Flaming Sun Collection 1: Happily Ever Afters from India Box Set (The Malhotra Bride; Meghna; The Runaway Bridegroom)

by Sundari Venkatraman

  Shikha gnashed her teeth in frustration. “Sit down Abhi,” she ordered. She waited for him to seat himself before asking, “Why did you have to meet the two guys today afternoon? They had an appointment with Ranveer and I was going to meet them in the boss’s place. Couldn’t you keep your big nose out of it?” Anger boiled within her as she glared at Abhimanyu. The whole of yesterday and today morning she had been looking forward to get to know the two men and Abhimanyu had spoilt her chances.

  “You know very well that Ranveer’s not in town this week. Where was the need to give them an appointment?” asked Abhimanyu logically.

  Shikha lowered her gaze as she couldn’t meet Abhimanyu’s straightforward one. While she made her accusations, Shikha was well aware that she was just picking up a fight and Abhimanyu was too honest to cheat Ranveer in any way. But she did need a punching bag and he was available.

  “Abhi, you do understand that I need to survive, right? I am trying to find a rich guy to get married to and I felt these two men fitted the bill quite perfectly. See what you have done! You destroyed my chances by meeting them yourself,” she said quite honestly.

  “If it’s a rich man that you want to marry, then come on, let’s get married,” said Abhimanyu, quite seriously.

  Shikha laughed bitterly, sure he was joking. For one thing, she didn’t believe that Abhimanyu was rich and for another she was sure he was pulling her leg. “Just get lost Abhi,” she said before getting up from her chair.

  Only to find him standing in front of her, too close for comfort. Shikha had never noticed how tall Abhimanyu was, at least five inches taller than her and she was 5’ 6”. He placed his hands on her shoulders and shook her, much to Shikha’s shock. She had always thought Abhimanyu to be a mild person, insipid in fact. She would have never believed him capable of violence. She felt an unexpected buzz of electricity zinging between the two of them as she saw the temper in his eyes. Did she know the man at all?

  “You get this straight Shikha. I’m not in the habit of repeating myself. I am the man for you. Not everyone will put up with your tantrums and attitude. While I’m extremely patient, it doesn’t mean I’ll let you drive me up the wall,” he said, glaring at her.

  Red colour flared up Shikha’s cheeks. Was he threatening her? Then why was she not scared? Shikha felt a sudden urge to be held close to Abhimanyu. She had had a couple of affairs and they had all been about sex and not hugging. She had neither friends nor family. Shikha shut her mind and followed her instincts and just pressed her body close to his.

  A shudder went through Abhimanyu as his arms went around Shikha’s slim figure and he held her close. That was a gamble he had taken and it seemed to have paid off. He had been a mite worried that she would walk out in a huff. Oh God, it was so blissful holding her in his arms and he had been waiting for this since the day he had set eyes on Ranveer’s secretary.

  They were the perfect yin and yang - he was cool and collected while she was brash and loud. While life together might not be easy, it would never be boring.

  Abhimanyu put a hand under her chin to raise her face to his before placing his lips on hers. What followed was the most passionate kiss that Shikha had ever experienced. She shuddered as she tangled her tongue with Abhimanyu’s, feeling feverish with ardour. How did she ever think he was staid? It was a while before Abhimanyu raised his head to place his forehead against Shikha’s to ask, “Your place or mine?”

  Was that a trace of disappointment he saw on Shikha’s face? The sensitive Abhimanyu could see that she had mentally withdrawn from him even though her body was still close to his. What had he said wrong?

  He ran his fingers through her hair as he studied her features minutely. “Shikha?”

  For the minute there she had believed that he had meant it when he said that he wanted to marry her. Now it seemed as if he was just one more in a string of men who thought that she was good enough for his bed partner but not for life.

  Shikha moved away from him to consider her options. Having an affair with Abhimanyu promised to be hot, even sizzling, considering the kiss they had shared. Their chemistry was simply mind-blowing. Why would she want to marry him anyway? He wasn’t rich enough for her. Shikha came to a decision and replied, “Yours.” After all, she was curious to know where he lived while her apartment was too tiny.

  They went directly down to the car park to Shikha’s surprise. She didn’t know that he had his own vehicle. Her jaw dropped when he opened the white Toyota Fortuner that was parked in the slot for the company Vice President. Could that be true? And the shiny SUV seemed to suit Abhimanyu’s personality somehow. An amazed Shikha got into the passenger seat as Abhimanyu held the door open for her.

  He had a mysterious smile on his face as he got into the driver’s seat and drove a silent Shikha home to his penthouse apartment. Shikha finally lost control and let her jaw drop when she saw the swanky interior decor in Abhimanyu’s four-bedroom apartment. The hall itself could easily fit half a dozen of Shikha’s whole flat within it. Then there was the kitchen and dining area. It was simply amazing.

  All thoughts flew out of Shikha’s mind when Abhimanyu walked from behind her to gather her within his arms. “Do you think I will make a rich enough husband for you, Shikha? This flat is all mine and I don’t have any other family to share it with.” He turned her around, removing his arms from around her.

  Shikha watched in wonder as Abhimanyu moved a few inches away from her to go on his knees. With his right hand extended towards her, he asked, “Will you marry me?”

  The hardheaded Shikha broke down as tears flooded her eyes. She nodded wordlessly as she placed her right hand within Abhimanyu’s.

  Abhimanyu got up to lift Shikha into his arms and walked to the master bedroom while Shikha felt an overwhelming sense of having arrived home after all these years.

  RAM AND LAKSHMAN WERE SIMPLY AMAZED at what Samrat had to tell them. The detective had finally managed to trace Veerendra Choudhry. And even better than that, it looked like Veerendra was none other than Ranveer Singh. Talk about coincidences! Lakshman was quite happy for his sister and could just imagine her thrill on finding the truth.

  The brothers managed to settle Samrat’s account and thanked him for a job well done. Then they sat back to call Chanda only to find that her cell was unreachable. Both men were clear not to call their parents before talking to Chanda. She deserved to know what was happening before they did.

  AT THAT VERY MOMENT, Ranveer had managed to find his ancestral home in Jaswantpura. He had parked his BMW a couple of compounds away. The two streetlights were quite dim and there wasn’t a single soul out on the streets while it was barely 8 pm. He was sure that his parents and the rest of the family must be awake. They usually were up till at least 10 pm. What had stopped Ranveer from going ahead was an attack of cold feet. He was quite worried about their reactions. How much ever he had assured himself on the way here, he was still not feeling very confident. He automatically checked his pocket for the non-existent packet of cigarettes that he used to smoke.

  His mobile hadn’t been working since the past hour as there was no network. He couldn’t even call someone to talk to. Ranveer walked up and down the street garnering his confidence. Finally, deciding that hanging around was not going to help either him or Chanda, Ranveer stepped within the rickety gate and walked towards the house.

  Thirty-six

  Ranveer didn’t meet anyone till he reached the door. They were probably having dinner. Dinner had always been a family affair in the Choudhry household with everyone sitting in the kitchen together while Ranveer’s mother made hot rotis on the choola. There used to be a lot of laughter and conversation between his grandparents, father, brother Jeetendra, his young wife Meena and Veerendra. His mother Sona used to watch on with a smile on her face, not talking much.

  Ranveer was just about to cross the threshold when he realised that wearing shoes inside the house was a no-no. He stepped back to remove his track shoes and
socks before walking inside.

  “Daadaji!” he called out softly, unconsciously keeping his fingers crossed that Choudhry Daada was still alive.

  A couple of children walked into the hall from the direction of the kitchen. They were quickly followed by a young man who must definitely be Jeetendra.

  “Kaun hai?” asked Jeetendra, surprised to see a well-dressed stranger who was obviously from the city.

  “Jeetu!” said Ranveer, his voice hoarse with sudden emotion. Jeetendra and Veerendra had been as thick as thieves. While four years separated the brothers, they used to hang out together with the same group of friends.

  Jeetendra stared at the man who had walked into their home. That tone was so familiar and it could only belong to one person. “Veera?” He walked closer to the stranger to have a better look at his face as the light wasn’t too bright.

  Ranveer nodded his head vigorously, moving closer to his elder brother. The next moment, both the men were hugging each other as the children looked on in fascination. They had never seen Veera Chacha but had heard about him from their grandmother. But no one mentioned Chacha’s name in front of their grandfather Surendra.

  Preeti, the elder child, ran inside to call the other members of the family. The ten-year-old was excited to impart this piece of news as she was confident that she was probably going to shake everyone up.

  “Amma, Daadima, Badima, Bade Pappa!” yelled Preeti as she went into the kitchen. “Veera Chacha is here.”

  She could have dropped a bombshell for the reaction she got from the three women in the kitchen. Daadaji’s head jerked when he heard his grandson’s name, a wide smile breaking out on his face. It looked like Surendra had finally managed to locate his errant younger son.

  Sona didn’t even bother to wipe the tears that poured from her eyes as she rushed to the hall, for once forgetting to behave like a daughter-in-law. She didn’t wait for her father-in-law and mother-in-law to take the lead. She had waited too long to see her younger son and no force in the world was going to stop her from doing so, now that he had come home.

  Meena helped her grandparents-in-law as the trio walked slowly behind Sona.

  Sona walked into the hall just as Jeetendra pushed Ranveer a couple of feet away to look at him. “Tu seth ban gaya re,” he said, a proud smile on his face. There wasn’t a trace of envy on the elder brother’s face as he realised that his younger sibling had obviously done well in life.

  “Aisa kuch nahi hai Jeetu. Tum kaise ho? Aur Meena Bhabhi? Maa kaisi hai?” He looked up to see his mother walking in just as he was asking about her.

  Ranveer moved away from his brother and walked towards his mother. “Maa,” he said as he pulled her into his arms.

  Sona cried her heart out in her son’s arms. She had not only missed him but had been so worried for his safety. However much she had prayed to God to keep Veera out of harm’s way, not seeing him nor knowing his whereabouts over the past fourteen years had taken a toll on her. While Surendra had ranted and raved about his missing son, the quiet Sona had shed many a tear.

  Finally, after all these years, her son was home.

  Daadaji had stopped being angry with his favourite grandson as worry about him had taken over after a couple of weeks since he went missing. He hugged the grown up Veera and pulled him into the warmth of family.

  Ranveer was quite startled to see his grandmother there. He quickly removed the frown on his face and gave her a tentative smile as he held her hand. He had been sure she was dead. In fact, he had seen her dead body when he went home just once after running away. How could that be possible? He decided to ask Jeetu later.

  Veera was duly introduced to his niece Preeti who gave him a toothy smile and his seven-year-old nephew Vikas who was quite tall for his age. It was as if the years between had never been as they all sat down to dinner.

  “Where’s Surendra?” asked Daadaji who had been wondering why Veera wasn’t accompanied by his father.

  “Pappa?” asked Veera turned Ranveer, a frown on his face. “I was going to ask you the same thing. Where is he?”

  Now it was Daadaji’s turn to frown. “Arre, your father went to Jaipur in search of you. Now that he has found you, how come you are home all by yourself? Where’s your father?”

  Ranveer looked first at his grandfather and then at Jeetu to check whether what he heard was right. “Why would Pappa search for me in Jaipur? I live in Delhi,” he said, his voice puzzled.

  Jeetendra replied, “Pappa went to Jaipur to meet your in-laws. Mohan uncle and Meera aunty had been here last week to meet us all. They—”

  He regaled Ranveer with the whole story of their father going to Jaipur.

  Ranveer listened to his brother, finding himself in a fix. It looked like his parents-in-law and his family members were keen to get him back together with his child wife. And here he was home, planning to divorce her. Will they be ready to forgive him a second time? He had been quite surprised at his whole family accepting the return of the prodigal son without any bitterness. Will that continue once he told them the purpose of his visit?

  Ranveer hadn’t run away from his child bride and carved a life for himself away from his family only to return after fourteen years and get together with the same girl. Dammit! Why did life have to be so complicated?

  Ranveer waited for Jeetu to complete his tale before saying, “I didn’t know anything about this. I just decided to come home on my own.”

  Daadaji was extremely surprised to hear this bit of news just as the rest of the family was. That probably meant that Surendra wasn’t even aware that Veera had been found or rather that Veera had found them.

  Dinner was over by now and Veera didn’t even realise what he had eaten, his mind far away from food. He began to wonder whether he had made a mistake coming back home at this point in time. Everyone shifted to the main hall where Daadaji held court.

  Daadaji said, “Jeetu, call your father immediately and tell him Veera’s home.”

  Jeetu got up to obey his grandfather. Ranveer stopped him saying, “Wait a minute, Jeetu. Don’t you think it’s very late? Pappa’s probably asleep.”

  Jeetu stared at Veera, trying to understand the hidden meaning in his brother’s words. Both of them knew quite well that Surendra never went to sleep before 11 pm. Veera’s eyes clearly instructed Jeetu not to make the call.

  Veera looked at his Daadaji who was staring at Jeetu, waiting for him to phone his father. Realising that it was up to him to avoid the situation, Veera said, “Why don’t you wait for the morning? Let Pappa sleep peacefully. After all, he’s staying at someone’s home. It might not be the most convenient moment to give him news of my return home.” His fingers were crossed for the second time that night as he willed his grandfather to agree with him.

  Daadaji looked from one grandson to the other and thought for a minute before saying, “Maybe you are right Veera. Let’s not disturb your father till morning.” But the intelligent old man sensed that something was not quite as it should be.

  Ranveer told his family of his adventures since the day of his marriage. Even the kids stayed up to hear their Chacha’s life story while he glossed over the difficult days before he met Dave and Jane. Daadaji had tears in his eyes as he listened to how his grandson had educated himself with the foreigners’ help and set up his own flourishing business.

  “But Veera, didn’t you think of coming back home even once? Just to see your Daada if no one else?” asked Daadaji pathetically.

  Ranveer wanted to wipe out the pain from his grandfather’s face. They had been so close once upon a time. He held the wrinkled hand in both of his and said, “I did come Daadaji. I came back when Dave insisted that I should let you all know that I am safe.” He paused, wondering how to tell what came next. Everyone looked at him eagerly, waiting for him to continue. Ranveer looked at his grandmother and said softly, “When I came here, I saw Daadima dead. I just couldn’t face you all as I felt so guilty. I believed that my runnin
g away had caused her early death.” A frown appeared on his face as he wondered who had died at that time, giving him the impression that it was his grandma.

  Jeetu explained, “Veera, you probably came when Athiya died. She had come to visit us and unexpectedly died of heart attack. It’s sad you thought it was Daadima.” His lips drooped, feeling sorry that they had lost Veera for a second time due to a mistake.

  Silence reigned in the house for a few minutes while everyone absorbed the conversation.

  “So, Veera, you have become a city man through and through, it seems,” said Daadaji, feeling quite proud of his younger grandson’s achievements. “Your wife and her parents will also be so happy to know about this. You know, it was by chance that Mohan and his wife came here last week. What a coincidence that you also decided to come back to us at the same time. It all must be the grace of God and your mother’s prayers.” Sona nodded her head, tears of gratitude flowing from her eyes in a continuous stream. She was holding on to her son’s hand that she had not let go from the moment she set eyes on him.

  Ranveer felt smothered at the mention of his wife and parents-in-law. Could he never escape his marriage? Will he ever be able to explain to his family members that he was in love with someone else? They couldn’t force him to set up house with his wife of fourteen years, of course. But Ranveer didn’t want any more animosity between him and his family.

  From what he heard, his father had been extremely upset at his disappearance and had turned quite bitter over the years. How would he react to Ranveer’s bid to divorce his wife?

  It was quite late when everyone finally went to sleep. Ranveer insisted on sleeping on the sofa in the hall, his favourite place since childhood. He had grown up a lot since then, but somehow he felt that he would be able to regain the peace that he had lost over the past few days by lying there. But sleep eluded him as Ranveer’s mind tortured him endlessly through the night and no amount of positive thinking could bring him solace as he tossed and turned on the old sofa.