. And he’d always had a bit of an ego, what she’d once thought was confidence but now recognized as pride. But that Seth never would have claimed someone else’s words as his own. Never would have claimed her words as his own. Somewhere along the way, he’d changed. Maybe it had happened when he’d gotten a taste of stardom. Or when he’d felt the pressure to keep producing hits, to keep staying on top. Either way, she didn’t know who he was anymore.
Loss swept through her as the image of the old Seth flickered once more, then went out entirely. Leaving the real him behind.
“All done getting ready, I mean,” he said.
“Yeah, I’m done.” She smoothed her hands down the front of her tux. “The rest of the girls are still in there, though.”
He invited her into the room designated for the groomsmen, and the next hour passed quickly. A fast catered lunch. Posing for photographs. A quick pep talk from Eric to calm Seth’s nerves. A thankful round of hugs that Seth gave all of them afterward.
Meghna flinched the second his arms came around her, but tried to hide it. She smiled and joked with everyone while keeping one eye on her phone. Time was almost up.
She slipped out of the room, heading downstairs, relieved to see Julie was already there. At least she hadn’t changed her mind about meeting.
Julie waved, the lace of her dress rustling as she moved. From the firm lift of her chin and the color of her cheeks, she appeared to be in better spirits than earlier.
“I talked to my manager,” Julie said. “And my lawyer. To figure out what we can do.”
Meghna nodded. In between groomsmen activities, she’d been able to squeeze in some research of her own too. “What did they say?”
“That I have options. That we have options.” Julie blew out a breath. “They both said I don’t have to go through with the wedding if I don’t want to, but they made it clear we’d take a pretty big hit if I walked away. ‘Runaway bride’ may make headlines, but they both assured me that it’s not the kind of publicity I want.” She sighed. “But I don’t know if I can get married to Seth right now, either. I’m not even sure I want to be married to him anymore.”
Meghna could understand that. If she was in Julie’s shoes, she certainly wouldn’t want to go through with this wedding, but she also knew how tough this industry could be. How difficult it was to break through and how quickly you could lose it all. Julie had worked so hard on her music and was finally starting to taste success. Meghna could understand why she wasn’t ready to let that all slip away.
“Whatever you decide,” she told Julie. “Whatever you need, I’ll support you.”
“Thanks,” Julie replied, her forehead creasing with worry. “It’s just … The idea of being married to Seth, the idea of being stuck with him forever …”
“It doesn’t have to be forever,” Meghna said, an idea sparking. “It could be temporary. You could wait it out for a while, then end things.”
“I guess.”
“And if he doesn’t meet the terms you want, the terms you demand, you could go public with everything. Tell everyone the truth.”
Julie tilted her head. “That … That’s a really good idea.”
The two of them discussed the remaining details, pooling together the information they’d gathered and coordinating a plan.
“So, when should we do this?” Meghna asked a moment later.
“How about now?”
Meghna’s eyebrows jumped. She’d hoped they could confront Seth before the wedding, but hadn’t imagined that Julie would agree. “I’m fine with that, but … Are you sure?”
Julie nodded, already tapping away at her phone. “Absolutely. The sooner we get this over with, the better. I don’t think I could stand up there and exchange vows in front of everyone without getting this out first.”
A ping sounded a few seconds later, and Julie looked up with a tight smile. “He’s on his way.”
The sound of heavy footsteps reached them first, then Seth appeared, walking so quickly that his blond hair flapped around him.
“Are you okay?” he asked, looking only at Julie. “Did something happen?”
Julie crossed her arms. “I’m okay. I’m not sure about you.”
He took a step back. “What do you mean?”
Julie’s eyes glittered, and her face was cold and hard. “Meghna and I were talking earlier. Comparing notes. About your songs.”
Seth paled.
“It seems like the two of us may have accidentally co-written a song or two,” Julie continued. “Maybe more.”
Seth let out a weak laugh, his eyes bouncing between Meghna and Julie. “I think that’s overstating things. I mean, you and Meg have both helped me. A lot. But I hardly think—”
“You want to know what I think?” Julie interrupted. “I think if we look back through your emails, we’ll find that many of your words came from one of us.” She lifted a shoulder casually. “And maybe some other people too.”
Guilt flashed across Seth’s face, and Meghna realized Julie’s guess had been right on the mark.
Julie wilted, her hard expression fading away. “You know, I was going to try to give you the benefit of the doubt. I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt. But—” She shook her head, watching him with a sad, resigned expression.
“Are you …” Seth stopped, swallowing nervously. “Are you calling off the wedding?”
Julie laughed, but the sound was hollow. “No, my whole family is here. And my career just started taking off. I can’t afford a scandal.”
“Oh, thank God. Julie, I love you and—”
Meghna resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Maybe he did love Julie. Maybe he really had meant it when he said Meghna was his best friend. But he had a funny way of showing it.
“I’ve just been under so much pressure,” Seth continued. “Under so much stress. You wouldn’t believe it. My agent and the label … They expect a lot from me. They basically told me that if I don’t send out a song a month, people will forget who I am. And I tried at first. I really tried to keep up, but I couldn’t, and then … Well, you both were there for me. Supporting me. And … you have to understand the position I was in. But it all stops now. I promise. It was just a temporary thing, and—”
Julie held up her hand, stopping him mid-sentence. “I called my lawyer. Here’s what’s going to happen.” She took a deep breath. “You’re going to marry me. With a smile on your face. And then you’re going to give me and Meghna songwriting credit on every song we contributed to.”
“And back pay,” Meghna added. “We deserve to be paid retroactively. For all the time we didn’t have credit.”
Julie nodded in her direction. “Yes. And back pay. Then after you’ve done all that, maybe I won’t divorce you.”
Seth’s eyes widened.
“But we’ll have to see,” Julie continued. “And if you don’t make things right, I’m going public with this story. I’ll sue. A divorce may land me in the tabloids and get me some negative press, but suing a man for stealing my words? I think fans will understand that. And stand by me. After all, they stood by Taylor Swift.”
Seth’s eyebrows knit. “Actually, that’s not exactly what happened with her—”
“Close enough,” Julie interrupted, and Seth’s mouth snapped closed. “Meghna, anything else you want to add?”
Meghna turned toward Seth. He looked at the floor, unable to meet her eyes.
There was so much she wanted to say. That she’d trusted him. Opened herself up. Shared her words and her time and her attention and her love. And he hadn’t deserved a single second of it. She’d put him first over and over. Believed him when he belittled her. And he’d barely given anything in return. Instead, he’d taken from her. Even now, he wasn’t sorry. He hadn’t apologized once.
But she struggled for a moment, unsure how to phrase it. How to put it all into words. At her silence, Seth darted a glance her way. A bit of hope was etched across his face. As if he expected her to back down. To forgive him. To take his side. Again.
Pure rage, all fiery and hot and fierce, swept through her. “You’re a dick, Seth. You’re a liar and a fraud and I only wish I’d realized it sooner.”
“Meg—”
“No. That’s not my name and that’s the last time you ever call me that.” She shook her head. “I should have told you that a long time ago. Back when we were actually friends. Back when you were actually there for me. Back when you valued what I thought and felt and said. But that hasn’t been true for a long time. After tonight, I don’t want to see you. I don’t want to hear from you. No more texts or emails or phone calls. We’re not writing partners. We’re not friends. We’re nothing.”
Seth’s face fell, and Julie clapped her hands together, watching Meghna with approval. “Well said. So, Seth, just to confirm, you agree to our terms?”
He nodded slowly, reluctantly, just as Julie’s phone beeped. She glanced down, then grimaced. “It’s the wedding planner. It’s time to go.”
They left for the venue, and though Seth seemed subdued, no one commented. The rest of the wedding party probably thought it was normal for the groom to have some nerves right about now. Eric clapped him once on the back, then they all separated as the wedding planner lined them up, pairing them off just as she had the night before.
The music started, and Meghna briefly closed her eyes. She’d been dreading this day for so long. But now, as she walked down the aisle with Julie’s maid of honor beside her, she didn’t feel jealous. Or sad. She was … thankful. Thankful that she’d learned the truth. That she wasn’t the one marrying him today. That she was finally able to let him go.
She was almost halfway to him, his blond hair shining, his too-white teeth stretched into a wide smile. She looked away, searching the crowd on either side of the aisle. She couldn’t see him, but Karthik was sitting out there. Somewhere. She reached the end of the aisle, and Seth’s smile fell slightly as she moved to stand beside him.
She ignored him, scanning the room again, trying to find Karthik. Yes, he owed her an apology. And she was still angry about the way he’d spoken to her last night. But at the moment she just wanted to see his face. She wanted to know that he was there. That at the end of this whole ordeal, he’d be waiting for her. And they’d talk through things and everything would go back to the way it had been.
She stopped, frozen at her last thought. She wanted things to go back to the way they had been. She wanted him to call her when he saw a new musical and she wanted to tease him when he got too serious. She wanted to wake up to Bombay toast in the kitchen and hear how things were going with his family. She wanted him at her friends’ parties and her middle school plays.
Really, she just wanted him.
The music changed, and everyone stood up, turning to face the entrance. To watch the bride appear. Meghna looked at the crowd again, but now Karthik was easy to spot. He was the only one half turned, his body at an odd angle. The only one not looking for Julie. The only one looking right at Meghna.
Meghna’s heart pounded. She had been lying to herself. She didn’t just want things to go back to the way they had been. She wanted more. She wanted to kiss him whenever she wanted. She wanted to introduce him to others as hers and have it actually be true. She wanted … She wanted their relationship to be real.
Julie walked down the aisle, and the crowd pivoted, turning to follow her progress. And though Karthik moved in time with everyone else, his eyes never left Meghna’s.
His face was neutral, composed, and a bit tense. But his eyes were soft. Apologetic. Tender.
The ceremony started, and Meghna broke eye contact, looking at the couple in front of her. And though she pretended to watch it all happen, she barely heard a word of it.
Maybe Karthik never wanted to get married. Maybe any future between the two of them was impossible. But that look in his eyes had been real. He felt something for her. And she had feelings for him too.
She’d tried to prevent it from happening. She’d put up boundaries. Tried to keep him at a distance. Tried to remind herself that it was all fake. But the truth was, she’d been falling for him for a long time.
Her eyes welled with emotion, and she forced herself to blink the tears away.
She was tempted to look back at Karthik. She was tempted to tell him everything. She knew it was a bit of a gamble. She might have misread that look. She might have been the only one to develop feelings. But it felt like a risk worth taking if it meant there was even the tiniest chance that what she had with Karthik could be real.
The officiant’s voice, loud and booming, shook her from her thoughts. And Meghna forced herself to smile, still blinking away a few tears, as Seth and Julie kissed and were pronounced husband and wife.
For the second time in the last twenty-four hours, Karthik watched Meghna’s eyes fill with tears. The sight had been a punch to the gut last night, but it felt even worse now. Because these tears meant that he had been right.
Meghna was in love with Seth.
Karthik’s eyes had been trained on her from the very beginning of the ceremony. She’d met his gaze at first, then looked away, watching the happy couple. She’d had a faraway look on her face, as if she’d been thinking about something else, trying to distract herself from what was going on. And then at the end, she’d put on a smile. But he’d seen the truth. Her eyes had been glistening, and she’d blinked repeatedly, as if she was trying not to cry.
His stomach twisted.
The bride and groom walked back up the aisle, and the wedding procession, including Meghna, followed. Finally, it was over. He left with the other guests, moving with the general flow of the crowd from the outdoor ceremony space to the tent that had been set up for the reception. Drinks and little hors d’oeuvres passed by on small trays, and he blindly grabbed the first thing that came his way.
He found a corner and hovered there. For a moment, he thought about leaving. He wasn’t sure he could play the loving fiancé now. It felt too close to the truth. Too painful.
But he’d made a promise to her, and he would keep it. He took a sip of his drink. It was bubbly and crisp and light. It wasn’t at all what he wanted. It wasn’t at all how he felt.
He never should have allowed himself to think that Meghna might care for him. How could she? Especially after the way he’d hurt her last night. After he’d lost his temper. He couldn’t get the image of her face out of his mind. The way it had crumpled up. The way she had looked at him. As if she couldn’t believe he had hurt her that way.
He’d made a mistake. He’d imagined for a second that things could be different. That he could be different. But last night had proven that wasn’t the case. He’d lost control. He’d lashed out at her. He’d acted like an ass. He’d acted just like … just like his father.
Karthik set his glass down firmly. It wouldn’t have mattered if she was in love with Seth or not. Seth was just an easy target. A place Karthik could throw all the blame. The real issue was with himself.
He wasn’t good for her. And neither was Seth, but someday she’d meet the right person. Someone who could love her. Someone who could be the kind of partner she dreamed about. Who could give her the kind of marriage she wanted. Someone who wouldn’t hurt her the way he had. Karthik couldn’t hold her back from that. And that’s all a relationship with him would be doing.
He took one last sip and made up his mind. His promise to Meghna would be over once he got through tonight. And then he would let her go. For good.
“Hey!” Meghna called as she approached his little corner of the room. Her eyes were bright, and her smile stretched wide across her face. If he didn’t know better, he would have thought she was happy.
She put a hand on his arm. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you. I have something I need to tell you.”
He tensed, sure he was about to be chewed out for his behavior yesterday.
“Me too,” he said before she could continue. “I need to apologize. I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that last night. I was angry and I took it out on you. I know you know Seth better than I do, and I had concerns about him, but I shouldn’t have brought them up that way. I didn’t mean to hurt you and I’m very sorry that I did. I … I never want to hurt you. I never want to do anything that hurts you.”
It was why he needed to end this. If he tried to make things work with her, it was only a matter of time before he hurt her again.
Her hand slid down his arm to grasp his hand.
“I know that,” she said. “I was so angry at you, and we’ll need to talk about this more, but those things you said about Seth? They’re things I’ve known for a while, but I just refused to acknowledge them. Refused to deal with them.”
Right. Because you love him. He winced at the thought.
“And I know that I need to,” she continued. “And, well, thanks to Julie, I think I’m starting to. But that’s a much longer story. Right now, I need to tell you that—”
“Hey, guys,” Mark said as he and Eric joined them. “Nice ceremony, wasn’t it?”
“Sure,” Eric said. “But I’m ready to eat.”
Meghna gave a nervous laugh. “I’m not.”
“Right,” Eric said, wagging his eyebrows. “Dinner means we’re getting closer to your big speech.”
Karthik squeezed Meghna’s hand. “You’re going to do great,” he told her.
“Thanks,” she replied softly.
He smiled at her, and she smiled in return.
“You guys are unbelievably cute,” Eric said. “It’s honestly annoying.”
Mark laughed. “You need to set Eric up with someone,” he told Meghna. “He’s been whining all weekend about how he’s so tired of showing up to these weddings alone.”
“Why don’t you set him up with someone?” she asked Mark.
“Please,” Eric said. “The last time he tried to do that, he ended up dating her instead.”
“It didn’t exactly happen that way,” Mark said indignantly.
“It totally did,” Eric said. “Karthik, what about you? Do you know anybody?”
Karthik shook his head. Out of all of Seth’s groomsmen, he liked Eric the best. He wished he knew someone who could match Eric’s laid-back energy. Someone who’d enjoy his sense of humor. But no one came to mind.
“No, sorry,” he said.
Eric sighed. “It’s fine. I’ll just be alone forever.”
They all laughed, but were interrupted by an announcement that dinner would be served soon. They found their seats, and the meal started with a plate of leafy greens.
Eric took a bite and grimaced.
“What did I say about underdressed salads?” he whispered under his breath, and Karthik chuckled in response.
“You know,” Eric said a few seconds later. “I’ve been meaning to ask you, what’s the job market like in New York?”
Karthik frowned. “I’m happy to share anything I know, but I don’t know much about the music industry—”
“I don’t work in music.”
“You don’t?”
“No. That’s just Seth. I’m an engineer.” Eric paused. “Did Meghna not mention that? She’s the one who told me to talk to you.”
Huh. She’d never brought it up to Karthik. “What field are you in?”
“Biomedical.”
Karthik jolted as he felt an unexpected stab of jealousy. Paul had been providing regular updates on the robotics project the biomedical team was working on, and though Karthik had feigned disinterest at first, he hadn’t been able to resist the temptation to check it out himself. The robotic arm was impressive. Stunning. And for a second, he had let himself imagine how exciting, how fulfilling, working on a project like that must be.
But those kinds of thoughts were pointless. He would never work in a field so close to his father’s.
“We have a great biomedical department at my company,” Karthik said. “I can put you in touch with someone.”
“That would be great.” Eric smiled. “Thanks.”
They turned back to their meal, but as the dinner continued, Meghna grew more and more agitated. She fidgeted in her seat and twisted her napkin in her lap until Karthik placed his hand over hers.
“Are you nervous?” he asked quietly.
“Yeah.”
“About the speech?”
She swallowed. “Yeah, the speech. But also …”
“Also?”
She shook her head. “It’s nothing. We’ll talk about it later.” She flashed a wan smile, then turned to finish her dinner.
He ate the rest of his meal absentmindedly, distracted as he counted down the hours remaining. The night was passing too quickly. Soon their fake engagement would be over. He imagined she’d be relieved. Once Seth’s wedding was done, there would be no reason for her to lie to her parents anymore. But for him … He looked over at Meghna. This was likely the last meal they’d ever share. The last time he’d sit next to her like this. The last time he’d get to pretend that she was actually his.
The clinking sound of a spoon hitting glass interrupted his thoughts. He squeezed Meghna’s hand one more time, and she squeezed back before straightening in her chair. It was time for the toasts.