Bab 2: A good chance

"I know, Sam. Don't irritate me more. If you're not gonna help, then get out", Riya rolled her eyes.

They both sat in silence for some time with no idea how to tackle this.

"You know what…. Maybe you can hire a guy to act as your husband for a few months and then tell your dad that it didn't work out."

"That's just ridiculous, but I did think about that… I have way too much to lose if I get married to just anyone. I don't have someone that I can trust enough for this. I can't do that."

"Yeah, right! Your're a CEO unlike me", Sam started chewing her nails in frustration of not being able to help her friend.

Riya rose letting out a big sigh. "I'll figure something out… Let's have lunch"

"Hmm, sure…." Sam rose too and followed her to the cafeteria.

Riya always ate at her company's cafeteria. She had a dedicated cabin, only for herself as she couldn't be around other people. Mostly she forgot to eat due to back-to-back meetings or work, but whenever she remembered, she came down and ate there.

Riya and Sam had their lunch that day, mostly in silence, while their heads busily buzzed over ideas of tackling Riya's situation, though none of them succeeded in finding one.

Riya soon came back to her office and started going through the heaps of documents handed over by her assistant. He had done a meticulous job as always in organizing the work for her easy reference. That was exactly why he lasted so long with her. All her previous assistants hardly lasted a year. She either made them cry before they quit or fired them herself.

Her head was so deep in the documents when she heard a ping. A text message from Pathetic loser.

It was the name she chose for her archenemy Dhruv. Wherever he was, whatever he did, he drove her crazy. They despised each other and would tear each other apart at the first chance they got. It was a big deal that both were still alive and none ended up in jail for killing the other one.

Their rivalry was one which was deep rooted. Though their fathers had been really good friends as they were in the same business for decades, it wasn't the case for these two. If Riya's product launch hits the top shelves for a month, the following month would be Dhruv's. They grappled each other metaphorically through the business realm.

She opened the message indifferent of what the asshole had to say.

Pathetic Loser: 'Stay out of the Warphed deal. It's mine.'

"How dare!" she snorted derisively and grinded her teeth. "How dare he can say that to me… Jerk" she immediately called Kamu on his link to bring in the Warphed deal documents.

As soon as he came in, she bombarded with questions.

"What's happening in the Warphed deal? Did the bidding start already?"

"No Mam. We are still evaluating it. The company manufactures clothes. It is related to fashion but not exactly related to our business. The team is still not sure if they want to venture into fashion. So, they are thinking about it."

"I want it…. I don't care what happens. When is the bidding date?"

"Two days from now Mam"

"Ask the person in charge from acquisition team to meet me immediately."

"Sure, Mam" Kamu hesitated for a moment and left. He knew that the business was not performing well, and they'd been incurring losses for the past few years. He wanted to warn his boss, but she didn't seem to be in a mood to listen. He was a smart man who knew when to stop.

Riya's phone pinged again with another message.

Pathetic Loser: 'This is a personal request.'

She blinked hard at the message and couldn't believe what she saw.

Reading it over and over again didn't make sense either. First of all, he had never used words like "personal" or "request" before. Curious on what was going on, she almost called him to find out. But hesitated and decided not to give up so easily.

This was a great opportunity. If it meant so much, then maybe she could use this to get something in return. Everything in life is a deal, isn't it? She crossed her legs with a devilish smile on her face when Kamu entered the room.

"Mam… Mr. Dhruv from Marble Enterprises is here to see you. He says it is something urgent. You don't have a meeting scheduled with him. Should I show him out?", he hesitated near the door not aware of the turn of events since morning. Although he wasn't fully aware of the rivalry between Riya and Dhruv, he did know they hated each other. The troubled expression on his face clearly showed how he walked on thorns every day.

"No….. Let him in and postpone my next meeting on the Lanka deal to tomorrow morning."

Her devilish smirk only widened. If it was so important for him to come to her office for a negotiation, then he must be really desperate.

"Yes Mam" Kamu was confused looking at her smile. Whenever the Ice Queen smiled, it was bad omen. Everyone knew that. He would be glad if she didn't fire him one day.

After a minute, her office door opened, and he entered. Tall and charismatic as always but without the usual ridiculous smirk on his face as it was on hers now.

"It's been awhile", he said.