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

by Sundari Venkatraman

  He liked the vision of Meghna adorned in this particular piece. He nodded his head to the salesman and requested him to gift-wrap it.

  “What about a bracelet, Sir?” The smart salesman looked at his customer hopefully expecting to add some more commission to the fat one he must have already earned.

  Rahul grinned at him and said, “Why not? I’m sure I can afford it. But don’t show me too many. Just something to match the necklace.”

  The salesman eagerly went to get the particular piece he had in mind. He showed it to Rahul for approval. Rahul liked what he saw and asked the salesman to pack them all. “But pack the ring separately,” he told him.

  Rahul waited impatiently, tapping his shoe-clad feet on the plush carpet while the accountant prepared the bill. He ran a cursory glance over it before handing over the value in British currency. He added a generous tip in Indian rupees for the salesman. “For your excellent service,” he smiled.

  Rahul stepped out of the air-conditioned interior of the shop into the sunshine, a satisfied smile lurking on his lips. He was quite happy with the way the morning had worked out. Now he looked forward to the evening with great anticipation.

  Fourteen

  Meghna must have slept for barely half an hour when her cell buzzed on the side table. Normally, she wouldn’t have kept her phone nearby during sleep. But she didn’t want to miss in case Rahul called. In a state of half-sleep, she took the cell to check the caller ID and was quite irritated to see it was Prashant. She rejected the call and tried to get back to sleep again.

  But Prashant was quite persistent. He called again and yet again. Meghna was fully awake now and remembering the sense of remorse she felt at using him the earlier night, took the call.

  “Hello Prashant,” she said, keeping the impatience out of her voice with great difficulty.

  “Hi Meghna, are you still angry with me?” he asked in a small voice.

  Meghna immediately felt contrite. She never wanted to demean him. After all, they had been teaching together for two years and meeting at least five days a week. It was a friendship of sorts and she didn’t want to break it. All the advice Rahul had given her regarding Prashant went out of the window as Meghna replied in a gentle voice, “Of course not Prashant. I only hope you aren’t upset with me after last night. I didn’t mean to be rude. But—”

  “Prove it,” he said, much to her amazement.

  “Huh?” All trace of sleep had disappeared by now.

  “I said prove it. Go out with me today evening. We’ll have dinner at wherever you want to go,” said Prashant, his voice suddenly oozing confidence.

  What had she got herself into? And how to get out of this one? Meghna was confused, but just for a minute. “Prashant, we have guests at home,” her fingers crossed automatically at the white lie, “I won’t be able to have dinner with you. I’m so sorry,” she said, quite glad of the excuse.

  “Then meet me now,” insisted Prashant in a desperate tone. He needed to get her alone and soon. Otherwise that gorilla from London will take her away permanently from him.

  Meghna thought quickly. Rahul was out and probably will be for the next few hours. She thought it best to meet Prashant and explain to him where he stood. And she did owe him an apology that couldn’t be made over the phone. “Okay,” she said to Prashant’s surprise. “Where?”

  “Why don’t you come over to my flat?” His mother was at work and he was all alone, having taken the day off. He was too disturbed after last night to be of much use at work.

  Meghna didn’t think twice before agreeing and took his address. It wasn’t far, just at Dosti Apartments in Wadala. She quickly changed into jeans and t-shirt, combed her hair and left after calling out to Reema. With no bike, she took a cab to Prashant’s apartment.

  He opened the door even before she rang the bell. Meghna went in tentatively, guessing that he was alone. Her only confidence was that he was an old friend.

  “Come in Meghna,” said Prashant, feeling his chest swell with excitement. He finally had her alone. She had been playing fast and loose with him for two years, or so he believed. It didn’t strike him that it was he who had been interested in having her for a girl friend while she always considered him just a friend.

  He gestured for her to sit in the two-seater, hoping to be close to her. But Meghna pretended to not see it and sat on the single sofa. The disappointed Prashant got her a glass of water. “Late night or what? You’re looking tired,” he grinned stupidly, his eyes devouring her slim figure in the tight fitting jeans and t-shirt.

  She took a sip from the glass before keeping it on a side table and looked at him. “I’m terribly sorry about last night, Prashant. I hope I haven’t hurt you,” she apologised sincerely, her eyes compassionate as she looked at him. Deep down she knew that their friendship wasn’t going to last.

  Prashant shook his head even before she completed the sentence. “Of course not, Meghna. He’s your guest and you had to take care of him. I understand that. You and I go a long way and I know that no one can come between us.”

  ‘Now where the hell did that spring from?’ Meghna turned startled eyes to his face and was shocked to see that he had moved quite close to her. “I don’t understand what you mean,” she said, her voice louder than before.

  He sat on the arm of her sofa, his hand on her shoulder. “Come on Meghna. Don’t tell me you aren’t aware that I am in love with you.” He pressed his hot lips against her cheek.

  Meghna sprang from the sofa as if bitten. She looked at him with shocked eyes. She hadn’t quite expected this even if Rahul had warned her about Prashant’s feelings for her. She shook her head in denial, rubbing away the sensation of his lips against her cheek with her left hand.

  Prashant got up too and walked to her. “Meghna, just give me some time and I will convince you that you love me too. We have spent two years together. Was there a choice?” He was too close for comfort.

  Meghna felt like an idiot for having come to meet him at his home. She had to escape before he did something they both would regret.

  “Prashant, tell you what? I’m too tired to think straight. Let me go back home and get some rest. Can we continue our talk tomorrow? I’ll meet you again.” She walked towards the door saying this, her fingers crossed again as she lied to him for the second time.

  She was surprised and triumphant when Prashant let her go. That had been too easy. She pulled the automatic lock on the front door and was shocked to find out that it wouldn’t budge. She was locked in the flat with Prashant. What the hell did he plan to do? She felt a powerful adrenalin rush as she turned her tempestuous face towards him, her grey eyes flaming with anger.

  “Open the door, Prashant,” she ordered, her voice soft and intense.

  Prashant put both his hands up and said, “Chill Meghna. You came just now. What’s the rush?” He took a step towards her. She moved, her back pressed against the door, heart beating hard. What was he going to do?

  “Let’s have a drink together.” He walked to the kitchen, confident that she had no way to escape.

  Meghna desperately put her hand in her shoulder bag and speed-dialed Rahul’s number on her cell, keeping an eye out for her tormentor. Prashant returned with two beers before she could say anything. She slipped the phone back into her bag, keeping the line on.

  “Come Meghna,” Prashant patted the two-seater again as he offered her a beer. Meghna looked at him warily, her whole body tense. This was not her dance partner of two years. He was a stranger. The other Prashant wouldn’t have dared to keep her locked in. He was too faint-hearted or so she had believed.

  “Come on Meghna,” invited Prashant again, confident of having his way with her one way or the other. “Have some beer and let’s talk.”

  ‘Talk’ sounded good and losing some of her tension, Meghna walked slowly towards the sofa. She again sat on the edge of the single seater and took the can of beer from him, making sure that their fingers didn’t touch. She did
n’t much care for the smirk on Prashant’s face as he said, “Cheers!” before taking a long swig from his can. “Go on, you don’t want it to get warm, do you?” he asked courteously, his dark eyes watching her avidly.

  Meghna was aware that the phone was on and she hoped Rahul was hearing their conversation. “Err—Prashant,” her voice choked on his name as she felt a strong sense of revulsion. She cleared her throat before talking again, “Is this your own flat or have you rented it?” She opened the beer can and took a sip to wet her parched throat, her eyes not leaving his face, ready to pounce at the least movement.

  Prashant frowned as if wondering why she was asking such a question. “It’s my own,” he said, finishing his beer.

  Meghna recoiled when he got up. But he went to the kitchen to get himself another drink. How to bring the location of his flat into the dialogue without letting him know that she was feeding information to someone? She thought hard as he walked back to sit on the arm of her sofa yet again.

  She pressed herself as far away from him as possible and asked, “Dosti is a good builder I’ve heard and this flat is fairly new. Have you always lived in Wadala?”

  Prashant deliberately moved closer to remove the beer can from her trembling hands, without bothering to answer her. He placed both cans on a side table before sliding on to the sofa beside her. He had already finished his second beer boosting his courage. When Meghna went to get up, he pulled her on his lap, his arms clamped tightly around her. Meghna let out a small scream before he pressed his hand over her mouth.

  “Listen, I’m not going to harm you,” he said. “There’s no need to scream. I just want to love you.” He pressed his lips to Meghna’s throat as she squirmed, unable to get out of his hold. With great difficulty she released her arms and clawed at his hands. He let her go when the skin on the back of his hands burnt from the cuts wielded by her sharp nails. She jumped away from him the moment he moved his hands away.

  Prashant looked shocked as he studied the scratches on his hands. He looked up at her, anger in his eyes. “I told you I won’t hurt you,” he snarled, walking towards her.

  Her grey eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Surely he wasn’t going to rape her? She shook her head from side to side, keen to avoid him. There was nowhere to run - just the hall and kitchen with no door in-between. She was once again pressed against the front door, willing it to open.

  The bell rang as if on cue and Prashant cursed, virulently. Who the hell was it at this time of the afternoon? He wasn’t expecting anybody.

  RAHUL HAD BEEN DRIVING HOME TO SION when Meghna called. He switched on his bluetooth and was shocked to hear what he did. He pulled to the side of the road and stopped the bike. He took his cell phone out of his pocket and checked the location of Meghna’s mobile on the GPS. She wasn’t far, just a few minutes away and thank God for that.

  Rahul gunned the bike towards Dosti Apartments in Wadala and reached Prashant’s flat just as he heard the other man say, “I told you I won’t hurt you.” Rahul felt violent as he rang the doorbell long and hard.

  The moment the door opened, Rahul put his shoe-clad foot in the doorway, not keen to have the door close in his face. He glared at Prashant and asked, “Where’s Meghna?” He couldn’t see Prashant’s hand pressed against her throat as he held her against the wall. Rahul heard a gagging sound and immediately pushed the other man out of his way as he walked into the flat.

  Meghna was pressed against the wall near the door, tears running down her cheeks as she massaged her bruised neck. Her lips moved soundlessly as she fell into Rahul’s arms, so relieved to see him.

  Rahul just about managed to see the fist coming in his direction as he turned with Meghna in his arms. He caught Prashant’s fist quite easily in his left hand and twisted it, hard. He lifted his right arm and slapped the other man hard on his cheek. Prashant reeled at the tight slap and held his cheek with both hands, his eyes glaring hatred at Rahul.

  Rahul thrust his face close to his adversary and snapped, “Just stay away from Meghna,” his honey-gold eyes promising murder otherwise.

  Rahul held Meghna close as they walked out of the flat, neither of them saying a word. She was just glad that he had arrived on time. But he was having a difficult time holding on to his temper as he had a good mind to put her on his knee and give her a sound thrashing for her irresponsible behaviour. Why the hell did she have to visit Prashant at his home of all places?

  Rahul stopped the bike near Meghna’s building and waited for her to get off before driving away, not uttering a single word.

  Fifteen

  Meghna was shocked by Rahul’s behaviour, to the point that she almost forgot the trauma she had undergone at Prashant’s hands. What was with the man? Why the hell did he go away without saying anything? She had been sure he would hug and comfort her in the privacy of her room. But—but he had just gone away. Did he care for her at all? What could be more important right now?

  She went up to her flat, her face pale. She walked to the room without meeting the other members of the family and was shocked to see the bruise marks on her throat where Prashant had held her.

  She rushed to the bathroom and threw up. Her whole system was shaken by the incident and Rahul’s subsequent behaviour hadn’t helped. Controlling the tears that were fighting to spill over, Meghna stood under the shower for a long time, scrubbing away Prashant’s touch.

  She wore a sleeveless tee with a turtleneck to cover her bruises and went to find the others. Rahul was still not home and he wasn’t picking her calls. She had called him at least five times. She didn’t plan to call him again.

  The kids had already had lunch and were having their nap. She sat at the dining table with Sanjay and Reema without talking much. After a couple of attempts, the two of them continued to converse between themselves, leaving her alone. No one spoke about Rahul, much to Meghna’s anger and disappointment. She broke the naan into pieces and kept moving them around in her plate, her appetite non-existent. After a while, she excused herself to go to her bedroom. Sleep eluded her as she oscillated between hurt and anger. She added ‘abominable’ to the adjectives she used for Rahul.

  THE SUBJECT OF HER THOUGHTS HAD GONE TO A BAR and sloshed himself silly. He didn’t want to answer Meghna’s calls as he wasn’t sure what he wanted to tell her. She was an adult and it wasn’t up to him to teach her how to live. But that didn’t stop him from being angry with her. He messaged Sanjay that he would be out for the day so that they didn’t wait lunch for him.

  The first thing Rahul did after leaving Meghna was to postpone his dinner plans at JW Marriott for the evening. It was not the right time to bare his heart to his lady love. He wondered whether the time will ever be right as his anger mounted a few more notches as he recalled Meghna’s behaviour that afternoon. He had already warned her about Prashant’s feelings towards her. Despite that, she had flirted with the man last night and had the nerve to visit him today at his flat. Did she have no sense? Not for a minute did Rahul believe that she might be attracted to Prashant. He was quite confident that Meghna loved himself and none else. He had driven away as he felt violent and hadn’t wanted to do something that he would regret for life.

  He had ridden all the way to Colaba to Leopold Café and set out to drink himself under the table. He ordered some food after downing four large pegs of whiskey. All the temper in the world hadn’t spoilt his appetite and he had a hearty lunch. It was almost four when Rahul got on his bike to go to Chowpatty and walked on the seashore. The waves had a calming effect on him and after a couple of hours, he left to go back home.

  Meghna and Rahul managed to ignore each other the whole evening. The other couple stuck to an inane conversation after looking at their stony expressions.

  All hell broke loose that night. The foursome had settled for the night while Meghna sat brooding in her room. She couldn’t sleep and she decided she wouldn’t let Rahul sleep peacefully either.

  She got up immediately to put her th
ought into action and went to his room. She knocked and waited for him to open the door. He scowled heavily when he saw who it was. Refusing to be cowed down, she walked in jauntily. Placing her hands on her hips, she glared at him. That’s when she noticed that he was in his boxers and she had a tough time not running away from his room.

  Rahul’s eyebrows touched his hairline in enquiry. He still didn’t utter a word.

  “What’s with the silent treatment?” she asked, her voice trembling with emotion.

  “When my words have no value, it makes sense to keep quiet, doesn’t it?” he came back with a question of his own.

  Her grey eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “You can’t do this to me Rahul. Prashant’s a bastard and it was a traumatic experience. You weren’t even there for me after that,” she accused.

  “I was there when you needed me, right?”

  “No. You left me and went away.” She had so wanted to be held in his strong arms to feel safe. But he had gone away. She refused to let the tears flow. She wasn’t weak.

  “What would you’ve had me do? It was easy to knock sense into Prashant with a tight slap. But you?” he asked, refusing to be moved by damp eyes.

  “How dare you?” she snarled. “How dare you compare me with Prashant? Yesterday, I was in a situation and yes, you did come to my rescue. Don’t you care enough about me to help me get over the ordeal? Believe me, it was a horrible experience,” she yelled now.

  “And one that you brought on yourself,” he said cruelly.

  Meghna’s jaw dropped, shock on her face. She turned away from him, hugging herself protectively. Her eyes were completely dry now.

  Rahul looked at her dejected figure and felt sorry for her. Now that he was calmer, he was ready to meet her halfway. His intention hadn’t been to punish her. He had needed to cool down before confronting her and that was the reason he had gone away. But she was still on her high horse. He walked up to her and placed a hand on her slumped shoulder. “Meghna.”