Artful Deceit & Love

4.Meeting the stranger

Mridula was standing in front of the full-length mirror of the closet as she tried to select a dress for the party. She had agreed to go along with Myra to her friend's party. She had reasons why she said yes.

First, she wanted to get out of the palace.

Second, she didn't want to tag along with Digvijay and Leela as a third wheel which would have been the case. As Leela was going to visit an NGO and then would have asked her to accompany her along. And she knew that Digvijay would be there with Leela.

Third, she thought that she'll get to know Myra and ask her to not be rude to Leela.

As she went through the dresses that she had brought, her gaze fell on a pink dress. She decided to wear that for the event. She paired it with diamond earrings. She shifted to the dressing table and started applying makeup. As she applied a peach shade lipstick on her lips, she heard her phone ping. It was a message from Myra that said that she is waiting for her in the common hall of the palace. Mridula sent her a quick reply and wore her heels in hurry. She picked her clutch that had all her essentials in it and moved out.

When she reached the front porch, she found Myra standing there all dolled up in a black dress. Her guards were there with her and so were Mridula's guards.

Mridula went to her guards and told them to stay back as she was going with Myra. They had no option but to agree to her.

"Let's go, Mridula!" She nodded and got in on the back seat of her red Jaugar and they drove off.

"So, whose party is it?"

"Aditi Sehgal..."

"Is she related to Advik Seghal?" Mridula asked already regretting her decision to attend the party. Advik Sehgal is the son of an industrialist Vinay Sehgal, who is friends with Abhiraj and Narayan.

"Yes...! She is his younger sister...why?" Myra asked her as she tilted her head to face her.

"Nothing...! He was my classmate in school."

"He might not be there!" Myra said as she saw uneasiness in Mridula's features.

'Hopefully!' Mridula thought as she looked away. Her mind recalled how he had confessed his feelings for her in the last year of high school just before their graduation. She had no feelings for him and hence said no to him and reasoned that she had to focus on her studies. Honestly, Mridula had not dated anyone in her school days. She never wanted to and had kept her distance from all these mushy lovey-dovey stuff. But she did go on a few dates in her college but never anything serious.

The party was taking place in a mansion that belonged to the Sehgals which was located outside of Jaipur, away from all the commotion and also the media.

As the car reached the gates of the mansion, both of them saw that it was lit up like the fourth of July. The automatic gates opened and the chauffeur drove the car in and stopped it right in front of the main entrance of the mansion.

The guards came and opened the doors from both sides and Myra and Mridula gracefully got down. As they stood in front of the wooden double door, Myra reassured her and said

"Don't worry...! Try to think of this party as a lawyers' event!"

Mridula nodded while smiling at her. And they both entered through the huge double door. The party decorations were in the combination of silver and light blue. The halls were dimly lit and half of the party was at the back of the mansion, in the garden.

"It's her 26th birthday...just so you know!" Myra whispered as they walked into the main hall in which the party was going on.

"Hi, Myra!" A girl in a ruby red bodycon dress shouted as she walked up to them. She hugged Myra tightly while Mridula scanned the area for Aditi's elder brother.