Page 27 of One Hellish Wedlock
Anand Malhotra and his wife, Kyle, stepped into the Singh residence unannounced. Aanya and Navya, who had been immersed in a loud round of video games, froze mid-action, their gazes darting toward the unexpected visitors. Aanya immediately turned off the console and stood up, stunned.
“Dad, hi,” she greeted, brushing her hands on her shorts. “If you’re here to see Navya’s parents, they’re not home yet.”
Kyle remained stoic. It was Anand who clarified their intent.
“We know that. We’re here to see you.”
Navya barely stifled a laugh as she rose from the couch.
“Please, have a seat, Uncle, Aunty… oops, Kyle,” she said awkwardly, then bit her lip.
Kyle didn’t react. Courtesy from Aanya or her friends had never been expected or offered.
“You two came all the way here just to meet me? Why?” Aanya asked, folding her arms across her chest.
“We want to know whether you plan on apologizing to your husband,” Kyle said bluntly, wasting no time revealing their true purpose.
“My husband?” Aanya scoffed. “Or your potential prestigious client?”
Anand stepped forward and grabbed Aanya’s arm. His grip firm was but not painful.
“Aanya, try to understand. Reyansh isn’t someone we can afford to mess with. He matters to us, both, personally and professionally. We can’t risk this.”
“Of course. My dignity is dispensable, but the son-in-law’s ego must be preserved at all costs,” she snapped.
Kyle, finally losing her patience, stepped in.
“Dignity?” she hissed. “You lost that on your own terms, Aanya. Don’t expect others to respect you when you’ve done nothing to respect yourself or others. Stop demanding what you haven’t earned.”
The words pierced deep, but Aanya didn’t let them show.
“Powerful words, Kyle. Where did you learn them? I’d enrol and take a few lessons myself.”
Anand groaned and ran a frustrated hand through his hair.
“Enough, both of you! Can’t we have one civilized conversation in this family?”
Kyle looked away. Aanya, unwilling to prolong the argument, cut to the chase.
“Give me twenty-four hours, Dad. I’ve already spoken to Reyansh. We’re… working on something.”
Her words caught them both off guard. Kyle’s brows arched.
“What did you talk about?” she asked, suspicion laced in her tone.
Aanya grinned.
“That’s personal. We’ve agreed not to share it with outsiders.”
She nearly winked out of habit but stopped herself. Oddly enough, because Reyansh had once told her to quit that habit. She couldn’t explain why she obeyed, but it stuck.
Anand redirected her attention.
“Aanya, it’s good you and Reyansh are building a rapport.”
“For your precious business deal, Dad. Don’t expect anything permanent,” she interrupted flatly.
Anand sighed. Somewhere deep down, he still held onto hope.
