AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Veer, hear me out,” she began, but I held up a hand and she stopped talking.
“Do you know what will happen when we don’t get married within a month? Raman Chandel will tear up my nomination papers and make sure no party ever gives me a ticket. My people will lose their homes for good, Isha! And the mafia will take over the whole state. All because you did not think before you made that tall claim. What the fuck is wrong with you?”
The last question came out on a shout and she flinched at the fury in my face and voice.
Just when I thought she was about to burst into tears, Isha stood up and poked me in the chest with a pointy finger.
“Don’t you yell at me, Ranveer Sisodia! You should be on your knees, thanking me for saving your sorry ass,” she exclaimed.
I stared at her blankly because I didn’t know if I was stuck in some alternate universe or if she was off her rocker.
“How did you save my ass? You just postponed the inevitable, Isha. And when Chandel Sahab realises that we won’t be getting married anytime soon, it will only make matters worse.”
Isha looked into the distance and mumbled something.
“I beg your pardon?” I asked, leaning forward.
She met my eyes fleetingly and looked away again.
“Just hear me out, okay?” she begged. “No matter what you believe, you do need a wife to fix your image. And if I don’t find a husband within a month, I will lose my dream house forever.”
“You’re not serious?” I asked weakly.
Isha nodded firmly.
“I’m dead serious, Veer. I have no other options left. I need a husband. And you can delude yourself all you like but no amount of social work will get you as many votes as your wife campaigning for you. Especially when that wife happens to be a princess who helped her brother fight the mafia that control these lands. When Bhai Sa would go hunting drug dealers and gun runners, I would deal with the aftermath of the bloodshed in the village and make sure the villagers had enough food and medicines.”
I grabbed Isha by the shoulders and forced her to meet my eyes.
“Isha, do you really want to marry me? After everything that’s happened between us?”
She flushed uncomfortably and pushed my hands away.
“Not forever,” she clarified.
“What do you mean?”
“I’m proposing a temporary marriage of convenience that works to both our advantage. If we get married within a month, I can claim my inheritance. I’ll help you campaign for the elections, and we stay married until you take oath as the CM, and then get a quiet annulment. We’ll only have to be married for a year or so.”
A slow fury started building in me as I stared down at her. Only be married for a year? Did she even know what that meant?
“What if I’m involved with someone else? Did you stop to consider that?”
Isha went pale as she thought about it, but then she flushed with anger and punched me in the shoulder lightly.
“If you’re already involved with someone else, you had no right to touch me the way you did the other night,” she said furiously.
Of course, I wouldn’t have touched her if I had been involved with someone. But she didn’t know that and I enjoyed watching her squirm with guilt. She studied me for a moment and then raised an eyebrow imperiously.
“Well? Are you dating anyone?” she demanded.
“No,” I admitted.
“Then what’s the problem?”
“The problem is that I don’t want to get married at all! Not even temporarily,” I yelled.
“Well, guess what, Laajwanti? Neither do I,” she yelled back. “But Gulab Mahal matters the world to me, and if I have to sacrifice one year of my life to achieve my dream, I will do it. What’s the worst thing you’re willing to do to achieve yours?”
