Until Forever

by
MV Kasi
 Until Forever
All rights reserved
Copyright © 2019 by MV Kasi

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events

and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a
fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or
actual events is purely coincidental.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted
in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other
electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of
the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical
reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
 DEDICATION

And to ALL my readers and my VIPs!

Thank you for everything.
I love you all!
 AUTHOR’S NOTE

Thank you so much for considering Until Forever as your read. Hope
you enjoy reading Meenakshi and Hiten’s passionate love story! :)
 PROLOGUE

Meena’s heart pounded in anticipation as she hurried up the hill. It was

drizzling slightly, but she didn’t wait for the rain to stop.
In her eighteen years of life, since the time Meena had known Hiten, this
was the first time she had been apart from him for more than half a day.
And the three weeks of forced separation added to her longing and
excitement. She wanted to run back into his arms, and hug him, and cover
him with her kisses.
“Dammit!” she cursed when she tripped and almost fell because of her
long dress.
She wasn’t used to wearing such fancy dresses. Although it was pretty, it
wasn’t practical for someone like her who was used to running across the
hills, forests and rivers with Hiten and her baby sister. But since the
Kaushals had insisted, and she was a guest at their place, she had to agree.
Meena supposed she could have changed into her old clothes before
finding Hiten. But she didn’t have the time since she had already wasted her
precious minutes arguing with her mother. She gave her mother a piece of
her mind for being rude to Hiten in front of Sushant when Hiten had entered
the living hall in his muddy clothes. Meena’s mother grudgingly
apologized, only because the older woman had wanted the details of
Meena’s time spent at the Kaushal mansion. Meena told her some of the
details, and despite hurrying through them, an hour had already passed. And
finally, Meena had to excuse herself and rush out to find Hiten.
Hope Hiten isn’t angry with me.
Meena broke into a run and finally reached the top of the hill. She
realized she was panting slightly. Three weeks of luxury living in a royal
mansion must have made her lazy and unfit.
 All of Meena’s thoughts disappeared as soon as her eyes fell on Hiten.
He was seated near two large stones with his back facing her, and he was
looking towards the Mahasena mansion. Meena knew he must have seen
the Kaushal car leave a while ago.
She ran faster, covering the distance between them. “I thought you
would be in your room since it was raining until a few minutes ago,” she
said with a wide smile.
Hiten didn’t turn when he heard her speak.
Meena wanted to crash next to him like she always did, but she remained
standing since she was wearing the silly expensive, silk dress.
“Are you angry with me?” she asked.
Hiten remained silent for a few more seconds before gritting out his
words. “Why would I be?”
Meena knew Hiten was angry and upset for being kept apart from her for
three long weeks. “Did you miss me a lot?” she asked softly.
“No. It didn’t make any difference to me whether you were here or were
enjoying a holiday staying with your admirer.”
Even though Meena knew Hiten was lying about not missing her, his
words still hurt her. “Really?” she asked with a frown.
He finally turned to look at her. His dark eyes took in the expensive pink
dress gifted to her by the Kaushals, and then his eyes also took in her hair
that was swept up into a fancy hairstyle.
“Did you have a good time these last three weeks? Heard that you and
the Kaushal heir have formed quite a bond during that time.”
Meena was annoyed. Hiten already knew the circumstances that had
forced her to stay at the Kaushal mansion. “Yes. I had a great time.
Wonderful, in fact. I was a guest in a truly royal, luxurious mansion. And
the handsome, charming heir to all that richness was constantly at my beck
and call, ready to entertain me and compliment me about my extraordinary
beauty. And adding to that, they even made me feel like a princess by
dressing me up. Now that I’ve gotten used to all of that, I don’t know if I
can get back to my old, dreary life.”
Rage flashed in Hiten’s dark, intense eyes. The fear and the jealousy he
must have felt blinded him to the sarcasm in her reply.
Meena saw him digging his hands into the soft, wet ground. He stood up
angrily with fists filled with mud. Taking a furious stride closer, he smeared
the mud on her pale pink dress and then on her face.
He didn’t stop. His fingers dug into her hair to rip out the pins that held
up her hair. Meena flinched when some of them pulled at her hair roots, but
she remained quiet.
When her hair fell to her hips, he finally stopped.
His eyes were stormy. “Now, you look like your old, dirty and unkempt
self. So you don’t have to worry anymore about adjusting.”
Meena watched him for a few moments. And then, she slapped him
Hard.
Hiten looked stunned. She slapped him once more. When she tried to
slap him again, he held her hands and dragged her to him.
She struggled against him. “What’s the matter?” she hissed. “You need
to make me as dirty as you to be able to feel my equal? Guess what?
Sushant complimented me even when I wasn’t wearing these fancy clothes.
He likes me any way that I am.” She knew she shouldn’t be inciting the
flames of his jealousy even more. Instead, she should soothe him. But she
was angry at him for thinking that she would willingly stay away from him
even for a damn second.
Anger blazed through his eyes. “Well, if only the stupid bastard knew
that you are already taken and that you are mine!” He let go of her hands to
hold on to the back of her neck. He then crashed his lips on top of hers. His
tongue forced her lips open and thrust inside. He had never kissed her
brutally before. They had only shared sweet kisses or passionate kisses.
She bit into his lip hard. When he was about to jerk away, she held his
head with both her hands and kept him still. She kissed him back equally
aggressively.
She wanted him as he wanted her. She wanted to claim him as her own.
She wanted the fact fused into his mind that he was completely hers as she
was to him.
Soon, he lowered her to the ground on the soft, wet grass, where they
made passionate love. Weeks of being apart, made their lovemaking all the
more passionate and desperate.

Much later, when their breaths slowed, and they had somewhat calmed
down, Hiten rolled them until Meena lay on top of him.
Smiling softly in satisfaction, Meena began to gently trace Hiten’s face
—his forehead, his high cheekbones, his hard, square jaw and then his firm
lips. She leaned closer and kissed him softly on his unsmiling lips.
“You fool,” she said in an affectionate tone. “How can you ever doubt
my love for you?” she asked. “Hundreds of mansions or thousands of
beautiful dresses wouldn’t hold any appeal to me without you by my side.
All I need in my life is just you. We will always be together because we are
one soul with two bodies. If I’m ever taken away from you, my soul will
cease to exist. There is no me without you.”
Listening to her words, Hiten wrapped his arms around her in a tight
hug.
“I missed you,” he finally admitted.
She hugged him back tightly. “I know. I missed you too.”
 “Then why did you not insist on coming back home?” he softly
demanded.
She knew the fear and worry for her life must have eaten him from
inside. And later, when he must have found out from her parents that she
was doing okay, he must have been angry that she didn’t get back home to
him right away.
“I did want to come home,” she replied. “I demanded that right on the
first day. But my parents insisted that I stay there. I knew I wasn’t in a
position to travel, so I even demanded that you be brought to Kaushal along
with Nandini. But I was told not to be selfish as Nandini can’t afford to
miss school for so many days. And that you had to stay home in Mahasena
as no one else was with Nandini.”
Hiten remained quiet, listening to her explanation.
She raised her head to look at him properly. “I felt miserable being away
from you, Hiten. But the Kaushals were nice to me. I couldn’t refuse their
offer to buy me clothes while I was staying at their place.”
He watched her quietly for a few moments. “What about Sushant
Kaushal,” he asked. “It’s obvious to anyone with eyes that he wants you.”
Meena laughed. “Wants me? I’m not a toy to be handed over to someone
rich simply because they want me. Yes, I know he finds me pretty, and I
like it when he compliments me. But nothing can compare to how I feel
when I’m with you.”
She slowly smirked. “And maybe I like Sushant’s compliments because
you barely ever compliment me.” Hiten wasn’t the kind to break into poetic
compliments about her beauty. Instead he preferred to show it in his kisses
and lovemaking how much he wanted and loved her.
“You are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in my life,” Hiten quietly
stated.
 Meena laughed again at his uncharacteristic compliment. “That’s
because you haven’t seen many girls in your eighteen-year-old life. And
even if you do see someone more beautiful or interesting, you better not tell
that to me!” She was very possessive about Hiten. Whenever the other girls
in surrounding towns smiled or flirted with Hiten, Meena was ready to
scratch their eyes out and tackle them there. Of course Hiten always
stopped her and he never responded or flirted back with any of the other
girls.
Hiten smiled. “That dress and hairstyle you had today… I think I’d like
it if you dress up like that once in a while,” he said while running his
fingers through her hair gently.
“Really?” she asked in surprise. She knew Hiten hated it when she
dressed up in anything expensive. Because it reminded him of the
differences in their classes and statuses.
“Yes,” he replied with a straight face. “Because I enjoyed ruining them
both.”
Meena giggled. She knew her mother would show her hell after seeing
what had happened to the expensive dress. But Meena didn’t care.
She laid her head back on Hiten’s chest and sighed deeply. “Until
forever,” she said, intertwining their fingers.
“Until forever,” he softly vowed.
 CHAPTER 1

Ten years later...

The wedding day finally arrived.

Meena was anxious and excited. She had been planning for the day from
quite a while. She wanted everything to go on smoothly without even a
small glitch.
There was a loud banging on the door. “Meena. Are you ready? People
have been asking for you!”
“I’m coming, Ma,” Meena replied. “Give me ten minutes.”
The cold mountain breeze blew in from the open window, making
Meena shiver. Meena could hear the buzz of conversations from outside the
room and also from below as the wedding guests began to arrive.
Meena hurriedly finished dressing. Since everything was already picked
out when it came to what she had to wear and what jewellery she needed to
put on, it didn’t take much time.
Giving herself a quick, cursory glance in the mirror, she turned away to
step out of the room. And before she got pulled away by someone, she
hurried into the room which was currently crowded by friends and family.
Meena went to the dressing area. “You look radiant, Nandu,” Meena told
her younger sister with a smile.
Meena’s sister smiled. “Thanks, Meena. Now, I’m just worried you are
going to overshadow me on the ceremony dais. I told you this sari would
suit you well. I’m so glad I picked it.”
Meena smiled at her younger sister’s exaggeration despite the
disapproving looks from their mother and the other older ladies. Meena
knew what was going through their mind.
 Over the past three years, Meena’s mother had told her many times that
as a widow, Meena should be dressing accordingly. An ornate sari and
beautiful jewellery with flowers were inappropriate in their eyes.
Meena ignored the looks directed towards her. Her mother was about to
head her way but she stopped when sounds of trumpets and drums alerted
everyone to the arrival of the groom and his entourage.
Meena went towards the window that overlooked the Mahasena mansion
entrance. She saw the groom seated on a white horse while heading inside
their mansion gates.
“I’m going to receive the groom. Will you be all right?” Meena asked
her sister.
Her sister laughed. “Yes! I’m not going to run away before the wedding.
I promise!”
Meena smiled. And then, she followed a few women who would be
accompanying her.
While going down the mansion steps, Meena was reminded of her own
wedding from a decade ago.
Unlike her sister’s radiant, happy face, Meena’s had been puffy at that
time, and her eyes were almost swollen shut with grief.
No. Don’t think about that day now.
Determined to push away the morbid thoughts, Meena hurried towards
the lawn area that was decorated in a simple, tasteful way for the wedding
ceremony.
Holding a silver plate filled with the vermillion, flowers, and the
camphor, she joined her mother and the rest of the bride’s party to receive
the groom and his family.
The dancing and the revelry around the groom continued as the groom
got down from the horse. Meena smiled while watching the antics of the
groom’s friends and family. As she approached them, her steps suddenly
faltered along with her smile.
Meena noticed the still figure of a tall man dressed in a dark suit
standing amongst the revelry. Her heart began to thud loudly in her ears.
No. It is impossible.
Although Meena’s mind kept repeating that it was impossible, the man
standing next to the groom, and watching her with a cold, intent look said
otherwise.
Meena turned desperately towards her mother to see if her mother
recognized the man.
Her mother was smiling amicably at the groom and his family.
Oh God, please let me be imagining things.
Meena’s hands trembled as she held on to the silver tray as if her life
depended on it.
“Meena, what are you waiting for?” her mother whispered from the side.
Taking a deep, calming breath, Meena forged on. She pasted a
determined smile and covered the rest of the distance to the groom.
Lighting the small fire, she completed the rest of the rituals of receiving the
groom.
But all the while, she was quite aware of the burning gaze of the man
silently watching her.
“Thank you, Meena,” said the groom, smiling at her warmly.
“You are welcome, Rajeev,” Meena replied, smiling back at her soon-to-
be brother-in-law. She knew her smile was slightly wobbly.
Before anyone else spoke to her, she mumbled an excuse and hurried
back into the mansion. She didn’t go to the bride’s room. Instead, she went
to her childhood bedroom.
 With shaking hands, she opened the curtains partially and looked down
at the wedding party. She felt her face pale considerably when she noticed
that the man standing next to the groom was looking towards the window
she was standing near.
There were close to fifty windows on this side of the mansion, but the
man was watching only this particular window. His eyes were trained on the
very window he used to slide open before sneaking into her room since they
were kids.
There was no doubt about it. It was Hiten.
The boy who had kissed her scraped knees better, held her hands when
her pets died, gave her the first kiss, made her into a woman, and then…
was betrayed by her.
That boy was now back.
For the first time in her life, Meenakshi Mahasena fainted.
 ***

“Mrs. Kaushal! Mrs. Kaushal!”

Meena slowly opened her eyes to the sound of a worried feminine voice.
Blinking her eyes open and ignoring the lightheadedness, Meena sat up.
“What happened?” she asked.
The wedding coordinator was looking at her in concern. “I’m not sure.
Nandini was asking for you as the ceremony is going to begin shortly. We
couldn’t find you anywhere on the Mahasena grounds. I just came in here
and found you lying on the floor. Are you okay?”
“Yes.” Meena frowned when she realized she was inside her childhood
bedroom. And then it hit her.
Hiten. He had returned and was at Mahasena.
Meena’s heart began thumping. Was it anxiousness? Or was it fear?
She didn’t know the answer, but a cocktail of emotions continued to
swirl within.
She recalled how Hiten had looked at her a while ago. He didn’t seem
happy. Far from it.
Why did he return? And why would he come back to a place where he
had painful and ugly memories?
Meena’s mind spun again with those questions.
“Are you okay, Mrs. Kaushal?”
“Sorry. I was just too tired, I guess.” With shaky legs, Meena stood up.
“That’s why I advised you to rest a little this morning. You have been
working nonstop for your sister’s wedding preparations for the past two
weeks. No wonder you fainted with exhaustion.”
Meena smiled. “I’m fine now. Let’s go.”
 Taking a deep breath, Meena followed the other woman out of the room
and into the Mahasena gardens where the soft chanting of the wedding
hymns was ongoing. Just as she began heading up to the decorated wedding
dais, her eyes surreptitiously looked for Hiten. But he was nowhere to be
found.
Did she imagine him?
A day didn’t go by when she didn’t think about him. Maybe it was her
mind playing games. And there was a saying that weddings made people
emotional. It was probably that. Seeing her sister happy and excited while
getting married to the man she loved, must have made her think of her own
lost love.
Meena’s thoughts were interrupted by the conversation between Meena’s
mother and the small voice of a little girl.
“Rashmi, you are not needed up on the dais,” Meena’s mother said. “Just
Anjali can go up there. You can go sit somewhere with the rest of the
guests.”
“But Grandma, I want to be close to Nandu aunty along with Anjali,” the
little girl replied.
Meena frowned. “What’s the matter, Rashmi?” she asked before placing
her hand in comfort on her daughter.
Rashmi was close to tears. “Mamma, Grandma is saying I should not be
near Nandu aunty. And that I should go away and only Anjali should be on
the dais.”
Anger erupted within Meena, but she maintained an outward calm and
smiled. “Grandma is joking. Go up the dais and join your sister.”
As soon as her daughter left, Meena confronted her mother. “What are
you doing, Ma?” she asked.
 Meena’s mother didn’t seem to be the least bit affected. “That girl is not
my granddaughter,” she stated. “She’s just your husband’s bastard. The
child conceived when your husband cheated on you with another woman.”
Meena’s anger only grew further. “Don’t ever use such words to refer to
Rashmi. And I told you many times that Rashmi is now my daughter.
Anjali’s sister. And I want you to treat both of my children with respect.”
Meena’s mother sniffed. “Suit yourself. I’m sure you must know that
people are laughing behind your back for having brought in the proof of
your husband’s infidelity into your home.”
“I told you many times that I don’t care, especially about such small-
minded people’s opinions.”
Not wanting to argue with her mother anymore, Meena went up the dais
to be with her sister.
The wedding ceremony went on smoothly without any glitches. Meena
stood next to Nandini while the long line of guests greeted and blessed the
newlyweds. It took quite a while for the line to shorten.
Meena took yet another gift that her sister handed her to set it on top of
the large stack. Just as she turned, her eyes fell on the tall, dark-suited man
who was talking to a group of people at a distance.
With heart thudding, Meena stared.
Even if her eyes were betraying her, she knew that her heart wouldn’t. It
was Hiten.
As though sensing her gaze, he turned towards the wedding dais. And
then, he headed towards her along with the group of people.
Fear and anticipation hit Meena, making her feel breathless and dizzy.
Oh God. Hiten is here. What is he going to do? What is he going to say?
Does he still remember? Does he still care?
Meena was overwhelmed with questions.
 And then, standing tall, looking completely different yet familiar, was
Hiten.
Meena’s heart and eyes drank in the sight of him, taking in every feature
which remained branded in her mind all through the years.
The piercing, jet black eyes, the high and wide forehead, the sharp
cheekbones, the slightly hawkish nose, the strong jaw and chin, they were
all the same. But at eighteen, Hiten had been tall and thin. But now at
nearly thirty, his wide frame had filled out with bigger muscles which were
evident even through the elegant suit he wore.
He was the most beautiful boy she had seen during their childhood. And
now, as a man in his prime, he was simply breathtaking. Even through her
fear, a part of her mind acknowledged that fact.

“You are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.”

Meena laughed listening to Hiten’s statement. “That’s because in your
eighteen years of life, you haven’t seen many girls or women. And even if
you do see someone who is more beautiful or interesting, you better not tell
me!”

Meena was pulled out of her thoughts when she heard the deep, familiar
voice.
“Congratulations,” Hiten wished the newlyweds.
“Hiten!” Nandini greeted excitedly. “How have you been? Rajeev just
told me a few minutes ago that one of his business partners grew up at
Mahasena. When he said Mr. Saini, I had no idea it was you!”
Hiten’s face was entirely expressionless. “How are you, Nandu?”
“I’m doing great!” Nandini turned back and called out excitedly.
“Meena! Hiten is here. It’s been over ten years, but if I recall, you and Hiten
were always thick as thieves until he decided to leave.” Nandini turned to
look at Hiten once again. “I was angry with you for a very long time that
you left without saying goodbye. But I’m glad you left and returned with
such success.”
Meena remained frozen and continued to hold her breath while her sister
spoke. Nandini had been too young to know what had happened ten years
ago. And as with everyone, Nandini was told it was Hiten who had decided
to leave Mahasena because he wanted to find better opportunities.
If Nandini ever found out the entire truth, she would be shocked.
“Meenakshi.” Hiten’s voice was polite, and his face continued to remain
entirely expressionless as he greeted Meena.
Even through the politeness and seeming indifference, Meena couldn’t
help but see a flash of utter hatred in his eyes. In that moment, she knew
that Hiten had neither forgotten nor forgiven her.
 CHAPTER 2

“H-Hiten…” Meena’s voice came out as a whisper as she tried to greet

him.
She didn’t know what to say to him. How are you? I’m sorry? Forgive
me?
Meena stood frozen, feeling at a loss for words.
Hiten didn’t seem to care. He looked away from her. “Congratulations
once again,” he told the newlyweds. And then without even bothering to
give Meena a brief nod, he stepped off from the wedding dais.
Meena continued to be in a daze of fear and anticipation for the rest of
the day. Her eyes couldn’t help but search for Hiten among the crowd.
Her heart almost stopped when she found him talking to her father. She
wanted to rush to that spot and drag her father away from Hiten.
But much to her shock and fear, her father was talking and laughing with
Hiten as though Hiten were a long, lost friend.
The strange fear continued to remain within her.
What was she scared of? Not once did Hiten turn towards her or look at
her in the last few hours. Maybe she was imagining things. Maybe Hiten
didn’t hate her. Maybe his presence at Nandini’s wedding was harmless.
Even as Meena tried to convince herself of that, her mind wouldn’t stop
dreading.
Meena was temporarily distracted when it was time for Nandini to leave.
Nandini hugged her hard. “Thanks, Meena, for everything,” she said, her
voice wavering slightly. “I’ll call you soon.”
Meena gave her sister a tearful smile. “Be happy, Nandu. You deserve
it.” Although there was a large age gap between Meena and her sister, they
were quite close.
 “So do you, Meena. You deserve happiness, too,” her sister said with a
tearful smile of her own.
After Nandini’s car left, Meena continued to stand outside next to her
father.
“I hope Nandu forgives me,” Meena’s father said with sadness. “And I
really hope Rajeev is a good husband to her.”
“I know Rajeev will treat her with respect, Papa. He loves her.” Meena
knew that for a fact, unlike her father or rest of the wedding guests.
Meena’s father turned to look at her. “I hope so.” And then, his eyes
brightened. “Did you meet Hiten?” he asked.
Fear and panic began to slowly take root again in Meena. “Yes. Very
briefly,” she replied with a guarded look.
“That boy has changed so much, Meena. Can’t believe he could
accomplish so much in just ten years. A diamond merchant and a luxury
hotelier! Who would have thought!”
When Meena remained silent, her father’s smile slipped. “Meena. I know
a lot happened between you two in the past. But he seems to have forgiven
and forgotten. So should you.”
Meena was shocked by her father’s suggestion. “You know it’s not as
simple as that, Papa. What I did to Hiten, I doubt he can ever forgive me.”
“Well, he seems to have,” her father replied. “Why, he even offered to
help with setting up our mansion as a hotel since he is in the same
business.”
Meena shook her head in disbelief. “I hope you refused, Papa!”
“Why would I?” he asked in a defensive tone. “Weren’t you and Nandini
always suggesting the same for so many years?”
“Yes. But not with the help of someone who has every reason to see our
downfall!”
 Her father shook his head. “Stop being so dramatic, Meena. I doubt
Hiten has any ill will towards any of us. We looked after him very well
when he was working for us here.”
“He was hardly looked after.”
“He was looked after well,” her father added defensively once again.
“He was an orphan who I took into our home. I didn’t even treat him as a
servant. He hardly had any jobs to do.”
Meena took a deep breath to stop from losing control and arguing further
with her father.
“Are you going back to Kaushal now?” her father asked in an obvious
attempt to change the topic.
“Yes. Anjali and Rashmi can’t miss school for long.”
“Hmm. Viren should have come for the wedding. People were asking for
him.”
Meena knew her father-in-law wouldn’t come. After his son’s and wife’s
death, he closeted himself in his room. Even his meals were taken mostly
inside.
“I’ll let him know you sent your regards.”
Meena saw her driver carrying the luggage to the car. She went inside
her childhood home to give her final goodbyes to her mother and the rest of
her relatives.
Her mother coolly nodded, most likely annoyed with Meena for allowing
Rashmi to be a part of Nandini’s wedding.
Soon, Meena and her two daughters got into their car and headed
towards Kaushal.
While Anjali and Rashmi chatted excitedly with each other, Meena
looked at the rugged yet green scenery outside.
 Unlike the large tea estate, well-known library, schools and hospitals in
Kaushal, Mahasena estate was still unused for the most part.
The rolling hills covered the lands around the mansion. Meena’s eyes fell
on top of a particular hill that overlooked the mansion. Two gigantic stone
boulders remained the same through the test of time—unlike how it had
been for her.
Even though the carving on the rock couldn’t been seen from the road,
Meena still had the image etched in her memory.

H & M. Until forever.

Hiten threw the chisel and the small, heavy stone aside before wiping the
sweat off his forehead.
“Hah!! I wrote that more times than you!” Meena said with a grin.
“Most definitely,” Hiten said with a wry smile, probably recalling how
almost every tree in the forest had their initials with a heart symbol in
between. “But I etched it on stone,” he added. “Nothing can destroy it.”
Meena closed the distance between them and threw her arms around his
neck. “Just like our love. It will remain until forever. You will be mine
forever.”
He wrapped his arms around her and smiled against her forehead. “Yes.
Until forever.”

Meena sucked in a breath as pain and guilt warred inside her at the
memories.
It had been ten years since she had last seen Hiten. Over the years, she
had imagined every possible scenario of how their meeting would happen.
And in all those scenarios, she had imagined a dramatic meeting which
would end in tears for her. Tears of happiness or devastation, she didn’t
know.
It felt a little anticlimactic that their meeting lasted barely a few minutes
and devoid of any major showdown. But Meena knew that their meeting
today wouldn’t be the last one.
“Mamma?” a voice interrupted Meena’s thoughts.
Meena turned to look at Anjali’s light brown eyes that were sparkling
with excitement.
“Mamma. Nandu aunty said there is a new water park in the city. Can we
go there this summer during our holidays?”
“Yes.”
“Can I go too, Mamma?”
Meena smiled at another set of excited light brown eyes. “Of course yes,
Rashmi. We’ll all go.”
There were squeals of excitement from both the girls before they
continued with their excited chatter. But this time, they included Meena in
the conversation by asking her many questions.
Meena smiled and replied to all of their questions. As usual, her
daughters helped in clearing her mind of any negative thoughts or tensions.
 ***

The car stopped in front of the Kaushal mansion. The girls got out first
and ran inside, most likely to play with their toys in their room.
Smiling, Meena picked up a suitcase and went inside while the rest of
the luggage was being unloaded by a couple of men who would bring it up
to her room.
As soon as she stepped inside, Meena’s smile slipped a little when her
eyes fell on the large portrait on the wall of the mansion. It was a portrait of
her and her husband that was commissioned during the initial days of their
marriage. As always, she felt Sushant’s light brown eyes staring back at her
in accusation.
Tearing her eyes away from the portrait and pushing away the heavy
guilt, Meena continued up the stairs. As soon as she entered her small suite,
she felt lighter and at home.
This was her space. Her place of comfort and solace. After Sushant had
passed away, she had moved out from their large master bedroom suite to
the much smaller two-room suite at the other end of the mansion. The
children’s bedroom was closer, too. And even if it wasn’t, since Anjali and
Rashmi shared the same room and were used to sleeping independently, it
wasn’t much of a problem.
Meena shivered as she recalled some of the memories of the master
bedroom suite.

Anjali’s cries could still be heard faintly. Every instinct inside Meena
demanded that she soothe her infant daughter. But she was unable to, as she
was stuck inside the master bedroom with her husband.
 “Anjali has turned one year,” he said. “It’s time to honor your word and
take up all of your duties as my wife.”
One of the duties was to bear him a male child who would be the heir to
the Kaushal estate.
That night, while Meena submitted to her husband and allowed him his
conjugal rights, she tried not to cry out in pain as her body was still too
sensitive from nursing and for not having had sex for a long time.

Her marital duty hadn’t got any better over the years. The anger, the
jealousy and the sorrow that Sushant had felt, still lingered like a dark cloud
of negative energy in that room.
When she didn’t conceive again, Sushant began to blame her and made
irrational accusations of deliberately doing something from falling
pregnant.
Meena shuddered once again before shaking away those memories.
She freshened up a little before she went to her father-in-law’s suite on
the top floor.
“Is he resting?” she asked an old man who came out of the suite.
“No. He’s awake. He’s waiting for you.”
She thanked the old man and went inside the suite.
The meal was left untouched on the small dining table in the sitting
room. Her father-in-law was seated in a chair while looking outside the
window.
“Papa?”
As soon as she spoke, her father-in-law turned. Meena flinched
internally seeing the older man’s face. Despite being old with slightly
wrinkled skin, Viren Kaushal reminded her of his son. His son was the
spitting image of him.
 “I just returned,” she said with a small smile. “The wedding went well.
Everyone was asking for you.”
The older man just nodded. But his light brown eyes seemed alight with
an unidentified emotion.
“I heard he’s back,” he said in a quiet tone.
Meena’s heart skipped a beat. She knew that even though her father-in-
law became a recluse during the last few years, he was still a powerful man
who had networks and access to information.
“I’m talking about Hiten,” he clarified when she didn’t respond. “I was
told he attended the wedding today.”
“Yes, he was at the wedding,” she replied.
“Did you talk to him?”
She hesitated for a split second before replying. “Only for a brief
moment when he came to congratulate Nandini and her husband. He knows
Nandini’s husband. They are business partners.”
Viren Kaushal became visibly agitated at her answer. He banged a fist on
the small table, making the dishes clatter. “I don’t care how he knows them!
I don’t want you to talk to him! Have some respect for your husband’s
memory and stay away from your past lover!”
Anger warred with guilt at the unfair order. But she decided not to argue.
“I have neither the intention nor any need to talk to Hiten.”
Her father-in-law looked slightly mollified. “Good.”
Meena didn’t leave right away. She continued to linger. “About the
will… Have you had time to think about it?”
Her father-in-law looked angry again. “I told you. I’m not dead yet! And
why do you care when all of the assets and the properties of this estate will
automatically go to your daughter after my death?”
“Papa… I just want it to be legally fair. I—”
 “Fair?” Her father-in-law laughed bitterly. “Fair would be if my son
were still alive. Fair would be if you hadn’t led him to his early death! Fair
would be if the Kaushal bloodline isn’t going to be cut off because of you!”
Meena should have been used to the words and accusations that were
often repeated during the last five years. But she wasn’t. Her father-in-law’s
words still had the power to hurt her.
Ignoring her, her father-in-law got up and went into his bedroom and
shut the door.
Taking a long, deep fortifying breath, Meena pulled herself together
before getting up from the chair and leaving the suite.
Meena spent the rest of the day with Anjali and Rashmi, their smiling
faces and laughter, making her forget all of her worries.
But later that night, when she went to her bed, fear and longing with
memories of Hiten enveloped her. Her sleep was restless and her dreams
heartbreaking. She woke up in tears, wanting to be held and comforted by
the man who now hated her.
 CHAPTER 3

“Madam?” a woman’s voice called out, making Meena jump.

A maid who was young and new to the mansion stood nervously near the
doorway. “Sorry for startling you, madam. I have been calling you for a
while.”
Meena forced out a smile. “It’s okay, Sheena. I was daydreaming, I
guess. Did you want something?”
“There’s a gentleman named Mr. Tarun Jaipal to see you.”
“Oh. Has he been waiting for a long time?”
“No. He arrived ten minutes ago. He’s waiting in the sunroom.”
Meena followed the maid downstairs. “I’ll see to Mr. Jaipal. Have Ganga
send a plate of snacks along with some tea.”
While the maid went to pass on the instructions to the cook, Meena went
to the sunroom. A smile automatically formed on her face seeing the man
whom she has known for the last six years. “Tarun. What a pleasant
surprise.”
The man’s handsome face broke into a smile as soon as he saw her. “I
was visiting my parents. I didn’t want to leave without seeing my favorite
and the most talented artist.”
Tarun’s father was the Kaushal family estate lawyer.
Meena laughed. “Flatterer. Remember I’ve seen the pictures of your
exhibitions. I know who your other artists are. My landscapes are nowhere
as interesting or complex as those other paintings.”
Tarun grinned. “But your landscapes sell at equally exorbitant prices as
those other paintings. Only you can draw out the rugged, untamed beauty of
nature. And besides, people are fascinated by the reclusive artist who they
only know as someone belonging to a royal household.”
 Before Meena could reply, the maid wheeled in a cart with tea and
snacks. Thanking the maid, Meena began to serve tea and offered a cup to
Tarun along with the snacks.
Tarun took a sip from the dainty silver teacup. “So, any new paintings in
progress?” he asked.
“Not yet,” Meena replied, taking a small bite of a pastry. When her
stomach rumbled at the delicious taste, she realized that she had skipped
breakfast that morning. She had woken up later than usual due to restless
sleep and had to rush to get Anjali and Rashmi ready for school. “I was
busy with the wedding. Maybe I’ll begin working on one soon.”
“The wedding was beautiful,” said Tarun. “Picture perfect. I wanted to
ask you to paint something of the theme, but you were too busy yesterday.”
“Oh.” Meena had no idea that Tarun had attended the wedding. She had
invited his parents as well and recalled greeting them. Tarun must have
come later. “I’m sorry. Yes, I was a little busy.”
She had been busy being alternately terrified and happy while tracking
Hiten’s movements, drinking in the sight of him, and wondering why he
had returned.
“I know that the wedding was unexpected and at the last minute. Is
everything… okay now?”
Meena knew the brief hesitation was because Tarun’s father must have
mentioned the circumstances of Nandini’s wedding.
According to everyone, Nandini was forced to marry a rich man picked
by her father to pay off her father’s gambling debts. Only Nandini, Meena
and Nandini’s husband knew the complete truth.
Meena smiled. “Yes. Nandini is quite happy.” Her smile widened a little.
“Speaking of weddings, when can we expect yours? Your parents want me
to ask you.”
 Tarun laughed. “They ask everyone to badger me with that question.
And my answer is always ‘all in good time’.”
Meena and Tarun chatted for a while.
A couple of hours later, when Tarun wanted to leave, Meena went
outside to see him off. She waved him goodbye and turned back towards the
mansion when she felt a disapproving gaze from above.
It was her father-in-law. She could see him sitting near the window
where he had a clear view to people going in and out of the mansion.
Ignoring him, Meena went back inside.
She was not going to sever any friendships because of misplaced honor.
She might be a widow, but she wasn’t dead. She needed friends and other
human interactions like everyone else.
With a sigh, Meena went into the kitchen to give instructions for the rest
of the meals for that week. She then met with the housekeeper and the
estate manager to go over any potential issues.
Next, she called the administrative assistant of the Kaushal Trust
committee to confirm the date of the monthly board meeting that was to be
held next month. She also called the school to confirm she would be
attending the board meeting the next day.
She then drove to the tea estate where she met with some of the
employees who managed the daycare facilities and preschools for the rest of
the employees’ children.
When it was close to three in the afternoon, she returned home and
grabbed a quick lunch.
Soon it was time for her daughters to return from their school.
She heard the sound of running feet when they returned, and then two
small bodies collided with her.
“Mamma!”
 Meena laughed and hugged them. She then took them to the small,
informal dining room for their snack. Both the girls chattered excitedly and
told Meena what had happened during their day. While she listened to her
daughters, and asked questions, and made comments, she felt all of her
worries melting away.
The rest of the evening continued in a blur of activities and homework
until it was bedtime.
Tucking the kids into their bed, Meena went back to her room. With a
heavy sigh, she tied her long hair into a knot on top of her head to take a
shower. But she paused.
She went towards the small adjoining room next to her bedroom and
opened the door before turning on the lights. It was her painting studio.
She looked at the paintings she had done over the last few years. The
ones in her studio were the ones she refused to sell or display in public.
Most of them were of Anjali and Rashmi. And some were of people around
the Kaushal estate.
Slowly, she went towards the back of the room and pushed aside the
paintings that were stacked in the front. Right at the back was a painting of
a man. Or rather, of an eighteen-year-old boy. It was a profile and a dark
silhouette where one couldn’t make out the real features.
Meena stared at the painting and then slowly ran the tip of her finger
over the slightly hawkish nose. While she continued to trace the profile, her
fingers encountered ash from the burnt corner of the painting.

“I will not have my wife pining for another man!” Sushant shouted.
Meena sobbed while trying to desperately put out the fire in her studio.
Her fingers burnt, but she didn’t care. But Sushant held her arm and
dragged her out and away from the fire.
 “Those are paintings from my childhood! They contain memories that I
cherish.”
“Then let them burn and build new memories with me!”
Meena continued to cry as she helplessly watched a piece of her soul
reduced to ashes.

Almost all of her old paintings were destroyed in that fire. A few she had
kept deep in the attic remained. She had taken them out a couple of years
ago. And a few more she had painted were in her childhood home. But only
a couple of them were of Hiten which were not obvious to someone who
wasn’t intimate with him.
Will this longing ever stop? It had been ten years, and not a day had
passed when she hadn’t recalled something or other about Hiten. She knew
it was an impossible task to forget or stop the longing.
 CHAPTER 4

“When can we come to visit you, Nandu aunty?” Anjali asked excitedly
on the phone.
Meena laughed. “Nandu aunty is travelling currently. We’ll visit her
during your summer holidays as planned. Now, go on outside. Your school
bus will come in a few minutes.” With that, Meena took her phone back
which was confiscated by Anjali and Rashmi.
Feeling content with the reply, Anjali and Rashmi happily skipped out of
the room to go out and wait for the bus.
“How are you, Nandu?” Meena asked. “How is Rajeev doing? And how
is Africa?”
Nandini was currently honeymooning in Africa with her husband.
“It is so awesome, Meena! You won’t believe how breathtakingly
beautiful most of the sights are. And I’m finally getting to see real safaris
like I wanted to since I was a little girl!”
Meena smiled listening to her sister’s enthusiasm. She recalled how
Nandini loved playing with animal toys, and an African elephant was her
favorite. Nandini had the toy as her sleeping buddy until she was almost
eleven years old. And now, the toy was passed on to Anjali and Rashmi.
“My trip couldn’t have been so perfect had it not been because of
Hiten!” Nandini continued.
The world suddenly seemed to stand still, and Meena’s smile froze.
“Hiten?” Her heart began thudding.
“Yes,” said Nandini. “We are staying in his luxury guesthouse.
Apparently, Hiten earned his fortune here in Africa in the diamond mines.
I’m glad Rajeev is friends with him. Did you know Hiten even let Rajeev
purchase a rare pink diamond from his collection that Rajeev gave me as a
wedding gift? I’m not a jewellery person, but the ring is simply
breathtaking!”
As Nandini continued to sing praises about Hiten, a thick knot formed in
Meena’s stomach. Why was Hiten being so nice? Were Nandini and their
father right? Did Hiten decide to forget the past and move on? Was she
being too paranoid?
Meena’s thoughts were interrupted when she heard Nandini’s husband’s
voice over the phone calling Nandini.
“I’ve got to go, Meena!” Nandini said excitedly. “Rajeev said we have
an animal visitor outside of the guesthouse!”
“Okay. We’ll talk later. Have fun.” Meena somehow got the words out
while her mind was still spinning with thoughts.
Meena ended the call and stared blankly outside the window. She had
constantly been obsessing over Hiten for the past week since she had seen
him at the wedding. She had always thought of him, but in the last week, it
went beyond just longing.
She could barely sleep because she woke up in tears each time. And the
fact that Hiten had made absolutely no contact with her, only added to the
growing restlessness. And along with it, a strange feeling of foreboding
continued to haunt her.
She shivered because of the feeling. But she deliberately pushed the
blame on the cold draft of mountain air coming from the window.
“Madam?”
Meena looked at the maid hovering near the doorway.
“The car is waiting for you, madam.”
“Thanks, Sheena. Tell Shyamu I’ll be down in a minute.” With that,
Meena hurriedly went to the dressing area and brushed her long hair and
twisted it to a smooth knot. She applied concealer on her dark circles and
added a touch of lipstick. Then smoothing her dress, she gave herself a
cursory glance in the mirror.
She looked ready to battle. Which she more or less would be doing with
the old-school Kaushal Trust board of directors.
Grabbing her small purse, she left her room.
As she stepped out of the main door, she noticed that her father-in-law’s
car was missing. The Kaushal Trust administrative assistant had told her
that, as usual, there was no confirmation of attendance from Viren Kaushal.
But Meena wondered whether he changed his mind.
With a sigh, she slid into the back seat of the car and greeted the
uniformed chauffeur. “To the Kaushal Trust office,” she instructed.
 ***

Meena suppressed a yawn as the financial advisor of the trust committee

continued to go over each of the earnings from various investments and
businesses of the Kaushal Trust.
To distract herself, she looked around the table at the rest of the board
members. All of the ten members were men in their sixties who have been a
part of the committee for nearly thirty to forty years.
But after Sushant passed away and then her mother-in-law, Viren
Kaushal had stopped attending most of the monthly board meetings. As the
current enforcer and the mother to the primary beneficiary of the trust,
Meena was asked to attend.
Even as a child, Meena had always hated accounting or anything related
to math.
Maybe it was a Mahasena trait. Her father and mother were bad when it
came to managing and investing their money. Thank God, Nandini was
quite savvy in money management and ran a successful architectural
business. And thank God, Anjali and Rashmi loved math.
“Any questions, Mrs. Kaushal?” a voice interrupted her thoughts.
“Thank you, Mr. Sirish,” she said realizing that the financial advisor was
done. “No. I don’t have any questions regarding the investments.”
Even the money Meena received monthly from the trust, she simply
asked the advisor to reinvest it. So far, she never needed a large amount of
personal money. Her daughters attended the school run by the Kaushal
Trust, and the salaries of all the employees on the estate were also paid by
the trust. And when it came to the basic needs of her daughters, they were
met by the modest income she made through selling her paintings.
 “If we are done, then I would like to proceed to the next item on the
agenda,” she told everyone. “To build a library wing in the school.”
“The school already has an impressive library to begin with, Mrs.
Kaushal,” one of the board members stated. “And the well-known Kaushal
Library is right next to it.”
Meena nodded. “I agree they have a good library. But since we have
seen a rapid increase in the student count of our school in the last few years,
there is a need to double, if not triple, the number of books. The Kaushal
Library has outside patrons too. The school children need an exclusive
space within the school to spend quality time.”
“This quarter we had already decided upon extending the resort and
adding eighty more rooms,” another board member added.
“I think there are plenty of funds to do both. Don’t you think so, Mr.
Sirish?” she asked the financial advisor with a smile, knowing full well that
the Kaushal Trust was one of the richest in the entire country.
“Yes,” the advisor replied with a smile. “There has never been a lack of
funds for anything we want to pursue.”
But there were still murmurs from the rest of the board members. Meena
knew they were quite old-school. They preferred to drag out the discussion
to feel important. Most of the time, Meena indulged them, but she knew the
school library couldn’t wait.
She was just about to insist again when the doors to the large meeting
room opened.
Everyone stood up because Viren Kaushal strode in. But Meena
remained seated as she was frozen on the spot, unable to move.
Because right behind her father-in-law was his son.
Hiten.
 ***

“Gentlemen.” Viren Kaushal greeted everyone in the room before

looking at Meena.
She was still seated with a shock-filled look. For a change, he didn’t
frown or give her a disapproving glance. He only gave her a cool nod.
She knew it was because he knew what effect Hiten’s presence would
have on her.
“This is Hiten. From this moment onwards, until I say otherwise, he will
be the enforcer and protector of the Kaushal Trust.”
There was a stunned silence from everyone in the room. Although
Meena was still in shock, a part of her predicted something of this kind to
happen as soon as she saw Hiten with her father-in-law.
No one in the room asked questions or wondered why the sudden
declaration was made. Anyone with functioning eyes could see that Hiten
was the spitting image of his father, except for the eyes. While Viren
Kaushal had the light brown Kaushal eyes, Hiten had his mother’s jet-black
eyes. The rest of the features with their slightly hawked aristocratic noses,
wide forehead, and strong jaw and chin were all the same.
The first time Meena had seen or rather noticed Viren Kaushal after
finding out the truth of Hiten’s parentage, she was stunned. Even now, she
wondered why despite being as close as two human beings could get, Hiten
had chosen not to tell her the truth about his parentage.
Meena looked at Hiten. He was standing silently, yet his presence
commanded everyone’s attention.
“Let’s continue with today’s agenda,” Viren Kaushal instructed to break
the tension and awkwardness in the room.
 Everyone sat back, and they made room for Hiten and Viren Kaushal at
opposite corners of the table from where she was seated.
“We were just discussing the need for building a new library wing as
suggested by Mrs. Kaushal.”
Viren Kaushal frowned. “Don’t we already have the best one?”
“We do, Mr. Kaushal,” a board member replied. Then he looked at Hiten.
“The Kaushal Library is one of the biggest and renowned libraries in the
country, Mr. Hiten.”
Hiten looked unaffected by the information. “I’m already aware of that.”
Meena felt a deep tug in her stomach as she was reminded of the
numerous times she and Hiten had spent in the Kaushal Library.
Hiten had a voracious appetite for knowledge. He even used to tutor her
when she was in higher grades. It was quite ironic because when she had
first met him when they were both eight-years-old, she was the one who
had taught Hiten how to read and write. But after a couple of years, he
could not only teach himself everything from the textbooks, he was also
much more advanced for his age.
Hiten would drag her to the well-known Kaushal Library. They would
sneak in and stay there for hours together with Hiten’s nose buried in an old
musty tome or a text book or a general knowledge book.
Unlike Hiten, she had preferred to make use of the Kaushal’s vast fiction
collection. And after she had finished her book, she would whine and beg
Hiten to finish up so they could leave. And when they grew much older, she
had distracted him in different ways to get him to take his eyes off the
books and to focus all of his attention only on her.
Meena’s face grew hot as she recalled how she and Hiten had spent their
time together in the abandoned aisles of the library during the off-peak
times.
 Taking a deep breath and ignoring the nervous flutters in her stomach,
she looked at her father-in-law. “I wasn’t talking about the Kaushal Library.
I was proposing an additional wing for the school library.” She repeated the
facts and reasons.
“I see. Well, the board can deliberate and send the report to Hiten before
making the decision.”
Meena wished she could read her father-in-law’s mind. He looked utterly
composed and regal like he usually did. But she wanted to know how he
and Hiten had gotten in touch. And why? And most of all, she wanted to
know the implications of acknowledging Hiten as a Kaushal and involving
him in the trust. What did that mean for Anjali and Rashmi’s future?
“Is that all?” Viren Kaushal asked. “If there is nothing else, then we may
adjourn the meeting. I am meeting with Suresh and his team in a few
minutes.” Suresh Jaipal was Tarun’s father and the Kaushal’s family estate
lawyer.
Everyone got up to leave. When Meena remained seated, Viren Kaushal
gave her a dismissive gaze. “You may leave, too. Your presence is not
required.”
Meena wanted to object. She had been the one to arrange for the meeting
with the family estate lawyer. She had wanted the list of Kaushal’s trust
beneficiaries to be changed along with a few terms and conditions.
The sick dread she had felt since that morning grew further. She didn’t
care what happened to her, but she did care about what would happen to
either of her daughters’ future. But she had no choice than to nod and get up
and leave the room.
While she left, she felt the burning gazes of her father-in-law and Hiten.
 CHAPTER 5

Meena’s mind was a mess by the time she arrived home. As soon as she
stepped in, there was a flurry of activity in the main living area of the
house. Several maids were hurrying up and down.
“What happened?” she asked the housekeeper.
“We have guests staying over. In fact, they are saying that it’s Viren
Kaushal’s—” the housekeeper broke off seeing Meena’s expression. “Just
some important guests who are dear to Mr. Kaushal.”
Meena knew the housekeeper was trying to protect her by not giving
what she thought was shocking news. Meena was touched by the loyalty the
Kaushal household showed to her over the years. If only Meena could tell
everyone in the house that she had already seen Hiten, and her father-in-law
had already introduced him to others as his son.
“You said guests. How many?” Meena asked instead.
“Two. A man and a woman.”
Meena’s heart almost stopped. She felt sick and wanted to throw up.
Hiten was married.
But her mind struggled, refusing to believe or accept it. His wife wasn’t
with him during Nandini’s wedding. Maybe he wasn’t married.
“So… a room has been readied?” Meena asked.
“Two rooms. The woman said they are not married. They are good
friends.”
The irrational relief that Meena immediately felt with that piece of news
was quite troubling. But she would dwell on it later. All she knew for now,
was that no matter what, she couldn’t ever imagine a situation where she
would have to stay under the same roof as Hiten’s wife.
“Did they say anything about having lunch downstairs?”
 “No,” the housekeeper replied. “The woman asked for a light lunch to be
sent up into her room. Mr. Kaushal sent instructions to have dinner prepared
and served downstairs on the formal table.”
“I see.” Meena had no idea how she would be able to face Hiten across
the dinner table. “How long are they going to stay?”
“Mr. Kaushal didn’t say. He just gave us instructions after you left this
morning.”
“Okay. Thank you, Kamala. Call me if you need any help.”
The housekeeper nodded and hurried away.
Meena continued up the stairs. She wondered if it would be rude not to
introduce herself to the female guest. But she knew she wasn’t in the
mindset to meet anyone. She was still too sick with worry wondering what
was being discussed with the lawyer during the meeting that day.
She grabbed a quick lunch in her room, and it was soon time for the kids
to return.
 ***

“Madam, they are waiting for you at the dinner table.”

Meena felt her stomach flutter even more. “Thanks, Sheena. I’ll be down
in a few minutes.”
She was already dressed for dinner and had even tucked the kids into
their beds thirty minutes ago. So she knew there were no more excuses for
delaying to go down.
Taking a deep, fortifying breath, she stepped out of her room and went
down the stairs.
As she approached the formal dining room, amidst her loud thudding
heart, she heard a faint hum of conversation and the tinkling of silverware.
She stepped in, and immediately her gaze locked with Hiten’s. She had to
remind herself to breathe and to continue walking inside to join the people
at the table.
It was a forty-seat table. Her father-in-law was seated at one of the
corners with Hiten next to him. A woman sat right next to Hiten. Having no
other choice, Meena took the seat next to her father-in-law which was right
opposite to Hiten.
Every instinct inside her screamed for her to get up and run away, or at
least take a seat on the far opposite side of the table. But she suppressed the
urge and greeted her father-in-law with a small smile.
Her father-in-law returned her greeting with a cool nod. “We were
waiting for you. Since you were late, we started without you.”
“I’m sorry. The girls had wanted me to stay longer to read them a new
book.”
Ignoring her excuses, her father-in-law resumed eating.
 There was silence when a maid came in to serve food onto Meena’s
plate. Meena smiled and thanked her. When the maid left, the silence
continued.
Meena knew that since she was the hostess, it was her duty to begin the
conversation with her guests. Avoiding Hiten’s eyes, Meena looked at the
woman seated next to him. A stunningly, beautiful woman who was
watching her with immense curiosity.
Meena forced out a smile. “I’m Meena. Sorry I wasn’t able to meet you
before. I was told you were resting.”
The woman smiled back. “I’m Sonali. And yes, I had a long flight and
was quite tired. I haven’t had a chance to step out of the room and explore
the Kaushal estate. I’m looking forward to it.”
Meena continued to keep her smile in place. “I hope you enjoy your stay
here.”
When the woman just smiled as an answer, Meena had no other choice
than to look at Hiten. He was watching her with a cool, unreadable look.
Since he didn’t bother greeting her or give out an indication of
acknowledging her presence, Meena had to greet him to diffuse the sudden
tension that seemed to grow in the room.
“Hello, Hiten. It’s nice seeing you again.”
Although his face remained unchanged, she saw something dark flash in
his eyes.
Was it hatred? Anger? Distaste? Her heart thudded even harder.
There was a long, uncomfortable silence. And then, “Meena,” was all he
said.
She realized that he hadn’t even for the sake of politeness said that it was
nice seeing her again. She didn’t expect him to.
 The old Hiten she had loved and lost was also brutally honest. He was
never the type to put on fake appearances even if the situation demanded it.
The rest of the dinner continued in silence. When the last course of
dessert was served, Sonali was the one to break the silence.
“I’m sorry, I’m unable to stay awake,” she said, putting a hand on her
mouth to hide a yawn. “I guess I’m still tired.” She got up from her chair.
“Thank you for a delicious and wonderful dinner. Hopefully, I’m well-
rested by tomorrow.”
Hiten stood up as well. “I’ll come with you,” he said. He placed a gentle
hand on the woman’s back and led her out of the dining room.
Meena couldn’t suppress the pang of jealousy that hit her hard seeing the
protective gesture. She somehow tore her eyes away from them.
As soon as the sounds of their soft footsteps on the polished marble floor
receded, Meena looked at her father-in-law.
“Why is Hiten here?” she asked.
Her father-in-law’s expression closed up like that of his son’s. “He is my
son.”
“I know that. But I would like to know why you have decided to
suddenly acknowledge that fact and invite him here. I would also like to
know what was discussed this afternoon with Mr. Jaipal.”
Viren Kaushal looked angry with her questioning. Meena didn’t care.
She had to know what her daughters’ future held.
“I’m not answerable to anyone,” he replied with a glare.
He wasn’t the type to ever evade. Was he guilty of something?
“I want to know whether my daughters, who are also your
granddaughters by blood, have a secure future.”
At her insistence, he banged his fist on the table. “I told you I’m not
answerable to anyone!” With that, he stood up from his chair and walked
out of the room.
Meena continued to be seated alone at the dining table while fear gripped
her insides. What was going to happen?
She knew Hiten would want her to suffer. But how far would he go to
make her suffer? And who else will get hurt in his quest for revenge?
 CHAPTER 6

The next morning, Meena was awakened by her ringing phone. Opening
her bleary eyes, she saw Nandini’s name flashing on the screen.
“Hello?” she said with a sleep-filled voice. Her sister must have called to
resume talking from the previous morning.
“Meena…” her sister’s voice said hesitantly.
Immediately Meena sensed something wrong and sat up. “Are you okay,
Nandu. Is everyone all right?”
“Yes. Yes. Everyone is all right. Sorry to be scaring you this early in the
morning.”
“It’s okay. I just had a restless night and slept longer. How is
everything?”
Nandini hesitated. “Meena… Last evening, Rajeev got a wonderful offer
regarding his business.”
“Oh. Congratulations.”
Meena could hear her sister as she inhaled a deep breath as though
bracing herself to tell the next sentence.
“The offer is to take care of the most important operations… in Africa.”
Meena was stunned. “You mean to say that you and Rajeev will have to
stay in Africa?” she asked.
“Yes. For two years,” Nandini replied. “It’s a great opportunity, and
Africa is a beautiful place. The operational headquarters are close to where
we currently are right now. I saw the accommodations and met the people
in the community as well. They all seem wonderful. I even have many
offers from people to design their homes here.”
“You are excited to begin your new life with Rajeev in Africa,” Meena
stated.
 “Yes,” Nandini replied in a glum tone which was contradictory to her
answer.
“But you also feel guilty that you are going to be away from your
family.”
Nandini sighed once again. “The guilt is crushing me, Meena. At least
while I was staying in the city, we could visit each other whenever we
wanted. Now—”
“It will remain the same. In fact, Anjali and Rashmi will be more excited
to visit you in Africa during their summer holidays.”
“You think so?” There was hope in Nandini’s voice.
“Yes. And it’s a wonderful opportunity for you and Rajeev. Nothing to
feel guilty about. When Anjali and Rashmi grow up, I don’t expect them to
stay close to me. They are free to build their lives anywhere in the world.”
“I love you so much, Meena! I knew you would understand and make
me feel good again. When Hiten called Rajeev and made the offer, we
couldn’t believe it. Even though Rajeev’s family has been in the diamond
business for decades, to give such a huge responsibility to Rajeev when he
only has a few years of experience was very generous.”
Meena was stunned by the news. “W-when did Hiten make that offer to
Rajeev?” she somehow managed to ask.
“Oh. He met with us last week while we were at one of his resorts. He
made the offer to Rajeev, but Rajeev first wanted to see how I would like
the place and the people before even telling me. Rajeev just told me a few
hours ago.”
Meena was tempted to tell Nandini about what had happened in the past
and also that Hiten was now in Kaushal as the enforcer of the trust. But
what would Nandini gain from that information? Especially when she was
many continents away?
 Nandu, I think Hiten made that offer to keep you away from me. He must
be trying to isolate me from my loved ones.
Meena didn’t have concrete proof that Hiten made the offer to Rajeev
just to keep Nandini away from her in a bid to isolate her. She would just
come off as a paranoid and selfish person. But her gut feeling screamed that
might be the reason.
Meena spoke for a few more minutes with her sister before ending the
call. The feeling of a sick dread grew further. And then, suddenly a thought
niggled at her.
With shaking hands, she dialed a number. It was still early, but she hoped
the phone would be answered.
She had to try three more times before it was answered in a disgruntled
tone. “Who is this!”
“Papa, this is Meena.”
“Meena?” Her father’s voice sounded thick and slurry. Meena didn’t
know whether it was due to sleep or if he had gone back to his old ways of
spending most nights in his gentlemen’s club gambling and drinking. “What
happened? Why are you calling me this early in the morning?”
“Papa, I want you to sit up and be alert. I need you to answer my
questions honestly.”
There was silence on the line for a while. “Okay.”
“Did Hiten contact you again in the last few days?”
There was silence again. “Meena… It’s not like how you think…”
“Papa. Give me an honest answer.”
“Yes, he did.”
Meena’s feeling of dread grew even further. “What did he make you
do?”
 “He didn’t make me do anything against my will, Meena. He made a
wonderful offer.”
Meena had the feeling of déjà vu. Nandini had used the exact same
words. While in Nandini’s case it was indeed a wonderful offer, Meena
highly doubted that would be the case when it came to her father. While
Hiten hadn’t actively hated her father, he had always disliked him since
childhood.
“What is the offer, Papa?”
“The Mahasena mansion. I signed a twenty-year lease with him for
turning it into a hotel.”
“Twenty years? That’s too long. What if the place is not taken care of or
managed well?”
“Hiten’s company owns one of the best luxury hotel chains in the world.
And with the amount he offered us, it would be stupid not to make the best
of our mansion.”
“What did he offer?”
Her father told her the numbers. He was right. The offer was more than
generous. “He also offered us a great place in the city to relocate to,” her
father added.
Meena was stunned. “What? Why do you have to relocate? Most of the
offers you had received previously gave you the option to live in the
mansion while the rest of it would be converted to accommodate guests.
They even mentioned that it would add value to the hotel if the royal family
still lived on the premises.”
“I know. But the place that we were offered in the city is even better.
Your mother has always wanted to move there during our old age. Most of
our friends have already moved and are living with their children there and
taking care of their grandchildren. Since Nandini will be there too, it makes
sense.”
Nandini was manipulated to relocate away from me as well! With great
effort, Meena kept the words to herself. “When are you moving?” she asked
instead.
“In a week.”
“Why didn’t you call to tell me of this offer, Papa?”
“Because I knew you might try to talk us out of it. You think that Hiten
hates us and is doing this for revenge purposes.”
Meena sighed at her father’s naivety. “Papa. He was forcibly thrown out
of our estate. He had no formal education or money when that happened.
You think he would come back and feel grateful that we had once employed
him as our underpaid servant?”
“We gave him decent accommodations, and he was fed well,” came her
father’s defensive reply.
Hiten’s accommodation had included a small room with not enough
insulation. It was always too cold. But he had never complained or
demanded better accommodations. Of course, one of the reasons was
because most of his time was spent in her room.
“It doesn’t matter anymore, Papa. You already signed the contract.
Just… be careful.”
“I will.” Meena knew her father was thinking she was being
unnecessarily paranoid.
She ended the call and stared blankly out of the window.
Only a week had passed since he returned into her life, and now her life
was almost in shambles.
She would confront him. She cannot afford to sit still while he destroyed
her life piece by piece.
 ***

Meena didn’t see Hiten or the woman he had brought along during
breakfast. They had apparently made a request for breakfast to be served in
their rooms.
Was the woman his lover? Or just a friend like the woman had told the
staff?
In the big scheme of things that was happening in her life, the
relationship between Hiten and the woman should be the least of her
worries. However, her heart would not stop aching to know.
Taking a deep breath, she went about her usual day. After she sent the
kids to school, she called Tarun. She asked him to make arrangements for a
gallery show with her paintings.
“You want to come in person and be there during the showing?” he
asked.
“Yes.”
She knew Tarun was more than stunned. Over the last few years when
she began selling her paintings, Tarun had asked her many times to make an
appearance during the show. But she had refused because she wanted to
remain private. The patrons only knew her identity as someone belonging to
a royal household and nothing else.
“What happened?” Tarun asked, probably sensing something from her
tone.
“Nothing happened. Yet. But I want to be prepared and be independent. I
should have done this years ago and made a better name for myself by
now.”
There was a brief silence. “You already have a good name in the art
world, Meena. Tell me what’s happening.”
 Meena was tempted to bare out her fear and worries to Tarun. He was
one of very few people in her life who genuinely cared for her and wished
her well. But she knew it wasn’t fair to unload her worries on someone else.
“I spoke to my father yesterday,” Tarun continued to say in a serious
tone. “He made some strange remarks when your name came up.”
“What did he say?” Meena asked while panic tried to overtake her.
“It wasn’t clear. But he just said that whatever happened with you or is
happening with you isn’t fair. I thought he was talking about how it was
when Sushant was alive. Now, with your call, I’m convinced something is
happening right now as well.”
“I don’t know what’s happening or going to happen, Tarun. That’s the
reason why I asked for your help to set up a show in your gallery. I need to
make sure there is minimal impact on Anjali and Rashmi. I can no longer
rely on Kaushal’s generosity.”
“You are a Kaushal, Meena. So are your children by birth. I don’t
understand why anyone would question that.”
Meena sighed. “Things can change in an instant, Tarun. In my case, I’m
used to going with the flow. Only this time, I want to be prepared.”
There was a pause before Tarun spoke. “Okay. I’m going to come down
to Kaushal tomorrow and discuss the plan of action.”
“That’ll be great. I can’t appreciate you enough for all the help and
support you have given me over the years.”
“It was purely your skill and hard work. I was just lucky enough that you
chose me to showcase it.”
“Thank you.”
Meena felt slightly lighter in her heart after having spoken to Tarun. He
gave her the much-needed confidence that she will be able to survive on her
talent and take care of her children no matter what happens.
 She went downstairs. “Are our guests having their lunch downstairs?”
she asked.
“No. Sonali madam said she wasn’t feeling that well and requested a
light lunch to be sent up. Sir is outside waiting for Mr. Mohan to take him
around the estate.” Mohan was the Kaushal estate manager.
Thanking the housekeeper, Meena hurriedly went outside. She didn’t
immediately find Hiten. When she asked one of the drivers, he pointed to
the gardens.
The Kaushal gardens were vast, covering several acres. But her gut-
instinct pointed her in the direction of the gazebo area where huge marble
sculptures were present.

“One day, I’m going to build a huge house for you that will have even
better gardens and sculptures than the Kaushal estate.”
Meena laughed. “Really? And how old will we both be by then? To be
able to save enough money by selling my paintings and your carvings?”
When Hiten scowled at her comeback, she threw her arms around his neck.
“I don’t really care about the gardens or their mansion, you idiot. I was just
admiring them. As long as I have you next to me, wherever we are, it will
always be our home.”

Hiten was standing near the gazebo, facing away from her and looking
at one of the statues. A faint, slightly fragrant smell of tobacco smoke filled
the air.
“Tell me what you want me to do for you to stop this,” she appealed.
There was no change in Hiten’s posture. It was almost as though he had
already sensed her presence beforehand. There were no dry leaves on the
neatly manicured lawn. So she knew he still had the heightened sense of
detecting her presence.
He turned around in a leisurely manner to look at her.
With no one else around them acting as a buffer, the impact of his
presence and gaze hit her hard. But she kept her gaze locked on his.
“Please, tell me what you want. I’ll do it. Just stop.”
Keeping his gaze locked on hers, he continued to smoke. Then slowly,
his gaze began to move over her face, taking in every feature, possibly
looking for changes in the last ten years.
Why are you doing this? How could you do this? What will you gain by
this? She wanted to shout those questions out loud, but couldn’t. Because
she already knew the answers to them all.
He didn’t play dumb either. She already knew he wouldn’t. She knew
him intimately, inside and out. And Hiten was never the one to put on
appearances for the sake of it.
“What makes you think you can stop me?” he asked calmly. “Or that you
have anything I might want or be remotely interested in?”
He was right. She was helpless to stop him. And she had nothing to offer
him either. The only thing left was to appeal to his humanity.
“I know what I did to you was wrong. But I was too young, and I
panicked. I—”
“I’m going to have to cut this short. I need to go to the tea estate to begin
implementing some changes.” He raised his chin at someone as though
greeting them.
Meena turned and saw the estate manager at a distance. He was walking
towards them with a welcoming smile.
Meena felt frustration along with fear. What changes did Hiten want to
do to the tea estate? There were hundreds of families depending on that
estate for their livelihood.
She had to appeal to the human side of him and get him to listen and stop
him from destroying her and not to have any innocent people harmed
because of her.
“Good morning, sir. Madam,” the manager greeted with a smile.
“Good morning, Mohan,” she greeted. “Can you give us a few minutes?
Mr. Hiten and I are having an important discussion. He’ll be with you
shortly.”
“Not a problem at all, madam. I will be waiting near the car.”
“Thank you.”
As soon as the manager disappeared from view, Meena turned to look at
Hiten. He was watching her with another closed-off look.
“Hiten, please. There are hundreds of families working at the Kaushal
estate. At least don’t bring them into this. Your mother used to work in the
same tea estate. Think how hard it is for them even with all the help they
receive.”
He continued to look indifferent.
Anger began to take root along with fear and frustration. “How can you
do this, Hiten?” she asked. “You were never like this. Even though things
got tough, you always stuck to your beliefs and principles. Why can’t—”
His face finally lost the composure. His eyes flared, and his jaw clenched
while he cut her off. “People change,” he gritted out. “Especially when
things happen, and they end up losing their fucking soul in the process.”
Without giving her a chance to appeal to him any further, he strode away
from her.
 CHAPTER 7

Meena called the tea estate to find out what was happening. But she was
told by the estate manager in a regretful tone that she was no longer allowed
to visit the place or be involved in any of the decisions.
Oh God. Please let me find a way to stop Hiten.
But God didn’t seem to listen to her prayers. Her mind drew a blank
when she tried to think of ways to appeal to him.
So, she spent the rest of the day in her studio. She channeled all of her
pain, fear and uncertainty into the painting she began.
This time, she didn’t stick to her usual landscape art. She drew a picture
of an event from her past.
Soon, she was lost in the world of art, until her children returned.
She then tended to their needs while getting lost in their little worlds
where there were no worries.
 ***

“Why isn’t anyone here?” Meena asked the housekeeper while she stood
in the formal dining room.
She had put the children to bed before hurrying downstairs to join the
others for dinner. She had wanted to begin a dialogue with Sonali.
She wanted to ask for Sonali’s help to stop Hiten from doing things that
could threaten the livelihood of others.
But no one was at the dinner table.
“Sonali madam still isn’t feeing well. So, Mr. Kaushal and Mr. Hiten
also requested to have dinner sent up to their rooms.”
“Which room is Sonali staying in?” Meena asked.
“The guest wing. Pond view suite.”
Thanking the housekeeper, Meena went towards the guest wing. She
went slowly, biding her time, wondering if Hiten was with Sonali. She
hoped he wasn’t.
There was silence as she approached the door. She was just about to
knock when she heard a feminine giggle.
“Of course you are to blame for my condition. You got me pregnant, and
your child is making me feel so tired all the time. I don’t know how I’m
going to fulfill your wish of having four children, when I’m struggling with
just the first one.”
Meena was stunned listening to Sonali’s words through the closed door.
She stood frozen as her brain absorbed the meaning.
The giggles continued, and soon there was soft moaning.
Feeling nauseous all of a sudden, Meena ran away from there.
She didn’t know where she was going, but she had the sudden need to
get out of the house which felt suffocating.
 With each step, she felt her chest constricting, and her breath caught in a
sob. She continued to run as she got out of the house and went towards the
gazebo.
She barely reached a large tree when she bent over and threw up
violently. Soon, there was nothing inside her stomach, but she remained
bent over. The sobs she tried to desperately suppress burst out of her
uncontrollably.

“Four children,” said Meena. “We are going to have four children.”
Hiten looked amused. “Isn’t four a bit too many?” he asked.
“No. I want the first two to be girls. I heard girls are more responsible
and mature. They can control their little brothers.”
Hiten laughed softly. “You seem to have given this matter a lot of
thought.”
“Of course. Didn’t I say I’d marry you when we were eight? I meant it at
that time.”
“You also said you wanted to marry me because I am good at taking
care of children. So I’m to look after our four children?”
“Of course.” She grinned. “I’ll try to lend a hand when needed.”

Meena’s tears came out faster as memories swirled around in her mind.
How could Hiten give away her dream to some other woman? How could
Hiten love and cherish some other woman?
A corner of her mind knew she was being unreasonable, but the pain and
grief in her heart because of her past shattered dreams wouldn’t listen to
reason. She continued to cry.
While she cried and breathed in deep breaths, a familiar smell tingled her
nose.
 Slowly she stood up, and through her blurry eyes, she saw a tall figure
standing at a distance. She wiped her tears away, and her eyes took in the
sight of Hiten. He was smoking next to one of the statues and was silently
watching her. It was obvious that he must have been there before even she
had come running and started to cry.
The man who was with Sonali in the room wasn’t Hiten. That realization
brought in a huge wave of relief which only made tears of grief fill her eyes
once again.
Why was she relieved? Why did it matter anymore?
If she hasn’t moved on from the past, how can she expect Hiten to
forgive or forget the past?
As she cried, Hiten continued to watch her silently. And soon, he threw
the cigar down and crushed it under his feet before walking away from
there.
 ***

The next morning, Meena stood in front of the mirror trying to fix
herself.
Her eyes were puffy with dark circles underneath. Her face looked
slightly gaunt because she wasn’t able to eat properly for the last week. She
looked like a wreck. And it was an apt look since her life was almost a
wreck.
Shaking off the self-pity, she sucked in a deep breath to draw courage
and face the person who was determined to break her.
She went downstairs to the dining room where breakfast was being
served.
There was one more guest—a man who appeared to be of similar age as
Hiten. The man with whom Sonali was speaking with the previous night.
The man and Sonali were seated next to each other, leaving the chair
empty next to Hiten. Having no other choice, Meena sat there next to Hiten.
Immediately, she felt extreme awareness along with a wave of tension. To
distract herself, she smiled at Sonali and the man. “Good morning,” she
greeted.
Until then, Sonali was smiling widely and had a happy glow about her.
But when she saw Meena, her smile fell. A look of dismay passed over her
as she looked closely at Meena’s puffy face and then at Hiten’s stony one.
With a small, tentative smile, Sonali introduced the man next to her.
“This is Aarav, my husband. Aarav, this is Meena Kaushal.”
Meena expected the man to smile politely, but she was taken aback when
his face turned cold and sober. He even appeared to seem angry. “Mrs.
Kaushal,” he greeted stiffly.
 Before Meena could respond to him, her father-in-law joined them. A
flash of annoyance passed on Viren Kaushal’s face when he saw that she
was sitting next to Hiten.
Meena refused to feel guilty. In fact, she was slowly feeling the burn of
anger inside her at the unfairness of it all.
The introductions were made. Aarav was Hiten’s longtime business
partner in Africa, and they had known each other for nearly a decade.
Did Aarav know what had happened in Hiten’s past? Was that why he
was angry with her?
The breakfast was a tense affair. At least for her. She was aware of every
little movement that Hiten made. She also felt the anger and hate radiating
from him. And to top it, her father-in-law continued to give her angry,
glaring looks.
Meena could barely eat under the circumstances. She was just about to
excuse herself when Sheena came in with an announcement.
“Mr. Tarun Jaipal is here to meet you, madam.”
Meena felt relieved. “Tell him I’ll join him in a minute.” Dabbing her
mouth with a corner of a napkin, she got up from her chair. “Excuse me,”
she murmured before walking out of the room.
She took in a deep breath and let out a sigh. The air felt much lighter and
devoid of tension.
As soon as she stepped in the sunroom, she smiled. “Tarun.”
But unlike his usual wide smile, Tarun’s smile was restrained. “Meena,”
he said. His eyes wandered over her face, lingering over the slightly puffy
eyes and dark circles.
Meena’s smile became forced due to her embarrassment. “Breakfast?”
she asked, taking the couch opposite to him.
 “I’ve already had mine and I don’t want anything else.” He got up from
the couch and came towards her.
Meena was puzzled by the determined expression on his face. And then,
she was shocked when he knelt in front of her and held her hand in his.
“I love you, Meena,” he said softly, shocking her even further.
“I’ve loved you for years,” he continued. “Even when you were stuck in
an unhappy marriage. But I kept my distance out of respect and also
because I didn’t want to risk our friendship. But now… when I know that
things have taken a downturn in your life, I want to be there for you. Not
just as a friend, but also as a life partner.”
Meena continued to stare at Tarun with a shocked look. The jovial,
charming man who she was so used to treating as a close friend was
declaring his love for her.
He pulled out something from his pocket. It was a ring. He held it in
front of her. “Marry me, Meena. And make me the happiest man on this
earth.”
Before Meena could reply, she heard a soft feminine gasp coming from
the room entrance. She turned towards the sound, expecting it to be one of
the maids, but she was shocked when she saw Sonali and her husband. And
Hiten.
Meena’s eyes locked with Hiten’s who was watching her with an openly
furious look.
“We are so sorry to interrupt,” said Sonali. “Please excuse us.” Sonali
pushed the door to the sunroom closed, shutting off the sight to the outside
world, including Hiten.
Meena continued to stare at the spot where Hiten had stood. Slowly, she
turned to look at the man holding her hand, asking her to marry him.
Marriage once again? Her mind went into overdrive.
 A marriage with Tarun would mean a secure home for her daughters.
Tarun was not only independently wealthy, he would also inherit a lot from
his father who was a well-reputed, successful lawyer in the country. And
having her as a daughter-in-law, Tarun’s father could also ensure that the
Kaushal tea estate employees do not suffer due to a possible change in
management. He might also fight for equal rights for Rashmi.
There were a lot of advantages to accepting Tarun’s proposal. And apart
from those reasons, Tarun was handsome, charming, and in love with her.
What woman would want to spend the rest of her life alone? Especially
when there was an option to spend it with someone compatible and
trustworthy?
Slowly, Meena placed her free hand on top of Tarun’s, squeezing it
slightly for courage. And then, sucking in a deep breath and looking into his
eyes, she gave her answer to him.
 CHAPTER 8

“That was so embarrassing,” said Sonali, walking into the dense foliage
of the garden. “We interrupted a private moment.”
“We didn’t know that we were going to, love,” Aarav added. “We were
just touring the place when we came across those two.”
Sonali looked at Hiten who was quiet with his usual stone-cold
expression. “Hiten…” she began tentatively. “I know this isn’t what you
expected. But… I think you should leave Meenakshi be.”
“Love, let’s not get involved in other’s business,” Aarav suggested.
Sonali looked at her husband. She knew Aarav hated Meena too, for
what she had done to Hiten in the past. “I know it’s none of my business.
But I like Meena. And whatever has been done to her in the last few days is
revenge. That should more than suffice.”
Sonali looked at Hiten. “You more or less stole and destroyed everything
she ever had. You ripped away the security she had for her and her
daughters’ future. You caused a crushing blow to the people she loves. It’s
safe to say this is revenge.”
There was a long silence. Just when she thought Hiten wouldn’t respond,
he did. “This is not about revenge,” he calmly stated. “I’m here at this
godforsaken place for purging.” His jaw clenched as he looked towards the
mansion. “After having unsuccessfully trying for a decade, I’m now the
closest to getting rid of her from my mind once and for all. When I return, I
will be able to finally move on knowing she is suffering the way I did.”
A shiver ran through Sonali listening to Hiten speak those impassioned
words in his usual cold and unfeeling tone. But the raw emotion she saw
flashing in his eyes spoke volumes.
 During the last four years while she had known him as a close friend and
business partner, she had never seen him display any such emotions. He had
been brutal, ruthless and determined while he built his massive fortune, but
he always did it with a lack of human emotions. And now that he finally did
display his feelings, she pitied the woman who was at the receiving end.
“Hiten…” Sonali looked at her husband helplessly, not knowing what to
say to protect Meenakshi from further hurt.
Aarav sighed and wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders. “Let it
go, love,” he said softly.
Sonali knew Aarav would support Hiten no matter what. Their decade-
long close friendship through many hardships ensured such loyalty.
Sonali moved closer to Aarav feeling torn between loyalty towards Hiten
and feeling empathy towards Meenakshi.
Despite knowing some of the history of what had happened between
Hiten and Meena, Sonali liked Meenakshi who seemed sweet and gentle.
She didn’t want to see the other woman hurt. But unfortunately, there was
nothing she could do to stop it.
 ***

Meena had just seen Tarun off and was returning to her room when she
was stopped in the hallway. It was Hiten.
Her heart began thudding when she saw the look on Hiten’s face. The
cold, indifferent expression he had since his return was completely gone. It
was now replaced by cold fury.
“If you marry him,” he said softly. “I’ll destroy him. I’ll wipe his name
off from the art world. Over the last three years, he had borrowed a lot of
money to buy expensive paintings and buy buildings for his art exhibits. My
company now owns all of those loans.”
Meena stared at him in shock.
“Call him and tell him you changed your mind about marrying him.
Break whatever promises you made to him.” He gave her a sweeping
glance. “It won’t be the first time you’d be doing that.”
With those softly uttered threats, he walked away.
Meena stood frozen, shock and fear enveloping her.
How did Hiten know so much about Tarun? How did he know so much
about her even though he had been gone for over ten years?
She knew why Hiten had returned and what he wanted. But what she
didn’t know was how far he would go in the quest of destroying her.
 ***

Hiten walked into the large guest suite overlooking the pond and banged
the door shut.
He continued to feel the rage that had exploded the moment he saw a
man bent on his knee while holding Meena’s hand.
No. He would not let her escape her fate that easily.
He would ensure there would be no other marriage taking place for her.
He was not only going to ruin her financially, he would also make sure he
would ruin her for anyone else.
He would ensure that the only person she would beg for help—was him.
He wanted her to become completely dependent on him. He would make
her need him. To the point that without him, she wouldn’t be able to breathe
or survive. Being without him, would be equivalent to certain death. Just
like it had been for him when she left him.
A dark, possessive feeling enveloped him while he planned and changed
the course of her future.
Somewhere at the back of his mind, he found the irony in the situation.
He was planning to ruin the life of the same girl whom he had loved more
than his life a decade ago—The girl who had been his everything. She had
been his teacher, his lover and his future. She was the girl he had promised
to love until forever.
PAST
 CHAPTER 9

“Hate destroys you. And love creates happiness.”

Seven-year-old Hiten listened to his mother’s often repeated words with
a sullen face. “I don’t care, but I still hate him!” he said. “The other children
are calling me names because of him.”
“He’s your father, Hiten,” his mother gently reminded.
“I wish he wasn’t! Then I wouldn’t be called a bastard!”
His mother flinched at the word, and her face fell. Hiten immediately felt
bad. He went closer to her and hugged her tightly. “I’m sorry, Ma. Please
don’t be sad.”
His mother’s fingers gently sifted through his hair. “I’m not sad because
of you, Hiten. I just wish I could stop those children from calling you such
ugly names.”
But what they are calling me is true. I am a bastard.
Hiten didn’t say those words aloud because they would make his mother
even sadder. He closed his eyes and drew warmth from his mother’s
comforting embrace. But he felt her shiver as a draft of cold mountain air
came in through the closed windows.
“It’s chilly today,” she said softly. “Go freshen up. I’ll heat the food for
us.”
Hiten went outside the house, and immediately felt the bite of cold wind
on his skin.
It was so unfair. While Hiten and his mother lived in a small two-room
mud house, his father lived in a huge mansion with his wife and also a son
who was the same age as Hiten.
Why did the other woman and boy get to live in the mansion with his
father? Why couldn’t his father take his mother and him to that place too?
 Hiten’s father visited them often. And during most of the visits, Hiten
was sent out of the house while his father spent time alone with his mother.
Although Hiten hated it, he didn’t protest, because on the day of his father’s
visits, his mother would have a bigger smile. She would also sing an extra
song or two for Hiten while putting him to sleep.
Wrapping his thin arms around his torso, Hiten hurried inside the house
and shut the door. He saw his mother walk around slowly as she tried to set
a plate and a steaming dish on their small table. She looked tired.
Hiten blamed his father again for his mother’s tiredness. His eyes fell on
his mother’s large stomach where his brother or sister was sleeping inside
until it was time for them to come out. Hiten was excited that he would
have someone to play with, but at the same time, he was angry and worried
that the other children would tease his brother or sister and call them a
bastard as they did with him.
And even if his brother or sister would be too young to understand the
meaning of the word, the other children would make it a point to explain
that bastard meant a child born to parents who were not married to each
other.
No. Hiten wouldn’t allow that to happen. He won’t play with the other
children anymore. Not that he had any friends among those children.
Everyone teased him and hated him.
“Hiten, come eat while the food is still hot,” his mother called out.
Hiten hurried up and joined his mother for dinner.
That night, while his mother put him to bed, she brushed his hair gently
with her fingers and sang his favorite song. Hiten forgot about his
bitterness. He slept with a smile on his face.
 ***

Soon, Hiten had a baby brother to play with.

When Rishan was barely two months old, their mother went back to
work in the Kaushal tea estate as a picker. Hiten took care of his baby
brother during the day.
“I keep telling you to accept my money, Ragini. You don’t have to work
all day under the sun and can take care of our sons.”
Hiten’s mother smiled and refused the offer. “And I told you many times
already that I can’t accept your money. We are doing fine, Viren. I can take
care of our sons quite well.” Then her eyes fell on Hiten with a worried
look. “I only wish Hiten could attend school so he can learn to read and
write. He’s nearly eight and most children his age are in school.”
Hiten’s father looked guilty. “I know. I’m sorry he is not able to join the
Kaushal School because Sushant is enrolled there. But I promise that I will
build another school by next year and have Hiten and the other children
from the Kaushal tea estate study there.”
Hiten’s mother smiled. “I hope you make provisions for much younger
children of the tea estate employees to be taken care of as well.”
“I promise I will.” Hiten’s father’s voice turned gruffer as he watched
Hiten’s mother’s smiling face. “Hiten. Go out and play,” he instructed.
“And take your brother with you.”
With a slightly sullen look, Hiten picked up Rishan from the makeshift
cloth cradle and went out of the house.
“Why should we go out?” Hiten grumbled when he walked down the
hilly slope. They didn’t have any immediate neighbors. Their house was
deliberately kept far away from the Kaushal mansion.
Rishan didn’t reply. He just looked at Hiten with his light brown eyes.
 ‘Kaushal eyes’ everyone called them. Hiten was thankful he didn’t get
the Kaushal eyes. He didn’t want anything of Viren Kaushal.
“When I grow up,” Hiten continued to speak to his baby brother. “I’ll
build a big house for us here. There will be so many rooms that we don’t
have to go out of the house.”
 ***

Hiten didn’t get the chance to fulfill the promise. A few months later, his
barely one-year-old baby brother and mother died because of a fever.
The fever had taken the lives of many workers at the Kaushal estate. In
fact, his mother had been tending to the sick when she contracted it. She
had tried to keep Hiten and Rishan away, but Rishan ended up with the
fever too.
“Oh God, Ragini. How will I be able to live without you!” Viren
Kaushal broke down and sobbed inside Hiten’s now-empty home.
Hiten was already in too much of a shock to react to his father’s crying.
If Hiten were capable of feeling anything at that point, he would feel anger.
When his mother had fallen badly sick and knew she might not recover,
she had asked Hiten to get his father to her. And when Hiten had gone to the
Kaushal estate, he was denied entry by the guards.
But Hiten had stood outside the massive gates all night, demanding to
see his father even as fear for his mother and brother’s life gripped him.
Later in the morning, a message was sent from someone inside the mansion
that Viren Kaushal was not available as he was travelling.
Disappointed and frightened, Hiten had returned home. His mother and
brother passed away that night. Hiten wasn’t even allowed to be next to
them because his mother didn’t want him to fall sick as well.
“I promise I’ll take care of our son, Ragini,” Viren Kaushal vowed to
Hiten’s mother’s picture.
That evening Hiten’s father took him to the Kaushal mansion.
But Hiten’s stay didn’t last more than two days. His father’s wife’s
screams could be heard as she argued.
 “I will not have your bastard living with us! It was bad enough you
had them living on our estate. And now, you are stripping away every
little ounce of my self-respect by bringing your bastard into my home!”

Hiten listened quietly. He knew his father’s wife hated him. She had
even sent her son, Sushant, away from the Kaushal estate because she didn’t
want Hiten to meet him.
Hiten’s father tried to tell him that she had done it because she was
worried Hiten could make the other boy sick in case he contacted the fever
germs. But Hiten didn’t believe his father.
One the third day of staying in the Kaushal mansion, Viren Kaushal took
Hiten outside into the gardens near the marble statues.
Viren Kaushal looked defeated. “I’m sorry, son,” he said. “You cannot
stay here with me. But I made arrangements for you to stay close to
Kaushal.” An uncomfortable look passed on his face. “Just make sure you
don’t tell anyone in Mahasena that I’m your father.”
Hiten didn’t respond. He remained silent.
At the age of eight, the boy whose blood contained the so-called royal
bloodlines, was sent to the small neighboring estate as a servant.
 CHAPTER 10

The Mahasena estate was not as big as Kaushal. It was quite a small
estate. Although the Mahasena mansion was barely one-fourth the size of
the Kaushal mansion, it was still a large place in Hiten’s eyes.
Hiten was given a small room at the back of the mansion which was less
than half the size of the room he had shared with his mother and brother.
The room was also cold and damp. The thin blankets didn’t provide enough
cushioning on the hard ground to stop the cold from seeping through. Hiten
collected empty cardboard boxes that were thrown out and placed them on
the floor to make it warmer. But still, the cold seeped through.
Unable to sleep, he went out of his room and wandered around the
Mahasena mansion. Unlike in Kaushal, there were no security guards or
maids or manservants seen anywhere.
Hiten stopped walking when he heard a baby cry.
When he saw the Mahasena car driving out of the gates, he had assumed
the whole family was away. He was yet to meet the Mahasena children. He
had overheard someone speaking in the kitchen that there were two girls.
“Come on, Nandu,” a desperate voice could be heard from above. “Take
the bottle. Don’t push it away!”
But the baby’s cries only grew louder. Hiten recognized the cry. It wasn’t
a hunger cry. The baby was possibly having a belly ache. Hiten had taken
care of Rishan long enough to be able to differentiate between various cries.
Feeling curious and also to see if he could help, Hiten looked up at the
window. He couldn’t see anything because the window was too high on the
top floor.
His eyes fell on a thick bush that covered one side of the Mahasena
mansion. The stems looked thick enough to be able to withstand a
considerable amount of weight.
Hiten slowly began to climb the bush until he could see inside the
window.
His eyes met with a set of huge eyes that belonged to a girl who
appeared to be around his age. And instead of looking panicked that
someone had climbed up to her bedroom window, she looked desperate.
“I heard a baby cry,” he said tentatively. “I thought maybe I could help.”
“Really? Please help! I can’t get Nandu to drink milk. I have been trying,
but she’s pushing away the bottle. Ratna just left and is helping out in the
kitchen.”
Hiten knew Ratna was the plump and kind-looking middle-aged lady
who had given him a hot meal earlier that evening. She was also one of the
very few employees working in the mansion along with one other man who
tended to the gardens.
He climbed into the room and went towards the girl. The girl looked a
bit strange up close. She had thin, delicate features, but her eyes were so
huge that all one saw when they looked at her face were the eyes. Her hair
looked like it was chopped very short in an uneven manner until it stood up
in all directions. If she weren’t wearing a dress, he could have easily
mistaken her for a boy.
Hiten went to the cradle and looked at the furiously crying baby. He
picked her up and put her on his shoulder and began patting on her small
back. “She isn’t hungry. She has a stomach ache.”
“Oh.” The girl was watching him curiously.
Hiten gently swayed while he softly hummed a song his mother used to
sing to him and his brother. Soon, the baby stopped crying.
“Oh my God! She is sleeping!” The girl grinned widely, displaying her
two missing front teeth. “And you can sing! I can’t sing at all. My mother
says that when I sing, even the donkeys will run away.”
Her smile was so infectious that Hiten smiled back at her.
“I’m Meena. And that is my baby sister, Nandu. What’s your name?” the
girl asked.
“Hiten.”
“Well, Hiten. I must tell you something important.”
“Yes?”
“I’m going to marry you when I grow up.”
Hiten was shocked at the girl’s announcement. “What?”
The girl continued to grin. “You know how to climb trees. You can sing.
You can put crying babies to sleep. Oh, and you are a boy. I think those are
the most important qualities of a husband. That book says so.” She pointed
at a colorful book with a picture of a yellow-haired woman and a man.
“Oh.” Hiten had no idea how to respond to that.
“But we can be friends for now. Agreed?” The girl extended her hand.
Hiten put the sleeping baby back into the cradle before extending his
hand. “Agreed,” he said.
The girl shook his hand vigorously. “In fact, we can be best friends. I
never had one before!”
Hiten didn’t either. And so, that’s how Hiten made his first friendship.
 ***

It was quite easy being Meenakshi Mahasena’s best friend.

“What do you mean by you don’t know how to read or write? Didn’t you
say you are eight years old like me?” Meena demanded.
Hiten felt ashamed and lowered his head, looking blankly at Meena’s
bedroom floor where they spent most of the day talking and playing.
When he didn’t answer, he heard Meena walking away from him. Hiten
wanted to cry and beg Meena to be his friend even though he was illiterate.
He was barely controlling his tears when he heard Meena walking back
to him.
“Here,” said Meena, tugging his hand and placing something in his palm.
It was a piece of chalk. She held the slate.
“I’m going to be your teacher from now on,” she said. “I’ll teach you
how to read and write. I’m even going to give you some homework every
day. All right?”
Hiten stared at Meena. There was an excited gleam in her eyes. “You…
don’t mind that I don’t know how to read or write?” he slowly asked.
“Don’t be silly. Of course, I mind. How else will you read my favorite
story books with me? That’s why I’m going to teach you.”
Hiten soon realized that Meena meant every word. Even as they spent a
lot of time together playing and talking, Meena made sure they had an hour
where she taught him to write and then slowly read.
By the time Hiten turned nine, he could write and read fluently. He loved
reading so much that after having read all of Meena’s storybooks and
textbooks, Meena had to sneak books out from the small Mahasena library
for him to read.
 Hiten didn’t have a lot of free time during the mornings. The Mahasenas
had a constant change in employees. The maids and occasional guards kept
leaving due to lack of payments and also because it was a massive task to
undertake the upkeep of the Mahasena mansion with only a handful of
workers.
Hiten’s task was to clean the cars and water the garden which he
promptly did each morning. He didn’t find a reason to complain regarding
his work. But he didn’t like the Mahasenas for the way they sometimes
treated their children. Especially Meena.
 ***

“You are a disgrace! You embarrassed us in front of our friends by

showing up like a dirty urchin!” The shouting was followed by a
whacking sound.
Hiten was outside, pacing back and forth under Meena’s window while
Sujata Mahasena continued to shout. When he heard a whacking noise, his
hands fisted in helpless anger.
As soon as he heard the sound of the door shutting, he began to climb up
the bushes. The sight that met his eyes made his anger escalate. There was a
red hand imprint on the side of Meena’s cheek.
“I hate her!” Meena sobbed angrily while wiping away her tears in a
furious manner.
Hiten didn’t have to ask what had happened. He knew it already as this
scene was repeated once in a while. The Mahasenas were neglectful as
parents to the point that they never even bothered to buy new clothes for
their daughters. Often the kindly cook altered clothes for Meena and Nandu
to make them longer and looser.
From the look of Meena’s attire, this particular dress had reached the
limit of the maximum length it could be extended. On top of that, there was
a bit of mud smeared around the hem of the dress. Hiten felt guilty because
he had taught Meena to climb up and down trees, and Meena had snuck out
of her room so they both could go out of the mansion premises and play
near the hilly valley.
“I wish I didn’t have a mother!” Meena continued.
“No. Don’t say that,” Hiten said softly. He sat on the bed next to her.
“Your mother… she cares about you.”
 “No, she doesn’t. All she cares about is how to impress her stupid
friends. Nandu and I don’t even matter. I hate her!”
Hiten remained quiet. Meena’s sobs subsided, and she turned to look at
him. “I know what you are going to say,” she said with a small pout. “That
hate destroys, and love creates happiness.”
“Then stop hating her.”
“Hah! Easy for you to say that. Your mother loved you and even sang
songs to you. My mother is barely home, and the only reason she talks to
me is to criticize me.” Meena touched her cheek gingerly. “Or to slap me.”
Hiten looked at Meena’s swollen cheek. “I’ll be right back,” he said
before heading to the window.
“Where are you going?”
“To the kitchen. I’ll bring back some ice for your cheek.”
Meena shrugged. “I’m fine. Just stay. In fact, sleep in my room tonight.”
Hiten hesitated. He had slept in Meena’s room many times, especially in
the winter when even the additional blankets that Meena smuggled into his
room didn’t stop the cold.
“You parents brought guests,” he said. He could hear the loud music and
laughter coming from downstairs.
“So? You know they would never bother checking on Nandu and me
during the night. And Nandu is already asleep in her room.”
Hiten hesitated only for a few moments before nodding his head and
walking to his side of the bed.
They lay down facing each other.
Meena didn’t sleep right away like she usually did. She kept frowning
and wiggling her cheeks.
“Let me bring you ice,” he insisted.
 “No need. I’ll be fine. Just… maybe sing to me. You know Nandu and I
fall asleep when you sing to us.”
He enjoyed singing. And the songs he sang made him feel close to his
mother and brother.
“All right,” he said and began to sing softly.
Meena closed her eyes and sighed sleepily.
Keeping her eyes closed, she began to speak softly. “When we have
children,” she said with a smile, “I’m never going to hit them or criticize
them. I will love them like how your mother loved you and your brother.”
Hiten was no longer shocked by the statements Meena made about their
future. In fact, he enjoyed listening to her talk about the life they would
have. It made him feel connected to her, and he no longer felt alone in the
world.
He wanted to always have Meena with him at his side.
 CHAPTER 11

Nine years later…

Hiten was seated with his back against a large boulder on top of the hill
that overlooked the Mahasena mansion. He was reading a book.
“Hiiiteeennn…” Meena’s voice echoed across the deep valleys.
Hiten smiled while remaining seated. He looked towards the large rocks
from where he knew Meena would come.
She continued to call out his name.
A few moments later, he saw her. She came running towards him.
She stopped in front of him and began breathing heavily because of her
run up the hill. When he passed her a water bottle, she took it and drank
greedily from it.
“I keep telling you not to scream your lungs out,” he said drily. “You
know I’m going to be here anyway.”
She lowered the bottle from her mouth and looked at him with a grin. “I
like hearing the echo. Obviously, names are the only things I can shout. I
don’t think the people across the valley can take my singing.”
Hiten laughed. He shifted to the left and made room for her to join him.
But as usual, how much ever space he left for her, she sat way too close to
him until their shoulders, hips and legs brushed together.
“Did your music class get cancelled?” he asked.
Meena loved to play the piano, and she was quite good at it. He knew
she wouldn’t deliberately skip it.
Meena grinned. “No. Papa hired another new music teacher to teach me
singing. I sang, so the class lasted only fifteen minutes. I don’t think this
teacher is going to return.”
 Hiten laughed. Meena was terrible at singing, but she more than
compensated for it with the beautiful music she created playing the piano.
She was very creative, and it especially showed in the stunning paintings
she had done of him and some of the people in the Mahasena estate.
“I know it’s a bit early,” said Meena. “But let’s go to the fair in the next
town.”
“What about Nandu?”
“Go and sneak her out. I can’t come with you, or I might have to listen to
Ma’s shouting, just in case she’s awake.”
Hiten smiled. “Okay. I’ll meet you on the other side of the hill.”
 ***

The fair was crowded even during the morning hours.

“I want to play the balloon game again!”
Hiten smiled at the younger Mahasena. “Sure.” It would be the third
round, but the nine-year-old seemed determined.
When Nandini missed hitting the balloons once again, tears of frustration
began to form in her huge eyes. Before Hiten could intervene, Meena took
over.
“Nandu, let me try the last ones.” Meena smiled reassuringly at her sister
before picking up the air gun. Then closing an eye and pointing it towards
the balloons, she hit them all without missing even one.
Nandini clapped cheerfully before she turned to the shopkeeper. “Now,
give me the brown teddy bear,” she demanded.
Laughing at Nandini’s antics and collecting the prize, Hiten led the
Mahasena sisters through the rest of the fairgrounds.
He was getting some cotton candy for them while they sat on the rides,
when he noticed a group of older boys watching and commenting on
women.
“I want the Mahasena girl as well. Those plump lips. A man cannot help
but imagine putting them to proper use.”
There was laughter. “The mansion and the lands that come along with
that siren face and body are not shabby, too,” another boy added.
Feeling furious over the filthy comments passed on the person he adored
and respected, Hiten strode over to them.
“I want you all to stop talking such nonsense and making the women
uncomfortable.”
 The gang of five boys, some of whom appeared older than him, didn’t
seem to care. “Well, look. It’s the Mahasena girl’s lapdog,” one of the boys
said.
Hiten didn’t care what others called him or thought of him.
“We’ll look and talk all we want,” another boy said with a challenge.
“Maybe we’ll even touch and do what we want. What are you going to do
about it?”
Hiten’s fists clenched as he controlled his fury.
“Aww… Look, Hiten is getting angry now,” a boy said with a sarcastic
grin.
“Yup. Looks like he’s jealous. Maybe he wants the Mahasena girl
himself. Or… maybe he’s already the fuckboy to the Mahasena girl and
maybe even to her mother.”
There was more laughter.
“Tell us, Hiten, who is better in bed? Meenakshi or Sujata Mahasena?
Did you ever do them both at the same time? Tell us—” Before the boy
could complete the filthy sentence, Hiten punched him as hard as he could.
There was a loud, outraged and painful yell when the boy began to bleed
profusely where his teeth broke. The rest of the boys surrounded and
grabbed Hiten.
Hiten began to struggle and kick, doing as much damage as he could.
When one of the boys was about to punch him, there was a loud whistle. It
was one of the police constables assigned during the fair.
Immediately, knowing they would be in trouble, the boys let go of Hiten
before scrambling away from the place.
Stretching his fingers which felt slightly sore after the punch, Hiten
looked at the fallen cotton candy on the ground. Then sighing out loud, he
went to the candy stall and purchased another one.
 By the time he headed back to the rides area, Meena and Nandini were
waiting there giggling about something.
“Ah! Hiten is finally here,” said Meena. “We thought we lost you in the
crowd and would have to head home.”
Hiten handed the candy to Nandini which lit up the younger girl’s face
even more. “No. I was late because I was picking up some cotton candy.”
While Nandini attacked the candy in gusto, Meena frowned. Hiten was
surprised when she held his hand. She lifted it closer to peer at it.
“What happened to your knuckles? Why are they bruised?” she
demanded.
“Nothing. Must have banged into something in the crowd.”
“Hmm… let’s go get ice for it.”
“I’m fine—” Before he could complete, she dragged him towards an ice
cream stall.
Much later, after applying ice on Hiten’s bruised knuckles, having ice
cream and playing a few more games at the fair, the three of them headed
back to the Mahasena mansion.
Luckily, as expected, the Mahasenas went out for the evening.
 ***

The Mahasenas were away the entire week. Which meant that Hiten,
Meena and Nandini could spend most of their time outdoors.
They swam, they built a small makeshift boat in the river, and they
climbed trees to collect fruits to take back to Ratna to make them a
delicious dessert for dinner.
“I’m bored,” said Meena, putting the book away next to her on the bed.
Hiten was in her room as well. He was seated near the window reading
another book. Nandini was taking a nap in her room like she usually did in
the afternoon. The younger girl had asked for a singing and dancing night.
Meena would play the piano while Hiten and Nandini sang. And later, they
would play music from the records and dance the night away.
“Why don’t we go to watch a movie?” Meena suggested.
Hiten frowned. “It’ll be too late by the time we return.”
“No. We’ll just stay until half way through. We can get back by the time
Nandu wakes up and finishes her dance classes in the evening.”
“Hmm… okay.”
Since the Mahasenas weren’t home, instead of climbing down Meena’s
window, Hiten stepped out of Meena’s room along with her.
They ran out of the mansion gates.
“Let’s take the short cut,” said Meena. “Race you! Loser gets to clean
the fish next time.”
Meena broke into a run and Hiten followed her with a smile. The
shortcut was going through dense trees as opposed to the narrow, open road
that would take them to the nearby bus stop.
Hiten was tall enough that all he had to do was walk faster while Meena
ran. But that afternoon, Meena was determined to run faster than usual and
win the race.
He almost caught up with her, but suddenly just before they reached the
bus stop, Meena stopped between the trees.
“What’s that sound?” she asked.
“What sound?” It was slightly windy, and he couldn’t hear much.
“Sounds like someone or something is in pain.”
He frowned wondering what she was referring to. And then, he heard it
too—the faint sound of moans.
“Let me go check,” she said.
“Meena, no!” Before he could stop her, Meena ran towards the sound
behind a large tree.
Hiten heard Meena’s loud gasp before she stood completely frozen
watching something. He knew what shocked her.
Hiten hurried to her and held her hand to pull her away. But Meena
resisted and kept staring. The naked couple behind the tree didn’t notice
them as they were too preoccupied having sex. The sounds of their heavy
moaning filled the air.
Taking a deep breath, Hiten dragged Meena forcibly from there. And
instead of going to the bus stop, he pulled her back towards the Mahasena
mansion. He knew Meena wouldn’t be in the mindset to watch a movie
after what she had witnessed.
The walk was quiet for a few minutes. Meena still looked shocked. “I-I
thought that the boy was hurting that girl,” she said. “But the girl didn’t
seem to mind very much. She was pulling him closer.” A thoughtful look
passed on her face. “Were they having sexual intercourse?”
Hiten knew he couldn’t remain quiet. Meena would badger him until he
replied to her.
“Yes.”
 Meena fell quiet again. When they almost reached the Mahasena
mansion, she stopped. “I know that’s how babies are made. But the couple I
just saw seemed to be our age.”
Hiten looked at her. “When people have sex or make love, they don’t
necessarily do it always to make babies.”
“Oh.” She looked shocked again.
And then, she slowly smiled. “Make love. I quite like that phrase.” Then
suddenly, her smile fell, and she stared at him intently with her hands on her
waist. “How do you know so much about all of this? Have you made love
to anyone?” she demanded.
Hiten hesitated before replying, “No. I haven’t.” He had kissed a few
older girls in the nearby town. Some of them tried to seduce him, but he had
turned them down. While Meena was being privately schooled at home
during the day, Hiten went to the town and saw things and learned much
more about real life outside of the Mahasena mansion.
“Why did you pause before answering!” Meena asked with anger.
“I didn’t pause. I know about this the way you do. I read about it in
books.”
“Good! Because the only person you are allowed to kiss or make love to
is me.”
Hiten shook his head. “Meena, stop this foolishness. Forget about what
you saw today. Let’s talk about something else.”
But Meena didn’t seem to be in the mood of forgetting or letting go of
the topic. He saw her bottom lip sticking out slightly which meant she was
going to cling stubbornly to the topic. Hiten groaned internally.
“When you come to my room tonight after dinner, I want us to make
love.”
 Hiten was stunned. He sucked in a deep breath. “I said stop it,” he
ordered.
“Why?” she demanded again. “We will marry each other anyway. Why
can’t we make love?”
When he gritted his teeth in frustration, slowly her expression shifted to
that of uncertainty. “You… don’t find me pretty,” she said.
“Don’t be foolish. You are very beautiful.”
He saw a rush of pleasure on her face as she smiled brightly. “Then let’s
make love, Hiten. It’ll be so much fun!”
“Meena…” he groaned. He didn’t know how to explain it to her.
Bumping into the couple earlier had awakened her curiosity. But she was
still not sexually aware of him or anyone for that matter.
Unlike him.
Right from the age of fourteen, Hiten’s feelings towards Meena had
begun to change. From brotherly love and affection, he became aware of
her as a beautiful girl. That awareness only grew as he aged and reached a
fevered pitch.
Hiten felt guilty of the dreams he had of Meena lately. He tried to
maintain as much physical distance from her as possible. But Meena being
the touchy-feely person she is, made it impossible. And now, her talk of
making love was playing havoc with his body.
Teenage hormones. He had read about them in books, and he knew they
could be quite uncontrollably dangerous. And he did not want to touch or
harm Meena in any way.
“Let’s talk about it later when I see you,” he said.
Meena didn’t argue. She looked excited as though she couldn’t wait to
try out a new dress or open a rare gift.
 But later that night, Hiten didn’t climb into Meena’s bedroom. In fact, he
didn’t for several days. He gave her excuses by saying he was busy with
something or other. They only met during the day for a few hours. And at
that time, Hiten ensured that they did what they typically did together. He
would read a book while she painted. Or they would chat about different
topics.
If only Hiten hadn’t underestimated Meena’s stubbornness and
determination along with what fate had in store for them.
 CHAPTER 12

“I’m going to be in the history section. I’ll meet you in the fiction
section later.”
Hiten and Meena had taken the usual bus to Kaushal on a Sunday which
dropped them in front of the library.
“No!” said Meena, following him. “I’m coming with you, or you’ll be
here all day.”
Hiten smiled. “Fine.”
Meena curled her hand through his and moved closer. Hiten was aware
of her soft breast brushing against his arm. He ignored the awareness and
instead focused on going up to the third floor where the book he was
looking for would most likely be. It was an old book, and he hoped that the
Kaushal Library carried it.
They passed through the portrait of Viren Kaushal as they took the stairs.
After nine years, Hiten no longer cared or even felt anything when he saw
the portrait of the man who fathered him.
Ever since Hiten was dropped off at the Mahasena estate at the age of
eight, not once did Viren Kaushal meet or ask for him. Nobody at the
Mahasenas knew that Hiten was Viren Kaushal’s bastard son. They thought
he was an orphan. Hiten didn’t tell anyone either. Not even to Meena with
whom he had shared everything.
He felt ashamed to tell Meena that he was an abandoned child. He didn’t
want Meena to pity him.
Meena was the most important person in his world. He knew everything
about her, including the fact that she was as protective of him as he was of
her.
 If Meena ever came to know the truth about his parentage, then apart
from just pitying him, Meena would also ensure she would fight on his
behalf, which he didn’t want her to do.
“Ugh. These books look so old and are so thick. You’re going to be stuck
here forever!” Meena accused. She knew of his particular interest in the
subject of history and sciences.
Hiten smiled. “That’s why I told you to go to the fiction section.”
“Fine. I’ll go. But I’ll bring back a book and read it here.”
After Meena left, Hiten searched for the book he was looking for and
found it. Soon, he was lost in the world of knowledge and information.
 ***

The sun had just started to set. When one of the rays fell into Hiten’s
eyes, he knew it was time to leave. He knew he couldn’t carry the book
along with him since it was one of the rare books that the Kaushal Library
didn’t lend. They only allowed the library patrons to read them within the
premises.
Hiten was surprised that Meena hadn’t come to him and insist on leaving
sooner. Closing the book, he carefully placed it back onto the shelf before
heading to the fiction section.
Meena wasn’t there. He searched all the aisles. Then, continuing to
frown, Hiten stepped out of the building.
He saw Meena outside. She was standing under a tree with her back
facing him. She was talking to a group of girls who appeared to be their
age. Hiten recognized Meena because her pale yellow and green dress stood
out against the jeans and shorts that the other girls wore.
As he went closer, he noticed that Meena wasn’t talking to the girls. In
fact, they were giving Meena disdainful looks.
Some of them were even smirking at her dress and exchanging looks.
But Meena was oblivious. She was laughing and talking to a boy who was
watching her with a completely smitten look.
A sudden surge of anger and possessiveness passed through Hiten
catching him completely off guard.
Hiten wanted to pull Meena towards him and punch the other man.
“Meena?” he called out.
Meena turned to look at him, and her smile grew wider.
“Hiten. Come meet my new friends.”
 Gritting his teeth, Hiten went closer and stood next to her. There was a
twinkle in her eye which indicated that she was up to something. “I just met
them. Sushant here was asking if we can join him at his place next week.
Do you know where he lives?” she asked dramatically.
A jolt passed through Hiten when he heard that name. And even more so
when his eyes met with those of the light brown eyes that were typical of
Hiten’s father’s ancestors.
“The Kaushal mansion!” Meena stated excitedly.
Hiten tried to maintain an outward calm while his insides were at once a
swirl of emotions.
“It’s Nandu’s birthday next Wednesday, Meena” he calmly said. “We
already promised to spend time with her the entire week.”
“Oh yeah! I completely forgot that.” She turned to look at Sushant. “I’m
so sorry. I forgot it’s my little sister’s birthday. I can’t come.”
Hiten knew Meena hadn’t forgotten. Just before they arrived at the
library, she had been discussing various ideas with him to surprise her little
sister. He knew Meena was trying to make him jealous. But even though he
knew that, his blood wouldn’t stop boiling with jealousy.
“Bring your sister along then,” Sushant suggested.
Hiten’s hands clenched into fists.
Meena smiled regretfully. “I can’t. My sister prefers to spend time at our
home on her birthdays.”
Meena was right. Nandini liked to decorate a few rooms in different
themes. Hiten and Meena helped her with the decorations.
“Maybe next time,” Meena smiled. Then she made a show of looking at
her watch. “I need to go. My parents are very strict. They expect me to be
back before it gets dark.” It was a lie. Mahasenas didn’t give a damn when
and where Meena was most of the time. He and Meena had even snuck out
of the house at midnight to go swimming during the summer months.
“See you all later,” Meena said cheerfully with a wave. “It was so nice
meeting you. Especially you, Sushant.”
Hiten watched in helpless fury as his half-brother looked alternately
disappointed and besotted while staring at Meena.
“Hope you change your mind and visit Kaushal in the next three months
during the summer while I’m here.”
“I’ll definitely try,” Meena replied before turning towards Hiten.
As they headed home, Meena casually explained how she bumped into
Sushant and his friends. Sushant was at college in London and was visiting
Kaushal during the summer break.
Meena was apparently trying to get a book from the top-most rack when
her ladder shook. Sushant had caught her in time while she was about to fall
on the ground.
“Just like in the movies,” Meena said with a giggle.
Even as Meena continued to talk, Hiten remained quiet. After they
reached the Mahasena mansion, he didn’t stay with her, he went to his
room.
He lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling with peeling paint.
Meena and his half-brother. No. He couldn’t allow that to happen. Even
though Hiten knew he couldn’t be with someone like Meena, he couldn’t
possibly stomach her with his half-brother even if it was innocent flirting.
 ***

It was close to midnight and Hiten couldn’t sleep. Unable to bear it, he
climbed into Meena’s room.
Nearly two weeks had passed since he had last climbed into her room.
The last time was before Meena demanded that they both should make love.
As soon as he stepped in the room, he was shocked seeing Meena
waiting for him by keeping the soft-dim lights on near her bed.
“About time! What took you so long?” she asked with a smile.
Hiten didn’t smile back at her. “I don’t want you to meet that boy from
Kaushal again.”
“Oh?” she asked. “And why not?”
Hiten couldn’t answer her. He watched her with helpless frustration.
“For someone who has answers to almost everything about the world
and beyond, you seem to be tongue-tied,” she taunted. “Tell me why I
shouldn’t meet that tall, handsome and rich boy who seems to like me.”
Hiten clenched his jaw.
“Who knows,” she continued in the same tone. “Sushant might even
steal a kiss or two when I visit Kaushal. Maybe I’ll let him. Maybe—”
One instant Hiten was standing watching Meena with frustrated fury, the
next his lips were on top of her mouth, cutting off her cruel words.
Heat blazed through him, and his entire body felt like it had caught on
fire. He felt arms twining around his neck, and Meena’s soft, curvy body
moved closer until there was no gap between them.
Meena kissed him back. Her sweet, plump lips he had dreamed about
over the years brushed against his.
When she let out a soft moan, he came back to his senses and pushed her
away from him.
 They stared at each other while their loud breaths were the only sounds
in the otherwise silent night.
“Meena… I’m your servant. You deserve a better future than being with
me.” He finally spoke the words that had been constantly haunting him
lately.
She stared at him. “Are you saying that all these years while I dreamed
of our future together, you had no intention of spending the rest of our lives
together?”
“We are no longer children, Meena. We can’t expect our childish dreams
to come true. We need to be practical.”
Meena’s shocked look turned into an angry one. “Childish?” she
repeated. “Maybe those dreams began when we were children, but I meant
every word I spoke about our future. I love you! And I want to be with you
forever.”
Hiten shook his head trying to ward off the pleasure those words caused
him. “We can’t be together, Meena,” he said hoarsely. “I can’t offer you
anything.”
Meena held his hands and looked into his eyes. “Then what is the other
option? I kill the dreams I built around our future and wait for someone else
to come and offer me something?”
He wanted to say yes, but his throat didn’t work for the words to come
out.
“And will you be okay if that other man marries me? That other man
kisses me and makes love to me? That other man fathers my children?”
Rage and despair warred inside Hiten as he heard Meena put into words
what a future without her meant.
“No!” The word burst out from his soul. “I’ll kill him!”
 Meena slowly smiled. “I know you would. Just like I’ll kill any girl who
dares to steal your love. You are mine. Only mine. And we belong together
until forever.”
She pulled his head down and kissed him again. This time he didn’t stop.
He kissed her like a man would kiss the woman he loved and wanted to
spend the rest of his life with.
Meena dragged her mouth away from his to draw in breaths. “Make love
to me, Hiten. I want to be with you.”
That night, even though his entire body hurt due to his arousal, he still
refused. “We can’t, Meena. You might end up getting pregnant.”
“Oh,” she said, looking shocked at the thought. She then frowned in
confusion. “But that other couple we saw in the woods—” she broke off
with a smile. “Contraceptives! Buy them tomorrow.”
He nodded while his brain was still in a haze of passion and
possessiveness.
He turned to leave when Meena held his hand. “Where are you going?”
she asked with a frown. “Stay here with me tonight.”
“I can’t, Meena,” he softly replied. “Not without touching you.”
He climbed down her window and went back to his cold and drafty
room. But he slept well, finally at peace. Even though he knew it was
selfish, he no longer fought the idea of spending the rest of his life with
Meena.
Meena was right, they belonged together.
 CHAPTER 13

The next day, Hiten and Meena spent the entire day with Nandini. They
took the younger girl for a picnic and spent time with her swimming and
flying kites.
And each time Hiten’s eyes met with Meena’s, they exchanged wordless
communication which built his anticipation for the coming night.
That evening, they spent dancing together to their favorite music. Hiten
took turns to dance with both the Mahasena sisters.
They laughed when the birthday girl stood on his feet and danced. And
then, when it was Meena’s turn to dance with him, his heart thumped as he
took her into his arms.
While growing up, they had danced together several times. They would
sneak into the hall where the Mahasenas often hosted parties. They would
play the records on the old gramophone and pretend to be grownups,
dancing to their hearts’ content.
But this dancing was different. Both Meena and he were very aware of
each other as a boy and girl who loved each other and wanted to take their
love to the next step.
His chest felt on fire as the tips of Meena’s breasts brushed against him
during dancing. The sweet smell of her familiar soap also drew him towards
her like a magnet. He was barely holding himself back from kissing her
right there.
He could feel Meena’s heart thumping hard and fast against his chest.
“I’m sleepy!”
He and Meena jumped slightly when Nandini said those words. They
looked at the younger girl who was yawning tiredly.
Meena laughed, and Hiten smiled.
 “All right. Let’s get you into bed, Nandu,” said Meena. “Hiten will read
us a story.”
Much later, after Hiten read a story to Nandini until the younger girl
went to sleep, Meena and he continued with their plan for the rest of the
night.
 ***

Meena and Hiten hurried to the top of the hill where they usually met
since childhood. It was dark, and the two large boulders hid them from any
possible passerby on the narrow road.
As soon as they reached the spot, Meena pulled Hiten close. “Kiss me,”
she demanded.
Hiten immediately complied. He kissed her desperately, like he had
wanted to do from the moment he left her room the previous night.
After kissing for a while, they drew apart. Meena watched him in
anticipation, waiting for him to lead them with the rest of the lovemaking.
“Did you get them?”
“Yes.” He had gone to the town first thing in the morning right when the
stores opened.
Hiten’s hands shook as he opened the box of condoms and took out one.
“Aren’t we supposed to be naked first?” Meena asked excitedly.
Before Hiten could respond, Meena began to shed her dress. She even
quickly removed her undergarments. Soon she was standing entirely naked
in front of him in the moonlight with just a smile and absolutely no
inhibitions.
Hiten was shocked and mesmerized. She looked like a goddess. Her soft,
plump breasts stood proudly, and every inch of her curvy body was
beautiful. He couldn’t take his eyes off of her even though his hands shook,
badly wanting to touch her.
“Your turn!” she said while he continued to stare.
When he didn’t move, she let out a huff of impatience and came closer
and tugged at his shirt. Her soft, bare breasts brushed against his bare
stomach and almost made him spill his seed right then. He hurriedly shed
his clothes until he was completely naked like her.
This time, Meena was the one to be shocked. She had seen his bare chest
and limbs many times when they had gone swimming together since
childhood. But his arousal was entirely new for her.
She stared at his long, hard arousal in fascination. He put on the
protection before she insisted on touching and exploring him. He knew he
wouldn’t last if she touched him there.
Once he was done and unable to wait any longer, he pulled her close and
kissed her again. She kissed him back eagerly.
And soon, they were lying on top of the soft grass on the ground.
He spread her legs and moved in between while she raised her hips
slightly to help him.
“Meena!” he gasped, pushing into her. The intense pleasure he felt
overwhelmed him.
Meena gasped out loud, and her hands left his hips and held his
shoulders tightly. Her body shook like his.
He tightened the grip on her hips. “I love you,” he said, the words
coming out from the depth of his soul. “I’ll love you until the day I die.”
With that, he pushed deep into her.
Meena cried out loudly in pain, and her nails dug into his shoulders. “It
hurts, Hiten!” she gasped out. “Take it out! Take it out!”
She tried to buck him off of her.
“Meena, wait!” Hiten tried to pull away. But Meena’s movements only
joined their bodies even more and caused shivers of pleasure to run through
him. He felt helpless, and soon his body seemed to have a mind of its own.
Groaning in pain and pleasure, he drew back to pull out, but he ended up
thrusting in even deeper before he exploded inside her.
 When he could finally catch his breath and gain back his senses, he
rolled away from her. “Oh God, Meena. I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”
Guilt ate at him. He hurt the only person he loved more than anything in
the world. The light smearing of blood on his still-aroused member made
him want to throw up. How could he not stop and hurt her until she bled?
He hurriedly stood up and looked at Meena to beg for her forgiveness.
But he was shocked at the sight. She was watching him with a small smile.
“I’m fine, Hiten. It hurt quite a bit at first, but then it became okay.
Come back here. Let’s do it again! The last part seemed fun.”
His body which was already aroused came alive even more. An animal
instinct inside him made him want to cover her and join their bodies once
more. But he resisted. “No! I just hurt you. I even made you bleed.” His gut
twisted again recalling her pained gasp as he drove into her.
“Oh,” she said. She looked at his arousal and then at the sight of blood
smeared in between her thighs.
She shrugged and looked up at him. “So? This is normal, right? I’m
supposed to bleed for the first time.”
He was stunned. “What?”
She watched him curiously for a few moments before bursting out
laughing. “Oh my God. You don’t know! The great wise old Hiten who can
debate about every topic under the sun and spends hours and days in the
library hasn’t a clue about love making.”
Hiten shifted uncomfortably. She was right. Apart from the very basics
and the worldly knowledge gained by interacting with and observing people
from the town, he didn’t have much knowledge about sex.
He was a virgin, and this was his first time too. He had deliberately
avoided reading erotic books because he didn’t want his mind to feel
disturbed with his already-raging teen hormones.
 “My mother spoke to me when my periods began,” Meena continued.
“She told me about a woman’s body. She said I was to make love only to
my husband and only when I wanted children. And that all women have
proof of virginity, and when we make love for the first time, we bleed.
That’s how our husbands are supposed to know we are pure.” Meena rolled
her eyes as though the whole thing sounded absurd.
Hiten felt torn with guilt once again. He realized that he had effectively
sealed Meena’s fate by taking away the proof of her innocence and binding
her to him forever.
But Meena didn’t seem to think of it as anything to worry about. Smiling
at him, she got up slowly on her shaky legs and threw her arms around him,
hugging him. She placed her head against his beating heart. “Now you have
no choice but to remain mine until forever,” she stated proudly.
 ***

The rest of the days that followed were drenched in their newfound
passion.
Hiten ensured he learned about what really constituted lovemaking. And
when he did, he was ashamed.
Meena’s and his first time had been pleasurable only to him. There were
so many things that one could do during lovemaking to make it pleasurable
to a woman as well.
Hiten did them all to Meena over the following days. And Meena in turn,
was also a quick learner and enthusiastic when it came to lovemaking.
Together, they began to discover a lot about their bodies together. About
what each of them liked. What drove them crazy. And what made them
explode in passion.
There was also what he termed as a lovemaking map on Meena’s body.
Little beauty spots starting at the corner of her eye, then above the lips, then
at the base of her neck, then at the underside of her left breast, then at her
navel and then the last one ending near her upper thigh.
All he had to do is kiss his way, following the map. And in the end, they
were both crazy with passion.
“Don’t go. Stay for a while longer.” Meena pulled him back on her bed.
“It’s almost sunrise,” Hiten replied while gently pushing Meena’s arms
away from his neck.
She pouted sulkily. “You keep saying it’s risky to be found together in
my room. But I don’t think it’s risky. It will simply make it easier for us to
tell my parents about us. We don’t have to wait until we are both twenty-
one to tell them.”
 Hiten kissed her pout away before shaking his head. “We are only
eighteen, Meena. You are still completing your studies. And I haven’t yet
figured out what I will do for a living.”
Right from his childhood, Hiten was paid a small salary by the
Mahasenas. It wasn’t much by any stretch, but it had been enough
considering he already had a place to live and food to eat.
He had started to save more money by working part-time in the town. He
wanted to save enough to apply for colleges when Meena finished her
homeschooling. He had heard there were colleges that would take in
students who had no formal schooling. All he had to do was pass their
entrance exams which he was confident he could even if he took them at
this very moment. But he didn’t want to leave Meena and go to college.
He’d rather waste a few years to be with her than leave.
“I have figured out what we can do for our living,” Meena replied while
tracing the muscles on his back.
“Oh?” he asked, his ever-aroused body responding enthusiastically to her
eager hands.
She grinned in victory realizing he would stay for a while just like she
wanted.
“I will pursue painting professionally,” she continued. “And you can
pursue college as you have always wanted. And you can also be my
manager. You have good business and marketing acumen and can convince
people that my paintings are good.”
“Your paintings are not just good, they are amazing,” he stated. “And
one look at them, no one would need any convincing to buy them.”
“What else have you planned for our future?” he asked as he watched
her face. Her eyes were closed, and her soft lips were parted slightly as he
slowly joined their bodies. He held her face with one hand and rubbed his
thumb along her smooth cheek.
She blinked her heavy-lidded eyes open and smiled at him. “Four
children,” she said. “We will have four children and two pets.”
“Four?” he asked. “If you are going to be a famous painter, who will
take care of them while you are busy? I suppose you expect me to.”
Meena smiled. “Of course. They are going to be your children, and so
it’s your duty. And besides, you have so many things to teach them. Why do
you think I proposed to you on the day we first met?”
He laughed. But soon their laughter turned into groans when passion
took over.
 CHAPTER 14

Hiten thought he and Meena were being careful, and that no one realized
that their relationship had changed from an innocent one to a more
passionate one.
And so, he was quite shocked when Mahasenas’ long-time help, Ratna,
tried to warn him.
“No matter how negligent and foolish the Mahasenas are… they are still
powerful people with royal bloodlines. They will not allow their daughter to
marry their servant. They will ruin you, my boy.”
Hiten looked at the woman who had been kind to him over the years. He
knew Ratna meant well. “Meena and I have been friends since we were
eight. What we have is just friendship.”
Ratna smiled. “As a person who watched you both grow up, I know it’s
no longer just friendship between the two of you.” Then her smile turned
sad. “Meena is a good soul. She does love you genuinely with all of her
girlish heart. But take it from someone who knows more about how the real
world works. It won’t be easy or end well for you both. Although, I pray
that it does.”
Even though Hiten didn’t tell Meena about Ratna’s warning, the
conversation sat heavily in his heart. A strange feeling of a foreboding
premonition took over.
He couldn’t imagine his life without Meena. And he knew Meena felt the
same way. Wasn’t that more important than the difference in class or status?
Later that evening, Hiten asked Meena what she would do if her parents
didn’t agree to their marriage.
“Then we won’t wait until I finish my education. We’ll just elope and get
married,” she said with a determined look. “And when we save enough
money, we’ll come back here to take Nandu with us as well,” she added.
Although those words soothed Hiten’s restless heart, he couldn’t imagine
Meena’s life if they were to elope. Meena was used to living in a huge
mansion. Would she hate him if they had to wash their own clothes, cook
for themselves and clean their house?
Even as those doubts remained, Hiten was determined to fight for his
and Meena’s future. He was determined to work hard and provide her with
every luxury he could possibly afford.
 ***

“I don’t think there are any trees remaining for you to carve our initials
on.”
Hiten was lying naked on the soft, dried leaves watching Meena as she
focused on the task at hand. There were a lot of leaves stuck to her long,
hip-length hair from when she had laid under him on the ground a few
minutes ago.

H & M. Until Forever.

Chipping away the last letter, she threw away the sharp rock and turned
his way to grin at him.
“There will be more trees for me to write this on,” she replied. “When
the smaller trees grow up.” She stretched her hands, trying to get the kinks
out which might have formed during the chipping.
Hiten wasn’t listening to her as he couldn’t take his eyes off of her. Even
though he was now well-acquainted with every inch of her body, he still
couldn’t get enough. Every part of her was so beautiful that he wished he
had the skill to paint like her.
He would especially draw the little mole under her left breast which
drove him insane. He would also draw her slightly concaved stomach which
he could easily span using his both hands. And then, he would draw her
curvy hips which now had his faint fingerprints where he had held her. And
lastly, he would draw her beautiful, sweet core where he spent a lot of time
pleasuring her and driving her crazy.
His thoughts were interrupted by Meena’s giggle. “I think I can guess
what’s going on in that mind of yours,” she said looking at his blatant
arousal.
Hiten smiled sheepishly. But before he could get up and grab her to pull
her on top of him, a loud noise went off in the otherwise silent forest.
“What’s that?” Meena asked with a frown.
The sound came again. “It sounds like a gunshot,” he replied.
He got up hurriedly and handed Meena her clothes before he began
dressing.
“Who would be hunting? Papa and Ma are away right now.”
The Mahasenas hunted occasionally. They even brought in guests as the
forest around Mahasena estate was famous for deer.
“No idea. But let’s get back home. It’s safer.”
“Someone must be poaching. And it’s not even hunting season! We
should warn them off, Hiten.”
“Don’t be stupid. It’s dangerous. I can go check and warn them after
dropping you home.”
“No. I’m coming with you,” she insisted. Knowing that he would stop
her, she began to run towards the sound.
“Meena! Stop!”
With heart thudding, he chased after her. He caught up with her when
she stopped right before the clearing.
“Shhh,” she softly said, indicating to a group of people sitting in an
open-top jeep. She picked up a smooth rock and threw it towards a deer
standing at a distance. The deer immediately ran away when the rock fell at
a close distance from it.
Hiten felt a jolt inside when he recognized the people. It was Sushant
Kaushal with his friends who were visiting from London.
“I think Sushant brought his friends to show off his hunting skills,”
Meena whispered. “Let’s ruin it and have some fun.”
 “No. We are going home.”
“Don’t be a spoilsport. We’ll just follow the vehicle for a few minutes,
and then we can sneak away.”
“Come with me right now! Or I’m going to spank your bare butt until it
hurts. You won’t be able to sit for a week,” he threatened.
Meena just grinned at him and stuck out her tongue.
“Meena!” he whispered helplessly as she began to run within the trees,
trailing next to the jeep without being seen.
Although he enjoyed Meena’s wild spirit most of the time, he sometimes
hated the brash, impulsive streak which made her take dangerous risks.
She had broken her arm once when she had insisted on climbing a tall
tree which he had warned was not sturdy enough. And even when she fell,
she later giggled and told him it was well worth it because she could get to
the sweetest fruits on the tree.
Whether it was midnight swims in ice-cold water during the winters or
stealing the car keys of one of the Mahasena’s cars to learn driving near the
steep mountains, Meena took a lot of foolish risks. And like always, despite
his disapproval, he stayed by her side to ensure her safety even though he
couldn’t talk her out of those foolish streaks.
Meena scared away two more deer during the next hour.
“That’s enough, Meena. Let’s go!” he said.
Meena grinned. She threw her arms around his neck and pulled his head
down to kiss him. “Aww… don’t be angry. I was just having some fun.”
But Hiten was in no mood to be appeased. He clenched his jaw and
wanted to first get away from there. They were inside Kaushal lands. The
sound of gun shots continued as the hunt changed to smaller game such as
birds.
 Hiten pushed Meena’s hands away from his neck and took a few steps
away. He turned and began to walk back home.
“Aww. Come on, Hiten!” she said and giggled softly. “Don’t worry. I
know just how to make it up to you and take away all of your anger.”
Even though his body began to stir at her statement, he ignored her and
continued to walk away. But less than a minute later, he stopped when she
hissed in pain. “Ow!”
He swung back and saw her standing on one foot and holding the other
one in her hand. He rushed to her. “What happened?” he asked. “Are you all
right?” He bent to see if she got bitten by something or a thorn poked into
her foot.
But she threw her hands around his neck and kissed him noisily on his
lips. “Fooled you!” she said with a laugh.
Hiten’s nostrils flared. “It’s not funny, Meena.”
He pushed her arms away, and this time he took longer strides. He didn’t
look back, but he could hear her footsteps on the soft, dried leaves.
They were closer to the Mahasena lands when another gun shot went off.
This time Meena let out an ear-piercing scream. Hiten swung back, fully
expecting Meena to laugh at him and stick her tongue out. But his heart
almost stopped when he saw her lying on the forest floor struggling to
breathe.
“Meena!” He ran towards her. There was blood on her shoulder, and it
was bleeding profusely.
“It hurts, Hiten!” Meena gasped out in pain.
“Wait here, Meena. I’m getting help. I’ll be right back.” He ran out
towards the clearing, his eyes frantically searching for the jeep. He saw the
jeep at a distance where it had stopped. Sushant and a few girls had gotten
down and were looking towards the forest.
 “Help!” Hiten shouted.
Sushant saw Hiten and ran towards him. “We heard someone scream,”
said Sushant. “My friend shot into the trees thinking it was a deer.”
“Meena has been shot,” Hiten replied. “We need to get her to the hospital
urgently.”
Hiten hurried back to Meena. And Meena was barely conscious. Her
face had paled considerably. “Hiten,” she whispered.
“We have help, Meena. You’ll be all right soon.” Hiten picked her up
carefully. But still, she cried out in pain.
He put her in the backseat of the jeep and was about to climb in next to
her. But Sushant stopped him.
“You don’t have to come with us. Go and inform Meenakshi’s parents
she’s been shot. I’ll take her to Kaushal Hospital.”
“I’m not leaving her side,” Hiten stated. “I’m staying with her.”
A look of annoyance passed on Sushant’s face, but he didn’t argue. He
looked at his friends waiting by the jeep. “I’ll send another vehicle to pick
you guys up. I’m taking Meenakshi to the hospital.”
As the jeep drove towards the hospital, Meena continued to bleed. Hiten
removed his shirt and pressed down on her wound to control the flow.
After a few nerve-racking minutes, the jeep drove into the gates of the
Kaushal Hospital. Meena continued to cling to Hiten’s hand. And when she
was shifted onto a stretcher and wheeled into the operating room, Hiten was
stopped.
“No! Don’t leave me,” Meena cried out weakly.
Hiten felt equally anxious, but he soothed her. “They have to operate on
you, Meena. I’ll be right here. I promise.”
She calmed down a little before being wheeled inside. The door to the
operating room shut, locking Hiten outside.
 Hiten took the seat outside the room and tried to sit still. But feeling
restless and terrified, he began to pace in the corridor.
“Was Meenakshi coming to visit me when this happened?”
Hiten noticed Sushant’s presence. Sushant was also waiting outside the
operating room.
“No,” Hiten replied, his mind elsewhere where he desperately prayed
Meena would be okay. Oh God, I’ll do anything if she comes out of this
okay.
“What was she doing on the Kaushal lands on a Sunday, then?” Sushant
asked.
Hiten wanted to ignore him, but he thought maybe it would be slightly
better to be distracted than go crazy with worry about Meena.
“We visit the library on Sundays.”
Sushant frowned. “But Meenakshi said she takes the bus to the library.”
That day they didn’t. They got carried away mid-journey on the forest
floor and decided to spend the rest of the day making love and talking about
their future.
Hiten didn’t bother explaining. “Excuse me,” he said and sat back in the
chair right outside the room where Meena was being operated on.
But Sushant was insistent. “I sent many lunch and dinner invitations to
the Mahasenas. Why weren’t any of them accepted?”
Hiten frowned. “The Mahasenas are currently travelling. They will be
back after ten days.”
“I see.”
Ignoring his half-brother, Hiten rested his head against the wall and
closed his eyes. His body began trembling slightly in delayed shock.
Meena was going to be okay. There was no other choice. Nothing can
snatch her away from him. She was his world. His everything. The reason
he woke up each day to live in a world where she spread her happiness.
If anything were to happen to her, he knew it would be the end of his
existence. He would follow behind her even in death.
Taking a deep breath, Hiten pushed away negative thoughts and
continued to pray for Meena’s complete recovery. He recalled their plans
for the future.
He was determined. He would ensure that he and Meena would have
four children, and they would all live in a happy home. And when he and
Meena would get very old, only then would he allow death to take her away
along with him.
They were meant to be together until forever.
 CHAPTER 15

Hiten jerked awake. He was still seated outside the operating room. But
the light indicating an ongoing surgery was turned off.
He must have dozed off due to the lack of proper sleep over the past few
weeks. He and Meena had been spending almost all of their nights together
making love and talking through the night about their future.
Hiten blinked his eyes and shook his head trying to shake off the sleep.
He stood up and went to the reception area.
“Meena. Meenakshi Mahasena. She was in surgery a while ago. Which
room is she in?” he asked a woman.
The woman looked at him in a strange way. He realized that that he was
shirtless and was only wearing a thin undershirt which had stains of blood
on it.
“We can’t release that information unless you know the patient,” the
woman replied.
“I know her. I’m her… family’s employee. Her parents are travelling
currently. I need to keep them informed.”
The woman frowned in confusion. “Didn’t Mr. Sushant Kaushal inform
you?”
“Inform me what?”
“That Miss Mahasena has been taken to the Kaushal mansion to
recover.”
 ***

Anger and worry churned inside Hiten’s stomach as he stood outside the
Kaushal mansion gates. The last time he was here, he had promised never to
return where he wasn’t wanted.
But now, for Meena’s sake, he had to. And he wasn’t above killing his
ego and pride for Meena.
“What do you mean I’m not allowed to go inside?” Hiten demanded of
the armed guards.
“Sorry. I just called to let them know you are here to see Miss Mahasena.
But Mr. Sushant said it wasn’t required.”
“Who the hell is he to deny me permission to see Meena? And why did
he bring her here!”
The guard looked regretful. “Look. I’m sorry. I just work here and
follow orders.”
“Then tell him I’m not leaving this place until I’m allowed to see
Meena.”
Hiten remained outside near the gates.
He sat under a tree. Leaning his back towards the tree trunk, he kept his
eyes trained towards the mansion.
When he was too tired, he simply closed his eyes.
The guards pitied him and offered to share some food with him, but
Hiten turned them down. However, he took the extra shirt that was offered
to him as it was biting cold during the night.
The next morning when it was almost noon, Sushant came by in a car.
The tinted windows of the car were rolled down.
“Stop making a spectacle and go back to the Mahasena mansion,”
Sushant ordered.
 “Take me to Meena. Why have you brought her here?” Hiten demanded
in return.
Sushant’s jaw clenched at Hiten’s tone. Hiten knew that in Sushant’s
eyes, Hiten was a servant who dared to demand answers from someone
much above his station.
“I’ll be right back,” Sushant told his driver before getting down the car.
“Come with me,” Sushant told Hiten and went towards the tall trees which
offered them some privacy.
Hiten followed his half-brother grudgingly.
“Why are you here?” Sushant demanded.
“To see Meena and to take her home with me.”
“Meenakshi is doing fine. They took out the bullet, and she has been
advised to have bed rest because of the loss of blood. Since you mentioned
the Mahasena’s are away, I brought her here.”
Hiten was relieved to know Meena was doing fine. “Why didn’t you tell
me before bringing her here?”
“Because I’m not answerable to servants,” Sushant replied.
Hiten gritted his teeth suppressing his anger. “You know very well that
Meena doesn’t treat me as her servant. We have been close since we were
eight.”
“Well. You are no longer children to have such a close friendship. She is
your employer’s daughter. And even if she has a girlhood infatuation
towards you or you have spun some fantasies around her, you better learn to
kill them. Meenakshi is a noblewoman with royal bloodlines. She will end
up being with someone who is her equal.”
Sushant’s words managed to poke at Hiten’s old wound giving rise to his
old insecurities.
“Is Meena able to talk and move?” Hiten asked.
 “Yes. But she is still feeling a bit weak. She’s able to talk to my mother
and me. The Mahasenas have already been informed about her presence
here. So there is no need for you to linger around where you are not
needed.”
Hiten sucked in a breath at the last statement.
Feeling dejected, he finally turned to leave. With Meena and him away
from the Mahasena mansion, Nandini must be alone and frightened with
just Ratna as company. He knew Meena would want him with her little
sister rather than wait for her outside when she was doing okay.
 CHAPTER 16

It had been a little over a week since Meena was at Kaushal mansion.
The Mahasenas returned early, and Hiten was happy for once on their
early return. Because it would mean bringing Meena back home.
Hiten felt as though his limbs were cut off without her. He continued to
climb into her room and sleep in her bed which smelled of her so he could
maintain a modicum of sanity.
When he told the Mahasenas that they should bring back Meena, he was
met with resistance.
“Don’t be silly,” said Sujata Mahasena. “Meena is fine there. What better
place to be in than the majestic Kaushal mansion?”
Hiten looked at Meena’s father, hoping that unlike Meena’s mother, at
least he would want to bring his daughter back.
“Meena was shot by a bullet and lost a lot of blood,” Hiten informed.
“We know,” Dheeraj Mahasena replied. “Sushant sent us a message to
tell us that she is doing okay.”
Feeling frustrated, Hiten strode away from there. But while he was
leaving, he heard the excited murmurs from the Mahasenas.
“Can you believe it! Our daughter has managed to catch the eye of the
heir to the Kaushal!” said Sujata Mahasena.
“Yes. The Kaushals are so damn private and always turn up their noses
when it comes to socializing with others. I wonder where Meena managed
to meet Sushant Kaushal.”
“Who cares!” said Sujata Mahasena. “The boy is definitely besotted. I
just saw all the missed dinner invitations he had sent in the last few weeks.
Can you believe our friends’ faces when we tell them who our future son-
in-law might be!”
 “Now. Now,” said Dheeraj Mahasena. “Let’s not plan ahead before
anything happens. Let things proceed enough, before we begin telling
anyone about anything. And besides, Meena and Sushant are too young.
They are only eighteen.”
“Hmm. He’ll finish his studies in few more years. Meena is his age, so
they’ll both only be twenty-one. We need to ensure he doesn’t forget
Meena. We should ask her to stay in touch with him frequently. We should
all plan a trip to London and have Meena meet Sushant there as well.”
Even as the Mahasenas continued to scheme, Hiten dragged himself
away from there. His blood alternately boiled and turned cold at the thought
of Meena with Sushant.
No. Meena was his. They had promised to love and be with each other
until forever.
 ***

Three weeks. Another three torturous weeks passed by without Meena.

Hiten was constantly on edge hoping Meena wasn’t suffering or in pain.
Meena was returning home that morning. The Kaushals had sent a
message the previous evening.
Hiten had barely slept. The previous night, he had gone to the top of the
hill to his and Meena’s spot near the large rocks. He watched the sunrise
and then kept his eyes trained on the narrow road waiting for the car that
would bring Meena back home. It began to rain, but Hiten stayed on top of
the hill.
Finally, when it was an hour before noon, a car showed up.
Hiten ran down the hill, splashing over the rainwater-filled muddy
puddles. When he was almost halfway down, he could see the car stopping
in front of the mansion entrance. A man with a dark suit got down first. He
held an umbrella and went to the other side and opened the door. A woman
wearing a pale pink dress with a large lacy hat stepped out. The man held
the woman’s waist and led her towards the entrance.
Hiten frowned. Did the Mahasenas invite someone for lunch that day?
Then a sudden thought hit him making him realize that the woman
wearing the pale pink dress and the fancy hat could be Meena. And the man
who accompanied her was probably Sushant.
Feeling anxious, Hiten ran down even faster, skidding in the wet mud a
couple of times. But he didn’t care. He had to reach Meena.
As soon as he stepped into the entrance, he could hear voices coming
from the formal living room.
“I couldn’t even recognize my Meena,” Sujata Mahasena said. “Meena
looks like a lady. What a transformation! Thank you so much, Sushant.”
 There was soft laughter from Sushant. “Don’t thank me, Mrs. Mahasena.
It was my mother who ordered clothes and helped Meenakshi with her
dressing. All I did was entertain Meenakshi and give her company while
she was recovering.”
“Then please allow me to thank Mrs. Kaushal.”
“You are welcome to visit Kaushal anytime, Mrs. Mahasena. In fact, I
extended the offer to your daughter some weeks ago. Even though the
circumstances under which she visited were unfortunate, I’m glad she was
able to stay in Kaushal for three weeks.”
Hiten walked into the formal room and caught the sight of Meena. He
could only see her profile.
He stared at her. She looked breathtakingly beautiful with her elaborate
hairstyle and expensive well-fitting clothes. She looked unattainable and far
removed from his carefree, wild-spirited Meena with long hair that was
always let loose and with comfortable clothing that was made to climb, run
and dance.
Hiten hated Meena’s new look with a burning passion.
“Do join us for lunch, Sushant,” Sujata Mahasena invited in a sweet
voice. “The cook has made special dishes since we were welcoming Meena
back.”
“Sorry, Mrs. Mahasena. I have to leave. I’m catching a flight back to
London tonight. My college starts tomorrow. I just wanted to drop
Meenakshi off at your home in person.”
“That is so sweet of you. Thank you for taking care of our Meena.”
“Believe me, the pleasure was all mine.” Hiten’s blood boiled when
Sushant held Meena’s hand and raised it to his lips and kissed it. “Don’t
forget to keep in touch.”
 Meena just smiled. And then, they all turned to escort Sushant out when
they saw Hiten standing near the doorway.
“Hiten!” Sujata Mahasena shrieked. “My God! You are filthy. You are
dripping and dirtying up the floors with your muddy clothes and shoes. Get
out right now and take the kitchen door!”
Hiten’s eyes were locked on Meena’s. And Meena was looking at him
with a frown.
“Hiten! Go!” Sujata Mahasena shouted once again.
Furious, Hiten turned and strode out. It was still raining, but instead of
going into the kitchens and to his room, he began to walk out of the gates to
go back up the hill.
Three weeks. Just three weeks was all it took Meena to see him as a
filthy servant who was beneath her.
 ***

“I thought you would be in your room since it was raining until a few
minutes ago.”
Hiten didn’t turn when he heard Meena’s voice. He was back on top of
the hill, watching the rain-drenched valley. He saw the Kaushal car leave an
hour ago.
A faint smell of perfume wafted in the air as he felt Meena coming
closer. She didn’t crash down next to him or fall in his lap and hug him like
she usually did. She remained standing next to him.
“Are you angry with me?” she asked.
Hiten’s jaw clenched. “Why would I be?”
Meena sighed. “Did you miss me a lot?”
“No. It didn’t make any difference to me whether you were here or were
enjoying a holiday staying with your admirer.”
“Really?” Her tone sounded irritated.
He finally turned to look at her. She was still wearing the expensive
dress gifted to her by the Kaushals, and her hair was swept up into the fancy
hairstyle.
“Did you have a good time these last three weeks?” he asked. “Heard
that you and the Kaushal heir have formed quite a bond during that time.”
Meena’s eyes narrowed at his tone. “Yes. I had a great time. Wonderful,
in fact,” she replied. “I was a guest in a truly royal, luxurious mansion. And
the handsome, charming heir to all that richness was constantly at my beck
and call, ready to entertain me and compliment me about my extraordinary
beauty. And adding to that, they even made me feel like a princess by
dressing me up. Now that I’ve gotten used to all of that, I don’t know if I
can get back to my old, dreary life.”
 Rage exploded inside him. He dug his hands into the soft, wet ground.
He stood up with fists filled with mud and smeared it on her pale pink
dress. He smeared some on her face as well. And then, his fingers dug into
her hair to rip out the pins that held up her hair. She flinched when some of
them pulled at her hair roots, but she remained quiet.
When her hair finally fell to her hips, he stopped.
He looked at her angrily. “Now, you look like your old, dirty and
unkempt self. So you don’t have to worry anymore about adjusting.”
She watched him for a few moments. And then, she slapped him. Hard.
He was stunned. She slapped him once more. When she tried to slap him
again, he held her hands and dragged her to him.
She struggled against him. “What’s the matter?” she hissed. “You need
to make me as dirty as you to be able to feel my equal? Guess what?
Sushant complimented me even when I wasn’t wearing these fancy clothes.
He likes me any way that I am.”
His rage roared back into life. “Well, if only the stupid bastard knew that
you are already taken and that you are mine!” He let go of her hands to hold
on to the back of her neck. He then crashed his lips on top of hers. His
tongue forced her lips open and thrust inside. He had never kissed her
brutally before. They had only shared sweet kisses or passionate kisses.
She bit into his lip hard. When he was about to jerk away, she held his
head with both her hands and kept him still. She kissed him back equally
aggressively.
He felt her hands moving away from his hair to tear at his clothes
frantically. Blood roared in his ears when she unbuttoned his pants. He
picked her up at the hips and carried her towards the large boulders. She
wrapped her legs around his hips and continued to kiss him.
 As soon as he lowered her to the ground on the soft, wet grass, she
pushed his pants down along with his underwear. He held her dress and
pushed it up. He heard the sound of ripping from the delicate fabric which
satisfied him. Then raising her thighs higher, he drove into her, joining them
together.
All the times he had made love to her, he usually felt at peace as soon as
he joined their bodies. But right then, his mind continued to be restless. The
hungry, insecure demon inside him wanted to claim her in a way she would
never forget that she was his. He drove into her savagely again and again
until her harsh, pleasured gasps fell on his ears like music. Her nails dug
into his backside, pulling him deeper into her.
Their mouths continued to fuse along with their bodies. And soon, she
let out a loud gasping moan when the peak of the pleasure hit her. He
followed right behind her when release tore through him. But even as he
trembled and shuddered through the climax, he continued to drive into her.
He came back to his senses slowly when Meena’s hands moved gently
on his back. They were still joined together intimately, and he lay heavily
on top of her.
Carefully, he rolled them until she lay on top of him. He remained quiet,
still feeling overwhelmed with emotions that hit him at the same time.
Meena’s fingers moved gently on his face. She traced his jaw and lips
before kissing him softly.
“You fool,” she said in a soft, affectionate tone. “How can you ever
doubt my love for you?” she asked. “Hundreds of mansions or thousands of
beautiful dresses wouldn’t hold any appeal to me without you by my side.
All I need in my life is just you. We will always be together because we are
one soul with two bodies. If I’m ever taken away from you, my soul will
cease to exist. There is no me without you.”
 Her words soothed his restless heart. He wrapped his arms around her
until she lay on him with her head against his chest.
“I missed you,” he got out the words finally.
She hugged him tightly. “I know. I missed you too.”
“Then why did you not insist on coming back home?” he asked.
“I did. I demanded that right on the first day. But my parents insisted that
I stay there. I knew I wasn’t in a position to travel, so I even demanded that
you be brought to Kaushal along with Nandini. But I was told not to be
selfish as Nandini can’t afford to miss school for so many days. And that
you had to stay home in Mahasena as no one else was with Nandini and
Ratna.”
She raised her head to look at him. “The Kaushals were nice to me. I
couldn’t refuse their offer to buy me clothes while I was staying at their
place.”
Hiten kept quiet. He didn’t want to say anything negative about the
Kaushals because in Meena’s eyes, they were strangers to him.
“And what about Sushant Kaushal,” he asked instead. “It’s obvious to
anyone with eyes that he wants you.”
Meena laughed. “Wants me? I’m not a toy to be handed over to someone
rich simply because they want me. Yes, I know he finds me pretty, and I
like it when he compliments me. But nothing can compare to how I feel
when I’m with you.”
Then she slowly smirked. “And maybe I like Sushant’s compliments
because you barely ever compliment me.”
She was right. He had always admired her beauty, and he showed it in
his kisses and lovemaking, but he was never vocal about it.
“You are the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen in my life,” he stated
truthfully.
 She laughed. “That’s because you haven’t seen many girls in your
eighteen-year-old life. And even if you do see someone more beautiful or
interesting, you better not tell that to me!”
Hiten smiled. He doubted if he would ever find anyone more beautiful or
more spirited or more compassionate than her.
“That dress and hairstyle you had today… I think I’d like it if you dress
up like that once in a while.”
“Really?” she asked in surprise.
“Yes,” he replied with a straight face. “Because I enjoyed ruining them.”
She giggled.
And then, she laid her head back on his chest and sighed deeply. “Until
forever,” she said, intertwining their fingers.
“Until forever,” he vowed.
 CHAPTER 17

Life at Mahasena was back to normal again.

“Go on, Nandu! Jump! It’s okay!” Meena told her little sister with a
laugh. Meena and Nandini were on top of a tree where a car tire was tied to
the rope and suspended from a thick branch. Nandini was to swing from the
top and leap into the river below.
“I’m scared, Meena!” Nandu whined. Then she looked down at Hiten
who was in the river watching the Mahasena sisters. “Will you save me if I
drown, Hiten?”
Hiten smiled at the small girl. “I promise I will. Come on. You already
know how to swim.” During their childhood, Hiten had taught the
Mahasena sisters how to swim, fish and climb trees among many other
things that their parents didn’t know about.
As far as Sujata and Dheeraj Mahasena were concerned, all their
daughters knew to do was play the piano, sing and dance.
“See. Hiten is right there. Go on,” Meena encouraged her sister once
again.
The little girl looked at Hiten. And then, taking a deep breath, she held
the tire and kicked the thick tree branch. She screamed as she swung and let
go. As soon as she fell in with a splash, Hiten caught her under her arms
and pulled her up to the surface. He smiled at her. “That was good,” he said.
The younger girl grinned. “It wasn’t just good, it was awesome! I want
to do it again!”
“Go. I’ll be right here,” he said with a smile.
He and Meena would have to wait a bit longer than planned to be alone
together. He didn’t mind. He loved Meena’s little sister as much as Meena
did. When Meena started making plans for their future, she always included
Nandini in them. And Hiten agreed that Nandini might be better off with
him and Meena than with her neglectful parents.
A couple of hours later, after lots of laughing and giggling and a few
friendly swimming competitions in which Hiten and Meena deliberately
lost to make the younger girl happy, they headed home.
Meena took her little sister inside. Meanwhile, Hiten got to his recent
duties. Since the Mahasena’s gardener left due to lack of payment, it was up
to Hiten to maintain it.

“Why should you do it for free?” Meena had demanded with outrage on
his behalf. “Ask my father to increase your pay as he had promised. And
why did you even offer to do it in the first place, knowing well he’ll cheat
you and not pay!”
Hiten smiled. “If I don’t, the bush by your window will die. How else will
I climb into your bedroom then?”

But Meena wasn’t appeased. She even argued with her father and
accused him of taking undue advantage. But as usual, Dheeraj Mahasena
brushed it off.
The sun had begun to set, and Hiten was watering the last of the flower
beds when he felt something hit his backside. It was a small, shiny green
round marble. With a laugh, he looked towards Meena’s window. She was
holding a catapult in her hand. She was watching him and gesturing with
her hands to come up to her.
Turning off the tap and putting the garden hose away, Hiten was about to
go to his room to change from his swim shorts before climbing up into her
room. But another marble hit his backside.
Grinning at her impatience, he did as she ordered.
 As soon as he stepped in, his eyes fell on the painting that was nearing
completion. It was a painting of two lovers during sunset. Only Hiten could
identify that Meena had painted them both.
“Don’t move. Stand right there,” she commanded.
Hiten obliged her for a few minutes. As soon as the sun set completely,
and Meena had to stop painting, he covered the distance between them and
grabbed her close.
Before even he could crash his mouth on top of hers, she held his head
and met him halfway. They kissed greedily as if they hadn’t been making
love frequently.
Months had passed by since they had first made love, but the hunger for
each other only seemed to grow.
Soon, sounds of heavy breathing and soft moans filled the air as they
made passionate love on Meena’s bed. Hiten held her face and watched her
while he joined them together.
He wondered yet again if he could survive even for a day without
watching Meena’s expressive face. Leaning his forehead against hers, he
continued to join their bodies.
Much later, he strode into Meena’s bathroom and took a quick shower
before striding out. Meena was already asleep because of their long, tiring
day.
He slid in the bed next to Meena. He smiled as he pulled her arm into the
usual position around his waist. She slept each night holding him. And she
got quite pissed if she didn’t wake up with him next to her with their hands
and legs tangled together.
He got up to turn off the night lamps when his eyes fell on a thick, stark
white envelope in the trash bin right next to the bed. It stood out amongst
the painting rags that were usually found in Meena’s trash. The sender’s
name and the London postal stamp on the envelope jumped right out at him.
Sushant bloody Kaushal. Why the hell was his half-brother writing letters to
Meena several months after he went back to London? And why hadn’t
Meena mentioned it to him?
Hiten was tempted to open the envelope and read the contents, but he
stopped himself. He trusted Meena. Taking a deep breath, he turned off the
lights and held Meena before falling into a restless sleep.
 ***

“Why did you leave so early in the morning,” Meena demanded the next
day.
“I couldn’t sleep. So I left after a few hours because I didn’t want to risk
sleeping late.”
Meena frowned. “What happened? Why couldn’t you sleep?” she asked.
Hiten watched her face while he answered. “I saw the letter Sushant
Kaushal sent you from London.”
Her frown disappeared, and she tried to hide her expression. But Hiten
could read her easily. Although she wasn’t guilty, she was slightly worried.
“Was this the first letter he sent?” Hiten asked in a normal tone.
She waited a moment before replying. “No. He has sent a few more.”
“How many?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t count.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about these letters?” Hiten knew his agitation
must be showing on his face.
“Because you would worry,” she replied. “You would again begin to
wonder about our future and have doubts. It wasn’t worth telling you about
the letters. And besides, I didn’t open any of them. I just threw them away.”
Hiten fell quiet even as the doubts crept in as Meena had predicted.
“Look at me,” she said, holding his face between her hands. “He means
nothing to me. Nothing matters other than the future we planned.”
“Even if he doesn’t matter to you, he does to your parents. They are
damn sure he will propose one day, and then they will force you to accept.”
She laughed. “I highly doubt if he would propose to someone who
doesn’t bother to reply to any of his letters. Or to someone whose father has
crippling debts. And besides, both of us should be glad if my parents think
he would propose one day. Then they won’t try to harass me to marry some
other guy if an opportunity arose.”
It all made sense when she put it that way. But Hiten knew it wasn’t
going to be as simple as that. He was also frustrated because he had begun
to work in town during the day, but the savings he had were peanuts. He
needed to figure out how he could earn more and save for their future.
 CHAPTER 18

They thought they had two more years, but the storm Hiten had
predicted, came much earlier.
Two months later, the Mahasenas were elated because Sushant Kaushal
had officially asked them for Meena’s hand in marriage. Sushant wrote to
them that he would like to get engaged to Meena right away, and they
would marry after two years when they both finished their studies and
turned twenty-one.
Meena downright refused when her parents informed her.
“I don’t even know him! And I don’t want to get engaged to anyone at
this point!”
It only earned her a slap from her mother along with a warning of dire
consequences if she didn’t accept the proposal.
“I hate them!” Meena cried while pacing in her bedroom. “How can they
not respect my wishes! All they care about is to secure a cash cow.”
Hiten remained quiet.
Meena turned towards him. “We’ll elope! Let’s go right now, Hiten.
How much money do you have?” she asked.
“Not enough,” he replied quietly.
“That’s okay,” she said. “I have some jewellery that my grandparents
gifted me when I was little. We can sell that to get a head start.”
“Meena… we can’t just elope tonight.”
“Why not?” she demanded. “Are you having second thoughts about
me?”
“I love you. And I’m not having second thoughts. But let’s wait for a
week so that I can figure out where we can stay after we elope and where I
can work. We can’t just leave home in the middle of the night without
knowing anything.”
“I don’t care if I have to live on the streets! I just want to leave and be
with you. And when we settle eventually, I’ll come to this horrible place to
take Nandu with us.”
Hiten knew Meena’s anger and fear was making her even more reckless.
“One week,” he said, pulling her close and hugging her. “Give me one
week to figure it out, and we’ll elope together. I’ll leave in the morning and
go to the nearest city to see where we can stay and I can work.”
Meena wrapped her arms around him, hugging him back tightly. “I’m so
scared, Hiten,” she said in a small voice.
Never had he seen Meena so shaken up. He was equally terrified, but he
didn’t let it show. He needed to be strong for both their sakes to wade
through the difficulty they were currently facing.
“Don’t worry, we’ll find a way,” he assured softly. “We’ll always be
together. Until forever, remember?”
She nodded. “Yes. Until forever.”
The next morning while Meena was still asleep, Hiten kissed her
forehead and slid out of bed. He put on his clothes and took the jewellery
Meena gave him the previous night before climbing down the window.
After collecting all of his savings from his room, he left the Mahasena
estate to go to a nearby city.
 ***

It took Hiten five days to find a moderately decent place where he and
Meena would live.
It was very tiny compared to some houses he had seen, but it was in a
much safer area than the others. He also found a job in a restaurant. It
would pay him slightly less than the other jobs that were also available, but
he chose it as neither he nor Meena knew how to cook. At least the food
from the restaurant would help them until they both learned.
Hiten knew that with the sudden changes in circumstances, the dream of
studying in a college might remain a dream. But he didn’t regret it. Meena
was the most important dream in his life. Without her, life would mean
nothing.
It was almost dark when he returned to the Mahasena mansion. He
immediately went up to Meena’s room.
When Meena saw him, she was shocked.
“You said you’d be back after a week.”
“I already found a place and a job. We can leave tomorrow night.” He
held her face and kissed her, especially on her eyes. Her eyes were swollen
most likely due to excessive crying.
Hiten made a promise to himself that he would keep Meena so happy
that she would never have a reason to cry.
“Not tomorrow, Hiten,” she said urgently. “Let’s elope tonight.”
“Meena. You don’t even have any clothes packed. You didn’t say
goodbye to Nandu. How can—”
“No! I want to leave right now! Let’s just go!”
Hiten didn’t want to stop her. So taking a deep breath, he helped her
pack. She only packed a small bag with two pairs of clothes.
 Soon, he helped her climb out the window, and they walked a distance
until they could take a bus ride to the city.
Meena was quiet all through the bus ride. He held her hand and gave her
a reassuring squeeze.
 ***

Hiten and Meena were standing inside the small place where they would
begin their new life together. Meena looked shocked seeing the tiny room.
“It’s so small. I can barely take five steps from one wall to the other.”
“I know,” he said, wrapping his arm around her waist and kissing the top
of her head and then the side of her neck. “But you will be safe here while I
go to work.”
Meena didn’t respond.
Hiten didn’t want to leave her worried and alone. But he had no choice
but to leave for work that day.
In between his long-hour shifts, he continued to check on Meena,
dropping off meals and making sure she was doing fine.
When he finally returned home for the night, Meena frowned at the
dinner spread. “I don’t want to eat this. Don’t we have another choice?” she
asked.
Hiten was taken aback. It was very uncharacteristic of Meena to whine
or complain about food. He attributed such behavior to everything being
shockingly new for her. After having lived all of her life in a mansion, he
had left her cooped up in a tiny room. It was enough to make anyone crazy.
Smiling, he pulled her close. “I promise I’ll find us a bigger place in a
few weeks. I’ll even buy you some painting supplies. Meantime, let’s both
figure out how to cook so we can make what we like.”
She didn’t say anything to that and continued to frown. His body was
bone tired after continuously working for fourteen hours. But the only thing
that kept him going was looking forward to making love to the girl he loved
more than anything in the world. The girl he was going to spend the rest of
his life with.
 He picked up Meena and carried her over to the narrow cot. But unlike
always, she didn’t participate eagerly.
She remained still while he kissed her.
“You are so beautiful,” he said as he slowly undressed her. He ran his
finger under her left breast to the little mole that always drove him crazy.
“I love you,” he said. “And I’m so lucky to have you with me until
forever.”
He kissed her again. Meena continued to remain still, and then he tasted
the slight salt from her tears.
Shocked, he drew back from her. “Meena, what’s wrong?” he asked.
He knew she was still coping with the sudden change in lifestyle which
would overwhelm anyone.
“I love you,” he repeated, holding her face in both his hands, making her
see how much she meant to him.
But Meena didn’t respond saying that she loved him too. Instead, she
whispered the most damning words, “I’m so sorry. I can’t do this.”
 CHAPTER 19

“Please, Meena,” Hiten begged, his voice catching. “Give us a chance.

Give me some more time, and I’m sure we will do better than this.”
“I can’t,” she said. “I thought love could overcome anything. But I now
realize it can’t overcome poverty. And I can’t ever imagine bringing Nandu
here to live with us.”
Her words fell on his heart as sharp darts. “It’s been one damn day,
Meena! How can you decide you don’t want a life with me based on one
single day?” he demanded, anger and anguish warring within him.
She looked away from him. But he pulled her close and kissed her
deeply and passionately, showing how much he loved her and wanted her
and needed her. But Meena remained cold and unmoving.
When he raised his mouth from hers, she watched him with a blank look.
“I want to go home,” she said.
He sucked in a breath. “Meena, please. You must know what returning
home would mean. You parents must have figured out that we have eloped.
They won’t allow me to stay in Mahasena anymore.”
Meena’s deafening silence was a clear answer that she knew that fact
already.
 ***

Even as Hiten led Meena towards the Mahasena estate, she continued to
remain silent.
During the last twelve hours of the journey, Hiten had begged, asking her
to give them more time. But Meena remained determined with her decision.
They stopped on top of the hill at their usual spot. Meena didn’t want
him near Mahasena mansion in case her parents were around.
“I’ll be back soon, Meena. We have two more years until you finish your
studies. I’ll make sure to return well before that time. I’ll have enough to
support you the way you are accustomed to.”
Meena finally lost her composure. She hugged him hard as she began to
sob. “Don’t kill your dreams because of me, Hiten. Join a college and finish
your studies and—”
He pulled her head up and kissed her. She kissed him back desperately.
When he drew away, he held her face. “You are my dream, Meena,” he said.
“I’ve only had one wish since I was eight. One thing I’ve wanted above
anything else in the world. And that is to be with you forever, Meena.
Nothing in the world can change it. Wait for me. I promise I’ll be back
soon. I love you.”
Meena’s lips trembled. “Promise me that wherever you are, you’ll
always be happy,” she whispered.
Hiten knew he would be miserable without her, but he didn’t want to tell
her that. So he just nodded.
Soon, it was dawn. “You have to leave, Hiten,” Meena told him urgently.
“Or my parents or someone might find you.”
He didn’t want to leave, but he had no choice.
“Goodbye, Meena,” he said. “Take care of Nandu until I return.”
 Meena stifled a sob. “I will,” she whispered.
And then, with seemingly great effort, she turned away and went down
the hill towards the Mahasena mansion.
Hiten watched the girl he loved and the girl who was his entire world
walking away from him.
As she disappeared into the mansion gates, for the first time he felt
entirely alone in the world. The last time he had such a feeling was after his
mother and brother had died.
Feeling dejected, he began to walk away. The money he had saved to
apply for the colleges and to write the entrance exams was already spent on
paying for the accommodations. He hated going back to the city and to the
tiny room which now held unhappy memories. But he had no choice.
Or did he?
A thought suddenly hit him, raising his hopes.
When he was eight, he had sworn not to ever associate himself with his
father. But when it came to Meena, Hiten was willing to sacrifice anything.
His ego. His pride. And even his life if needed.
He would go to Kaushal and beg his father to help him. He would ask for
a modest loan or ask his father to tell the Mahasenas the truth behind his
parentage.
If the Mahasenas knew Hiten was Viren Kaushal’s son—even if he was
born a bastard—they might agree to Meena’s and his marriage. Especially
knowing that their daughter loved Hiten and not Sushant.
And Meena would be extremely happy to know that she wouldn’t have
to wait for him to return or live in poverty or abandon her sister.
Yes. Hiten would ask, or demand, or even beg his father to give him
money.
 Viren Kaushal had offered Hiten’s mother money many times even
though the offer was turned down. And it wasn’t like the Kaushals lacked
money.
With a hope-filled heart, Hiten set out to Kaushal.
 ***

“Not there?”
The security guard at the Kaushal mansion gates looked at Hiten with
annoyance.
“What is so hard to understand? Mr. Viren Kaushal and his wife are
currently travelling. They are in London visiting their son.”
Disappointment hit Hiten hard. “When will they return?”
“I don’t know. Sometime next week, I think.”
That wasn’t too bad. He can keep coming to the Kaushal mansion
starting next week to check whether his father had returned.
Hiten decided to go back to Mahasena. He would meet with the
Mahasenas and also Meena and tell them the truth. He can add that his
father would confirm his parentage once he returned from London.
But Hiten was met with a shocking disappointment at the Mahasena
mansion.
“Gone? Gone where? I just dropped Meena home early this morning.”
Ratna looked at Hiten with pity. They were standing outside the mansion
gates. “Yes. I know. As soon as Meena came home, the Mahasenas packed
up and took Meena and Nandini somewhere.”
“But where?” Hiten asked in anguish.
“They didn’t tell anyone. They knew you would return. They asked me
to pass on a warning saying they wouldn’t spare you if you don’t go away
from here for good and leave Meena alone.”
Hiten knew that as long as he was alive, he would not willingly give up
on Meena or their love. But he fell silent. He was about to leave to get back
to Kaushal when he suddenly felt the world spin. Blinking his eyes, he
shook away the daze.
 “You look exhausted and hungry. When did you last eat or take rest?”
Ratna asked.
He realized he hadn’t eaten for twenty-four hours and slept for over
forty-eight hours.
Ratna took him inside the kitchen and gave him a plate of food. While he
ate, she watched him with pity once again.
“I know you love Meena. But you must also know that people like
Meena cannot marry people like us. And the Mahasenas, even though they
are stupid, they can also be dangerous. In their eyes, you are standing
between them and the Kaushal fortune.”
Hiten was tempted to tell the truth behind his parentage to Ratna. But he
kept quiet for now. He hoped he could reveal the truth soon.
Thanking the older woman, he left the Mahasena mansion.

Hiten went to the only place he could go at that point. He went to the
house he was born in.
The little two-room house looked dilapidated from the outside and was
filled with cobwebs on the inside. But what hit him hard was that
everything inside the house was gone, most likely robbed since no one lived
there.
Taking in a shuddering breath and suppressing the sad memories and
loneliness he felt, he cleared up a corner and slept on the floor.
He slept deeply due to exhaustion. He was glad as it helped keep
thoughts and memories of Meena at bay as well.
 ***

Four days passed, and each day, he went to Kaushal to check if his father
was back. And during the day, he worked for hourly wages at the tea estate.
On the fifth day, while he was returning from work when it was dark, he
was stopped.
“Are you Hiten?” a man asked.
“Yes. I am.”
Did Meena send someone to him with a message? Or did his father
return? Hiten felt anxious to know.
“I’m sorry, boy,” said the man with a regretful look.
Hiten began to worry. Did something happen to Meena or Nandini?
Before he could inquire, he felt pain exploding at the back of his head as
something struck him.
When Hiten regained consciousness, he could hear them talk. He
couldn’t see anything as he was blindfolded and his mouth was gagged.
“A shame that we are asked to kill such a young boy.”
“What do you think he did, boss?”
“No idea. All I was told is that he is a source of embarrassment to a
certain noblewoman.”
“Do you think he was blackmailing her?”
“Maybe he was.”
“Boss, there is a cargo going to Africa early morning. Why don’t we
send him there? We’ll get money from them too.”
“Good idea. Something doesn’t sit right with me when these rich people
pretend to be moral, upstanding people while paying for murder when
someone poor crosses them.”
 Hiten didn’t know how much time elapsed, but he slowly lost
consciousness once again.
 CHAPTER 20

The next time Hiten regained consciousness, he was on a large ship.

There were hundreds of other boys and men along with him who were
crammed into small spaces.
Most of the younger boys were kidnapped or sold off and put on the
ship. The older boys and men were mostly convicts or the ones who were
told they would find work in some faraway place.
Hiten couldn’t recall much of what had happened or how he came to be
on the ship. But he recalled that someone had paid to get him killed.
Hiten was shocked that the Mahasenas would stoop so low. They had
been money-hungry social climbers, but resorting to murder was a low even
for them.
Meena would be shocked and utterly disappointed if she came to know
that her parents had wanted him dead.
The ship docked on the shores of Africa. And everyone on the ship—or
those who managed to survive the journey—were sent to a small mining
town. A diamond mining town.
Within a week of working in the diamond mine, Hiten realized why most
workers had to be kidnapped or forcibly sold off.
All day, they were made to dig for diamonds, most of the time in
dangerous conditions. There was no proper safety equipment or measures
taken even for the young boys. And the likelihood of mine collapses or
other accidents was also high.
Hiten and the rest of the workers did get paid for the work. But the bare-
minimum wages did not compensate for the amount of work and the risks
taken during the job.
 Like most others, Hiten wanted to escape, but he did not have enough
money to afford transportation that would take him back to India. So he
continued to work, putting away his meager savings to buy the ticket that
would take him back to Meena.
 ***

“Come on, love. You’re handsome enough that I’ll provide my services
for free the first few times.”
Hiten was seated inside a tavern. The sun had set, and all the workers
had dispersed. Most of them spent their evenings and sometimes even the
entire night in a tavern that was built purely for recreation.
“Thanks for the offer, but I’m not interested,” Hiten replied to the
woman.
There was laughter from the next table. “Forget it, beautiful,” said a
slightly drunk masculine voice. “You or any other woman here will not get
Hiten. You see, my friend’s heart is already taken.”
Hiten looked at the man who was surrounded by women. One even sat
on his lap and was busy groping him. Aarav was quite popular among the
ladies. Aarav was the same age as Hiten and had been on the same ship as
well.
A month ago, one of the mining pits had collapsed, trapping a few small
children underneath. It was Hiten and Aarav who had rescued those
children. But later, Hiten had fallen violently sick as he had been swimming
under the muddy water to get the children out to hand them over to Aarav.
While Hiten was sick, it was Aarav who had helped him. And during
that time, Hiten had apparently been calling out Meena’s name constantly.
And in his feverish daze, Hiten had also told Aarav about how much he
loved Meena and his plans to return to Meena as soon as he earned enough
money to buy a ticket.
“Well,” said the woman moving closer to Hiten and filling the
surrounding air with the smell of perfume. She put her hand on his lap and
rubbed her fingers along his length. Hiten felt his body involuntarily react
to the feminine touch. “I’m not looking for your heart, love,” she said in a
sultry tone. “Just your body and some jolly good times. And based on what
I can feel, I’ll sure have one hell of a good time with this impressive beast
here.”
Hiten held the woman’s hand and pushed it away before getting up. “I’m
not interested.”
He walked away feeling guilty that his body had reacted to another
woman’s touch when it belonged completely to Meena.
As he lay on his blankets that night, he stared up at the sky. He hated the
nights when he missed Meena the most. The sound of the soft, content sigh
that Meena would let out when he held her in his arms just before they slept
was the best sound in the world. Meena must be missing him too. He
recalled how cranky and clingy she got if he didn’t go to her room at times.
A small smile formed on his lips imagining how Meena would react if he
were to tell her about the proposition the woman had made to him. Meena
would be outraged and would probably want to come all the way to Africa,
just to scratch the woman’s eyes out and warn the other women that he
belonged to her.
He recalled how possessive and jealous Meena would get when some of
the girls in the Mahasena town had smiled flirtatiously at him.
Months had passed by since he last held Meena in his arms. Hiten hoped
that he would somehow find the strength and determination to brave
through the rest of the days until he earned enough money to return to her.
 CHAPTER 21

A year later, when Hiten was digging in the muddy waters, he felt a hard
lump. Since he had begun to work in the mines, he had found many tiny to
medium-size hard crystals which he then handed over to the supervisors
who were watching everyone like a hawk.
But what caught Hiten’s attention was the size of the crystal. He could
also feel that there were more than one.
Leaving the spot, he continued to dig around the area. Later that evening,
he told Aarav about what he might have possibly found.
“If we unearth something significant, then we’ll have to leave this place
tonight.”
Hiten nodded. He knew that too. “It’s going to be quite risky. We’ll first
have to sneak into the mine without anyone’s notice.”
Later that night, well after midnight, they managed to sneak in. With
Aarav watching out for guards, Hiten held the torch in one hand and began
to dig at the spot. His heart thumped hard, not just because of the high risk
he and his friend were taking, but also because there were eleven crystals in
all and in sizes that he had never encountered before.
Without bothering to pick up their belongings, Hiten and Aarav left the
mining town that night.
 ***

“Don’t be an idiot, Hiten. We must find someone else to sell these.”

“I can’t wait anymore,” Hiten replied. “I have to get back to India.”
Hiten knew Meena must be sick with worry and was waiting for him.
“These stones we found are worth a fortune. If we sell them to a
middleman in this poky town, they will pay us less than what they are
worth.”
“I’m not asking you to sell your share, Aarav. I’m just selling mine. And
I don’t care how much I get paid as long as it covers the expenses of my
journey.”
Aarav sighed. “Then at least don’t sell them all. Just sell one piece.”
Hiten agreed. He showed the middleman one of the raw diamonds.
Aarav was right. The middleman paid less than ten percent of what the
diamond was possibly worth. But Hiten was happy that he had more than
enough money to buy a ship ticket and also enough to get a head start in
life.
Aarav borrowed some money and joined him as well. He wanted to find
a buyer in India.
 ***

As soon as the ship landed on the Indian shores, Hiten was anxious to
begin the next leg of his journey to the Mahasena mansion.
“I’ll be staying in the city at one of the port hotels for a while.”
Hiten smiled at the only friend he had over the last year and a half. “I
hope you get a great price for the diamonds.”
Aarav smiled. “You are too trusting, my friend. What if I run away
taking your share with me?”
“I’ll be fine. After all, you did save my life once. I’ll consider it a
payment in return.”
Aarav laughed. “All I did was hand you water and food while you were
feverish. But it was you who found us these diamonds. It was your
knowledge and instincts that helped unearth them.”
Hiten smiled. He couldn’t wait to see Meena. He could imagine all of her
expressions ranging from happiness, excitement and even outrage while he
narrated his adventures from the past eighteen months.
And more than anything, he couldn’t wait to pull Meena into his arms
and hug her tight and promise never to leave her side again.
 CHAPTER 22

Two days later, Hiten’s heart thudded while he walked in front of the
Mahasena mansion gates. Surprisingly, there were guards at the gates.
The mansion looked brighter due to a fresh coat of paint, and the garden
and lawns looked well kept. Dheeraj Mahasena must have finally decided to
earn some money rather than spend it on drinking, gambling and partying.
He hoped Meena was home. His heart thudded faster imagining Meena’s
face when she saw him. She would most likely burst out crying and hug
him tightly before raining kisses all over his face. He knew he would react
similarly as soon as he saw her.
“No one is at home. The Mahasenas haven’t returned home yet.”
Hiten frowned. So nothing much has changed in the Mahasenas’
lifestyle. “What about Meena? She must be home. Tell her Hiten is here to
see her.”
The guard looked at him oddly.
Hiten supposed he should have stopped to shave and get a better haircut
and also a new set of clothes before hurrying up to see Meena. In the
guard’s eyes, he must hardly look like the man the daughter of his employer
would associate herself with.
“No. Meena madam is not visiting her parents’ house right now.”
Hiten’s frown grew. “What do you mean visiting?” Did Meena decide to
take Nandini and leave the Mahasena mansion to work in a job somewhere?
Meena was only twenty years old. Or maybe Meena was finishing the rest
of her education by studying in a college somewhere.
“Where does Meena live now?” he asked.
The guard looked at him oddly once again. “If you are well-acquainted
with the Mahasenas as you claim, you must know where Meenakshi madam
has been staying for the past year and a half.”
Meena must have left home right after he went missing.
Hiten was about to snap at the guard to stop talking in circles and answer
the question when the guard decided to heed to the request.
“Meena madam lives in Kaushal. With her husband.”
 ***

Hiten had no idea how he managed to get to Kaushal.

After hearing the news of Meena’s marriage to Sushant, all he could
think of was to get to her any way he could.
He knew his Meena would not betray him. She loved him. And she
would not marry someone else. There must be a huge misunderstanding
somewhere.
He didn’t bother to ask for permission to go inside through the Kaushal
mansion gates. He climbed a wall at the back and entered through the
garden.
The Kaushal mansion was a huge place with hundreds of rooms and
dozens of bedrooms. Where would he possibly find Meena?
He felt sick in his stomach as he recalled Sushant’s childhood bedroom
which was towards the back of the mansion. Would Meena be there?
Hiten slowly walked through the gardens towards the mansion. But
before he reached the place, he saw a woman at a distance. He almost fell to
his knees as feelings of happiness overwhelmed him.
He knew it was Meena at first glance. Her clothes were expensive, but
her long hair was still worn in a similar old style, and it fell loosely to her
hips. He could see Meena’s profile as she gazed at one of the marble statues
seemingly lost in thought.
Hiten just stood and stared at her. He wanted to call out her name, but he
seemed to have lost his voice. He continued to feel overwhelmed.
I don’t care that she is married. She must have been forced by her
parents.
We’ll run away once again.
 This time since Hiten knew he had a good amount of money, and Meena
would no longer have to suffer staying in a small place or save money for
basic necessities.
He might not have as much money as the Kaushals did, but he would
more than compensate it by keeping Meena happy and showering all of his
love towards her.
Yes. It would cause a scandal, but he hoped Meena would not care.
Growing up, she always had a devil-may-care attitude when it came to
society’s norms.
Hiten started to slowly walk towards her and was about to call her name
aloud when he stopped.
It was Sushant. Sushant joined Meena near the marble statues. But what
kept Hiten frozen on the spot and absolutely rapt was the small bundle
Sushant carried in his arms.
Even from a distance, Hiten could hear the wails of the baby. Meena
immediately took the baby from Sushant’s hands and sat down on one of
the benches and began to gently rock the baby. Within a few minutes, the
cries stopped, and the baby fell asleep.
Meena has a baby. Meena bore Sushant a child.
That fact came as another big shock. Marriage was something she
couldn’t control. But having a baby?
She must have been forced to bear Sushant’s baby. It wasn’t her fault.
Rage hit him that Sushant had raped and then forced Meena into having
his child. Controlling himself, Hiten decided to first get Meena away from
Kaushal before he dealt with anything else. He had enough money to take
care of both Meena and her baby.
While he made plans of where and how he would smuggle Meena and
the baby out, he saw Sushant smiling and putting his hands in Meena’s hair
behind her neck.
Meena immediately turned. Hiten expected Meena to be angry or
frightened. But she was smiling.
Sushant leaned forward, and soon the husband and wife were locked in a
kiss. The kiss was long and passionate, and it continued while Meena and
Sushant’s child was asleep between them.
Blackness descended in Hiten’s gaze. He slowly staggered away from
there.
As soon as he reached far enough from the married couple, he threw up.
Meena was with Sushant. Willingly.
The pain in his chest only seemed to grow. And the sight he came across
a while ago played in his eyes over and over again.
The girl he loved betrayed him. The girl who promised to love him until
forever, dumped him for the sake of money.

“I thought love could overcome anything. But I now realize it can’t

overcome poverty.”

When Meena had said those words to him, he thought she wanted him to
earn money and return for her. He thought she would wait for him. He had
asked her to wait for him.
He thought she meant it when she said she would love him until forever.
Lies. All lies.
Hiten continued to stagger away. While he left the Kaushal estate along
with the pain of heartbreak, anger grew inside him.
The anger wasn’t just directed at Meena and the world at large. It was
also directed at himself. The foolish, dumb boy who fell in love and
believed everything he heard and saw.
 Hadn’t he learned anything from what had happened to his mother?
Viren Kaushal apparently loved his mother, but he still ended up marrying
someone else for money and status.
At the end of the day, all that mattered in the world was just that—
money and status.
 CHAPTER 23

Hiten returned to the port.

As soon as Aarav saw Hiten’s face, his friend’s expression grew sober.
“What happened?” he asked.
Hiten laughed bitterly. “She married someone else. Until forever
apparently means until someone richer comes along.”
“I’m sorry,” Aarav said softly.
“Don’t be. I guess I deserved it for being so naive and stupid.”
His friend sighed. “Nobody deserves it. Least of all someone like you,
who loved her as much as you did.”
Hiten clenched his teeth at the pain in his heart. He didn’t want to feel
the pain. He was done with bullshit like eternal love. “Have you sold the
diamonds yet?” he asked.
Aarav nodded. “You will be shocked to know the price. As of now, we
are two rich twenty-year-olds.”
When Aarav told him the number, he knew that they were indeed rich by
many people’s standards.
“So what do you want to do with all the money?” Aarav asked.
“Get drunk, find someone to fuck, and return to Africa. Not necessarily
in that order.”
Aarav laughed softly. “Unlike you, my friend, I’m always ready for the
first two. But return to Africa?”
Hiten looked at his friend. “Yes. Back to the mines where we will sell
our soul to the devil. And in return, the devil will make us even richer.”
Aarav and he got on a ship to Africa that very day.
As soon as they arrived, just as Hiten had promised, they got drunk. And
later, Hiten made an effort to find the same prostitute who had
propositioned him many times and was turned down by him. What followed
was a passion-filled night which had the woman screaming in pleasure.
“Oh God! I knew it. I knew it! It was so well worth the wait!” the
woman continued to shout.
Hiten didn’t respond. His eyes were closed as he mindlessly drove into
the woman below him. Behind his eyes, a strip of images played in a
constant loop.
Him seeing Meena for the first time as a child, Meena teaching him to
read and write, Meena and him spending their childhood together, Meena
and him making love on top of the hill for the first time, Meena promising
to love him until forever, Meena insisting all she wanted in life was him.
And then, Meena betraying him by kissing Sushant while their child lay
asleep.
Hiten groaned in pain and fury. He drove into the woman below him
again and again. The woman’s screams became louder as she clutched him
close, shouting encouragement.
When his release came, he expected his pain and fury to pour out and
disappear along with it. But it didn’t.
Rolling away, he rushed into the bathroom and threw up violently. He sat
next to the toilet bowl with feelings of despair and anger overwhelming
him.
He didn’t know how much time had passed. He became aware of the
surroundings when there was banging on the door. “Hiten! Are you okay?”
The door opened, and the woman found him seated on the bathroom
floor, naked and shaking in grief.
“Oh, my poor baby. Did that bitch break your heart?” she asked.
“Obviously, she doesn’t deserve you.”
 Irrational anger gripped him at the woman referring to Meena that way.
But the very next instant, he realized what a fool he was being by still
defending the woman who had betrayed him.
“Come,” the woman said sultrily. “I’ll help you forget her.”
Hiten stood up and followed the woman. The rest of the night, he
continued to have mindless sex many times. But in the morning, despite the
woman’s pleas, he sent her away with a big wad of cash.
He was going to forget Meena. And he didn’t need anyone’s help to do
it.
 ***

When Hiten had stated that he would sell his soul to the devil, he had
meant every word.
Over the next few months, with the money made by selling the
diamonds, they began to buy several small mines. Hiten targeted the ones
that were in some of the most dangerous places where there was an ongoing
civil war or threat of violence. At first, it was only a two-man army where
Hiten and Aarav dug the soil looking for diamonds. Later, when the number
and size of the mines grew, they began to recruit people who were more
than compensated for the risks taken.
With Hiten’s aptitude and Aarav’s people skills, they slowly began to
amass a huge fortune. They even began to diversify after the first two years.
They invested in hotel chains and other services in the hospitality industry.
By the time Hiten and Aarav had turned twenty-five, they were multi-
millionaires. But anyone who knew them would also know that they
weren’t the kind to be satisfied or slow down because of what they achieved
at their age.
They wanted to conquer the world.
But conquering the world didn’t necessarily mean conquering one’s
demons. And Hiten’s demons continued to haunt him.
He stared at the investigative report in his hands.
He had stayed away and refused to know anything about Meena during
the last five years. But now, he read the detailed report he had
commissioned.
A month. Just a month after he had left Meena at the Mahasena mansion,
promising to return for her, Meena had ended up marrying Sushant Kaushal.
And then, she spread her legs enough to get pregnant after six months.
 “I’m not a toy to be handed over to someone rich simply because they
want me.”

Hiten scoffed bitterly. If only his eighteen-year-old self had enough

sense not to believe her words.
Hiten was glad that he was no longer such an idealist. Thanks to her, that
eighteen-year-old boy was long gone—killed because of her betrayal.
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his office door.
“Come in.”
Aarav walked in with a folder. “The Raheja Group files.” Aarav’s
eyebrows rose when he saw Hiten drinking and looking relaxed as though
he planned to spend yet another night at his office.
When Aarav placed the folder on top of the desk, he saw the open file
with Meena’s pictures.
Aarav sighed. “I know you didn’t get proper closure. But you need to
forget that treacherous woman, my friend,” he said yet another time. “The
whole fucking world is ours for the taking. And it’s obvious from the way
the ladies keep coming back to you for more.”
Hiten didn’t reply. His eyes fell on Aarav who kept fidgeting with his tie,
looking a little nervous which was quite unusual. “Big date?” Hiten asked
his long-time friend turned business partner.
Aarav grinned. “Only if you can call the petite Miss Sonali Choksi
‘big’.”
A small smile broke on Hiten’s face. “This is the second straight month
dating the same woman. Seems quite serious.”
Aarav shrugged. “I suppose I do enjoy her company.”
 Hiten could see past Aarav’s casual demeanor. He knew Aarav more
than just liked Sonali Choksi’s company. He adored her. Each time she
came, Aarav had a besotted look on his face.
“Although, I must warn you that Sonali dislikes you,” Aarav continued.
“She didn’t say anything to me, but it’s obvious from her frown whenever
your name comes up.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t talk about me while you are on a date with
someone,” Hiten suggested with slight amusement.
“Doesn’t make sense, man. I thought Sonali had a huge crush on you.
She followed you everywhere. Why would she suddenly hate you? What
happened?”
Hiten shrugged. “No idea. A change of heart, perhaps. It can happen.”
Hiten recalled the shocked, heartbroken look on Sonali Choksi’s face
when she saw Hiten in her stepmother’s hotel room half-naked. Sonali’s
stepmother was also similarly shocked because she was caught by her
stepdaughter.
Although Hiten wouldn’t call their one-night stand an affair. He also
wouldn’t admit to himself that he had slept with the woman only so Sonali
would stop spinning fantasies around him. And also because he knew Aarav
was half in love with Sonali.
Hiten liked Sonali. She was sweet, innocent and kindhearted. She
reminded him a little of the Mahasena sisters, even though Meena and
Nandini were very high-spirited when compared to Sonali.
“Well, whatever it is,” Aarav’s determined tone interrupted him. “I know
I will marry that girl someday. Let’s hope she somehow learns to like you.
Because there is no way I will give up our friendship.”
Hiten smiled. “Congratulations.” Even though Hiten was quite jaded, he
was glad that Aarav found someone.
 Aarav’s phone rang, after which he had to leave.
Hiten sat on the edge of his desk and stared outside at the twinkling
lights. His eyes automatically wandered looking for the moon, which then
reminded him of his life at the Mahasena mansion. As children, he and
Meena would watch the moon and spin stories around it. And later, when
they grew older, they would lay on Meena’s bed curled around each other,
staring at the moon while Meena planned their future together.
Hiten sucked in a deep breath and threw the glass in his hands on the
floor which broke into pieces with a satisfying sound.
He wondered if there would come a time when he would stop thinking
about Meena even for a single damn day.
Maybe he should find himself a woman with whom he can have a steady
relationship with. Even if he cannot love that woman, he would at least
have a damn companion.
It wasn’t like it would be hard to find such a woman. Women in general,
did want him. They wanted his body and what his money could buy them.
He more than obliged and slept with every available woman who caught
his fancy. Some of them like Sonali’s young stepmother were married, but
their bodies were available for a price. He had no scruples left.
But no matter how many women he had slept with, it enraged him that
he could find his release only in the dark. Because the moment he looked at
the women’s bodies, however beautiful they were, a part of his brain would
automatically reject them.
The missing mole under the left breast, the map that God created for him
to make love, the sweet sound of a content sigh—all of them were missing
from the countless women he had slept with.
Why? Why did his body and mind crave the woman who betrayed him?
And how can he get rid of the unwanted craving?
 And then it came to him. The word that Aarav had used a while ago.
Closure. What Hiten needed was closure.
He picked up the investigative file and then began to plan his closure.
PRESENT
 CHAPTER 24

It had taken quite some time for Hiten to plan closure. And now,
standing in Kaushal, at the end of his plan, he felt no bloody sense of peace
or closure.
He took a deep breath. Yes, he hated Meena. She had killed his
innocence and dreams. But even as he hated her, a small part of the boy
who worshipped her still lived deep inside him.
There was only one thing to do to get rid of his demons once and for all.
A bitter smile covered his face. The boy inside him would be happy with
what he was about to do. But the man he became would make sure that his
heart continued to remain dead.
 ***

Meena’s heart still wouldn’t stop thudding.

It had been hours since Hiten had threatened to destroy Tarun if she
didn’t turn down Tarun’s marriage proposal.
And now, he had sent a message through the maid asking for her
presence in the garden near the statues.
What did he want now? Did he want to repeat his threats once again?
An hour remained until dinner time, and the kids were in bed already.
She didn’t have an excuse and neither did she want one.
Yes. Hiten had every right to want to ruin her. But like she had told him
already, he had no right to ruin the lives of innocent people who had
nothing to do with what happened between her and him.
Taking a deep breath, she went to face her demon.
 ***

Hiten was watching the moon with a brooding look. She could see just
his profile.
She felt a deep tug in her heart. In the moonlight, he looked so much like
the young Hiten before the world had come crashing at their feet.
He used to often stare at the moon with a sad, brooding look from her
window. And she used to deliberately make him laugh when they were
children, and later, she used to throw her arms around him until his
broodiness vanished and a smiled appeared on his face.
They say that time was supposed to heal all types of hurt. But she knew
that like it was with her, time hadn’t healed his hurt either.
Oh, Hiten. How can I set this right? How can I take away your pain and
anger? Will it help if I tell you that life was hell for me without you? That I
have already suffered enough?
As though he could hear her thoughts, he turned towards her and saw her
standing at a distance.
She walked a few steps until she stood in front of him. They continued to
watch each other in silence.
Meena felt reluctant to be the first one to break the silence. Because once
the words came out, it would yank her back to reality where Hiten’s anger
and hate towards her would dominate everything else.
“Marry me.”
Hiten’s softly spoken words shocked her, jarring her out of the dreamy
world.
“What?”
“I asked you to marry me. You said you were willing to do anything to
stop me from ruining you. So, I’m asking you to marry me.”
 “Why?” She was still shocked and couldn’t wrap her head around why
Hiten would propose marriage to her of all people.
He stared at her with his jaw clenched. “Closure.” He spat out the word
as though it was the vilest of all.
“How can marrying me offer closure to you? Especially when all you
feel towards me is anger and hatred.”
“I know it will. A part of me still believes that even though I’m
successful in everything else, I’ve failed to achieve what I wanted since I
was young.”
Meena felt guilt overriding her. Since the age of eight, it was she who
kept telling Hiten that she would marry him. She had been the one to put
that dream in his head despite the doubts he had regarding the differences in
their status and class.
“You don’t have to marry me,” she said softly. “I’m willing to have an
affair if you promise to be discreet about it.”
His eyes flared in anger. “No. I might still be a bastard, but it’s marriage
to me or nothing. I will not have you hopping out of my bed yet again and
marrying someone else later on. I meant what I said regarding Tarun Jaipal.
I will destroy him if you are ever with him or marry him. So don’t raise
your hopes.”
Hiten’s fury was like a living thing, suffocating her.
“That’s not what I meant,” she said. “Your parentage had never been a
problem for me.”
His jaw remained clenched, and he didn’t comment even though it was
obvious he didn’t believe her.
“I have two young, impressionable children, Hiten. I can’t just marry and
then get divorced in a few months when you get your closure.”
“I won’t divorce you. I want the marriage to last… until forever.”
 Despite the circumstances, Meena felt her heart leap with joy at those
words. She reigned in her feelings, allowing her practical mind to take over.
“You know it’s not possible,” she said softly. “Each time you see my
face, you will be reminded of my betrayal. Soon, your anger and hate will
make our marriage suffocating.”
He fell silent as he thought that over.
“If that happens, then I’ll move out of Kaushal. You can tell your
children that I travel for work, which I really do. Even if we lead separate
lives at some point, I want us to be legally married.”
She lowered her eyes. “It’s not just that, if this is going to be a
conventional marriage—” Before she could complete, he cut her off.
“This is going to be a conventional marriage in every damn sense. You
will sleep next to me each night, and we will share the same damn bed
while we are living under the same roof.” Meenakshi’s heart leaped once
again even as her stomach fluttered in anxiety and excitement.
Her excitement was short lived. She took a deep breath and looked him
in the eye. “In case you don’t already know… I can’t have any more
children.”
“Can’t?”
“Yes. The doctors have said that chances of me falling pregnant are very
low.”
Hiten shrugged. “I don’t particularly care about whether or not you have
my child.”

“If we have a girl, I want her to look exactly like you.”

Meena recalled Hiten’s words from the past. Pushing away those
memories, she tried to talk Hiten out of the current proposal which she
knew would only end in her heartache.
“Hiten. Your father won’t agree. He—”
“It’s a good thing that I’m not seeking his permission then. And I don’t
give a damn whether he accepts our marriage or not. I want us to get
married tomorrow.”
Meena was shocked. “Tomorrow? It’s too soon, Hiten. How can we just
—”
“I will take an appointment at the court. Be ready by ten in the morning.
We’ll fly to the city and get married officially. We can announce the
marriage to everyone in the afternoon.”
He gave her a level look. “If you want a bigger celebration, plan
something later on. We can have a reception where you can invite whoever
you want.”
Things were happening too fast. Everything felt surreal.
“It’s not about the celebration… Please think this over. I—” She broke
off in a gasp when he pulled her close.
He watched her with an intense look. “I know what I want. It’s all I’ve
been thinking about over the last bloody decade. You cheated me out of the
promise we made together. Tomorrow, I’m binding you to that promise.”
The promise was to be together until forever. But Meena knew that
unlike the time they had made that promise to each other, there would be no
love or friendship between them.
She would be bound to the man who hated her.
 CHAPTER 25

Hiten could see anxiety and uncertainty on Meena’s beautiful,

treacherous face.
Anxiety, he could understand. But why was she uncertain? She should be
happy that her future became secure once again.
“Let’s go,” he said. “They must be waiting for us at dinner.”
He followed her as she went into the mansion. Sonali and Aarav looked
surprised seeing Meena and Hiten coming inside at the same time. And
Viren Kaushal’s jaw clenched in anger.
Ignoring the older man, Hiten drew out a chair for Meena who looked
shocked at his gesture.
Damn her. Did she think that despite his wealth, he still didn’t learn any
manners of the civilized world?
She was nervous and jumpy when he sat in the chair next to her. The
meal progressed mostly in silence with just Aarav, Hiten and Viren Kaushal
talking about business.
And soon, the meal came to an end. But before everyone dispersed,
Hiten held Meena’s hand.
Meena looked at him with widened eyes, and her hand trembled in his.
Hiten watched her face and kept his gaze locked on hers as he spoke.
“We have an announcement to make,” he stated. “Meenakshi and I have
decided to get married.”
There was a soft gasp from Sonali followed by absolute silence. And
then, Aarav was the first one to talk.
“Congratulations, man. This is quite… surprising.”
Hiten tore his eyes away from Meena’s stunned face. “Thank you. I’m
hoping you and Sonali would appear as witnesses to our marriage
tomorrow.”
Aarav smiled. “We’ll be honored to.”
Sonali watched Meena with a worried look. And the most expected
reaction came from Viren Kaushal.
The older man dropped his knife and fork angrily on the plate and pulled
back his chair with a loud noise before storming out of the dining room.
Hiten remained unmoved. In fact, he asked the hovering, nervous man
who was serving them food to continue serving them dessert.
And once everyone was done, and Aarav was leading Sonali out of the
dining room, Hiten gave them information about the logistics. “We’ll start
here at ten in the morning.”
Once the other couple departed, Hiten led Meena to her room. She didn’t
open the door to her suite. She stood nervously while watching him with a
seemingly brave look.
But Hiten knew her. His brain held vivid memories of every inch of her
along with all of her mannerisms. The slight clenching of her fists while
wrinkling her dress, the slightly flared nostrils and the nervous flutter of her
pulse at her throat—all brought in the predatory nature inside him.
The faint smell of the familiar herbal bath soap she used during their
childhood wafted around her. He moved closer.
His gaze fell to her soft lips as they parted slightly while her breath
hitched slightly. He wanted to crush his mouth on top of hers and see if she
tasted and felt the same as in his memories.
But he controlled himself. He knew the moment he touched her, he
would lose control. Not just of his body, but also his mind. A decade-long
anger and hate was no match against her potent lure and memories of him
worshipping her body and soul.
 He needed to brace himself and come up with a plan not to fall into the
same abyss as before. His heart had shriveled and died ten years ago. He
needed to ensure that she didn’t have the same power over him again and
revive it, only to crush it at some point once again.
Giving her one last sweeping glance, he took several steps away from
her. “Dress up as a bride for tomorrow’s court ceremony. But don’t use
anything that you wore when you married Sushant Kaushal.”
With that, he turned away and left her.
 ***

Hiten knocked on the huge intricately carved master bedroom door and
waited.
It was answered by a male attendant. “Sir is resting now. He doesn’t like
to be disturbed at this time. Please come in the morning—” Before the man
could complete, Hiten pushed past him and strode inside.
“Sir, please. Mr. Viren can’t see you now. He—” The man broke off
when Viren Kaushal interrupted him.
“It’s okay. I will talk to Mr. Hiten. You may leave.”
The other man left and shut the door softly behind him.
Hiten calmly looked at the man who was his father only because of
biology. The man who had left his defenseless and heartbroken eight-year-
old son to fend for himself in the world. The man who was never there for
him when Hiten needed him, but only reached out when his other son died
leaving him without heirs to his massive royal estate.
“If you marry your brother’s wife, I’ll disown you. You will no longer
get Kaushal.”
Hiten continued to watch the older man with a calm look. “I don’t give a
damn,” he replied. “I’m sure you are smart enough to know it was never
about inheriting Kaushal.”
Viren Kaushal’s jaw clenched. “She destroyed one son. I don’t want her
destroying another. If you marry her, she will destroy you and the Kaushal
legacy.”
Hiten was indifferent to those impassioned words. “Your son destroyed
himself. Don’t place the blame for his weaknesses on someone else. And
what makes you think I care about Kaushal or its legacy? If it were just up
to me, I would burn down Kaushal and Mahasena to ashes to wipe away the
memories.”
The older man fell silent.
“Come what may,” Hiten continued. “Meena will be my wife tomorrow.
If you can’t accept it, I will take her and the children with me and leave
Kaushal forever.”
Viren Kaushal remained silent and continued to watch him with helpless
anger as Hiten turned away and left.
 CHAPTER 26

It was a simple ceremony with just exchanging of rings and placing their
signatures on the official documents inside the court.
Meena’s hands shook slightly as she signed next to the unfamiliar bold
scrawl which was Hiten’s signature.
Although she recalled Hiten’s bold and neat handwriting from their
childhood, she had never seen his signature before. He never needed to sign
anything as he didn’t own anything at that point in time.
“Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Saini.”
The name sounded strange to Meena. She had only found out a few
minutes ago that Hiten used his mother’s last name rather than his father’s.
“Thank you,” Meena replied to the judge.
She also thanked Sonali and Aarav who congratulated her.
“Let’s have a celebratory lunch,” Sonali insisted.
The four of them drove to a high-rise hotel and had an exclusive lunch
arranged for them on the rooftop.
“Have you told your daughters about marrying me?” Hiten asked while
sipping champagne which they had opened a few minutes ago.
“Not yet,” she replied softly. Sonali and her husband were busy talking
to each other, offering them privacy. “They would have a lot of questions
and would also want to attend the wedding. I’ll tell them this evening when
they return from school.”
A slight frown marred Hiten’s handsome face. His eyes fell to her hands
where she was fiddling with her wedding ring which was a simple gold
band.
Husband. Hiten was now her husband. A small shiver ran through her as
her mind slowly began to absorb the reality of the situation. But most of it
still felt surreal.
She had been dreaming of marrying Hiten since she had been eight years
old. And now, her childhood dream came true.
She should have been ecstatic about that fact, but the surreal feeling
continued to persist.
Sonali kept a light conversation going while they were served food.
Meena found out that the luxury hotel they were dining in was recently
acquired by Hiten and Aarav’s company.
Soon, just as quickly as Hiten whisked her away early that morning to
get married, they were back when a helicopter dropped them off in Kaushal
later that afternoon around the time Anjali and Rashmi returned home.
They were walking towards the mansion from the helipad when Hiten
put an arm around her waist and guided her towards the garden.
They stopped near a gazebo that offered them privacy. The lush greenery
with delicate flowers, the pleasant sound of the birds, and the light, warm
breeze from the trees made it seem romantic.
Meena’s heart thudded in anticipation. She wondered if Hiten had
brought her there to kiss her. Her lips tingled, feeling the desperate need to
be kissed by him. Regardless of whether or not he still hated her, she
wanted to be held by him as he had nearly ten years ago. Her heart and
body felt starved for his attention.
“I’m meeting with my lawyer later this afternoon. He is going to draw up
the terms of our marriage.”
Hiten’s words jarred her out of her fantasy. She came crashing down to
earth where reality took over once again.
“The Kaushal Trust will remain the same with you receiving your
monthly payments and your daughter as the primary beneficiary.”
I don’t need your money. I want you!
 Meena wanted to shout those words at him, but restrained herself. She
was being silly, hanging on to her girlish fantasies. She should be practical
about their marriage like him.
“I would like to add Rashmi too as a beneficiary to the Kaushal Trust,”
she said calmly.
He nodded.
Meena’s phone chimed, indicating that the children had returned. “Is
there anything else? I need to go. Anjali and Rashmi are home.”
He looked at her quietly for a few moments before replying. “Yes. As I
said last night, this is going to be a conventional marriage, unlike the cold-
blooded set-up you you had with your first husband. We will share the same
bed and room while we are living under the same roof. I have asked the
housekeeping staff to prepare the south wing master suite for us. Have your
things moved there by tonight.”
And then, without giving her a chance to react or respond, he strode
away.
Meena stood rooted to the spot, watching him go.
Why did he insist on sharing the room? Even as she felt panic envelop
her for losing her safe space and having no privacy, a part of her wondered
about something.
How did Hiten know whether or not her first marriage was a cold-
blooded one? He had known about Tarun and his art exhibits too. Which
meant that Hiten had been following her life for the last few years.
Panic enveloped her.
How long until Hiten found out about the rest of the truth?
 ***

“Married! Wow!”
Meena was mildly amused by the excitement on her daughters’ faces.
When she sat them down to let them know that she was now married to
Hiten, she expected shock and maybe even anger. But the excitement on the
little faces put a smile on hers.
“So we have a daddy, then?” Rashmi asked.
Meena felt a tug in her heart. She knew how much her daughters wanted
one because the rest of the kids at their school had a father. But Meena had
no idea what sort of relationship Hiten intended to have with her children.
“Yes. But he’s going to be very busy. So don’t disturb him.”
Anjali’s face fell a little. “Oh. Just like my previous daddy, then.”
Meena felt guilty as she recalled the indifference that Sushant had shown
towards Anjali. She had hoped that Anjali would forget his behavior with
time since she was very young when Sushant had died.
“Yes,” Meena replied. “Daddies are busy most of the time.” She smiled
and distracted them by changing the topic.
Even as she spoke to her daughters, she was reminded of the time when
Hiten had looked after Nandini when they were children. He was naturally
good with babies and children.
Even as regret pierced her, she hoped Hiten didn’t transfer some of the
hatred he had towards her to her children. She could take the indifference,
but hatred would mean the end of their marriage and relationship. Because
no matter how much and how deeply she still loved Hiten, if he mistreated
her children, she would immediately leave him.
Later that evening, Meena called her parents to inform them of her
wedding.
 “I knew it,” said Meena’s mother with smug excitement. “As soon as
Hiten arrived at Kaushal, I heard the rumors.”
Meena didn’t ask her mother what those rumors were, but her mother
offered to tell anyway. “People said that the bastard son of Kaushal had
returned. And along with the royal estate, he wants to claim his half-
brother’s widow!”
Meena was disgusted by the words. But her parents were as usual
oblivious. They were just happy that she was married to a Kaushal heir
again and wouldn’t lose the connections and status associated with the
name.
Ending the call, Meena called her sister.
Nandini had a shocked reaction. “You and Hiten got married!”
“Yes. It was a sudden decision we made. I’m sorry I couldn’t inform
anyone or wait. We chose a simple court wedding.”
“Wow! He couldn’t wait to marry you as soon as he saw you. That’s
quite romantic. After Sushant passed away, for some reason, I always
thought you would marry Tarun Jaipal because he is in love with you. I like
Tarun, but I’m so glad it is Hiten. The way Hiten looked at you at my
wedding, I knew he considered you more than just a childhood friend.”
Meena was surprised by her sister’s observations. Even Meena hadn’t
known about Tarun’s feelings towards her. But Nandini was wrong about
Hiten. Nandini had misinterpreted Hiten looks to be desire rather than
hatred.
Meena spoke to her sister for some more time until it was time. Time to
face her new husband.
 ***

The dinner was a tense affair. Meena could barely eat any of the lavish
spread in front of her.
The cooks and the housekeeping staff were informed of the wedding.
They not only congratulated Meena and Hiten, but also made a special
celebratory meal. The meal was set up at the dining nook of the new master
bedroom suite Meena was to occupy with Hiten.
“Not hungry?”
Meena jumped when Hiten’s deep voice spoke within the otherwise
silent room. He was watching her while swirling his amber-colored drink in
a crystal glass.
“Not much,” she replied. “I’m still feeling a bit full from the lunch.”
“You didn’t eat much during lunch, too,” he pointed.
“Neither did you.” She had noticed that he was only drinking during
both meals.
He shrugged. Then putting away his drink, he stood up. “Well, if we are
both done with our meal, I think it’s time to retire to our bed.” He extended
his hand towards her.
Meena stared at his hand.
“It’s not going to turn into a deadly snake and bite you,” he said.
Taking in a deep breath, Meena put her cold, trembling hand into his. His
palms were rough and warm as he pulled her until she stood up close to
him.
Then without pausing for even a moment, his mouth crashed on top of
hers.
Heat enveloped her, and her heart threatened to pound out of her ribcage.
When her knees wobbled, he bent slightly to swing her up into his arms and
carried her inside their bedroom.
Keeping their mouths still fused together, he put her on the bed. Then he
moved away for a few moments to undress.
She blinked in a daze while he watched her and undressed. He shrugged
out of his tie and jacket. Soon the shirt followed suit and then he began
unbuckling his belt.
Meena drank in the sight of his body which changed in the last ten years.
His muscles became bigger and more well-defined than when he was a
teenager.
When he shed his pants, and she saw the part of him that showed his
rampant desire for her, Meena felt the fluttering in her stomach increase.
She felt nervous along with excitement.
Hiten’s eyes took in her face, and as though he knew what she was
thinking, he closed the distance between them once again. His lips covered
hers. But this time, he didn’t linger for a long time. His lips moved lower.
He kissed her neck in a familiar way.
She moaned out loud. “Oh God, Hiten,” she whispered. “I missed you so
much.”
He froze. And then, moving away from her, he sat up.
Meena felt the loss of his heat and warmth. Before she could ask him
what had happened, he looked at her body. His jaw clenched and his nostrils
flared. Then suddenly, he reached out and shut the night lamp next to them.
He returned to her. His lips met hers again.
He undressed her quickly and efficiently in the dark. And then, his hands
touched her body. But this time, she felt a significant difference in his kisses
and touch. She held his face to kiss him, but he gripped her wrists and held
them together on top of her head using just one of his hands. It was clear
that he didn’t want her to touch him.
 The rest of their wedding night continued in that tone. Although he
wasn’t gentle, he didn’t hurt her either. Meena’s body was overwhelmed
with pleasure.
His hands and mouth moved over her bare body, until she begged him to
take her. Which he did, over and over. He joined their bodies, drawing out
pleasured gasps from her.
Later, during the early hours before the morning light came in, Hiten
finally fell asleep.
Meena stared out of the bedroom window unable to sleep despite the
physical exhaustion she felt after having a sex marathon.
It was definitely sex and not lovemaking in any form.
Meena felt heavy in her heart. She was married to the love of her life,
and yet she felt as lonely as she had felt while he was gone.
 CHAPTER 27

Meena was working on her new painting in her studio when Sheena
came to call her.
“Madam. Mr. Jaipal is here to see you.”
“Tell him I’ll be down in five minutes.”
Wrapping up the painting supplies and covering the painting, Meena
went down to meet with Tarun.
The normally charming, smiling man looked sober when he saw her.
Meena felt guilty even though she knew she shouldn’t.
“What is happening, Meena?” Tarun asked in a grim tone. “Two weeks
ago, you turned down my proposal saying you can’t marry someone you
don’t love. And now, I just found out that you are married? And to a man
who wants to cheat you and your daughters out of the inheritance? I know
you must have been forced into this marriage.”
Meena shook her head. “I wasn’t forced, Tarun,” she replied. “I married
Hiten willingly.”
Tarun had a look of disbelief. “What about what you told me the other
day, then? To marry only for love?”
Meena recalled her and Tarun’s conversation in the sunroom when he
had proposed.

“I can’t, Tarun,” Meena replied. “I can’t marry you because I don’t love
you. At least not in the way it should be.”
She felt a tug in her heart seeing the hurt look on Tarun’s face.
“I know you love me only as a good friend, Meena. But once we marry,
you’ll learn to love me. The children, you and I… we’ll be happy together
away from Kaushal and your bad memories.”
 Meena shook her head. “If I marry you for the sake of security, I know
we won’t be happy, Tarun. You will end up feeling bitter and miserable
when I don’t love you the same way as you do.” Her eyes lowered. “I
married for security once, and I deeply regret that choice until now.”
“You didn’t love Sushant?” There was surprise in Tarun’s voice.
She looked up. “No, I didn’t love him” she replied. “But he proposed to
me in the same way. He said he knew I wasn’t in love with him and that I
loved someone else. But he told me it was okay, and that he loved me
enough for the two of us. And that I’d learn to love him.” She took a deep
breath. “You saw what that did to Sushant at the end. I don’t want to ruin
your life that way, too. It’s hard being in love with someone who doesn’t and
cannot love you back.”
Tarun fell quiet.
“Cannot?” he asked. “You could not love Sushant, and you cannot love
me because you still love that same man?”
She took a deep breath. “Yes.”

“It doesn’t make sense, Meena,” Tarun said. He came closer and held her
hand. “Did they threaten you? I know they must have. Kaushals maybe
powerful, but I’m not without influence myself. I can help you. I can take
you and the children away from here right now. In fact—”
“That’s not needed,” a deep masculine voice snapped.
Meena turned to see Hiten standing near the doorway. His cold
demeanor was gone, and he looked furious. He strode in to move closer and
glared at Tarun’s hand holding hers.
“Let go of my wife’s hand,” he commanded.
 Tarun glared back. “I know you threatened her to marry you. There is no
way Meena would marry someone for money or influence, especially after I
offered both.”
Hiten continued to look at Tarun with rage. “If you don’t stop touching
my wife, I’m going to knock you down until you do.”
Meena heard enough. “Stop it, both of you,” she said.
She tugged her hand out of Tarun’s grasp until he let her go. She then
glared at Hiten. “Tarun is not just a guest in our house, but he is also my
very good friend.”
She turned to Tarun. “I know you are worried about me, Tarun. But I
married Hiten willingly.”
“I don’t believe you, Meena. I know he must have threatened to harm
you or the children. He was about to get violent with me. I don’t think you
are safe here. Come away with me. Please.”
Meena felt Hiten’s rage growing. But she firmly kept her eyes on Tarun.
“Hiten won’t hurt me or my children. I have known him since our
childhood. We grew up together in Mahasena until he left ten years ago.”
Slowly comprehension dawned in Tarun’s eyes. Tarun now knew that the
person whom Meena loved was Hiten. “I see,” was all he said.
“I’m truly fine, Tarun. I’m sorry to worry you unnecessarily. I’ll get in
touch with you once I’m done with my current painting.”
Tarun nodded reluctantly. “Just remember that I’ll always be there if you
ever need me, Meena,” he said. And then, he threw a warning glare at Hiten
before leaving.
Meena was about to step out to go back to her studio, when she felt
Hiten’s hand gripping her wrist.
“I don’t want you to maintain contact with Tarun Jaipal anymore.”
Meena was angry. It was history repeating itself.
 “I don’t want you to talk to any man. I won’t allow any man to even look
at you. You are mine!”

Meena had felt suffocated by Sushant’s jealousy and possessiveness. She

didn’t want to feel the same again.
She looked at Hiten levelly. “I don’t dictate who can or cannot be your
friends,” she said. “Sonali is a friend of yours. I don’t insist that you stop
having female friends.”
Hiten’s jaw was still clenched in a fury. “I’m not asking you to stop
having male friends. I’m asking you to cut off contact with just Tarun
Jaipal, your so-called friend who is still in love with you and has asked you
to elope with him. Right in front of me.”
“He was being protective, thinking that I was in danger. He cares for me.
And I can’t cut off ties with the only person I had as an adult companion to
keep me sane over the last few years.”
“You have me now.”
Meena scoffed at him. “I’m barely a companion to you. I’m just a toy
that you only take out during the nights to play with, before shutting it away
during the day.”
Meena saw Hiten gritting his teeth at her apt analogy.
They had been married for two weeks, and during the day, Hiten
completely ignored her, choosing to spend his time elsewhere on the estate
or flying out of Kaushal for his business meetings. He returned late at night
after she fell asleep. She woke up past midnight when she felt his
determined hands and lips on her body.
She always gave in to his demands as she was starving for his attention.
Each night he drew out pleasure from her helpless body, but left her feeling
as lonely as before.
She was still stopped from touching him. And he hadn’t even looked at
her body in the light, which only proved that Hiten didn’t even want her.
She was still someone he hated and couldn’t bear to see.
“Why won’t you let me touch you?” she asked.
There was silence.
Meena waited for Hiten to reply and acknowledge what she just said.
But he continued to remain quiet.
Feeling angry because she was stupid enough to feel hurt, Meena
stormed out of the room.
A strange simmering anger grew inside her. It felt as though a long-dead
bud, despite being nipped due to circumstances, was slowly beginning to
unfurl.
 ***

Hiten stared at his reflection in the water. He was standing by a pond that
was at a distance from the Kaushal mansion.
He didn’t want to be inside where he would have to see Meena. What he
thought would help with closure was only working against him.
Each morning, the moment he woke up and saw Meena sleeping next to
him, instead of being reminded of how she had betrayed him, he was
reminded of his old Meena whom he had deeply and unconditionally loved.
He wanted to pull Meena close and kiss her awake. And then, his rational
mind kicked in on time.
She broke her promise to wait for you.
She chose your highborn half-brother over you.
She killed your love for the sake of money and luxury.
Hiten’s rational mind listed all of the reasons why he shouldn’t soften his
stance towards Meena. It would be foolish of him to make himself
vulnerable which would then lead to her destroying him once again.
Hiten’s thoughts were interrupted when a small stone plopped
somewhere in the water, causing ripples in his reflection.
“Dammit!” said a childish feminine voice.
Hiten turned to see a small girl standing a few feet away from him near
the pond. She was searching for stones on the ground. And when she found
one, she threw it once again in the water. The stone plopped right inside yet
again.
“Arghh! Why can’t I make them bounce over the water as the boys in
my class do!” The small girl sounded frustrated.
She picked up a few more and continued to throw them in the water, but
each of them met with the same fate.
 “You need flatter stones,” Hiten suggested. “The ones you have will not
work. Pick up the one by your left foot.”
Scrunching her forehead, the girl picked it up and was about to throw,
but he stopped her.
“Hold it properly. Use your thumb and middle finger and then hook your
index finger along the edge.”
Surprisingly, the girl did as he instructed in her first try before throwing
the stone. This one skipped the surface thrice before sinking in.
“Oh my God! I did it!” The girl clapped and jumped in excitement.
“Thank you! How do you know how to skip stones?” she asked, turning to
look up at him with a smile.
Hiten froze. The bright brown Kaushal eyes watched him waiting for
him to respond.
Anjali Kaushal. Meena and Sushant’s daughter.
Hiten hadn’t met Meena’s daughters. He had seen the photographs over
the years, but hadn’t paid much attention because he was only interested in
Meena.
And even when he began to stay in Kaushal during the last few weeks,
he deliberately kept away from the children. He did not want to think of
Meena as a mother. In his mind, the older daughter was living proof of how
Meena had betrayed him with Sushant.
But now that he came face to face with the child he associated with
Meena’s betrayal, he didn’t automatically hate the girl. It was quite the
opposite.
Anjali Kaushal looked just like how Meena did during their childhood.
Except for her Kaushal eyes, Anjali had the same delicate features with an
impish smile.
 Anger and longing pierced him. She should have been my child. If
Meena hadn’t betrayed him, Anjali could have been his daughter.
He tamped down his feelings before answering the child. “I learned it
during my childhood,” he said.
“Oh! Do you know how to climb trees?”
“Yes.”
The small girl bounced in excitement once again. “Will you teach me? I
want to learn how to climb trees, but according to everyone that’s not
appropriate for girls.”
Hiten raised an eyebrow. “Your mother not only knew how to climb
trees, but she also knew how to use a sling to pluck the fruits from the trees,
how to fish, and swim inside a river.”
The girl’s eyes widened in disbelief. “No way! And how do you know
she knows all that?” she asked.
“Because I was the one who taught her those things.”
The girl grinned broadly. “You were my mother’s friend during
childhood?”
“Yes, we were childhood friends and…” He paused. He knew that
Meena had mentioned that the children were aware of their marriage. He
didn’t particularly want to meet them, and neither did Meena offer. But he
knew eventually at some point, the introductions had to be made. “… your
mother and I married each other a few days back.”
Anjali’s eyes grew huge as realization dawned. “You are my new daddy!
Rashmi and I wanted to meet you, but Mamma told us that you are a very
busy man, and we are not to disturb you.”
Hiten felt a bolt of anger at Meena. Did she think so low of him that she
thought he would harm or hurt the children?
“I am busy at times. But I can make some time for you and your sister.”
 Anjali clapped. “That is so exciting. Rashmi and I would definitely want
to learn all the things Mamma did.”
Anjali’s enthusiasm was infectious. Hiten smiled at her. “Where is your
sister?” he asked wondering where the younger girl was. He knew the other
child was only a months younger than Anjali.
“Music lessons,” Anjali replied.
“You don’t like music?” Hiten asked.
“Oh. I do enjoy playing the piano. But Rashmi is taking singing lessons
right now. I don’t sing.”
“Why not?”
She grinned. “Everyone else says my singing is unbearable. Although
Mamma says I have a sweet voice, and I should learn singing, I know
people are right.” There was no bitterness in her tone.
Hiten smiled again, recalling Meena’s off-key singing during their
childhood. But his smile dropped a little when he also recalled how unlike
Meena, Meena’s mother, Sujata Mahasena was highly critical of her older
daughter being unable to sing.
Anjali’s voice cut into Hiten’s memories. “So, can you teach Rashmi and
me to climb trees?”
Hiten nodded with a small smile.
Anjali’s face fell a little. “But can you not tell Mamma or anyone about
it?”
“Why?” he asked, frowning slightly at the request.
“Because Grandpa will scold Mamma if he finds out. He did when she
taught Rashmi and me how to fly kites at Kaushal. My Papa used to shout
at Mamma too when she was teaching me how to play marble games and
other outdoor games. And I don’t like it when anyone makes my mamma
sad.”
 Hiten fell quiet.
“Okay,” he replied finally. “I won’t tell anyone.”
Anjali’s smiled widened once again. “I’ll go get Rashmi.”
Hiten stayed near the pond watching the small girl running back to the
mansion until she disappeared from his sight.
He didn’t know what came over him when he agreed to teach Meena’s
daughters how to climb trees. He had always liked children, but he knew he
should be maintaining a distance from Meena’s children. Because when he
finally left Meena, he might end up hurting the children too.
 CHAPTER 28

Later that evening, Meena heard a knock once again on her studio door.
“Come in,” Meena instructed, expecting it to be Sheena. But it was
Sonali.
Meena was surprised. Apart from having polite chit-chat with others as
company, Meena had never spoken to Sonali before.
Meena wiped her hands with a clean cloth before covering the painting
and stepping out of the studio. Sonali had a curious look when she caught a
glimpse of the painting which was of two lovers in an embrace on top of a
hill. Meena was trying to recreate some of her paintings which were burned
in the fire.
“Something urgent came up at work. Aarav and I will be flying out
tomorrow morning. I wanted to say bye to you before I leave.”
“I hope everything is okay.”
“Oh yes,” Sonali replied with a smile. “I’m used to being dragged
around the world by now.”
Meena smiled. “Well, I hope you have a more relaxed life once your
baby is born.”
Sonali looked surprised.
Meena then realized that she wasn’t supposed to know that Sonali was
pregnant. She had overheard Sonali speaking to her husband. Meena
recalled how she had reacted thinking that the baby was Hiten’s. Meena’s
stomach still knotted slightly at the memory.
“Sorry. I overheard you talking one day with your husband. I didn’t
mean to snoop.”
Sonali laughed. “It’s okay. I guess me skipping breakfasts and always
looking tired was a giveaway, too.”
 Meena smiled. “That, too.”
Sonali’s smile disappeared, and she looked somber. “Aarav and I decided
to keep it a secret a little longer because I had a miscarriage the last time. I
was in my third month. But by then all of our friends and close
acquaintances already knew I was pregnant. It was brutal dealing with their
sympathy along with our mourning.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
Sonali sighed. “Aarav is overprotective now. He didn’t want to take me
to a place he had been before he arrived at Kaushal. So I had to accompany
Hiten while Aarav dealt with the local leaders in a war-torn area in Africa.
“I see.”
“Meena…” Sonali’s hand held hers. “I don’t want to interfere, but I
know a little about what happened in yours and Hiten’s past. And why
Hiten has returned to Kaushal.”
Meena remained quiet.
“Although Hiten came here for… revenge, I know he still loves you.”
Meena looked at Sonali with disbelief. “He threatened to destroy me or
anyone who would help me.”
Sonali sighed. “I know,” she said. “But please hear me out. Underneath
his cold and ruthless persona, there lurks a caring person.” Sonali smiled. “I
had a huge crush on Hiten when I first met him. I was attracted to the silent,
brooding man who looked like he badly needed some love in his life.”
Meena was instantly jealous, but she didn’t let it show.
“Hiten knew about my crush. In fact, he tolerated it when I more or less
would stalk him everywhere. But he didn’t take advantage. You know what
he did?” Sonali asked.
“What?”
 Sonali smiled. “He broke my heart. He deliberately slept with my
stepmother and made sure I witnessed it.”
“That’s very cruel,” Meena said with a frown.
Sonali laughed softly. “I know. I hated him for the longest time, until
Aarav told me that Hiten had done it deliberately because he knew that
Aarav liked me.” Sonali smiled softly. “I’m glad Hiten broke my heart. Or
else I wouldn’t have found the love of my life.”
Sonali squeezed Meena’s hand in reassurance. “Have faith, Meena. I
know you are the only person in the world who holds the key to Hiten’s
damaged heart. You are the only one who can heal him.”
Meena nodded even though she doubted if Hiten would ever forgive her
enough to allow her into his heart.
 ***

Meena woke up to a familiar sensual touch. She moaned softly as she

felt the cool air on her skin when her nightclothes were removed. And then
she felt the rough, warmth of hairy skin as a heavy weight descended on top
of her.
She let out a gasp when she felt a hot mouth enclosing her nipple and
sucking on it. She extended her hands and held on to the thick hair.
Immediately, her hands were captured and put on either side of her head
where she was unable to move them.
Meena opened her eyes in the dark. She didn’t know what time it was,
but she knew it must be after midnight if Hiten had returned.
His lips moved up to her neck while he pushed her legs apart, preparing
to enter her. Even as her body craved for the joining, she began to struggle.
He didn’t let her go at first, probably assuming that she just wanted to
free her hands. She let out a moan as he continued to kiss her neck, and his
thick arousal nudged her core. She knew that if she didn’t speak out right
then, he would take her, and they would have yet another pleasurable yet
soulless coupling which would only make her miserable the next morning.
“Hiten, stop!” she somehow managed to gasp out.
He froze on top of her but didn’t move. The only sounds in the room
were the sounds of their heavy breathing.
She struggled under him once again until he released her hands and
rolled away from her.
She immediately scrambled down the bed, and reaching towards the
night lamp, she turned it on.
Her eyes fell on Hiten who was seated naked on the edge of the bed and
watched her face with an unreadable look.
 Meena’s eyes helplessly swept over his magnificent body that she hadn’t
seen properly for over ten years. The body he now didn’t want her to touch
or love.
His eyes briefly swept over her naked body. She saw his jaw clenching,
and as soon as he looked at the scar on her stomach, he looked away from
her with a look of obvious anger and disgust.
Pain and anger swept through her.
“This scar you find so repulsive on my body,” she said. “I’m proud of it.
Because it reminds me each day that I almost died while giving birth to
Anjali. And that I somehow didn’t. It reminds me that I’m a survivor.”
His eyes flashed as he stared at the long scar on her stomach.
“I know it wasn’t a part of the deal we made,” she continued. “But if you
want us to have a conventional marriage, then you will have to accept me as
I am. Make love to me in the light and allow me to touch you.”
He watched her silently with his jaw clenched. Just when she thought he
would ignore her, he spoke.
“I don’t find your scar or anything on your body repulsive. You are
beautiful. More beautiful than you were as a teenager.”
Meena was confused. Hiten was complimenting her, but he spoke in a
tone that sounded angry and bitter.
“Then why won’t you let me touch you or want to see me?” she asked
once again.
“Because if you touch me or if I see your face, I’ll hurt you,” he said.
Meena’s heart thudded. “I know you won’t hurt me,” she said in a
whisper.
A small yet cruel smile covered his face. “Trust me. I’m no longer the
boy you knew as a teenager. I want to hurt you. I would enjoy hurting you. I
would feel justified hurting you. Each time I see your face, I don’t just see
your beauty, I see your betrayal along with it.” His cruel smile widened.
“But that won’t stop me from wanting to take your body every chance I
get.”
Meena’s breath caught in her throat.
“Scared?” he asked when she stood biting her lip and watching him.
She slowly nodded. “Terrified actually,” she replied.
A flash of surprise passed through his face at her admission.
Taking a deep breath, Meena moved closer to him. His eyes blazed as he
watched her body. When she was close enough, she held his face using both
her hands.
“I will hurt you,” he warned.
“I don’t care,” she replied before kissing him.
Immediately, his arms wrapped around her waist and his mouth took hers
in a brutal, punishing kiss unlike the past few weeks of their marriage when
his kisses were efficient and soulless.
Meena moaned and then gasped as she fell across the bed. He moved on
top of her without breaking contact. He continued to kiss her brutally.
Meena took them and kissed him back equally fiercely. Heat exploded
inside her, wanting his touch and presence inside every pore of her body.
She thought, he would push her legs and join them together immediately.
But his mouth pulled away from hers.
His dark eyes flashed as he watched her face and then her body. And
soon, he began to explore her.
The pattern of his frantic kisses on her body felt familiar. Then she
remembered—the lovemaking map. During their past, Hiten had often
mentioned how God had given him a readymade map to make love to her.
He kissed her lips, then her neck. She gasped when he bit on the tiny
mole under her left breast. He wasn’t gentle, but she didn’t want him to be.
He moved lower to swirl his tongue over her belly button. Her breath
became choppy when he raised her leg and put it on his wide shoulders. His
mouth kissed her hip bone before more or less attacking her core.
She moaned out loud and held his head while he determinedly made her
lose her mind. She wanted to beg him to slow down as the sensations
overwhelmed her, but the words wouldn’t come out. Instead, her hands
clutched his head even closer.
She let out a hoarse scream as her release ripped through her. He moved
up and then holding her hair at the back of her head, he rammed into her.
He kept his gaze locked on hers as he joined them together again and again.
The force of his hard thrusts drove her towards the edge of the bed. But
still, it felt like lovemaking and not just cold sex because he watched her
face.
Her eyes fell close, and her lips parted letting out gasps with each thrust.
Despite the hard, forceful thrusts, his thumb stroked her cheek softly, just as
he used to do when they were eighteen.
She felt tears sting her eyes as powerful, familiar feelings overwhelmed
her. She blinked them away.
Slowly, she opened her eyes and found him still watching her with an
intent look. “Kiss me,” she said softly.
She realized that this was the first time in over a decade that she was
making requests during lovemaking. She was so used to being just the
recipient that it felt empowering to be able to tell what she wanted and
needed.
Hiten just looked at her, continuing to make fierce love. When she
thought he would ignore her request, he slowly leaned forward. His kiss
wasn’t brutal.
 His lips brushed her mouth, feeling her gasps as she let them out each
time he drove into her. She held his head and pulled him closer and kissed
him.
Heat exploded once again when his tongue slid inside her mouth. He
kissed her fiercely again until she couldn’t draw her breath. He pulled his
mouth away, but he placed his forehead against hers.
As he increased the force of his thrusts, her arms and legs wrapped
around his back and held him as close to her as possible. And soon, the heat
and pleasure reached a peak making her explode from the inside once again.
She held on to him as he shuddered and trembled on top of her while
reaching his climax.
I love you. I have always loved you. Those words remained stuck in her
throat.
Later, when their breathing returned to normal, she continued to keep her
hands and legs wrapped tightly around him.
He didn’t push her hands or legs away either. He just rolled them until
they lay that way resting on their sides.
After ten years, even though every inch of her body was sore, Meena
slept peacefully wrapped around the man who held her heart.
 CHAPTER 29

“Remember to hold on to a nearby branch and push your foot into the
tree, not down.”
Hiten watched as Anjali and Rashmi climbed an old sturdy tree in the
garden.
“Use the other branch, Anjali. The one lower is too thin.”
The girls were quick learners. Soon, they were on top of the tree. After
much giggling and excited chatter, the sisters slowly began to go down the
tree.
As usual, Anjali was the first one to get down. She was impatient enough
to simply leap from a relatively higher branch rather than placing her feet
on the ground to get down.
“Come on, Rashmi. Just jump!” shouted Anjali. “You are just a few feet
away from the ground.”
But the younger girl, who was the calm and quiet one, carefully got
down.
Anjali shouted excitedly. “That was so much fun! We can finally climb
such a tall tree!”
Hiten smiled. He had been asking them to practice climbing on shorter,
sturdy trees before graduating to the taller ones.
“Let’s practice bouncing stones on the water now!” Anjali was about to
break into a run, but she stopped when the watch she wore began to beep.
“Aww… my music class,” she said frowning at the watch. Then she
looked up to grin at Hiten and Rashmi. “Don’t do anything else without
me!” With that, she broke into a run towards the mansion.
Hiten led Rashmi back into the mansion.
“You don’t like learning to play the piano?” he asked.
 Rashmi shook her head. “I just like singing and dancing because my
Mamma used to do both, and she taught me.”
Hiten knew Rashmi wasn’t talking about Meena.
“My Mamma is in the sky. She died along with my Papa when I was six.
Sometimes, I miss her. So I like singing the songs she taught me when I was
little.”
Hiten was reminded of his mother’s songs that she had taught him.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” he said. “My mother died when I was eight.
And she had taught me to sing, too.”
Rashmi’s eyes widened in surprise. “Oh. Did you get a new Mamma like
I did?”
“No,” he replied softly to her. “I wasn’t as lucky as you.”
During his investigations, Hiten got the information that after Sushant
died in an accident with his mistress, their daughter was brought home by
Meena. Hiten had assumed that Meena was forced to bring her husband’s
illegitimate child home because of legal reasons.
But only recently, did he discover that Meena was the one who wanted
Rashmi to be declared as one of the legal heirs and beneficiaries of the
Kaushal Trust, which Viren Kaushal did not approve of.
Hiten had recently approved the document that added Rashmi as a
beneficiary.
Hiten knew that the difference in ages between Anjali and Rashmi were
only a few months, which meant that Sushant had cheated on Meena while
she was pregnant.
He didn’t know why, but he felt angry about that fact.
He didn’t want to, but he had unwanted, protective feelings towards
Meena. The ones he thought he had effectively killed after her betrayal.
 But no matter how hard he tried, the old feelings that he had towards
Meena began to resurface.
The only way he could keep them at bay was to remind himself each
moment of her betrayal.
 ***

After dropping Rashmi back into her room, Hiten went towards his
bedroom suite. As soon as he opened the door, the sight that met him, made
his body heat up.
Meena was in her toweling robe after having just stepped out of the
shower. The little blue smearing of the paint on top of her forehead
indicated that she must have showered in a hurry.
Hiten closed the door softly. When he pressed the button of the lock,
Meena turned towards him with widened eyes. Whatever she saw on his
face, made her cheeks redden.
He closed the distance between them before opening the ties of her robe
and pushing it off of her.
The bright sunlight that came in from the windows exposed her
completely to his gaze.
“Hiten…” Her skin broke into goosebumps at his intense stare.
For someone who demanded that he accept her as she was to make love
to her, Meena was quite shy to expose her body. He recalled how his old
Meena used to be completely uninhibited. After they first began making
love, Meena had even swum naked during their midnight summer swims.
Hiten knew he should stop thinking of Meena as two different people.
The Meena during his childhood was the same one he was currently
married to.
Yes, she looked different—more breathtaking which he didn’t think was
possible.
Her face was much leaner than during her teens. Her body had also
changed. Her stomach was flat instead of concave, her hips were slightly
wider, and her breasts were bigger. The one significant change was the scar
left from the surgery while she gave birth to Anjali.
That scar was the sole reason he was willing to put aside his anger and
bitterness towards her. He realized how close he had come to losing her to
death.
Even though he had hated Meena for the good part of the last decade, he
couldn’t ever imagine living in this world knowing she was no longer in it.
He didn’t know whether he could forget the past or not, but all he knew
was that he needed her as much as he needed air to breathe.
“Hiten,” she gasped once again when his teeth bit into her neck before
trailing to the rim of her ear.
“I want you,” he said, picking her up and putting her on top of the heavy
antique dresser.
Meena’s breaths came out in short, heavy pants while he unzipped his
trousers and moved between her widened legs.
She wrapped her legs around his hips and held onto him as he joined
them.
Her passionate cries were music to his ears. And amidst her passionate
cries, he heard her words.
“I love you,” she gasped. “I’ll always love you.”
Hiten shut his eyes briefly, trying to shut out her words. He drove harder
into her, trying to stop her from being able to say those words again.
But she didn’t stop. With each hard thrust, she declared her love which
sounded as if it came from the depths of her soul.
It made him angry. It made him vulnerable. It made him fall completely
apart.
When he exploded inside her, it was with a realization that whether he
liked it or not, he had never stopped loving his betrayer.
He would always love her. Until forever.
 CHAPTER 30

“All of our operations will continue to run from Africa. But I would like
the corporate headquarters to be set up here.”
Hiten was in the city meeting with his executives to provide them with
detailed instructions for setting up the headquarters in India.
He knew he couldn’t escape travel, but he wanted to minimize it. And
the next time he had to travel, he decided to take Meena and the girls along
with him. He knew they would be thrilled and would enjoy visiting Africa,
especially where Nandini currently lived.
He had barely been two days away from Kaushal, and he already missed
Meena and also Anjali and Rashmi. He wanted to bring all three along to
the city, but because of their school, he couldn’t insist.
He couldn’t believe that only three months had passed since he married
Meena, but he already considered Meena and her daughters as his family.
He loved Meena. And Anjali and Rashmi took up equal space in his
heart as well. What began initially as a revenge-driven closure turned into
the beginning of something wonderful.
“Hiten?”
Hiten’s thoughts were interrupted by his executive assistant.
“Yes?”
“I’m sorry to interrupt. But Mr. Mahasena had called. He wants me to
confirm whether you are accepting his invitation to join him at his club
tonight.”
Hiten frowned. He wasn’t thrilled to join Dheeraj Mahasena at his club
where the older man could show off and boast about his new son-in-law’s
wealth and parentage.
 But he knew he had to. Even though Meena never insisted, he knew it
would make her happy if he were to make an attempt to socialize with her
family.
“Tell him I’ll see him at the club.”
 ***

Meena was dreaming. She and Hiten were back in Mahasena as

teenagers and were running down the hill.

Meena was laughing, and she turned to look at Hiten. “The loser will
have to grant the winner a wish!”
Hiten grinned. “I don’t mind being the loser because either way I get to
kiss you.”
Meena laughed once again as she continued to run. The cool wind blew
her hair, making her feel free and uninhibited.
Then suddenly, she felt her feet start to rise above the ground. Feeling
shocked, and desperately trying to stay on the ground, she looked down.
Second by second, her entire body began to rise and float away from the
ground.
“Hiten!” she screamed, trying to reach him.
Hiten stopped and looked at her. He had a grim look on his face, as
though he knew that the day would come when she would be beyond his
reach.
“Hiten! Don’t leave me!” she shouted, even though it was her floating
away from him. But she felt helpless to stop what was happening, and with
each moment, the distance grew further and further between them.
And then, just as she went up in the air, she began to go crashing down.

As soon as she hit the ground, Meena woke up with a gasp.

Her heart began to thud loudly, and she felt sweat form on her forehead
even as tiny shivers racked her.
It’s just a bad dream.
 Pushing the remnants of the dream away, Meena sat up slowly on the
bed and turned on the night lamp. She was just about to reach for the water
bottle when her heart almost stopped once again.
Hiten was in the room. He was seated in the large cushioned chair and
was watching her quietly.
“Hiten! You scared me!” she said with a small laugh, her hand on her
still-thumping heart. She smiled at him. “I was expecting you back in three
days.”
Hiten remained silent. And the look on his face was slowly beginning to
freeze her smile.
He looked like the man she came across when he had just returned to
Kaushal—cold, unfeeling and ruthless.
“Hiten, what’s wrong?” she asked. “Is everything all right?”
He continued watching her for a few more moments.
“Why didn’t you tell me the truth?” he asked in a quiet tone that raised
goosebumps on her skin.
Meena felt a sick dread and fear grow inside her. “W-what truth?”
“That Anjali is my daughter.”
Everything inside Meena stood still.
She somehow forged on and got the words out. “I-I was going to tell
you, Hiten.”
“When?”
She was at a loss of words again as her mind rapidly calculated a way
out to deflect him from the main target.
“I was going to tell you soon,” she whispered helplessly.
She knew he would be furious at her, and she was willing to take in
whatever punishment came her way. But the utter cold blankness he had on
his face, wavered her confidence.
 “You are lying,” he said finally. “And the reason you are lying is to save
your worthless father from my fury.”
Meena’s fear escalated and erupted. She kicked off the blankets and
rushed towards him with shaking legs. She kneeled in front of him and held
his hand in both of hers. “Hiten, please. Let’s put the past behind us,” she
said desperately. “We are together now. Please let the past go.”
“Let it go? Your father blackmailed you, saying he would get me
arrested for rape and theft, forcing you to give up on our love. And later,
when you realized you were pregnant, he threatened to give my baby up for
adoption if you didn’t marry Sushant. You think I should let it go?”
Meena broke into another sob as he reminded her of the past. “Please,
Hiten. My father did it thinking it was for my good. He regrets it now. I’m
sure he told you that.”
“Ten fucking years. Ten fucking years I suffered because I was torn apart
from the woman I loved and the daughter I never knew I had. All because
some sick bastard thought my blood wasn’t royal and that I didn’t have
enough money.”
Meena’s legs still shook as she hurriedly got up and sat on his lap. She
held his face in her hands and spoke to him in an urgent tone. “Hiten. Please
listen to me. I love you. We have a good chance at building a family we
both always dreamed of. I’m begging you. Don’t do anything to risk our
future.”
He was silent with his jaw clenched and the cold rage continuing to
simmer in his eyes.
Meena leaned forward and kissed him desperately. She tried to ignite
passion and drown out the suffocating rage and hate that surrounded them,
threatening to destroy their happiness.
“Hate destroys,” she whispered the reminder.
 Hiten’s lips remained unmoving as she continued to kiss him. “I love
you. I have always loved you and will continue to love you until the day I
die. Please pick love and not hate. Let the past go,” she pleaded.
She rapidly unbuttoned his shirt and pushed the ends aside. Leaning
forward, she kissed his throat. Just when she was about to move up to his
jaw, she felt his fingers in her hair.
He tightened the grip and tugged her head back until their eyes clashed.
He watched her face as she tried to hide her fear and worry before crashing
his lips on top of hers. Adjusting her legs, he wrapped them around his hips
before getting up from the chair. Keeping their lips locked, he carried her to
the bed.
Meena’s heart raced as he dropped her on the bed and more or less
ripped off her nightclothes in one long pull.
Fear and excitement got her adrenaline pumping. Reaching out to him,
she pushed his shirt away before moving lower. He helped her with the
undressing, and in no time, they were both naked.
She let out a gasp when he held her knees in his hands before entering
her in one thrust and joining them together.
“I love you,” she gasped out.
His mouth met hers in a searing kiss while his body continued to take
hers. She didn’t know if his angry, desperate kisses were to stop her from
saying anything further or because he was carried away by passion or
because he wanted to blind out the truths he discovered.
Soon, it didn’t matter. Passion took over them completely until they
achieved their goal.
 CHAPTER 31

Meena was awakened by the sound of a ringing phone.

Moaning softly because of her stiff and sore muscles, she reached out to
her nightstand for her phone and answered it.
It was her mother.
“Meena! They have just arrested your father, and they are taking him to
jail right now! Come and help us!”
Meena opened her eyes, her sleep-filled fog disappearing with the shock
from the news. “What? Why?”
“They are saying that he stole something, and it was caught on the
cameras. Oh God, Meena. Can you imagine the shame this will bring to us
in the society.” Meena’s mother began to cry.
“Ma. Please. Stay strong. I’ll be there in a few hours.” Ending the call,
Meena scrambled out of bed. Hiten wasn’t in the bed. He was seated in the
chair by the window.
His face made it obvious he hadn’t slept the entire night.
“What did you do, Hiten?” she asked as dread hit her stomach. She knew
her father’s arrest was somehow related to what Hiten discovered the
previous night.
Hiten remained silent.
Meena wanted to shout and demand answers, but unable to waste any
time, she went to her closet to find some clothes to put on. Then without
much delay, she began to arrange for the ride.
 ***

Hiten stared out of the window, watching Meena breaking into a run to
get to the waiting helicopter in front of the mansion.
The deafening sounds of the chopper blades couldn’t mute out the
conversation he had with Dheeraj Mahasena the previous night.

Hiten was at the exclusive club. The older man was hosting a party in
Hiten’s honor and introducing him as his son-in-law to his friends.
“Life is so strange,” Dheeraj Mahasena said with a drunken smile.
Since Meena’s father had signed a document for not gambling anymore, he
compensated it by drinking.
“Meena shoved another man’s child on Sushant during their marriage.
So in turn, Sushant made sure his daughter with another woman is shoved
on to Meena after his death.”
Everything froze inside Hiten as he slowly tried to make sense of
Meena’s father’s words. “Another man’s child?” he asked.
“Yeah. Yours,” Dheeraj Mahasena answered cheerfully.
Meena was pregnant with his child when he left? No. There is no way
she would let him go if she knew she was pregnant with their child.
Dheeraj Mahasena even in his drunken haze must have realized what he
just said. “You didn’t know?” he asked with a frown. “I thought Meena
would have told you by now that Anjali is your daughter.”
Shock hit him hard. Some of what Hiten felt must have shown on his
face, because Dheeraj Mahasena looked worried.
“Don’t blame Meena for not telling you the truth,” the older man added
quickly. “That girl is always so worried. She thought something
catastrophic would happen when you returned. She thought you would
destroy us.”
The older man sighed. “I’m sorry, my boy. I should’ve known you’d turn
out more than okay. Or I wouldn’t have stopped Meena from being with
you.”
“How did you stop her?” Hiten asked quietly.
“You took her grandmother’s jewels. So my wife told her that she would
tell everyone you stole them and ran away. We also told her that we’d have
you arrested… by telling everyone you raped her before she turned eighteen
and blackmailed her into continuing the relationship.”
Hiten knew Meena was the type to fight and withstand any threat made
towards her. But when it came to Hiten or Nandini, he knew she would give
in.
Hiten couldn’t imagine the trauma Meena must have gone through at the
tender age of barely nineteen. Pregnant and blackmailed by her own
parents. And then, forced to marry the man she didn’t love.
“Sujata and I are really sorry, Hiten. I hope you don’t carry any hard
feelings. The past is the past now.”
Hiten looked at the man who kept him away from the woman he loved for
more than a decade. The man because of whom Meena suffered alone.
Hiten got up from the chair. “I need to get back to Kaushal. Do enjoy the
rest of your night, Mr. Mahasena.”
And then, Hiten laid the perfect trap for the disgustingly weak man with
a gambling addiction.

Hiten looked up at the sky as the Kaushal chopper took Meena to her
father.
“Papa, where did Mamma go?”
 Hiten turned around to see Anjali standing near the doorway.
An overwhelming wave of emotion hit him at the sight.
His daughter. He and Meena had created life in the form of the perfect
little girl. Fury hit him that he had to miss out on so many things because of
a few people’s greed.
“Your mother has gone to visit your grandfather. She will be back soon.”
Anjali smiled. “Okay. Since Mamma is not here, can you allow us to eat
a bowl of cornflakes for breakfast, even if it isn’t the weekend?”
“Yes. It’s fine.”
“Thank you!” She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him
before running out and calling her sister’s name in excitement.
The date on Anjali’s birth certificate was deliberately changed to be a
later date by at least six months.
Why did Sushant agree to marry Meena even though she was carrying
another man’s child?
The answer came to him when he recalled how obsessed his half-brother
was about Meena.
What role did Sushant play in splitting up Meena and him? And how
was Meena in a cordial and a loving relationship with Sushant despite that?
Hiten recalled the scene that was burned in his mind permanently. The
scene where Sushant had carried the crying baby to Meena, and then he and
Meena kissed passionately while the baby slept.
It was my child. My flesh and blood and my woman that some other man
touched and kissed.
Ten years. For ten gut-wrenching years, he had to live apart from Meena
and his daughter. He doubted if anyone or anything could compensate for
that loss.
 The dark need for revenge and utter destruction continued to burn
through him.
 CHAPTER 32

Meena returned home after four days during the early hours of the
morning.
Hiten was seated near the bedroom window watching outside when he
heard and saw the helicopter arrive.
Meena looked tired, and her eyes were puffy, making it obvious she had
been crying. He got up and was about to go to her, but he stopped when she
looked at him.
“My parents’ assets, including the apartment they were staying in got
seized, and all of their bank accounts are frozen. My father had a massive
stroke while he was in the jail and went into a coma. The doctors are saying
that the chances are slim for him to survive.”
Hiten remained silent.
Meena smiled bitterly at him. “Congratulations,” she said. “You have
effectively destroyed two enemies within a few days. My father is one.”
Her eyes flared. “Do you want to know who else you destroyed? Me. By
choosing revenge over my love, you killed any possibility of us being
happy together.”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again.
“I’m leaving you,” she said softly before turning away and heading towards
the closet.
Rage, fear and panic set inside him. He covered the distance between
them and held her arm before turning her towards him.
“You can’t leave me. I won’t allow it.”
She scoffed at him. “Can’t? Won’t? I can leave you, and there is nothing
you can do to stop me. Even if you threaten to destroy me, I don’t care. You
have already destroyed me. I’m not living with a man who doesn’t value me
or my love. I need to set an example for my daughters that self-respect is
important in any relationship. I’m done being a pushover.”
He looked into her determined face. “Anjali is my daughter,” he said
calmly, trying to guilt her into staying with him.
“I won’t stop you from visiting Anjali,” she replied. “But what will you
tell her when she asks how her grandfather died? And not just her
grandfather, maybe even her grandmother. I know you won’t stop with your
revenge, and you will continue to dig up the past and punish everyone
involved. Since Sushant is already dead and my father is in coma, only my
mother is left for you to take out your revenge.”
His jaw clenched in anger. “Your mother tried to get me killed ten years
ago by hiring two men.” He recalled the conversation between the goons
about a noblewoman wanting to kill him because he was an embarrassment
to her.
“That wasn’t my mother. It was your father’s wife, your step mother. She
wanted to make sure you were no threat to her son when it came to the
inheritance. And she also did it because she had promised her son that she
would make me her daughter-in-law. She told that to me just before she
died.”
“Knowing all of this, how can you support your parents or anyone who
separated us for this long?” he demanded.
“I don’t support them. Do you think I didn’t feel the need to lash out and
be bitter? I did. But I stopped myself. Not just for the sake of Anjali but for
myself. I learned to live. And the people who did that to me are still my
goddamn parents who are connected to me by blood. I will protect them no
matter what.”
His jaw clenched. The animal in him still demanded that he destroy the
people who caused Meena and him pain. How can he let them go
unpunished?
She looked at him and understood what was going on in his head. She
shook her head sadly. “You are just like your father. And now I know how
your mother must have felt all those years ago.”
It was the lowest blow anyone had dealt him. “How can you say that?”
he erupted. “I’m nothing like Viren Kaushal. I married you!”
Meena just sighed sadly. “Yes. You did marry me. But just like your
father chose family honor over your mother’s love, you chose revenge over
my love. Your mother and I loved men who chose other things over our
love.”
He refused to accept her words even though he understood what she
meant.
Hiten pulled her close. “I didn’t kill your love. I know you still love me.
You promised to love me until forever. I want you to keep that promise!”
She looked defeated. “I will always love you, Hiten. But hate destroys.
Your hate and revenge destroyed whatever happiness we could have had.”
With that, the only woman he had ever loved and wanted—walked out of
his life.
 CHAPTER 33

Two months passed by since Meena left Kaushal.

“Mamma, why can’t we go back to Kaushal where Papa is?” Anjali
asked.
Meena looked at Anjali and Rashmi who were standing outside her
bedroom in their small apartment.
“We miss Papa, Mamma,” Rashmi added.
‘I miss him, too,’ Meena wanted to say, but she kept those words to
herself.
Meena’s sister came to her rescue.
“Papa is travelling,” said Nandini. “When he is back from Africa, we
will ask him to visit us.”
Anjali and Rashmi didn’t seem satisfied, but sweet little angels that they
were, they nodded in acceptance without a tantrum.
As soon as the children left, Nandini looked at her. “Meena… I think
you should meet Hiten and talk to him. Not only the kids, but even Hiten is
missing the three of you. Rajeev told me—”
“Stop it!” Sujata Mahasena shouted at her younger daughter. “How can
you ask your sister to meet the man who killed your father!”
“Papa is not dead, Ma. The doctors are saying he’ll recover. And please
understand, Meena and the children—”
“I don’t care. That ungrateful bastard ruined us! He reduced us to social
outcasts and made us stay in this godforsaken tiny apartment. He and his
children deserve whatever little punishment God is meting them. They
deserve much more. In fact—”
“That’s enough,” Meena cut off her mother.
 Meena was quiet until then. She had been quiet through the two months
of separation from the love of her life. Her mother had lashed out and
blamed Hiten for their predicament. Meena attributed it to grief and kept
quiet. But no more. Not when her mother thought Hiten and her daughters
deserved it.
“You think my children deserve what is happening to us?” Meena asked
her mother in anger. “Then what do you deserve for what you did to Hiten
and me?”
Her mother looked uncomfortable. “Your father and I acted out of your
interests as parents,” she defended.
“My interests? Threatening your eighteen-year-old daughter of
murdering her lover if she didn’t marry the man of their choice is out of my
interest?” She looked at her mother in the eye. “Yes, I married the man of
your choice. But I suffered each and every day of being away from Hiten.
To the point that sometimes I even considered suicide.”
Her mother looked shocked. There was soft gasp from Nandini. “Oh,
Meena.” Her sister held her hand and squeezed it in reassurance.
Meena looked at her sister who had tears in her eyes.
“The only reason I didn’t kill myself was that I didn’t want to leave you
and Anjali alone and defenseless.”
“Your father apologized to you and Hiten,” Meena’s mother said. “Why
did Hiten still have to frame your father and get him arrested? What Hiten
did with us is worse. He is trying to compensate us by returning our
apartment and giving us back our money, but how can I ever show my face
to anyone in the community?”
Nandini let out a sound of disgust. “That’s all you care about? Your
reputation?”
 Meena sighed tiredly. “Let it go, Nandu.” Meena knew it was no use
arguing with their mother. The older woman was not going to have a sudden
change in heart and realize what should really matter.
But Meena’ mother didn’t let it go. “I’m at the lowest point of my life.
My husband is in a coma. And instead of sympathizing with me, my own
daughters are ganging up against me! I wish God would take me away
instead of making me suffer like this.” With those statements, the older
woman stormed away.
Meena didn’t follow her mother. And neither did Nandini.
Meena was tired. Not just because of the sleepless nights, but also
because of the stress caused by things happening around her.
“Meena, why didn’t you tell me how bad it was or what had happened in
the past?” Nandini asked softly.
“You were too young when it happened, Nandu,” Meena replied. “And
later, when Hiten returned, I didn’t want to worry you. There was nothing
anyone could have done at any point. I was damned either ways for telling
the truth or not telling it. I just chose not telling the truth to Hiten because
on some level I knew he wouldn’t hurt me badly.”
Nandini held her hand. “I’m sorry for what happened in the past and
now, Meena. But I can see and know that you and the children are missing
Hiten. And even Hiten is missing you. Rajeev told me that Hiten is working
nonstop and has even taken dangerous risks by making deals in war-torn
areas.”
“Is he still in Africa?” Meena asked as fear and worry enveloped her.
“Yes. But he is returning to Kaushal in two days.”
Meena was relieved.
Nandini’s eyes fell on Meena’s stomach. “Have you told Hiten about
your pregnancy?” she asked.
 “No. Not yet.” Meena knew she couldn’t hide her pregnancy for long.
And Hiten deserved to know.
Her pregnancy had come as a shock to her last week.

“You are pregnant.”

Meena stared at the doctor who was smiling at her. “That’s impossible,”
she whispered.
The doctor frowned slightly. “Why impossible, Mrs. Saini?”
“I was told I could never conceive a child. That the chances are less
than one percent.” When she hadn’t fallen pregnant during her marriage to
Sushant, both of them got tested. The Kaushal family doctor had clearly
stated that the problem was with Meena since she had apparently developed
complications while giving birth to Anjali.
The doctor smiled. “Well, looks like you and your husband beat those
odds. Because in seven months, you will give birth to your child.”

Meena was still in shock. When she began to feel slightly nauseous
during the mornings and her breasts felt tender, she kept thinking she might
be falling sick because of stress and what was happening. Never did it cross
her mind that she might be pregnant.
A baby. Hiten’s baby.
Meena already loved their unborn child fiercely, but she felt sad that she
was again depriving Hiten and their child of bonding from much early on.
“You look tired, Meena. Why don’t you get some rest while I check on
the kids,” Nandini suggested.
Meena nodded. “Thank you, Nandu.”
Meena had spent yet another restless night. She went to her room and lay
on the bed. As soon as she closed her eyes, the past continued to haunt her.
 Ten years ago…

“How could you be such a big whore!” It was followed by a loud slap.
Even though Meena was still in shock about the news she received just a
while ago, she looked at her mother defiantly. “Hiten and I love each other,
and we want to spend our lives together.” She wrapped a hand around her
stomach. “And this baby is a product of our love.”
Two days after Hiten left to find them a place to live, Meena had fallen
badly sick. She thought it was due to worry and fear. But when the
Mahasena family doctor came in to check, he discovered something
shocking. Meena was two months pregnant.
“Where is that bastard who got you pregnant!”
“He is making arrangements for us to elope. When he gets back, I’m
leaving with him.”
But Meena had underestimated her mother’s determination and greed for
wealth and status. By the next day, the threatening began.
“If you don’t do what I say, there will be severe consequences.”
Meena scoffed at her mother. “Do what you want with me. But I’m never
marrying Sushant Kaushal. I already wrote to him saying that I don’t love
him and that I love Hiten.”
Rage flashed in her mother’s eyes. “Oh. We are not going to do anything
to you. Whatever will happen, it will happen to Hiten.”
Meena’s confidence faltered. “You can’t do anything. I’m already
eighteen. An adult.”
“Oh, we already did a lot. We have lodged a police complaint that you
were raped by our family servant when you were a minor and have been
blackmailed into continuing a relationship with him until now. Oh, and that
our family heirloom jewels are missing along with the servant.”
 Meena’s heart thudded in fear. “Those are lies. Hiten didn’t touch me
before I was eighteen. Our relationship was mutual. And that jewellery is
mine. Grandma gave them to me in particular. I’ll tell the police the truth.”
Her mother smiled victoriously. “And who do you think they’ll believe?
A pregnant teen or us? Especially when they already received money from
us for services to be rendered.”
“What services? What are you going to do!” Meena was terrified.
“We’ll have Hiten arrested and killed. And you will be solely responsible
for his death.”
Her heart almost stopped. “No! Don’t hurt him!”
“Then listen to us.”
Meena was to tell Hiten to leave Mahasena for good. She was to tell him
that she decided to marry Sushant. But Meena knew Hiten would never
believe those words.
She knew Hiten would never believe that she would willingly marry
someone else. So she begged her parents for one day with Hiten to convince
him to leave Mahasena for good.
When Hiten returned earlier than expected, Meena was terrified that her
parents would break their promise not to harm Hiten. They eloped in a
hurry. And the one day she spent with him was the happiest and the most
painful day ever. Because she knew at the end of it, she would be breaking
his heart along with hers. Which she did.
But the threats didn’t stop there.
“Abort that baby. There is no way we will allow you to bear a bastard.”
“No!” Meena hugged her stomach protectively. Her baby was the only
link she had to Hiten.
Meena was terrified the following days. Her parents had forcibly
dragged her to London on the same day when Hiten had left Mahasena.
 When they reached London, Meena thought her parents would drag her
to a doctor to get her baby aborted. But then, her savior came in the form of
Sushant.
Sushant had received the letter she had written to him about not wanting
to marry him because she was in love with Hiten. But still, Sushant wanted
to meet her in person since she was in London.
Alone and with no one to share her grief, Meena told him about being
pregnant with Hiten’s child.
“I’m sorry about what happened to you because of me, Meenakshi,” he
said. “If you’ll still have me, I would like to marry you. I’ll take care of you
and your child.”
Meena was shocked by Sushant’s offer. “But I don’t love you,” she said.
He held her hand. “I know that. But I’m hoping that you will begin to
slowly, after we are husband and wife.”
She didn’t love Sushant, but the fact that he could protect her unborn
child made her agree to marry him without second thoughts.
Her heart broke once again because she knew she was betraying Hiten
by marrying some other man.
“I’m so sorry, Hiten,” she sobbed on the night before her wedding. “I
have to do this to protect our child.”
Her wedding was one of the worst days of her life. Every ritual and
every congratulatory greeting she received only felt like a betrayal to Hiten.
The only silver lining was that she spent her wedding night alone. Before
she had agreed to marry Sushant, she asked him for a year-and-a-half’s
time. She didn’t want to consummate the wedding until her child was born
and turned one year old.
Sushant had agreed to the condition.
 Meena felt guilty because she was taking advantage of a man’s love
towards her. But she was desperate to buy time, secretly hoping that Hiten
would come to Kaushal and take her and their child away with him by then.
Meena knew what she did with Sushant was wrong, and soon, the reality
of what she had done by marrying Sushant hit her one day.
“Anjali has been crying. I think she wants you.” Sushant handed over the
wailing baby.
Meena was standing in the garden at her favorite spot, lost in thoughts.
When she left, Anjali was napping and usually slept for a few hours during
which she liked to spend time either in the garden or in her painting studio.
“Thank you,” she said taking her daughter into her arms. She sat on the
garden bench and began to rock her gently.
She was surprised when Sushant sat next to her. In fact, she was more
surprised when Sushant brought Anjali to her. Until then, he had never
touched or made any remark about her daughter.
Suddenly, she felt his hand at the back of her hair. Feeling surprised, she
turned. When she saw Sushant’s smiling face, she smiled back tentatively.
But the next instant, Sushant closed the distance between them and kissed
her for the first time.
Meena was shocked, and stayed still when Sushant continued to kiss her
for what seemed to be a very long time. Every atom in her body wanted to
push him away, and wipe away his touch and taste, but she forced herself to
keep still.
He finally pulled away from her. “Anjali will be turning one next week,”
he reminded her huskily. “I can’t wait to finally love you the way I’ve
wanted to for a very long time.”
A sense of hopelessness enveloped her from that day on. She knew that
her dreams of Hiten returning for her were not going to come true.
 A week later, her marriage was consummated.
Sushant began to change gradually after that. From being somewhat a
caring and friendly husband, he became angry, jealous and possessive. On
some level she knew it was because she couldn’t love him the way he
wanted her to. She tried very hard to love him, but she was simply
incapable.
Having experienced the love that she and Hiten had between them—
nothing could ever wipe it out.
Over the next few years, Sushant’s drinking and gambling became a
frequent habit. He came home only occasionally. And the only interactions
they had were when he kept trying to impregnate her with his heir. But after
a particularly violent episode, she told him he was no longer allowed into
her bed. She even threatened to leave him if he ever touched her again.
Sushant grudgingly agreed, even though he threatened her in return,
saying that he would take Anjali away from her if she ever left him.
In the law’s eyes, Anjali was Sushant’s daughter. Anjali’s date of birth
was changed to a later day to make her seem legitimately conceived. Only
the family members and a few trustworthy maids at Kaushal knew the truth
of the real birthdate. And even those maids at Kaushal thought that it was
Sushant who had gotten her pregnant before their wedding.
Since Sushant was no longer allowed into her bed, he began to cheat on
her openly.
She didn’t care about the cheating, because she knew Sushant had been
cheating on her right from the beginning of their marriage. She had ignored
it out of guilt for not allowing him to consummate their marriage for the
first year and a half, and then later because she couldn’t give him what he
wanted.
 But the deliberate humiliation Sushant made her go through along with
his cheating was hard. But she continued to tolerate it, because she still
blamed herself for his self-destruction.
And then, one day she got the news that her husband was killed in a car
accident along with his long-time mistress.
She had half-expected to be thrown out of Kaushal along with her
daughter. Her mother-in-law and father-in-law hated her right from the
beginning, and even blamed her for Sushant’s destruction.
And then, a truth came out which shocked her to the core.
“The only reason you are in my house even though you drove my son to
death is because your daughter has Kaushal blood.”
Meena didn’t understand what her father-in-law was saying. Until he
spelled it out.
“Hiten is my son. My bastard son.”
It took a while to digest that shocking information. But there was
something else she desperately wanted to know. “Are you in touch with
Hiten? Do you know where he is and if he’s doing okay?”
Anger blazed in Viren Kaushal’s eyes. “I will not allow you to go near
my other son. Stay away from him,” he warned.
“I just want to know how he is doing. If he’s happy.”
“He’s fine, and he has amassed a fortune. But just so you know, he hates
you. And rightfully so.”
Meena was happy that Hiten was doing well. She wasn’t surprised he
hated her.
She resigned herself to spending the rest of her life without him. Too
much had happened in her life since Hiten had left Mahasena. She was no
longer that eighteen-year-old girl he once loved. She became a woman who
didn’t really live, but simply existed for the sake of her daughter and her
sister.
A few weeks later, she found out that Sushant had a daughter who
became an orphan when he and his mistress died in the accident. Meena
didn’t hesitate to bring the parentless child home and bring her up as her
own child.
Life went on for a few years, until the love of her life returned… only to
destroy her.
 Present…

Meena knew Hiten was justified in wanting to take revenge on her

because he thought she had betrayed him.
She also knew that if she had told him the truth early on about what had
happened in the past, he would shift his revenge onto her parents. Which he
eventually did when he found out the truth.
But now, Meena was hurting as much as him, by making him suffer for
choosing revenge over her love.
She loved him. She would always love him. Hiten had been the only
dream she had since she was a little girl.
Even though circumstances tore them apart, she knew it was only up to
her now to set her dream right.
 CHAPTER 34

It was raining heavily when Hiten arrived at Kaushal.

When he left the place two months ago, he had vowed not to return. But
a few days ago when he received a call that Viren Kaushal had fallen sick
and wanted to see him, he complied.
The car drove through the mansion gates. Hiten looked at the vast
gardens and the massive mansion. This time, along with the bad memories
of his childhood and teens, he had other memories as well. Happy and
bittersweet memories of the time he had spent with Meena and the children.
Two months and a week passed by since he last saw Meena. Since then
he had been living in a self-made hell. Every day was a struggle not to go to
her and beg for her forgiveness, and to ask her to take him back.
But Meena’s words haunted him.

“What will you tell Anjali when she asks you how her grandfather
died?”

Dheeraj Mahasena was still in a coma.

Did Meena view him just as her father’s murderer? Or did she also think
of him and their love?
Questions like those haunted him every day.
Hiten’s thoughts were interrupted when he was greeted by the
housekeeper and some of the staff. Nodding, he went up the stairs.
He didn’t bother freshening up. He went directly to his father’s suite.
“Good morning, Mr. Hiten. Mr. Kaushal was expecting you to arrive
yesterday.”
Hiten nodded. “I was busy.”
 He was busy ordering investigative reports on Meena and the children.
For two months, Hiten didn’t want to know what they were doing.
Because he knew the moment he saw their pictures, and saw that they had
moved on without him, he would be even more devastated. So he had
deliberately stayed away.
Meena deserves someone better than you. Someone who wouldn’t have
chosen revenge over her love. Someone who doesn’t remind her of how
much they hurt her.
Hiten’s morbid thoughts continued to persist until the man who fathered
him greeted him with a small nod.
In the last few months, Viren Kaushal had aged even more and looked
weak.
“You asked for me?” Hiten didn’t want to put up any appearances.
Viren Kaushal looked at him grimly. “Yes. I want to know when you are
returning to Kaushal for good.”
Hiten didn’t have to hesitate or think to answer that question. “Never,”
he replied.
Viren Kaushal’s jaw tightened. “Kaushal has centuries of royal legacy
and is one of the richest and the most prosperous estates in the country.”
“I know that, but I don’t care. You already know it was never about the
inheritance.”
The older man didn’t look deterred. In fact, he looked confident. “I have
something that will interest you and make you stay.”
“I highly doubt it.” Unless it was offering to somehow bring Meena and
the children back to him in Kaushal.
“Here,” Viren Kaushal handed a large, very old envelope.
With a small frown, Hiten opened it. When he read the words and
realized what they meant, he was completely shocked.
 “You are my legitimate son,” Viren Kaushal stated softly. “I married
your mother long before you were born. We were childhood sweethearts
who wanted to spend our lives together. But when my parents threatened to
disown me if I didn’t marry a girl of their choice, I panicked. I married that
girl without divorcing your mother first.
“And when your mother found out about my other marriage, instead of
demanding I do justice to her and her unborn child, she handed me this
certificate, and asked me to burn it. She told me that she loved me and
trusted me, and that she didn’t need any legal validation for our union.”
Hiten didn’t know how to feel. How could his mother not hate the man
who snatched away what was rightfully hers?
Love creates happiness. And hate destroys.
His mother lived by that motto. Even Meena did. She had begged him to
choose love over hate and revenge.
Did that mean that Meena would forgive him like his mother had
forgiven his father?
He now knew Meena would. She was bighearted like his mother. She
would choose love over wanting to punish him.
Hope fluttered in his heart.
Before he could excuse himself, his phone began to ring.
He was just about to cut off the call when he saw the accompanying text
that filled his screen.

Sorry to disturb you, but the kids want to have a quick chat with
you and Meena.—Nandini.

Unable to understand what Nandini meant by the text, he called her

back.
 “Hello Hiten,” Nandini spoke in a hurry. “Sorry to disturb. Meena was
supposed to call yesterday and make Anjali and Rashmi talk to you. But
I’m guessing she forgot or didn’t find the time in between your reunion.”
There was soft laughter.
Everything inside him froze all of a sudden. “Meena was looking for
me?” he asked.
There was silence for a few moments. “Yes. I thought she is with you
right now. She went to Kaushal to see you yesterday.” There was worry in
Nandini’s voice.
“I was supposed to come here yesterday, but I came in today.”
“Then where did Meena go? She hasn’t called us all day yesterday or
this morning.” This time there was panic in Nandini’s voice.
He felt equally worried, but he maintained an outward calm in his voice
to calm Nandini. “I’ll find her. Just stay with the children until I call you.”
With that, he ended the call.
He was about to dial the number of the private investigator when his
father voice stopped him.
“She was here yesterday morning looking for you.”
Hiten paused mid-dial and turned to look at him. “You spoke to Meena?
What did you tell her?”
“I told her she isn’t welcome in Kaushal anymore.”
Anger exploded inside him, and he began to stride away.
“Wait,” his father called out. “I’ll have you know that if you decide to be
with that woman, I won’t declare your mother as my wife or you as my
legitimate son and heir.”
Hiten spun around. Then taking rapid steps, he closed the distance
between him and his father. He picked up the marriage certificate lying on
the table. And then, keeping his gaze locked on his father, he tore up the
proof of his legitimacy to pieces.
“My mother would be proud of me for doing this. There is absolutely
nothing anyone can offer me in this world to choose over Meena.”
With that, Hiten left the man who had chosen family honor over love.
 ***

A frantic hour and a half later, Hiten drove the car inside the gates of
Mahasena. He couldn’t take the helicopter due to the bad weather.
While leaving the Kaushal mansion, the housekeeper and the maids
working there were waiting for him outside. They told him that Meena had
come looking for him the previous morning. But when Viren Kaushal asked
her to leave, she left. And before that Meena had told them to call her in
case he arrived at Kaushal. The housekeeper and the maids had tried calling
her an hour ago, but Meena didn’t answer her phone. So they were worried
and wanted to tell him about it.
Without a second thought, Hiten began driving to Mahasena. He knew
that if Meena were supposed to return to Kaushal, she would have stayed at
a nearby place. Which was Mahasena.
As soon as he stopped the car in front of the Mahasena mansion, he was
relieved to see a small blue car parked at the side.
It was still raining heavily. Hiten got out of his car and went to the main
door. It was unlocked, so he pushed it open.
“Meena!” he shouted out loud.
There was no reply.
The lights were turned off, and everything was gloomy and dark inside.
He turned the lights on and continued to call for her.
Over ten years had passed since he last stepped into the Mahasena
mansion. And even during Nandini’s wedding, he had deliberately kept
away from stepping inside.
But now, when he walked the mansion halls, the memories hit him hard.
His mind began to hear the sounds of the peppy piano music that Meena
often played, and the songs that he sang along with the music. He could see
the younger versions of him and Meena, laughing and dancing crazily to the
music along with her little sister.
“Meena!” he called out.
He rushed up the stairs towards her bedroom while the memories
continued to haunt him.

The small strange-looking girl with delicate features looked at him. “I’m
Meena. And that is my baby sister, Nandu. What’s your name?”
“Hiten,” he replied.
“Well, Hiten. I must tell you something important,” she said in hushed
tones.
“Yes?”
“I’m going to marry you.”

Hiten pushed open the bedroom door. “Meena!”

The bedroom was empty and the bed and furniture were covered with
dust sheets. It was obvious no one had stayed in the room for months.

Nine-year-old Meena looked at him sternly. “What do you mean by you

can’t read or write? I’m going to be your teacher from now on. I’ll teach
you how to read and write.”

He went out of Meena’s bedroom and began to check the other rooms in
the mansion. “Meena! Where are you!”

Eighteen-year-old Meena was naked and breathtakingly beautiful. “Now

you have no choice but to remain mine until forever,” she told him with a
proud smile after they finished making love.
 When he reached the ground floor once again, his heart began to pound.

Meena smiled at him as she planned their future. “Four children. We will
have four children and two pets.”

Hiten held his head, unable to bear the memories haunting him while he
longed and craved to see Meena back into his arms safe and sound.
“Meena. Where are you?” he whispered.
A thought flashed in his mind, and he began to hurry outside the
mansion. It was still raining heavily, but he broke into a run.
He looked up at the hill. Two large boulders remained on the top
blocking the view.
He began to run up the slope. His feet slipped a couple of times in the
wet mud because of his leather shoes, but he didn’t stop the momentum.
He was determined to reach the spot that he and Meena termed as theirs.
The spot where they always met. The spot where he first made love to her.
The spot she promised to love him until forever. And the spot he had left
her promising to return for her.
As soon as he reached the top, he saw Meena. Her bright yellow dress
was half-covered in mud.
“Meena!” he shouted frantically as he ran towards the large stones.
But Meena didn’t respond. She lay on the ground, unmoving and with
her eyes closed.

“All I need in my life is just you, Hiten. We will always be together

because we are one soul with two bodies. If I’m ever taken away from you,
my soul will cease to exist. There is no me without you.”
“Meena…” his voice came out broken as he fell on his knees next to her.
 CHAPTER 35

Hiten paced outside the hospital room.

His body shook violently, and it wasn’t due to his still wet clothes. It was
in delayed shock.
The sight of her lying absolutely still on the ground as the cold rain fell
on her body was fused into his brain. The bump on her head indicated she
must have slipped and fallen. Her body had felt ice-cold and his shaking
hands could barely feel her pulse. But regardless, he knew she was alive
and wouldn’t leave him.
He had carried her down the hill and drove her to the Kaushal Hospital
which was the nearest and best in the area. The doctors looked at her grimly
before wheeling her into the operating room.
She’s going to be fine. Meena is a survivor. She lived through a damned
gunshot wound. She lived through a tough childbirth. This is nothing
compared to it.
He continued to pace up and down the corridor. He refused to sit down
on one of the chairs. The last time he had sat like that was when Meena was
being operated on in the same hospital. He recalled waking up and finding
her gone.
He didn’t know how many rounds and how much time had passed before
the doors to the hospital room opened. He rushed towards them, only to be
greeted by a grim-looking doctor.
“Tell me she’s fine,” Hiten demanded.
“We have managed to bring down her fever for now. But I’m sorry to
say… the chances are bleak, Mr. Hiten. Both for your wife and the baby
she’s carrying.”
 Shock ripped through him. Meena is pregnant. That thought barely
registered when he began to shake his head in denial.
“Meena is going to be fine. Give her medicines, and operate on her more
if you have to. Do any damn thing that you have to until she’s okay.”
The doctor looked at him with sympathy. “We don’t know how long
your wife was stranded in the cold rain. Her organs in her body are slowly
shutting down. At this point, all I can say is to call the rest of her loved
ones.” Patting on his shoulder, the doctor walked away.
Hiten continued to stare. No. Meena wasn’t going to leave him. He
won’t let her.
 ***

“Is Mamma going to be all right?” Rashmi softly asked as tears rolled
down her cheeks.
“Yes. I know she will be,” Anjali replied confidently even though she
looked devastated.
Nandini hugged the two girls. “Let’s go out and pray for her to be fine.”
She led Anjali and Rashmi out of Meena’s bedroom.
Hiten continued to stay next to Meena, holding her warm, limp hand in
his for the past twenty-four hours.
A day ago, he had brought Meena to the Mahasena mansion. The doctors
had asked him to take her home where she would be comfortable.
Meena looked comfortable. Her beautiful face looked peaceful and
content.
As he continued to watch her face, anger grew inside him. How can she
be peaceful and content?
He let her hand go and stood up next to the bed. And then, he picked her
up in his arms. He carried Meena out of the room, and went down the stairs.
Meena’s mother saw him. “Oh my God! He’s gone mad. He almost
killed my husband, and now he’s killing my daughter. Somebody, stop
him!” she shouted.
Nandini stopped her mother. “Ma, please,” she said with a sob. “Hiten
loves Meena. Let them be together at least now.”
Hiten didn’t slow down his stride. He carried Meena out of the mansion,
and then out of the gates. He continued to walk towards the small hill.
The bright sun shone into his eyes, but he went up the slope in slow and
steady strides, looking blindly ahead with a clenched jaw. He only stopped
when he reached the two large stones on top of the hill.
 He gently sat Meena on the ground with her head and shoulders resting
against his chest, while he sat facing the stones.
“You see that,” he said, pointing at the carving on the stones.

H & M. Until forever.

“If you leave me, you will be called a cheat and a liar,” he looked
intently at Meena’s pale face with closed eyes. “You promised me forever.
And I demand that you keep up your damn word at least this time.”
He added the last part to make Meena angry. The old Meena would wake
up spitting angry and slap him, saying that she never broke her word to him.
But Meena’s eyes remained closed.
He wrapped his arms around her waist, hugging her close.
“Don’t leave me, Meena,” he begged. “Don’t leave me and go where I
cannot find you ever again.”
He broke down. The beautiful, wild-spirited girl he loved more than
anything in the world was dying because of him.

“You destroyed me. By choosing revenge over my love, you killed any
possibility of us being happy together.”

“I promise to be the man you deserve, Meena,” he choked out. “I

promise to be the boy you fell in love with. Your best friend. Just don’t
leave me.”
His vision blurred as tears filled his eyes and fell. He slowly turned
Meena until she lay on his arm. He looked at her beautiful face. Then
pulling her closer, he kissed her.
 He kissed her eyes. Her nose. Her chin. He ran his lips on her smooth
forehead before kissing her on her lips.
Her lips were warm. “I love you, Meena,” he rasped out with a broken
voice. “I’ll always love you.”
He continued to kiss the only girl he loved. The only woman he wanted
more than anything in the world.
He recalled Meena’s girlish voice and laughter echoing across the deep
valleys.

“Hiteeennn…”

And he recalled the brave and breathtakingly beautiful woman she

turned into. The woman who faced him head on and married him, even
though she knew he wanted to hurt her and cause her pain.

“Make love to me in the light and allow me to touch you,” she

demanded.
And when he told her that he would hurt her, she still didn’t back down.
“I’m terrified,” she admitted. But she made love with him giving it her
all.

Tears of grief flowed as he continued to kiss her.

And then, he felt her soft lips moving slightly along with his. Shocked
and in a daze, he pulled back and stared at her face.
Meena’s eyes were open and were watching him.
Tears choked him, making his voice get stuck inside his throat.
Meena looked at him. “I’m so tired, Hiten,” she said in a small, weak
voice. “I’m tired of living without you. I want peace.”
 EPILOGUE

Two years later…

Hiten was speaking on a conference call with his new company’s board
of directors.
He was barking out instructions. “All of you must have heard that I
never warn anyone. Whoever is accountable, will have to face the
consequences. Especially when a damn security lapse or a so-called
accidentally hiring of underage children happens in one of my companies.
Heads are going to roll. I just need to know whose by our next call
tomorrow.”
He ended the call with a thundering frown.
But slowly, his frown began to melt away when he heard excited squeals.
Smiling, he put his phone away into his pocket and went behind the
house towards a small barn.
As soon as he entered the barn, two pairs of light, brown eyes stared at
him.
“Papa, Katy had six puppies!” Anjali shouted excitedly.
“And they are so cute.” Rashmi was standing next to her sister.
They turned to watch the tiny puppies crawling to their mother.
“Can we keep them all, Papa?” Anjali asked with her typical doe-eyed-
look. “Please, Papa,” Rashmi added, joining her sister in the doe-eyed-look.
Both the girls also gave him their best smiles, knowing it would always
work in their favor.
Hiten smiled, losing the battle. “Okay, fine. Only if you both promise to
take care of them.”
“We promise, we will!” they shouted excitedly.
 “All right. Let’s get back to the house now. We need to get ready for the
picnic.”
Hiten led the girls towards their home.
They passed through a small, neatly manicured patch of garden before
opening the main door of the house. A small bell chimed on top of the door,
indicating their entry.
The girls ran up the stairs while he went into the kitchen to grab some
water. He filled a glass with chilled water. And then, taking a sip, he looked
outside the kitchen window.
The beautiful vast, green valley with endless tea plantations could be
seen below.
A year ago, Hiten had built the house where he had lived during his
childhood with his mother and brother. He purchased some more land and
built a three-story structure on top of the existing one. It wasn’t huge like a
mansion or too big enough in many people’s standards, but it was the
perfect size for his family.
Faint giggles and excited talking from above, pulled his gaze away from
the breathtaking view.
Smiling, he put the glass away and left the kitchen to climb the wooden
stairs. He stopped in front of the bedroom where Anjali’s and Rashmi’s
giggles continued and pushed the door open.
The sight that met his eyes was everything he had ever wanted in his life.
And everything he ever needed.
Meena was seated on the bed, nursing their one-year-old son while
Anjali and Rashmi sat on either side of her, talking to her excitedly.
Meena looked up at him with a stern smile. “I thought I said only two
puppies.”
 He shrugged. “What can I say. Our daughters have the knack of making
convincing arguments. They badgered me until I agreed.”
Meena giggled. “Liar,” she said. “I know all they had to do is smile, and
you are putty in their hands. And these two little devils figured that out a
long time ago.”
Hiten smiled, loving the sound of Meena’s giggle. Over the last year, he
saw a lot of glimpses of his old Meena.
He loved who Meena currently was, and what her life experiences had
made her into. But it warmed his heart when she let herself be free with a
girlish spirit.
Each day, he was thankful that she was with him. He still recalled the
fateful day from two years ago when he had almost lost her. It took many
weeks for her to recover and they had almost lost Rishan too. But both
Meena and Rishan fought against the odds and won.
“Are you done with your calls?” Meena asked.
He smiled. “Yes. I’m all yours.”
The rest of the day was spent having a small picnic by a nearby pond.
Anjali and Rashmi climbed trees and plucked fruits while Rishan watched
his sisters in fascination. They even took Rishan swimming and boating in
the pond.
Later that night, after putting the three tired kids to bed, he and Meena
went into their room.
 ***

Meena slumped against Hiten’s bare chest, happy and thoroughly

satisfied while both of them tried catching their fast breaths.
Hiten’s arms were wrapped around her, holding her close.
When her breathing slowly became normal, she raised her head and
leaned forward. Hiten’s lips captured hers in a scorching, passionate kiss.
She pulled back and looked into his face with a smile. “You think we
made a baby?” she asked. Since Rishan was a year old, they had just started
trying for another child.
Hiten had an exaggerated, thoughtful look. “Maybe or maybe not. All we
can do is to keep trying. I would suggest at least twice a day. And also add
some more naked midnight swims.”
She giggled. “We are lucky that Rishan sleeps through the night. Or
we’d be in so much trouble if Sheena comes looking for us during our
midnight swim.”
“Well, since she and most of our staff have caught us kissing or in some
or the other compromising position, I doubt she’d be scandalized that
much.”
It was true. Every chance they got, they showed their love towards each
other. Having gone through so much in the last twelve years, they knew
what really mattered. And to them, it was their love.
“What if we have twins?” he asked with a teasing smile. “Will you be
able to handle five children and seven pets? Remember how our last family
trip was when we went to visit Aarav’s and Rajeev’s families?”
Meena laughed. It had been definitely chaos with Nandini’s son and
Sonali’s daughter added to the mix.
 But Four children or five or just their three, it wouldn’t make any
difference to her. Her real dream, the dream she had since she was an eight-
year-old girl, was already fulfilled. The boy she loved was with her.
“Oh, I don’t have to handle,” she replied saucily. “Because remember
our deal? I’m to spend time on painting, while you take care of our
children, because you are better at looking after them.”
He laughed.
No one who knew Hiten in the corporate or business world would
believe that the cutthroat, ruthless businessman who put the fear of God in
everyone was also a sweet and dreamy family man.
And whether it was a cutthroat, ruthless businessman or a sweet, dreamy
family man or and a scorching, passionate lover—he was completely hers.
Meena lay back on Hiten’s chest with a content sigh while he held her.
Slowly she interlinked their fingers. “Until forever,” she softly said.
He brought their joined fingers close to his mouth and kissed them.
“Until forever,” he vowed.

The End.
 AUTHOR’S NOTE
Thank you for reading Until Forever.
I hope you loved Meena and Hiten and their passionate love story as much as I did while writing
it!
Please do provide me your feedback by rating and reviewing on Amazon and Goodreads.

P.S: If you haven’t read it already, do check out Nandini Mahasena’s super short yet sweet
story in The Proposal.

Thank You!
MV Kasi
Email: manyavkasi@gmail.com
Author Page URL: www.amazon.com/author/mvkasi
Facebook Profile: https://www.facebook.com/mvkasi
Twitter: author_mvkasi
 #1 NEW RELEASE
Wicked Trap

Her one fiery glimpse led to his wicked trap...

Tanvi hates the arrogant stranger who bullied her into sharing a taxi. He
called her an entitled princess when they got arrested together. And just
when she thought she got rid of him, she saw him again as her new
neighbor.
Sparks fly each time they meet and argue. And soon, angry sparks
turned into roaring flames as they spend time together in their small
apartments. She was beginning to lose her heart to him, only to discover his
wicked trap...

Aryan Varma is ruthless in business and when hunting down his enemies.
When a past family betrayal is discovered, he is determined to avenge the
devastating loss at any cost. He made a fiery woman his pawn.
But just like his two brothers had warned, beautiful pawns can turn into
maddening obsessions. Can he capture the heart and soul of the woman who
hates him and threatens to blow away all his plans? Link

EXCERPT

New York
 “Here are the files you requested, Mr. Varma.”
The private investigator placed the thick folders on Aryan’s office desk
inside a high-rise building that overlooked Times Square. The investigator
looked confused as though wondering why a billionaire chairman of a well-
known software company in New York was requesting an investigation on
people halfway across the world who had nothing to do with software or
business.
“Thank you. You may leave now.”
The investigator nodded and left. Aryan picked up the thick file in front
of him. It was of a noted criminal lawyer who was now a powerful
politician. All of the old man’s wealth was put into a trust in the daughter’s
name who was the man’s only child.
Even though there was a file with a detailed investigation on the heiress
in a smaller file, Aryan opened his sleek laptop and typed in the woman’s
name. Several articles and videos mentioned her. He clicked on the video
link at the top.
He froze momentarily at the first glimpse of her.
He had expected a glamorous society heiress pouting at the camera
while partying with her friends—the kind he was used to dating. But the
woman in the video was neither pouting nor was she glamorous.
She wore a plain t-shirt and jeans. Her long hair was tied into a
ponytail, and her face was completely devoid of makeup. Her eyes blazed
with anger and passion. She was surrounded by a huge crowd which
included police personnel. There was tear gas and smoke, which made
people around her cough and choke and cry out in agony. But the woman
stood rock solid. Her eyes watered, but determination shone though.
Her voice cut through the chaos around her.
 “We won’t back down!” she shouted into the camera held by a
coughing reporter.
“You can break our bones, but you cannot break our spirit!”
“You have no right to poison us!”
The information under the video stated it was a protest led against an
industrialist who wanted to build a factory close to the city where thousands
of families lived. The water and air would be polluted according to the plan.
The protest was one year ago, and it successfully stopped the factory
from being built in the area. It was shifted elsewhere. Tanvi Shetty, the
daughter of a top criminal lawyer turned politician, had led the protest.
“Come on, get me first!” she thundered as several cops surrounded
her and the crowd.
Aryan felt a strange thrill running through him looking at her. It was a
feeling he had never felt before. Along with the strong need for revenge, he
also felt the burning need to capture the passionate woman.
Laying out a trap for someone like her would be far from easy, but he
was looking forward to it.
“Come on, get me!” she goaded again, looking straight at him towards
the camera.
Aryan’s mouth slowly twisted. “I’m coming, princess. And I’m going
to get you soon.”
 ***
Two months later...

Tanvi Shetty crossed the road while giving instructions to her friend on
the phone. “Yes, I’m on my way there. Don’t worry about my security. Just
upload the pictures I send to my social media handle.”
She spotted a lone taxi waiting in front of a shop where the driver must
have gone to buy something. She had been searching for a taxi for the last
thirty minutes. But since there was an ongoing bus strike, most taxis were
taken.
She somehow managed to cross the road and not get hit by the two-
wheelers that had illegally jumped the red signal.
“Finally,” she muttered and stood by the taxi, waiting for the driver to
come out from a shop.
Meanwhile, she pulled out her phone and went through her mental
checklist.
Placards—check.
Slogans—check.
Location messages on social media—check.
Messages to the media—check.
She had everything ready for a protest she was leading that day in front
of a corporate building. It was a protest against an international corporation
that was planning to raze out the only green forested area in the middle of
the city to build a massive mall.
There were several dozen malls in the city. But the green forested area
was one of the last areas remaining. It was more or less the lungs of the
densely populated city, and the ruthless billionaire was planning to destroy
it.
 Never! I won’t let them get away with it!
She would have to find more information on the company to dig up
dirt, so she could send it to her friend who worked in the media.
She tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for the taxi driver. She
took a few steps towards the store to check inside when she saw an old man
in a taxi driver’s uniform.
“Is this your taxi?” she asked him.
The old man nodded. “Yes, miss.”
“Thank God! I need to go to the downtown area urgently.”
“Okay, miss,” the old man replied.
Offering a thankful prayer again, she turned to go towards the taxi.
Just as she neared, a tall and broad-shouldered man wearing a dark blue
checkered formal shirt cut in front of her. Before she could say anything, he
opened the taxi door and got inside in a smooth move.
“Hey!” she shouted. “This taxi is mine!”
She stepped closer to the back seat and glared at the man seated inside.
He was wearing sunglasses, but she felt his gaze sweeping over her.
“Oh good,” he drawled in a deep voice. “I need to go to the downtown
area.”
Tanvi glared at him harder. “I don’t own the taxi. I meant this taxi is
mine because I spotted it first! I was waiting for the driver to come out of
the store. And I’ve already spoken to him.”
The man’s thick masculine eyebrow rose at her words. But he didn’t
make a move to get out. Continuing to look at her, he settled back
comfortably against the seat, his broad shoulders taking up most of the
space as he stretched an arm on top of the back rest.
“Well, I’m already seated inside the taxi,” he said. “Find another one.”
 “I can’t!” she snapped. “I’m sure you know there’s a bus strike going
on. So you will have to find another taxi. I have to urgently go to the
downtown area. A lot of people are waiting for me there.”
She hurriedly opened her large bag and pulled out a couple of hundred
notes and held it to him. “I’m sure this will cover for your taxi fare with
some change to spare. Just get another taxi.”
The man’s mouth twisted. “Sorry, princess,” he drawled. “I don’t need
your money. But I need to go to the downtown area too. Why don’t you hop
in, and we can go there together and be dropped off at our destinations?”
A bolt of annoyance passed through her when he called her princess.
Something about the man rubbed her the wrong way. Maybe it was his
sweeping gaze and the cocky smirk on his handsome face. He was good-
looking—too good-looking, especially with the dimples. She was sure he
knew that fact very well.
She also suspected he must have seen her waiting near the taxi. But
still, the ass cut in front of her. He stole her taxi, and now he was more or
less bullying her into sharing it with him even though she had unofficially
booked it first.
“I don’t take rides with strangers! Especially suspicious strangers.”
The arrogant man didn’t look offended. His smirk remained firmly in
place.
She continued to glare at him. “Can you stop wasting my time! I’m in a
hurry!”
He shrugged. “All right, princess. If you are not joining me, shut the
taxi door. I’m in a hurry too, and I need to get going.”
The taxi driver looked on uncertainly at their interaction. “Miss, I need
to start the ride too.”
 Tanvi knew she couldn’t waste the taxi driver’s time. With the bus
strike, the old man would make a decent profit with multiple rides all day.
But there was also no guarantee of when the next available taxi might
come by. She couldn’t afford to be late.
“Fine,” she said. “I’ll share the ride with this man to downtown.”
Gritting her teeth at the arrogant man seated inside, she went around
the taxi and got in. Although the man had moved, and there was at least a
foot distance between them, he was still way too close for comfort. The
man’s cologne filled up the inside of the taxi, tingling her nose. The
fragrance was subtle yet addicting.
Ignoring his presence, she pulled out her phone and texted that she
would be at the protest site in thirty minutes. She also checked her
messages. A few protesters had already assembled in front of the corporate
building.
“Where exactly in downtown are you going, miss?” the taxi driver
asked.
“The Prism building.”
“And you, sir?”
“The Prism building,” the deep voice drawled.
At the man’s reply, Tanvi whipped her head to look at him in shock.
“You are going to the protest too?” she asked.
He hardly looked like the protesting kind. In fact, he hardly looked like
he would care enough for saving anything, let alone trees or the
environment.
But maybe she was being too judgmental because they met in less-
than-ideal circumstances.
“I’m going there for a job interview, princess,” he drawled. “Some of
us have to work to earn money for food and shelter. We don’t have time for
hobbies.”
Once again, anger flared inside her at his answer. She was right about
the man the first time. The ass was definitely not the kind to care about the
trees or environment.
“Leading a protest is not my hobby!” she gritted. “I graduated recently,
and I’m looking for a job too.”
“Really?” His eyes swept over her.
She was outraged by his skeptical tone. She was dressed in simple
faded jeans and a t-shirt. Her long hair was pulled into a high ponytail, and
she only had pale pink moisturizing lipstick as makeup.
What was she supposed to look like? Looking for a job didn’t
necessarily mean she needed to always dress up for an interview. She wore
jeans and a t-shirt and tied her hair because it was practical and
comfortable, especially since she was going to be leading the protest for
hours.
Judgmental ass!
Annoyed, she turned away to ignore him once again.
A few minutes of silence prevailed, but she couldn’t tolerate it. The
need to educate the arrogant man next to her and also fish for more
information from him grew inside her.
“Did you know that the company you want to work for plans to destroy
the City Central Park and build a mall?” she asked.
He raised an eyebrow as though to ask so?
She gritted her teeth. “The protest is to stop them! If the mall plan goes
ahead, thousands of trees will have to be cut, without which all of us living
in the city, including children and animals, will suffer. That’s one of the last
green patches left in the city.”
 At her passionate outburst, she sensed his gaze intensifying on her. A
strange prickling awareness spread through her, causing her skin to break
into goosebumps.
What the hell?
She shook off the awareness. Maybe it was simply a strong annoyance
because she wasn’t the kind to be drawn to strangers—especially arrogant
strangers.
She discreetly rubbed her arms so the goosebumps would disappear.
His mouth twisted slightly at her action. “So how are you planning to
stop the construction of the mall?” he asked.
“By demanding that Prism Corporation should stop the project right
away and go to some other feasible place to build their mall.”
“You think they would listen?” There was amusement in his voice.
She raised her chin. “Yes. They would have to listen. There’s going to
be media coverage which will translate into bad publicity. All businesses
know how important it is to earn public goodwill and maintain a certain
image.”
“Not all businesses or businessmen care about their image. A few give
a damn about their image. The reason they are on the top is because of their
ruthlessness.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I know Prism Corporation will stop.”
Once again, she saw his mouth twist into a smirking smile. Before she
could respond, the taxi pulled over in front of the Prism building, where a
small group of people had already gathered.
“Good luck with your protest, princess,” the man drawled out.
Tanvi was annoyed by his offhand attitude. She knew not everyone had
a similar passion for causes such as saving the environment. But she had
hoped the information she provided would at least make him a slightly
responsible citizen. Hopefully, if he got the job, he could convince his
colleagues and others to help stop the destruction of the environmentally
protected park.
The man turned towards her, and she could sense his gaze on her once
again. “By the way, since I let you share my ride, you are welcome to pay.”
Before she could protest in outrage, he opened the door and slipped out
of the taxi before disappearing into the gathering crowd.
Arrogant ass!
She let it slide and didn’t argue because there was no time. And also
because the man was most likely unemployed since he was going to a job
interview.
“How much for the taxi fare?” she asked the driver.
When the driver told her, she hurriedly paid him along with a generous
tip before stepping outside.
“Tanvi!” One of her acquaintances she met during protests waved from
a short distance.
Tanvi joined the group. “It’s almost nine,” she said. “The management
will start arriving soon. Let’s get started.”
The placards were distributed. They had already prepared for the
slogans. She even got flyers printed for passersby and the employees
working in the building to give them information on the level of destruction
of the environment and the impact.
Holding a placard in one hand and a speaker phone in another, she led
the protest.
“Save City Central Park!”
“Save our lungs!”
“Save our future!”
“Stop Prism Corporation!”
 Dozens of people gathered around her and raised slogans along with
her. Only a few were her friends and acquaintances. The rest were
passionate environmentalists like her. Some of them were aging citizens
too, who used the park for their daily walks and fresh air.
It was outrageous that permission was granted to destroy the beautiful
park.
Soon, the media vans arrived and began clicking pictures along with
taking videos of the protest. One of the reporters she recognized came to
ask her questions.
“How long do you plan to protest?” the reporter asked.
“As long as it takes for Prism Corporation to change their mind.”
The reporter looked skeptical. Tanvi was reminded of the arrogant man
she met a while ago who had looked similarly doubtful. Corporate greed
combined with political backing was hard to shake off. But she knew
bringing attention to that greed was the only way to stop it.
“What exactly do you plan to do?” another reporter asked.
“We will protest peacefully. But if they go near the park to cut down
trees, we’ll form a human chain. In fact, each of us will chain ourselves to
the trees inside the park.”
The reporters looked excited at her aggressive stance. They knew there
would be quite a bit of drama to make their news coverage interesting.
“There are some very powerful people involved in the mall
construction deal. Do you think you can stand up to them?” a reporter
asked.
“Yes,” she replied confidently. “No power on earth can stop us from
fighting to protect ours and our future generations’ health. The mall can be
built elsewhere in the city outskirts. There should be a limit to corporate
greed.”
 The reporters continued to ask obvious questions. “Do you think the
management of Prism Corporation will listen to your demands and back
away?”
She was reminded of the arrogant man she met that morning who
thought they wouldn’t listen.
“Not all businesses or businessmen care about their image. A few give
a damn about their image. The reason they are on the top is because of their
ruthlessness.”
Shaking away thoughts of the arrogant, handsome man, she replied to
the reporter.
“Yes, they will listen to the demands.” They will have to.
The crowd began to grow. More and more people who wanted to save
the popular park joined the protest. It wasn’t that big yet because the
awareness wasn’t spread that far. But the social media reach for the cause
would be tremendous.
While she and the rest of the protestors continued with their slogans,
the police personnel got out of their vans and surrounded them.
“You have to clear out,” one of the cops instructed. “The management
has filed a trespassing complaint.”
Tanvi knew they weren’t trespassing. “We are outside the company
premises. We are on public property, and this is a peaceful protest.”
“You are still blocking their way and interrupting the regular operations
of the company.”
“Then ask a representative of Prism Corporation to speak with us. Ask
them to ensure they won’t go ahead with destroying the City Central Park.
I’m sure most of your families have visited the park too. How can you
allow its destruction?”
The cops looked uncomfortable.
 One of them spoke to her. “We have to follow orders and clear out the
protest.”
“I’m sorry, sir. But we can’t just walk away without trying to save the
trees and fighting for our future health. You are welcome to do what you
have to do.”
She knew the police were helpless in such situations. They were forced
to do their jobs. But at the same time, she couldn’t give in.
The protest continued while the police watched from the sidelines. The
crowd was a decent size but not too big. A protester shouted when
something hit him on his shoulder.
Tanvi frowned. The protester was standing next to a policeman, and a
stone seemed to have hit him.
She turned around quickly to see who had thrown the stone. Most
people held placards or were senior citizens. Her eyes fell on a huge man
who looked out of place from the protesting crowd. He was maintaining eye
contact with a few other men at a distance who appeared huge like him.
They looked more like hired goons she often saw at her father’s house.
She noticed that those men weren’t chanting slogans either. They were
watching silently. One of those men raised his hand, and she could see a big
stone.
“Hey, stop!” she shouted.
But it was too late. The man threw the stone at someone.
There was a cry of pain. But this time, the stone hit a policeman’s head.
And it hit hard enough to make him bleed profusely.
Immediately, chaos ensued.
“Charge!”
The silently watching police personnel now became aggressive when
one of their own was hurt.
 “Wait! It wasn’t a protester who threw the stone!” she shouted. “It was
those men!” she pointed.
The cops didn’t listen. But the men who sabotaged the protest must
have heard her and seen her. A huge man charged towards her with a
menacing look and with something hidden in his hand behind him.
Is he one of them?
Her heart thudded. Although she wanted to get away towards safety,
she couldn’t leave the protesters behind.
The man continued to charge towards her. Just as he neared and was
about to deliberately crash into her, another tall man came into the path.
Tanvi couldn’t see who it was. She could only notice the dark blue
checkered shirt on a broad back and a somewhat familiar whiff of cologne.
Before she could register anything, she was dragged away by a group of
policewomen. Her hands were cuffed behind her.
She was then pushed towards a police van where other protesters were
being similarly arrested.
 ***

“You wrongfully arrested us all!” Tanvi stated.

She was held in the nearby police station along with other protesters.
The protesters were thankfully placed in separate jail cells that didn’t
contain any real criminals. And since there were too many, the cops didn’t
separate them by the sexes and pushed them randomly into two jail cells.
Tanvi didn’t get to speak to her jail mates yet. She was still arguing
with the police.
“The protest had turned violent, Miss Shetty,” a policeman stated. “It
wasn’t peaceful like you claimed.”
“I told you that the men who threw the stones were not protesters,”
Tanvi argued. “Those men were hired to cause trouble. I’m sure Prism
Corporation management sent them.”
The policeman frowned, knowing there was a possibility.
“But there’s nothing we can do, Miss Shetty. That area is now declared
as a protest-free site. There will be security placed there starting tomorrow.”
She wasn’t shocked by the ruthless corporation’s high-handedness. “It’s
a public road! How can they stop anyone from using it?”
“That’s the order, Miss Shetty.”
She gritted her teeth in frustration. “Fine. Then we’ll just find a
different site to protest.”
There’s no way she was going to allow Prism Corporation to destroy
the park to build a mall.
The policeman sighed. “I guess you can do that.”
After the policeman left, she sent a few more messages. It was to her
father’s lawyer she had contacted beforehand. Luckily, her cell phone
wasn’t seized.
“I suppose your other hobby is to get arrested, princess,” a familiar
deep voice drawled from behind.
Tanvi turned around, and her eyes clashed with a pair of dark ones that
looked amused. His mouth was once again twisted into a smirk, flashing
one of his dimples.
It was the arrogant man from that morning who bullied her into sharing
the taxi. He was inside the jail cell, standing a few feet away with his hands
folded casually and leaning against a wall. He wasn’t wearing his
sunglasses right then. She was annoyed that without sunglasses, he was all
the more handsome.
“What are you doing here?” she demanded.
“I got arrested too,” he replied. “After my interview, I thought I’d
swing by and watch you protest. Unfortunately, the police thought I was a
troublemaker like you too.”
She was outraged. “I’m not a troublemaker!”
His mouth twisted into an amused smirk. “Oh yeah? So you are saying
normal people get arrested multiple times?”
How did he know she got arrested multiple times?
“It’s obvious that you know your way in and out of jail, princess,” he
drawled. “There’s no fear or anxiety on your pretty face, which means
someone, most likely your daddy dearest, will come and get you out of this
difficult situation as usual.”
Her annoyance grew along with her anger because he was calling her
an entitled princess. Before she could snap at the arrogant man, the
policeman was back.
“Miss Shetty. Your father’s lawyer is here with the release papers,” he
informed.
 There was a deep chuckle from behind her, which she knew was the
arrogant man. Her cheeks heated despite her anger because his words of her
father coming to her rescue were proven true.
She kept her eyes on the policeman. “I hope those release papers
include everyone arrested at the protest site. And with the condition that no
charges will be filed against any of us.”
The policeman nodded. “Yes, Miss Shetty.”
“Thank you,” she told the policeman.
The jail cells were opened, and the protesters were let out. Tanvi
thanked them and apologized for the inconvenience.
A middle-aged woman smiled. “It’s not just your fight, child. We care
for the park too. I’ll come wherever you or others organize another protest
to save the City Central Park.”
Tanvi felt touched. “Thank you.”
Everyone who was arrested felt similarly passionate about the cause.
Everyone except the arrogant man.
“Goodbye, princess,” he drawled. “And thank your father for helping
with the release.”
Tanvi was pissed at his words. She was half-tempted to call the
policeman and ask to cancel the arrogant man’s release papers. A night
spent in jail might do him good. He would think twice about stealing a taxi
and calling someone an entitled princess.
But she clenched her jaw and ignored him. Her friend Rashmi had
come with the lawyer.
“Who is that gorgeous man?” she whispered in excitement.
“No one,” Tanvi replied. “Let’s go.” Before her friend could think of
flirting with the arrogant man, she dragged her friend out of the police
station.
 “Hey!” Rashmi protested. “I wanted to ask his name and give him my
phone number!”
“He’s an arrogant ass,” Tanvi said before pushing her friend into a
waiting car. “And we are getting late.”
Her friend frowned. “Fine. Maybe he’ll come again during your next
planned protest. You better ask his name and phone number then.”
The last thing Tanvi would do is ask for the arrogant man’s phone
number. She was also glad that the arrogant man would be the last person to
show up at the next protest.
Good riddance. Link
 (FREE on Prime Reading)
Bound By Hatred

They are born enemies who hate each other...

Dev Singham is a privileged son born into the wealthy and powerful
Singham family. London bred and educated, he grew up to be a suave
industrialist whose dating life includes a constant string of beautiful
celebrities. Women adore him—except for one.
Sabitha Prajapati hates him and shows it in destructive ways. She is
the daughter of the man responsible for Dev’s mother’s death. Dev hates
Sabitha, but what he hates even more is desiring her above all.
Forced to work together, will their hatred thrive? Or will they give into
their strong attraction leading to something everlasting? Link
 The Promise

Two billionaire brothers. A promise. A deception. And falling in

love...

Vikram and Vishal are the heirs to the well-known Saaho Group fortune. London bred and educated,
the handsome brothers are accustomed to a jet-setting lifestyle while they win cutthroat business
deals, date beautiful women and spend time with their doting family.
But what are Vikram and Vishal doing in a small town in India? Why are they putting on a
pretence by working as an accountant and a driver for the modest Gulati family?
When the sweet, kindhearted older Gulati sister begins to melt Vikram’s ruthless heart, and the
bold, feisty younger one steals away Vishal’s peace of mind, will the Saaho brothers continue with
their deception? Link
 Accidental Husband

“Stay here with me as my wife for thirty days.”

Priya is about to get engaged to a man hand-picked by her mother. But she shockingly discovered
that she is married to another man. Three years ago, she had met a gorgeous stranger during a work
trip. A thrilling, passionate weekend was followed by an impulsive marriage and then a hasty
divorce.
But a small mistake has made the divorce invalid. So she must now quickly make a secretive trip
to a small town in India to find the man she had married, and get him to sign the divorce papers
again. The problem?
Arjun Pratap, her accidental husband doesn't want a divorce! And worse, he's even challenged
her that within a month, he would change her mind.
With stolen kisses in the wide open fields, adventurous tractor rides and camping under the
stars—can she resist the sexy farmer who is determined to use every bit of his wicked charms
to make her stay married to him?Link
 Breathless

He’s cruel, passionate and dangerous. Will she love him despite knowing his shocking
secret?

When Myra met a darkly handsome stranger, she was instantly drawn towards him. She had fallen in
love with him when he cruelly broke up and disappeared from her life.
Two years later, he appeared again. This time as a cold and cruel man who didn't mind spending
passionate nights with her, but didn't want her back with him.
Can she love him despite discovering his shocking secret? Link
 Ruthless

Will he turn ruthless to protect and hold onto the woman he HATES to LOVE?

When shocking circumstances forced the marriage between Sia and Ajay, they hated each other.
Slowly and steadily, a fragile trust began to develop between them, making the newlyweds fall
deeply in love. But when Ajay’s dark secrets and the truth behind their intertwined pasts are revealed,
Sia’s trust shattered once again.
The road to falling in love hasn’t been easy. Can they let go of their past and believe in the
present to grab the chance of happiness of their future together? With passion and anger flaring hotter
than before, will Sia trust Ajay and stay with him? Or will Ajay be forced to turn ruthless to protect
and hold on to the woman he hates to love? Link
 Billionire Escort
(A Short Romance)

Will the handsome billionaire’s shocking yet sweet deception be forgiven by the pretty
baker? Link

The Proposal
(A Short Romance)

If she doesn't marry the rich man her parents have chosen within two weeks, they will lose
everything. Link
MV KASI Books List (Links on image)