Free The Indian Tycoon's Marriage Deal by Adite Banerjie Page B

out. It looks like you have met your match.’
    Maya did a high-five with her new unnamed ally as Monica shot her a nasty look and harrumphed away to find solace among her friends.
    â€˜Nats, I didn’t stand a chance,’ said Krish. ‘By the way, this is my cousin Nats, sometimes also called Wild Natasha.’
    Natasha hugged Maya and said, ‘Krish, you have finally done me proud. Welcome to the Dev
parivar
, Maya!’ Adding sotto voce to Maya, ‘We’re one family that can put all those soap opera ones on TV to shame.’
    â€˜And here comes the patriarch,’ added Krish cynically. KD had stepped into the hall and was being greeted by Monica, with a display of affection that would have done any self-respecting Bollywood diva proud. ‘We’d better go and pay our respects. Nats, don’t disappear. We need to catch up.’
    â€˜Don’t worry, I’m not about to disappear any time soon. I just can’t miss out on how KD Uncle is going to react to his sassy
bahu
,’ said Nats, giving Maya a supportive wink.
    Krish guided Maya across the room towards KD. Maya’s hands felt clammy and a strange sensation gripped her. Anticipation battled with dread as she gulped down the bile that rose to her throat. Never for a moment had she thought that she would come face to face with KD as his daughter-in-law. There was something to be said about destiny. It worked in ways that truly boggled the mind. For now, she had the upper hand. And she had to make sure it stayed that way. She watched as Monica whispered into his ear, and KD turned his attention towards her and Krish. Maya mentally shook herself.
Don’t panic. Don’t forget, this is for Papa. Now, breathe!
    * * *
    Krish had been preparing for this face-off with KD for some time now. And yet he had allowed himself to get blindsided by Madam M, the name he had given her when he had first set sight on her as a gawky twelve-year-old. In those days she at least had a figure and the sheen of a starlet. KD had treated her as if the sun shone out of her and every time she visited—which was for weeks on end—his mother would retreat into her own private world, refusing to even talk to her beloved son. It didn’t take long for Krish to figure out that Madam M was his father’s on-off mistress. The very thought filled his heart with rage against his father. The more he saw his mother shut herself away from the public, the more he suffered too. Over the years, as Madam M’s fortunes in Bollywood had declined, KD’s ardour for her also wilted. But even though there were younger, sexier women whose company KD sought out, Madam M continued to have some kind of hold over him—like a bloodsucking leech clinging on to its prey.
    Krish hadn’t seen her in almost a decade. It was pathetic how she clung on to her Bollywood notoriety and behaved like the Queen Bee, never mind that her days of glory were long gone. His contempt for her knew no bounds and yet he’d let her get under his skin, almost as if he was reacting to her as he had as an adolescent. Tonight too, he’d nearly succumbed to his desire to tick her off in the presence of KD’s friends. That would have been disastrous—he would have ended up playing into her hands. If it hadn’t been for Maya’s intervention, he would have come across as a callow youth who couldn’t keep his emotions under control. But it was amazing how Maya had intuitively sussed out Madam M so quickly and defused the situation. The more he was getting to know his wife—it felt strange to think of her as his
wife
!
—
the more he was fascinated by her.
    But now it was time to face KD. He smiled at Maya and said, ‘Ready?’
    She inhaled deeply. ‘Let’s do it.’
    As they approached KD, Maya switched on her smile and hoped that her face didn’t betray the intense emotions that were churning within her. She took