Page 18 of Always With You

“Good, we don’t have too many walk-in customers but the online sales are skyrocketing. We will need to work on filling in the stocks before they are completely sold out.” She gives me a small smile.

I nod my head but don’t reply. Though I should be rejoicing with the given news, I don’t find it in me to whoop it up. Chewing on my bottom lip, we both stand there for a while, awkwardly silent.

“He called me to his office to meet him but he stood me up.” I find myself blurting it out.

That takes her by surprise, and her head jerks to me. “He is an asshole.”

I won’t argue with her on that. “It feels so humiliating.”

She pulls her brows. “I still don’t get why you are doing this to yourself. It’s still not too late. You can back out of the wedding. Maybe we can find some other way to clear the debt.”

I shake my head. “There is no other course of action. It’s an eight-figure loan we are talking about. I can’t back out, but I am thinking about talking it out with him and working on some common grounds.”

She narrows her eyes on me. “You think your words will turn him into an angel?”

I let out a long sigh and reply, “No but if I am doing this, then I do want to have a civil relationship.”

“Sounds like an uphill battle to me.”

Not wanting to discuss further, I cut short the conversation. “I am heading home for a couple of hours. Can you take care of the boutique till then?”

“Yup, you take your time. I’ve got this covered.” She must have got the hint that I don’t wish to talk further on the topic and let it drop for which I am grateful to her. She truly is the best friend who knows exactly when to push and when not to.

“Thanks, Rewa. You don’t know how much I appreciate that. See you in a few hours?”

“Yeah, I will keep you posted if anything comes up.” She walks backwards toward the boutique and lifts her hand. “You take care.”

When she slips into the boutique, I turn and get into my car. After drawing in a few deep breaths, I put my car in drive and then pull out of the parking lot. On the way, I call Mom and inform her that I am on my way back home. Forty minutes later, I pull into the driveway of my house. Mom is, of course, waiting on the porch for me, like she always does, though Dad is nowhere in sight. When I get out of the car, I sprint towards her. She greets me with her warm hug.

“You back early?” she asks.

“Yup, work was boring me today.” I lean in closer. I skip the part about Ranveer asking me to meet him and then he turning me down. It will do no good telling her, instead, it will just add extra worry.

“Well, that’s good because today I have tried a new chicken recipe for you, and it’s ready for you to taste.”

Pulling away from the hug, I kiss her on the cheek and then look past her towards the house. “Where’s Dad?”

Her smile falters for a moment. “He went to check on the bar and see if he could make any changes for the bar to pick up.”

I frown. “I told him to take it easy, and I am here to help.”

“Let that old man be busy. If not, he will stay at home and drive me insane.”

Feeling worried, I ask, “Shall I go check on him?”

“You don’t have to do that.” She waves her hand as if to dismiss me.

Together we walk into the house, and I take in a deep breath. Home. God, please don’t ever take this home away from my parents. They have seen so many dreams here.

Mom moves towards the kitchen and calls back, “Come once you freshen up.”

And just like that, I feel a sense of warmth surrounding me and all the bad memories of today stop disturbing me.

Chapter 7

Ranveer

Finally, the online meeting with my investors comes to an end. I didn’t expect the meeting to drag on beyond the set time-frame and was mere seconds away from pulling my hair out by the time the meeting was wrapped up on a positive note. I groan and rub my forehead. Making Alisha wait was not my intention. What I wanted to discuss with her couldn’t be done in the presence of her parents and my grandpa. This is something that had to remain between us. It’s important for her to know that this is just a marriage of convenience for me to keep my grandpa happy. She should not to live in false hope and expect me to fulfil the role of a dutiful husband. There is no doubt that I am attracted to her, but that doesn’t mean I act on it. With time, this pull will also fade away.

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