@ Maaneet099 - lol, you totally called it! :) <3



Hello! Thank you for your comments and/or "likes," it really encourages me to write and I appreciate it a lot.


Previous Chapters -- Part One:  prologue + ch 1 / ch 2 + 3 / ch 4 + 5 / ch 6 + 7 / ch 8 + 9 / ch 10 + 11 / ch 12 + 13 / ch 14 + 15 / Part Two: ch 16 / ch 17 / ch 18


Chapter Nineteen

Maan opened the back door of his car and absentmindedly ushered his daughter inside. Various scenes from his life began to flash before his eyes: posing for a family portrait with his parents; his mother stuffing her suitcase and fleeing the house; dining with Sameera at a fine restaurant on one of their many dates; Sameera revealing her betrayal.

Involuntarily clenching his jaw, Maan made up his mind at once. It was practically guaranteed that a woman, regardless of her initial respectable nature, would eventually embark on a trail of treachery.

Maan quickly backed out of his parking space, then sped away from the school without looking back.
 
The ride home was unbearably silent. Riya's bright little backpack, which she was clutching tightly in her lap, stood in direct contrast to her sallow face.  Maan focused intently on the road, determined not to look at his daughter.

At last, Maan pulled up to the Khurana mansion. "We're home, sweetheart," he said, twisting around in his seat and unfastening Riya's seatbelt. "Ready to make that chocolate cake?"

"It's okay, Daddy," Riya said quietly. "I am not hungry." She climbed out of the car and wearily toted her backpack up to the double doors.

Maan sighed, locked the car, and jogged up to the entrance. Once inside the foyer, he kissed the tip of Riya's nose. "Go ahead and play for a little while, honey," he instructed. "We'll get started on the cake soon."

Riya, in an apt illustration of her precociousness, stared at her father as if she were having trouble believing that he could only focus on cake at a time like this. But she nodded obediently and slowly ascended the staircase.

After Maan watched his daughter disappear into the playroom, he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and walked into an empty guest room. He had a few calls to make.

---

"So that is what's been happening, Daadi," said Maan, pacing across the room. Daadi was the only soul he had told about the secret surrogacy when Riya was born, and he felt a sense of relief after divulging all that had occurred between him and the mother of his child over the last few days.

"Oh, dear," Daadi muttered. Although she had answered the phone in her typical calm and regal manner, she now sounded unnerved. "But I thought the surrogacy process was anonymous?"

"I called Dr. Mehta before I phoned you and got to talk to one of his assistants," Maan explained. "Apparently, the contract that I signed at the clinic said that if the mother ever wants the 'recipient's' information, it will be automatically released to her. The clinic is very protective of mothers and makes the process as favorable to them as possible."

"And you don't remember that part of the contract?"
 
"No," Maan admitted, scratching his forehead. "I was so eager to start the procedure that I didn't really read it carefully."

"I see," murmured Daadi.

"Riya wanted Geet to stay with us so badly, Daadi," said Maan, lowering his voice. "But clearly, I can't have that. I went through surrogacy because I wanted to bring up a child by myself."

"I can understand your frustration, dear," said Daadi. "But I heard a lot of 'I' in what you just said. What is best for Riya?"

"I always do what's best for Riya," Maan defended. "Always." He could feel hot, unsolicited tears forming.

"Of course," Daadi assured him. "But you can understand that Riya would want the permanent presence of her mother, right?"

"Why aren't I enough for Riya, Daadi?" Maan swiped at his face as tears began to drip down his jaw and dot his tie. "She's my whole world. The reason I wake up every morning. Why aren't I enough for her?"

"No one doubts your love for Riya, Maan," Daadi soothed.  "And because you do love her, I know you will do anything for her happiness."

Maan sighed.  "I've got to get back to Riya, Daadi. I will talk to you again soon."

"Please do, dear. Give my love to Riya."

Maan ended the call, then unfastened his tie as he made his way to the playroom. 

Riya, sitting on the floor, was holding a doll as her teddy bear sat close by. "No, Dolly, you can't go out and play," she said, her voice quivering. "You are a bad girl."

As he observed his daughter, Maan leaned against the doorway for support. "You are bad, Dolly," Riya repeated. "Your mama doesn't want you." Her voice cracked, and she set the doll aside. Pulling Teddy into her lap, Riya buried her face into his soft fur.

Something broke inside of Maan as he watched the tiny shoulders of his daughter heave up and down while she wept. He recalled the pallidness of Riya's face in the school courtyard as she realized she would be separated from her mother.

What had Daadi said? That because he loved Riya, he would do whatever it took to make her happy. And although it burned him inside, he knew exactly what that was.

"Sweetheart?" said Maan, gingerly settling down beside his daughter.

Sniffling, Riya looked up.

Maan smoothed his thumbs over her tears. It was now or never. "Sweetheart, we . . . we're going to get your mother."

Riya's mouth dropped open. "We are?"

"Mmm-hmm," Maan said tightly.

Although she looked doubtful, Riya's eyes began to twinkle with anticipation and elation. "But Mama said that she couldn't stay with us."

 "Well," Maan began, unsure of how to explain. "She wants to, baby, and the reason that she couldn't before . . . had to do with grown-up reasons. It had nothing to do with you."

"It didn't?"

"No," said Maan, trying to ignore the stream of disgruntlement infiltrating his blood.  Was this a dream?  "Now, let's go."

---

Holding his daughter's hand tightly, Maan waited as the elevator ascended to the floor of Geet's apartment. After looking up Geet's address in the university faculty and staff directory, he had easily found her apartment complex. The building was plain and fairly small, which made navigation simple.

As the doors of the elevator slid open, Maan walked a few yards down the hall until he stood in front of Geet's apartment. He took a deep breath. *You are doing this because you love Riya,* he chanted inwardly, rapping his knuckles against the door. *You are doing this because you love Riya.*

A few moments later, Geet, appearing exhausted and disheartened, opened the door. As she drank in the sight of Maan and their daughter, delight and perplexity played across her face.

Riya dropped Maan's hand and flung her arms around her mother's waist. "We have come to take you home, Mama."

Geet, instinctively wrapping her arms around her daughter, looked increasingly baffled. "I -- I . . . what?"

Maan forced himself to choke out an invitation. "Riya is correct," he said, trying to adopt an official tone. "Please gather your things, Miss Handa." From what Maan could see, Geet's apartment was tidy but sparse.

Geet stared at Maan, unconsciously tightening her grip around Riya. "I don't understand."

"You heard Riya," said Maan, not bothering to hide his irritation. "You're coming to live with us." What did she not understand?

Although myriad questions were swirling around in her head, Geet could focus on nothing but the explosion of joy in her heart. Was this a dream?

"How come you didn't want to stay with us before, Mama?" Riya asked, tilting her face up to her mother. Maan swallowed a groan. Of course, his vague explanation in the playroom was insufficient to satisfy his daughter.

But Geet simply smiled, and she leaned down and kissed Riya on the forehead. "I was just waiting for you to come get me, my dear."

---

Many thanks for reading. :)
kumari32011-11-12 20:29:38