Book 1 in the Series "Shadows"
Mannat Kaur Sandhu is a CA and a professor of Business in Genuis Gems University, established in Delhi. She is a sunshine girl, loving, caring, and smart. She is doing her PhD in business. She has a boyfriend, Ranvijay...
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Bureau of Marriage, 11:42 a.m.
The marriage bureau's atmosphere was oppressive. Not because it was overcrowded or humid. No. It was suffocating because I was enraged.
She didn't show up.
Kiara Mehrotra, the model I paid handsomely to portray my bride for just one day, vanished like a coward when it counted the most. Perhaps she believed I wouldn't follow through. Perhaps the money wasn't enough to purchase loyalty anymore.
My jaw clenched and my hands tightened into fists at my sides.
If I didn't marry within the next 24 hours, the Rathore Empire - my legacy, my bloodline's worth - would be handed over to that jerk, Armaan. My father's favorite puppet, and the man I'd gladly imprison if not for his cunning legal immunity.
I turned to Kevin, my right-hand man, who looked as though he'd seen a ghost. I barked, my voice sharp and brutal:
"I want a bride. Now. Did you hear that, Kevin?"
He froze.
Panic clouded his eyes. I could feel the silence in the room shift, people turning to look at me like I'd lost my mind. And perhaps I had. Desperation wasn't a color that suited me, but today - for the first time in my goddamned life - I needed someone.
That's when I heard it.
I heard a soft voice. Nervous, but steady. Clear. Resolute.
"Mr. Rathore." I turned my head towards the source of the voice, and that's when I saw her.
A young woman, probably in her mid-twenties. She was wearing a deep crimson lehenga, modest yet regal. Her dark brown eyes, deep as an ocean; her small yet sharp nose; and her rose petal-shaped, perfect lips. She had a slender waist. Short in height, yet she stood tall.
Her hands trembled slightly, but her spine was straight and her gaze unwavering. There was fear in her eyes, yes. But also, something more dangerous - determination.
Kevin was standing in front of me, doing his best to keep that woman away, not letting her get too close.
"Mr. Rathore, I heard you need a bride, and I need a groom. So why don't we marry? In this way, we could help one another in need." She said, her shivering hands holding on to her dupatta for strength.
I couldn't mask my surprise. Kevin was so shocked that his jaw almost touched the ground at her blunt proposal.
I scanned her from head to toe. Isn't she already getting married? She is dressed in bridal attire. If she's already getting married, why would she marry a stranger like me?
She addressed me as Mr. Rathore, implying that she is familiar with me and my business. Par itna kaafi nahi hai ek ladki ke liye ek stranger ko shaadi ke liye approach karna. Why did she propose to me if she doesn't appear to be the type of woman who chases money? Is she left at the altar by her groom?
