"I told you not to call me. You are a married man. Stop calling."

Karan smirks at his reflection in the mirror as he hears her voice, through the cell phone.

"I am getting married. There is a difference. I am still a single man. You've got nothing to worry about."

"But what about your poor fiancé, who is probably going through the tortures, people refer to as pampering your body, hair, face, and nails." Her mocking voice says.

"Oh whatever tortures she is going through will probably be worth the pain, she is after all getting married to me" Karan says as he turns away from the mirror to examine the 'Shervani', he is going to wear today, lying on his bed.

He continues speaking as he caresses the smooth surface of the Shervani, "She is probably going through it willingly just to match up to my good looks."

Karan chuckles as he hear her infuriated gasp and can almost see her mouth wide open, brows furrowed and an angry scowl on her face.

"You know what, that ugly girl needs to go and get her make up done for tonight, so she is going to hang up now." Karan grins at his cell phone, when Ridhima hangs up on him.

They have been talking non stop to each other, through calls and when they were not talking to each other, they were texting.

It is not love. Yet.

But it is something.

Not love. Not like. But the stage before that.

Today is their wedding day. And he has not seen Ridhima since the first meeting.

And Ridhima has asked him not tell the parents about their meet up because then they would ask how they met, then she'd have to tell them she was out and then something about a lot of questions and her getting in trouble.

He has no idea how she can be in trouble. It is not like they can ground her, she is getting married, she'd move out anyway.

He is broken from his thoughts, when his phone rings. He looks down to see that it is his best friend Ayaan.

"Hel-"

"The fuck Singhania , you didn't tell me you are getting married. Had it not been for the invitation I would have missed it."

"It was a sudden decision, I sent you the invitation as soon as the wedding was finali-"

"Save it. You are throwing a party when you come back. No objection. By the way Varun is mad. He can't make it to the wedding he tried to cancel his meetings and stuff but....you know how it works."

Varun is Karan's other best friend and they have been friends since they were in pre-school.

And contrary to all cliché, his parents don't like his friends.

They think that Ayaan and Varun are holding him back and he can be more successful if they were not in his life.

"Karan bhaiya (brother)!!!!! Come down mum is calling you for breakfast." Karan's younger sister, Megha yells.

Karan sighs and puts his cell phone in pant pockets and turn towards the mirror to fix his tie.

Ever since the death of his mother, ten years ago, Karan has donned  on this personality of a prim and proper individual. His grandfather also started teaching him the workings of business world. At the age of eighteen Karan was attending college and also preparing to take over his grandfather's empire.
He may respect his father but he love his mom's father. He made him who he is now. Although he died when Karan was twenty three. He didn't leave any unresolved ties.

He prepared Karan to handle the business and also prepared the business for Karan.

On entering the dining room Karan realised how many relatives have already arrived for the wedding.

"Karan bhai? Why are you wearing this? Why are you so formal all the time you could have worn some sweats or something comfortable , you have to change in the evening anyway." Ishika, Karan's real younger sister fusses over him.

" It is comfortable for me, Isha." Karan gives her a polite smile and takes her with him towards the dining table for breakfast.

Ishika is a very shy and quiet girl, to everyone. The only people she is not shy or quiet around include Karan and her best friend.

Karan sits at his usual seat which is opposite to his father. Ishika comes to sit beside him but Megha occupies it. The seat on the other side of Karan has been already occupied by one of his cousins. Ishika's face falls a little and Karan doesn't fail to miss the smirk Megha sent Ishika.

Ishika looks around the huge dining table filled with family members and so does Karan and notices that all the chairs are occupied. Before Karan can say anything, Ishika's attention is grabbed by is step mother.

"Seems like there is no place left for Ishika to sit. Ishika go to your room then, I will ask the maid to bring your food there."

Ishika's voice is small and timid as she utters a quiet 'okay' and turns to leave the room.
Karan's anger flares and his heart breaks for his sister.

" Megha, leave this seat right now. Ishika sits here. It is her seat. Get up. Ishika you are not going anywhere." Karan grits out, his glare fixed on his step mother.

" I came here first, I am not leaving this seat." Megha says stubbornly.

Karan's head snaps towards her and she flinches.

"If you ever wish to sit and eat here you are going to get up and leave this place for her. Get a chair for yourself and sit somewhere else."

"Bhai, let it be. I wanted to eat alone anyway" Ishika intervenes.

Karan looks at her and he realises that she will not like it if he created a scene here for her. She hates attention.

"Fine" Karan stands up and motions to the maid.

"Sir?" The maid asks.

"Bring Ishika's and my food to her room." Karan tells the maid.
"Right away sir. Anything else sir?"

"Yes, make sure this dining table and other stuff in this room is out of the house by tonight. I want this room converted into my office as soon as possible."

"Yes. Sir" the maid then left.

" what is this madness Karan. Are you planning to get a new dining room?" His step mother asks. All this while his father is quite and just silently watches all this.

" No. Like me and Ishika all of you are going to eat food in your room." He tells her coolly.

"You cannot do that, this house is as much mine as yours."

"Correction. This house is all mine if you have forgotten then let me remind you that you are living under my roof. You treat my sister properly or you are going to be out of my house"

Without further discussion, Karan takes Ishika out of there to her room.

Ishika excuses here self to the bathroom. While she is there, Karan just roams around the room.

While this house was building, he has made sure Ishika got the best room, with an attached en suite.

As he is looking around his eyes fall on a dress lying on the bed.

It is horrible. It is a grey colour with absolutely rough material, and looks cheap.

Karan frowns in confusion at the dress.

"Sir, your breakfast" a knock followed by the maid's voice brings Karan's attention towards the door where she is standing with a food trolley.

"Bring it in and leave it beside the bed"
When the maid is about to leave the room Karan stops her and asks her about the dress.

"I saw Mrs. Singhania give this to Ishika ma'am, I think she will be wearing it tonight, at the wedding."

Karan fumes. Behind his back they have been doing this.

He runs a hand through his hair and gestures to the dress.
"Take this. I want you, to run to the mall right now and get the most expensive and the most beautiful dress for Isha. Give them my phone number, I will pay them."

The maid nodes and leaves.

After break fast Karan goes back to his room and passes time by texting with Ridhima for a while, then he has to go for a video conference, with an important shareholder.

Which takes up three hours.

After that he signs some files and then he had a phone call from one of the sponsors.

And of-course Varun also called to curse at him and then they discussed the next move for their joint business.

At six in the evening, Ishika came barging in his room while he was about to go into the bathroom to change for the barat.

"Karan bhai! What is this?"

She holds up a white lehenga.

Which is really pretty with, with a pink top with a lot of heavy work. It must be the dress the maid bought for her.

Karan musters up an innocent look. "A dress? Nice. Are you wearing it tonight.? I am wearing this."
He raised his arm to show her his Shervani.

Ishika rolls her eyes.

"Why did you get this for me? I don't want it."
"You want me to not get married." Karan fakes a hurt look.

" No I want you to get married .... I don't want this dress."

"If you don't like it I can always make the maid get a new one for you"

" no it is beautiful. I just don't want ...." Her trailing off just boosts Karan to push her.
" you'll look pretty in this. Now go. Get ready Isha. If you need anything, you tell me. Okay?"

Ishika nods and smiles and hugs him.

"You are the best brother."

" I know right. Even I want a brother as good as me" Karan jokes. She punches his shoulder and leaves the room.

Later, when Karan was fixing his shervani coat in front of the mirror, a knock on the door comes. He turns slightly to see that Megha is standing at the door.

"what do you want Megha?" Karan asks her. even though she is not his real sister and she has a really bad attitude towards his other sister he cannot be mad at her after all she is baby sister too. "bhaiya I am really sorry, I should have listened to you and should have not taken Isha's seat."

"It's okay just don't do that again."Karan says with a sigh.

"never. Thank you bhaiya."

Megha left him too, but not before teasing him about, how he should have seen his bride before agreeing to marry her, because she is super ugly.

Karan just brushed her away, because she is the one who is making a fool of herself, only if she knew that he has already seen his bride and liked her very much.

Karan's aunt comes in the room with a few other relatives and then they gush over him and how good he is looking and they all start to take him to the venue where the wedding will be held, but before Karan was about to leave the room his phone starts ringing.

"Hello, dad, I am coming downst-"Karan's father cuts him off.

"No Karan, come to my office immediately, I just found something" His father's panicked voice comes in breathless spurts through the cell phone.

"I am on my way there, just wait."

Karan slams open his father's study room, which he calls office, and looks around to find his father and heaves a sigh of relief when he sees him sitting on a sofa , no danger to his life. But there are tears in his eyes.
"dad? what is wrong?"Karan asks, concerned.

"Karan, my son I have made a huge mistake."

"What mistake? why are you crying dad." Karan was never known for his patience, and right now his father talking to him in riddles is getting on his last nerve, especially when he is crying. His father never cries.

"This girl, Ridhima you are about marry, is the daughter of your mother's murderer."

"wha-" Its is like all the air leaves Karan's lungs all at once at his father's revelation.

"I am sorry son,if I had known I would have never put forth this proposal, I just found this out now."

"She died in an accident." Karan's brain had stoped functioning. All he can think about is that it cannot be true.

"she was stabbed in the heart and then her body was put in a car and thrown off a cliff to make look like an accident. I have the pictures, of Gupta stabbing her."

Karan moves closer to his father , to look at his mother's frozen expression of pain and shock, and Ridhima's father's hand holding a knife which is buried in his mother's chest.

"I can't marry her" is the only thing karan can utter.

"But son it is not her fault, her father is a murderer. She probably doesn't even know about this. Karan what about my reputation. There are so many guests, you cannot do this to me. I have just gone through this heartache of finding out my beloved late wife was murdered, now you want me to go through the humiliation of telling all these guests, that the wedding is cancelled, few hours before the wedding."

"dad, I-"

"Karan please, do this for your only parent alive."

"Okay, fine." Karan says and then continues with a stronger voice, "Fine, I will marry her, but don't expect me to treat her well. Remember that this marriage is being forced on me. it is a Forced marriage and nothing else."

Thank you for reading.

Please note that the models in the pictures are not the cast, only their clothes are similar to the character's clothing, as mentioned respectively on the chapter.