"Annika...I am okay, it's just...a small cut." Shivaay tried to pacify a disturbed Annika as she cleaned the blood off his finger.
"I know it's small." Annika nodded and applied some ointment carefully. "But it won't hurt to put a band aid, would it?"
"No." He shook his head and she quickly wrapped a band aid around his wounded finger. "Thanks."
She just nodded and closed the first aid box to put it back before going to the small store room behind and getting a broom to clean the glass shards and the blood drops on the floor.
"Let me do that." Shivaay said and took the broom from her as she sighed and quickly cleaned the floor.
"Thanks." She said and he nodded as the front door opened. Eva entered the office with two drinks in her hand and a smile on her face.
"What a lovely day, though it's a bit chilly outside." She said and walked in. "Here's your coffee Ma'am. Sorry I am a bit late, the queue at the café was long and slow."
"It's okay. Get to work." Annika nodded and left for her cabin as Eva frowned.
"Is she fine?" She asked Shivaay and he shrugged. "Okay, can you get me a file named Davis-Carter from that shelf?"
Shivaay nodded as he went to the directed shelf and found the asked file.
"This is-
"For an upcoming wedding, next week. VIP clients, groom is a businessman, bride is a lawyer. Both are really nice people." Eva informed and Shivaay nodded. "But they are just consulting us, the wedding is actually in America."
"What?" Shivaay frowned as Eva opened the file. "The wedding is in America and they are consulting an England-based event planner?"
"Well, what can I say? Ma'am is just too good." Eva grinned. "Actually, the groom's friend was our client last year and recommended us. So they visited us six months ago for some consultations and really liked our work."
"That's amazing." Shivaay smiled. "I mean...this is amazing."
"I know right? We have been getting so many calls from America lately, Ma'am is even thinking of opening an office there. But it's just an idea." Eva shrugged but Shivaay could see the excitement in her eyes. "Don't tell her I told you that."
"No, I won't." He chuckled. "That's so great!"
Eva nodded before she started her work. Shivaay just sat there as he wondered about Annika's progress in her business and he felt immensely proud of his...ex-wife. A hugely successful event-management company in England, the most coveted restaurant in London, an upcoming chain of cafes and now a whole new office in another country? And all this in just four years?
And he wondered, would she had been able to do all this if she was in India, with him? Probably not. Not that he wouldn't have let her or anything but he knew that if she was still his wife in Mumbai, she would have been just too busy in being a wife, a daughter-in-law and a sister-in-law. Even if she had started her own work, she could never imagine to leave her family behind or give work more importance over family. Her decisions would always be focused around her large family.
But when she came here, she only had two things to focus on. Sahil and her future. And how greatly she had managed to climb that ladder of success, both, in her personal and professional lives. She had found herself an amazing group of friends, which were more of a family to her than the Oberois ever were. And a perfect daughter. And her business was going amazingly well. He was never so proud of anyone, except when Rudra had joined the business three years ago.
"Shivaay?" Eva called him and he looked up, breaking from his reverie. "Are you alright?"
"Yes. Yes, I am okay, I was just...thinking something." He cleared his throat and nodded.
"Okay, please make a schedule chart for this function." Eva said and gave him a piece of paper.
"Yeah." Shivaay nodded and opened his laptop to start working.
A few hours and six clients later, Shivaay looked up when the office doors were opened again, only to see his brothers and sisters-in-law enter.
"Hey guys, you had an appointment today?" He asked with a frown.
"Yes." Soumya nodded as Eva came up to them.
"You are the twelve-pm appointment? Oberois for the baby shower?" She asked and Rudra shrugged as he pointed to his wife's swollen belly. Eva chuckled as she nodded and led them inside Annika's cabin.
Annika looked up as Soumya and Rudra walked in and smiled.
"Hi, where are Gauri and Om?" She asked with a frown and Soumya pointed outside. Annika saw them sitting on a couch on the other side of the glass partition talking to Shivaay.
"Eva, get me their file." Annika said pointing to the couple sitting in front of her. "And tell them that I will talk to them after this meeting." She said, now pointing to Omkara and Gauri.
"Yes Ma'am." Eva nodded and left.
"So, how is Rumya?" Annika asked with a grin.
"She's absolutely fine." Soumya said and Rudra gave a thumbs up as Eva walked in and gave him their file.
"Shall we start? I have some suggestions and you can join too." She grinned and Rudra stopped her.
"Wait, I also want to consult Bhaiyaa. Can I call him inside please?" He asked with a pout and Annika looked at him for a minute before nodding.
"Okay...if you...want to." She said and Rudra was already calling Shivaay.
Annika sighed as Shivaay entered her cabin with a frown and when Rudra indicated him to sit down, his frown became deeper.
"What?" He asked and Rudra smiled.
"We want to consult you...for our baby shower." Rudra said and winked at Shivaay.
"Okay?" Shivaay frowned yet again as Annika cleared her throat.
"Okay, let's start." She said and opened the file. "We have a list of venues, it will depend upon how many people you are inviting, a list of themes, different shades of pink whichever you like the most, a list of decorations like only balloons or streamers or little soft toys or pink flowers etc, three types of menus, vegan, vegetarian and non-vegetarian, non-alcoholic drinks, seven types of invites or you can have them customized but it'll take a week for that, twenty-five game options if you want that, fourteen ideas for take-home bags that can have little toys, candies, scented candles, tiny perfumes, aroma soaps or you can customize that too. Have a look." She said and handed them the file as they looked at her in amazement.
"Wow, you are good!" Rudra exclaimed and Annika chuckled.
"Well, I have to be. It's my job." She answered and they nodded and chose what they liked.
"What about the cake?" Soumya asked and Annika nodded.
"Yes, I have talked to seven bakeries, they make delicious and very healthy cakes." She said and Rudra chuckled.
"Cakes and healthy? How's that possible?" He said and Annika smirked.
"Well, they make sugar-free, low carb cakes, they use fresh fruits, traditional ingredients, they use milk alternatives, which are quite low in calories compared to cow milk, like almond milk, soy milk, coconut milk, rice milk etc." Annika explained and Rudra just nodded slowly.
"Wow, you are really good." He said slowly and Annika laughed.
"Thank you. If you want, I can give you a copy of this file and you can take it back with you to the hotel. You have two days to decide everything." Annika informed and Soumya nodded.
"Yes, that'll be great!" She said and looked at Rudra. "I really wanted Mumma's advice on this."
"Eva!" Annika called and her assistant came rushing in. "Give them a copy of their file and tell that couple to come."
Soon, Annika's cabin was full of Oberois, a setting she had never seen coming. Annika gets Omkara and Gauri's file and soon, after another successful meeting, the Oberois leave, except Shivaay.
"Annika." He says before leaving the cabin.
"Yes?" She asks, looking up from a file.
"Thank you...for all this. Soumya and Rudra are very excited about their baby shower and Gauri and Om really deserve this amazing celebration to their marriage, all thanks to you." He said genuinely and Annika smiled tightly.
"It's my pleasure, it makes me immensely happy to see them happy. After all, they are my family too." She said and Shivaay looked at her. "I mean...they are like my family."
She said and looked away, focusing on the file in front of her and Shivaay just nodded, his chest hurting a bit at her words.