Chapter 23
As the car drew up to Priya’s house, he wondered what kind of woman could love a man who had committed such heinous acts in the past. He couldn’t help but wonder what was it about Dev that made women fall for him so easily, then grimaced inwardly as he realised that somewhere inside him he still couldn’t handle the fact that Geet had once thought herself in love with Dev. His fingers tightened around hers as he tried to deal with his jealousy, then when she smiled shyly every angry thought left his head as love flooded through him.
He got out of the car, then walked round to help Geet out, taking her hand to lead her towards the main entrance. As they approached, the door opened; an elegant sari-clad woman stood there, obviously having been watching for their arrival.
Geet took the lead, stepping forward to take the woman’s hand.
“Priya, aap kaisi hain. Hum aise aagaye, maaf karna, magar yeh aap se kuch baat karna chahte the” “Priya, how are you? Forgive us for visiting like this, but my husband wanted to talk to you”.
Stepping forward, he shook her hand, then followed the two women into the house.
Before he could say anything, Priya Paatil spoke “Khurana sahab, I know why you’re here. You’re wondering why I want to marry your brother, despite what he did in the past.”
He admired her for her forthrightness, and decided to be just as open about his concerns.
“Ms Paatil, let me be frank. All I want to be sure is that you’re not marrying him because you have to, because you need money or support or help. If you’re marrying him because you love him, as my wife thinks you do, then I will support you, but I need to know that there is no other reason”
She smiled “He told me you were a good man. I see that he was right.”
She paused then took a breath before speaking “Khurana sahab, aap se main sirf itna kahoongi ke main aap ke bhai se shaadi karna chahti hoon. Aap yeh bharosa karlein ke agar Dev ne mujhse shaadi karli to main phir kabhi usse kamzor nahin padhne doongi. Kabhi phir ussko gunaah karne nahin doongi.” “Mr Khurana, all I will say is that I want to marry your brother. You must believe that if Dev marries me, I’ll never let him be weak again, I’ll never let him sin again.”
Inviting them to be seated with a simple gesture, she rang a bell then watched as a uniformed maid brought in a tea tray. As he watched Priya pour tea with a steady hand, he wondered again what this self-contained woman saw in his brother.
After a moment, Geet’s phone rang; as she took it out of her bag, she said “Dadi ka call hai; main abhi aayi.”
As Geet stepped away to take his grandmother’s call, he took advantage of her absence to ask, “You know what he did to Geet, and yet you want to marry him?”
“I know what he did, and still I want to marry him. I truly believe that he has changed, Khurana sahab, I truly do. I think the realisation that he was capable of such evil shocked him, and made him re-evaluate. Whatever he was, he isn’t the same person any longer. And I promise that I’ll make sure he never is again. Ever.”
Priya looked at Geet, who stood to one side talking on the phone.
“Khurana sahab, when Geet told me her side of the story, I wept. For her to have suffered so much..........” She stopped as she saw his fists clench.
After a moment, she continued “And then I looked at her, and realised that despite everything she had beaten him. He means nothing to her now, doesn’t have any power over her anymore. She has made her life a success, she has found someone who loves her and who she loves. And she did that despite everything he did to her. Dev means less to her now than an ant or a fly.”
She took a deep breath and said “And I love him. He means a lot to me. I don’t know why, I don’t know how, but he has become necessary to me. Aur main uss ke baghair nahin rehna chahti.” “And I don’t want to live without him. Whatever his flaws, I care for him very much”
He looked over to where his wife stood and thought about the way she still loved him, despite everything he had done to her. Priya hadn’t experienced anything bad from Dev himself, she’d only heard about it.
As he looked at the woman he loved, then at the woman who loved his brother, he came to a decision. Geet was right, it was time to try and move on.
He looked back at Priya and said “Theek hai, Ms Paatil, main aapke aur Dev ke beech mein nahin boloonga. Agar woh aap se shaadi karna chahta hai, to yahi sahi. Magar Dev ko raazi karna aur usse samjhane mein na main boloonga na Geet; baat itni bhi purani nahin hai ke hum donon uss se shaadi ke liye raazi karoon.” “Alright Ms Paatil, I won’t interfere between you and Dev. If he wants to marry you, then that’s ok. But I won’t speak to Dev and I won’t persuade him to marry you and neither will Geet. What happened is not so far in the past that either of us would feel comfortable persuading him to get married”
Standing, he walked over to Geet, waiting until she finished talking to Dadi; as she turned towards him, he murmured “chalein Geet”. He put his hand in the small of her back to guide her towards the door and turned to find Priya watching them. Geet smiled at the other woman and said “Dadi ne aap ko bahut yaad kiya hai, Priya ji. Mere khayal se hum log jald hi milenge” “Dadi said she is thinking of you Priya, I think that we’ll meet soon”
As Priya walked with them to the door, he turned to her and said “Ms Paatil, main aap ke kaam aasakoon to mujhe yaad kijiyega. Dev aur aap ke beech jab koi faisla hojaye to hum donon uss faisle mein aap ka saath denge” “Ms Paatil, if I can be of any help to you, then please remember me. Whatever decision you and Dev come to, then we will both be with you, no matter what decision you make”
“Khurana sahab, aap mujhe abhi jaante nahin hain. Mere khayal se aap mujhe Priya kehne lagein, kyunki faisla to ho chuka hai, chahe Dev abhi maanne ko tayyar ho ya nahin; meri aur Dev ki shaadi hone waali hai aur aap mere Jeiyth Jethaani banne waale hain. Ab sirf yeh dekhna hai ke Dev kitne dinon tak meri baat taalte hain”
“Khurana sahab, you don’t know me very well yet. I think you should start calling me Priya, because the decision has been made, whether Dev understands that yet or not; Dev and I will get married and you are going to be my Jeiyth and Jethaani. Now all that is let is to see how long it takes Dev to listen to me”
As Maan and Geet sat in the car and were driven away, he turned back to look at the woman standing in the doorway. There was a smile on her face and he knew just by looking at her that she would get her way.
Turning to his wife, he said “It seems we had better start preparing for a wedding”
Mera Pati Beimaan-Fir bhi Mahaan !!!
Bheegi Bheegi raaton main.. aisi barsaaton main...
Mad House Romantic Thriller Comedy?
Zeherili Goli ka Asli Swaad...
Is concoction ko main kya naam doon?
