Khushi entered her office that was stationed in the back of her boutique. AMORE was handled by her secretary, Akansha, for the days Khushi was absent, but there was still tons of paperwork to sort through. Khushi placed Ahaana's portable baby seat next on a chair by her work desk, made sure Ahaana was comfortable, and got straight to work. She trusted Akansha to handle the customers in the front until she was done sorting through all these documents.
The beeping of her cell phone caught Khushi's attention. Looking down at the text message, she automatically smiled.
*Text Message*
"Appi! Thank you so much for agreeing to be my bridesmaid. I'll be visiting soon for my dress! Can't wait to see you...it's been too long!" – Anjali
*Text Message End*
Anjali was only a few years behind Khushi in age, so they were always close growing up. The last time Khushi saw Anjali was when Payal passed away. The sting returning in her heart, Khushi tried her best to ignore it and began to respond to the text message.
*Text Message*
"Of course little sister. The dress is almost complete...I got a little delayed with everything that's happened. I'll just need to do a few adjustments depending on how the fitting goes. I'll see you soon!" –Khushi
*Text Message End*
Hitting send, Khushi turned back to her desk and buried herself in paperwork. After a few hours, she placed the completed paperwork in her drawer and looked down to see Ahaana awake, but playing with her toy hanging from the handle of the baby seat.
Khushi felt a smile tug her lips and a warm feeling enter her chest as she bent down to pick Ahaana up.
"Good afternoon baby girl, did you have a nice nap?" Khushi asked, affection evident in her voice as she nuzzled Ahaana's neck.
Ahaana simply cooed, liking the feeling of being held. Khushi held Ahaana in one arm and reached inside her baby bag for a bottle of milk. She placed the nipple on Ahaana's lips and she greedily accepted since it was time for her meal.
A few minutes into feeding Ahaana, Akansha knocked asking permission to enter the office. "Come in." Khushi called out.
"Khushi, there's a man from Zosh Entertainment here to see you." Akansha said once she came inside.
Khushi frowned, "Does he want an outfit? Why don't you go ahead and help him?" Khushi said. Zosh Entertainment was a record label company known to launch popular music artists. Khushi figured it was a singer or music composer from Zosh needing an outfit for an upcoming event.
"No, he said he wants to meet you. He has a business proposition." Akansha replied back.
Curious as to who this man was and what business proposition one of the biggest entertainment agencies had to offer her, she told Akansha to send the guy in.
A short guy in a grey suit entered and gave the baby a curious look. "Hello Miss, Thank you so much for meeting with me. I'm Mithelesh Tripathi from Zosh Entertainment." The man introduced himself. He refrained from putting his hand out for a handshake, seeing how Khushi's hands were busy.
"Hello Mr. Tripathi, I'm so sorry I can't properly greet you. As you can see you caught me at a busy time." Khushi said with a warm smile on her face.
Mithelesh chuckled and took a seat on the other side of Khushi's desk. "Oh that's no problem at all...and please...call me Mithelesh. If you don't mind me asking...Is she yours?" He asked gesturing to Ahaana who was still drinking from the bottle in Khushi's arms.
"Yes she is." Khushi replied, without hesitation. Khushi placed Ahaana back in her baby seat, making sure the bottle was secure so Ahaana can continue drinking, and faced Mithelesh again.
"What can I do for you today?" Khushi asked, getting straight to business.
"Zosh Entertainment has just launched a new singing idol. The debut music video has received good reviews and in the next few weeks, this idol will be making a lot of public appearances. There will be a lot of press conferences, red carpet events, and his first official stage performance coming up within this month. Zosh wants you to design his clothing for these events." Mithelesh explained.
Khushi listened interested. "I don't usually take on projects like this. Celebrities tend to just come to AMORE to shop or have an outfit custom made for them. I've never really committed to one particular celebrity." Khushi replied.
"Well the owner of Zosh really likes your work and she would really like to use your expertise in making this idol the new heartthrob. Of course, you won't be committed to working for this idol for life. We just need a new and fresh look for him in the next month to get him established in the industry. Once he's done promoting his debut album, you're work will be done." Mithelesh continued, trying to convince Khushi.
Khushi pondered for a minute. This was her first big project after she came back from her vacation. It might be a good opportunity to expand her work. Her work mostly catered to Bollywood stars...but styling an upcoming singer might help her branch her work into the music industry too.
"Ok I'm definitely interested. Why don't we set up a meeting where we can work on a few ideas, and if it's a success we'll go over the contract." Khushi suggested.
"That's perfect. How does tomorrow afternoon sound for you? I will come by and we can work things out." Mithelesh asked.
"That's perfect." Khushi rose from her seat to escort Mithelesh to the door. "It was a pleasure meeting you Mithelesh Ji" Khushi said, shaking hands with the man.
"Same here Miss. Have a good day", and with that said, Mithelesh made his exit.
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Arnav gave his last shot for the day. The movie he has been working on for the last 3 months was a little behind schedule due to some weather conditions. The lavish set built for a song was destroyed in a surprise rain storm, which caused the crew to rebuild the set. Finally after a long and tiresome day, they were able to complete shooting the song. Once the Director yelled 'That's a wrap for today!', the whole cast and crew broke out in applause.
"ALRIGHT EVERYONE! Listen up!" The director yelled, catching everyone's attention. "Today was miserable! But thank you everyone for being patient and for working through with this...and as a token of my gratitude...lets all head to the bar and first round of drinks is on me!"
This was met with another round of applause and everyone got ready in packing up and heading to the bar down the street.
Arnav was about to head to his car when he was stopped by Mahi...again. That woman didn't know the meaning of 'I'm married', because she loved to shamelessly flirt with Arnav.
"Yes Mahi..." Arnav asked, trying to keep his irritation from reflecting in his voice.
"You're going to the bar right?" Lavanya asked, with a smile on her face.
"I am, but I'm not going to stay for long." Arnav said offhandedly, and continued walking towards his car.
"Aww how come?" Lavanya whined, as she grabbed onto Arnav's arm and fell into step with him.
"I have to get home before my daughter falls asleep." Arnav replied, and shrugged her off him.
He unlocked his car and opened the car door. "Hey why don't we go together to the bar?" Lavanya asked, trying desperately to get Arnav's attention.
"No, sorry. Get a ride with someone else." And with that said, Arnav drove off, leaving behind a fuming Mahi.
'Damn you Arnav Singh Raizada. No one says no to me. No one. I will have you tonight.' Lavanya thought menacingly, watching Arnav's car drive off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Arnav downed his 2nd glass of whiskey and chatted with a fellow co-actor.
"So Arnav, how is your little girl doing?" the co-actor asked, making small talk.
A smile automatically lit Arnav's face. "She is doing great, gets more beautiful by the day" Arnav replied.
"And what about your wife? She's the owner of AMORE right? How is she doing?" the guy asked. Everyone knew that Arnav lost his first wife because of childbirth. And a month later he married Khushi Gupta. No one really knew the details behind their marriage. Some say he turned to Khushi for comfort for losing his wife, and that comfort turned to love. Others say she is only his temporary wife, to help take care of Ahaana until he learns to take care of her himself. Some gossip goers are even vicious enough to say that Arnav cheated on Payal with Khushi, and once she died, he didn't hesitate to marry Khushi.
Rumors always circled celebrities. Of course no one was daring enough to say these things in front of Arnav's face, because at the end of the day, he was a respected colleague.
"She's doing good too." Arnav replied, keeping his answer short when regarding Khushi. Their relationship was better left unsaid. For Ahaana's sake, they tried to communicate with each other. Maybe with time, their relationship will grow to friendship and good companionship. But, Arnav knew that she can never replace Payal. Call him selfish, but he won't let anyone replace Payal. He loved her too much. It's unfair to Khushi, he knows that. Khushi deserves to be with someone who can love her. But she knew what she was getting into when she agreed to marry him. Arnav will try his best to make her comfortable, but there won't be anything more between them.
Arnav downed his 3rd drink and decided to take his leave. If he didn't leave now Ahaana will fall asleep before he got to spend time with her.
"Awww do you have to leave so early Arnav? You're no fun..." Lavanya complained as usual.
"I have to get back. This was fun guys. I'll see you tomorrow." Arnav said politely to the cast and crew and made his way out. Before leaving, he decided to use the restroom in the back of the bar.
The hallway that led to the bathrooms was dimly lit. A few more hallways branched away from it as well and lead to rooms only for employees. Arnav did his business in the bathroom, and when he made his way down the hallway, a hand grabbed him and pulled him into a dark corner.
"What the..." Arnav began to say when he felt a pair of lips shut him up.
He felt hands frantically unbutton his shirt and he pushed the person away from him, so he can see who it was.
"Lavanya what the hell are you doing?!" Arnav yelped.
Lavanya pressed her body against his and wrapped one leg around his waist. "Oh god I want you so bad Arnav. You have no idea how much I wanted you while shooting our intimate scenes. I need to have you." Lavanya panted, grinding her lower part against Arnav.
"Lavanya stop! Get off me." Arnav said in a firm tone, trying to keep his temper in check.
"No." She simply replied and latched her lips onto Arnav's neck, biting and then sucking on it.
Arnav grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her back again. "ENOUGH Mahi! I'm married!" Arnav yelled.
"OH PLEASE! Enough with that excuse. We all know it was a marriage of convenience. Everyone knows about it. I bet you haven't even fucked her." Lavanya replied crudely.
That caught Arnav by surprise. What were these people talking about behind his back?
Seeing Arnav surprised, Lavanya used this opportunity to unzip Arnav's pants and slip her hand inside, stroking his member.
"That's ok if you haven't fucked her yet...you can fuck me all you want." Lavanya said, turned on by the feel of Arnav's member in her hand.
That brought Arnav out of his shocked state. He pushed Lavanya away from him, "What else is everybody saying?" Arnav demanded.
When Lavanya ignored him and tried to snake her hands around him again, Arnav pushed her against the wall and pinned her hands above her. "WHAT else are people saying?" Arnav demanded once again, anger evident on his features.
Lavanya rolled her eyes and replied, "People are saying different things, you were screwing her while you're wife was pregnant, you fell in love with her after your wife passed away. Wanna hear my favorite? They say you hate her. She's only a nanny for your kid. That's why we haven't even seen you guys together in public. So what's the point of staying faithful to her Arnav? You obviously don't want her...why would you? When you can have me..." Lavanya whispered seductively.
Arnav clenched his jaw, trying to get a hold on his temper. Yelling at Lavanya will not get her off his back. He knew how to deal with women like her.
"I'm glad you have it all figured out..." Arnav murmured, his voice becoming husky all of a sudden. Arnav's grip tightened on Lavanya's wrist and he pushed his lower half onto her. Lavanya moaned at the sensation.
"You like that don't you?" Arnav whispered, as he trailed his lips over her jawline.
"Oh...yes...yes" Lavanya moaned again, as she closed her eyes, feeling her lower regions getting wet.
"Want to know a secret...?" Arnav asked as his hot breath reached Lavanya's ear.
"What....?" She whispered, loving the feel of his hard body pressed against her.
Arnav leaned in, his lips hovering over Mahi's, barely touching. "I would choose to sleep with my wife over someone like you any day." Arnav snapped out, his tone taking on an icy edge, the soft seductive tone gone.
Lavanya opened her eyes, shocked. Not really sure what just happened as she saw Arnav let go of her and walk away. She let out a shrill scream for falling so easily into his charm. She forgot...Arnav was a well renowned playboy before he got married, leaving a trail of broken hearts behind him. A master...when it came to the art of seduction.
As she stomped away, neither of the two noticed a figure lurking in the shadows, who witnessed everything.
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Hello Readers!
Hope you enjoyed this part as well! Sorry for the wait...it's been pretty hectic in my life right now, but I will try my best to give more frequent updates. Hoping to post another chapter later today or tomorrow!
Always,
JC