Blurb:
HOW FAR WOULD YOU GO TO PROTECT THE ONE YOU LOVE?
Ishaani, the newly crowned nightingale of the Indian music industry has it all: a dream career, a loving family and loyal friends. Yet, the man she has loved all her life will not warm up to her.
Rajeev, a hotshot movie director, has feelings for Ishaani. But she is his sister's best friend and has been like another sibling to him. Yet, what can he do if he feels compelled to make her his own?
Then, Ishaani's life changes overnight. She is no longer a lowly commoner but a princess.
She has to make some tough decisions to protect the man she loves.
Her choices lead them both down a path filled with shocking revelations and devastating consequences.
Will true love prevail?
Or will the many twists of fate tear them apart?
Get the book here
Excerpt:
Talking to your best friend can be excellent therapy. But it can be a headache if you’re in love with your best friend’s brother. Ishaani was realizing it the hard way.
"I saw the screenshot you sent. I can’t believe that idiot replied with a ‘thank you’ to your WhatsApp-essay! Why are you wasting your time on that slob? I’m ashamed to call him my brother…"
Ishaani moved her mobile phone away from her ears as Rashi’s voice began to grow shriller and louder by the minute.
"Girl... don't shout. I can hear you alright. I didn’t write an essay, okay? And he might be busy." Ishaani rolled her eyes and cursed herself mentally. In her eagerness to get over her frustration, how did she forget that Rashi loved to troll her brother?
"It qualifies as an essay. It might not get an A if you submitted to Mrs Ellen. But it would definitely win a prize for the longest and cutest WhatsApp message till date."
Ishaani chuckled. After putting the phone on speaker, she placed it on her bed. Picking up a scrunchy from her dresser-drawer, she rolled up her long hair into a top bun. Their high school English teacher Mrs Ellen would have called it purple prose. But a girl had to say what she had to say. Who texted perfect literary pieces to crushes? Long winding flowery sentences with a lot of smilies and ellipses were her style. Before writing to him, she had watched Rajeev’s ZBC television interview twice. And she could be eloquent when she wanted. No wonder Rashi had called it an essay.
"You know your brother's word quota per day. I’m happy he replied this time. Usually, I have to be content with the blue tick." Her silly heart raced when blue ticks appeared on the WhatsApp-messages she sent him. How pathetic!
Ishaani lived by only one rule. She welcomed anything that put her in the vicinity of her long-time crush, Rajeev Ratnam. The elusive movie director who owned her heart. It didn’t bother her that he either ignored her or treated her like a mere acquaintance when they met in public. And when she happened to meet him at his home, he treated her like he treated Rashi. Like a kid who needed guidance at every point in her life. Yet she always rallied her spirits by focusing on what was important. She loved him. Nothing else mattered.
"Keep munching the crumbs he throws at you and he would never treat you to a proper meal."
"No worries. I will cook him a lavish dinner instead. One day soon," Ishaani said, sounding more confident than she actually felt.
"Don't waste your culinary expertise on him. Cook Mughlai biriyani this Sunday. I’m coming."
"Done. What will I get in exchange?"
"What do you want?"
"Full details about his shooting schedule." That way, she could accidentally bump into him without appearing too clingy.
"Say whaat? Not interested in the list of the handsome actors he roped in?
"Nope." Why the heck would she need a list of handsome men when she had lost her heart to ‘the most handsome one’ among the lot.
“Aren’t you interested in the list of the actresses who might throw themselves at him?"
“Not at all.”
"You know what? You’re a tragedy waiting to happen."
Ishaani snorted and bid her friend goodbye before disconnecting the call.
About the Author:
Being a voracious reader, Preethi writes the kind of stories she loves to read.
More on: www.preethivenugopala.com