Chapter 55
"This Geet! She will drive me crazy. What does she mean by leaving some measly note with Pinky about going for some work in Chandi Chowk? Why didn't she think to inform me of her plans, after all I am her husb...boss. Don't I have a right to know what my employees are up to? It's after hours, almost everyone has left, but no one has seen Geet or heard from her. Now what am I going to do?" Maan paced up and down the deserted corridor, muttering, "How to look for her...should I call the police? Why didn't I keep better track of her?"
Maan had just about made up his mind to call the police, when he looked down the hall towards the corner office. Though the door was closed, and the blinds were drawn, he could clearly see the light that was on against the backdrop of the darkened hallway. Striding towards the room, Maan had a suspicion of who he would find inside, not sure whether to be relieved or angry. When he opened the door and saw Geet sitting quietly at a work table, his anger won.
"Geet, where did you go?" he demanded as he pulled her unceremoniously out of the chair. "The least you could have done was inform properly and if you really had to leave, you should have taken someone with you. Do you realize how dangerous it is to go about Delhi alone, and Chandni Chowk has so much crime. If something had happened..."
"Mann, I'm perfectly alright," assured Geet with a little smile. "I'm sorry that you were worried about me, but there was really no need."
Maan suddenly came to himself and moved away, saying emphatically that he hadn't been worried. He gave Savitri as his excuse, telling Geet that he was only concerned about what he would say to his grandmother if something had happened to her. He just wanted to know if she had got back from Chandni Chowk or not, as it was past office hours and he hadn't seen her most of the day. His calm manner of speaking was more than enough to encourage Geet to open up. She told him excitedly about how she had gone to the printer's shop to fix the spelling error, and also her other efforts regarding the invitation list. The way she followed him around the room like an eager puppy had Maan feeling quite uncomfortable, especially with her close proximity. He tried to avoid her, but every time he moved away, she came closer.
"You're not mad at me anymore, are you Maan?" he heard her asked quietly behind him. "I know that I trouble you a lot, put I've tried to make everything right."
That word "trouble" bothered him. Yes, she troubled him, but it was a truth that he couldn't acknowledge, even to himself. Instead, he sent Geet home on the pretext of it being late, hoping that her absence would restore his equilibrium. He tried desperately to concentrate on his work, only to find his thoughts returning again and again to the one young woman he tried so hard not to think of. Finally he went home, but Maan found no solace there either. It was almost torturous to contemplate the fact that the person he was trying so hard to ignore was sleeping on the second floor of the outhouse.
Maan felt like his life was going out of his control and he didn't like it, not one bit. Periodically taking a swig of beer, while contemplating everything that had happened since he first met Geet, he came to the conclusion that things could not continue as they had. He didn't like how his feelings seemed to be constantly beyond his control. He certainly didn't like the idea that other people might notice something different about him or think he was changing. The only solution that Maan could see to his difficulty was to keep Geet away.
Work had never failed him before, so Maan look to it to help him out of his difficulty. The next morning he called for a meeting with the relevant department heads to discuss how the Chopra project would be handled going forward. He knew that he couldn't continue working with Geet so closely, so he assigned oversight of the project to Sasha, making Geet's primary focus the launch party. She had done such a good job with the previous party that Maan felt she could handle it without him getting involved.
Being the stubborn pagali that she was, Geet came charging into his office after the meeting, clearly not happy at all. She challenged his decision, demanding to know what she had done wrong that he took the project away from her. The truth was impossible to tell, so Maan merely pulled rank, telling her that she was his employee and he didn't have to explain his decision to her. All he expected was that she do her job right.
Maan didn't miss how confused and hurt Geet looked at his pronouncement, but that pleased him rather than the opposite. He knew that if she was upset with him, then she would be more likely to stay away from him. However, despite all his efforts, Maan still found himself glancing much too frequently towards the windows connecting their cabins. He considered making Geet give up the cabin to Sasha, but ultimately discarded that idea as too conspicuous. That office was reserved for his secretary, and if he made his secretary move out, people might talk.
In the end, though he kept telling himself that it was a defeat, Maan himself shifted to another office on the next floor, on the pretext of working with Sasha. Maan was able to concentrate better without constantly catching glimpses of Geet, but the move still did not work out like he wanted. Sasha's silly secretary was there with them, and Maan found himself wishing more than once that it was Geet who was there to take dictation instead of Tasha. The girl was absolutely helpless, and Maan didn't know how Sasha put up with her.
Maan also tried to put up with her, but it was impossible. Everything she did was so wrong that Maan couldn't help but remember how much Geet had done things right. It wasn't just Tasha who was the problem, either. There wasn't a place in the entire building where Maan could go to keep his thoughts from being interrupted by memories of Geet. It was completely frustrating, with his staff bearing the brunt of his anger.
Finally Maan couldn't take it any more. He felt like he needed to get away, from the office, from Delhi, from Geet. Camping would have been his first choice, but in the midst of finalizing such a big deal as the Chopra project, Maan didn't feel comfortable going that far out of reach. Though he really wanted the tranquility that nature provided to get his thoughts in order, his business was too important, and Maan certainly wasn't going to let anything interfere with the running of his business.
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Geet had looked all over the office for Maan, but couldn't seem to find him. He hadn't been in his office since the morning, nor had he tried communicating with her once she he had ordered her to get started arranging the launch party. Geet felt like maybe there was some problem, and that was why he seemed so short tempered. She had tried to do as much work as she could on her own, so that she wouldn't disturb him further, but she still needed his approval of her ideas.
Geet knew that he had planned to work with Sasha on the Chopra project, so thought that perhaps they were in the head architect's office. When Geet knocked on the closed door and received permission to enter, she glanced around the unfamiliar room in anticipation. However, her hopes were in vain, as Maan was nowhere to be seen, while Sasha demanded rudely for Geet to explain her presence. Geet calmly told Sasha her reason for being there and asked if she knew where Maan was, to which Sasha replied that Maan had left to Hyderabad.
"Hyderabad!" echoed Geet in shock, having no idea about this sudden departure.
"Yes," replied Sasha, given a very sly look. "He has to meet a very important client and then he will be staying for a business conference. I would have thought, seeing as you are not just his secretary, but also his wife, that MK would have told you about all this before he left. It's very strange."
Geet didn't bother giving the other woman a reply. She was too concerned about the fact that Maan had left without her having an opportunity to speak with him. Thinking that he had gone to the outhouse to pack not too long ago, Geet hurried back to her office in an effort to call home before he left. Unfortunately, according to Nakul, Maan was not there and hadn't been there since he left for the office that morning. Geet didn't know what to do, but as usual, Savitri became her savior.
"What's the problem, Geet?" Savitri asked after taking the phone from Nakul.
"Dadima, Maan left for Hyderabad very suddenly. Actually, it is all very strange. He left during an important project and he didn't even tell me he was leaving," complained Geet.
"That sounds like my grandson," chuckled Savitri softly, not finding anything amiss in such behavior. "Maan is quite used to running off to meet a client at the spur of the moment, just like his grandfather always did. 'Clients make the business grow' was my husband's favorite phrase, and he made sure to instill that idea into Maan' head. But why were you trying to call Maan at home, Geet?"
"Dadima, I thought maybe he would be there packing. I was hoping to talk to him about my plans for the upcoming launch party, and get his okay. Now, I don't know what to do."
"The solution is very simple, my dear. Just send Maan an email. It is the hardest thing to contact him by phone when he makes these business trips, but he never fails to check his emails, wherever he goes."
"Email. I hadn't thought of that. Thank you so much, Dadima, you've solved my problem."
Precap
"Do you really think that my idea is a good one, Dadima?"
"Of course, Geet. It's perfect."
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