The Bachelor

Chapter 13 : Surprise, Surprise.

11:50 pm, 24th February, Galaxy Villa, Madh Island, Mumbai.

I walked into the villa, while contemplating the events of the evening. I was definitely relieved that nothing had happened to Jeff. She was safe and hopefully, she'd even come to comfortable terms with herself and her sexual orientation, as time passed. The more I thought about it, the more I realised that I couldn't have reeled Jeff in without Nandini's help. She might've complimented me for the first time tonight, but she was equally deserving of the credit...

A day or two ago, I would've rejoiced at her words. I usually did get a kick out of women who played hard to get and later started to enjoy my company. Off late, however, the fact that she already had a boyfriend and wished to be eliminated seemed all the more annoying. I almost got a perverse pleasure of sorts when Mukti picked Nandini as the contestant who'd be safe from elimination.

Did I want her to stay just because I didn't want to be the only one trapped in here against my will? Or was it something else?

"Quite a night, we've had." A snarky remark made me snap out of my thoughts.

I turned around and sighed when I saw Inaaya standing behind me.

I frowned slightly as I answered. "Indeed it has been. So, let's just sleep on it, shall we? I'm tired."

"The girls aren't stupid you know. They're going to put two and two together eventually and find out what happened with Jeff." She said with a smirk.

I grew slightly nervous at her statement. I'd promised Jeff that I'd conceal her secret to the best of my abilities. And that meant protecting her from the other contestants as well.

"What happened with Jeff was just an accident...she had too much to drink and she grew upset. People end up crying all the time when they're sloshed. It's nothing unusual." I said, casually.

"Manik, you're going to have to cook up better stories if you want to keep the incident under wraps. It's glaringly obvious that something transpired between Jeff and Mukti. And that girl Jeff, is clearly in denial..." Inaaya said, confirming my fears.

I suppressed the rising panic within me and said through gritted teeth. "Well, since you've refrained from blabbing to the girls, I'm assuming you're not going to. What is it you want?"

"You know, when I signed the contract, I'd really imagined that Alya would be the biggest problem. You were clearly not over her. That was pretty obvious...but as more time passed, I realised that Nandini is the true culprit. It's her I've got to be worried about." Inaaya said with a smirk, as she leaned against the wall.

"That's utter rubbish. I told you. I was just acting for the cameras. I'm just trying to get back at her for the insults she dished out to me on day one." I declared, even though I knew that I'd abandoned that agenda long ago without even realising it.

"More lies. Are you really that oblivious? Didn't you see everyone's face at the beach? The contestants are jealous, Manik. And it's making them insecure. Me on the other hand, I don't give a fuck, as long as I get my money. So, let me ask you, do you still intend on going through with the contract? Because the amount of attention you're giving me on screen right now isn't going to convince the public in the slightest that we're in love." Inaaya said in a pragmatic voice.

"Of course I still want the deal. I won't let my father steamroll over my life so easily." I said with clenched fists.

"That's good then. You'll have no problem signing the contract and sending it over to my lawyers for a quick review by tomorrow evening. Or else I might just decide to gossip with the girls about the incident with Jeff..." Inaaya said cheekily, making my blood boil.