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Veer looked furious and a little hurt by her words.
“Thank you for having such little faith in me, little sis,” he said bitterly.
“I haven’t forgotten how you treated Isha over the past few years, Veer,” she said severely. “This marriage probably seems very convenient to you right now, but if you dare to hurt my best friend, I’ll make you pay for the rest of your life.”
“Okay, why does everyone think Isha needs any of you to fight her battles?” he demanded. “That woman is capable of gutting me like a fish if I piss her off, so please stop with these ridiculous threats and congratulate us.”
“Later! First I want to speak to her alone,” ordered Diya.
Veer stared at her hard for a minute before he spoke.
“If my fiancée escapes out that window because of you, then you and I will have a serious problem, Diya,” he warned.
“Get in line, Veer,” she replied wearily. “A lot of people have a serious problem with me these days. And you’ll have to get through Dheer to get at me. Which means I’m safe.”
“Why does everyone believe I’d be scared of Dheer?” he asked in disgust. “I can take him any day!”
Diya and I burst into laughter and Veer looked insulted.
“What’s so funny?” he asked furiously. “Just because I’m not a beastly brute like he is…”
“Hey!” we both yelled before he could finish.
“I’ll impale you with this IV pole if you say mean things about my husband,” warned Diya.
“Blood-thirsty little cow,” he grumbled as he left the room in high dudgeon.
Diya waited until he was out of earshot before she turned a serious face to me.
“I mean it, Ish. You don’t have to marry a man who makes you feel less about yourself.”
“No one can make me feel less about myself without my permission anymore, Dee. And it’s only for a year. We’ll get an annulment after he takes oath as CM.”
She snorted loudly and rudely.
“I’ve seen the way that man looks at you. And knowing how you feel about him, I think it’s safe to say that there will be no annulment. You’ll have to get a divorce if you want to leave him. And I’m not sure you could even if you wanted to, Isha. I’m not sure you can walk away from him so easily,” she said worriedly.
“Watch me,” I replied defiantly.
I was so sick of everyone thinking that I would waste my life on a man who was largely responsible for my low self-esteem. I loved myself much more than that.
“Veer and I are using each other. This is a business proposition, Diya. Nothing more,” I insisted.
She sighed heavily and shook her head.
“Fine! But remember that Dheer and I will always be on your side. Don’t hesitate to walk away from the deal if Veer treats you like before.”
I hugged her tightly and forced a smile on my face.
“You need to get better soon because our families are already planning the wedding, and we need to put a hard stop to that,” I declared. “I refuse to indulge their wedding mania.”
The doctor promised to discharge her by evening, and a stern nurse chased Veer and me out of Diya’s room just before lunchtime.
The Mom brigade was waiting for us again. Veer’s mother seemed to have made her peace with Nandini Aunty and my mom. Or maybe she’d called for a temporary truce because she didn’t want to miss out on the wedding planning, but she smiled at me politely, and I decided to meet her halfway.
“If you want to be married soon, we have a lot of work, beta,” said my mother.
I held up a hand to stop her.
