Indebted – Part 64

“Great! But who will initiate it? He’ll either decline straightaway or start probing us to reveal the entire plan.”

“Richa… Let Richa send the invitation. He knows that we will not be asking him for money. But when a formal invitation reaches him through Richa, he won’t be able to decline. He’ll have to be there.”

“Hm… great, Veer ji. You’ve planned it well.”

“It’s actually Richa’s plan.”

“Wow… then let her take the lead.”

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The next morning, Maan was engrossed in planning a birthday for his Jaan …but he couldn’t do much over the phone because Geet wasn’t leaving his side.

“You don’t have to go to the office today?” Maan asked, waiting for her to leave so he could start coordinating freely.

Geet looped her arm through his and cozied herself close to him,

“I will. Dil nahi ker raha tumhen chorker jane ka..” she said and peeked into his phone from the corner of her eyes.

Maan knew her very well. Something seemed off, but he didn’t point it out; rather, he pulled her to him, and with her in his arms, he rolled them both in bed, himself getting on top of her.

“Then let’s use this delay efficiently”

“Maan… let me go..”

“Umm hnnn,” he denied, dipping his neck in the hollow of her neck

“ting”

“Maan, you have a notification”

“It can wait…”

“It can be something important. Check it”

Maan shook his head before reaching for his phone.

“From when did my notifications become so urgent for you?” he said casually and checked his phone to find an email from the organizer. Before opening it, he looked at Geet; she was curiously peeking into his phone.

He frowned inwardly… ‘something’s fishy’.

He closed his phone and pushed it aside, bringing his attention back to his Jaan.

“Nothing important,” he said, pulling her to him.

“Let’s start… so where were we?” he moved closer, lips curving playfully in a pout

Geet pressed a hand over his lips. “I’m getting late,” she got out of bed and left to freshen up for the office.

Barely ten minutes after Geet had gone to freshen up, he got an email from Richa’s official email ID.

Subject: – Investment Opportunity Presentation – Invitation

Maan narrowed his brows and pressed the screen to open the email.

“Dear Mr. Maan Khurana,

And it started with a carefully worded invitation from Handa Group for an investment pitch.

Maan’s curiosity rose as he saw the formal business email from Richa. He read further…

Each line carefully

It was a very well-drafted professional email, inviting him to the investment pitch.

Maan wondered, why would Richa invite him for an investment pitch? They very well know; he is not in for investment in Handa Group. But if the invitation is coming from Richa, he cannot decline it. Had it been from Brij or Geet, he would have outrightly rejected both siblings.

“Ummm… well,” he understood. And that’s why it has come from Richa.

He smirked inwardly. So that was it — Geet’s interest in his email notifications today.

“Silly girl”

“Jaan, you cannot act around me. Why do you even try?” he thought.

When Geet stepped out, Maan looked at her with a perfectly blank expression.

Geet, wrapped in her off-white soft bathing gown, reached him

“Anything worrying you?” she asked, wrapping her hands around him, climbing onto the bed beside him and resting a knee against his thigh.

“I can take this as an invitation…” he teased her

“You looked tense”

“I am not tense… just that I don’t like talking business when on vacation, especially when I’m on a trip to woo my wifey”

Geet’s eyes brightened, but she instantly hid them. Maan did not miss it – well, he was expecting it.

“I know how important the business is for you. Anyway, we’ll all be busy during the day. No harm in taking it up”

“Are you sure? It will be a whole day’s engagement. And your birthday is coming up in two days,” Maan made a thoughtful face

“I’m sure. Don’t think too much,” she convinced him.

“Hmm… didn’t plan for any business in this trip, but if you are okay…. let me confirm them”.

He typed his response in the email and then looked at her face – victory!

“I’ll pack my bag and get my tickets booked”

“Pack your bag? ticket” Geet was confused.

“Hmm… I will have to leave for Amritsar. The Rathors have been after me for a long time. They heard I am here.”

“Amritsar…? Rathor’s…. That’s the invite you were talking about…”

“Hmmm… were you expecting something else?”

She gave him a hesitant smile

“Nothing…. Why would I expect anything? But Maan…, Amritsar?”

“I asked you, Jaan. Now I confirmed them,” he gave her a sorry face.

Geet was extremely frustrated, so much so that her trying to hide it failed badly.

“Fine. Do your business, I am leaving for my office”

“Arre, Jaan. You okayed it….”

“Whatever…” Geet closed the door behind her, leaving the room, leaving Maan’s statement incomplete…

Maan had a victorious smile after Geet left. He whistled, enjoying her irritation.

On the other side, Richa received the response from Maan.

Hi Richa,

“I am on vacation and not taking up any business engagements. But I cannot be disrespectful by denying your invitation.

So, I accept this meeting and confirm that I’ll be there. But I have a condition.

The meeting should be completely formal. I do not want the person doing the pitch presentation to be aware of my visit by any chance. I do not appreciate the over-preparation that people do when hearing my name.”

Regards,

Maan Singh Khurana.

Maan very well knew that the presenter had to be Geet. If they are inviting him, they will go for the best.

Richa read Maan’s email twice trying to get the meaning out of it.

She then showed Maan’s message to Brij.

“What does this mean, Brij?” Brij laughed

“This means, he does not want Geet to know that you have even invited him. Your one message to him, and he gauged what we are up to. He is actually helping us achieve exactly what we wanted.”

“How?”

“He wants to see how prepared Geet is for unexpected situations. And also…. “

“Also…?”

“He loves irritating her… phir manageya usse… drama couple”

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Geet wasn’t in the best of moods when she reached the office. Richa knocked on her door

“Hmmm… professional Geet Khurana is tardy to the office these days,” Richa teased her

“I thought you’d be sending an email to Maan this morning.” Geet sharply cut in on Richa’s tease.

“I had that plan. But the other investor, the one from Dubai, has accepted the invitation. So Brij and I were debating on what time we should fit in Maan’s presentation”

“And you think Maan has all the time in the world to wait for our invite. He has another invitation, and he is leaving the city. We lost such a valuable opportunity to get his feedback. Formal, authentic feedback from Maan – Richa, you have no idea…”

Richa made a thoughtful face. “Didn’t think Maan would get booked. But now we need to gear up. The Dubai investor won’t just give us feedback, but the real investment”

“Yes, and Maan’s feedback would have given us pointers to crack many such investors”

“Gear up,” Richa said, and left

Geet did not have time to invest in boarding over a missed chance with Maan. This was a real investor, and she had very little time.

She quickly shifted her focus to the Dubai investor.

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Richa and Brij took a break from work for lunch in their favorite nearby café.

Richa laughed.” What happened?” asked Brij

“I know, Maan is the best…but Geet,” she laughed again

“Such a fan of her husband”

“Diwani hai…” Brij said with a smile.

“But, there’s also a different perspective to it” he added.

“What?” Richa was curious

“She has grown up seeing him as her mentor, guide, her teacher. It had never been easy for her to impress him. She was really excited to present it to him, see his response and get his feedback”

“And she will get it,” Richa concluded.

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The next morning, the bedroom buzzed with activity as Maan and Geet both got ready for their meetings. Still, the room felt charged with silence.

Maan was enjoying the frustration that he had instilled in her, but also anticipating the wrath he would face later in the day.

Well, he was ever ready to manaooo.. his Jaan. The prize after was worth it!

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