Arranged by the Stars (19 page)

The dull ache in her head
was becoming more pronounced. “I didn’t want a big wedding.” In
fact she didn’t want a wedding at all. “Why are you doing this
Didi?”

“
This is a
dream come true. How can you not see that? This will give us
everything we have ever wanted.” Her gaze was so focused on Ash
that she was looking but not seeing.

“
Us? This
will give us what we’ve always wanted?” Was Kieran right? She
hadn’t wanted any of this.

Sushi shook her head and
smiled. “You. I’ve done everything for you, always. You know that.
Once you marry Alok, your future will be set and I can move on with
my life too.”

“
Didi, have I
been holding you back? Have you not married because of me?” Maybe
she was looking at this all wrong.

Sushi went to the outfits
at the end of the room and picked one up. It was a beautiful pink
sequenced gown. Ash had to wonder if her aunt had put her life on
hold for her.

“
No Ash. I
don’t blame you.” She let the linen slip through her fingers. “I do
want you to marry Alok because he can give you a life I never
had.”

The mehndi on her hands
would take hours to dry. She blew gently on the design. “Is that
enough Didi? Doesn’t love come into the equation
sometimes?”

Sushi’s gaze narrowed.
“Like your mother who chose love and paid for it?” Was her aunt
bitter over her mother’s choice?

They had never spoken of
it. It had always been a sore subject. “You never talk about Mama
and how you felt about her leaving.”

“
Your mother
was the Rani of our house. The princess, so when she chose your
father over her arranged partner, she should have been banished.”
Sushi flung the gown on the bed and walked towards Ash. “That’s
what should have happened. She should have left home. My father
should have disowned her.”

“
Didi, you
don’t mean that?” All these years, and she hadn’t realised that her
aunt lived with this hate inside her.

“
She was not
a perfect princess, she should have left. Even my mother thought
she should.” Sushi stopped in front of her. “You have her eyes.
Those eyes that all men fall for.”

She remembered her
mother’s eyes. Sometimes when she passed a mirror she’d see her
mother gaze back. “She fell in love, you can’t blame her for that.
She chose love over an arrangement.”

“
She ruined
it for all of us.” Her lips thinned and she sat next to Ash. “When
you break an arranged marriage, when a female breaks an arranged
marriage for another man, it’s a huge embarrassment for the
family.”

Ash felt a piercing pain
in her chest. She’d started this awful journey and was going to do
exactly what her mother did. “So what happened?”

“
Papa lost a
lot of money. He went bankrupt. No one wanted to do business with
him. They didn’t trust his word anymore.” Sushi’s gaze went to the
photo of her parent’s that hung in the room. “I wish they were
still here.”

“
I’m sorry.”
She placed her elbow on her aunt’s shoulder and was surprised when
she shrugged it off.

“
I don’t need
your pity.” She got up and went to the window. “I need you to keep
your word so history doesn’t repeat itself.”

*****

“
How long
have you had a fever?” Kieran noticed the rapid increase in
breathing as soon as the young man walked in the consulting room.
He didn’t like the flushed red cheeks or the increased heart rate
that accompanied the symptoms.

“
Since last
night,” the man said.

His gaze swept past his
father’s clock and went to the tongue depressors that were in a cup
holder at the edge of the desk. The very desk he once had to move
Ash off. He pushed the memory into the farthest corner of his mind
and focused on his patient. After making sure it wasn’t a sore
throat he started his examination.

“
I cut myself
a few days ago. It wasn’t deep, so I’ve been bandaging it myself.
It hurts every so often.” The man lifted up his left
hand.

Kieran unwrapped the
bandage. “This cut has become infected. We are going to have to
wash this out and we might have to cut out some of that dead
tissue.”

The patient went a little
pale at the mention of cut. “I don’t like needles.”

Why he was suddenly
wishing Ash were here, was beyond him. But he had to admit that she
did have a way with patients and calming them down when their world
was spinning out of control. “I don’t suppose your tetanus is up to
date?”

He stared at him blankly.
Kieran gave him a reassuring smile. “We need to sort this cut out
or you could lose your arm.” It wasn’t as poetic as Ash would have
made it sound, but hopefully it got his point across.

An hour later he was
sitting across from Latha trying very hard to ignore
her.

“
So you’re
still avoiding my questions. Why exactly are you here?” she asked
as she sipped her coffee.

He watched her over his
mug and sighed. It had been a week since he came back, hoping that
being here close to family would take away this ache inside him but
everywhere he looked reminded him of that green-eyed beauty that he
couldn’t stop dreaming of.

“
I don’t want
to talk about it.” He looked down at the journal article he was
reading and realised he was still reading the first paragraph and
nothing was making sense.

Latha sighed and then
threw a white and gold card on the table. “I take it this has
nothing to do with it?”

His gaze went to the
fancy invite on the table and his heart dropped to his belly. So it
was happening. He knew it was going to, but he didn’t think she
would actually go through with it. The card was expensive and his
hands itched to open it. To confirm once and for all if it was
really going to happen.

He knew Latha was
watching his every move. Like he was some sort of prey that she was
waiting to catch. “Did I ever tell you that men are
fools?”

His glazed look didn’t
even touch her. “More than once.”

He reached to take the
card from the table but she beat him to it and started reading the
details.

The wedding was in two
days.

Two days. What could he
do in two days?

Latha kicked him in the
shin. “Did Johnny ever tell you how many times he had to ask me to
marry him before I said yes?”

Why was she even talking
about this? “You two were meant for each other. You would have said
yes before he asked.”

She laughed and had that
distant look of longing in her eyes. The one he sometimes saw in
Ash’s.

“
Johnny’s
problem was he was always so sure I would say yes, that he never
made an effort. He assumed it would all fall into place.” She
leaned over and placed her cup on the table.

There it was again, woman
who never made sense. “I don’t understand.”

“
Why do you
love her?” She watched him intently.

The room became stuffy
and smaller. He pulled at his collar and his gaze went to the air
conditioning unit. Was it switched on? Why was Latha asking him
such a question?

He knew why he loved Ash.
There were a million different reasons and he could recite every
one of them. But not here, not now. Not with another
woman.

Latha ran her finger over
the rim of the coffee mug. “Did you ever tell her you loved her or
why?”

He shrugged. “She knows.
I love her more than anything in this world and I will do anything
and everything not to lose her.” Again, could she stop with the
questions?

“
Those are
just words. Words are something anyone can say.” She reached out
and took his hand. “In this world, words mean nothing. You and I
both know how short life can be. You need to do something
more.”

Kieran shook
his head. “It’s you who doesn’t understand. She didn’t choose me.
She chose him. Or was it the stars that chose. I don’t know. All I
know is that this hurts like hell.”
And I
don’t want to discuss it with you
. His
chin dropped.

She shrugged. “Then
you’re both fools.”

“
You want to
what?” Rohan looked from one to the other as his body shook with
laughter.

Latha punched him in the
arm and then pulled back and shook her hand. “What do you have
under your clothes? Rocks?”

Rohan dismissed her with
his superior glance and focused on Kieran. “Mate, I know we go way
back, but kidnapping?”

Kieran knew he sounded
like a lunatic, even to his own ears it sounded wrong. He was out
of ideas and he knew how stubborn Ash was. Only a whacky idea like
this would get her attention and make her see that she was being
unreasonable. Maybe it wouldn’t but at least it would give him time
to think of another plan. “I will take full
responsibility.”

“
Jail time?”
Rohan raised an eyebrow.

He was hoping it wouldn’t
come to that. If she’d listen to him then he wouldn’t have to worry
about anything. He’d tried but her aunt refused to let him speak to
her. All he needed was to reason with her. All the letters and
flowers he sent to her came back to him. “I’m out of
options.”

Latha came between them.
“I don’t think it will come to that. I know she likes him. I don’t
know what she sees in him, but I know he can stop this wedding. He
needs a chance to talk to her.”

He elbowed Latha out of
the way. “Thanks for the vote of confidence. I have this bad
feeling her aunt is keeping her prisoner until the wedding. She
isn’t answering her phone and I’ve spoken to her friends from
nursing school. A week ago, she stopped all contact with
them.”

Rohan shrugged. “I’m
going to be the first to tell you this. You sound desperate. It
could be she’s busy preparing for her wedding. Did you see that
show called Bridezillas? Mate, those women are screwed up.” He
opened the local newspaper and showed him the article on the
upcoming wedding. “This is said to be quite an event. She would be
planning the wedding of her dreams.”

Kieran shook his head. “I
don’t buy it. Alok doesn’t like a lot of people around or lots of
fuss.”

Latha placed her hands on
her hips. “Now you’re friends with the bridegroom? I am finding it
hard to keep up.”

His fingers curled into
fists at his side. “Something is not right here. Ash wouldn’t want
a wedding this big.”

Latha shoved her hands
into her hair. “Are you saying that she wouldn’t want a fairy tale
wedding? Every girl wants a wedding like a princess.”

He paused and remembered
Ash’s comment about Lady Diana. But this didn’t sound like her.
“No, this is not Ash. I know it’s not.”

Latha placed her hands on
his shoulders. “Okay then, let’s do this. I’m in. Let’s save Ash
whatever it takes.”

Kieran placed his hand on
Latha’s. “Thank you.”

“
I was buried
alive with her, it’s like we’re sisters.” She squeezed his
hand.

*****

When they walked in to
rescue Ash this time, there were no camouflage suits or painted
faces. Kieran followed Rohan and Latha into the large house, which
was decorated with lights and colour. He couldn’t help thinking
that this should have been his day.

He straightened the
outfit he wore and took blessings from the elders who were at the
entrance. In such an extravagant affair, it was doubtful that Sushi
would ask him to leave. If she did, he had the wedding invite
tucked in his pocket and was ready to make a scene if the need
arose.

The media didn’t
exaggerate about how big this event was, Sushi had spared no
expense to make sure that this was a wedding to be talked
about.

“
Well Dr
Kanna, I don’t remember your name on the invite list?” Sushi
stepped up from behind him.

Rohan and Latha were both
circulating among the crowd, waiting for a chance to talk to
Ash.

Kieran took his time
selecting a treat from a tray in from of them before he answered
her. “I do have an invite in my pocket if you’d like to
see?”

She smiled at someone in
the distance. “No need. She will marry Alok today. I don’t think
there is anything you can do or say that can make any
difference.”

Kieran pointed to the
garlands and the dancers who were entertaining the guests. “This
isn’t her style, aunty.”

Sushi straightened her
spine and narrowed her gaze. “My niece is going to marry one of the
richest men in the city. Nothing will stop that.”

Was that a hint of fear
he saw in her eyes? “Is that why you didn’t pass on my letters or
flowers?”

Sushi’s laugh reminded
him of a high-pitched hyena’s cry. “What made you think it was me
who returned those to you?”

He watched her walk away
before his gaze searched upstairs. Ash was up there, in one of
those rooms. Getting ready to come down. He balked at the idea of
her being nervous and happy about the wedding. He couldn’t grasp
the concept of her marrying anyone but him.