Aman smirked as he drew his wife closer.  Priya looked down.  Her eyes then flickered down to his lips and then back to his eyes.  Aman watched her, studying her to try to figure out is she was ready to kiss a man for the first time.  She seemed to be showing no signs of resistance, so Aman assumed she was alright.  He had decided he was going to kiss her.  

Suddenly, Aman’s phone rang.  At first, he didn’t move, determined to go through with the kiss.  However, when Priya took a step back, away from him, he concluded that the moment had indeed been ruined.  He lifted his phone out of his pocket and answered it.  

“Hello.” Aman said, irritation apparent in his tone, “Your timing is perfect as usual.” he continued.  He glanced over at Priya, who gave him a small smile.  

As Aman continued his phone conversation, Priya went towards the door.  She decided to give him some privacy.  When she re-entered Payal’s room, she was bombarded with questions.

“What did Jija-ji think? Did he like it?  What did he say? Why did you wrap your sari that way?” Payal asked quickly.  

“Payal.” Priya said calmly, trying to get Payal to pause so that she could answer her many questions.

“He thought it was nice. I’m sure he liked it, but it’s better worn this way.” Priya concluded.

Payal looked at her with her lips pursed together, as if she was thinking hard about something.

“Didi,” she started, “do you think I can dance with a boy tonight?”

“What?” Priya asked incredulously. “What on earth made you think about dancing with boys at this moment?”

“I don’t know.  I look nice. Do you think a boy would dance with me? And I don’t mean bhangra, dandiya dancing. I mean slow dancing.” Payal said with  a dreamy expression on her face.  

“No.  Baba wouldn’t approve and neither do I.” said Priya firmly.  She’d never slow danced with anyone until after she got married.  She thought back to the time she and Aman danced together and smiled to herself.

“Oh come on, Didi! Just one dance!” Payal begged.  

Aman knocked on the door.  Priya answered it.  

“It’s time to get going or we’ll be late.” he said.  

The three piled into one of Aman’s stretch limos and made their way to the nightclub.  The nightclub was in the city, so the drive took a little while.  Throughout the ride, Payal busied herself by going through all of the contents in the mini fridge, and then after that, pressing all of the buttons in plain view to see what they did.  Priya tried telling her to sit still, but Payal was too excited about the party to sit still. Aman watched them, amused at Payal’s childish behavior.  He knew she’d never really been in a limo before. Her father preferred traveling in his imported, black Rolls Royce rather than a limo.  

Finally, they arrived at the nightclub.  Bright lights spilled out of the building from all sides.  Young women dressed in tight, bright dresses lined the outside of the building, waiting to be let in.  Couples stood close, drinking in hand, deeply conversing with one another.  Blaring, upbeat music from inside filled the street as the limo pulled up right in front of the building.  

Priya looked on with a shocked expression on her face.  She looked up at Aman questioningly.  

“The rules of the nightclub prevent the entire venue from being rented out for a private event.  The entire back of the building is where our party is.” he explained.  

“We have to go through all of this?” Priya said, referring to the wild scene before her.  

“Yeah, but it’ll be quick though.” Aman said.  

He started into the crowd.  Aman stopped to present what looked like an invitation to the bouncer, who after seeing it, allowed them to pass through without having to wait in the long line.  The inside wasn’t as crowded as Priya had expected.  She and Payal were overdressed compared to everyone else.  Priya eyed the dance floor, where couples were grinding their bodies so closely to each that Priya had to look away.  Payal followed Priya’s gaze towards the dance floor. She watched on, wide eyed and curious, at the way the young couples were dancing.  Meanwhile, Aman had stopped to greet some of his friends, who were on their way to the party but got distracted by the nightclub ambience.  

“Hiten!” Aman exclaimed, elated to see his best friend.   

“Hey! So I hear the party is some boring formal shit.” Hiten replied, as engulfed Aman in one of those brief man hugs.  

“It’s an anniversary party.  What were you expecting? This?” Aman asked, gesturing the to wild party occurring on the dance floor.  

“Let’s ditch and just stay here.” Hiten suggested.  

“You couldn’t convince me on the phone, and you can’t convince me here.  I think we should get going to that party.” Aman said, as he turned to see a disgusted look on Priya’s face as she watched the dirty dancing going on all around her.  

“Fine!” Hiten whined. He followed Aman to the back of the nightclub, Priya and Payal right behind them.  Aman and Hiten continued chatting as they passed through a long hallways, leading to the room where the party was.  Payal couldn’t get over the nightclub scene and kept blabbering to Priya about how they should’ve just stayed there.  

“Happy Anniversary, Nikhil!” Aman greeted as Nikhil and Neha made their way towards the four of them.  

“Thanks, man. It’s been a great five years.” Nikhil joked.  

Priya looked on in surprise.  Aman hadn’t told her that this party was for Neha and Nikhil’s wedding anniversary.  Neha made her way over the girls to greet them.

“Happy anniversary, Neha.  Sorry, I had no idea.” Priya said as Neha hugged her.  

“Aman never was one to correctly relay information.”Neha replied, giving Aman a playful look.  “Payal! Nice dress. Wow! I’m surprised.” Neha commented.  

“Isn’t it great?  I wish I could wear the clothes you wear though. I’d never be able to pull any of it off.” Payal pouted.  

Neha erupted in laughter.  She was dressed in a one shoulder, sequin clubbing dress that reached just above her knees.  She thought it was funny how a teenage girl was jealous of what a thirty year old woman could pull off.  

Priya observed her surroundings as Neha and Payal talked.  It was a lot more mellow than the vibe outside.  No one was dancing yet, and everyone was dressed semi-formally.  The ambience seem a lot lighter than the party she had first been to, and she was grateful to see a lot more people around their age.  She watched as Aman, Hiten, and  Nikhil happily conversed with each other.  Priya began to feel a little out of place.  She tried to pay attention to what Neha and Payal were talking about, but she found that she was unable to relate to the latest fashion trends that dominated their discussion.  Finally, Priya just decided to take a seat at one of the empty tables in the corner.  

“Hey beautiful.” a masculine voice commented from behind Priya.  She turned around and was met with Rakesh Sehgal’s smirking face.   She ignored his comment.  

“What’s the matter? Don’t wanna talk to me?” he asked, taking a seat beside her.  

Priya didn’t answer.  She didn’t want to seem rude, but something about Rakesh made her feel suspicious as if his intentions were always awry.  The way Aman had described Rakesh’s character made Priya feel uneasy when she was around him.  

“You look beautiful this evening.  Where’s that sister of yours?  She’s sure a chirpy little girl.  I’m sure she’s more than excited to be here. I just might make her night a little more interesting and ask her to dance.” Rakesh said slyly.  

“Don’t talk about my sister.” Priya said angrily.  

“You know, Priya, you’re right.  Why waste time with a child when there’s a beautiful woman sitting right next to me?” Rakesh eyed her desirably.  

Priya looked away.  Rakesh disgusted her. How dare he call Payal a child! And how dare he try to make advances on a married woman!  She desperately wished Rakesh would leave her alone or someone would come to her rescue.  

“You know, Priya, it’s a good thing my marriage with Payal didn’t work out. If I could have my pick of the Malhotra girls, my choice would’ve been you. It’s a shame Aman got you first.” Rakesh said.  

Priya’s eyes widened.  She couldn’t hide her shock.  He’d known about the marriage all along! He just lied to Aman about it.  

At that moment, Aman, Payal, Nikhil, Neha, and Hiten joined them.  Aman took the seat on Priya’s other side while Payal sat between Aman and Neha.  The others crowded around the table.  

“So what’s going on here?” asked Aman, irritated that Rakesh was talking to Priya.  

“Nothing. Just getting a little more acquainted with your wife.” Rakesh said innocently.  

Aman looked at Priya, hoping she’d give him a sign that Rakesh was bothering her.  Priya, however, hadn’t yet recovered from what Rakesh said about knowing about his marriage and didn’t notice Aman’s eyes on her.  

The group fell into jovial conversation.  A little while later, Neha and Nikhil excused themselves.  They had to make the rounds and greet the rest of the guests.  Hiten turned his attention to a group of supposedly single women sitting at the adjacent table.  

“What do you think?” Hiten asked Aman.  

“Hiten, don’t. Not here.” Aman chided.  

“I have to.” Hiten replied with mock seriousness.  

Payal and Priya looked on in confusion.  

“He’s going to over there and flirt.” Aman explained.  

“Ooohh with which one?” Payal asked, suddenly interested.  

“All of them.” Hiten declared smugly, “Let’s see which one wants me.” Hiten continued, grinning.  

Payal giggled as Hiten walked off in the direction of the table full of women.  Aman rolled his eyes.  Hiten would never change.  

Couples began to make their way to the dance floor.  A slow song started.  Payal watched the couples dreamily, wishing someone would ask her to dance.  Rakesh had his eyes glued to Priya, who was effectively ignoring him.  Aman had his attention on Hiten, trying to see which girl would slap him first.  

“Didi, go dance.” Payal mouthed to Priya.

Priya vehemently shook her head.  Aman’s attention wasn’t even on her or on dancing.  

Priya’s eyes wandered over to Nikhil and Neha, who looked so in love as they swayed in each other’s arms on the dance floor.  She looked at Payal, who had also shifted her attention to the celebrating couple.  Priya glanced in Aman’s direction to find his gaze fixed on her.  Her eyes looked questioningly at him.  Aman opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by Hiten, who had coming rushing back in desperate need of Aman’s help.  

“Aman! I need you to be my wingman!” Hiten cried as he grabbed Aman’s arm, trying to get to stand up and go with him.

“Hiten. I can’t” Aman said, glancing at Priya.

Hiten caught on.  

“Bhabhi! Bhabhi, please let Aman come. He’s just going to tell the girls how awesome I am. Don’t worry, I’ll keep an eye on him. I’ll make sure he’s not flirting.” Hiten pleaded.  

“Okay.” Priya wasn’t sure what else to say. She wasn’t sure what the duties of a wingman included, but she was confident that Aman was not about to go off and flirt with other women.  

“Yes! Come one, Bhabhi has given her permission.” Hiten practically dragged Aman with him.  Aman gave Priya an apologetic look as Hiten pulled him along.  

Payal burst into a fit of laughter as she watched her brother-in-law being dragged away by Hiten.  Even Rakesh cracked a smile at the sight.  Rakesh again fixed his gaze on Priya. It looked like he wanted to say something to her, but something was stopping him.  

A young man, around Priya’s age maybe a year or two younger, cautiously walked up to their table.  He was Indian and seemed really nice.  He was very shy from what Priya could tell.  He kept his gaze on the floor only glancing up once in a while as he spoke.  

“Excuse me, my name is Rajiv and  you’re really pretty.  Would you mind if I asked you to dance with me?” said the boy quietly.  

Payal looked at him in shock. Someone was asking her to dance.  Not only that, a boy was asking her to slow dance with him!  Rajiv gained enough confidence to look up at Payal, expecting her to decline.  Payal smiled at him, but turned to Priya.  

“Please Didi.” she begged quietly.  

Priya looked at Rajiv again.  He seemed decent.  She nodded, giving Payal permission to go and dance.  

“I’d love to!” Payal exclaimed.  

Rajiv smiled, half surprised that she actually accepted.  Payal immediately stood up, grabbed his arm and pulled him out to the dance floor.  Priya watched as Rajiv shied away from putting his hand on her waist.  Payal took his hand and forcefully place it there. Then she lifted his chin so that their eyes met.  She began animatedly talking with him.  Priya noticed that most of Rajiv’s responses were nods and smiles, but he looked happy to be dancing with Payal.  Priya couldn’t help but smile at Payal’s forward demeanor.  She was always the confident one.  

“Priya,” Rakesh said, breaking Priya’s attention away from Payal and Rajiv.  

She noticed that they were the only left at the table.  This observation made her uneasy.   

“Priya, I need to talk to you.” Rakesh said sincerely.  

Priya ignored him.

“Please, it’s important and it’s about Payal.” Rakesh requested again.  

“Fine. Talk.” said Priya curtly.

“Not here.  Come with me.” Rakesh stood up and waited her Priya to do the same.  

Priya hesitantly stood up.  She motioned to Payal that she was going outside, but she wasn’t sure if Payal was paying attention to her or was too focused on Rajiv.  Priya followed Rakesh down the same hallway that led back to the rowdy part of the nightclub.  Right before they entered the nightclub area, Rakesh suddenly turned and went inside another room.  It was dark inside and there were only a few chairs stacked in a corner.  It looked like a large storage room to Priya.  She hesitated before stepping inside.  It seemed like a pretty unusual place to have a conversation.  

Rakesh flipped on the lights.  Once Priya was inside, he closed the door but didn’t lock it, which left Priya a little more at ease.  

“I knew about the marriage. I just didn’t tell Aman I knew.” Rakesh admitted.

“Why?” Priya asked, genuinely curious.  

“Because I don’t want to get married. And if I do get married, it’s not going to be to some child from India.” Rakesh said.  

“Don’t say that about Payal.” Priya said sternly.  

“She’s too young, and I had no intention of ever marrying her.” Rakesh continued.  

“Had no intention? Now what are your intentions?” she asked.

“I’m gonna marry her.” Rakesh said simply.  

“What? Why? You just said you didn’t want to.” Priya asked, concerned.  

“I have to. The deal is too lucrative an offer to turn down.” Rakesh said.  He walked closer to Priya, but kept a sizeable distance between them.  

“What deal?” Priya asked.

“It’s complicated.  It’s based on a series of alliances between some of India’s most prominent businessmen.  Eventually, several companies specializing in different things will come together to make a large corporation that will monopolize the business industry in India and abroad.  These marriages are ways of guaranteeing trust.  This way everything stays in the family.” Rakesh explained.  

“My father is a part of this?” questioned Priya in shock.  

“Yes, as well as Aman’s.” Rakesh replied.  

“Does Aman know about all this?” she asked, hoping the answer would be no.  

“I’m sure he’s aware of what is going on, but I doubt he knows all the details. These big businessmen try to keep their children in the dark about their ulterior motives.” Rakesh replied.  

“How do you know all of this then?” Priya asked.  She could feel herself growing angry.  

“My parents died a few years ago. I’m the only handling my empire now.  I chose to get involved in this.”  Rakesh said.  

“Why would you do that?  You would willingly marry someone just because of a business deal? Aren’t you even concerned about having happy married life?” Priya asked.  She was repulsed at how selfish Rakesh was being.  

“Money talks.  All of these children of these businessmen know that after they get married, they will have all the money they could ever dream of.  It’s all a sham.  Legally, these men become family so there’s  a safety net for all of their business ventures.  We all know that even after marriage, most of their children will continue doing whatever they want with whoever they want. My lifestyle will become more luxurious. I’ll have so much money, I won’t know what to do with it all. Even Aman agreed to marry you because he just couldn’t turn down the offer.  Do you really think he cares about you?  He’s just putting up with you so that nothing disrupts the flow of his profits.” Rakesh said maliciously.  

Priya felt tears sting her eyes.  That wasn’t true.  Aman was sincere. He was always nice to her and treated her well.  She had never seen him so much as speak to another woman since they’d gotten married.  

“I intend to be the same way.” Rakesh interrupted her thoughts.  

“What way?” Priya asked.  

“After I marry Payal, I intend to do as I please. Husband or not, I am a man first.  And men are animals.” Rakesh said seductively.  

“Y-you can’t. Payal will be devastated.”  Priya said.  

“Not my problem.  We’ll be husband and wife by name only, not by relation.  She can even spend her nights with that young man who has recently caught her fancy is she wants.  I won’t mind.” Rakesh said.

Priya wanted to slap him.  How dare he! She controlled her anger.  She was grateful that she was so level headed and thought about her actions before going through with them.  Hitting Rakesh would only make things worse.  

“No wonder Aman was so against this marriage.  You’re not a good person at all.”  Priya declared.  

“Oh Priya, what made you think I was a good person?” Rakesh asked.  He had an evil look in his eyes.  

Rakesh walked towards the door.  Priya was relieved.  She thought he was going to leave and their conversation was over.  Instead however, he turned the latch and locked the door.  He then dimmed the lights before turning back towards Priya.  

“What are you doing?” she asked, afraid of his intentions.  

“Priya, I must admit, I’d much rather have married you.  To have way with you would be absolute heaven.” Rakesh said.  He took a few steps toward Priya.  His eyes bore into her as she stepped back.  

“It’s so unfortunate that Aman was the lucky one.  Hell, if you were my wife, I might have even remained faithful for some time.” Rakesh stopped suddenly.  

He looked at Priya, but didn’t move any closer.  He stood still as if thinking about something.  Priya didn’t dare move.  

“If you were my wife, could you imagine how our honeymoon would be?” Rakesh asked.  

He didn’t move any closer, but Priya still felt threatened.  She didn't reply.

“No?” Rakesh asked, “Should I show you?” He said maliciously.

He quickly closed the distance between himself and Priya, perching himself right in front of her at only an arm's length away.  Rakesh grabbed at the end of Priya’s sari and began to  tug.  Priya resisted, holding onto it tightly.  He refused to let go and pulled harder.  

“No! Don’t!” She yelled.  She began to scream for help, but her voice was drowned out by the loud music coming from either side of the hallway.  

So intense, right? Totally didn’t mean to have so much Rakesh in there, but it is what it is. What’s going to happen to poor Priya? Does anyone else kinda sorta hate Rakesh?  What do you guys think about Rajiv?  Is he Payal’s type? Biggest question of all:Where is Aman???!!!

That second sari on the righ side (the bluish one) is how Aman thought she should wear her sari last chapter.  See how everything is covered. Oh Priya, so traditional haha.

Lemme know what you think of this chapter! Finals are going on. Be thankful I actually updated. Break is coming up, which means frequent updates for all you wonderful fans! :)  

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