CHAPTER-7

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"Norah, please check my schedule for today," I instructed my personal assistant with a smile. She nodded and opened her notepad, "You have a meeting with Tuval Madam and other designers of our company at noon. Then, one meeting with our Malaysian delegates at 3 p.m. After that, you have no fixed schedule. And yes, tomorrow morning, we have a very important meeting with Rathods."


"Make sure the presentation is done very well," I ordered. "I don't want any clumsiness in the meeting tomorrow. Please double-check the arrangements before it starts. I don't want them to think negatively about our company."

"Sure, Ma'am. I will personally take care of it," Norah replied, determined.

"Good. Back to your work now," I dismissed her.

As I leaned back on my recliner, I sighed. It was going to be a long and tiring day. Everything was going as planned, and the company was slowly coming back on track. However, my personal life had become deserted in the process.

Being in a management position was not easy, and I admired my father more for handling it so effectively until Sneha di succeeded him. Unfortunately, that was the day when the destruction of this company started. Who would have guessed that we were raising an enemy who would stab us in the back the moment she got a chance? She not only betrayed me but our whole family.

I had been working here for the last six months and in that time, I had uncovered many ugly truths about Sneha di. Our dear ex-CEO had been involved in corruption, and what surprised me more was that no one else had suspected anything fishy. Moreover, I still hadn't found solid proof against her, so it could be a waste to disclose it to the family or the police.

For the last five years, she had been holding this post, and I didn't understand what she did with the lump of money. It had no trace on any paper, which intensified my visit to the natal home. Once or twice, I even got the opportunity to sneak into her room, but unluckily, both times, I got caught by Badi Maa, who threatened me to stay away from her daughter's belongings.

Witnessing her possessiveness with everything related to Sneha, I started to suspect her involvement in Sneha di's wrong deeds as well as her disappearance. But I was not going to be defeated easily. Whatever she had in her might, she could do, but this time, no one could stop me from raiding her room. Next Sunday, 'Jivitputrika' was going to be celebrated in our household. They would go to our Kuldev's temple for blessing, and this would be the perfect time for me to be in action. I was determined to unmask her.

I returned home after 9 o'clock, as usual, welcomed by long-spread silence. Vivaan and I lived under the same roof but rarely saw each other, except during family gatherings. Unwantedly, this had become a habit. Now it didn't bother me as before. When I came as a newlywed, I had so many hopes and expectations from him. But as it is said, expectations are the sole reason for pain, and it came true.

Our interactions during the initial days of the wedding enhanced my efforts for a better relationship, but his unexpected cold behavior ruined every hope.

He was not the same Vivaan whom I interacted with, during the first week of our wedding. He had turned more and more distinct with time. And I couldn't put a finger on its reason. I was getting tired as time passed.

The ticking clock of the deadline for this institution was enough to terrify me, let alone my subconsciousness, which mocked me for every failed relationship. Each day that passed, I felt more hopeless for happiness. The thought of being left alone started to haunt me, and nothing remained the same.

Nothing remained the same.

The next morning, I woke up at 9 am and was shocked to find myself late again, thanks to the sleeping pill I took the night before. And as if that wasn't enough, we had an important meeting in an hour.

I rushed to the kitchen and found Julie, the cute and chubby 45-year-old who had been serving the Bharadwaj family for five years, making breakfast.

When I remembered Vivaan telling me that it was Julie who used to take care of him here, I couldn't help but feel possessive of him. But now, I feel embarrassed about being jealous of a woman my mum's age.

I looked towards Vivaan's room, and as if she read my mind, Julie said, "He already went to the office," while serving stuffed paratha with tarkari.

"He never has his breakfast," she added.

I nodded in response.

"I have to go now. I am getting late. Take care," I said as I made my way to the parking lot. Meanwhile, my phone rang.

"Yes?"

"Ma'am, it's Norah here. Where are you? Anytime now, the Rathods will be here for the meeting."

"I am on the way. You know na, this city's traffic. Just 10 mins." I could imagine her rolling her eyes in frustration. I guess I have to come up with more effective excuses as it was a bit too much to ask someone to believe.

As I entered Chandra's premises, I saw Norah running towards me.

"You said 10 mins, and now it's going to be exactly one hour. God knows how I am convincing them with your ragged 10-minute excuse," a nervous Norah started her circuitous talk.

Ignoring her comments, I asked, "How long are they here?"

"For half an hour."

"Don't worry. I am here now."

I walked into the conference room, taking a quick glance around at all the members sitting around the table. Suddenly, my eyes landed on a man sitting opposite to me. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.

"What was he doing here?" I thought.

"Hello Mrs. Radhika Bharadwaj, till yesterday, I used to think it to be rubbish for a woman to arrive late at the venue to grab the sole attention to herself since her entrance but indeed you proved me wrong." He smirked, looking me straight in the eye. I gave a nervous smile and took my seat, feeling a mix of emotions.

All the members chuckled at his comment, but what boiled my blood was Norah's suppressed giggles from behind me. I stared at her over my shoulder until she composed herself.

"Trust me, it's really rubbish, you know, Mumbai's rush during office hours," I replied, trying to hide my embarrassment.


"If you don't mind, can we start the meeting?" I said, trying to regain control of the situation.

"Of course. I guess for this purpose only we gathered here," he replied with a smile. I signaled Norah to start the presentation, and she began describing the outline of the project.

It was an excellent opportunity, and the other team members seemed impressed with what Norah had to say. The only exception was a man who wore a neutral expression throughout the meeting. It was difficult to speculate his thoughts.

"Mrs. Bhardwaj, I'm very impressed with what your colleague has just presented. I think everyone on our team is as well," the man said, smiling at his colleagues. The meeting went on for the next hour.

"So, we should finalize the deal." one of them said, looking at the others before turning to that man.

He must have been the boss. His demeanor was enough to tell.

But then, he spoke up, "Given the troubled few years this company has had, I would like to suggest we reschedule this meeting to include the Agrawals, the rising stars in the textile sector. After hearing what both companies have to offer, it will be easier for us to decide."

What a way to keep us hanging when it was they who proposed this idea.

As I sat in the conference room, I couldn't help but feel frustrated with the current state of our company. We had once been at the top of the industry, but now, thanks to Sneha Chandra, we had become a laughing stock. The man sitting across from me, was mocking us. But I wasn't about to let this golden opportunity slip away.

Norah came to my side, looking nervous. "Was it a subtle way to say no?" she whispered.

"I'm not sure," I replied. "But don't worry. You did great today."

As we got up to leave, he approached me. "It's nice to meet you again, sweetheart," he said with a smirk.

I struggled to hide my disdain. I rolled my eyes inwardly, but managed to keep a smile on my face. "Same here, Mr. Vikram Singh Rathod. And one more thing, Mrs. Bhardwaj will do great as an address."


If only he had kept his mouth shut, the project would have been ours already.

"Ma'am... Radhika ma'am," someone whispered behind me. I turned around to see Norah signaling at the front.

I glanced back to see that he was still there, trying to suppress his laughter. "You zoned out," Norah whispered in my ear.

I weakly nodded and caught him trying hard to hold his laughter.

"Leave it, Miss Vincent. It's not her fault that she was mesmerized by my handsomeness and couldn't restrain herself from staring at me," he said, grinning like an idiot.

"So much overconfidence is not good," I replied.

"Sweetheart, it's not confidence, but true reality," he said with a smirk.

"You lied, didn't you?" I said, catching him off guard.

For a moment, he was shocked, but he soon composed himself. "Did I tell you about Chahat Khanna, the rising star of the film industry, being head over heels for me, or my newly found blood connection with the royalty of Thailand, or..."

And he continued his pointless blabber. How could someone be so annoying? On the other hand, Norah was enjoying his rambling.

"Why don't you both go somewhere where you can talk more comfortably with a cup of coffee and soothing background music rather than killing office time," I suggested.

"Don't mind her, Miss Vincent. This grumpy old lady is just jealous that I found you more attractive than her. But I must say, it's a good idea. What do you say?" he said with a smirk.

Grumpy... Old...

I was seething with anger. I wished I could tell him who I really am. As Norah blushed, I roared at Vikram, "Norah, get back to work. If I find you wasting office time, it will be your last day." He still had an impressed look on his face. I wished I could distort it.

No, I wished I could strangle him. He thought he was Shahrukh Khan.


As the boss, I had to stay in his good books, so I put on a fake smile and brushed off his previous remarks.

I vaguely recall someone telling me about working in a construction company in Chennai."

"Oh, that, darling. We, Rathod's deal in a chain of sectors, and construction is one of the many businesses I own," he smirked.

"And moreover, why should I give details to some stranger?" he added, mocking me, just like I had done to him at the party.

I had to stay away from him. He was something else, something beneath anyone's imagination.

What surprised me was that he still remembered our previous conversation occurred months ago.

After he left, I returned to my office and saw Norah arranging files on the desk. She was the ideal assistant for me. For some people, our relationship might seem like a simple boss and PA dynamic, but for us, it was an unknowingly deep friendship, especially outside of office hours.

When I first started working here, Norah was there for me, giving me advice and helping me get settled in. I have to admit, she was a true gem in her field and I knew the company was lucky to have her.

After passing me a cup of coffee, Norah was about to leave for the day when I apologized for my earlier rude behavior towards her.


"Don't worry, it's already forgotten," she said with a million-dollar smile that could light up anyone's day.

"Oh Norah, what would I do without you?" I joked, pulling her in for a tight embrace. "You've become like a sister to me."

She nodded in agreement, something we both knew to be true. We spent so much time together outside of work, often hanging out with Tuval, that our bond had become something special.

But then Norah said something that caught me off guard. "Whatever happened was good. I don't think our alliance with Rathods will be fruitful."

I snapped my head in her direction, confused by her sudden change in topic. "What do you mean?"


Norah went on to explain how the Rathods and Bharadwajs were business rivals and our new association with the Rathods could tarnish our relationship with the Bharadwajs. She also reminded me that we were still not financially stable and needed to be careful with our business decisions.

It was Sneha's idea of begging loans that too from Bharadwajs. On the other hand, Mr Vivaan Bharadwaj, one of the foolest man I have ever seen, thought it to be great to shower his darling with money as much she desired.

I couldn't help but think about the recent proposal from Vikram and the new investment from Vivaan Bharadwaj in the construction sector. Something was definitely brewing in the business world.


I may not have understood the game that was being played, but it was clear to me that Rathod was up to something. And I knew that Vikram was aware of the close relationship that we Chandras had with the Bharadwajs, yet he still reached out to us for business. Something didn't feel right from the start. Vikram couldn't be trusted, and I knew he was after something more than just a simple business deal. His motive was to bring us closer, and I wasn't going to fall for it.

But I had a plan to outsmart him.

"Don't worry, I've got this. You can go back to work," I reassured my assistant.

"And one more thing, if Vivaan shows up, tell him he'll have to wait because I'm busy at this moment."

"He's coming? Should I make arrangements?" she asked, looking confused. Tuval and she both knew about the intimate relationship that Vivaan and I shared.

I smirked. Now, it was my turn to set someone's peace on fire.

I smirked. It was my turn to shake things up a bit.

Oh, how I couldn't wait for the drama to unfold. News of our meeting would surely spread like wildfire in the business world, and I knew Vivaan's reaction. I wondered how long it had been since I last saw him. He would definitely be here any moment.

She shrugged her shoulders tiredly," Sometimes you seem more mysterious and dangerous than Sneha Ma'am."

I chuckled at her remark.


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