A Bargain Made with Frosting

Ch-32. Uneasy Reunion: Past and Present Collide at the Party

The sudden intrusion of Rohit shattered the tense air. Natasha's smile evaporated, replaced by a glacial glare.

"Rohit," she spat, her voice laced with venom. "This is Annika, Shivay's wife."

Rohit's jaw slackened in disbelief. "Annika? Shivay's wife? But how?"

A jolt of recollection struck him. Annika had mentioned coming to Oberoi Industries to meet her husband. In his arrogance, he'd assumed it was some ordinary employee, a world away from the powerful figure standing before him.

"Yes," Annika confirmed, her voice laced with curiosity. "I am Mrs. Oberoi. But how do you know each other?"

Before Rohit could stammer out a reply, Shivay, returning from his successful meeting with Mr. Jackson, boomed across the room. Relief and triumph colored his voice.

"Annika, let me introduce you both properly," he declared. "Since it seems there's a bit of a misunderstanding about the... relationships at play here."

Shivay's arms snaked around Annika's waist, pulling her gently into his embrace. "Annika, this is Rohit Oberoi," he introduced, his voice warm, "my stepbrother. And Rohit," his gaze flicked to Annika, "this is Annika, my wife. Your Bhabhi," he stressed the term, a hint of possessiveness lacing his tone.

He then turned to Annika, his concern evident. "Have you eaten anything yet, love? Let's grab a bite to eat."

Annika, surprised by the sudden introduction and touch, could only manage a small smile. "No, I haven't actually."

Taking her response as a cue, Shivay offered his arm. "Then shall we? The dining area should still be serving."

Annika slipped her hand into the crook of his arm, a familiar warmth spreading through her.

As Shivay and Annika walked away, Rohit and Natasha remained rooted to the spot, their expressions stormy with a mix of anger and jealousy.

Natasha slammed her fist against a nearby table. "This is unbelievable! I will not let them be happy together," she spat, her voice tight with frustration. "Shivay will be mine, one way or another."

Rohit, his eyes narrowed, mirrored her determination. "Absolutely. We can't have them flaunting their happiness. We need a plan. Something to break them apart and get what we each want. You get Shivay, and I get Annika."

A dangerous glint flickered in Natasha's eyes as she considered Rohit's proposition. "We need something concrete," she said, her voice laced with cunning. 

Rohit stroked his chin thoughtfully. "An opportunity to create a misunderstanding, perhaps? We need to manipulate a situation that will plant a seed of doubt in Shivay's mind."

A slow, malicious smile spread across Natasha's face. "We need to be clever.  Something that will look genuine on Annika's part, but have a sinister explanation when revealed to Shivay."

Their eyes met, a spark of shared deviousness passing between them.  They huddled closer, whispering their plans in hushed tones, the clinking of silverware and murmur of conversation around them fading into a distant background hum as they plotted their next move.

In the warm glow of the dining area, Shivay and Annika sat across from each other, digging into their dinner. But a question gnawed at Shivay, and finally, he couldn't hold it back any longer.

"Annika," he began, "I've been wondering. You were supposed to come back tomorrow morning. What brought you here early? And how did you even know about this party?"

Annika put down her fork, a furrow appearing on her brow. "Well, originally, I was coming back tomorrow. But since this morning, I had this unsettling feeling, like something wasn't right. I tried to ignore it for a while, but it wouldn't go away."

She recounted her efforts to check on everyone – the bakery, Dadi, Om, Rudra, and Priyanka. Each call yielded nothing unusual. "Then I tried calling you," she continued, "but your phone kept going straight to voicemail or you weren't responding to messages."

Concern laced her voice. "Finally, I reached Mishra. He seemed off when I questioned your whereabouts. After some pressing, he spilled about this party and the situation you were in – all because of me. Why didn't you tell me, Shivay?"

Shivay reached across the table, his hand gently hovering over hers. "I just… I didn't want to burden you, Annika.  Remember when you said you didn't want me to reveal our marriage yet?  So…"

Annika's sigh held a hint of exasperation. "Shivay," she said, her voice firm but laced with affection, "I told you once – if things get urgent, you can absolutely introduce me as your wife.  Don't you see me as your wife?"

Shivay was taken aback. Hearing "Shivay" instead of her usual "Mr. Oberoi" sent a jolt through him. A slow smile spread across his face, warmth blooming in his chest.

"Annika," Shivay replied, his voice regaining its usual confidence, a hint of amusement dancing in his eyes. "You never cease to amaze me. Here you are, worried sick about me, and yet you manage to put on this brave facade." He squeezed her hand gently. "But to answer your question, yes, of course I consider you my wife. You're the strongest, most amazing woman I know."

Annika blushed slightly under his gaze.  "Well," she countered playfully, "someone has to keep you grounded, Mr. Oberoi." A teasing smile tugged at her lips.

Just then, Shivay's phone buzzed in his pocket. He glanced at the screen, his expression shifting slightly.  Excusing himself with an apologetic smile to Annika, "An important call, I'll be right back," he said, rising from his chair and heading towards a quieter corner of the dining area.

Annika, left alone momentarily, took a sip of her drink, her gaze drifting around the room. Suddenly, a dark shadow fell across the table. Looking up, she found Rohit and Natasha standing before her, their faces devoid of their usual pleasant facade. A flicker of unease danced in her eyes, a premonition of something unpleasant brewing. Without a word, Rohit pulled out a chair and sat down opposite her, while Natasha mirrored his action, taking the seat next to Annika.  The atmosphere crackled with unspoken tension as they fixed Annika with studied gazes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thankyou for reading

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~