Shackles of Love#10#MG Chapters 39 - 42 - Page 31

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And i am sorry but i couldn't reply to all individually. Thanks loads for all the lovely comments. They mean a lot to me.

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CHAPTER 40:

After that night, both had not talked to each other about it. Geet had understood from Maan's behavior in the morning that Maan did not want to be reminded of his weak moment and decided to give him time and space to come to terms with it. She didn't want to impose on him. She wanted Maan to himself tell her about his past, when he was comfortable enough to share it with her. She wanted him to trust her. After all, if there was no trust in a relationship there was nothing.

Maan on the other hand did not have the courage to even meet her eyes, lest he see something there that broke him up. He had been a selfish jerk, treating her as nothing, and then expecting her to comfort him in his time of need. He realized that Geet had a heart of gold, big enough to forgive him all his mistakes, all his abusive behavior, but he was afraid, whether he had left it too late to make amends. Geet had been politely distant from him since that night, but he couldn't guess why.

So this time he decided to take things slow. He did not want to raise her hopes and later crash them if he found that he was still unable to get past his insecurities.

But he wanted to. He so badly wanted to!

He wanted to live with Geet, he wanted to love her, and be loved by her. But would she forgive him and agree to start afresh?

Both wanted the other to take the first step, for fear of rejection once again, but were unable to voice it out.

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Geet was now concentrating on her job. Even though it was hard work and her boss was a hard taskmaster, Geet enjoyed herself. It gave her less time to think about the mess that was her private life and that's what she wanted right now, till Maan decided to end this impasse.

Mrs. Chopra, Geet learned was a widow. Her husband having passed away a few months back. There were rumors of her having married him for his money, but Geet wasn't one to listen to rumors. She had a reputation of being shrewd businesswoman, sometimes even ruthless if crossed. Her staff respected her for the care she took of her employees. She herself had come from a modest background and knew what it was to count pennies. If anyone needed any genuine financial help, she would help them without making a fuss about it.

For Geet, her boss was an enigma who was hard to read. But she was happy working for her and learning the ropes of the job.

Also Rahul, as he had asked her to call him, was fun to be around, cracking jokes making her smile. He had a reputation of being a mild and harmless flirt, but was well liked by everyone in the office.

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In all this, if anything positive came out, it was Sasha's change of attitude. She came to Geet, crying and apologizing for all her deeds, confessing everything that she had done, starting with the Holi episode, the perfume and the tampered file. Geet listened to her quietly, while she meekly said that if she wanted, she could tell MK about her actions.

But, Geet being the big hearted girl she was, just hugged Sasha and told her to forget about it and never mention it to anyone ever.

A new bond formed between the two, an unsaid bond which both acknowledged silently.

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A couple of days later, Maan had on an off chance gone to attend a meeting near Geet's office. The meeting was a KC meeting, and Aditya Sharma, Maan's PA who handled most of KC work, was present with Maan, as Maan was not very interested in handling it. But the decrepit condition of the company and falling shares, with no proper leader at the helm had led Adi to come to Maan with his concerns.

At first Maan had denied, but now that he had taken on the responsibility by agreeing to the terms of SD's will, he had to put in a token of interest in what was happening there. Maan did not want to go back to KC, but he could not neglect it either. For him, it was a responsibility more than a boon. And Maan Singh Khurrana never shrugged his responsibilities.

So this meeting was necessary to announce to the world that MSK was back as the MD of KC, which was needed to stabilize the share prices. After a few legal formalities, there would be a press release during the following week. Maan was in a dilemma though, searching for a solution as to how he would explain to his family what he was doing and why.

But right now his mind was far away from these thoughts. He kept thinking about the mess his life was and was unable to concentrate on anything else. All he could think about was Geet. He had just sat through the meeting, without actually giving any inputs.

As soon as the meeting ended, he left without a word, having come to a tentative decision of sorts. The distance from Geet had left him feeling empty and he just wanted to see her. He hadn't forgotten that the more he stayed away, the more chances her leach of a boss had! Having decided that he thought that he would talk to Geet, and since he was there, he might as well drop in on her and they could have lunch together. But as he was about to reach her office, he spotted Geet and Rahul together!

It was lunch time, so Geet and her colleagues had gone to a nearby gol gappa stall for lunch. The group was talking and having fun when Rahul, who himself had been out came there seeing all of them enjoying. And it had been at that inopportune moment that Maan had passed by on his way to her office to surprise her, and saw Geet and Rahul laughing and talking while eating the chat. In his red haze, he had failed to notice the other members of her staff. Jealousy burned like acid in his stomach and he just left from there angrily, spending the entire day making the life of his staff in KC miserable, where he went to finish off some urgent paperwork.

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"Where the hell is she?" Maan wondered, looking at the watch, once more, noting it was exactly 5 minutes past the last time he had checked it. He had come home in a foul mood only to be welcomed by an empty house. He was so used to Geet's presence that the empty house felt alien to him. But the afternoon's vision of her and Rahul was burnt into his mind and he buried the impulse to call her then, his ego making him ignore his heart. But that was an hour ago, and Geet still wasn't home, nor was her phone available.

9.05 pm.

He had tried calling her so many times but her phone was switched off. Pacing the floor worriedly, angry at her for her irresponsibility, "Kam se kam phone karke bataya to hota ke late hone wali hai!" He thought, "Lekin nahi! Why am I expecting basic civility from her!" Conveniently forgetting that he himself was responsible for creating a chasm between them.

Then suddenly vague uneasy thoughts started coming in his mind, "Kahi use kuch ho to nahi gaya? Us Rahul ne kahi'!" his blood chilled at the thought, but he managed to calm down his running mind. "Don't think like that Maan! Kuch nahi hoga Geet ko." He started repeating all the while trying her mobile to get through to her, but to no avail.

"Maan! Kaisa insaan hai tu! You should have at least called and enquired about your wife when you realized that she is late! But no! Your ego had to come in between. Abhi use kuch ho gaya to'." The thought itself made him panic. He was just leaving the house and go search for his errant wife when he saw a car coming down the drive.

The car stopped near Maan, and Geet got down from it. Rahul, who had come to drop her off, since it had become too late, waved at her, and she smilingly waved back. She thanked him, the smile lingering on her lips, a smile Maan hadn't seen in quite a while. He had been inquisitive about what Geet was up to in the past few days, as they had not interacted, but what he saw made him wish he hadn't.

The smile which should have been for him, had been directed at that @#$8*&^ and Geet just ignored him, giving him a formal smile and made her way inside as if he was invisible.

With great difficulty he controlled his ire and followed Geet, "Why are you so late Geet? Didn't you have the courtesy to even call and tell me that you will be late? I was so worried that'"

Geet interrupted him saying, "Thanks Maan, but I didn't think my 'common courtesy' would be appreciated given the fact that you have been treating me like I don't exist since the past few days. Waise bhi you never come back home before midnight, so I didn't think you would even know I was working late." and excused herself and went to freshen up.

Maan knew he had hurt her a lot with his words and actions, but he had been helpless. Just the mention of those names and all his painful memories had resurfaced. His failure, his weakness had been brought to the front and that was something which was unacceptable to him.

"Geet, wo'I am sorry about that day. I shouldn't have shouted at you so badly. But my past is just something which I don't want to even think about Geet. Please give me some time Geet."

"Maan I understand, aapko uske bare me baat nahi karni. Leave it."

"Accha tell me why are you so late and why didn't you call me? Waise you must be hungry, let me get dinner. It's ready."

"No thanks Maan, I already had my dinner. Rahul insisted, saying that it was his duty for making me work overtime!" she said, rolling her eyes and laughing as she remembered Rahul's antics to get her to eat something at the office while she was working. "Bahoot ziddi hai! Apni baat manwake hi rehta hai!"

She was oblivious to the fact that her husband was having horror visions of both of them sitting at a restaurant, enjoying a candlelight dinner, while Geet smiled at Rahul the way she had smiled at him that evening while Rahul looked on at her lustfully.

Maan shook his head out of his nightmare when Geet continued, "Office ke pass na ek dhaba hai. Waha se unhone order kiya tha hum sab ke liye."

"Sab'?"

"Haan! Mai aur Priya aur Tani aur'.."

Maan heaved a sigh of relief as he realized that he needed to get his head examined for imaging something like that! "Aur waise late mai aapki wajah se hui hu?"

"Kya?" he raised his brows at her complaint.

"Haan aur nahi to kya! Aapki wo deal ke last minute changes! Zaroor aapne hi kiye honge! Jaanboojke!" She twisted her lips and cribbed! "Mera kaam badhane ke liye! Dusht Danav!" she muttered under her breath while Maan was amused. "Oh you mean to say I changed the blueprints because I wanted to trouble you?"

"Aur nahi to kya! Mujhe tang karne ke ilawa aur aap kuch karte ho kya?" Geet continued, "Kitna kaam karwaya mujhse! Kal ki launch party ke pehle saara kaam khatam karna tha na. And I didn't even realize when it became dark! Babaji ka shukkar hai, waha Rahul tha, aur unhone mujhe chod diya! Warna itni raat ko mujhe akele aana padhta! Wo bhi itne andhere me." She shuddered, unaware that her husband was incensed at the mention of Rahul once again. "Pata nahi *&&^* ne meri biwi pe kya jadu kar diya hai!" Maan seethed! "You could have always called me to pick you up?"

Geet looked at him and stammered out, "Woh'I didn't think you would appreciate being disturbed by me'." Her words held a world of pain, which Maan could read. He felt ashamed of himself that he made his wife feel that he wouldn't even take the time off to pick her up. His guilt and chagrin was visible on his face and Geet didn't want him to feel so, so she immediately changed the topic, "Chaliye chodiye! Mai aa gayee na! So all is well! And it's all thanks to Rahul."

She went on to sing his praises about how nice he was, how much he helped her, till Maan had had enough. He stopped her in middle asking her to go and sleep as tomorrow would be a long day.

KRK was throwing a huge launch party for CE, to celebrate the new project, and it was a big day for both companies.

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The whole room was decorated with red roses and candles, their scent making the atmosphere dreamy and romantic. The air around was smoked and added a mystique glamour to the setting. Geet wearing a shimmering white saree arrived there. She was looking like a princess. Her beauty was enamored with the innocence and happiness shining from her eyes and the dazzling smile lingering on her lips.

Maan watched all this, standing in the middle of the decorated room; his breathe hitching as he viewed the vision of perfection standing before him, smiling shyly.

He spread his arms wide, asking her to come and complete him. Her eyes lit up seeing this and she ran towards him, happiness in every step she took. As she approached him, he felt the thrill run down his spine, that finally he will have her with him forever.

He was about to embrace her, but she ran past him into the arms of an awaiting Rahul who stood behind him, leaving a staggered Maan behind.

Maan woke up in cold sweat, his hand shaking as he tried to get his bearings. He realized that he was in his own home, sleeping. He immediately went to the bedroom to check on Geet, ascertaining that she was really there, in front of his eyes.

"Ye tu kya soch raha hai Maan! Tera dimaag kharab ho gaya hai! Chi!"

He went to the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water to douse himself and clean the remaining cobwebs from his mind.

He leant against the door, banging his head, "Ye ladki mujhe sach much pagal kar degi!"

Maan decided to go for a walk, and rid himself of his nightmare. He also wanted to check the work going on at one of the ends which had some problem yesterday.

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When he returned a couple of hours later, the voice coming from his bedroom nearly gave him a heart attack! "Chodo mere pallu! Aap bohot besharam ho, ek to yeh non-stop kissi karna aur ab mera pallu bhi nahi chod rahe ho, naughty kahin ke."

The sound of a tussle and her husky laughter followed the shocking statement, stunning Maan to the spot, unable to move! "Tumhe bata doon ki mein shaadi shudha hoon! Mana ki woh mujhe apni patni nahi maante." Muttering in a low voice, but then her voice turned flirty and she said, "Par tum itne cute ho! Agar tum mujhe pehle milte to mai kabhi us Dusht Danav se shaadi nahi karti! Tum se hi karti! Kam se kam tum mujhse pyaar to karte ho? You love me, hai na?" An incoherent murmur followed which Maan couldn't quite catch, followed by Geet's "I love you too baby!" and a loud lip smacking kissing sound was heard.

Maan nearly had an apoplectic attack hearing this. He could feel his nightmare coming alive in front of his eyes! he ran towards his bedroom, "Us Rahul ko mai chodunga nahi! That *^&^*& had so much guts to come to my house and seduce my wife!" Trembling with rage, he slammed the door open and saw them both.

There were two chubby hands wrapped on HIS Geet's face, and the guy was kissing her cheek sloppily, spreading saliva all over her face while Geet grinned at him lovingly.

The sudden interruption made the two jump apart and stare frightfully at the door. The tiny toddler in her arms got scared by Maan's loud entry and let out a wail.

"Yeh kya kiya aapne!" Geet scolded Maan.

"Kya kiya'" He said his expression comical at finding his wife with her supposed lover! He wanted to bash himself for even thinking that Geet was doing something like this. Her angry glare cut through his self chastisement, and he tried to gather his thoughts and save face in front of her. "Great going Maan" he thought, "Ab nikal is question se!"

"Kaun hai yeh, iski mo'." Before he said anymore she shut his mouth with her hands shaking her head, giving him a warning glare! "Ye hai Aarav aur iski M-O-M hospital gayi hain, uski daadi achanak se beemar padh gayi thi, naam mat lena warna bahut royega." The feel of her soft hands on his lips made Maan's mind numb, forgetting about the baby in his house. He blinked at her trying to gather his senses. "He was with Naina Di, lekin jab mai waha gayee to isne mera pallu pakad liya and he refused to let go of me, to mai ise yaha le aayi. He loves me hai na baby?" she cooed to the toddler who grinned at her and she gave him another smooch in return, making Maan burn with jealousy and wish that it was him on the receiving end of all those kisses and smooches.

"Can u hold him for a second till I get his bottle?" without waiting for his answer she shoved Aarav into his hands and started rummaging through the baby bag. For a moment Maan froze, not knowing what to do, he was baffled. And then he felt the innocent touch of baby's soft fingers on his cheeks that called for his attention. He looked at the baby in his arms and his attention was captured by the toothy smile of the toddler. But this innocent gesture brought forward the bitterness that he was trying to run away from. As if scathed he put the baby on the bed. May be he was jealous of this toddler for possessing the carefree smile or maybe he was just irritated by the fact that this kid could live the life and dreams, blessed in ways he was not. He was not fond of kids. The mere presence of them made him uncomfortable and brought the memories linked to his own days of longing and unfruitful dreams

Turning to Geet he shouted in a fierce whisper, not wanting to alarm the baby who was now contentedly chewing on Geet's pallu. "Tum kisse pooch ke ise yaha layi ho! Ise abhi ke abhi yaha se le jau."

Geet was surprised at Maan's forbidding stance, "But Maan, it's just for a little while…"

"Tumne suna nahi maine kya kaha? Get him out of here right now! I don't want him here! In fact I don't want any child here! Samjhi tum?"

Geet was about to protest but Maan stopped her by keeping his forefinger on her lip, his eyes spitting fire, "Chup! Bilkul chup! Ek aur shabd nahi! Ise le jao. Give him to Naintara. Aur aaj ke baad is ghar me kabhi kisi bacche ko tum nahi laogi Samjhi tum? I hate kids! I can't stand them anywhere near me!"

"Ye kaisi baat hui Maan? What about when we'" she asked mindlessly, but immediately correcting herself, "Errr I meant you have children?"

"Since I never intend to have children, I don't think you need to be concerned about that." Maan stated and pushed Geet towards the door, motioning her to go and leave Aarav with Naintara.

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Geet was puzzled with the way Maan behaved, and when she had gone to drop of Aarav with Naintara, Naintara had seemed uncomfortable when she had mentioned about Maan's weird behavior. But she shrugged it off as another of his mood swings and went to get dresses for office. It was her last day as a temp and she didn't want to do anything today that would make her boss have second thoughts about appointing her.

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At the end of the day, her boss told her she was satisfied with Geet's work and if Geet wished, she could join them permanently. The word 'permanently' made Geet hesitate, her eyes clouding over and pain shooting through her heart. When there was no sign of it in her life, how could she commit to it?

Seeing her troubled, Mrs. C asked Geet if she didn't like working here. Geet assured her boss, that she loved working here, but she was not looking for a permanent job. Her sad eyes melted the heart of the cold faced woman, and so they decided to sign a 3 month contract. Geet agreed and was told that the papers would be ready on Monday and she could continue till then.

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Precap: