His Monsoon Bride. Aastha Atray

       Amrita took a deep breath and re-entered the lion’s den. Before her nerve failed her she announced, ‘Mehtab, I accept your proposal.’ And then she added, ‘But I have one condition.’

      ‘Anything you want,’ she heard Mehtab say.

      She put on a defiant but calm expression. ‘I will continue to work after I get married, and the less you interfere in my work, the better.’

      She worked? Mehtab thought, surprised. He had taken her to be a spoilt brat, living off daddy’s money. What was this work? But he knew better than to ask that question now. Instead he said, ‘Of course. You are free to live life as you want.’

      ‘Well, then, I agree.’

      Mehtab saw her bottom lip quivering. He knew this was not what she wanted, and it was far from an ideal situation, but it had to be done. Amrita would understand in time. He might not be the Romeo to her Juliet, but he would give her all that she wanted. She didn’t realise how much this marriage would enhance his image and his career—the family man who had a perfect wife and a perfect business. He wanted to be admired and looked up to in all areas of his life—and Amrita was going to make that happen.

      Dear Reader

      When I found out that Harlequin Mills & Boon was looking for their second writer from India, a switch went off in my head. Why am I not taking part in the contest? I asked myself. It was five hours to deadline and I told myself that sometimes, to make dreams come true, you need to take a risk. And so I sat down and started writing as if my life depended on it. My original story, about the slightly voluptuous, shy but smart daughter of a millionaire, Amrita, who finds love with the roguish and rude but utterly handsome businessman Mehtab was just a figment of my imagination that even caught me by surprise. Who knew I was capable of such romance? Even though my romance with my husband, Kishore, has remained fresh for five and a half years now. And so I wrote a story about people who fall in love not because they are attracted to each other’s exteriors, but because eventually it’s a heart of gold that matters. I think it was because my own marriage has made me believe in such a love.

      But I never expected to win! And so when I first got the call saying my story had been selected in the top three I was stunned. In fact, I was grateful for even that achievement. Then, as they called out my name as the winner at the party thrown for the entrants, I knew that taking that risk and giving it my all had paid off. And what an experience it has been!

      Writing a love story for Mills and Boon has been the most creative and fulfilling task I have ever undertaken. It has taught me how to flesh out my characters, how to know that their actions are a result of their past life, and how to see that a person’s past and present shapes their future. From the moment I started writing about Amrita and Mehtab I knew I had to really make them come to life. In fact I had to make the reader feel as if she knew them intimately, and also make her understand why they do what they do.

      Amrita, who on the surface seems to have everything, is actually a slightly confused young woman who wants to be independent and free from the shackles of the elite society she belongs to. She is also very headstrong and intelligent, and is a journalist (I guess I had to put a little bit of me in her!). She also faces a problem that many of us in this day and age do. She thinks she is fat just because she isn’t exactly like the models she sees on the pages of a magazine. But we Indian women are uniquely beautiful because of our curves, and eventually Amrita embraces that, as it’s Mehtab who makes her realise how beautiful she really is. She is also pretty fashionable, and opts for clothes that flatter her figure rather than just going along with a trend, and that underlines an aspect of her personality that’s just so spunky.

      Mehtab was so named because that name just conjures up the image of a tall, big-shouldered, handsome man, whose grin can turn a woman to mush. He is witty and charming, and can say all the right things so that a girl just doesn’t stand a chance. Mehtab is misunderstood, because his steely, rough exterior hides a man who is fighting the demons of his past. But if you manage to go beyond all that, as Amrita finally does, you will find he is a kind, compassionate man. And he falls in love with Amrita for the real her. That’s because he knows that she has also accepted him, with all his baggage, and that is a sure sign of real love.

      Their love story is a good example of how love can be found even when the circumstances are unfavourable. Sometimes life throws curveballs at us, but love really can conquer all. And I hope it makes everyone believe in the fact that true love does exist, and to give up on it would be a shame.

      I am so glad I got to write this Mills and Boon story as it has made me a writer I never imagined I could be. And to be able to show the world what a love story set in contemporary India—my city Mumbai—is really like is also another big plus.

      I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. It’s been a ride!

      Take care!

      Love

       Aastha

      About the Author

      AUTHOR NOTE

      AASTHA ATRAY was the winner of the Passions of India competition 2011. Her exciting story and lively characters immediately stood out from the crowd and caught the judges’ eyes. Here is her inspiring story—from entering the competition to becoming a Mills & Boon® author!

       His Monsoon Bride

      Aastha Atray

       www.millsandboon.co.uk

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      To Mom and Dad,

      who are the wind beneath my wings.

      CHAPTER ONE

      AMRITA PIRAMAL could feel the sticky, stern Mumbai sun staring down at her as if he had a personal grudge against her. She put on her sunglasses and rolled down the windows of the cab that was going barely twenty kilometres an hour. She contemplated telling the driver to speed up, but then, she thought, did she really want to reach home so soon? No, she wanted to delay this as long as she could. Her phone had been ringing off the hook. It was Meera, her nanny, who had looked after her since her mother died when Amrita was ten. She knew that Meera was calling to remind her that she needed to be home on time today—it was the day of the party that would decide her father’s fate.

      Yes, her father, Manoj Piramal, once the richest man in India and in many ways the pioneer of the telecom boom, had been reduced to his last lakh. His habit of blindly trusting people had finally backfired. A former partner had been sucking the company dry and when he was finally found out, the business was on its last legs. The partner was behind bars now, but that didn’t change anything for her father. If he couldn’t manage to get a few investors on board soon, he would have to declare bankruptcy. That was why today’s party was so important. Her father was trying to win over Mumbai’s elite and charm his way back into the society that spurned him. But Amrita knew it wasn’t going to be so easy.

      That