Page 3 of Twisted Deceit
Lost in the beautiful sight and environment, she didn’t know how much time passed before she heard the joyful squeals of her friends. She turned to find the girls who had gone to explore the resort running back toward her. They looked so cheerful she was convinced the girls had found a treasure of some sort.
“Girls, wake up; you need to hear this,” one of her friends, Anu, called out, making the sleeping girls jerk out of sleep.
Aadhya laughed as if unable to be affected by the energy from her friends. “Anu, what’s happening?”
Anu crashed on the sand next to her and shook her head as she caught her breath, her hand on her heaving chest. Aadhya looked at her other friend. “Riti, what did you guys find that you are so excited about?”
Riti let out a squeal. “Did you know that half the resort is booked for a wedding? It’s a beach wedding, and they have events tonight, tomorrow, and the wedding the day after.”
Aadhya let out a laugh in response to her friends' excitement. What was the excitement about a wedding?
“We have to go to these events,” Anu declared.
Aadhya had no idea whose wedding it was, but it sounded fun. She had gotten her friends to crash a wedding on their trip to South India, and for all the fun they had, she made sure to send the couple a gift after they went back to their college town.
“We are going to crash those events and the wedding, too, just like we did on one of our previous trips.” Usually, Aadhya was the mastermind behind their adventures on trips, and she enjoyed every bit of it, but she did not feel the same excitement at that moment. It was because the events reminded her of her marriage alliance.
Damn, the Thakvar heir!
“And it’s a beach wedding,” Anu screamed excitedly as the other girls joined them on the sand. “Girls, we are getting decked up and crashing…well, not exactly crashing because we got invited by the bride’s brother.”
All her friends were excited except for her. She was the craziest of the bunch but could not match her friends’ joy then. “It’s an Indian guy born and raised in the US who is marrying a girl from India. We are totally going as the bride’s friends. It will be so much fun.”
Aadhya was only half listening to how the girls bumped into the bride’s brother and his friends and were invited to join them. She wondered if the man she had heard speaking on the phone that morning was at the resort to attend the same wedding. What was the possibility of the man who spoke with an American accent being of Indian origin?
“It will be mad fun.” Diya declared.
Aadhya was convinced it was a great idea but was annoyed that she could not ignore the thought of her impending wedding. “Let’s go get some rest, girls. Let’s party till morning.”
“Bring out your white dresses for the party because it’s glow-themed.” Loud squeals were heard on the beach as the girls talked about how much fun it would be over the next few days.
Thanks to her friend's excitement, Aadhya could shake away her thoughts and look forward to the party that night. She had only heard about the glow-themed party but had yet to attend one. The novelty of attending an event without having to wear specific types of clothes or makeup made these parties famous. People showed up in casuals, wearing a glow necklace or sometimes just a light-colored t-shirt that reflected the special light.
“Everyone, remember the matching white dresses we bought to wear to a club? Let’s wear those tonight and mingle with the crowd.” Riti winked.
The girls cheered around her, and Aadhya felt guilty for not being able to push away the cloud of worry even though she was excited. She knew the girls were stoked to go, and if she said anything about her concern, it would ruin all her friend's fun. Instead, she decided not to say anything to them and leave sooner if she felt uncomfortable at the party.
Somewhere in her mind, she was curious to see if her upstairs neighbor would be at the party, too. But she had no way of recognizing him. She pushed away the thoughts about a random stranger. She had no idea why she was thinking about a conversation she eavesdropped on.
Maybe because she could relate to the guy's situation?
Chapter 3
Aadhya stepped out of the shower feeling refreshed later that evening. She managed to catch a nap and was looking forward to the party. Her hair was damp from the shower and fell to her waist in soft waves.
She was about to reach for her hair dryer when she heard the man’s voice again. It surprised her how clear the man’s voice was despite how soundproofed the rooms in such resorts were unless they were built for the guests to enjoy the sound of the waves.
Unable to contain her curiosity, she tiptoed to the balcony and gently pressed her ear to the shutter-style doors.
“I sent you the criteria for the woman.” The man paused, and Aadhya wondered what the man was talking about.
“Yes, sir.” She heard another male voice through the speaker of the phone. “I have started the search and will have probable candidates sent to you as soon as possible.”
“I have reviewed the draft of the contract the lawyer sent and added my comments. I need a clean separation when this is all done.” Her neighbor at the resort sounded angry.
“Understood, Sir. It will be an employment contract with the conditions and the clause that no payment will be made if the contract is breached.” The man speaking from the other end did not sound too confident.
“I don’t care for the money.” The man barked as if in frustration. “I need someone who will make my grandma believe that I am in a happy marriage for a year until she recovers from her illness completely.”
