Chapter 13 #3
Siya took that moment to study Neena. She looked immaculate, every inch the woman she had heard whispers about in business and political circles.
A floral diamond pin anchored her chiffon pallu to her shoulder, and the smooth fabric clung to her, revealing the confident curves of a woman at ease in her body.
A string of rare tiny pearls around her neck spoke more about power than any diamond ever could.
She had heard stories of how Neena was the driving force behind their family business, but to see her in her full element made the tales feel both true and insufficient. She never admitted it to anyone, but she’d always admired Neena for her sharp mind and lethal precision in business.
She had expected someone cold but the motherly way Neena brushed away an imaginary lint from her son’s lapel and smiled up at him felt familiar to Siya. A pang of longing went through her as she recalled how her own mother would sing her to sleep.
Abhay turned to Siya and laced his fingers through hers as he said, ‘Speaking of engagement, I want to introduce you to Siya. My fiancé.’
The warmth on Neena’s face, so natural when she spoke to Abhay, vanished without a trace the second she looked at Siya.
And Siya, used to the barbs of her father’s family, used to court room confrontations, suddenly found herself feeling fifteen again, waiting to be called into the principal’s office.
Just then, the event manager hurried over and murmured something to Abhay. With a small sigh, he said, ‘Something about vendor payments. I’ll be back in ten.’
He lightly squeezed her hand, offered an apologetic smile, and walked away, leaving Siya alone with the woman who would soon be her mother-in-law.
The silence between them stretched, and beneath the heavy weight of her gaze, she couldn’t help but feel like she was being examined under a microscope.
All of a sudden, she remembered her father’s words from one of his many drunken rants.
‘That woman wears the pants in the Agrawal empire. Mihit just carries her bags.’
‘Don’t let them get to you with their moronic questions and rumours. It’s a lot to step into a role that the public is scrutinising every moment of. I know how terrifying that can feel.’
Siya nodded but kept mum. In all the chaos, she’d forgotten to prepare to face the Agrawal matriarch, and now she felt at a loss for words.
Her gaze swept once over Siya and then Neena said, ‘You look nothing like your mother.’
The observation caught her off guard, and her shoulders stiffened. She blinked as each word sunk into her heart like splinters. ‘I hear that a lot. Everyone says I look like my father.’
Neena tilted her head, as if weighing her response. ‘Is that all?’
The question hung in the air as Siya tried to decode the implication. ‘I’m not sure I follow.’
Neena smiled but there was no warmth in it. ‘Kartik isn’t exactly known for his humanitarian nature or common decency. It’s natural to wonder then, isn’t it, if you’re more like him or Arohi.’
Siya couldn’t tell whether it was fury or heartbreak crawling up her spine. She could hear her father’s voice in her mind. Don’t trust that woman, Siya. Neena Agrawal will smile at you while cutting your throat with a diamond blade.
Siya tried to keep her expression even, but her tone came out more defensive than she intended. ‘I didn’t come here for the Agrawal name or wealth, despite what my father or the media has led you to believe.’
‘So why are you here?’
‘I’m here because of the choices made for me,’ Siya admitted, meeting her gaze despite the way her pulse thundered in her ears.
There was the slightest fracture in Neena’s composure as her eyes flickered with recognition. She raised a brow and remarked, ‘No one walks into a deal like this without wanting something for themselves.’
Siya tried to swallow past her dry throat. Her fingers curled at her sides as she said, ‘I’m not proud of the bargain I made, but I did it to protect what matters the most to me. And I had hoped that maybe, as a woman, you’d understand what it costs us to choose duty over our heart.’
The rustling of the breeze swept Neena’s feather-light pallu into the air, and her grey hair glinted under the afternoon sun.
‘I’m simply protective of my son. Abhay has always believed the best in people. So I’m within my rights to wonder if you’re here as your father’s proxy,’ Neena said, each word chosen like a chess move.
‘You’re well-known for your intelligence. I’m sure if you observe my actions beyond my last name, you’ll figure out the answer.’
For the first time, Neena looked at her with curiosity. ‘You have quite a bite to your words,’ she finally said.
‘Please don’t mistake my defence for disrespect, Mrs Agrawal. I may have my father’s face, but I carry my mother’s spine.’
Neena held her gaze for a moment, and then a faint, knowing smile tugged at the end of her lips. ‘Good. You’ll need it.’
Turning on her heel, Neena walked away, leaving Siya confused over her warning.
Though she knew one thing for sure. Neena didn’t need to be loud or hostile, her chilling smile did the work just fine.
Siya had seen that kind of strength before in her mother who’d worn it like a second skin, and then watched as her father ripped it apart, piece by piece.
Meera passed Neena with a polite nod, and came to stand beside Siya in the balcony. She asked dryly, ‘On a scale of one to ten, how dramatic was your first conversation?’
Siya let out a startled laugh and said, ‘Easily a hundred. It felt like I was being interrogated for a crime.’
‘So… a typical mother-in-law initiation then,’ Meera said, and patted her back in sympathy.
‘Is it always like this with everyone?’
Meera shook her head, and handed her a glass of mimosa.
‘With Gayatri Mom? It was a piece of cake. Yeah, fine, Raghav is the best husband and blah blah blah, but I consider myself truly lucky for having found a mother-in-law like her. But with Neena Aunty? Oh sweetheart, that’s going to be a full-time job, I’m afraid. ’
Luv stumbled onto the balcony, followed closely by Kashvi and Swayam. Luv handed Meera a handful of candied fruit stolen from the dessert tray, making her giggle.
Kashvi popped a chocolate-covered strawberry in her mouth as she nudged her. ‘Oh please, you’ve survived our dad. This is no challenge for you.’
For once, Siya didn’t agree with her sister.
Luv chimed in, his voice floating out, light and teasing. ‘Besides, every epic love story has a formidable mother-in-law in it so you’re off to a great start.’
‘Thanks for all the help during the interview, you guys,’ Siya scolded with a mocking smile.
‘We were busy taking bets on whether it’d be you or Abhay’s mother who throws out that journalist,’ Swayam said cheekily.
‘Yeah, she’s the second person I came close to punching today. The way people test my patience will give me hypertension at a young age,’ Kashvi offered.
‘But the way Neena Aunty put her in her place was a sight to behold,’ Luv said.
Soon, the topic shifted away to food, and Siya took a sip of her drink. To her, it felt as if it’d been a long day, though it was only afternoon. Even amidst the teasing and joking of her friends, she felt the pull of that invisible thread that bound her to Abhay.
Her eyes drifted toward the open archway. Abhay stood across the room, the sleeves of his white shirt rolled up to his elbows, and even from this far, Siya was fixated on the dark veins popping down his muscular arm.
The event manager was talking animatedly, pointing at the file in his hands, but Abhay wasn’t looking at it.
His gaze was solely, undeniably fixed on her. The scalding intensity in them sent a rush of heat crawling up her neck.
‘God, he looks at you like that and you still think he thinks of you as an enemy?’ Meera remarked.
Abhay raised his hand slowly, and pressed his index and middle fingers to his lips and blew her an unabashedly affectionate kiss. Her heart, the damn traitor, skipped a stuttering beat, and she blushed as a reluctant smile pulled at her lips.
In response, his face lit up with laughter, and he placed his palm right above his chest as he stumbled a step back, as if the sight of her red cheeks had struck him in the heart like an arrow.
Siya turned away before he could see the effect he had on her, but the warmth blooming in her chest told her it might be too late for her.