Trouble Has a New Name

by Adite Banerjie

  Neel’s musings came to an abrupt halt when he saw a lady enter the bar accompanied by two men. He recognised the trio immediately: Karisma, Sid Verma and Aziz Shah. He swilled the Scotch in his glass and poured it down his throat. The sight of the namby-pamby Sid made his blood churn. Pushing away from the table, he heard Karisma mention Rayna and he stopped. His curiosity was piqued.

  ‘The story about Sid and Rayna’s break-up will be the first of the series. When will they carry the piece?’ asked Karisma.

  Aziz Shah replied, ‘The editor promised it would be in tomorrow’s paper.’

  Karisma clapped her hands in glee. ‘Wonderful. That should cause a bit of a stir. But we need to follow it up with a picture of me and Sid kissing.’

  Sid squirmed in his seat. ‘Karisma, why do we need to drag Rayna into this? Can’t we just go with the announcement of me directing a feature film for your production company?’

  Karisma cut him short. ‘Shut up, Sid. You have no clue about publicity. We need to create a buzz around my company. You’re just one amongst many ad filmmakers trying to break into the movie business as a director. You can bet your bottom rupee you won’t get a two-line mention on page sixteen.’

  Shah nodded. ‘She’s right. Nothing sells like scandal. The story about your break-up with one of the top models in the industry, followed by the news of you and Karisma making out will spice up the film announcement. Sid, if you want to succeed in this business you need to follow this lady’s instructions. Karisma really knows how to play the gossip and scandal game.’

  ‘Thanks, Aziz, for the compliment. You and I have been doing this for some time, haven’t we? Now, let’s order some champagne to celebrate, shall we?’

  Neel’s head pounded with rage. He didn’t know what made him angrier—the fact that Sid had no compunctions about using Rayna to further his own career or that she was totally blind to his manipulations. But then, had he seen through Pia’s game? He had been so convinced she was the perfect woman for him, he had landed up at her house, baraat in tow, ready to take her home as his bride. He had no business passing judgement on Rayna’s relationships. Was that why she had sought his help—and asked him to pose as her fiancé—to get her own back at Sid? Or did she want to pretend with him so she could make Sid jealous? Why were relationships so complicated? And why the hell was he worrying about Rayna when he should be focusing on protecting the reputation of his resort? The high profile guests were unlikely to be impressed if they saw their pictures splashed in sleazy tabloids!

  He reached the terraced garden where the fun and games were still on. Chris was holding forth and regaling everyone with a funny story. While the others were cracking up at his anecdote, Rayna was lost in thought. He felt a twinge of guilt—he shouldn’t have taken out his frustration on her. Or was she fretting about her broken relationship with that moronic Sid? A stab of jealousy impaled his gut yet again.

  Taking a deep breath, he slid into the empty seat next to Rayna. She looked up at him with a start and for a fleeting moment he saw something warm and happy leap into her eyes. But, before he could relish it, it was replaced by wariness.

  ‘Sorry for being such a grouch,’ he whispered into her ear. ‘I need to talk to you in private.’

  ‘Now? What’s up?’ She bristled at the insistent note in his voice.

  ‘Shah’s going to the press tomorrow with some kind of a scandalous story about your break-up with Sid Verma.’

  RBIL #2 had come back to bite her on the butt!

  She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to keep calm. ‘How do you know—?’

  But, before she could finish, she heard Agra Aunty announce loudly, ‘Your turn next, Rayna. Truth or Dare?’

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  HAD SHE CRASH-LANDED into Worst Nightmare Ever World? It definitely was worse than that previous dreaded WNE Moment—a fashion mishap in the midst of a shoot! Rayna’s self-confidence was being stripped away one embarrassing situation at a time.

  As her befuddled brain tried to come to grips with what Neel had just told her, she shuddered at the implications of the revelation. Having her break-up with Sid discussed for all to read about in some tabloid was bad enough career-wise. More scary, though, was the thought of Agra Aunty getting on her soapbox and spouting dramatic drivel to her brother and sister-in-law about how Rayna had ‘heaped shame on the family name’!

  Egged on by Agra Aunty, the group started chanting, ‘Truth or Dare! Come on, Rayna… Truth or Dare!’

  Rayna fumed. Agra Aunty knew how to push her buttons and she was doing it right now with her stupid challenge. And, true to type, Rayna was tempted to go in all guns blazing, to hell with the consequences. Just like she had on the day when the devious lady had found the acceptance letter addressed to her from Sophia College.

  It had gone so horribly wrong. Rayna had been trying for weeks to muster up the guts to tell Robi Da and Sudha Bhabhi that she had applied for admission to the elite college in Mumbai. Even though they were dead set against her leaving home she had hoped to change their minds. Or at least that had been the plan. But Agra Aunty—sneaky as ever—had totally ruined it. She’d found the letter and spilled the beans. The fact that she had no business opening her personal mail made her seethe even more. Robi Da was furious that she had not bothered to discuss the issue with him before taking ‘such a big step’ while Sudha Bhabhi and Agra Aunty only stoked his anger further.

  Painted into a corner, Rayna had lashed out. ‘You are not Dad and Sudha Bhabhi has never been like a mother to me!’

  Deafening silence and shocked faces greeted her outburst. The emotions that had festered for years gushed out. ‘If our parents were alive they would never have stopped me. But you don’t care about me. I am just a burden, a responsibility to be borne till you can marry me off!’

  Almost instantly, Rayna wished she could take her words back. But Robi Da did not deny her charge and her heart froze at his cold attitude. Sudha Bhabhi and Agra Aunty glared malevolently at her as if she had turned into an evil monster.

  ‘Since you have already made up your mind, there’s no point in talking about this any more,’ he said.

  She had stomped away to her room and started packing her bags. One way or the other, the matter had been decided and yet she felt guilt gnawing at her heart. After tossing and turning all night, she’d resolved to make amends before leaving. The next day she had tried to apologise to Robi Da but was intimidated by his cold, uncaring attitude. He’d given her the money that her parents had saved up for her. Her apology dried on her lips at his words. ‘It’s not a lot but it will go a long way if you’re a bit careful. And I hope you will behave like a responsible adult and try not to embarrass yourself or us.’

  Eyes stinging with tears, she had simply nodded and turned away. She had been too proud to show how devastated she was. It had taken her months to get over that showdown. Many times she wanted to chuck everything in and rush back to Agra. But her pride had forced her to stay in Mumbai and build her career.

  Setting up a business in the competitive fashion industry was beyond her means and she diverted her energies to modelling. Her dreams of becoming a jewellery designer were put on hold and she would revisit them once she had enough seed money and contacts. The plan was working—she had done courses in design and marketing, and her contact list was growing. Best of all, she hadn’t gone back home to her brother licking her wounds, tail between her legs.

  Now, everything was about to fall apart. She was on the verge of becoming an ‘embarrassment,’ just as Robi Da expected. All because of one stupid mistake on her part—she had misjudged Sid. Totally.

  Radhika giggled. ‘Lost your nerve, Rayna? Your stint in Mumbai has made you a bit of a wuss, no?’

  Rayna decided that rising to the bait would only cause more trouble. She needed to wriggle out of this quickly, but how? Unfortunately, there was nothing from the RBIL to fall back upon. Totally stumped!

  Neel’s deep voice broke through the lou
d chants of ‘Truth or Dare!’

  ‘Rayna can take her turn after me. I’ll go with Truth.’

  When in distress, dial Neel! She really did need his rescue act!

  ‘Yeh hui na baat!’ boomed Agra Aunty. ‘So tell us, Neel mundya, if you had to choose one of the pretty girls here as your bride, who would you pick?’

  A collective sigh went up as eager faces turned to Neel.

  Neel paused for a beat and looked deep into Rayna’s eyes. His insides clenched at the tension that emanated in waves from her. Why couldn’t she forget that namby-pamby runt of a man? She should be glad she had got out of a bad relationship instead of mourning her break-up with Sid. For God’s sake, why was he obsessing about her when he’d far more important things to think about? Maybe this was his opportunity to knock some sense into her head. No, not true. He needed her to think of no one but him!

  ‘There is only one woman I’d pick.’ He paused for effect. ‘Rayna.’

  Rayna couldn’t believe her ears. If this was his idea of a joke it was one of the worst kinds! Was he trying to get back at her for calling him a boy toy? Or was this his revenge for the orange juice drenching? She had a good mind to grab his Scotch and pour it down his shirt.

  ‘In fact, Rayna and I are already engaged to be married.’

  Engaged to be married? Her ears burnt as twenty pairs of eyes turned towards her. There was much excited squealing all around but her brain had somehow muted out the voices. All she could see were animated, laughing faces.

  His words filtered through the thick fog swirling in her brain. ‘…keep it secret as we didn’t want to spoil Milee and Chris’s celebrations. But I guess you can’t keep love under wraps, can you?’

  Her synapses snapped into place at the mention of that four-letter word. Love? No, no, no!

  ‘What the hell do you think you’re doing?’ she hissed at him through clenched teeth.

  The devilish grin he gave her did nothing to reassure her. Her heart knocked around inside her like a football hitting the goalposts.

  ‘You can thank me later,’ he murmured so only she could hear him. ‘For now, do yourself a favour and play along, will you?’

  She was gobsmacked as the group went wild, applauding as if he was David Beckham and he’d scored the winning goal at the World Cup final!

  Chris raised a toast to the newest couple on the block. ‘It’s the season for love! Wish you both a wonderful romantic journey ahead!’

  Milee’s excited voice chimed in, ‘Hear Hear! How exciting!’ And she added in a whisper to Rayna, ‘What’s up, yaar? I’m going along with this but you’d better fill me in with the details pronto!’

  Rayna wished she knew what Neel was up to. With the tabloid crisis looming on the horizon and now this announcement, was she going to go down like the Titanic? Gosh, this would cause so much scandal back home—not only did she have one wrecked relationship to her name but she had also signed up for a second one. To make matters worse, after Milee’s wedding had wrapped up, she would have to explain away another broken ‘engagement’! If only she hadn’t come up with this silly idea in the first place—but why the hell did Neel have to bring it up now?

  She glared at Neel. ‘I have had enough of this stupid game. Are you going to call off this charade or should I?’

  The intense look he gave her made her mouth go dry. ‘Go ahead—be my guest.’

  ‘OK, guys,’ she called out to the group as she stared at him defiantly. ‘There is no need to take any of this seriously. Neel’s just having some fun at my expense.’

  Several voices went up in protest. Radhika called out, ‘Oh, no! Neel, you’re telling the truth, right?’

  ‘My turn is over.’ He smiled. ‘You may choose to believe me or her. It’s up to you.’

  She bristled at how easily he’d sidestepped the verbal missiles.

  Radhika pounced on her. ‘Rayna, your turn. Truth or Dare?’

  Rayna weighed her choices. Going with Truth would be like stepping on a live minefield. But was the alternative any better? ‘Dare.’

  Milee beat the others to it. ‘Kiss Neel. Full on the lips, please. And let us judge who is telling the truth!’

  Boom! You didn’t see that coming, did you, Rayna?

  Wolf-whistles and applause accompanied Milee’s suggestion; she naughtily winked at Rayna.

  ‘Milee, I will kill you!’ Rayna muttered under her breath.

  ‘Serves you right for keeping secrets from your best friend.’

  Agra Aunty glared at her in disapproval and yet Rayna’s stupid pride wouldn’t let her walk away from the dare. She was no wuss! So take that, you all!

  Heart thundering like a runaway train, she leaned towards Neel. She inhaled deeply and gave him a quick peck on his cheek. Or maybe she was a coward after all! But before she could pull away he turned his cheek ever so slightly and the kiss landed slam bang on his mouth. His warm lips caught hers and, as he shamelessly deepened the kiss, a flame ignited deep within her. She didn’t know if it had been moments or minutes before she managed to drag herself away. Her heart was racing so hard it drowned out the wild applause around them. Zombie-like, she got up and her wobbly knees almost gave way. But she willed herself to walk away…She needed to find some sanity in a world that had just gone upside-down crazy.

  Neel ran down to the beach in search of Rayna—but there wasn’t a soul in sight. The twinkling stars shone down on the soft white sand as the ocean roared gently in the distance. She had stormed out after their mind-altering kiss, leaving him wanting more. Much, much more. He finally spotted her near a clump of coconut palms. Her hair whipped around her face and the full moon cast its ethereal glow on her. The breeze wrapped her dress tightly around her delicious curves. She looked like a sexy goddess who had emerged from the depths of the ocean. Desire rampaged through him.

  She walked towards him and challenged him, ‘Do you mind telling me what that was all about?’

  She looked super-hot when she was angry was the unbidden thought that leaped into his mind. His emotions were way beyond control as he struggled not to take her in his arms and kiss her thoroughly. ‘You really have a short memory, don’t you? Remember, you were upset when I refused—’

  ‘Exactly! You refused to be my fake fiancé.’

  ‘So, I changed my mind.’ He shrugged. ‘Is that a crime?’

  She spluttered, ‘You changed your mind… But why?’

  ‘I had my reasons.’

  ‘Stop talking in riddles, will you?’

  ‘O-o-o-K,’ he said as if talking to a child. ‘Here’s the chain of events. One. There’s a blast from the past—your words, remember? Two. You ask me to be your fiancé. Three. You bump into a guy and have a huge row with him. Four. Turns out the guy is your ex and he is planning to go public about your break-up. Five. The thought of a scandal scares the hell out of you. Doesn’t take much to connect the dots.’

  ‘Connect the dots?’ she said, crossing her arms across her chest. Why the heck was she repeating his words like a parrot? ‘Now let’s get some things straight. One. You’re right—I could happily slit Sid’s throat, but not for the reasons you think. Two. I don’t need you to do me any favours. Three. Scandal scares me—who gave you that stupid idea? Do me a favour and stop connecting dots or squares or whatever!’

  ‘Hmm…then why exactly did you want us to pretend to be in a fake relationship if not to keep the sordid details of your break-up a secret?’

  Sordid! ‘You—you have just managed to complicate my life even more. Not only do I have to come clean about my so-called “sordid break-up,” but, guess what, I also have to cook up a story about how I found myself a spanking-new fiancé in double-quick time. Oh, and since you are into doing favours, would you know if I can buy a card here that says “Thank you for making me out to be a two-timing harlot”? I need to send it to one interfering soul.’

  ‘Whoa! Whoa!’ His eyes twinkled with amusement though his mouth barely tilted at the corners.r />
  She was so mad she would happily stuff some sand down his sexy throat if he so much as cracked a smile!

  ‘Now will you calm down and hear me out?’

  She pursed her lips, holding back the words with difficulty. Calm…sure, she could do calm!

  ‘By the time your break-up makes it to breaking news on national TV, you should be able to deny it completely,’ he reasoned with a touch of sarcasm. ‘You could brush it off as malicious gossip since you and I have already been in a relationship for the past three months. And we have now decided to take it to…how do you say it…yeah, right, the next level. Sound good?’

  Her jaw dropped open. ‘And…what if Sid decides to call our bluff?’

  ‘He won’t. He has bigger fish to fry.’

  ‘What do you mean?’

  ‘Right now, he’s more interested in not screwing up whatever deal he has going with what’s-her-name—’

  ‘Karisma. What deal?’

  ‘Apparently, he is going to be directing a movie for her new production company.’

  Ah! Karisma and Sid were going to forge a new career and relationship and, as a result, she would be trampled all over in the gossip rags. Who knew she would be at the receiving end of Sid’s there-is-no-such-thing-as-bad-publicity philosophy?

  ‘And what happens later? After Chris and Milee’s wedding is over…how do I go about explaining why my hot new fiancé has suddenly disappeared from my life?’ He grinned at her. ‘Hot! I like that.’

  Eeeessh! How did that slip out? ‘Don’t you change the subject now.’

  ‘Lady, you should have thought through that problem when you first proposed the fake engagement. But never mind—do you want the good news first or the bad?’

  ‘Bad.’ What was the point in delaying it any further? she thought grimly.

  ‘Interesting choice.’ He cocked an eyebrow. ‘I’m afraid I can’t offer you a neat solution all tied up with a pretty pink ribbon.’

  Well, no surprises there! She now had it on record he was unavailable for the role of her knight in shining armour after all! ‘And the good news?’